RTHK: Israel pounds Gaza as US envoy arrives for talks

Israel pounded the Gaza Strip overnight killing 10 members of an extended family while rockets smashed into Israel on Saturday, amid violence in the West Bank and as a US envoy arrived for talks.

On the sixth day since military conflict escalated, the death toll rose as the two sides exchanged heavy barrages of fire.

US Secretary for Israel-Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr was due to meet Israeli leaders in Jerusalem on Sunday before heading to the occupied West Bank for talks with Palestinian officials.

He wants to encourage a "sustainable calm", State Department deputy spokeswoman Jalina Porter said.

Washington has been criticised for not doing more to end the intensifying violence, after it blocked a UN Security Council meeting scheduled for Friday.

Eleven Palestinians were killed in clashes in the occupied West Bank on Friday, and there were fears of worse violence on Saturday as Palestinians commemorate the Nakba, the "catastrophe" of Israel's creation in 1948, which turned hundreds of thousands into refugees.

Despite intensifying diplomatic efforts to ease five days of fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza, Israel's fighter jets struck several sites in the coastal enclave overnight, while rockets again tore towards Israel.

On Saturday afternoon, a rocket fired by Palestinian militants in Gaza killed an Israeli when it hit his building in the central town of Ramat Gen, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.

An Israeli strike on a three-storey building in the Shati refugee camp killed 10 members of an extended family - two related mothers and their four children each.

Mohammed al-Hadidi said he had lost most of his family overnight.

"What did they do to deserve this? We're civilians," said the devastated father, whose surviving five-month-old baby was wounded in the strike.

"They are striking our children - children - without previous warning".

Israeli air and artillery strikes on Gaza since Monday have killed 139 people including 39 children, and wounded 1,000 more, health officials say.

Egypt opened its Rafah border crossing with Gaza on Saturday to allow in 10 ambulances to ferry out seriously wounded Palestinians for treatment, medical officials said.

Israel, which is also trying to contain an outbreak of internal Jewish-Arab violence, is facing its bloodiest conflict with Palestinian militants in Gaza since a 2014 war.

Its bombardment began on Monday, after the Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas fired rockets towards Jerusalem.

That was in response to bloody Israeli police action at the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound, as well as a crackdown on protests against the planned Israeli expulsion of Palestinians from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in annexed east Jerusalem.

Palestinian armed groups have fired hundreds of rockets at Israel since, killing 10 people, including a child and a soldier. More than 560 Israelis have been wounded.

Between 7:00 pm Friday and 7:00 am Saturday, some 200 rockets were fired at southern Israel, over 100 of which were intercepted by air defences, the Israeli military said.

Israel's response has seen it hit nearly 800 targets, including a Hamas tunnel network dug under civilian areas on Friday.

Israeli air strikes have levelled entire tower blocks.

Some 10,000 Palestinians have fled homes near the Israeli border for fear of a ground offensive, the United Nations said.

"They are sheltering in schools, mosques and other places during a global Covid-19 pandemic with limited access to water, food, hygiene and health services, said UN humanitarian coordinator for the occupied territories, Lynn Hastings.

Kamal al-Haddad, who fled with his family to a UN-supported school in Gaza City, said: "All the children are afraid, and we are afraid for the children".

The West Bank saw fierce clashes on Friday, with the Palestinian health ministry saying Israeli fire killed 11 people.

A Palestinian security source said the fighting was the "most intense" since the second intifada, or uprising, that began in 2000.

At the least one of the Palestinians killed was shot dead after attempting to stab a soldier north of Ramallah, the Israeli army said, which early on Saturday reported an attempted knife attack in Nablus.

In east Jerusalem, masked Palestinian protesters threw stones and petrol bombs at police, who responded with tear gas.

Within Israel, tensions have spiralled into mob violence in mixed towns that are both home to Jewish Israelis and Arab citizens of Palestinian descent.

More than 750 people have been arrested in mixed Jewish-Arab towns this week, police said, including dozens of Arab Israelis were arrested overnight.

In Jaffa, an Arab child was seriously wounded after a firebomb was thrown into his home, police said.

In the north, where Israel remains technically at war with neighbouring Lebanon and Syria, tensions were also rising.

Three rockets were launched from Syria on Friday evening, while Israel's army said it fired "warning shots" towards a group to stop them crossing from Lebanon, with Israel's arch-enemy, the pro-Iran Shiite group Hezbollah, saying one of its members was killed.

The UN said the Security Council was set to meet on Sunday to address the violence.

But Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave no indication that Israel was ready to ease its campaign.

"I said we'd deliver heavy blows to Hamas and other terror groups, and we're doing that," Netanyahu said. "It's not over yet". (AFP)

This story has been published on: 2021-05-15. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.


AGM-Managing Director & CFO Report

Melbourne, May 14, 2021 AEST (ABN Newswire) - iSignthis Ltd ( ASX:ISX ) ( FRA:TA8 ) is a technology company with EEA and UK financial institution authorisations with inhouse developed flykk(R), ISXPay(R), Paydentity(TM)(patented), Probanx(R) CorePLUS(R) and CoreConnect platforms that allow us to deliver technology and financial services to our customers.We employ more than 125 staff located across Melbourne, Sydney, Vilnius, Nicosia, London, Amsterdam and Tel-Aviv.Approximately half of our staff are technical, with more than 43% of our employees being women.ISX is a:- RegTech that invents and develops software delivered as a service for exchanges, banks, credit unions, financial institutions and payment service providers.- UK and EEA authorised Monetary Financial and Payment Institution, that provides payments, issuance of electronic money, IBAN addressable stored value accounts and KYCC identity verification services to eCommerce merchants, regulated sector businesses and consumers.ISX also operates a sophisticated & patented anti-money laundering and anti-fraud system that also provides transactional security to business and retail customers. It is real time and detects the AML issues currently in focus by regulators.iSignthis is a provider of cloud based core banking & networking. The iSignthis technology group services financial institutions by offering a complete CORE banking software solution (CorePLUS(R)) together with CoreConnect networking.The services are available as SaaS and upfront licensing.During 2020 Probanx Solutions has executed more than 2m transactions processing more than EUR 4.75Bn.What's unique about iSignthis?Onboarding speed and reach. Paydentity can reach, identify, verify and take payment at the same time from 4.2 billion people, or 69% or the world's population. We massively improve conversions by use of automation.Diversified payment choice. ISXPay is a principal member of major card schemes in the EU and/or Australia, including Mastercard, China UnionPay, Diners, Discover, JCB, and American Express, as well as a number of alternative payment methods (APM's).Speed to payout. This is emerging as an important aspect for the customers of our financial services merchants. The ability to move funds quickly and to a variety of destination accounts is a critical selling point for merchants to their customers.Multi-currency choice. We offer between 16 to 23 currencies natively to our merchants, so that they can accept and we will settle in the world's most popular currencies (with some exotics!).- In 2020 the Group recorded its second annual profit of $1.36m, slightly lower than the $1.59m profit in 2019. The lower profit is largely due to higher income tax expense in 2020.- Revenue from Customers increased by 22% to $36.29m, with growth mainly coming from regulated services in Europe.- Expenses increased 20% in 2020 due to increased legal and advisory costs, combined with increased costs to support the Group's revenue growth.- Funds held on behalf of merchants grew 2% in 2020 largely due to foreign exchange gains.To view the full presentation, please visit:About iSignthis Ltd

iSignthis Ltd (ASX:ISX) (FRA:TA8) is a hybrid monetary financial institution and also a RegTech leader in remote identity verification, payment authentication with deposit taking, transactional banking and payment processing capability. iSignthis provides an end-to-end on-boarding service for merchants, with a unified payment, electronic money and identity service via our Paydentity(TM) and ISXPay(R) solutions.

By converging payments and identity, iSignthis delivers regulatory compliance to an enhanced customer due diligence standard, offering global reach to any of the world's 4.2Bn 'bank verified' card or account holders, that can be remotely on-boarded to meet the Customer Due Diligence requirements of AML regulated merchants in as little as 3 to 5 minutes. Paydentity(TM) has now onboarded and verified more than 1.5m persons to an AML KYC standard.

iSignthis Paydentity(TM) service is the trusted back office solution for regulated entities, allowing merchants to stay ahead of the regulatory curve, and focus on growing their core business. iSignthis' subsidiary, iSignthis eMoney Ltd, trades as ISXPay(R), and is an EEA authorised eMoney Monetary Financial Institution, offering card acquiring in the EEA, and Australia.

ISXPay(R) is a principal member of Mastercard Inc, Diners, Discover, (China) Union Pay International and JCB International, an American Express aggregator, and provides merchants with access to payments via alternative methods including SEPA, Poli Payments, Sofort, PRZ24 and others.

Probanx Solutions Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of iSignthis Ltd, provides API based access to CORE Banking solutions, SEPA Core, SEPA Instant and SEPA business scheme, for neobanks, banks, credit unions and emoney institutions, and provides a bridge to the Eurosystem's Central Bank of Lithuania's CENTROLink service.
The Colonial Pipeline is up and working again, but gas shortages -- and the ensuing gas panic -- probably won't be resolved for a few more days.

Here's what you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day.

(You can also get "5 Things You Need to Know Today" delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.)

1. Coronavirus

People in the US who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 do not need to wear masks or practice social distancing indoors or outdoors, except in certain circumstances, according to new guidance from the CDC. This news is a game changer, and some states and businesses are already reconsidering their mask policies in response. However, experts say there's still a long road ahead for those who haven't been vaccinated, and questions remain for people with compromised immune systems or households with unvaccinated children or other members. Meanwhile, the fate of the Tokyo Olympic Games is still in the air. A doctor's union in Japan has urged the government to cancel this summer's competitions, citing the country's low vaccination rate.

2. Policing

The state trial for the three former Minneapolis police officers accused of aiding and abetting the murder of George Floyd has been postponed until next March so a federal trial can take place first. J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao all have pleaded not guilty to two state charges. A federal grand jury last week indicted all of the officers, including Derek Chauvin, in connection with Floyd's death, alleging they violated his constitutional rights. Meantime, the Supreme Court is tackling a different case that could provide more guidance on the legal doctrine of qualified immunity that shields law enforcement from some liability. The case was brought by the parents of Nicholas Gilbert, who say their son died in police custody in St. Louis after officers put their weight on his back as he was shackled facedown.

3. Immigration

The Biden administration is looking to identify vulnerable migrant families in Mexico and admit them to the US instead of expelling them under a Trump-era border policy known as Title 42. The policy was enacted at the start of the pandemic, and critics say it puts migrants and asylum-seekers in harm's way, exposing them to potentially dangerous conditions in Mexico. Because of Title 42, many migrant families have opted to separate from their children, since the rule does not apply to minors. Two large emergency intake sites in Texas that have sheltered unaccompanied children during this year's influx of arrivals will close by early June, marking some of the first closures as the number of kids in border facilities drops.

4. Afghanistan

China is conflicted over the US troop withdrawal in Afghanistan. At a forum of Central Asian leaders this week, China's foreign minister said Beijing supports the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan. But a spokesperson for China's foreign ministry earlier had criticized the decision, calling it abrupt and saying it will lead to instability. China supported the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan, even though it typically dislikes foreign intervention. However, Afghanistan under Taliban rule had become a source of instability on China's border. Now, China is facing two possibilities: The US withdrawal could mean greater Chinese military engagement in the region, or it could once again plunge Afghanistan into war and chaos, leaving China off-balance.

5. Tigray

A top House Foreign Affairs Committee member is calling on the Biden administration to enact sanctions in response to the ongoing human rights abuses in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. A CNN investigation found that soldiers from neighboring Eritrea were blocking critical humanitarian aid to starving and wounded civilians, sometimes even disguising themselves in old Ethiopian military uniforms. Thousands of civilians are believed to have been killed since Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched a military operation in November against the region's ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front. Both Ethiopian and Eritrean forces have been accused of enacting mass killings and widespread sexual violence.

BREAKFAST BROWSE

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Ain't no party like a wax statue party cause a wax statue party is ... probably pretty quiet.

Birkin bags hit record prices even as the world ground to a halt

Would you like an entire luxury car or a purse? The price points are the same.

Letter written by Einstein featuring his famous equation goes up for auction

It features one of the few handwritten examples of E=mc2, which is wild.

The 'Friends' reunion is finally coming to HBO Max

Also known as "The one that people have been waiting for FOREVER"

Scientists bring to life nearly 100 baby sharks through artificial insemination

Remember those tiny growing sharks you'd stick in water, and they'd get really big overnight? It's kind of like that.

TODAY'S NUMBER

2 million

That's about how many Americans will lose unemployment benefits early as 16 states have announced they will stop providing enhanced federal jobless payments. The latest Republican-led states to make the call? Georgia, Arizona and Ohio.

TODAY'S QUOTE

"I don't look at this as the end at all. It's the start of a new chapter, and hopefully, my fans will go with me wherever I go."

Ellen DeGeneres, discussing plans to end her daytime show in 2022

TODAY'S WEATHER

Check your local forecast here>>>

AND FINALLY

A lil' dancey dance

Turnip the tortoise can't help but give a little wiggle during her shower. (Click here to view.)
BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. - A woman from Bangor was sentenced to prison on May 13 on three counts of child endangerment for poisoning her three-year-old daughter with methamphetamine in April of 2020.

Alisha Helene Crandall, 40, was given the max sentence of seven years and fourth months in state prison.

The Butte County Sheriffs deputies and CAL FIRE medics responded to a call of a small child having ingested meth. A three-year-old in urgent medical distress was transported to Oroville Hospital.

Crandall had been smoking meth and emptied her meth "bong" water into a red plastic cup and left it accessible to her children.

Crandalls daughter drank the cup accidentally and suffered methamphetamine poisoning immediately. She began having seizures and a high fever.

Instead of calling 911, Crandall and her boyfriend Joseph Scott Webb, 43, cracked raw eggs down the childs throat to induce vomiting and threw her in a pond to cool the fever. After 15 minutes a neighbor became aware of the situation and called 911.

The three-year-old was taken to Oroville Hospital where doctors and nurses performed life-saving measures, she was then taken to UC Davis by helicopter. It wasnt initially clear if Crandalls daughter would survive her injuries, but was ultimately saved by the doctors and nurses who treated her.

Deputies found that Crandall and Webb were living in deplorable conditions with Crandalls three children ages three, six and eight. The family was living amongst broken-down vehicles and incomplete trailers with no running water, electricity and insufficient food.

The children had not been to school and had not gone to the doctor or dentists for a substantial time, said Ramsey.

Webb was sentenced last year to six months in Butte County Jail and four years of felony probation for his part in this event. Webb cut off all contact with Crandall after this incident.

Crandall had also lost a newborn in Nevada several years ago who was born and tested positive for meth a died shortly after. She was not prosecuted for this incident.
SHASTA AND TRINITY COUNTIES, Calif.  An increase in fire danger posed by dead grass and hotter, drier conditions in Northern California has led to an announcement by CAL FIRE that all burn permits will be suspended on Monday, May 17, 2021, for outdoor and residential burning within the State Responsibility Area of Shasta and Eastern Trinity Counties.

All residential outdoor burning of landscape debris such as branches and leaves will be banned as of May 17th for the 2021 fire season.

According to CAL FIRE, the fire season in California and across the West is starting earlier and ending later each year.

CAL FIRE said climate change is considered a key driver of this trend, adding that, warmer spring and summer temperatures, reduced snowpack, and earlier spring snowmelt, create long and more intense dry seasons that increase moisture stress of vegetation and make forests more susceptible to severe wildfire.

Last year, California experienced its most destructive fire season in the states known history, said CAL FIRE Director and Chief Thom Porter.

Together, we must continue to adapt and evolve to be able to withstand the intensity of these fires, continued Chief Porter, who said the only way to minimize the damage the cause of the fire is through education, prevention, and mitigation.

We are relying on the public to be ready, announced Chief Porter. The sentiment was echoed by Shasta-Trinity Unit Chief Bret Gouvea, who is pushing education about home gardening and the maintenance of defensible space. Residents need to be prepared, Gouvea stressed.

According to CAL FIRE, the state has responded to 1,812 wildfires since the beginning of 2021. In 2020 California experienced its most destructive fire season in known history.

Chief Gouveau wants to make sure Shasta and Trinity County are prepared by having all residents maintain a minimum of 100 feet of defensive space around every home and building. Also, he wants every citizen to be prepared to evacuate if and when the time comes.

Other CAL FIRE tips include landscaping with fire-resistant plants and non-flammable ground cover.

They also suggest people find alternative ways to dispose of landscape debris such as chipping or hauling to a biomass energy or green waste facility.

According to CAL FIRE, temporary burning permits may be issued if there is an essential reason due to public health and safety. They said Agriculture, land management, fire training, and other industrial-type burning may proceed if a CAL FIRE official inspects the burn site and issues a special permit.

The suspension of burn permits does not apply to campfires within organized campgrounds or on private property. Campfires may be permitted if the campfire is maintained in such a manner as to prevent its spread to the wildland.

Campfire permits are required for open fires, such as campfire, barbecues, and portable stoves on federally controlled lands and private lands that are the property of another person. On private lands, written permission from the landowner is also required for campfires.

A campfire permit can be obtained at local fire stations or online by CLICKING HERE. We have also embedded a video about operating safe campfires in this article.

There is more information on creating and maintaining defensible space, hardening your home, and planning evacuations AT THIS WEBPAGE called Ready for Wildfire.
Three important developments took place in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado province in a period of less than six weeks, all with a significant future impact on human lives.



First, in mid-March the U.S. designated an armed opposition group operating in Cabo Delgado as a "terrorist" organization and sent military advisors to train the Mozambique army in counter-terrorism measures.

A fortnight later, the town of Palma  close to a multi-billion-dollar gas project run by the French company Total  was attacked by an armed group in a high profile and brutal assault that killed a still undetermined number of people and displaced at least 30,000.

In early April, Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries condemned the terrorist attacks in strongest terms, and affirmed that "such heinous attacks cannot be allowed to continue without a proportionate regional response." SADC deployed a "technical mission" to Mozambique that has recommended the deployment of 3,000 regional troops.

Much of this recent attention on Cabo Delgado was fueled by the claims of the opposition groups linked to the Islamic State (IS) and the killing of foreigners in the attack on Palma.

While the conflict has been going on since 2017, it has received very little political attention regionally or internationally  except those interested in Mozambique's gas reserves or private military contracts.

Much less attention has been given to the growing number of displaced people  now over 700,000  and the critical humanitarian crisis facing the province.

Cabo Delgado might not be a forgotten conflict, but it certainly is a neglected humanitarian crisis. And now, with SADC attention and the Mozambican government's international backers fixed almost exclusively on "fighting terrorism," the solutions being proposed may once again overlook the urgent need to save lives, and alleviate the suffering of scores of conflict-affected communities.

Hundreds of thousands of people have fled the violence and insecurity, ending up living in overcrowded camps or being hosted by local communities with already limited resources.

People have experienced significant trauma: a decapitated husband, a kidnapped wife, a son or daughter from whom they have no news.

Many walk for days to find safety after hiding in the bush, often without food and water. Others remain in locations humanitarian actors cannot reach due to ongoing insecurity.

While the reasons for this conflict might be multifaceted and complex, the consequences of the violence are strikingly simple: fear, insecurity and a lack of access to the basic needs for survival, including food, water, shelter and urgent healthcare.

Meanwhile, significant restrictions are placed on the humanitarian response due to ongoing insecurity and bureaucratic hurdles impeding importation of certain supplies and the issuing of visas for additional humanitarian workers.

Having recently returned from Cabo Delgado, I have seen first-hand how the scale of the humanitarian response in no way matches needs.

What does seem set to escalate is regionally supported and internationally funded counter-terrorism operation that could further impact an already vulnerable population.

In many conflicts, from Syria to Iraq and Afghanistan, I have seen how counter-terrorism operations can generate additional humanitarian needs while limiting the ability of humanitarian workers to respond.

Firstly, by designating a group as "terrorist," we often see this pushing the groups further underground, making dialogue with them for humanitarian access more complex.

While states can claim that they "don't negotiate with terrorists," humanitarian workers are compelled to provide humanitarian aid impartially and to negotiate with any group that controls territory or that can harm our patients and staff.

Many aid organizations shy away from this in places where a group has been designated as "terrorist" out of fear of falling foul of counter-terrorism legislation.

For Medecins Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders (MSF), successfully providing impartial medical care requires reserving a space for dialogue and building trust in the fact that our presence in a conflict is for the sole purpose of saving lives and alleviating suffering.

In counter-terrorism wars around the world, we often see civilian casualties being justified due to the presence of "terrorists" among a civilian population.

Entire communities can be considered as "hostile," leading to a loosening of the rules of engagement for combat forces.

It is in these situations we often see hospitals destroyed and entire villages razed to the ground in attacks that fail to distinguish between military and civilian targets.

Communities are often trapped between indiscriminate violence by armed groups and the counter-terrorism response from the state.

The current focus on "terrorism" clearly serves the political and economic interests of those intervening in Mozambique. However, it must not come at the expense of saving lives and alleviating the immense local suffering.

Jonathan Whittall is MSF Director of Analysis.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.

If you would like to contribute, please contact us at opinion@china.org.cn.
Updated 10:35 a.m. May 15, 2021 - We have deleted a line from this story from Pamela Stowe of the California Nurses Association. Stowe had stated in our interview that she was a board member of Enloe Medical Center.

Enloe's Joe Page emailed Action News Now on Saturday morning and said Stowe is not on the board of Enloe Medical Center.

---

CHICO, Calif. - On Friday, Registered Nurses (RN) at Enloe Medical Center gathered for an instructional picket, demanding that management prioritize patient safety and address short staffing, inadequate PPE, and hospital preparedness for natural disasters.

RNs at Enloe said management refuses to address these issues as well as infection control protocols for safe patient care during the pandemic, or hospital preparedness for natural disasters.

They want the hospital to guarantee this will all be addressed in the new contract negotiated with them.

The nurses have been bargaining for a new contract with Enloe since October 2020. The current agreement expired in March 2021.

"Enloe Medical Center is not coming to the bargaining table fairly," said Pamela Stowe, who is on the regional board of directors for CNA. "Not wanting to support the nurses, they havent throughout the entire pandemic... They want PPE they want safe practice thats the main thing right there, they want safe care for their patients and themselves and Enloe doesnt want to provide that."

"Weve been at it since October but we really want that language that strong language in our contract about safety, that language will help protect us and our patients and nurses while theyre caring for them," said RN, Alma Gamboa-Applebee.

Response from Enloe Medical Center Regarding CNA Informational Picket:

Current State:

 Enloe is eager to get a new contract in place with the California Nurses Association, the union representing Enloes Registered Nurses.

 Enloe has been bargaining in good faith since October and will continue until we reach agreement with CNA.

 After both parties agreed to multiple contract extensions, the previous three-year contract expired March 9, 2021.

 Before the contract expired, Enloe suggested the parties seek assistance from a federal mediator to help move the process forward.

 CNA declined using a mediator at that point, however a few weeks after the contract expired, CNA agreed to this assistance. We hope to be able to report positive results in the coming weeks.

Outstanding issues:

 The parties have reached tentative agreement on several items at this point.

We continue to discuss the issue of wages. While there is no change proposed to the annual 3% step increase nurses receive, we are discussing additional wage scale increases for the future. Enloe has proposed a wage scale increase in years two and three of the contract. CNA is asking for a wage scale increase in year one as well.

 Enloe is working to balance an uncertain future related to the pandemic, in an environment of increasing prices, while recognizing and appreciating the hard work of all our caregivers. Our wage proposal takes this into account as we strive for equity among all Enloe employees.

 In addition to wage issues, we are still discussing two proposals from the union related to infectious diseases and natural disasters that would incorporate recent laws into the contract. Enloe already follows these laws, so it is unnecessary to include this language in the body of the contract. Laws change frequently, therefore it would be problematic to include this specific language as part of the CNA contract.

 Enloe values the sacrifices all caregivers throughout the organization have made during the COVID-19 pandemic and during previous regional disasters.

Regarding hospital safety:

 Enloe has met head-on every safety issue arising from the current pandemic, as we have done when previous disasters affected our region. We have more than 1,000 nurses and hundreds of physicians that continue to work hard providing safe care for our patients and we are proud of their efforts.

 In the early months of the pandemic, CNA made public accusations of unsafe hospital conditions across California at the risk of inciting public fear around hospital safety. These accusations may have resulted in patients delaying necessary care. Enloe Medical Center has been, and continues to be, one of the safest hospitals in the country as evidenced by government rating agencies that rank Enloe in the top 5% of hospitals in the U.S.

 We worked effectively in collaboration with Butte County Public Health to rapidly provide COVID-19 vaccines to both hospital employees and county residents. All healthcare workers and community members have had an opportunity to receive vaccination.

 When the number of COVID patients was rising and many California RNs were out on sick leave, Enloe maintained ratios, and did not take advantage of the states available waivers for staffing ratios. Instead, we brought in traveling nurses and followed our well-thought-out surge plan.

 Enloe has continually worked to ensure that registered nurses and other caregivers have the PPE they need to stay safe.

 Despite a global disruption in manufacturing and supply of medical supplies and equipment, Enloe has worked to secure lifesaving medicines and supplies regardless of the cost. Although this disruption lingers, we have faith that our procurement department will continue to secure the supplies we need to keep our employees and patients safe.

 Enloe remains compliant with current CDC and CDPH guidelines and provides regular education to staff to ensure their safety
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - The commission formed to observe the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre has booted Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt from his seat on the panel.

The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission move comes after project manager Phil Armstrong criticized the Republican governor for signing a bill into law outlawing the teaching of certain race and racism concepts in Oklahoma schools. Stitt spokeswoman Carly Atchison said the governor learned of his ouster from a commission news release Friday.

The statement from the commission did not indicate the reason for the parting, and a spokeswoman said the commission had no further comment.
REDDING, Calif. - Thousands of people flocked to the Redding Civic Auditorium parking lot to enjoy a hot breakfast courtesy of the Asphalt Cowboys.

And for many, it's a tradition. Ive been coming here since I was little," said Sabrina Cantu, from Redding. "I absolutely love the atmosphere, the Asphalt Cowboys are amazing.

Pancakes and sausages were on the menu for breakfast, and some people who attended were obsessed with the flavor.

"It tastes really amazing," said Aba Wilson.

Gina Cantu also agrees, saying this a can't miss event. "Everybody should come down every single year."

The Asphalt Cowboys tell Action News Now, they make roughly 30,000 pancakes each time the event is held.

RELATED: Redding Rodeo rides out of the gates for day one

"We put out a good meal and the folks at Shasta County love it and we love to be part of it," said Jim Pope, a fellow Asphalt Cowboy.

Cowboys and cowgirls say they missed coming to the breakfast last year.

"That was strange," said Gina adding that "it was uncomfortable, it's good to get back on the saddle so to speak."

"Its just great to be back we come every year. Its a great event for our community, said Denise Ball, who was happy to see the pancake event come back Friday.

Pope sys even though this fan-favorite event is back, they had to put others on the back burner for next year.

"We hope to get the parade back. We hope to do the things we miss," Pope said.

The cowboys served up pancakes from 5 a.m until 10 a.m. Friday.
The church is called to accompany humanity, as Pope Francis noted in his Sept. 30, 2020, weekly audience. We must bring healing and salvation in the midst of sickness and death  tenderness in the midst of hatred  and viralize love and globalize hope in the light of faith.

While the growing availability of effective COVID-19 vaccines is a sign of hope, the pandemic is still far from over. The number of cases is growing globally, with India seeing more than 400,000 in just one day. As the virus mutates, the pandemic will continue to wreak havoc with mounting death tolls, financial ruin, social isolation and great suffering for the most vulnerable.

Recently Cardinal Cupich of Chicago went even further: Not only CAN Catholics get the COVID vaccine, they MUST GET THE VACCINE. It is their moral duty.

This statement was further bolstered by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) in Rome, which is the Holy Fathers own doctrinal and moral office. Also, this same position was taken by the well-respected National Catholic Bioethics Center (NCBC). If a choice of vaccine is possible, the ones that are the least morally compromised should always be requested. However, when there is no choice, the Church teaches that it is morally permissible to receive the vaccine.

They basically reassured everyone that regardless of how closely a COVID vaccine was linked to aborted fetuses, Catholics could in good conscience get one.

For those of us whose children were harmed by their pediatric vaccines, coercion to get another vaccine is a sin. To ask us to do so, is to ask us to forsake our children at the altar of Pharma. By Anne Dachel

We must also bring truth and, as he urged in Fratelli Tutti, look upon this moment as a new opportunity to rediscover once for all that we need one another, and that in this way our human family can experience a rebirth, with all its faces, all its hands and all its voices.

Nothing less than the future of humanity is at stake, which is why the Holy Father insisted in January that morally everyone must take the vaccine. It is the moral choice because it is about your life but also the lives of others.

For years many of us involved in issues of vaccine safety have described the blind obedience people have when it comes to the mandated schedule, no questions asked, as a religion. Vaccines are safe, vaccines save lives is a tenet of the faith.

NOW just like Cupich in Chicago, lots of actual churches are promoting the COVID vaccine. Just a quick look at the news shows that to be true. Denominations are promoting this untested, liability-free vaccine everywhere.

Hartford, CT: Grace Worship Center Church Partners With Hartford Health Care To Provide COVID-19 Vaccines

This Monday, in addition to visitors getting food boxes, they also had a chance to get their COVID-19 shot. The effort is a part of the church's mission to try and help with accessibility to the shots.

Coon Rapids, MN: Vaccination bus clinic will be May 20 at Excelsior United Methodist Church

The vaccine is available to all community members ages 18 and older. The COVID-19 vaccine is free and no insurance or ID will be requested.

Sioux City, IA: COVID-19 vaccines offered at local churchs drive-up food pantry

On Monday, the COVID-19 vaccines were offered along with fresh produce and dry goods at a drive-up food pantry hosted by the St. Thomas Episcopal Church and Drilling Pharmacy.

The pantry is held weekly, and organizers said offering the vaccine helps protect the underserved Siouxlanders.

Volunteer here every week and you get to know people, know a little bit about their lives and their names, and you see them, and then you realize they dont have as easy, some of them, dont have as easy access as we might to get their COVID shot and to provide that service is just a blessing, said Rev. Patricia Johnson, St. Thomas Episcopal Church.

Rochester, MN, Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine med students lead COVID-19 vaccine educational campaign

A group of medical students from Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine is leading a critical mission to educate as many people as possible about COVID-19 vaccines.

Ryan Ko, M1, Mallory Evans, M2, and Brandon Prentice, M1, have led OUWBs COVID-19 Vaccine Educational Campaign, working with community partners such as Baldwin Center, Welcome Missionary Baptist Church, and Gary Burnstein Community Clinic.

Mansfield, OH: Maddox Memorial Church of God in Christ to host drive-thru COVID-19 vaccination clinic

In partnership with Richland Public Health, Maddox Memorial Temple Church of God in Christ, 1148 Walker Lake Road, will host a drive-thru COVID-19 vaccination clinic May 20 from noon to 4 p.m.

Portland, OR: High marks given to Oregon vaccine rollout



Rose Bak, chief program officer for Catholic Charities of Oregon, said her agency has seen good cooperation from health authorities in getting vaccines for people without housing as well as low-income residents of Catholic Charities apartments. Oregon moved homeless people high on the list of priorities and counted on agencies to locate those who needed shots. Those who work with homeless people also had early access to vaccines, rightly being treated like first responders, said Bak.



Catholic Charities has provided vaccine information on the streets and has provided rides to clinics.

Deacon Marco Espinoza of St. Anthony Parish in Tigard said his church stepped up when Washington County health officials were looking for a place to vaccinate Latino residents. In March, Deacon Espinoza told KGW television that his community tends not to sign up for things on the internet, de rigueur for COVID-19 shots. But they do know and love the parish and so felt at home there. Deacon Espinoza got his own vaccine as an example to skeptics and then shepherded people through the process.

Joliet, IL: Vaccine Clinic Being Held Saturday At St. Peters Church In Joliet

Nicole Garrett Program Manager with the Will County Health Department says there will be a vaccination clinic held Saturday, May 15th at St. Peters Church on Hickory Street. They have 800 doses of the Moderna vaccine and will be provided at no cost.

Syracuse, NY: A Syracuse church volunteered to be a vaccination site in honor of usher who died of COVID

The Second Olivet Baptist Church is a part of the community on the Near Westside in Syracuse, one of the lowest vaccinated areas not just in the city, but in Onondaga County. It's part of the reason why Pastor Cyrus Thornton approached the county to become a vaccination site

"We wanted to be a beacon of light to those that may be fearful to say hey, here we are a community, a church who is saying hey let's take the vaccine, let's do our part to be responsible citizens," said Thornton

The Pope has been a big proponent for waiving patent rights on the COVID vaccine in order to vaccinate as many people as possible.

May 10, 2021, RNS: With Pope Francis blessing, Catholics pressed Biden White House to waive vaccine patents

A few days later, the Vaticans COVID-19 Commission, which answers directly to the pope, published a document titled Vaccine for all: 20 points for a fairer and healthier world. The document invoked Francis address in a section on vaccine patents, arguing the world should consider the vaccine as a good to which everyone should have access, without discrimination, according to the principle of the universal destination of goods.

Then, in February, in a speech before the WTO, Archbishop Ivan Jurkovic, the Vaticans permanent observer at the United Nations, spelled out the Holy Sees position again, quoting Francis view that vaccine waivers could benefit the entire human family.
Another day of reckoning for the long-beleaguered nuclear plant in northeast Alabama is at hand.

The lawsuit brought by the company seeking to purchase the unfinished plant, which collapsed hours before the deals closing date, will go to trial in U.S. District Court in Huntsville on Sunday.

Nuclear Development LLC, a company formed by Tennessee developer Franklin Haney for the purpose of purchasing Bellefonte Nuclear Plant near Scottsboro, filed a breach of contract lawsuit in 2018 against Tennessee Valley Authority  which owns the plant.

The case will be heard and decided by U.S. District Judge Liles Burke. There will be no jury.

At issue is whether TVA had the legal authority to sell the plant to Nuclear Development by the closing deadline in November 2018. TVA has argued it did not have the right to complete the sale because ND had not completed the process of acquiring the appropriate permits from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to take possession of the plant.

ND has argued that issue should not have scuttled the sale.

Whats at stake could be the future of the plant  which has long promised economic prosperity to rural Jackson County but never delivered.

TVA began construction on the plant in 1974 but never completed it. The federal utility eventually declared it surplus property and put it up for auction in 2016. Nuclear Development submitted the winning bid at $111 million.

The company hired former TVA executives, including former CEO Bill McCollum, to shepherd bringing the plant online. Nuclear Development has promised to invest billions into completing the plant, which in return will surge the economy in the region to unseen heights.

At a Nuclear Development promotional event at the plant four months before the purchase closing date, U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks  whose district includes the plant  said the plant, once completed, would create 1,040 jobs with an average annual salary of $136,000 as well as another 3,100 indirect jobs with an annual salary of about $52,000.

An added plot of intrigue in the stalemate between TVA and ND is the upstart companys courting of Memphis Light, Gas & Water as a potential customer for electricity generated at Bellefonte. Memphis is TVAs largest customer.

We had every right to solicit customers of TVA, said Caine ORear III, one of NDs attorneys, during a court hearing in February.

TVA has said that NDs recruitment of Memphis was not a cause for declining to close on the sale.

Nuclear Development has paid TVA $22 million so far toward the $111 million auction price of the plant and another $7.1 million for plant maintenance, according to the lawsuit.
Environmental regulators in Florida and Alabama are warning the public to avoid any water activity in Perdido Bay south of Bayou Marcus Creek, after a major sewage spill.

The spill occurred on the Florida side of Perdido Bay, which spans the two states north of Orange Beach.

The Emerald Coast Utilities Authority in Florida has reported a rupture within the grounds of the Bayou Marcus Water Reclamation Facility, resulting in release of untreated sewage into the bay, according to the Florida Department of Health.

Florida officials said that as of 5:20 p.m. Friday work was ongoing to repair the rupture. The Florida Department of Health issued a health advisory saying it advises against any water-related activities due to the potential for elevated levels of bacteria in the water.

They say the rupture occurred around 10:30 p.m. Thursday in a 30-inch diameter pipe between the headworks (beginning of plant process) and the biological treatment basins. Sewage at this point in the process has undergone primary screening and de-gritting, but has not been otherwise treated.

The water utility reports that they expect the pipe to be replaced Friday and that preliminary estimates suggest several million gallons of flow will have been lost.

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management says that no public drinking water sources in Baldwin County will be impacted by the spill, but that water monitoring signs in Perdido Bay area are being updated to reflect an increased risk of illness associated with swimming in these areas.

The general location of the treatment facility where the rupture occurred is indicated in the map below, about six miles across the Bay from Lillian, Alabama. The U.S. 98 bridge and most of the rest of Perdido Bay, south of the facility is included in the advisory.
 Flash

U.S. Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan on Friday hailed Washington Governor Jay Inslee's announcement of statewide reopening on June 30.

"Our new normal is coming in June, and it's because of our community-wide commitment to getting vaccinated. The home stretch is here," Durkan said in a statement.

"Weeks ago, we were facing a surge of new cases and hospitalizations. While the variants continue to be in our community, we have seen the collective impact of our vaccination efforts which have saved lives and moved us significantly down the path to reopening," she noted.

Inslee's announcement came after the phase movement was paused for two weeks to review an emerging flattening trend in statewide COVID-19 data. As of Thursday, the plateau observed in COVID-19 activity became a decline in the state.

"This next part of our fight to save lives in Washington will focus on increasing vaccination rates and continuing to monitor variants of concern as we move toward reopening our state," Inslee said at a press conference Thursday.

According to Inslee, the full reopening could happen earlier than June 30 if 70% or more of Washingtonians over the age of 16 initiate vaccination.

"The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and DOH (Department of Health) are paving the way for a fully vaccinated future. Get vaccinated to enjoy the things we miss the most... Get vaccinated to go without a mask in most situations. Get vaccinated so we can protect our community-wide health and safety," Durkan said in her statement.

Washington state has administered over six million doses of vaccine, and 56% of Washingtonians have initiated vaccination, according to official data.
 Flash

China on Friday slammed the United States for compelling the UN Security Council to postpone a meeting on the Palestine-Israel issue that was originally scheduled to open Friday.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing that on Monday, the United States expressed opposition to the adoption of a Security Council presidential statement on the Palestine-Israel issue, and it also blocked the issuance of a statement from UN Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday expressing concern about the situation in Palestine.

"Like the international community, China is also gravely concerned about the current escalating situation between Israel and Palestine," said Hua.

She said that, as holder of the rotating UNSC presidency in May, China has been actively mediating and promoted the convening of two emergency consultations of the Security Council to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"The members of the Security Council have generally expressed their concerns and worries about the conflict situation and requested the Security Council to play its due role to promote the stability and cooling of the situation and prevent it from getting out of hand," she said.

Hua said that the United States has taken the opposite position against the international community, and she asked the country to explain why it is doing this.

"I wonder if the U.S. side can give a candid answer to this question. Why is it doing this?" she said.

She said that the United States keeps saying it cares about the human rights of Muslims. Now the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has reoccurred, and a large number of Palestinian Muslims have been affected by the war and are suffering, but the United States shows indifference to their suffering and has been strongly obstructive on the issue.

Meanwhile, it joined with a few of its allies and attempted to organize meaningless meetings on Xinjiang-related issues based on lies and political prejudice, which was actually a political farce, she said.

"The United States should realize that the lives of Palestinian Muslims are equally precious," said the spokesperson.

Hua said that, in the face of the current serious situation, all sides must make every effort to cool the situation, protect the safety and rights and interests of ordinary people, and prevent the crisis from escalating and getting out of control.

"China will continue to push the Security Council to perform its duties in maintaining international peace and security, take action on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at an early date, reiterate its commitment and firm support for a 'two-state solution,' and promote the restoration of peace and stability in the region as soon as possible," said Hua.
Tou Thao, one of the four Minneapolis police officers charged in the murder of George Floyd, filed a motion on Wednesday accusing the State of Minnesota of prosecutorial misconduct stemming from witness coercion. If Thaos accusations are true, and they certainly seem to be, the State has allowed this trial to drift irredeemably far into the brave new world of mob rule.

The charges center on the testimony of Dr. Andrew Baker, the Hennepin County Medical Examiner. Baker conducted an autopsy on Floyd on May 26, 2020, the day after Floyds death. As yet unaware of the politics of the case, Baker reported his findings honestly, namely that [t]he autopsy revealed no physical evidence suggesting that Mr. Floyd died of asphyxiation. Mr. Floyd did not exhibit signs of petechiae, damage to his airways or thyroid, brain bleeding, bone injuries, or internal bruising.

Three days later, the State filed its initial complaint against Derek Chauvin. According to the complaint, quoted by Thao, The full report of the ME is pending but the ME has made the preliminary findings. The autopsy revealed no physical findings that support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation.

It appears that prosecutors came quickly to the realization that without a charge of asphyxia, they could not accuse Chauvin of Murder-2nd Degree. As of May 29, he had been charged only with Murder-3rd Degree and Manslaughter-2nd Degree, and neither of those charges would have satisfied the largely peaceful protestors busily burning down America

Enter Dr. Roger Mitchell, stage left. A former Medical Examiner of Washington D.C. and current chair of the pathology department at Howard University College of Medicine, Mitchell spoke with Dr. Baker before Baker finalized his findings on June 1. Unsatisfied with the conversation, Mitchell decided he was going to release an op-ed critical of Dr. Bakers findings in the Washington Post.

According to Thaos motion, Mitchell called Baker to give him a heads up on the Post article and warned him, You dont want to be the medical examiner who tells everyone they didnt see what they saw, adding that neck compression has to be in the diagnosis.

Following the two conversations, Baker issued a press release containing the final autopsy that now listed neck compression among the findings. On November 5, 2020, state prosecutors met with Mitchell but have not shared the audio of that meeting, if one exists, with Thaos defense team, Robert and Natalie Paule.

In the Chauvin trial, defense witness Dr. David Fowler, former chief medical examiner for the State of Maryland, ably refuted the asphyxia diagnosis. He argued that Floyd had likely died of a sudden cardiac event.

The physician with whom I have been consulting, Dr. John Dunn, a former chairman of the medico-legal committee for the American College of Emergency Physicians, has come to a similar conclusion. "Asphyxiation was not the cause of George Floyd's death," he argues. "It was cardiac arrhythmia during an episode of excited delirium, a well-known cause of sudden death.

Eight days after Fowlers testimony, Mitchell wrote an open letter to, among others, Brian Frosh, the Attorney General for the State of Maryland, calling for an immediate investigation into the practices of the physician as well as the practice of the Maryland State Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) while under his leadership. Fowler had served 17 years in that position. Less than 24 hours after seeing the letter, Frosh launched a review.

According to Thaos motion, The State knew that a potential expert witness had coerced the States main expert witness/the only expert to perform the physical autopsy in the case of State v. Thao. The State did nothing in response to this coercion. Instead, the State knowingly allowed Dr. Baker to take the stand in State v. Chauvin and testified to coerced statements.

Again, according to Thaos motion, Dr. Mitchells conduct meets the elements to be found guilty of committing the crime of coercion. Thao argues that Mitchell used the threat of a Washington Post op-ed to coerce Baker into modifying his opinion. Once Baker obliged him, Mitchell did not follow through on the op-ed.

If that were not mischief enough, the Thao motion continues, Mitchell unlawfully injured Dr. Fowlers trade by penning an open letter which resulted in an investigation into every death report in Maryland during Dr. Fowlers tenure.

As to how Mitchells interference affects Thao and the other police defendants, Thaos point is inarguable: Dr. Mitchells accusations and spurring of legal fallacies creates a chilling effect for Mr. Thao and violates his due process rights in that it has become extraordinarily difficult to find medical experts who are willing to state that Mr. Floyds death was undetermined in fear of their professional reputation and licensure.

Given what has happened to Fowler -- let alone to Barry Brodd, the defenses use-of-force expert whose former home was smeared with pigs blood following his testimony -- Thaos team will have an extraordinarily hard time recruiting any expert witnesses.

A day after Thao filed his motion, Judge Peter Cahill pushed back his trial and that of his colleagues from its August 23, 2021, scheduled date to March 22. The stated reason was to allow the federal civil rights case against the four to take precedence. Who knows what the real reason was?

What is most disturbing for those who have been paying attention is that too many conservative commentators and Republican politicians have watched this unfold in silence. What will it take, one wonders, to get their attention?

Jack Cashills latest book, Barack Obamas Promised Land: Deplorables Need Not Apply, is now on pre-sale. See www.cashill.com for more information.

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The San Francisco Unified School District and United Educators of San Francisco, the local affiliate of the National Education Association, the countrys largest special interest group, have reached an agreement to allow high school seniors to return to school.

According to the deal, two of the citys twelve high schools, which have been closed for more than a full calendar year, will open on May 14 for one day of in-person supervision so that they can receive a $15 million handout from the state government for getting kids back into school before the -- wait for it -- May 15 deadline.

Yep, just one day. Yep, just two schools. Yep, just for in-person supervision, not in-person instruction.

In-person supervision is union-speak for Shut up and sit here in this room all day while we count our money. On May 13, the unions position was that the high schools arent safe to open. On May 14, they are safe enough to open, as long as you have that check in hand. On May 15? Who knows? Probably back to being unsafe again, unless you really make it worth our while.

Unions across the country have been fighting the reopening of public schools tooth and nail for more than a year, the science be damned.

Evidence showing schools could reopen safely with little risk of transmission or infection in the classroom? Yeah, they dont care.

Evidence that these long-term school closures were having negative mental and physical consequences for children, let alone their serious academic consequences? So what? the unions say. They arent putting one toe in the classroom, your children be damned, until they get Medicare for All, a moratorium on housing evictions, a wealth tax, a moratorium on charter schools, an end to voucher programs, the Maltese Falcon, and the secret to eternal life.

If it were up to them, youd be having drinks with Godot before your child is able to go back to school.

The sad truth is that the more power a union has in your school district, the less likely it was that your childs public school would be open and ready to serve them. Multiple studies have shown this to be the case.

Further, multiple others have shown that these decisions by teacher unions not to return to the classroom have been political, not scientific. This has never been about safety with the unions, nor the evidence or the science. It is all a power play, and your kids have been caught in the middle of it.

To be sure, it isnt as if the unions even consider your kids collateral damage, unintentionally harmed by their actions. No, your kids, and you, are the intended target. Causing your children pain was supposed to be the impetus to get you to implore your local school district to cave to their demands.

Fortunately, their plans seemed to have backfired as more and more parents have finally had the veil lifted from their eyes and seen these unions for what they really are: mafias in pants suits.

Education choice has never been as popular as this very moment. Policymakers have been listening. To date, 33 states have moved forward with education choice legislation this session, with 11 states passing some type of school choice bill. This education choice legislation tsunami is not likely to dissipate.

American children will never receive a good education until the last public school administrator is strangled with the entrails of the last teacher union official. Unless, that is, we give every American child access to an education choice program. That is the only way to dilute their power over you and your children.

The goal of public education in the United States today and in the years to come should be to allow all parents to choose which schools their children attend, require every school to compete for every student who walks through its doors, and make sure every child has the opportunity to attend a quality school.

With unions fighting reopenings every step of the way, with no concern for the mental, physical, and academic well-being of their charges, there has not been a time when providing these opportunities has been more urgent and more needed than right now.

Tim Benson (tbenson@heartland.org) is a policy analyst with The Heartland Institute, a national free-market think tank headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

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China and Russia are aggressively raising their stakes against Taiwan and Ukraine. Why? Just take a sober view of Biden's America, at war with itself. China and Russia came to a pragmatic conclusion: America in 2021 has neither the desire nor the courage nor the political will to protect itself and its allies.

It was under Biden that the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline work continued. It was under Biden that the preparations for the seizure of Taiwan by China entered the final phase. Under Biden, China's seizure of the South China Sea, suspended by Trump, is close to completion. Under Biden, both Russia and China decided on something that was simply unthinkable under Trump  they forced preparations for open aggression against neighbors.

Trump, at the end of a dinner with the Chinese leader, three months into his presidency, fired 60 Tomahawk missiles at Syria. Everything was organized so no one doubted that the missiles were intended for China and Russia's leaders, although they were fired into Syria. A year later, in February 2018, a platoon of American Rangers defeated a battalion tactical group of Russian mercenaries in Syria. Of the 500 people, few survived, and all 27 tanks and armored vehicles were destroyed in a four-hour battle.

Both China and Russia immediately realized that, with Trump, the guy who brought down a billion dollars' worth of missiles while sweets were being served, it was necessary to remain within the bounds of decency. Under Biden, no one is going to remain within these bounds. On the contrary, Beijing and Moscow are well aware that Biden is a temporary, accidental person in the White House, and it is necessary to strike while the iron is hot. Under Biden, Beijing's and Moscow's expansionist plans are destined to come true.

Russia and China are united against a common enemy. China's #1 territorial objective is the capture of Taiwan. Russia's territorial task #1 is the seizure of Ukraine. Trump was an insurmountable obstacle to their aggressive plans for four years. Putin has taught the world that he is amassing troops on the border with Ukraine every spring. But with each escalation, nothing happens. More precisely, nothing happened during the Trump era, but with Biden, it can explode.

Trump gave Ukraine the opportunity to arm and strengthen its army for four additional years and arm itself not with outdated Soviet equipment, but with modern NATO weapons. How did Ukraine use these four additional years? It's still unknown, but somehow, Trump is one of the most hated American presidents in Ukraine today.

The situation in Taiwan is spectacularly similar to the situation in Ukraine. In Taiwan, there is also an influential group that seeks Big Brother's wing. Big Brother for Taiwan is Beijing; for Ukraine, it is Moscow.

The hackers traditionally referred to as "the Russians" attacked the control system of a 5,000-mile pipeline on the U.S. Atlantic coast. Why? They knew full well that under Trump, the answer would be so dire that it's better not to even try. But under Biden, there may not be an answer at all. The "Russians" reasoned, quite soberly, that the shutdown of the pipeline plays into the hands of Biden and his entourage, who are likely to use this episode to advance their Green New Deal. (Note that Joe Biden shut off more pipelines in three months than all the cyber-attacks of 2021 combined, pushing America's gas prices to a six-year high.)

And so it has happened  the Biden administration openly distanced itself from this problem, stating that the cyber-attack was not against the United States, but against a private company, so let this private company figure it out.

At the same time, we should, as in most cases, use the word "Russians" in quotation marks because nowadays, any schoolchild can change his I.P. address at will. Hackers almost exclusively use other counties' I.P. addresses to deflect suspicion from themselves. As a matter of fact, most professional hacking resembles Russian matryoshka dolls  a false flag operation encapsulated in yet another, more extensive false flag operation.

It's not only Russia and China that are moving. Palestinian terrorists have also begun to stir. The Fuehrer of the Palestinian Terrorist Authority demanded from Biden that the United States overturn President Reagan's 1987 decision to recognize the Palestine Liberation Organization as a terrorist organization. Mahmoud Abbas has been waiting a long time  he was silent under both Obama and Trump  but it was under Biden that Abbas raged. Moreover, he demanded this not just anywhere, but from the podium of J Street  the anti-Semitic Jewish organization of America, the Jewish assault battalion of the Democrat Party. It sounds as though the construction of the first Iranian nuclear bomb is ahead of schedule.

Hamas took a long time to prepare, but they realized that they had to hurry, too. Hundreds of rockets hit Israel just days after Biden complained that in 2024, he would re-duel with Trump. Even the remote possibility of Trump's return to the White House has forced Hamas to speed up its plans. A tiny Jewish democratic oasis in a sea of Islamic terrorist groups and Islamic tyrants is being bombed because a significant number of American Jews voted thoughtlessly in last year's presidential election.

It should not be forgotten that the bombing of Israel took place just a few weeks after Joe Biden restored multimillion-dollar funding to Palestinian terrorist organizations. The basis for this decision by Biden was the fact that Trump had frozen it.

Understanding the causal relationship between "no terrorist financing  no missile attacks" and "terrorist financing  missile attacks" is unattainable for Democrats since it requires a level of intelligence not envisioned by leftist dogma. If the Democrats had any remnant of their intellect left, they would have asked Hamas, which complains all the time that it has no money for a coronavirus vaccine, where its money came from for hundreds of rockets.

Finally, has anyone noticed a suspicious similarity in how anti-Jewish pogroms under the leadership of Antifa, BLM, or Hamas proceed? The difference between them is only geographic, not ideological.

Vile creatures around the world fear Trump, but not Biden. Hamas does not fear Biden. The Palestinian Terrorist Autonomy does not fear Biden. The Houthis do not fear the Biden administration. The Revolutionary Terrorist Guard of Iran is also not afraid of Biden. America, in their eyes, is weak and decrepit, just like the inhabitant of the White House himself.

Three months after Biden moved to the White House, suddenly, as if on command, and almost simultaneously, many domestic and international crises have arisen. Note that all these villains are in quite a hurry. The weakness of the enemy always reassures those who have sold out to the devil.

Let's say thank you to Biden  now we know for sure what a world looks like in which no one reckons with America.

Gary Gindler, Ph.D., is a conservative columnist at Gary Gindler Chronicles and a new science founder: Politiphysics. Follow him on (soon-to-be-suspended from) Twitter.

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A conservative estimate of the cost of a transition to clean energy is $1.7 trillion needed for mining of copper, cobalt, lithium and other rare earth and exotic metals and minerals. This transition will supposedly fuel electric vehicles (EVs) being cheaper than gasoline and diesel vehicles by 2027, and electric SUVs cheaper by 2026, according to BloombergNEF. Additionally, the International Energy Agency (IEA) in a new report found renewable installations for energy to electricity soared to 280 GW globally in 2020, up 45% from 2019, with renewables (solar and wind) accounting for 90% of global electric capacity installations in 2021 and 2022.

These are major reasons why the Biden administration is set to approve the first large-scale offshore wind farm, an 800-megawatt project off the coast of Massachusetts. Unknown to the U.S. President, this wind farm installation will lead to wrecking a beautiful coastline over enormous land and ocean/sea requirements for renewables, and increased emissions since renewables have to be backstopped by fossil fuels or zero-carbon nuclear when the sun doesnt shine and the wind doesnt blow.

President Biden wants to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% before 2030 without giving a detailed plan on a transition from fossil fuels and nuclear that will be incomprehensibly expensive and technologically impossible. Furthermore, renewables used for baseload electricity needs have led to grid blackouts in Texas, California, Germany, and Australia.

Obviously, tens of millions of tons of mining for rare earth and exotic minerals are required for this low-to-zero carbon future. For now, renewables, EVs, and utility-scale storage overwhelmingly rely on China for rare earth/exotic minerals needed for solar panels, wind turbines, and battery storage systems to work as advertised. The U.S. Geologic Survey has highlighted 35 key rare earth elements used in clean energy technologies, but imports account for 14 out of 17 of the most basic ones.

Low-carbon futures, clean energy transitions, decarbonizing electrical grids, or a Green New Deal will only succeed with major increases in U.S. mining and processing -- unless (we) want to make America even more dependent on China and Russia. A recent Wall Street Journal article declared: A Good Battery is the Best Defense Against a Military Assault. These are national security mineral and metals for 21st-century technologies. The case can be made that rare earth metals and exotic minerals are the new realist balancing option between the U.S. versus China for global hegemony.

Currently, rare earth metals and minerals mined in the U.S. are treated in China to pay the cheaper prices associated with processing under Chinas abominable pollution, wage and workplace safety rules. The U.S. can no longer ignore the geopolitical risks, environmental degradation, and Chinese hostility if it wants to build a decarbonized, green economy. The Biden administration has a mining conundrum to overcome. Eco-activists have largely succeeded in banning U.S. mining; as opposed to the U.S. having an abundant amount of metal and minerals necessary to support and build clean technologies.

The U.S. has only one operating rare-earth mine  Mountain Pass  which lost over two years of production due to a 2016 bankruptcy. Mountain Pass sends their mined ore to China for processing due to high environmental compliance costs  including regulatory minefields and a byzantine quandary of local, state, and federal rules. Typical permits can take 2-3 decades to commence basic mining operations on mineral-laded federal and state lands.

During the final months of the Trump administration, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management expanded mining operations on federal lands, allowed fast-track of mining permits, approved a new lithium mine in Nevada, and approved a land swap deal in Arizona for a copper mine. All actions took effect on January 15, 2021, and was applauded by Rich Nolan, president of the National Mining Association, who said:

American mining is key to successfully repairing our nations infrastructure, (and) the very technologies essential to our recovering economy will be built on a foundation provided by mining.

These moves allow the Biden administration an opportunity to meet critical rare earth and exotic mineral demands. The downside is that China can undercut any progress through its unfair advantages from unethical and dirty mining and forced labor practices. China has ravaged its environment health and enslaved Chinese citizens in order to mine these clean energy minerals and metals. Will Democrat-aligned lawmakers and environmentalists allow these atrocities to continue?

Likely so, since Bidens vice president is adamantly opposed to new mining over climate change, his Interior secretary opposes fast-track approvals for mining, and Green groups that support Biden along with Native American tribes all fight new mines in Minnesota, Nevada, and Arizona.

The sobering reality is all solar panels, wind turbines, EVs, utility-scale, and home energy storage systems are far more mineral and metal intensive than conventional source such as fossil fuels. Whether you like it or not: renewable energy (all types) needs huge mineral supply.

If mining doesnt occur in the U.S., then China, Russia, the Congo, and other human rights abusers flourish. The reason why, the climate charade that will be solved using renewables, EVs, and utility-scale storage. But the mining will take place somewhere. Unwise energy and mining policies continue when climates constantly change. When humans didnt exist, it was warmer than today.

We are consistently told if we dont do something now for climate change the world will end as we know it, however, the United Nations expects the average person by 2100 to earn 450% of todays income. Climate (change) will reduce that to 434%. Made up end-of-the-world problems over the untruthful narrative the world is burning up when factually the U.S. isn't transitioning to renewables for electricity anytime soon, according to energy professor and author Vaclav Smil.

Three climate science experts -- Steven Koonin, Richard Lindzen, and William Happer -- have convincingly shown the earth has heated approximately 1 degree Celsius this century. This isnt a catastrophe, its time to mine appropriately in the U.S.

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The Biden administration's greenie infrastructure plan is trickling out, and the picture is getting ugly.

Start with Joe Biden's greenie czar, John Kerry, taking from a Forbes piece by columnist Ken Rapoza:

President Biden's new "climate czar" John Kerry says laid off workers in the fossil fuels industry should be able to easily transfer their skill set into solar. He specifically said they can "make solar panels" instead of making the Keystone pipeline that Biden canceled on day two of his tenure in the White House. "What President Biden wants to do is make sure those folks have better choices, that they have alternatives, that they can be the people to go to work to make the solar panels," Kerry said.

Which is fine and dandy, except that these workers in these American companies have got some competition:

Of the top 10 solar panel manufacturers in the world, 8 are Chinese. The only big U.S. player is Ohio-based First Solar FSLR +4.3%. They make the solar cells and modules that are turned into the solar panels you see in the southwest desert, on California hilltops and, increasingly, on American rooftops. South Korea's Hanwha Q-Cells manufactures here. As does Chinese firm Jinko Solar, now manufacturing in Jacksonville, Florida. They set up shop primarily due to anti-dumping and countervailing duties imposed on solar panels during the bygone Trump era. That helped Q-Cells and First Solar gain market here. Otherwise, it's all China imports. And if it is all China imports, then the only jobs on offer will be installer gigs, and the usual white collar professional services jobs of project planners, sales and engineering consultants.

Now let's learn a little about the competition. According to today's Epoch Times:

British researchers say the world's production of solar panels is being fueled by forced labor from Uyghur Muslims in the Chinese province of Xinjiang. An investigation by Sheffield Hallam University says some 45 percent of the world's supply of a key component in the panels  polysilicon  comes from Xinjiang and is obtained through a vast system of coercion involving the Uyghur ethnic minority. In Broad Daylight, the report from the university's Helena Kennedy Center for International Justice, says the world's four biggest panel manufacturers use polysilicon tainted by forced labor, and urges producers to source the substance from elsewhere. It cited an official Chinese government report published in November which documented the "placement" of 2.6 million "minoritized" citizens in jobs in farms and factories in Xinjiang and elsewhere in the country through state-sponsored "surplus labor" and "labor transfer" initiatives. "The (Chinese) government claims that these programs are in accordance with PRC (People's Republic of China) law and that workers are engaged voluntarily, in a concerted government-supported effort to alleviate poverty," the report says. "However, significant evidence  largely drawn from government and corporate sources  reveals that labor transfers are deployed in the Uyghur Region within an environment of unprecedented coercion, undergirded by the constant threat of re-education and internment.

Had enough? That's slave labor, as the story outlines.

In Biden's world, "good paying union jobs" as outlined in his infrastructure plan for turning laid off energy workers into solar panel makers, or lower-down-the-chain installers, is a perfectly even match against China's slave labor.

Yet here's a creepy story that Reuters ran in March, blissfully unaware of just why those costs went down, emphasis mine:

The cost of generating power from the sun has dropped more than 80% in the last decade, making it competitive with plants powered by fossil fuels like coal and natural gas. Solar energy now accounts for the largest share of annual new generating capacity in the United States, according to government data. DOE has set ambitious targets for solar in the past. In 2017, the agency said the cost had hit its goal three years ahead of schedule due to a drop in the cost of solar panels tied to expanded production in China.

But of course. China you see, isn't paying the help.

And make no mistake: that leaves American workers holding the bag, competing against those zero-wage workers who don't want to be there in the province of Xinjiang.

For American workers, it's the same economic dynamic seen in the antebellum South, where "poor white trash" got so very rich (/sarc) competing against enslaved African-Americans held in bondage on the plantations. There's a reason they were called "poor white" with "trash" thrown on, or, if they were slightly richer, then "crackers."

That's Biden's plan for laid off U.S. energy workers.

And man, it stinks. It's amazing that this isn't being remarked upon.

Joe himself has apparently decided, as of this writing, to keep President Trump's China tariffs on solar panels on, supposedly to even the field, but he's now being lobbied heavily, by China-linked business interests, the kind who "employ" energy gurus like Hunter Biden, to drop them.

Supposedly, such import tariffs even the field, but it's likely it won't  not when you pay your labor force zero, and have already conquered eight out of the top ten U.S. solar panel companies in the market.

Even the New York Times has noticed, claiming that China's Solar Panel Industry "presents Biden with an ugly dilemma." Ya think?

Anyone think Biden will hold off forever against the lobbyists, given his record? Why the hell does he let anything made with slave labor into this country? This stuff shouldn't be tariffed; it should be banned.

This one needs to be an election issue from Republicans pronto. And it can't happen soon enough.

Image: Pixabay, Pixabay License.
One of the points I like to make is that anti-Semitism is the canary in the coal mine. In all societies at any time in history, low levels of anti-Semitism meant a more successful country with greater individual liberty, at least by the norms of the time and place. When anti-Semitism appears, it is always the first step toward oppressing the general population. Writing at the Spectator, Dominic Green points out that, in America, the rising tide of anti-Semitism is pushing us toward that second category. What's happening is exceptionally dangerous to American norms and individual liberty.

Green notes, accurately enough, that the American left has become completely anti-Semitic. It can no longer disguise its rhetoric as mere anti-Zionism that is somehow magically separate from anti-Jewish sentiment.

What makes this mindset so dangerous, says Green, is that this ferocious American anti-Semitism is being folded into the toxic mess that is modern leftist intersectionality, complete with its racial hatred and a dripping disdain for white people (and Jews, for this purpose, are classified as white). Pair this with the left's racist, condescending paternalism for non-white people around the world and then infect the ruling class, stands for trouble, lots and lots of trouble:

This isn't just anti-Semitism as the collateral damage of socialist theory, or even anti-Semitism as a depraved echo of Christianity. It's aspirational racism. The difference being that the alt-right aspire downwards, to become what liberals call 'white trash'. The alt-left aspire upwards. Its leaders learn the fancy Jew-baiting of the intellectuals at brand-name colleges, along with a provincial race guilt that sees the world as a stage for the purging of the American conscience. Their followers are the children of 2008, a jilted, debt-ridden generation. They resent the institutions that have stolen their future, but they cling to the same institutions and appeal for help like the spoiled children they are. [snip] The wickedness of the Jews is taught in our finest schools as the 'colonialism' or 'apartheid' of Israel. It is taught by social media: imagine what Dr Goebbels could have achieved if he'd had Twitter and Instagram. It is mobilized by BLM and AOC and the DSA in the way that revolutionary socialists have always tried to stir up the mob by blaming the Jews. It is endorsed by members of Congress and most of the media, as when Nancy Pelosi poses with the Squad for Rolling Stone or the New York Times publishes calumny after calumny against Israel.

There is more, and I urge you to read it here.

My takeaway is that what we are seeing is not the casual anti-Semitism that has characterized much of the West for the last 2,000 years  and that was prevalent in America for over a century. Thus, we are not looking at people being denied entry to the country club or job opportunities. Instead, what we are seeing here is the uptick of a malevolence that is folded into a statist political ideology. The last time we saw this kind of thing, was in Germany in the 1930s.

As always, let me make it clear that I am not calling the American left a Nazi party. Nor am I saying Nancy Pelosi is the female equivalent of Hitler. (I am not even saying that about Ilhan Omar or Rashida Tlaib.) However, I am saying we are rapidly heading in a direction that could make such comparisons more apt than anyone in America should ever find acceptable. And, as we know from history, these things happen rapidly  more rapidly, perhaps, in a time of social media than most people can comprehend.

Image: Anti-Israel march in Chicago. YouTube screen grab.

To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here.
Is Kamala Harris in open rebellion against Joe Biden?

Sure looks that way. Seven weeks after being named Biden's border czar, she's in some sort of defiance against the job Biden gave her and racking up failures. The attorney general of Arizona is calling on Biden to fire her. According to the Washington Examiner:

"Her response to the border crisis has been absolutely abysmal, so I am requesting that she be replaced as your 'border czar,'" Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich wrote in a letter to Biden.

Maybe "abysmal" is what Joe wants. But on the other hand, the nonstop news of Biden/Harris administration's border failures aren't helping Joe at the polls, either. He's holding up personally, for now, but the public is against his border policy, according to this poll cited by Joe Concha. Harris, however, is underwater, and her failure to do her job as border czar is the major reason. It's only a matter of time before the erosion of standing moves to Joe, and the public starts blaming him, too.

Why does it look like rebellion?

Start with the fact that he fobbed that job off onto Kamala quite possibly as a sort of payback to President Obama, who, during a previous border surge, dumped that job onto him. He knew how hard it was, and how lazy and incompetent she was. So he packaged it to the public as this:

And I can think of nobody who  who is better qualified to do this than a former  this is a woman who ran the second-largest attorney general's office in America  after the U.S.  after the United States Attorney General  in the state of California, and has done a great deal upholding human rights, but also fighting organized crime in the process.



So it's not her full responsibility and job, but she's leading the effort because I think the best thing to do is to put someone who, when he or she speaks, they don't have to wonder about is that where the President is. When she speaks, she speaks for me. Doesn't have to check with me. She knows what she's doing, and I hope we can move this along. But  so, Madam Vice President, thank you. I gave you a tough job, and you're smiling, but there's no one better capable of trying to organize this for us.

But all signs are there that Kamala is far from the most able manager. She, in fact, seems so incompetent that she's rebelling.

One, she hasn't visited the border, which has seen 178,000 illegal entries by foreigners into the U.S. in April alone. No photos of her and overcrowded migrant shelters to generate some possibly unfavorable news coverage, quite apart from what she's already gotten for nonperformance.

Concha also notes this:

Harris might also have to answer questions about why she once seemingly compared ICE to the KKK and argued that illegal border crossings should be legal.

Harris instead has been visiting Chicago cake shops, kvetching about her home decorating, and traveling to New Hampshire to talk "infrastructure."

As border czar, she says she doesn't deal with the nitty-gritty, you see. She just deals with heads of state, and "root causes" as if the border's illegal surgers couldn't possibly know why they were coming.

It's quite a contrast to what Vice President Phony has claimed here: "You have to see and smell and feel the circumstances of people to really understand them," as Arizona's attorney general wrote in April, trying to coax Harris to come to the border earlier.

As for her claim to want to deal with only heads of state, well, she apparently bombed with Mexico, with its president walking out on her due to having more important things to do. AT editor Andrea Widburg wrote about that here.

She spoke by Zoom to the president of Guatemala, not traveling there, either, with only promises to come in June, making the excuse of COVID restrictions, despite the fact that both she (and the Guatemalan leaders) are fully vaccinated.

As for Honduras, well, the USAID office seems to be trying to pick up the slack for her, as this transcript shows here. Harris can't be bothered. I wrote about that here.

And El Salvador? The president there says he has no intention of talking to her, based on the crummy treatment he received when he visited Washington in February. Smart work, Kamala.

This isn't the bang-up job on the border that Biden promised, not even on the diplomatic front which is the role Kamala carved out for herself.

Biden in fact has been forced to modify and clarify what her job will be, given that Kamala seems to in some kind of opposition to him on the border.

Her record, as the Arizona official said, is "abysmal."

That's not just incompetence; that's someone who's refusing to do her job. She's in rebellion, and if Joe wants results, he's got to fire her. But he's just too feeble and pressured, so he probably won't unless his hand is forced. He'll just get an open border, and in the end, that Harris-esque collapse in the polls for himself.

Image: Gage Skidmore via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
I've always thought that Joe Biden's smile conceals a nasty man. His behavior during the presidential campaign revealed a man who doesn't like being contradicted and lashes out at those with lesser power and status than he enjoys. Often, he insults people who present a point of view that challenges him, as with his infamous "dogface pony soldier" insult, or telling a questioning voter while campaigning that he is "full of s---."

The eye level view of Joe Biden telling a Michigan auto worker "You're full of shit" and then shhhing a female staffer is a must watch.pic.twitter.com/gJ0BsP19UE  Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) March 10, 2020

But now that he occupies the Oval Office, his habits of mind and his information-gathering and decision-making styles are matters of national concern, and the New York Times is taking critical notice. I wonder if they see him flailing and failing and want to get ahead of the story. The lede sentence of the article, "Beneath Joe Biden's Folksy Demeanor, a Short Fuse and an Obsession With Details," is sardonic:

The commander in chief was taking his time, as usual.

This leads to a discussion of his difficulty in coming to a decision on handling Putin that is concluded with this:

Quick decision-making is not Mr. Biden's style. His reputation as a plain-speaking politician hides a more complicated truth. Before making up his mind, the president demands hours of detail-laden debate from scores of policy experts, taking everyone around him on what some in the West Wing refer to as his Socratic "journey" before arriving at a conclusion. Those trips are often difficult for his advisers, who are peppered with sometimes obscure questions. Avoiding Mr. Biden's ire during one of his decision-making seminars means not only going beyond the vague talking points that he will reject, but also steering clear of responses laced with acronyms or too much policy minutiae, which will prompt an outburst of frustration, often laced with profanity.

Gosh, I was told that with his decades of D.C. experience, Biden was familiar with all the acronyms and policy minutiae (unlike you know who), and this was a key to getting things back to "normal."

The three reporters who wrote the article, Michael D. Shear, Katie Rogers, and Annie Karni, say they interviewed over two dozen "current and former Biden associates" to put together a picture of how he operates.

What emerges is a portrait of a president with a short fuse, who is obsessed with getting the details right  sometimes to a fault, including when he angered allies and adversaries alike by repeatedly delaying a decision on whether to allow more refugees into the United States.

Biden may spend his time dithering and delaying decisions (generally, a terrible way for an executive to operate), but he combines this trait with impatience:

Mr. Biden is gripped by a sense of urgency that leaves him prone to flares of impatience, according to numerous people who regularly interact with him[.]

There is no hint of mental deterioration in the article, a topic that must be forbidden to mention in the corporate press, no matter how visible it becomes.

But I suspect that this article is a test to see how Biden's handlers react and how their readers do, too. The Times is making good money off its digital subscriptions and wants the hyper-partisans who pay up to feel satisfied about their superiority to the knuckle-dragging Trump and his supporters.

Photo credit: Twitter video screen grab.
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Tension between Israel and the Islamic Hamas movement continued for the fifth day on Friday in the Gaza Strip with no sign of any truce.

Overnight and at predawn, the tit-for-tat violent military confrontations between the two sides were intensified. Militants fired more barrages of rockets into Israel, and Israeli fighter jets kept striking on the enclave.

The Hamas-run ministry of health said in a text message that 122 Palestinians have been killed, including 31 children and 20 women, and 900 others injured since Monday in the Gaza Strip.

Eyewitnesses and Palestinian security sources told Xinhua that Israeli army artillery on Friday struck the eastern area of Gaza city with tanks, killing at least two.

At predawn, tanks hit the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahia, killing a mother and her four children, according to medical sources.

The reason behind hitting the family's house wasn't known, which might ignite more tension between the two sides, the eyewitnesses said.

An Israeli army spokesman said in a press statement that the Israeli forces had intensively attacked posts that belong to Hamas, adding that 160 war jets, artillery, and tanks participated in the military operation.

The statement said 150 targets were hit overnight and on Friday morning, adding that many of the targets were underground.

It said the Israeli army will continue its strikes on the militants who fire rockets at Israel.

As the Israeli bombardments were intensified, Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants announced that their militants fired more barrages of rockets into Israel.

Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing, claimed responsibility for launching 100 rockets at the Israeli city of Ashkelon, in response to Israel's "targeting of civilians" in the enclave.

Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, also said that its militants carried out intensive rocket strikes at Israeli cities in southern and central Israel.

The Israeli army said Gaza militant groups have fired more than 1,750 rockets at Israel, most of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system. The rockets fired from Gaza killed at least nine Israelis and wounded 200 others.

Meanwhile, Palestinian sources said the contacts to reach calm between the two sides had so far failed, adding that Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations lead the mediation between the two sides for reaching a truce.
Not content with serving her constituents in Wyoming following her infamous booting as chief of the House Republican Conference, Liz Cheney continues to be busy.

...with her usual stuff: that Captain Ahab quest of hers, to Get Trump. She put out this tweet:

I applaud Reps. Thompson and Katko for working together to establish a commission to investigate the January 6th attack on the Capitol.https://t.co/zH5N4FN9UW  Rep. Liz Cheney (@RepLizCheney) May 14, 2021

That's the old 9/11-style commission she's been bucking for. And sure enough, she got it. According to WUSA9:

Lawmakers announced Friday a deal has been reached to establish a bipartisan 9/11-style commission into the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

As if this commission, supposedly bipartisan, wouldn't be filled to the brim with NeverTrump Republicans, probably some linked to the Democrat billionairefinanced pervy Lincoln Project.

Why Cheney seeks a commission at all is kind of disgusting. After all, we all know what her conclusions are. She's out to Get Trump, and by any means necessary. That would explain her sneaky maneuvers with leftist defense secretaries, organizing a big letter-signing without telling anyone she was behind it. It would also explain her willingness to spread lies about President Trump supposedly knowing all about Russian bounties placed on U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan and doing nothing about it. That intelligence report, as it turns out, was as phony as Liz herself, little more than a bad intelligence bid to Get Trump. Yet Liz was the one who did the most promoting of it.

So now she thinks her little commission can put out something bipartisan and impartial? Can draw conclusions based on facts found? Can look at the issues and come to a consensus? All without a foregone conclusion?

She's Potemkin-villaging us, hoping we will all come to blame Trump as she does for the Jan. 6 Capitol riot based on this joke of a report with a foregone conclusions, and then come flocking to her as the alternative.

Anyone smell a rat? Anyone see how this works? It's obviously a joke. There won't be any real Republicans on this, just her fellow cronies, all intent on Getting Trump and playing Republican while doing it, never mind the facts.

Liz has been honest about her real motives, convinced that us deplorables will never notice the little scheme, being Neanderthals and all:

I will do everything I can to ensure that the former president never again gets anywhere near the Oval Office.

So to that end, she has this political motive for her 9/11-style kangaroo commission, which, obviously, isn't about finding any objective truth.

She's not just accused Trump of being behind the whole thing  where a section of a large gathering, led by a few bounders, as well as an unprepared Capitol police force, got out of control  yet somehow, Trump had entirely planned it.

Now she's accusing other GOP lawmakers of being behind it, too. According to Business Insider:

Liz Cheney says the Capitol riot investigation 'threatens' GOP lawmakers because they 'played a role they should not have been playing'

Elsewhere, she has specifically accused House minority leader Kevin McCarthy, the man who orchestrated her ouster. So her Vishinsky-style kangaroo purge now is to extend beyond Trump, to guys like McCarthy, with zero Democrats in the crossfire, which certainly serves their purposes.

She's even gotten weird in her claims, putting out this most recently, according to CNN:

Liz Cheney says some GOP members voted against impeachment out of fear for their lives

As if Trump ran some kind of KGB operation with the full backing of the U.S. intelligence apparatus, that same apparatus that repeatedly tried to do him in. Right, Liz.

Anyone who thinks there'll be a drop of objectivity in this bipartisan commission has got to be a fool, or someone who, like Liz, claims and believes that the 2020 election was all free and fair, the way Jimmy Carter once did with Venezuela's 2004 referendum.

Even the setup is a joke. According to this piece published by a genuine nonpartisan observer, the 9/11 commission report gets too much good publicity.

However, before we move forward with a new investigation that may lead to legislative and executive fixes, we should revisit the 9/11 report itself and ask if it really achieved the objectives so often attributed to it. It may be a poor model for a serious look at the events surrounding Jan. 6. The report dodged many of the most difficult issues and failed to assign accountability to specific individuals, political leaders or agencies. Instead, the commissioners  a group of five Republicans and five Democrats, led by former New Jersey governor Thomas Kean and former congressman Lee Hamilton of Indiana  seemed as intent on deflecting blame from political leaders and policy decisions as they were on uncovering inconvenient facts. To achieve unanimity among commissioners who represented and sought to protect the two political parties, the report's conclusions focused chiefly on institutions and processes rather than tackling potential accountability for policy decisions. Some staff investigators even described the failure to highlight key findings as a whitewash.

This is why we never got answers as to why the Bush administration seemed so intent on shielding bin Laden family members and instead, getting them out of the country. Liz loved the Bush administration, of course  she was part of it, a beneficiary of its nepotism and dynasty politics.

Bottom line: These commissions focus on process and not policymakers, as the writer, John Sipher, a former intelligence officer, noted. A commission of Democrats and NeverTrump Republicans would have no problem blaming the one policymaker who won't be represented in this scam: President Trump.

Liz is all about creating smokescreens and fooling us, now with this 9/11-style farce directed at President Trump. We all know what she thinks and her imperviousness to facts. She can't be booted from office soon enough.

Image: Screen shot from CNN YouTube video.
The American Psychological Association (APA) recently removed John Staddon, an emeritus professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University, from the Society for Behavioral Neuroscience and Comparative Psychology (SBNCP) Division 6 listserv, an email discussion group. What prompted his ouster? Staddon was notified of his removal from the list in an email from the presidential trio of the APA division. He believes he was expunged for stating his belief that there are only two sexes, in particular this post: Hmm Binary view of sex false? What is the evidence? Is there a Z chromosome?

Apparently, the APA troika somehow believed this violated the divisions code of conduct, adopted in 2019, which states:

Treat everyone with respect and consideration. It is acceptable in a scientific organization and at scientific meetings for members to have strong differences of opinion or different theoretical perspectives on aspects of psychological science. However, those differences and disagreements can be conveyed in ways that do not make other people feel threatened, demeaned, discriminated against, or harassed.

You know dark days have arrived when stating an obvious scientific fact can be considered threatening, demeaning, or discriminatory. (Or can engender strong differences of opinion.) The APA has also clearly removed logical from psychological.

The suggestion that there are really only two genders (remember binary is bad) might not have been the only one of Staddons posts to have run afoul of the APA. Jonathon Crystal, an Indiana University provost and professor of psychological and brain sciences, wrote to Staddon on behalf of the divisions executive committee:

The division leadership has received complaints about some of the posts that you have sent to the division listserv. I do not want to get into the particulars of the range of complaints over the years, but I will note that a number of members of the executive committee and others have voiced concerns publicly on the listserv in an attempt to make you aware of how readers of the list might view some of the posts.

Did Professor Staddon previously imply that the Earth was round? Did he promote heliocentrism? Did he question bloodletting the sick?

Staddon told The College Fix, This incident just illustrates the current inability of some scientific communities to tolerate dissent about issues related to sex and race. Psychology and sociology seem to be especially flawed in this respect.

Tragically, psychology and sociology are now just two more disciplines that have been captured and co-opted by the left. Though the left claims to be all about the science (as opposed, say, to those dogmatic, religion-crazed Republicans), it really disdains science -- or anything else that could possibly question its beliefs. For example, the six steps comprising the classic scientific method designed to acquire knowledge are:

observation,

question,

hypothesis,

experiment,

results,

conclusion.

Leftists have neither the patience nor the integrity to carry out this process. They have long-since determined that inverting and shortening this process is the best way to enhance and consolidate their power, the only thing that matters to them. Hence, they: state a conclusion first, then either tell the rest of us about the supposed result, experiment, hypothesis, question, and observation that allegedly back this conclusion upor skip the latter five steps altogether and dare anyone to question them on their conclusion because, after all, the science is settled. So there!

Soon we will learn of a math teacher being suspended/fired/shot for claiming that 0 means none and/or the numeral 2 represents two-- and only two-- items or things. Remember, binary is bad!

Here is the definition of two:

a group or unit of two people or things. Pair, duo, duet, dyad, duplet, tandem, twain. Equivalent to the sum of one and one; one less than three.

But definitions themselves are racist! And so are dictionaries! They are part and parcel of the white patriarchal society! I mean, Noah Webster was a white male! James Murray was a Scotsmanand is there anything more obnoxiously and snobbishly patrician than the Oxford English Dictionary?

To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here.
In past Arab-Israeli wars, Israel has been hampered by the world's insistence that she use "proportionate force." This is nonsense when dealing with a genocidal enemy that seeks your eradication, especially one with tens of thousands of rockets all aimed at your civilian centers. As a humane nation, Israel should do  and does everything it can to limit civilian deaths. However, when it comes to enemy troops, the point is to win. A remarkably clever ruse on Friday shows that the Israeli Defense Forces may finally have accepted this principle.

On Thursday, the military let it be known that it was drawing up plans to engage in a massive ground invasion against Hamas. Later in the day, the military let Israeli journalists know that there was no invasion but explicitly told foreign news outlets that IDF troops had entered Arab territory. Numerous major outlets, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, and AFP, reported as fact the news that the IDF had started a ground assault on Gaza.

Hamas fighters did exactly what the Israeli military had expected: they rushed into tunnels they had built under the border, planning to emerge at various locations from which they could strike at the IDF. That was a mistake. Instead of a ground assault, Israel launched a "massive bombardment" of the Hamas tunnel network:

The Israeli Air Force's massive bombardment of Hamas's Gaza tunnel network overnight Thursday-Friday destroyed miles of tunnels and killed what the IDF believes to be dozens of Hamas terrorists, in what it hopes will be a decisive phase of the current conflict, an Israeli TV report said late Friday. "We shut down the Hamas tunnel network," a military source said. The bombing was the largest Israeli strike since the outbreak of fighting earlier this week, the IDF said earlier. The assault was prefaced by a deliberate ruse in which the IDF told the foreign press that Israeli ground forces had entered the Gaza Strip, in order to trick the terror group into sending its operatives into the tunnels  referred to by the IDF as "the metro"  ready to emerge and attack the Israeli troops. Instead, "the tunnels collapsed on those inside" when the IAF bombed them, the TV report noted. Some 160 aircraft flying simultaneously conducted the massive attack on the network of tunnels, dug by the Hamas terror group under the northern Gaza Strip, the army said. According to the Israel Defense Forces, in this air campaign, which lasted nearly 40 minutes, some 450 missiles were dropped on 150 targets in northern Gaza, particularly around the city of Beit Lahiya. In all, 80 tons of explosives were used, the TV report said.

There are many more details here.

This wasn't just clever; it was also so satisfying because Israel turned its enemies' weapons against them. For years, Israel has been deeply worried about the tunnels that Hamas has been digging into Israel. Gazans live in abysmal poverty because their leadership uses foreign aid to build elaborate tunnels that store weapons and allow for significant troop movement. Rather than destroying the tunnels, Israel kept an eye on them, presumably for precisely this strategy.

There is also a sweet irony to the fact that Israel was able to carry out its plan by misleading the foreign press. These outlets have long been openly hostile to Israel. To have them serve as the vehicles for misinformation to Hamas is almost righteous.

Historically, Israel would now be talked into a truce, one that doesn't benefit Israel but allows the Arabs to regroup. There are indications that this time might be different. Rather than making noises about pulling back, Prime Minister Netanyahu says the IDF will push forward even more aggressively:

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Friday to crush Hamas with unrelenting bombardments as the death toll in Gaza rose to over 120, including 31 children and 20 women, with 900 people wounded. [snip] 'They attacked our capital, they fired rockets at our cities. They're paying and will continue to pay dearly for that,' Netanyahu said during a video address on Friday. 'It's not over yet,' he warned. 'I said we would exact a very heavy price from Hamas and other terror groups, and we are doing so and will continue to do so with great force,' the Prime Minister said, before detailing Israel's destruction of Hamas tunnels. 'Hamas thought it could hide there, but it cannot,' he said. 'Hamas leaders think they can escape from our grasp. They cannot escape. We can reach them everywhere  all of [Hamas's] people and we will continue to do so.'

If Israel finally commits to fighting a war to victory, instead of a stalemate, maybe the Arabs will understand that Israel is staying in the Jewish homeland that goes back, without interruption, over 4,000 years. Then the Middle East may be ready for real peace.

Image: Israel attacks Hamas in Gaza. YouTube screen grab.

To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here.
The front-page photo for The Washington Post article "Violent clashes, rocket fire shake Jerusalem" (5/11/21) has a caption that directs blame for the recent violence, started by the Palestinians  yes, the Palestinians  against Israel, as follows: "tensions in the area have been intensifying as a Jewish settler group tries to evict several Palestinian families from a nearby neighborhood."

The aforementioned nonviolent eviction ruling was not by a "Jewish settler group," which The Washington Post loves to blame, but by Jerusalem's District Court. And the Court upheld a previous ruling it had made. And the recent ruling was in February, several months ago. So why the protests now? The Post should know by now that the Palestinians use events, whether current or in the past, as pretexts  when there is political expediency to do so. They are a one-trick pony. But the Palestinian leadership (and their enabler Iran) know that if you have one trick, and the media keep falling for it  rinse and repeat!

The true genesis of the recent violence is that the Palestinian leadership and clerics incited it with the false claim that Israel had endangered the Al Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam. It is the same lie that has sparked numerous terror attacks over the past century. In preparation, they stockpiled bricks, bottles, and fireworks in the mosque and then hurled them at Israeli police. And they timed the assault to coincide with Ramadan. The Palestinian opposition to Israel is about not one neighborhood, but the existence of all of Israel.

Image via Max Pixel.

To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here.
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Senegalese President Macky Sall met with Chinese Ambassador to Senegal Xiao Han on Friday to exchange views on Senegal-China ties and cooperation.

Thanks to the joint care and leadership of the two countries' heads of state, mutual political trust between China and Senegal has increased significantly in recent years, and the breadth, depth and activeness of pragmatic cooperation are unprecedented, Xiao said.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the two countries have worked together to combat the pandemic and demonstrated high-level friendly relations, the Chinese ambassador said.

China is willing to work hand in hand with Senegal to implement the consensuses reached by the two heads of state, give full play to the role of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), and constantly advance China-Senegal and China-Africa cooperation, Xiao said.

Sall expressed his sincere gratitude to China, saying Chinese vaccines have provided important protection to the Senegalese people and brought hope to Senegal to overcome the pandemic.

Chinese vaccines are safe and effective, are deeply trusted and welcomed by the Senegalese people and have made a great contribution to Senegal's response to the pandemic, said the Senegalese president.

Since the start of the pandemic, China has provided solid support to Senegal in various ways, and the Senegalese government is deeply grateful for the support of the Chinese government and people, he said.

The Senegalese side is willing to work with China to bring bilateral cooperation and the construction of the FOCAC to a new level, he added.

Earlier Friday afternoon, another batch of vaccines offered by the Chinese government arrived in Dakar, and was welcomed by Xiao and Senegalese officials at the airport.
China has become the first nation after the US to land a spacecraft on Mars, according to state media.

The official Xinhua News Agency cited the China National Space Administration (CNSA) as saying the lander had touched down.

Earlier, CNSA said the Tianwen-1 probe has collected a large amount of scientific data since entering Mars orbit on February 10 and the window for setting down on an icy area of the planet known as Utopia Planitia had been determined by current flying conditions.

Named after the Chinese god of fire, Zhurong, the rover will stay in the lander for diagnostics tests for several days before rolling down a ramp to begin exploring for signs of life.

Only the United States had previously successfully landed and operated a spacecraft on Mars  nine times, beginning with the twin Vikings in 1976 and, most recently, with the Perseverance rover in February.

The Perseverance rover and a tiny helicopter are currently exploring Mars.

Nasa expects the rover to collect its first sample in July for return to Earth in a decade.

China this year launched the initial module of a permanent space station, although the uncontrolled return to Earth of the launch rocket drew some criticism.

The launch of the Tianhe, or Heavenly Harmony, module is the first of 11 missions to build and provision the station and send up a three-person crew by the end of next year.

China also recently brought back lunar samples, the first by any countrys space programme since the 1970s, and landed a probe and rover on the moons less explored far side.
A former SAS soldier is fulfilling a decades-long dream by rowing solo across the Atlantic.

Ian Rivers, 55, will set off from New York on Monday, weather permitting, and will spend around three months on his own rowing the roughly 3,500 miles back to St Marys in the Isles of Scilly.

Doing the row solo is the ultimate challenge really because its just me with my boat against the elements, the conditions, he told the PA news agency.

Im hugely, hugely looking forward to actually getting under way.

The seed for the idea of the solo row was sown back in the 1980s when, early on in his 27-year military career, Mr Rivers was staying in Plymouths Royal Citadel, which looks out on the water.

Id quite often look out there and read about the exploits of ocean rowers crossing the oceans, he said.

And I always thought that one day Id end up in North America  I wasnt too sure where at the time  and Id row back home to the Isles of Scilly.

Around 18 months ago Mr Rivers  who left the military in 2011 after 21 years in the SAS  started planning the trip for real.

To make life more difficult for himself, Mr Rivers, from Hereford, is attempting the journey without the use of GPS to navigate.

He believes he will be the first person to row the full northern Atlantic full route from New York to the Scillies using celestial navigation.

The way navigation is done now, you jump in your car, you whack a postcode in there, you arrive at your destination, and youve missed the journey, he said.

The same thing can happen in ocean rowing you literally put a waypoint in, tell the boat to go there, before you know youve arrived there and youve kind of missed the experience between going from A to B.

So for me, because its the adventure, I wanted to go back to how seafarers first crossed oceans and actually knew where they were.

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While Mr Rivers will be navigating the old fashioned way using a sextant, there will be a GPS tracker on his boat  although he will not have access to it.

Instead, people at home will be able to follow his progress and compare his actual location to where he thinks he is, his best estimate for which he will submit every day.

While he said he misses the camaraderie of the military, he said he never considered doing the row as part of a larger crew.

If I did it with someone else, Id only probably row half of it, because the other person would row the other half, he said.

When I got to the Isles of Scilly, Id almost think to myself, I need to go back there and do it myself.

And the challenge of being on my ownthe loneliness or coping with that and psychologically being strong during that period is one of the challenges that Im actually looking forward to.

And while he will not have any human company, he will not be completely alone on the boat, thanks to a present from a friend of his.

Ian Rivers had a 27-year career in the military (Row Sentinel)

He explained: Hes a veteran and his daughter, Penny, whos 10 years old, she was concerned that I was going to be on my own for that period of time.

She insisted that I take her teddy bear, which is an SAS teddy bear  you cant buy them in the shops, you can only get them given to you from people that are serving.

Shes called him Captain Paddles, and so Ive got Captain Paddles as a companion on the row back.

Referring to the film Castaway, in which Tom Hanks character starts talking to a ball with a face painted on it, he added: I think I might have a Wilson moment  if I need to talk to someone, itll be Captain Paddles instead of Wilson.

Mr Rivers has named his Rossiter Ocean 2 boat Sentinel, in honour of the Special Air Service Regiment Associations (Sasra) mental health programme of the same name, which promotes support between veterans to help recognise mental health issues.

He will be aiming to raise 500,000 for Sasra and St Michaels Hospice in Hereford.

To donate, go to virginmoneygiving.com/fund/sentinel
Priti Patel has been accused of a flagrant breach of the ministerial code by lobbying a fellow minister in an attempt to secure a healthcare firm access to a personal protective equipment (PPE) deal said to be worth 20 million.

Labour has urged Cabinet Secretary Simon Case to investigate the Home Secretary over efforts to sway the award of a contract after being approached by a Tory activist.

Ms Patel attempted to apply pressure to Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove in May last year during efforts to secure the contract for Pharmaceuticals Direct Limited (PDL).

Her efforts failed after Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the masks were not suitable for the NHS, according to disclosure in a legal case.

But PDL was awarded a 102.7 million contract weeks later in July to provide a different type of mask, during which Samir Jassal was also the contact.

Mr Jassal has stood as a Conservative candidate at two general elections and has met Boris Johnson and David Cameron.

A spokesman for Ms Patel: The Home Secretary rightly followed up representations made to her about the vital supply of PPE.

During a time of national crisis, failure to do so would have been a dereliction of duty.

However, Labour urged the Cabinet Secretary to investigate Ms Patel in a letter signed by deputy leader Angela Rayner and shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds.

They said there is no evidence that the Home Secretary had any interest in the PPE deal until contacted by Mr Jassal, suggesting she did it as a favour to her friend.

This would represent a glaring and flagrant breach of the ministerial code, they said.

Priti Patel reportedly lobbied Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove in April last year (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

They pointed to the principle that ministers must ensure that no conflict arises, or could reasonably be perceived to arise, between their public duties and their private interests, financial or otherwise.

Disclosure from the Government in response to a pre-action letter from the Good Law Project over the 102.7 million contract for FFP3 masks revealed a letter Ms Patel wrote to Mr Gove in May last year.

The Daily Mail, which first reported on the documents, said the possible deal was worth 20 million.

She expressed disappointment that the Government no longer required supplies of KN95 masks from PDL, saying they have committed stock and secured supply, exposing them to considerable financial risk and pressures.

The late stage in which the Government has decided not to use them has caused these problems, Ms Patel wrote on May 3 last year.

I would be most grateful fi (sic) you could review this matter urgently, ensure direct contact is made with this company over the stock they have secured, ascertain what contractual obligations the Government should meet and work with the company to distribute and

supply these masks.

Ten days later, Mr Hancock wrote to Ms Patel saying that KN95 face masks are Chinese standards and that UK officials have concluded that they are not suitable for use in the NHS.

Last year the ministerial standards adviser found Ms Patels conduct amounted to behaviour that can be described as bullying but the Prime Minister overruled the finding as ultimate arbiter of the code.

Jolyon Maugham, director of the Good Law Project campaign, which is investigating how coronavirus contracts were awarded, said: Why did Jassal, a man connected to past and present Tory PMs, ministers and peers, reach out to Priti Patel for help?

What was his role in winning the 103 million contract? What relationship did his connections with the party have to the 103 million contract won by Pharmaceuticals Direct?

These are the questions at the heart of our judicial review of this most troubling of PPE contracts.

Mr Jassal and PDL have been contacted for comment.
Wreaths have been laid at the Cenotaph to mark the centenary of the Royal British Legion (RBL).

The charity marked the exact moment of its formation 100 years ago at 9am on Saturday with the laying of wreaths on Whitehall in London and other towns, cities and villages across the UK.

Representatives of the Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force and Merchant Navy laid wreaths at the Cenotaph to replicate the same actions of that time and day a century ago.

The ceremony was led by retired Lieutenant General James Bashall, who is national president of the RBL.

In a video message to celebrate the charitys centenary, the Prince of Wales hailed its constant support of the Armed Forces community.

Representatives of the Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force and Merchant Navy laid wreaths (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

Charles said: There are few organisations which hold a place at the heart of society in the way the Royal British Legion does.

For one hundred years, the Royal British Legion has been a constant, through the annual Poppy Appeal, leading the nation in remembrance and providing a life-long commitment to every veteran and their families.

Therefore, I wanted, above all, to offer my sincere and heartfelt gratitude to all those who have helped build this wonderful organisation we know today, and to all those who will be part of its future.

Charles said the charity has been a constant throughout its history (Peter Cziborra/PA)

Charless video led a wealth of tributes from service personnel and members of the Armed Forces community, as well as celebrity supporters including Ross Kemp and Stephen Fry.

In Portadown, Co Armagh, John Robinson  who served in the armed forces from 1971 to 2007  laid a wreath on behalf of the branchs almost 700 members at 9am on Saturday.

A special edition RBL centenary coin will also be used for the coin toss of the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Leicester City at Wembley.

RBL director general Charles Byrne said: In this, our centenary year, we are focused firmly on our future.

National President of the Royal British Legion Lieutenant General (Retired) James Bashall (left) and members from the Royal Navy, the British Army, the Royal Air Force and the Merchant Navy attend a service at the Cenotaph in London to mark the centenary of the Royal British legion (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

Our proud heritage and 100 years of experience supporting the Armed Forces community have built the strong foundations of an organisation fit for the next 100.

We remain committed to our mission to ensure that those who have given so much for their country get the fair treatment, support and recognition they deserve.
Three students of the online bootcamp Lambda School are alleging that the for-profit school misrepresented the program's job placement rates, financial arrangements, and registration status.

When you put all those pieces together, yes its predatory, Alex Elson of the National Student Legal Defense Network, which is representing the students, told Yahoo Finance. When you have lies about the success, $30,000 of tuition, and you have fundamental misrepresentation about the alignment of incentives, students are gonna get duped.

The former students are asking for a cancellation of their Income Share Agreements (ISAs), which involve Lambda providing loans to cover the cost of attendance in exchange for students paying 17% of their post-graduation salary (if their job pays at least $50,000) to the company for 24 months, as well as a refund of payments and for damages.

Lambda School provided Yahoo Finance with the following statement: "Per policy, we dont speak about individual student or alumni situations in detail publicly, but were of course happy to review matters directly and will review any cases that are filed. In general, though, for any students ISA payments to be activated, they would have first signed an ISA contract and subsequently landed a role leveraging skills learned at Lambda School that pays $50K or more in salary."

Since Lambda's contracts precluded the possibility of a class action lawsuit because they had arbitration clauses and class action waivers, the three students filed their testimonies to be arbitrated by the American Arbitration Association.

(Lambda School website screenshot)

Previous trouble with regulators

Lambda is a San Francisco-based for-profit online coding school that offers six- and 12-month long computer science courses.

Programs cost $30,000 and promise that students who graduate will not have to pay it back until they find a job that lets them earn more than $50,000 or more annually.

The bootcamp has attracted significant interest from students and companies  including Amazon (AMZN)  while also coming under scrutiny from regulators.

Last month, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) reached a settlement with the bootcamp over its usage of potentially misleading marketing. Specifically, the DFPI found issues with a public blog post by Lambda that gave the impression that the students' ISA contracts were not dischargeable in bankruptcy. (Lambda address the DFPI situation in a blog post.)

The private company, led by founder and CEO Austen Allred, also ran into trouble with the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education in 2019 and was ordered to cease all operations for not registering as a post-secondary educational institution. Lambda appealed, but Lambda's ISAs are still not approved by regulators. The filing also stated that Lambda's registration is still pending.

'The most critical component of Lambdas operations'

The arbitration case from the three former students accuses the company of:

"falsifying and misrepresenting its job placement rates,"

"misrepresenting and concealing the true nature of its financial interest in students success, including by falsely representing that Lambda only got paid after students found employment and got paid,"

"misrepresenting and concealing from students that the state of California ordered Lambda to cease operations, stop enrolling students, cease all instructional services, and submit a closure plan,"

and "enrolling and providing educational services to students [which is] in violation of that order."

In October 2019, Allred wrote an article in Harvard Business Review asserting that on average "more than 85% of our graduates land a job paying $50K or more within six months of graduation."

However, the Lambda School Outcomes Report of the first half of 2019 reported a lower job placement rate: "Of the 284 full-time students who graduated in H1 2019, the job placement rate was 71%."

(Source: Lambda)

Student Defense, in its press release, stated that "internal documents reveal school executives told investors only about half of students were employed in relevant jobs within six months of graduation."

The arbitration filing asserted that job placement "is the most critical component of Lambdas operations; to a prospective student, no information is more important than the schools record of successfully placing students in computer technology careers."

One of the former students, Heather Nye, was working as a bartender and paying off her student loans when she became impressed with Lambda's high job placement rates and the zero-dollar upfront cost.

The former aviation electrician in the U.S. Navy signed an ISA contract and enrolled in Lambda's web development program in June 2019. She withdrew in March 2021.

(Source: Lambda)

"Had Lambda truthfully represented its job placement rates, Ms. Nye would have investigated options for pursuing a web development education at another school, rather than signing an ISA that indebted her to up to $30,000 of tuition at Lambda," her arbitration filing stated.

The other two students asserted similar allegations related to appealing prospects, ISA contracts, and ultimately feeling defrauded.

"They are brought into the Lambda orbit by really those fundamental promises: History of success with the job placement rate, won't have to pay unless and until you get a job, and  this also part of our suit  the claim that Lambda's incentives are exactly aligned with theirs because Lambda will not get paid until the students get paid," Elson said. "Which really for the students we've spoken with was a signal of trust."

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The lawyer representing the former students added that since ISAs are securitized and then sold to investors, it's not quite accurate to say that Lambda is not being paid until students earn an income over the $50,000 threshold.

"The tuition is $30,000 for a six-to-12 month program," Elson said. "If the Lambda was advertising 30 grand for a six-month program to someone who was low-income, trying to teach themselves to code... $30,000 [up front] is just going to be a non-starter. ... But $30,000 later  and 'free now'  that's enticing."



Aarthi is a reporter for Yahoo Finance covering student debt and higher education. If you are on an income share agreement for your bachelors or masters degree and would like to talk about your experience, reach out to her at aarthi@yahoofinance.com.

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Senegal on Friday received another batch of Sinopharm vaccines offered by China.

The vaccines were carried back by Senegalese national flag carrier Air Senegal to the Blaise Diagne International Airport from Beijing, China.

Air Senegal said in a statement that it executed the world's longest commercial flight on Friday with an Airbus 330neo, nearly 16 hours, to carry the Chinese-donated vaccine from Beijing to Dakar.

In February, China was the first country to supply Senegal with COVID-19 vaccines, from Sinopharm, making Senegal the first West African country to launch its national vaccination campaign.

Since March 2, 2020, Senegal has recorded 40,806 COVID-19 cases, including 39,529 recoveries and 1,122 deaths.
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The governor alleged that Banerjee, at her election campaigns, had provoked her supporters, especially women, to oppose Central forces

Guwahati: West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar who on Friday visited western Assams Dhubri district and interacted with people who escaped from Bengal during post-poll violence regretted that West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was maintaining silence over the violence unleashed in the state after declaration of Assembly poll results on May 2.

Mr Dhankar, who visited a camp in Dhubri where several families from Bengal's Cooch Behar claiming to be BJP supporters are taking shelter, said, Nothing can be more shameful for us than people of West Bengal taking shelter in neighbouring state of Assam.

He alleged, Even the media did not do anything. It is an open secret who the perpetrators were. Asked about the law and order situation in the state, the Governor said that he was not in favour of confrontation but believed in cooperation.

We are heading in the wrong direction and there can be a point of no return the state of West Bengal is witnessing two big issues  Covid pandemic and post-election retributive violence. There was blood-shed and genocide in the state. I should not say much as the cases are under investigation but the chief minister's silence is a matter of concern for me, he said.

The governor also alleged that Ms Banerjee, at her election campaigns, had provoked her supporters, especially women, to oppose Central forces by various means"

Such words do not befit a chief minister. It is extremely painful for me to see a chief minister do this. It is antithetical to the rule of law, he said and added that a state government should be positive and progressive in its approach, but "I don't understand this dispensation's constant conflict with all -- the Centre, governor, Election Commission and the Central forces. This is against the very soul of the Constitution".

He said, I had never imagined that I would have to go through such severe hurt and pain while discharging my duties as a governor. After the poll results were announced, West Bengal experienced blood-shed, arson, loot, violation of woman's dignity and rampant vandalism.

"People flee from their homes and take shelter in other states only when they realise they are insecure and those entrusted with ensuring their security are unable to do their job. The situation is such in the state that people are scared of the police, and the police are scared of the ruling party (TMC) workers. Where is the rule of law? he asked.

More than 175 people from West Bengal are taking shelter at a Ranpagli school in Dhubri district, bordering the neighbouring state. The Assam government has been facilitating shelter to them.

Mr Dhankhar thanked the Assam government for "attending to people" who took shelter in Assam. I would like to express my gratitude to the Assam government for taking care of our people who fled their homes under unfortunate circumstances," Mr Dhankhar said.

He also sought to know why human rights activists and NGOs have not tried to reach out to those affected by post-poll violence and highlight their plight.

My hands are tied as a governor but where are the human rights activists, NGOs and journalists? Are they all wearing dark glasses? said Mr Dhankar.
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According to the consigners description, this particular example was used for certain scenes in the third and fourth seasons of Amazons The Man in the High Castle. Thats an interesting piece of trivia, and one that might count towards the coolness level of this collectible. But even without a starring role in a TV series, it would still make up for a great auction catch.The Mercedes-Benz 600 series (W100) arrived back in 1963 as the flagship model for the German automaker and immediately became known for its notable owners, be them movie stars or political and royal leaders, as well as the involvement in popular culture And, while it was also available as a regular short-wheel base version, the ones that will go down in history will naturally be the long-wheel base four-door and six-door Pullmans, as well as the Landaulets. This unit seen here is one of just 304 regular Pullmans produced during its time, with the description claiming it was completed on July 31st, 1969.That means it has been dwelling on planet Earth for no less than 52 years, during which time it has only accrued some 36,000 kilometers (around 22k miles) on the odometer. Granted, were dealing with a TMU sale here, but we all know that even if the mileage is much higher, these things were cared for and pampered all day long, so it really shouldnt be a problem.Among the interesting highlights we could note a reported initial stint in Libya for use by none other than King Idris, while it later spent time half the world across in Japan before ending up in California and coming into the private possession of the current owner back in 2011.The car looks pristine because it has been through a $150+k TLC in 2014 and the 6.3-liter M100 V8 engine was paired up with numerous creature comforts to make the stay inside as welcoming as possible while the Pullman effortlessly glided across the American roads.Now theres a chance to snatch this interesting limousine, though we can imagine the seller has posted quite an impressive reserve on the auction  which is set to continue for another week to make sure everyone has a chance to go crazy on the bidding.
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According to Rhomb1981 of the Worldscoop forums, the second phase of the Duster was originally scheduled to launch in June 2021. The semiconductor crisis postponed the utility vehicles launch to September 2021, which is going to cost the Romanian carmaker a few valuable orders.For example, the Ford Motor Company expects the chip shortage to affect its adjusted EBIT by $1.0 to $2.5 billion. To understand how many dollar bills were actually talking about here, the Blue Oval reported $1.7 billion in adjusted earnings before interest and taxes for the final quarter of 2020.Turning our attention back to the 2022 model year Duster , the low-cost utility vehicle from Romania will receive the latest Media Display and Media Nav from the all-new Logan, Sandero, and Sandero Stepway. This infotainment system is rocking an 8.0-inch touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, and a Car tab for specificsettings.The most notable differences between Media Display and Media Nav come in the guise of audio speakers (four and six) and how the user connects his phone to the infotainment system (wired and wireless CarPlay and Auto).Based on the leaked roadmap, pricing for certain versions of the Sandero hatchback and Lodgy people carrier will be increased in June although we dont know if these changes apply to Romania, France, or every European market. Considering that orders for the Spring electric hatchback are listed for June as well, the said document appears to apply to the French market.Going forward, the Sandero will receive a sunroof in July, the Spring Comfort Plus will be launched in October, and the lineup will be completed by three other variants in 2022. These are the Comfort, Cargo, and Business, which feature the 33-motor and 27.4-battery of the Comfort Plus.
EV

So right now, Android Auto users can already choose from a series of Google Maps alternatives , some of which come with must-have features like hazard warnings and offline support.And now, another Google Maps competitor has confirmed incoming support for Android Auto, with an update to supposed to bring this feature scheduled to go live this quarter.Its OsmAnd , a super-popular app providing offline navigation and a series of extras, with millions of people already using it on their mobile devices.An earlier announcement reveals that OsmAnd is coming to Android Auto in the second quarter of the year, so in theory, were not very far from the moment this highly anticipated update is projected to finally go live.No further specifics have been provided on the Android Auto version of OsmAnd, but expect the essential functionality to be there, including offline maps, turn-by-turn voice guidance, lane assist, speed limits, and dark mode.In the meantime, Google blocking access to Android Auto for Google Maps alternatives for several years is causing legal trouble for the search giant. Italys competition watchdog has issued a hefty fine for Google after finding that the company offered Google Maps as the exclusive navigation app on Android Auto, therefore blocking third parties, including a local company, from rolling out similar products.Earlier this year, however, Google unlocked Android Auto for third parties while also allowing for more categories of apps, including not only navigation solutions but also tools aimed atowners to get information on charging stations. Several such apps have already landed on Android Auto while others are currently in the works and expected in the coming months.
The company describes the 10X as the most powerful in the range, as it offers 18,000 lbs of thrust. It comprises something Rolls-Royce calls the Advance2 engine core, which aside from giving the entire assembly more power, it also provides a 5 percent increase in efficiency over what came before.The engine comprises the said core, but also a blisked fan, a high-pressure compressor, a low emissions combustor with 3D-printed tiles, and a two-stage shroudless high-pressure turbine. All these parts are wrapped inside a brand new slimline nacelle developed by an American company Spirit AeroSystems.At about the same time Rolls-Royce announced the details of the engine, French company Dassault Aviation announced the Pearl 10X would power its next Falcon jet. In fact, added the two companies, the engine itself has been developed with the Dassault machine in mind, as were told it has been optimized to exclusively power Dassaults brand-new flagship aircraft, the Falcon 10X.The French private jet is a top-of-the-line machine, capable of covering the distance between say New York to Shanghai (over 7,000 miles/11,200 km) without the need to land. It will be capable of this thanks to the two Pearl engines of reaching speeds just shy of the speed of sound , Mach 0.925, while carrying people inside the the biggest and most comfortable cabin on the market.The new engine is still some time away from being ready to take to the sky. Work on it continues at Rolls facilities in Dahlewitz, Germany.
Such hardware is generally known as sense and avoid, and it is designed to do exactly that: detect whats happening around the drone, and if need be move it out of the way autonomously to avoid collisions.Military drones dont usually come with sense and avoid simply because up until now theyve been lone killer wolves raining death and electronic surveillance from above. But as the needs and expectations of the military shift, theyll kind of have to mingle.With that in mind, the U.S. Navy, Northrop Grumman , and a joint venture between L3Harris and Thales called Aviation Communications & Surveillance Systems (ACSS) have been working for the past five years in coming up with a decent sense and avoid system.The technology is meant for the MQ-4C Triton autonomous drone, and if successful it will allow the machine not only to fly alongside other aircraft, but also take off and land out of almost any airfield or airport in the world, in full compliance with current and emerging aviation regulations around the globe.The Triton had its first flight in 2013, and just a small number of them are currently deployed by the U.S. Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. Derived from the Global Hawk , it was designed with a wide range of missions in mind, from maritime ISR patrol, signals intelligence, search and rescue and communications relay.The main thing going for this drone is the fact that it can stay in the air for 24 hours at a time, an altitudes of more than 10 miles (16 km), and can cover distances of up to 9,400 miles (15,100 km).The companies involved did not say how long it will be before the prototype of the system will be ready for testing.
Axicles TARS (tractor anti-roll system) has a fifth-wheel coupling design and can be used with any Class 8 tractor. It can handle loads up to 55,000 pounds and it is easy to couple and decouple. It comes with a quick-release system and a pin that pops out when you properly secure the kingpin.If the trailer starts to roll, either due to wind or driver error, the Axicle system immediately drops the trailer altogether in a millisecond, to maintain the front cabin upright and keep the driver safe.The TARS brings some other useful features to the table as well. It packs in smart sensors that collect important data related to your load, the wind, and vibration.The technology used by Axicle could save up to $3,000 a year per semi truck on insurance premiums, according to Axicle founder and engineer Steve Krug, quoted by New Atlas Krug added that the TARS would cost around $4,000 and a prototype ready for production will be tested at full scale with heavy loads by the end of this year. So far, the TARS has only been tested with low loads.Axicle gives us some interesting statistics to convince us of the immediate need for a more efficient and safe coupling. According to the manufacturer, there are over 9,000 injuries and deaths related to the trucking industry in the United States each year.More than $3.5 billion in insurance payouts per year in the United States are related to injuries and deaths caused in Class 8 rollover accidents . The TARS fifth-wheel can save over 400 lives per year and save us up to 25 percent every year.
President Biden's promise to cut the price of Americans' internet bills has provoked a fierce lobbying campaign by cable and telecom companies to prove that the cost of broadband has already dropped.

Why it matters: Internet providers are desperate to fend off any move to regulate the prices they charge, while the government is increasingly viewing connectivity as an essential service.

State of play: Internet industry lobbyists are publicly touting studies showing a decline in prices, attacking reports that argue otherwise and telling members of Congress there's no need for new regulations because they already have affordable programs in place.

A lot of their focus has been to point to the products theyve put in the marketplace, the actions they took during COVID and doing a lot of handwaving to say we did all these things for Americans, we kept you connected," a Democratic Hill staffer told Axios.

"Theyre absolutely on edge," another aide told Axios. "They are concerned at the highest levels over the prospect of rate regulation."

Low-income broadband programs, which typically cost between $10 and $15 a month, have connected more than 14 million Americans over the past decade, according to an analysis from cable trade group NCTA.

The catch: Most Americans don't qualify for those service plans. Biden's push to reduce prices goes beyond just helping the poorest users.

Details: Broadband prices are often opaque  promotions, bundle packages, data caps and equipment rental fees all make it very complicated to calculate how much Americans are paying for their internet service.

The challenge is  for a variety of reasons  there is really no uniform pricing practices among the big ISPs, nor is there any clear government requirement upon them to list the actual price," Jonathan Schwantes, senior policy counsel for Consumer Reports, told Axios.

The White House says Americans "pay too much for the internet" and President Biden intends to work with Congress to find a way to "reduce internet prices for all Americans."

The administration pointed to a recent working paper from New York University finance professor Thomas Philippon that found Americans pay more for internet service than consumers in other countries.

US internet companies "earn more per user and they pay much higher dividends than companies in other regions," Philippon told Axios.

And the White House isn't buying the push-back from industry groups.

A senior administration official told Axios the bulk of the evidence shows prices have gone up recently and prices are higher than they are for comparable plans in Europe.

Biden noted the high cost of internet service in March, and the official told Axios, "I don't think we've seen anything since he made those comments to make us feel like we were wrong about that. We're still committed to taking some bold action to make sure that we bring those prices down for folks."

The intrigue: The White House also highlighted a working paper from Berkeley Law professor Tejas Narechania.

Narechania finds that broadband providers offer slower service for the same price in areas where they lack competition, and proposes a model statute for rate regulation of a basic tier broadband service in areas without competition.

The senior administration official said the White House hasn''t taken a position on rate regulation, but noted, "It's pretty clear that it's something that the FCC could do under the existing statutes that it has in its jurisdiction."

The other side: Cable and telecom industry groups dispute many of the White House studies, and argue prices are dropping for U.S. customers.

Cable trade group NCTA commissioned a paper from economists to review a study from New America's Open Technology Institute and others, and found that they overstate broadband prices.

"These studies do not support calls for the regulation of U.S. fixed broadband internet access providers or other forms of government intervention intended to address a perceived lack of competition," the authors wrote.

USTelecom did its own review of broadband prices last year and argues that Americans paid less in 2020 for the most popular speed tier than they did in 2015.

Yes, but: The White House also points to a report from progressive advocacy group Free Press that argues that broadband prices have risen, using a number of different data sources.
Pennsylvania's $64 billion teachers pension fund is under fire for misstating its investment returns.

Why it matters: The dispute impacts whether or not around 100,000 active Pennsylvania teachers need to increase their annual pension contributions.

Background: PSERS is legally required to increase employee contribution rates if it doesn't meet certain investment benchmarks. In this case, it's 6.36% over the prior nine years.

PSERS appeared to have just cleared that hurdle, in December reporting a 6.38% rate, which meant teacher contributions would remain flat.

In March, PSERS announced that its outside consultant had made a "calculation" error, and that the correct nine-year performance figure was 6.34%. Thus, teachers would need to pay more  with the new rates in effect through at least July 2024.

The big question, of course, is if this was just an honest mistake or an intentional effort to keep PSERS below the threshold.

Under normal circumstances, PSERS would get the benefit of the doubt. But the pension is under federal investigation related to around $13.5 million in real estate investments near its Harrisburg headquarters, and it's possible that the probe also extends to the portfolio performance figures.

Just yesterday, a PSERS board member hired an outside "transparency council," after being unable to obtain satisfactory answers about how the returns were calculated.

Collateral damage: The controversy also has stirred up animus toward alternative investments, in which PSERS is very heavily involved.

Just check out this N.Y. Times story that somehow manages to conflate all of the above troubles with PSERS also backing a buyout fund whose portfolio includes a prison payphone operator.

It seems the tenuous argument goes something like: Alternative investments are more exotic and more secretive than are public equities, so more prone to book-cooking

The bottom line: PSERS needs to get its house in order.
The debate over coronavirus precautions and school reopening has fueled a surge of new candidates for school boards across the country.

Why it matters: What was traditionally a nonpartisan, hyper-local role is now at center of a swirling national political debate. Conservative and progressive parents have clashed over when and how to reopen classrooms  and it's pushed some of them to run for office themselves.

"Historically, we've actually seen where some school board seats have gone uncontested  sometimes for years  and now we're seeing multiple candidates for seats," National School Boards Association CEO Anna Maria Chavez told Axios.

"This is something that we've seen during the pandemic because, again, every kitchen table has become a public school classroom."

More people are "looking to express their political fervor in all different avenues," Troy Flint, Chief Information Officer for the California School Boards Association, told Axios.

"And school boards, as the most approachable elected body, is a natural first step"  both for activists and those wanting to run for office.

What's happening: Grassroots conservative groups are getting involved in school board races all across the country.

"Patriots for Delaware" endorsed five pro-school-reopening candidates for the state's May 11th elections.

Parents in Pennsylvania formed their own political action committee to support school board candidates running to keep kids in school in person.

In El Paso, Texas, the Facebook group "Let Schools Ring" supported Leslie Hoard, who reportedly questioned the use of masks in school and supported school reopening. Hoard lost to incumbent Josh Acevedo, who told Axios running against Hoard, who he described as science denier, was "really, really intense."

A group called "Moms for Liberty" has been pressuring school board members in Brevard County, Florida to drop its mask mandate for students.

Between the lines: Despite the polarized national debate that's driving some of this partisan involvement, school board elections can scramble traditional ideological alignments.

Miranda Turner is seeking the Democratic endorsement for a seat in Arlington, Virginia. She hadn't planned on running, Turner told Axios, until she saw that other candidates weren't making returning to school a priority.

While she insists she is a Democrat, Turner acknowledged her campaign has appealed to more conservative voters. Returning to schools is often "characterized and sometimes disparaged as being Republican, Trumpian, conservative... which I think is really unfortunate," she said.

Anger over the slow reopening of schools among other issues in the Democratic city of San Francisco drove a parent-led effort to recall three of the seven school board members.

Siva Raj, one of the leaders of the recall effort, told Axios that the school board has "completely failed" to fight for the children. "So parents need to have more of a voice. We need to have a seat at the table." Organizers have collected more than 10,000 out of 51,000 signatures needed by September to unseat at least two of the members.

What were watching: The next flashpoint for local school boards is the debate over critical race theory, an academic movement focusing on systemic racism in U.S. laws.

There is growing concern, mostly among conservatives, about it being taught in public schools.

The issue has already become divisive in Texas, Utah and Oregon, and it could drive even more interest  and politics  in school board elections.

The bottom line: "The goal of providing a quality education for all students is nonpartisan, but I think it would be naive at this point to say that your average person views it through that lens," Flint said.

"Schools have become another outlet where the culture wars are being waged."

Editors note: This post has been updated to correct the spelling of Josh Acevedo's name.
We expect Azerbaijan to pull back all forces immediately and cease further provocation, a U.S. State Department spokeswoman, Jalina Porter, told reporters.

Military movements in disputed territories are irresponsible and they're also unnecessarily provocative, Porter said, adding that border demarcation issues should be resolved through negotiation and discussion.

The State Department reacted more cautiously to the Armenian-Azerbaijani border standoff on Thursday, calling on both sides to show restraint in de-escalating the situation peacefully.

Acting Assistant Secretary of State Philip Reeker had separate phone calls with the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers.

Porters remarks came shortly after Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian accused Azerbaijan of failing to honor a pledge to withdraw its forces from Armenian territory occupied by them this week. He again charged that Baku is trying to provoke a large-scale military clash six months after a Russian-brokered ceasefire stopped the war in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Earlier on Friday, Armenia formally appealed to Russia and the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization for military support.

Azerbaijan has denied sending troops across the border and said its forces only took up new positions on the Azerbaijani side of the frontier.
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Monsignor Craig Harrison has announced his resignation from the Catholic Church, ending any possibility he could return as the pastor of St. F
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Residents can bring shoes to the Guarantee Shoe Center downtown location at 2101 Chester Avenue or the KGET-TV 17 studios at 2120 L Street. Guarantee Shoe Center is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Long, Dark Year of Razor Clam Closures Likely - Status of Washington, Oregon Coast

Published 05/14/21 at 5:55 PM PDT

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Seaside, Oregon)  It looks like it will be a long, dark year for razor clamming on the north Oregon coast and maybe the Washington coast. Closures due to biotoxins remain in place for half of the Oregon coast and the vast majority of the Washington side, with the Oregon closures having started all the way back in October. (Photo courtesy Seaside Aquarium)

Currently, everything in Washington is closed for recreational razor clamming except for a small area starting near Copalis and ending at Moclips. All beaches north of Florences north jetty  all the way through to Warrenton  are closed to the activity, but the southern half of the coast is open, including Reedsport, Gold Beach and Brookings.

The closures are to keep people safe from getting sick on natural poisons that are now invading razor clams, and these in turn are created by harmful algae blooms (HABs), according to Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW).

This extended closure looks as if it may continue at least through the fall of this year, said ODFWs shellfish leader Matt Hunter. Domoic acid levels are extremely high, even compared to the 16-month closure that happened a few years back.

The last HAB and domoic acid event in 2016 had a December peak domoic acid level half of what we saw this past December and the fishery was closed until October 2017, Hunter said. We hope this does not happen again, but clammers should be aware its not unrealistic for an extended razor clam harvesting closure.

The area that will get hit the hardest will be the Clatsop Beach area of Seaside through Warrenton, where at least 80 percent of all the states razor clams reside. Its been closed since October, but its annual conservation closure is a mere two months away. Every July, ODFW shuts down razor clamming there through September to let the baby clams set and grow to maturity.

So if the domoic acid levels are cleared, will there be a reopening during the usual closure?

No, Hunter told Oregon Coast Beach Connection, the closure is part of ODFWs mandate.

In the end, it looks like Clatsop Beach wont see recreational digging for these tasty beauties until at least the end of September. Other areas south of there could open up, however, even though their population numbers arent as thick.



Willapa Bay, Washington (courtesy Wallapa Harbor Visitors Center)

Washingtons coastline is not looking good, either. According to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, toxin levels in the Long Beach Peninsula area stayed extremely high since October, dipping sizably in recent weeks. Yet not enough to open things up.

Why is this invasion of domoic acid so harsh and long-lasting right now? Its a perfect storm of aligning conditions, Hunter said.

Weather, ocean currents, HABs and the clams own physiology are the main culprits. Then there was a lack of available food sources for them back in the fall and winter, which is not uncommon.

The problem began when a late September stall in ocean current and winds caused an offshore HAB, Hunter said. This stall resulted from the coastal current remaining southward instead of the fall transition northward and weak but predominant winds from the north rather than from the south.

If that had not happened and the coastline turned to its normal patterns, wave action wouldve broken up the algae. Instead, the stall lingered into October and shuttled HABs to the Clatsop Beach clams, which ingested the stuff. The biotoxin rapidly accumulates in a clams tissue.

Hunter said the biotoxin levels found in the clams were ten times what they were back in 2016 when that last extended closure hit.

Meanwhile, mussel, bay clam and crab harvesting remain open along the entire Oregon coast. Coastal scallops are not affected by biotoxin closures when only the adductor muscle is eaten.



For more information call Oregon's shellfish biotoxin hotline at (800) 448-2474, the Food Safety Division at (503) 986-4720, or visit the ODA Recreational Shellfish Biotoxin Closures Webpage.

For the latest on Washington's shellfish status, see the WDFW site.

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Beaumont ISD has fewer teacher vacancies than they have had in years, something the board of trustees and Superintendent have touted as a success story for a district that has faced years of disruptions.

Now, as it navigates the difficult next steps following a year-and-a-half of virtual learning punctuated by a record hurricane season and a devastating winter storm, they are working to bolster and retain a growing work force.

Our goal is to ensure that we do all that we can as an organization to recruit and retain highly qualified personnel in efforts to ensure the best education for our students, Executive Director Human Resources Derwin Samuels told The Enterprise.

The most recent effort was a virtual job fair held Thursday, which was tailored to safety precautions required by the dwindling pandemic. The district collaborated with CareerEco, a virtual platform, to facilitate the event.

Related: BISD working to correct inflated absence numbers

"This job fair is an innovative and safe way for both the candidates and principals to network as we continue to navigate through the pandemic," Samuels said "Our Virtual Job Fair is different from fairs the District has hosted in the past. The platform allows for candidates to upload pertinent career information and it is easier for the candidates to see what positions are available at various campuses.

Due to efforts to add new teaching slots for class size reduction, district officials are anticipating about 74 teacher openings for the 2021-22 school year. Just this past year, the district was able to fill more than 200 vacancies.

While burnout, health concerns and the uncertain future of the pandemic have caused some teachers to call it quits, Samuels said other aspects of the pandemic have made the profession more inviting for teachers.

Top hits: Get Beaumont Enterprise stories sent directly to your inbox

Virtual teaching has allowed school districts to continue offering educational opportunities to their students and provide jobs to their educators during the pandemic, he said. While any drastic change can be intimidating, virtual teaching has also provided opportunities for educators to grow and innovate. For this reason, we are seeing many new educators from the digital generation looking for employment.

With an influx of new teachers over the past three years, almost 42% of the districts teaching force had five years of experience or less in 2019 according to Texas Education Agency data.

But the decrease in vacancies still is significant for the district, which has steadily stabilized its hiring situation since the state take-over and district-wide layoffs in 2014.

Related: BISD board approves layoffs

BISD also is on the lookout for teachers with specialty certifications to serve an increasingly diversifying student body.

The District is currently looking for certified teachers at the elementary and secondary levels with certificates in special education, core subject areas, ... bilingual and ESL, foreign languages etc., Valerie Simon, Beaumont ISD Human Resources Manager told The Enterprise.

Simon facilitated Thursdays virtual fair.

A list of job openings for teachers and other roles can be found on the districts website and questions can be directed to the Human Resources Department at 409-617-5093.

isaac.windes@hearstnp.com

twitter.com/isaacdwindes
As work on Golden Pass LNG terminal in Sabine Pass progresses, the project is renewing its focus on local workforce development with a new interactive workforce guide.

Framed in an interactive website that matches the interest of prospective workers with needed skills and even a timeline for demand on the project, setxworkforceguide.com is the joint ventures latest tool for trying to cultivate local talent.

At Golden Pass, we dont just talk about our commitment to the community  we have a group of people that work every day to make sure we are holding up to our commitments, said John Fraser, vice president of operations at Golden Pass.

When ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum announced a final investment decision in spring 2019 to make a $10 billion investment and transition the import terminal into an export facility, it was already clear that the project would have some lofty workforce demands.

According to its latest estimates, Golden Pass predicts it will have to hire for more than 200 new direct jobs at the facility after it is fully operational sometime in 2025. At least 7,000 construction positions will be created during peak construction.

So far, its hired 62 direct employees and more than 560 construction employees are on site through its engineering, procurement and construction contractor, CCJV, partnership of Chiyoda Corp., McDermott International and Zachary Group.

As the project gets closer to its second full year of construction and progresses into more technical work, it will need an even more diverse range of skills to get the job done.

Weve made a lot of progress, but we have a lot of work left to do, so our workforce will significantly ramp up as we start to come out of the ground, erect steel, install pipe, vessels, equipment and electrical equipment, said Lisa Bliss, technical manager at Golden Pass LNG.

Through initiatives of the workforce guide, the company is hoping to not only connect skilled workers looking for construction or operational jobs but also help attract new talent who might not have previously considered a career in liquid natural gas.

The guide is also a complement to the partnerships the company has built with area schools since 2015, creating scholarship funds and mentorship programs for students who could be offered interviews with the company after following their training paths.

A community-based approach does help ensure there are local candidates with the right kind of know-how when you need them, but it is also a natural response for a project that needs as much manpower as it can get.

When the project first got the green light in 2019 from the primary backers, most of Southeast Texas, along with the rest of the nation, was experiencing record low unemployment levels. Other large industrial projects were already filling local RV parks and apartment complexes with construction workers.

Golden Pass hosted informational meetings in Port Arthur to secure local vendors and contacts, even offering guidance for local entrepreneurs to create their own businesses in needed fields to meet some of its demands.

More than two years later, the pandemic has created new challenges for industry and caused some companies to move back investment decisions, but Mary Ann Reid, a spokesperson with the company, said the project has adapted through adversity.

Our commitment to working with our local businesses and communities has never stopped, Reid told the Enterprise. Our operations had to shift in order to maintain safety, but that meant we could keep going.

jacob.dick@beaumontenterprise.com

twitter.com/jd_journalism
NEW ORLEANS (AP)  A woman forced to the ground by two sheriffs deputies in an arrest recorded by her son. Demonstrators tear-gassed and hit by rubber projectiles while protesting the death of George Floyd. A man stunned with a Taser as he tried to flee what advocates say was an unjust arrest.

They are the subjects of federal lawsuits filed in recent weeks by attorneys working under the auspices of Justice Lab," an initiative launched nearly a year ago by the American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana to raise awareness of, and litigate against, police brutality and racially discriminatory policing.

This is the first of its kind, says Alanah Odoms, executive director of the organization. But she expects it to expand to other state ACLU affiliates, especially in the South.

It's an initiative born in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, a Black man who died last year after a white police officer pinned him down and kneeled on his neck until he could no longer breathe. Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, was convicted of murder and manslaughter charges in Floyd's death.

Law firms around the nation, regardless of specialty, are involved.

Reid Collins & Tsai LLP, for instance, describes itself on its website as a boutique law firm handling complex business litigation.

Keith Cohan, an attorney with Reid Collins in Austin, Texas, said he believes the Floyd case and discriminatory policing practices were among reasons that his firm decided to participate in Justice Lab.

This is different than our typical practice, he said.

Odoms said nearly 50 private law firms are involved in the project. The ACLU developed a two-week training program for the private firms involved.

The latest Justice Lab lawsuit was filed May 4 in federal court in New Orleans and accuses two St. Tammany Parish deputies of using excessive force and making a false arrest in what started out as a May 5, 2020, traffic investigation. Reid Collins attorneys are among those representing Teliah Perkins in the suit. It references a video recorded by her 14-year-old son and posted on YouTube that shows police forcing her to the ground, her face to the pavement in front of her Slidell home. The suit says the incident began when officers stopped to question her about complaints of someone in the area riding a motorcycle without a helmet.

Capt. Scott Lee, a spokesman for the Sheriff's Office, said the department doesn't comment on pending litigation but also said complaints about the arrest were full investigated and deemed to be unfounded.

Another high-profile lawsuit says police in New Orleans unlawfully used a Taser last year on Michael Celestine, a Black man, as he ran from officers and tried to climb a fence. The lawsuit acknowledges police later found a small amount of cocaine and a gun on Celestine. But it also says officers never had a reason to approach Celestine. It notes that charges eventually were dropped and says the use of force and the search were unlawful.

In a response filed last week, the police officers say Celestine attempted to evade a lawful investigatory stop." They deny wrongdoing and also claim they state law grants them qualified immunity for lawsuits over actions they take in the course of their work.

Qualified immunity for police is a concept supported by many in laws enforcement as necessary to protect police from unjust lawsuits. But it's being challenged by criminal justice advocates around the country in the aftermath of the Floyd case. And it's a target of the Justice Lab litigation.

We have a real chance, I think, to build a body of case law that at least stands to challenge qualified immunity, Odoms said.
Volunteers with the Southeast Texas Food Bank hand out food boxes and snack bags during Southeast Texas Stand Down 2021 in Port Arthur Friday as attendees made their way in and out of the event. Inside, numerous veterans organizations as well as other health and community action services filled the Bob A. Bowers Civic Center to connect veterans and the homeless with needed resources, ranging from food to clothing to health and well-being services. Workers frrom Motiva andd Valero helped distribute boxed lunches and drinks provided by Chick-fil-A.

A similar event will be held in Beaumont this fall.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  The mayor of Mississippi's capital city and a state senator both apologized Saturday for shootings 51 years ago by city and state police officers that killed two people and injured 12 others on the campus of a historically Black college.

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and state Sen. Hillman Frazier of Jackson spoke during a graduation ceremony for the Class of 1970 of what was then Jackson State College, now Jackson State University.

Lumumba apologized on behalf of the city to the families of the two men whose lives were cut short by the violent police response to the protest against racial injustice. Killed were 21-year-old Jackson State student Phillip Lafayette Gibbs and 17-year-old James Earl Green, a high school student who was on campus while walking home from work.

Jackson States 1970 commencement was canceled because of the bloodshed, and graduates that year received their diplomas in the mail, if at all. On Saturday, 74 of the 400-plus 1970 grads donned caps and gowns and stood in the sunshine to receive the recognition denied to them a lifetime ago.

As James Baldwin once wrote: When we cannot tell the truth about our past, we become trapped in it, Lumumba said. I believe, as a city, we must publicly atone for the sins of our past and proclaim a new identity of dignity, equity and justice.

The May 15, 1970, shootings at Jackson State had largely been overshadowed by violence from days earlier, when Ohio National Guardsmen shot and killed four Kent State University students amid a Vietnam War protest.

Lumumba and Frazier are both Black, and both represent a city now more than 80% Black. Jackson was majority-white in 1970, and the Jackson Police Department and Mississippi Highway Patrol officers who went on campus were white.

Lumumba said the Jackson Police Department officers unjustly gunned down two innocent young Black men, terrorized and traumatized a community of Black students and committed one of the gravest sins in our citys history.

Frazier was a Jackson State student in 1970. He said he had gone to dinner that night and was delayed in returning to campus. But he believes he might have been standing near his friend Gibbs during the gunfire, if not for that delay.

The state of Mississippi never apologized for the tragedy that occurred on this campus that night  never apologized, Frazier said. So, since Im here representing the state of Mississippi in my role as state senator, Id like to issue an apology to the families, the Jackson State family, for the tragedy that occurred that night because they took very valuable lives.

Officers marched onto Jackson State the night of May 14, 1970, to quell protests against racial injustice. According to a report by President Richard Nixon's Commission on Campus Unrest, Jackson State students had been throwing rocks at white motorists. James Lap Baker, a member of the Class of 1970, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that students were fed up with white people driving through campus shouting racial slurs, throwing bottles and endangering Black pedestrians.

Students had gathered outside the Alexander Hall women's dormitory and B.F. Roberts dining hall across the street  some protesting, others simply enjoying each other's company as women returned to the dorm before curfew.

After midnight that May 15, a Highway Patrol officer used a bullhorn to address students, Baker said. Someone in the crowd threw a bottle, and officers started shooting indiscriminately, later falsely claiming they had seen a sniper in a dorm window.

A Jackson TV reporter recorded 28 seconds of gunfire. When it had ended, Gibbs and Green were dead and 12 other people were bleeding. Windows of Alexander Hall shattered and its walls were left with pockmarks still visible today.

John A. Peoples Jr., who was Jackson State president from 1967 to 1984, said during Saturday's ceremony that he remembers the sickening smell of blood streaming down the stairway of Alexander Hall after the shootings.

We sat on that lawn the rest of the night singing freedom songs, Peoples said.

Baker crawled through grass after the shootings to return unharmed to his off-campus apartment after what he calls a planned massacre. No officer ever faced criminal charges, and an all-white jury awarded no money to the Black victims families in a civil lawsuit.

Jackson State on Saturday awarded posthumous honorary doctorate degrees to Gibbs and Green, and their sisters accepted those. The graduation took place on the site of the once-busy street that was closed years ago and turned into a pedestrian zone named the Gibbs-Green Memorial Plaza.

____

Follow Emily Wagster Pettus on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EWagsterPettus.
The Latest on the continuing violence between Israel and Gaza's militant Hamas rulers amid the latest escalation in the Middle East:

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BEIJING  Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has called on the U.N. Security Council to seek an early de-escalation of violence between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers. He also blamed the U.S. for the councils lack of action so far.

Regrettably, the council has so far failed to reach an agreement, with the United States standing on the opposite side of international justice, the state-run Xinhua News Agency quoted Wang as saying in a phone conversation Saturday with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

He expressed support for a two-state solution, and said China, which holds the Security Council presidency this month, expects all parties to speak with a unified voice when the council discusses the conflict later Sunday.

Wang said the Security Council should reconfirm a two-state solution and urge Palestinians and Israelis to resume talks on that basis as soon as possible.

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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  Israeli warplanes have struck several buildings and roads in a vital part of Gaza City early Sunday.

According to photos circulated by residents and journalists, the airstrikes created a crater that blocked one of the main roads leading to Shifa, the largest hospital in the strip.

The Health Ministry said the latest airstrikes left at least two dead and 25 wounded, including children and women. It said rescuers are still digging through the rubble and had so far pulled up five more wounded.

Two hours into the heavy bombardment, there has been no comment from the Israeli military.

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UNITED NATIONS -- A U.N. spokesman says Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is deeply disturbed by the Israeli airstrike that destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City housing offices of several international media organizations and residential apartments, and is dismayed by the increasing number of civilian casualties.

The secretary-general reminds all sides that any indiscriminate targeting of civilian and media structures violates international law and must be avoided at all costs, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Saturday.

Earlier Saturday, an Israeli airstrike pulverized a high-rise building that housed The Associated Press, Al Jazeera and other media after warning that it was being targeted.

Guterres singled out the death of 10 members of the same family including children as a result of an Israeli airstrike Friday in the al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Saturday.

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LOS ANGELES  Hundreds of protesters shut down traffic as they took to the streets of Los Angeles, calling for an end to Israeli airstrikes over the Gaza Strip.

The protesters waved flags and signs that said free Palestine and shouted long live intifada, or uprising. They marched from outside the federal building to the Israeli Consulate in the western part of the city on Saturday.

Police shut down traffic on Wilshire Boulevard, a major thoroughfare, and urged motorists to avoid the area. Police from multiple agencies were monitoring the ongoing demonstration.

Also on Saturday, hundreds of protesters gathered in Bostons Copley Square and walked a short distance through the streets to the location of the Israeli Consulate for New England, blocking traffic.

Footage on social media shows protesters then unfurled a banner in the colors of the Palestinian flag with the words Free Palestine while standing on top of the awning of the building where the consulate is located.

Other smaller protests in support of Palestinians took place in Hartford and Pittsburgh, where footage shows one speaker at the protest called on lawmakers to put restrictions on how Israel can spend aid from the United States.

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JERUSALEM  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that the ongoing campaign against Palestinian militants, now in its sixth day, will continue as long as needed.

The prime minister spoke on Saturday from Israels defense ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv and issued a warning to leaders of Gaza's militant Hamas group after a series of airstrikes targeted high-level officials and commanders.

Netanyahu says: You cannot hide  not above ground, and not underground. Nobody is immune.

The Israeli leader added that there was no more just or moral campaign than Israels against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and thanked President Joe Biden and other world leaders for their support.

Netanyahu's remarks came at the end of a day that saw Israeli airstrikes target and destroy a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets. Everyone was safely evacuated from the building before the strike hit.

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JERUSALEM  Israels Electric Company says that high voltage lines supplying the Gaza Strip with electricity were damaged by rocket fire by Palestinian militants.

The company released a statement on Saturday saying five of the 10 lines have been damaged, in the latest escalation of fighting and that the company cannot fix them because there is no access to the area.

Damage to the power lines came amid days of intense fighting between Palestinian militants and Israel in the Gaza Strip.

Gaza's only other source of electricity  besides the power provided by Israel  is its single power plant, which has been working only partially due to fuel shortages. However, both sources are insufficient to cover Gazans' needs.

Outages of at least eight hours have long been a daily occurrence in the strip and with the power plant not working at regular capacity, rolling blackouts have increased to 12-15 hours per day recently.

With the latest hits on the power line, more outages are expected.

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BEIRUT  A top Hamas leader says militant groups in the Gaza Strip will not retreat in the face of attacks by Israeli troops, warning that their fighters still havent used all their force at their disposal.

Ismail Haniyeh spoke during a rally attended by hundreds in the gas-rich nation of Qatar on Saturday night. He said that resistance is the shortest road to Jerusalem and that Palestinians will not accept anything less than a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.

He added that the Zionist enemy struck Gaza, flattened towers and carried out massacres, thinking that this will make militant groups retreat. He said that as the Israeli attacks escalate, the resistance will increase (its force) to a higher level.

Haniyeh also said that despite the fact that Gaza has been under siege for nearly 15 years, militant groups will not retreat.

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WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden has expressed strong support for Israels strikes in Gaza in retaliation for Hamas missile attacks on its territory, but raised concerns about civilian casualties and the protection of journalists on a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The White House says Biden on Saturday also shared his grave concern about intercommunal violence within Israel and escalating tensions in the West Bank. Biden and Netanyahu also discussed Jerusalem, with Biden saying it should be a place of peaceful coexistence for people of all faiths and backgrounds.

Biden also held his first call since taking office with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss the violence, in which he called for Hamas, the PAs rival, to stop firing rockets into Israel.

The White House says Biden expressed his support for steps to enable the Palestinian people to enjoy the dignity, security, freedom, and economic opportunity that they deserve and highlighted the resumption of U.S. aid to the Palestinians under his administration.

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RAMALLAH, West Bank  Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has spoken on the phone with President Joe Biden and urged the U.S. to intervene in the conflict and put an end to Israeli attacks on Palestinians.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa says Abbas on Saturday updated Biden on the escalations across the Palestinian territories and said he was working to halt the Israeli aggression against our people and to reach a cease-fire.

The report says Abbas also told Biden that security and stability will be achieved when the Israeli occupation ends, adding that Palestinians are ready and willing to work toward peace with international mediators.

Biden stressed the need to achieve calm and reduce violence in the Mideast, noting intensive American diplomatic efforts to that end. That's according to the Wafa statement.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Qatars foreign minister has met with a top Hamas official.

Thats according to a statement by Qatars Foreign Ministry on Saturday. It said Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani met Hamas leader Ismail Haniya in the capital, Doha.

The Foreign Ministry said Sheikh Mohammed stressed the need for the international community to act urgently to stop the repeated brutal Israeli attacks against civilians in Gaza.

There was no mention of the Israeli strike that toppled a Gaza tower that was home to offices of both The Associated Press, Dohas Al-Jazeera satellite news network and others.

Meanwhile, Arab League chief said Saturday that Arab states ambassadors to the United Nations are trying to rally international support for Palestinians amid Israeli attacks on Gaza .

Ahmed Aboul Gheit called upon the U.N. Security Council to fulfill its responsibilities" in holding Israel accountable in a session scheduled on Sunday to discuss the violence.

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CAIRO  An Egyptian intelligence official says efforts to reach a cease-fire between Israel and the Gaza militant groups are ongoing and have gained a push with the arrival of a U.S. envoy to Tel Aviv.

The official said Saturday that Egypt and other mediators hope that the U.S. will pressure Israel to end the fighting.

The official said it's up the U.S. to order Israel to stop such disastrous" actions  and added that the situation has started to get out of control in the occupied Palestinian territories. referring to protests in West Bank, Jerusalem and other areas.

He says the mediators do not expect a cease-fire before the U.N. Security Council meeting Sunday.

The official says Egypt is now seeking an hours-long lull to evacuate severely wounded people from Gaza. He says Egypt is pushing for such a humanitarian pause overnight as ambulances are waiting on the Egyptian side of the border.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. U.S. diplomat Hady Amr, the deputy assistant secretary for Israeli and Palestinian affairs. is now in the region to try resolve the escalation.

 Samy Magdy in Cairo;

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BEIRUT  Hundreds of Lebanese and Palestinians have protested along the Lebanon-Israel border, with some climbing a border wall and triggering Israeli fire that wounded one person.

The protest on Saturday evening in the Lebanese border village of Adaisseh saw hundreds marching and waving Palestinian, Lebanese and yellow flags of the militant Hezbollah group.

Some protesters climbed a high border wall where they placed Palestinian and Hezbollah flags.

Lebanons state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli troops fired warning shots near Adaisseh, wounding one person who was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

Lebanese and Palestinians from around Lebanon have been heading to the border to protest against Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip over the past days. On Friday, Israeli troops opened fire at protesters who crossed a border fence, killing a 21-year-old Hezbollah member.

Earlier Saturday, an Israeli military spokesman warned Lebanese authorities not to allow protesters to breach the border.

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VIENNA, Austria  An international network of journalists and media executives vehemently condemn the Israeli airstrike on a Gaza City building housing the offices of The Associated Press and broadcaster Al-Jazeera.

Barbara Trionfi, the executive director of the International Press Institute, said after Saturday's airstrike that the targeting of news organizations is completely unacceptable, even during an armed conflict."

She added that it represents a gross violation of human rights and internationally agreed norms.

Three heavy missiles struck and destroyed the 12-story building about an hour after the Israeli military telephoned the owner to warn a strike was imminent. AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building, which also contained residential apartments.

AP Vice President and Editor at Large John Daniszewski, who chairs IPIs North American Committee and is special envoy for journalist safety, said there is no doubt that Israeli forces were aware that the media offices would be destroyed.

The Israeli military said the militant group Hamas was operating inside the building, but it provided no evidence to back up the claim.

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TEHRAN, Iran  An Iranian state TV channel says the head of the expeditionary force of Irans paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has had a phone call with the head of the militant Hamas group.

Al-Alam, the Arabic-language service of the Iranian state television, reported that Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh spoke by telephone with Quds Force commander Gen. Esmail Ghaani.

Ghaani reportedly praised Hamas as offering a unique and successful answer to Israel.

Hamas officials have praised Iran for providing it weapons and aid in its fighting against Israel, Tehrans regional rival.

The report comes amid a dramatic escalation in the confrontation between Israel and Hamas this week. An Israeli airstrike on Saturday targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets, including Al-Jazeera and also Kuwait's state television.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  The foreign ministers of Egypt and Saudi Arabia are calling for an immediate cease-fire in the fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Thats according to a statement on Saturday carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency.

It says that Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan had spoken to Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

It said the two both agreed that an immediate cease-fire was needed. Egypt has been trying to negotiate a stop to the fighting.

The Saudi statement also said the two diplomats called on the international community to confront the aggressive Israeli practices against the brotherly Palestinian people.

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JERUSALEM  President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have spoken about the situation with Gaza.

According to a statement from Netanyahu's office, the Israeli leader updated Biden on the developments and actions that Israel has taken and intends to take. It says Netanyahu also thanked Biden for the unreserved support of the United States for our right to defend ourselves."

It says Netanyahu emphasized in the conversation that Israel is doing everything to avoid harming the uninvolved. The statement added the proof of this is that in the towers where there are terrorist targets attacked by the IDF, they are evacuated from the uninvolved."

The Biden-Netanyahu call came just hours after an Israeli airstrike on Saturday targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  An American organization promoting literature and freedom of speech has called Israel's airstrike that destroyed a building in Gaza that was home to the offices of The Associated Press and other media deeply disturbing.

PEN America said in a statement after Saturday's strike that the only reason the world knows about the ongoing fighting between Gazas Hamas rulers and Israel is due to the tireless, indefatigable work of journalists, risking their lives to inform the world.

The organization demanded a detailed accounting of why Israel launched the strike.

PEN America added that the resulting destruction will hobble the ability of professional journalists to do their work documenting a fraught, complex conflict at a critical time.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Al-Jazeera has called the Israeli bombing that destroyed its office in Gaza a clear act to stop journalists from reporting on the conflict between it and Hamas.

Al-Jazeera issued the statement Saturday night after an Israeli strike that destroyed the building that was also home to the Gaza offices of The Associated Press.

The Doha-based broadcaster said in a statement: Al-Jazeera calls on all media and human right institutions to join forces in denouncing these ruthless bombing and to hold the government of Israel accountable for deliberately targeting journalists and media institutions.

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al-Jazeera Media Network, called the Israeli strike a war crime.

The aim of this heinous crime is to silence the media and to hide the untold carnage and suffering of the people of Gaza, Souag said.

Al-Jazeera is a major broadcaster in the Mideast, funded by the Qatari government. It operates in both Israel and the Palestinian territories

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ISTANBUL  The communications director to Turkeys president tweeted that Israels targeting of The Associated Press and Al-Jazeera offices in the Gaza Strip were a blow on the freedom of press.

The airstrike on Saturday targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

Fahrettin Altun said after the attack: I curse these lowly attacks by Israel hitting press centers to cover up its massacres. He also claimed that Israel is continuing its massacres and war crimes.

Turkeys Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted that Turkey stands with the Palestinians, who are still facing ethnic, religious and cultural cleansing.

AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building after the Israeli military telephoned a warning that the strike was imminent within an hour. Three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it in a giant cloud of dust.

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WASHINGTON  The White House says Israel has a paramount responsibility to ensure the safety of journalists covering the spiraling conflict.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted on Saturday that the U.S. has communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility.

President Joe Biden has urged a de-escalation, but has publicly backed Israels right to self-defense from Hamas rockets fired from Gaza.

The White House statement followed an Israeli airstrike that targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets. APs president and CEO Gary Pruitt said the agency was shocked and horrified at the strike.

AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building after the military telephoned a warning that the strike was imminent within an hour. Three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it in a giant cloud of dust.

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MADRID  Thousands have marched in Spains capital to protest the attacks by Israels military on the Gaza Strip.

Many waved Palestinian flags as they marched toward Madrids central Puerta del Sol square on Saturday.

Protesters chanted This is not war, this is genocide in Spanish. Some held up homemade signs that read USA Terrorist State and Muslim Lives Matter.

The rallies in Madrid and elsewhere in the world are taking place against the backdrop of a most serious escalation in the Mideast.

On Saturday, an Israeli airstrike targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children.

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BAGHDAD  Hundreds of demonstrators have gathered in cities across Iraq to stand in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and Jerusalem.

The demonstrators on Saturday waved Palestinian flags and banners across five provinces in rallies called for by influential Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Al-Sadr called on followers to take to the streets and support Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which is under attack by the Israeli military.

Protesters gathered in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, and the southern provinces of Babylon, Dhi Qar, Diwanieh and Basra in a show of support. In Baghdads central Tahrir Square, demonstrators carried a Palestinian flag several feet long. Many also held up photos of al-Sadr.

Al-Sadr is a firebrand cleric who wields significant power in the country. In the May 2018 elections his party won the most number of seats.

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BEIRUT  Hundreds of people have participated in the funeral of a Hezbollah fighter who was shot dead along the Lebanon-Israel border during a rally denouncing Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.

The funeral of Mohammed Tahhan was held in his hometown of Adloun in southern Lebanon on Saturday afternoon. The 21-year-old man died of wounds sustained on Friday, shortly after he was struck during the protest at the border.

On Saturday, scores of Palestinian and Lebanese youth gathered in the border area again to rally against the Israeli military campaign in Gaza. Lebanese troops detained several people who tried to reach the border wall.

Earlier in the day, an Israeli military spokesman warned Lebanese authorities not to allow protesters to breach the border.

A small group had breached the fence on Friday and crossed the border into Israel, triggering the shooting. The Israeli military said troops fired warning shots toward the group after they sabotaged the fence and crossed over briefly.

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BERLIN  The United Nations human rights chief is urging all in what has developed into a battle between Israel and Gazas militant Hamas rulers to lower tensions, and faulted actions by both sides.

Michelle Bachelet, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said in a statement issued in Geneva on Saturday that rather than seeking to calm tensions, inflammatory rhetoric from leaders on all sides appears to be seeking to excite tensions rather than to calm them.

Bachelet's statement was issued on Saturday, shortly before an Israeli airstrike destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

In the statement, Bachelet warned that the firing of large numbers of indiscriminate rockets by Palestinian armed groups into Israel, including densely populated areas, in clear violation of international humanitarian law, amounts to war crimes.

There also are concerns that some attacks by the Israeli military in Gaza have targeted civilian objects that, under international humanitarian law, do not meet the requirements to be considered as military objectives.

It added that the failure to adhere to the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution in the conduct of military operations amounts to a serious violation of international humanitarian law and may constitute war crimes.

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BERLIN  Irans foreign minister has called off a planned visit to his Austrian counterpart in Vienna. The decision came after Austrias chancellery and foreign ministry flew the Israeli flag as a signal of solidarity in Israels conflict with the militant Hamas group.

Austrian daily Die Presse reported Saturday that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was due to meet Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg on Saturday morning. But he called off the trip over the Austrian leaders decision to fly the Israeli flag on Friday.

The Austria Press Agency said Schallenbergs spokeswoman, Claudia Tuertscher, confirmed the report. She said: We regret this.

Vienna has been hosting negotiations in recent weeks aimed at bringing the United States back into the 2015 nuclear deal aimed at allaying concerns about Irans nuclear ambitions. France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China are still parties to that agreement.

Irans deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, tweeted on Friday that Austria so far been a great host for negotiations but it was shocking & painful to see flag of the occupying regime, that brutally killed tens of innocent civilians, inc many children in just few days, over govt offices in Vienna.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Saudi Arabia has called for foreign ministers of the worlds largest body of Muslim nations to hold a meeting Sunday. The gathering is to discuss Israeli acts of violence against Palestinians and the Israeli polices use of force against protesters at Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem.

The kingdom will host the virtual summit, gathering ministers of the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation to discuss the Israeli aggression in the Palestinian territory, particularly acts of violence in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the body said Saturday.

The Saudi-headquartered OIC includes countries Iran, Turkey, Indonesia and a range of Muslim majority nations.

The sanctity of Al-Aqsa mosque, one of Islams holiest sites, is a sensitive and emotive issue for Muslims around the world. The OIC was formed 51 years ago in response to a Jewish extremist arson attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem.

The hilltop on which the mosque stands is also sacred to Jews, who revere it as the Temple Mount because it was the site of the biblical temples. Some Jews and evangelical Christians support building a new Jewish temple on the site, an idea that Muslims find alarming because they fear it would lead to the mosque being partitioned or demolished.

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RAMALLAH, West Bank  Palestinians have begun gathering across the occupied West Bank to mark the anniversary of the displacement of hundreds of thousands of refugees from what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.

Nakba Day, Arabic for catastrophe, comes amid widespread Jewish-Arab violence in Israel and heavy fighting between Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas, which rules Gaza. The main event Saturday was held in West Bank city of Ramallah, where the internationally-backed Palestinian Authority is headquartered.

On Friday, Palestinians in the occupied West Bank held some of the largest protests in years and clashed with Israeli forces, who shot and killed 11 people, including a Palestinian who tried to stab a soldier at a military position.

Some 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes during the 1948 war. Today, they and their descendants number around 5.7 million and mostly reside in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
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Hanna Holcomb was raised in northeastern Connecticut and is a naturalist at Grand Targhee Resort in Wyoming. The Outside Story is assigned and edited by Northern Woodlands magazine and sponsored by the Wellborn Ecology Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation:

www.nhcf.org.
Israel has escalated its attacks on the Gaza Strip, bombing the home of a senior Hamas leader, killing a family of 10 in a refugee camp and destroying a high-rise that housed The Associated Press and other media
On Friday, The Associated Press reported on stories circulating online claiming to show photos of Americans filling their cars with plastic bags of gasoline and lining up at gas stations with red gas cans in recent days. Social media users are misrepresenting old photos to falsely suggest they show Americans stockpiling gasoline this week after a hack of the Colonial Pipeline led to thousands of gas stations running out of fuel to due to distribution problems and panic-buying.
Community News Editor / Librarian

Jeannie Maschino is community news editor and librarian for The Berkshire Eagle. She has worked for the newspaper in various capacities since 1982 and joined the newsroom in 1989. She can be reached at jmaschino@berkshireeagle.com.
Firefighters are battling a large brush fire in Williamstown that has spread across as many as 180 acres, according to early estimates.

The fire drew a wide response from fire departments across the Berkshires and in neighboring Vermont when smoke was first reported near Henderson Road early Friday evening.

Firefighters are not sure what started it.

The fire has since spread around East Mountain, moving east/southeast and jumping the Appalachian Trail, according to officials.

Williamstown Fire Chief Craig Pedercini told The Eagle on Saturday that the blaze was not a threat to any homes.

"We're just trying to surround it and pinch it off," he said. "It's still moving away from us."

Firefighting efforts ended at dark on Friday and resumed before 7 a.m. on Saturday morning, with around 40 firefighters cutting fire lines around the perimeter.

With 6 to 9 mph winds pushing the fire along, crews are expected to continue their efforts through Sunday and into Monday.

Pedercini estimated that the fire had spread about 160 to 180 acres by midday on Saturday, including areas where the flames have already died down.

Firefighters and fire wardens from Florida, Clarksburg, Williamstown, North Adams, New Ashford, Windsor, Hancock and Pownal, Vt., have assisted in the effort, as well as the Berkshire County Sheriff's Office and Northern Berkshire EMS. With the fire spreading across state land, the Department of Conservation and Recreation has also been involved, providing assistance and information to local departments.
Amid widespread reports of students facing COVID-related mental health and emotional adjustment issues, the five-year strategic plan adopted by the elected Lenox School Committee members last month includes immediate, priority attention to reentry challenges.
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.
Francesca Paris is The Eagle's data and public records reporter. She was previously the North Adams reporter. A California native and Williams College alumna, she has worked at NPR in Washington, D.C. and WBUR in Boston. Find her on Twitter at @fparises.
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.
Scott Stafford has been a reporter, photographer, and editor at a variety of publications, including the Dallas Morning News and The Berkshire Eagle. Scott can be reached at sstafford@berkshireeagle.com, or at 413-496-6301 and on Twitter at @BE_SStafford.
A Q&A with Chris Weld, founder of The Pass, on his seed-to-sale cannabis business in the Berkshires
I have attended many funerals in my life, but nothing like the one for my grandmother. She was the rock of our family and helped raise me alongside my mom. On the day of her funeral, I was overwhelmed by the display of grief by my mother. She cried uncontrollably, begged the funeral director not to close the casket, and even screamed a few times.

To this day, that funeral and the mourning that took place afterward have stuck with me for one reason. I was asked almost a week after the funeral why I had not cried over the death of my grandmother. Why was I not mourning?

The answer to those questions lies in the words of Isaiah. Particularly Isaiah 61:3.

And provide for those who grieve in Zion  to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.

Let us take this time to look deeper at the context of this verse and what it means for us today.

What Does 'Beauty for Ashes' Mean?

Isaiah 61:3 is a beautiful picture of what Christ can do for the mourning people of Israel and the ones hurting today. When we examine the verse, we learn that Christ is the joy-giver. He gives a joy that extends beyond the surface. Christ releases us from the bondage that sorrow brings.

Our sorrows can leave us feeling defeated. When we fully give ourselves over to God, our view of the trouble and sorrow of life changes. The circumstances may remain the same, but we change the glass we look through.

It is possible to live while the storm rages, but God remains the calm in the storm. He gives us sources of joy to get us through. Everything we go through in this life contributes to the end when we spend eternity in heaven.

The phrases in Isaiah 61:3 make the meaning of this verse even more powerful. When Isaiah writes the words beauty for ashes, he uses Hebrew language that cannot be translated into English. The Hebrew word for beauty used here refers to a headdress, turban, or tiara. God is stating that he is going to wipe out the ashes upon your head and replace it with a beautiful headdress.

Isaiah also tells us we will be anointed with oil. This was a common practice in his time and was usually done in times of festivity. God is also going to clothe his people with a garment of praise. The language here is speaking of a garment that would be dyed in bright colors. Lastly, Isaiah speaks of oaks of righteous. Trees represent people, and the mighty oak of righteousness shows us that in Christ we are strong.

What Is the Context of Isaiah 61:3 and 'Beauty for Ashes'?

Isaiah was a prophet who delivered poignant messages to the Jewish people. In his writings, he starts with the topic of judgement. Isaiah tells the people that God will pour out judgement and justice to His chosen people.

Historically, the Israelite people have been involved in many battles. They had been captives of enemy groups such as the Assyrians and Babylonians. Kings such as Jehoshaphat, Uzziah, and Hezekiah were vital to the delayed capture of Judah by the more merciful Babylonians.

The light of this book is when Isaiah reminds the Jews that even though God will judge the people, he will also pour out His love and favor for them. This theme of judgement, repentance, and forgiveness has been happening since the Israelites entered the wilderness.

When we look at our verse in question, we need to take a moment and discuss what verses one and two mean. In verse one, Isaiah says The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me. This is a reference to the Christ that was to come. Jesus uses these verses to refer to himself while on earth.

Further on in verses one and two, we learn that the one who has the spirit upon him will also mend the brokenhearted, preach good news, comfort, and proclaim freedom to the captives. This is exactly what Jesus was sent to this earth to do. God knew we needed a redeemer before He ever sent His son to die for us.





Photo credit: Getty Images/Gordon Images

Why Will God Comfort Those Who Mourn?

Our God is a God of comfort. He sent his son to die for us so that we may have life more abundantly. Jesus tells us in John 10:10, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it more abundantly.

God sent his son to be a shepherd to the people. He desires that no one experience an earthly life of sorrow, and an eternal life in hell. It is clear that if God would send his only son to die on a cross for the purpose of saving us, then God would comfort those who are mourning. Our mourning cannot become the thief that destroys us.

Ecclesiastes 3:4 says there is a time for mourning and a time for dancing. Our Lord does not intend for us to stay in the mourning phase. We are supposed to be dancing.

Jesus said in his sermon on the mount in Matthew 5 that blessed were those that mourned, for they would be comforted. This was His promise, and we know that our God never breaks a promise.

Countless times in Scripture we are reminded that God will be our comforter. When he comforts us, we can do what He created us for; to glorify and praise Him.





Photo credit:Getty Images/seb_ra

What Does Beauty for Ashes Mean for Us When We Experience Suffering or Mourning?

Inevitably, we are going to experience suffering and mourning in our lives. When we lose loved ones, or our jobs, or even our identity in Christ, we can rest assured that God will come alongside us with his love and comfort.

I believe this verse gives us hope, too. It is a beautiful reminder that God can take what we believe to be the worst of circumstances and turn it into something great. We have hope for coming out on the other side of sorrow with shouts of praise for our Lord.

If we can accept our grief, then we can overcome our grief. We can carry our sorrows to the sanctuary at the foot of the cross and leave them there. When we do that, we can walk away with shouts of praise for the one true God. We can put on our new headdress and bright colored garments for all to see what God has done for us and what he can do for them.

A Prayer for Comfort in Adversity

Lord,

Sorrow and mourning are often a part of my life. I know you never promised that my faith would protect me from trials and suffering, but you promised to be with me always, even in the valleys. Let me walk hand in hand with you as you turn my sorrows into your praise. You alone can bring beauty from ashes. May I always remember that sorrow and mourning will never have the last word because you will replace it with eternal joy.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Trials will always be a part of our earthly lives, but when we consider what Isaiah 61:3 says, we have much hope. We can throw off our ashes and place a tiara on our heads. Most importantly, we can use our sorrow to point people to Jesus as we display his splendor with our garments of praise.

Related articles

5 Comforts God Offers Today That Will Truly Satisfy

6 Simple Ways to Count Joy When Life Is Difficult

How Are Christians Uniquely Able to Shine Light in Difficult Times?

Photo credit: Unsplash/whoislimos

Ashley Hooker is a freelance writer who spends her time homeschooling her two children, ministering alongside her husband as he pastors a rural church in West Virginia, and writing about her faith. Currently, she is a contributing author for Journey Christian magazine. She has taken part in mission trips with the NC Baptist Men during the devastation of Hurricanes Katrina and Harvey in Mississippi and Texas. In her local church, she has served on various committees focusing in the area of evangelism along with traveling to West Virginia and Vermont to share the Gospel. Her dream is to spend her time writing and sharing the love of Christ with all she meets.
LAPWAI - Following statements from Washington Governor Jay Inslee and U.S. Senators expressing opposition to Rep. Mike Simpsons proposal that would breach the four lower Snake River dams, the Nez Perce Tribe is expressing disappointment in statements released Saturday morning.

While we appreciate Rep. Simpsons efforts and the conversations we have had so far with Tribes and stakeholders, it is clear more work within the Pacific Northwest is necessary to create a lasting, comprehensive solution, and we do not believe the Simpson proposal can be included in the proposed federal infrastructure package, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Gov. Jay Inslee said in a joint statement provided to The Seattle Times. U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell also told The Seattle Times she does not support the Simpson proposal.

After a day in which Rep. Simpson, together with Rep. Blumenauer (D-OR), discussed a viable framework and legislative opportunity at a regional conference devoted to the topic of preventing the extinction of Snake River salmon and investing in infrastructure, technology, and economic vibrancy in the Northwest, Gov. Inslee and Senators Murray and Cantwell have stated what theyre against, providing no substance with respect to what theyre for, said Nez Perce Tribe Chairman Samuel N. Penney.

We agree that to solve this crisis we need a regional solution, we must strive to keep all communities that rely on the Columbia and Snake rivers whole, and we should follow the science. These are the very elements that Rep. Simpsons proposal set forth three months ago, and why the Nez Perce Tribe supports his proposal.

Our own biological analysis, released last week, reveals that salmon populations are headed toward extinction. We will not stand by and allow extinction on our watch. Our climate is changing and the best, coolest remaining habitat for the Columbias summer steelhead and spring chinook lies in the Snake River basin. We need to provide the safest journey to and from that habitat that we can. At the same time, we have a singular legislative momentone not likely to come along again in our lifetimesto address that biological crisis and solve the decades-long salmon wars in the Basin. We have the right Administration, the right leadership in the Senate, and support from Rep. Mike Simpson. This is a moment for action, not for more process.

This is not a time for generic statements of support for treaty rights and Northwest Tribes, said Penney. Northwest Tribes are united and asking for genuine support. We have a historic and unprecedented opportunity to take advantage of momentum behind a national infrastructure plan and secure funds to implement a plan stemming from Rep. Simpsons framework and further regional engagement. We cannot let this moment pass us by. We cannot accept a failing status quo. We must act and our elected officials must lead the way with us, as Congressmen Simpson and Blumenauer have shown, with vision and courage, and while time still remains in supporting this broad proposal and dialogue.

Shannon F. Wheeler, Vice-Chairman of the Nez Perce Tribe, stated: Ive heard there will be a new statue of Billy Frank Jr. in the U.S. Capitol. Billy was a natural leader for salmon and for Treaty rights and its great hes being recognized. But I dont think he would have cared about a statue of himselfhe would have cared about the fate of the salmon, and the tribal people whose lives and cultures depend on the salmon in every sense. This is a moment for decisive leadership that would have made Billy Frank Jr. proud.

The Nez Perce Tribe welcomes the opportunity to meet with Senators Murray and Cantwell to discuss this issue in more detail. Time is short, but together we can take this unique opportunity to ensure a better, stronger Northwest for all. We stand ready to work with the congressional leaders of the Northwest on that effort, concluded Chairman Penney.
(The Center Square)  Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said the states prepared to return to normal next month.

Inslee announced he would remove his remaining COVID-19 restrictions June 30 after a brief transitional phase.

The governor paused his Roadmap to Recovery after a brief increase in cases earlier this month but announced Thursday he would resume the process after seeing cases decline.

What we know now gives us the confidence to close this chapter in this pandemic and begin another, Inslee said. This next part of our fight to save lives in Washington will focus on increasing vaccination rates and continuing to monitor variants of concern as we move toward reopening our state.

Businesses are capped at 50% occupancy in the final phase of Inslees restrictions.

Inslee announced earlier Thursday the state would adopt Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance that allows for fully vaccinated people to stop wearing masks unless required by a business or other entity. He said the state could lift all restrictions sooner should the state reach COVID-19 vaccination benchmarks.

By his metrics, Inslee said Phase 3 would lift if 70% or more of Washingtonians over the age of 16 got their first vaccination shot. The state has administered more than 6 million doses of vaccine, and 56% of Washingtonians have initiated vaccination.

Republicans countered that federal data supports opening June 15.

Senate Republican Leader John Braun of Centralia and House Minority Leader J.T. Wilcox, R-Yelm, said in a joint statement Inslee doesnt connect lifting economic restrictions and ending the state of emergency.

[W]e have concerns about what his new guidance will mean for hospitality establishments, grocery stores and other places where people congregate, they said. After dictating for 439 days about what employers can and cant do, the governor is now saying, You figure it out. Republicans have pressed relentlessly for that freedom all along.
The advantages of nasal vaccines over conventional approaches to administration, such as ease of administration without needles, are largely responsible for the development

A nasal vaccine delivers a dose which goes right into the respiratory pathways. The vaccine is either injected through a nasal spray or delivered as an aerosol. According to Reports and Data, the nasal vaccine is expected to register a significant CAGR from 2020 to 2027. The advantages of nasal vaccines over conventional approaches to administration, such as ease of administration without needles, are largely responsible for the development. As a result, there are less problems with needle-stick accidents and disposal. This path also provides easy access to a critical part of the immune system that can activate other mucosal sites in the body. Nasal vaccine products have become more common among adults and children, resulting in a growing pipeline of nasal delivery technology.

New technologies are expected to enhance nasal vaccines industry growth as particular attention is being paid to designing delivery strategies that take into account the broad range of diseases, populations and healthcare delivery settings that will benefit from the mucosal route of delivery. Key challenges for the nasal vaccines industry includes translating in vivo data to clinical outcomes.

For instance, Rokote Laboratories Finland Ltd is preparing to introduce the COVID-19 nasal spray vaccine, which uses gene transfer technology. The technology, which was established at the University of Eastern Finland by Professor Seppo Yla-research Herttuala's group, has already been successfully used in many clinical trials with gene therapy to treat cardiovascular diseases and cancer. It employs a safe adenovirus carrier with a cloned DNA strand that induces nasopharyngeal cells to produce virus protein, resulting in a vaccine response.

The COVID-19 crisis has created considerable demand in the vaccine market and various vaccine manufacturers are working to bring nasal vaccines for COVID-19 to the market. according to the World Health Organization (WHO), all the Covid vaccines that are in Phase 3 trials, are administered by injection. But vaccine manufacturers have found through survey in the US that 23 per cent of the people did not want to take the vaccine if a needle is used but one third of this 23 per cent said that they will be willing to take the vaccine if other means of administration is used. Research shows that alternative means of vaccine administration in the US can bump up the number of people vaccinated by 19 million in the US and probably enough for the country to reach herd immunity.

Nasal vaccines are also beneficial in countries like India, which is suffering from a huge Covid surge in 2021. India, where infrastructure is weak and logistics networks are slow, it is much easier to use a nasal vaccine that can be stored for months at room temperature rather than vaccines like that of Pfizer-BioNTech of Moderna that require to be stored in ultra-cold temperatures.

India is one of the leading vaccine producers and exporters in the world and manufacturers here are also working to produce nasal vaccines for COVID-19. For instance, Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech will begin late-stage clinical trials of intranasal COVID-19 vaccines in the coming months. Bharat Biotech had signed a licensing agreement with Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) for a single-dose intranasal Covid vaccine based on chimp adenovirus.

For most microbes, the nasal mucosa is the first barrier they must overcome. This mucosa itself is very immune-competent. It has been found that even small amounts of antigen elicit a protective response. It is also a clear advantage, that nasal vaccination induces both mucosal and systemic immunity. On the other hand, intramuscular vaccination mainly induces systemic immune response. Nasal vaccines are becoming the focus for the COVID-19 vaccine as the nasal administration of the vaccine blocks the infection from being transmitted from one person to the other.

One of the few challenges that the nasal vaccine market is expected to face is that for millions of people, aiming a vaccine up the nostril might seem less than true inoculation as for the last 100 years, vaccines have been mainly associated with a syringe.

Paroma Bhattacharya, Senior Content Writer, Reports and Data
Mainly Jem's Birding & Ringing Exploits in the Eastern Province & Ringing Trips to Bahrain
South Africa's Three Ships Whisky snatched up seven awards at the international San Francisco World Spirits Competition (SFWSC) 2021; among the seven was the sought-after 'Best in Show' award for the brand's Three Ships Whisky 5 Year Old.

SA whisky in the spotlight

Three Ships Whisky master distiller Andy Watts

#ConsciousLiving: SA whisky maker works towards a sustainable future for liquor The James Sedgwick Distillery, home to Three Ships Whisky and Bain's Cape Mountain Whisky, is being globally recognised for making sustainability an integral part of its business practice...

This blend of malt and grain whiskies with its full peaty character and smooth finish was named Best Other Whisky and earned a Double Gold medal.Seven is now the record number of awards won by a South African whisky at the SFWSC.In addition, Three Ships Whisky scooped two Double Golds for the Three Ships Whisky 10 Year Old Single Malt and Three Ships Whisky 11 Year Old Single Malt Shiraz Cask Finish  part of Master Distiller Andy Watts annual limited-edition Masters Collection.A Gold was awarded for the Three Ships Whisky 9 Year Old Fino Cask Finish  also a limited edition Masters Collection release; a Silver for its Three Ships Whisky 12 Year Old Single Malt Whisky; and a Bronze medal for the Three Ships Select Whisky.The SFWSC is acknowledged as one of the worlds most prestigious spirits competitions, and the second oldest in the world, after the International Wines and Spirits Competition.Noted for the quality of its world-class judges, each years results are closely followed, both by consumers eager for the expert judgements and more importantly by the trade, especially the distributor community.Three Ships Whisky production is done at the James Sedgwick Distillery in Wellington outside of Cape Town, the continents only commercial whisky distillery, where master distiller Andy Watts has produced the globally awarded South African Three Ships Whisky and Bains Cape Mountain Whisky ranges for the past 37 years. Watts was recently inducted intos Whisky Hall of Fame for his life-long commitment to the South African whisky industry."These awards are very important to us because they place South African whisky firmly in the spotlight  not only as a contender but a winner of global awards  competing among the best in the world," says Watts. "Over the years its been our mission to change the way local whisky is perceived, and I believe this is happening now.""The fact that a South African whisky secured a lion's share of medals in this category of the SFWSC is a grand acknowledgment that our own countrys contribution to international whisky-making is something to be proud of. Our own whiskies are now recognised and awarded as among the best, globally," Watts concludes.
Hours after the attack Joe Biden as reportedly phoned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to express Washington's "concerns" and to convey the "paramount responsibility" to protect journalists.

#BREAKING Israel's Netanyahu, US president Biden speak after Israel flattens AP news office in Gaza: statement pic.twitter.com/ItqTbUH1Sh  AFP News Agency (@AFP) May 15, 2021

This also as the death toll continues to soar amid unrelenting airstrikes - also as Hamas rockets continue to fly toward Israel - at over 140 Gazans killed since Monday.

Al Jazeera's office in Gaza destroyed by an Israeli airstrike. The building also housed residential apartments and the AP bureau. This is the 6th consecutive day Israel has been bombing Gaza. The Gaza death toll is at 140, including 39 children. pic.twitter.com/2rNm9eMIaG  IMEU (@theIMEU) May 15, 2021

* * *

update(12:30pm): The White House has said it communicated its "concerns" to Israel over the safety of journalists after IDF airstrikes obliterated the 12-story office building that housed international media headquarters in Gaza, most notably the AP and Al Jazeera...

"We have communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility," White House press secretary Psaki wrote.

We have communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility.  Jen Psaki (@PressSec) May 15, 2021

AP CEO Gary Pruitt previously said in a statement: "We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing APs bureau and other news organizations in Gaza. They have long known the location of our bureau and knew journalists were there. We received a warning that the building would be hit."

* * *

Israel has targeted yet another large office and residential tower in the Gaza Strip, but this time its warplanes have destroyed the 12-story building housing the media offices of the U.S.-based Associated Press and Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera, the AP itself as well as Reuters eyewitnesses confirm.

The outlets have said that Israel issued advanced warning of the airstrikes of up to one hour before the attack on Al-Jalaa tower. Representatives with the AP and the building owner had reportedly pleaded with IDF officials to give more time to enable a safe evacuation and also to take out crucial media equipment.

Oh my god. The building where al Jazeeras office is housed has just been taken down by Israeli airstrikes. There was a warning and evacuated. It houses offices and private homes. I cant believe it. pic.twitter.com/Q4luRYk9H9  Stefanie Dekker (@StefanieDekker) May 15, 2021

However, eyewitnesses say they were not given extra time, but merely made it out with whatever they had in hand and with their own lives.

The building can be seen essentially collapsing in its own footprint, the same way that three prior residential apartment buildings did during days past. "The building was hit approximately six times before collapsing in plumes of black smoke, which engulfed the entire neighborhood," international press reports noted.

 LIVE footage of the moment an Israeli air raid bombed the offices of Al Jazeera and The Associated Press in Gaza City 



 LIVE updates: https://t.co/RvtP1lEX1x pic.twitter.com/RBO1ZiDAl0  Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) May 15, 2021

The moment Israel bombed Al-Jalaa tower in Gaza housing international media outlets including Al Jazeera and AP. Reports and media personnel were not even allowed time to grab their equipment before evacuating the building #GazaUnderAttack #Palestine pic.twitter.com/jR2oMDyr68  Marwa Fatafta #SaveSheikhJarrah (@marwasf) May 15, 2021

"The strike on the high-rise came nearly an hour after the military ordered people to evacuate the 12-story building, which also housed Al-Jazeera, other offices and residential apartments. The strike brought down the entire structure, which collapsed in a gigantic cloud of dust," AP writes.

"There was no immediate explanation for why it was attacked," AP adds.

The IDF in a later follow-up statement alleged the media offices contained Hamas military intelligence units...

After providing advance warning to civilians & time to evacuate, IDF fighter jets struck a multi-story building containing Hamas military intelligence assets.



The building contained civilian media offices, which Hamas hides behind and deliberately uses as human shields. pic.twitter.com/zeDjEquePD  Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) May 15, 2021

The devastating attack brought swift condemnation by various international media organizations and advocates, with a number of prominent journalists expressing their shock, saying they "can't believe" the media building was so blatantly targeted by Israel's military.

AP president Gary Pruitt issued a statement saying "we are shocked and horrified" at the "incredibly disturbing" attack wherein "we narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life."

WATCH: The owner of al-Jalaa tower pleads with an Israeli officer on live TV to let journalists collect their gear before he bombs it.



Moments later, Israeli air strikes demolish the #Gaza building that housed several international media offices used by AlJazeera and MEE pic.twitter.com/a5PRzQNOkC  Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) May 15, 2021

"Journalists who worked there had been reporting on the Israeli attacks on Gaza," Al Jazeera said in a social media statement. "Targeting journalists is a war crime."
Nearly all the words and phrases used by the Democrats, Republicans and the talking heads on the media to describe the unrest inside Israel and the heaviest Israeli assault against the Palestinians since the 2014 attacks on Gaza, which lasted 51 days and killed more than 2,200 Palestinians, including 551 children, are a lie. Israel, by employing its military machine against an occupied population that does not have mechanized units, an air force, navy, missiles, heavy artillery and command-and-control, not to mention a U.S. commitment to provide a $38 billion defense aid package for Israel over the next decade, is not exercising "the right to defend itself." It is carrying out mass murder. It is a war crime.

Israel has made clear it is ready to destroy and kill as wantonly now as it was in 2014. Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz, who was the chief of staff during the murderous assault on Gaza in 2014, has vowed that if Hamas "does not stop the violence, the strike of 2021 will be harder and more painful than that of 2014." The current attacks have already targeted several residential high-rises including buildings that housed more than a dozen local and international press agencies, government buildings, roads, public facilities, agricultural lands, two schools and a mosque.

I spent seven years in the Middle East as a correspondent, four of them as The New York Times Middle East bureau chief. I am an Arabic speaker. I lived for weeks at a time in Gaza, the world's largest open-air prison, where more than 2 million Palestinians exist on the edge of starvation, struggle to find clean water and endure constant Israeli terror. I have been in Gaza when it was pounded with Israeli artillery and air strikes. I have watched mothers and fathers, wailing in grief, cradling the bloodied bodies of their sons and daughters. I know the crimes of the occupation  the food shortages caused by the Israeli blockade, the stifling overcrowding, the contaminated water, the lack of health services, the near-constant electrical outages due to the Israeli targeting of power plants, the crippling poverty, the endemic unemployment, the fear and the despair. I have witnessed the carnage.

I also have listened from Gaza to the lies emanating from Jerusalem and Washington. Israel's indiscriminate use of modern, industrial weapons to kill thousands of innocents, wound thousands more and make tens of thousands of families homeless is not a war: It is state-sponsored terror. And while I oppose the indiscriminate firing of rockets by Palestinians into Israel, as I oppose suicide bombings, seeing them also as war crimes, I am acutely aware of a huge disparity between the industrial violence carried out by Israel against innocent Palestinians and the minimal acts of violence capable of being waged by groups such as Hamas.

The false equivalency between Israeli and Palestinian violence was echoed during the war I covered in Bosnia. Those of us in the besieged city of Sarajevo were pounded daily with hundreds of heavy shells and rockets from the surrounding Serbs. We were targeted by sniper fire. The city suffered a few dozen dead and wounded each day. The government forces inside the city fired back with light mortars and small arms fire. Supporters of the Serbs seized on any casualties caused by Bosnian government forces to play the same dirty game, although well over 90 percent of the killings in Bosnia were the fault of the Serbs, as is also true regarding Israel.

The second and perhaps most important parallel is that the Serbs, like the Israelis, were the principal violators of international law. Israel is in breach of more than 30 UN Security Council resolutions. It is in breach of Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention that defines collective punishment of a civilian population as a war crime. It is in violation of Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention for settling over half a million Jewish Israelis on occupied Palestinian land and for the ethnic cleansing of at least 750,000 Palestinians when the Israeli state was founded and another 300,000 after Gaza, East Jerusalem and the West Bank were occupied following the 1967 war. Its annexation of East Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan Heights violates international law, as does its building of a security barrier in the West Bank that annexes Palestinian land into Israel. It is in violation of UN General Assembly Resolution 194, which states that Palestinian "refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbors should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date."

This is the truth. Any other starting point for the discussion of what is taking place between Israel and the Palestinians is a lie.
The destruction of two important Gaza buildings housing 20 media outlets was both shocking and predictable. History shows that if the media arent around to document Israels war crimes, its a lot easier for it to commit them.

On Tuesday, Israel bombed the 10-storey Al-Jawhara Tower, causing it to collapse. Before doing so, it had benevolently warned that the airstrikes were coming. The following day, it bombed the 14-storey Al-Shorouk Tower, also giving warning it was going to do so.

Most reports have the buildings as evacuated before being levelled. But without these media offices, reporting on Israels other war crimes will be left largely to what little media remain and citizen journalists.

The buildings were significant. A statement by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) noted the Al-Jawhara building housed the offices of 13 media institutions and NGOs. And an advisory by the Committee to Protect Journalists noted that the Al-Shorouk building housed at least seven media outlets.

A further statement by the same committee said that the Israeli military had defended its bombing of the building via email, bizarrely claiming it had acted within international law, alleging the Al-Jawhara building housed Hamas intelligence and military offices, and saying the Al-Shorouk building was a base for Hamas military intelligence offices and infrastructure to communicate tactical-military information.

Just minutes after the Al-Shorouk building was destroyed, I spoke by phone with Shadi Ali, a producer who had worked there for ten years and was understandably devastated at what had happened. He told me of previous occasions when Israel had bombed the building, in 2009, 2012, and 2014.

I was there in 2012. My office was on the 14th floor when it was hit at 6am. I was sleeping; I had only slept for one-and-a-half hours when it was hit by two missiles on the top floor, he told me. When it was bombed in 2014, we had taken precautions and left it already. They struck the 15th floor, destroying it completely. Our floor became the top floor after that.

The building was on a main Gaza street, Omar Mukhtar, surrounded by residential apartment buildings. I asked whether he knew if there had been casualties this time. He replied, Were waiting, because often theyll strike again soon after, knowing that people have come to search for casualties.

Ive witnessed this tactic with my own eyes. In January 2009, while I was accompanying Palestinian Red Crescent medics, one of the bodies the medics retrieved was that of a Kiffah Lum Towwak, 35, killed by an Israeli missile strike on her backyard in Jabaliya, just minutes after a strike which killed a family member living in the same house.

The same month, I was inside the now-destroyed Al-Shorouk building, having just finished an interview with RT about what Id seen while riding in ambulances in the extremely dangerous areas of Gazas north. Shortly after concluding the interview, Israel shelled the building at least seven times. Thankfully, the tank shelling didnt destroy the building, and we were able to run down the stairs to safety (although in reality nowhere was safe).

It was bad enough that Israel closed border crossing and wouldn't allow journalists into Gaza (I was already there), but then went on to target media, to silence any honest reporting on its war crimes against Palestinians. https://t.co/7VbkWiLDKV  Eva Karene Bartlett (@EvaKBartlett) May 12, 2021

The Al-Shorouk building was again bombed a week after this. Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the bombing and noted that the Israeli military had contacted Reuters (which had an office inside) minutes before the attack to confirm the location of its Gaza office, and had explained it would not be targeted.

In November 2012, I reported from a hospital in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza, after Israeli attacks, and documented the destruction of bridges and other infrastructure as well as visiting the media buildings which had been targeted. I wrote at the time, At least three Palestinian journalists were killed in the November 2012 Israeli attacks on Gaza, and at least 12 reported injured. The Sharook building suffered damage on its upper floors from a number of bombings including drone and possibly Apache helicopter missiles. The building housing Aqsa TV and various other media offices likewise suffered major damage on its upper floors.

The CPJ reported, A series of airstrikes beginning early Sunday and continuing today targeted two buildings, Al-Shawa and Housari Tower and Al-Shuruq Tower, which are well-known for housing numerous international and local news organizations, news reports said. At least seven journalists were injured in the first attack. Khader al-Zahhar, a cameraman for Al-Quds TV, lost his right leg.

Having journalists on the ground in a place like this is critical. In previous wars on Gaza, Israel has committed a litany of war crimes, including in 2009 targeting with a flechette bomb and killing a uniformed Palestinian medic as he worked to save injured civilians; firing more dart bombs on mourners the following day, killing six, including a pregnant woman; targeting with sniper fire two medics I was with, during ceasefire hours; assassinating children and infants; drone-striking a 14-year-old during ceasefire hours; raining white phosphorous down heavily on civilian areas throughout Gaza; bombing a school sheltering the displaced; bombing hospitals and repeatedly shelling a home Israeli soldiers had forced 60 members of an extended family into, killing 26, including 10 children and seven women.

And that was only in 2009. In 2012 and 2014, Israel again committed more unspeakable crimes of war, destroying entire neighbourhoods and massacring the residents, shelling children on a beach, and drone-striking a teen hours before ceasefire, among many others.

And now, after a few days of Israeli bombardment, horrific reports are emanating from Gaza, including accounts of Palestinians killed by what is believed to be toxic gas, and Israeli precision bombings killing entire families. As of May 14, Gazas health ministry reports at least 119 killed, including 31 children.

Meanwhile, across occupied Palestine, Israelis are calling for Palestinians deaths, with a rabbi allegedly saying, I call on you to kill all Arabs! and others using Facebook and Telegram to organize attack mobs. And it was recently reported, Israels defense minister Benny Gantz threatened more destruction than he ordered in Gaza in 2014. At that time, he was Israels chief of staff commanding the 51-day assault that killed more than 2,200 Palestinians, including 551 children.

Also reported is an Israeli MPs call for the Israeli army to flatten the Strip. That is nothing new. As I wrote in 2014, During the eight days of slaughter, Israeli figures called to blow Gaza back to the Middle Ages, destroying all the infrastructure including roads and water, and to Flatten all of Gaza. There should be no electricity in Gaza, no gasoline or moving vehicles, nothing, said the deputy Israeli Prime Minister Eli Yishai and Gilad Sharon respectively.

Israels bombing spree of media targets has been rightly condemned. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate stated that, the targeting of media headquarters in the brutal bombardment of Gaza is part of the full-fledged war crimes committed by the Israeli occupation authorities against the Palestinian people, and called for the United Nations and the Red Cross to provide urgent protection to journalists and the media, and to activate Security Council resolution 2222 (which includes the protection of journalists) and oblige the occupation to fulfil [sic] this.

The CPJ stated, It is utterly unacceptable for Israel to bomb and destroy the offices of media outlets and endanger the lives of journalists, especially since Israeli authorities know where those media outlets are housed. And the International Federation of Journalists said, The international community cannot turn a blind eye to the systematic violations of human rights and the deliberate targeting of media and journalists. Urgent actions must be taken to hold those responsible for these crimes internationally accountable.

However, while journalist protection committees have condemned the recent Israeli bombings of media buildings in Gaza, Western corporate media generally havent. Imagine, though, if this was taking place in Syria: if Syrian or Russian planes premeditatedlybombed and levelled media buildings there. That would be front page news for days, if not weeks.

In what other context could a state destroy a building hosting media organisations on live television without facing massive condemnation from journalists across the world? https://t.co/SFMOoDW4ZG  Jeff Sparrow (@Jeff_Sparrow) May 12, 2021

I would go back to Gaza to report on this horror if I could enter, but thats impossible: Israel would not let me in, and is not allowing journalists in in general.

In December 2008, RWB reported, Israel declared the Gaza Strip a closed military zone and denied access to journalists working for international media. And now, as Shadi Ali told me the other day, Israel knows there are not many foreigners in Gaza to report what is going on. There is a media blockade, on top of the brutal siege of Gaza and Israels bombardment.

Israel will commit so many crimes in Gaza, while foreign media are not present, Ali predicted. And hes right. As Israel threatens to invade by land, the protection of media buildings and journalists becomes all the more important, because Israel will commit more war crimes. Theyve already pledged to make Gaza burn.
A Westman Member of Parliament is heralding his bill passing in the House of Commons as a way to level to playing field for people wanting to sell their small business.

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A Westman Member of Parliament is heralding his bill passing in the House of Commons as a way to level to playing field for people wanting to sell their small business.

The private members bill from Brandon-Souris Conservative MP Larry Maguire would reduce taxes for people selling a farm  or any other small business  to a family member.

Keystone Agricultural Producers executive vice-president Jill Verwey. (Submitted)

The bill passed a vote in the House of Commons by a vote of 199 in favour and 128 against and now goes to the Senate before becoming law.

"It levels the playing field for families who want to sell their qualify small businesses to their direct son or daughter  their kids or their grandchildren," Maguire said.

Currently, when someone sells a business to a family member the profits are deemed to be a dividend, which are taxed by the Canadian Revenue Agency at a higher rate than if the business was sold to a stranger. If sold to a stranger or third-party, the owner can use the capital gains exemption to lower how much tax they pay.

"There are hundreds of thousands of dollars involved, which is usually the retirement package for the parents of the small business that have put all the profits back into it over the years," Maguire said.

"These dollars for the most part will stay in the local community theyre in or very nearby."

In one example, a farmer could sell their farm to a third party, which would let them use their $1 million farm capital gain exemption on the sale and to get a 13.39 per cent tax rate, Maguire previously told the Sun.

On the other hand, selling to a direct family member would result in the farmer saying a 47.4 per cent tax rate.

The bill does not apply to large businesses, only those defined as small businesses under law, Maguire said.

"Theres a lot of pride involved too in making sure youve got a business the next generation can take over, but this makes it practical because it doesnt put them at a disadvantage to selling to a complete stranger.

Keystone Agricultural Producers president Bill Campbell said it was "positive news" the bill made it through the House of Commons. He said it puts all types of farm succession on a level playing field financially.

Its also a matter of carrying on family knowledge and tradition of a property from previous generations of farming, he said.

"I think its extremely significant that we aim to do that.  If the family succession is successful, those people stay in the community, they contribute to the community and the economy.

"We see declining rural population happening and this will hopefully help strengthen our rural communities."

Its not just about the tax implications of the bill, Campbell said. Its also about maintaining the heritage and other factors that cant be measured in terms of taxation.

"Theres that sense of pride in the community and continuity and some of those things," he said. "That needs to be addressed."

Jill Verwey, the executive vice president of Keystone Agricultural Producers, said there are small margins in farming, and the reduced tax burden on selling to family members could help farmers keep their kids involved in the process.

"As the average age of farmers increases, theres a large number of farmers that are in a position where were actually going to be retiring and we want to be able to pass that on to the next generation," said Verwey, who maintains a family farm near Portage la Prairie. "I think we take great pride in being able to pass out family business on to the next generation."

According to openparliament.ca, a mix of MPs from all parties voted in favour of the bill.

Maguire said the Senate could discuss and vote on his bill in late May or early June.

 dmay@brandonsun.com, with files from Tyler Clarke.
Environment Canada is conducting an investigation into the possibility a tornado touched down southwest of Roblin on Friday among reports of several dust devils or tornados.

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Environment Canada is conducting an investigation into the possibility a tornado touched down southwest of Roblin on Friday among reports of several dust devils or tornados.

Meteorologist Alysa Pederson said based on a video received, its possible it was a landspout tornado.

A video posted on Facebook by Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba president Greg Crisanti shows what Environment Canada thinks might be a dust devil in the North End of Brandon around 3:30 p.m. on Friday. (Screenshot)

The video "is leading us to think that is that there was a thunderstorm or convective cloud developing right over the area kind of when this happened," Pederson said. "With the video, theres obviously dust being picked up in a column."

More information on the investigation will be available next week.

At approximately 3:30 p.m. Friday, local business owner and Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba president Greg Crisanti posted a video of another funnel cloud hovering over the North Hill in Brandon.

Either a dust devil or landspout tornado hit south of Killarney around 3:30 p.m. on Friday, as seen in this photo by Shanea Murdock. (Submitted)

Another Environment Canada meteorologist, Dave Carlsen, told the Sun that based on photos and a video hed seen, his initial assessment was that it was a dust devil and not a tornado.

A third possible tornado in Virden was said to be in the "maybe" category by Carlsen.

There were also reports of a landspout tornado or dust devil south of Killarney at approximately 3:30 p.m. A photo provided to the Sun by Shanea Murdock shows some kind of funnel cloud in a field.

This screenshot from a video taken by Parkland Cleaners & Restoration owner Faye Jones on Friday afternoon shows the funnel cloud being investigated by Environment Canada as a possible tornado. (Screenshot)

Discover Westman posted an article on Friday morning noting an increase in dust devils Friday, with a meteorologist telling the outlet the area has had the perfect conditions for their creation  a flat landscape, clear sky and light winds.

Anyone with photos or video of any of these events is asked to send them to Environment Canada to help with its investigations.

Evidence can be emailed to mbstorm@canada.ca or posted on Twitter with the hashtag "#mbstorm".

 The Brandon Sun
I went to Sydney University in the late 1950s and early 60s and suddenly noticed the girls were much friendlier than I recalled in my teens. I think it had to do with my height and that my buck teeth had been fixed. I had no long-term relationships until I met my first wife, Rhoisin Harrison, in London. She was dating Clive James. I told Clive that she was really nice and he replied, Yes, and shes more interested in you than me.

Rhoisin and I married when I was 26, remained married for 20 years, and had three children together. She was born in Ireland and moved to Australia with me. She now lives in England with our eldest son, Benjamin, who has Down syndrome.

My second wife, Virginia Duigan, is a novelist working on her fifth book. She is bright and funny, likes music, concerts, theatre and film, and we always have a lot to talk about. She writes five to six hours a day, seven days a week.

We have a daughter, Trilby, who is 35. She is marvellously easygoing and an absolute angel  shes always been like that. She was born in North Carolina  we were living in the US at the time because I was filming Crimes of the Heart.

When I started work on Driving Miss Daisy, the family relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, with me. Working with actress Jessica Tandy was a remarkable experience  she was in her 80s when she made the film. She became a superstar very late in life, was a lovely and charming woman, and was funny and full of jokes on and off set.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Sophie Wilde thought the audition was a complete disaster. She had balanced a tripod and camera on a wobbly tower of books, recruited a friend to read opposite her via Zoom, and embarked on a frenzy of tidying so it wasnt obvious that she was in her bedroom. Even then, Sophie didnt quite know where to focus her eyes as she performed two scenes for the audition tape. Sophie had no doubt she wanted this job  it was the first audition where she had felt gut-certainty that it was the right role. She sent off the video during the early stages of the coronavirus lockdown. A few weeks passed with no response. Then a month. Then a few more. Well, Sophie reasoned, welcome to acting. It is, after all, an industry built on the back of the proverb that if at first you dont succeed, try, try again. But the welcome to acting for Sophie, who graduated from the NIDA in 2019, eventually proved a warm one. One moment she was sipping on wine and eating cheese at a picnic with a friend in Camperdown Park, in Sydneys inner west, the next she was the star of the major new Australian drama series Eden. I just looked at my phone and it was my agent and I was like, Maybe this is it. And then he told me, and I screamed and then I cried and then my friend cried and it was brilliant, Sophie, 23, says. I think especially because of COVID-19, it almost felt like, Well, Im not going to work until this is over. And so it was very much a surprise to be working and to be in a role in such an amazing show. It marked a personal and professional shift that doesnt seem to have quite sunk in for the Ivorian-Australian actor. Were chatting in a studio in a back lot in industrial Alexandria, where shes just finished shooting the Sunday Life cover. Sophie has a youthful enthusiasm matched by a youthful shyness. Theres something unpolished about her, a slight trepidation. Her responses carry an upward inflection, as though containing a question. She says she is nervous, liable to blurting in interviews. This is one of the first major interviews Sophie has done  and lately, she has had no shortage of firsts. Eden is her first television series. She also lived on her own for the first time, moving away from the home she shares with her parents and younger brother in Enmore, to film the series in Byron Bay for three months. The eight-part mystery is set in the fictional coastal town of Eden but its far from a paradise. Theres no shortage of shadows beneath all the sunshine. Sophie plays Scout Lewis, a 20-year-old musician who has returned home from studying at New Yorks elite performing arts school, Juilliard, to live at her mothers wellness centre.

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She rekindles a relationship with the mysterious and troubled Hedwig, played by BeBe Bettencourt (The Dry). The show, created by Australian writer-director Vanessa Gazy in tandem with Fiona Eagger and Deb Cox (who were behind Miss Fishers Murder Mysteries and the Seachange reboot) and Skins creator Bryan Elsley, features beautiful young people in a beautiful setting. Theres no shortage of drugs, sex, desire and parties, and Eden adds to a growing list of stylish teen dramas, of which HBOs Euphoria, starring Zendaya, set a new benchmark. Sophie was anxious her first day on set. The first scene she had to shoot was on the beach with Bettencourt. The pair established an instant friendship and Sophie describes Bettencourt as a soul mate. They were gremlins on set, descending into laughter and breaking into spontaneous dance, eliciting indulgent eye rolls from the crew. But even with a new friend, filming proved a tough learning curve. I think the first couple of weeks were very much like that, completely rejigging your mind to film. And for me, working with a camera  I had

no idea how that works. Especially Steadicam. Youre kind of doing a dance with the camera and I would just start walking around and everyone was like, What are you doing? Come back, youre working with the camera. Im like, Oh, this isnt theatre. I cant just do what I want.  When we meet her in the first episode, Scout plays the role of the observant outsider, assessing how Eden has changed during her time abroad. But her silence belies a strength that comes to the forefront throughout the series. Sophie wears Prada top and pants, Jan Logan silver bracelets. Credit:Tane Coffin

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Sophie whips out her phone to show me the playlist she used  one featuring FKA Twigs, Celeste and Radiohead  to get into her characters mindset. Her script was dog-eared, underlined and annotated; she covered a wall with the plots shifting time lines. When asked what she has in common with Scout, Sophie flips the question. I can tell you what we dont have in common. I think shes more willing to get what she wants than I am, and her heart is on her sleeve. Shes very relentless at times. So I really admire her, I think thats really an incredible quality. I think Im more of a passive person than she is. I love me time and I get stressed easily by people. I think working on this job, its great training. Leaving home and being independent for the first time and working professionally and all of these things, I think, really kind of change the chemistry of who you are and [you] inevitably kind of grow from that. There will be another learning curve when the show, backed by a major publicity campaign, is released on streaming platform Stan next month. Sophie has also become the face of a collection for Australian jeweller Jan Logan, a position previously held by Australian actors Rose Byrne and Elizabeth Debicki. I love my life, my private life, but I guess thats how it is with this job. I think its about trying to find a balance between retaining your own sense of self, and your own community, and that world, and how do you balance it all. Sophie seems blissfully unconcerned about how her life could change when the series airs, nonchalant that she might no longer have anonymity when she walks down King Street, the main drag in inner Sydneys Newtown. Maybe it will be like a massive shock when it happens, she says. Im totally unprepared for this. But no, I havent really thought about it that much. I love my life, my private life, but I guess thats how it is with this job. I think its about trying to find a balance between retaining your own sense of self, and your own community, and that world, and how do you balance it all.

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Sophie wears Aje Divine top, Jan Logan silver ring. Credit:Tane Coffin Sophie says watching Audrey Hepburn gaze poignantly at Gregory Peck in the final scene of Roman Holiday is one of the earliest memories she has of wanting to act. Her father, an abstract artist, and her mother, a counsellor, supported her ambition. She completed short acting courses as a child and attended Sydneys Newtown High School of the Performing Arts before enrolling at NIDA. In her first job after graduating, Sophie starred in the role of Ophelia in Bell Shakespeares acclaimed 2020 production of Hamlet. Sophie says acting school was challenging but it has prepared her well for an industry that is sometimes remorseless in its brutality. I think NIDA would really instil that in you, because it really forces you to be resilient. I feel thats its whole mantra: resilience, resilience. I am very appreciative for that kind of skill set  sometimes Ill be freaking out but I know I can do it. Sophie wears dress, bra and pants by Christian Dior. Credit:Tane Coffin Soon after our interview, Sophie will travel to England to shoot a top-secret project. She always believed she would be forced to move abroad because Britain and the US have bigger film, television and theatre industries with more diverse roles available. Growing up, she keenly felt the absence of people of colour on our stages and screens.

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Definitely youre conscious of that. You look on the screens and there is no one who looks like you. So like, obviously youre like, well, I want to pursue this, but like, how can I pursue this if theres no one as a frame of reference. Obviously I want to be an advocate for diversity because thats important to me. Its an intrinsic part of my life and will become an intrinsic part of my career. But it does get exhausting sometimes when it feels like youre just, like, the face for this. While change is necessary, Sophie says theres been a positive shift that

has made her believe she can have a strong career in Australia. She is a champion of the need for diverse representation but concedes that the expectation to discuss race can be tiring. Obviously I want to be an advocate for diversity because thats important to me, she says. Its an intrinsic part of my life and will become an intrinsic part of my career. But it does get exhausting sometimes when it feels like youre just, like, the face for this. Or like youre like, Oh, maybe Im just like a token in this situation. So I think it goes both ways. Loading Viola Davis, who starred in Ma Raineys Black Bottom, The Help and Fences and has won an Oscar, an Emmy and a Tony, has proved a source of inspiration. Viola Davis is literally my life  when she won her Emmy and made that speech, I remember watching and bawling my eyes out, says Sophie, referring to Daviss 2015 acceptance. It was the first time I was like, Actually, maybe I can do this. Look at this amazing black woman achieving this award. How incredible. If Davis embodies her aspirations, Sophie has found comfort in realising she doesnt have to match her just yet. Maturity has tempered her striving for perfection. Its my first TV job; I dont know how everything works, she says. Im going to work my arse off, but I dont have to get it right and its

okay to fail. And I think that paid off because  that alleviated so much anxiety, working through that kind of a mentality. Its like, Well, Im 23 years old. Im at the start of my career. I dont know everything and I dont have to be Viola Davis right now. 

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In Victoria, a 32-year-old woman was found dead on her bathroom floor last month after waiting almost seven hours for an ambulance. Also in April, a seven-year-old girl died in WA after waiting two hours in a crowded emergency department. In Queensland and South Australia ambulance ramping is rife, with people dying waiting for delayed ambulances in Brisbane and one hospital running at 190 per cent capacity. NSW paramedics are also struggling to cope. Australian Medical Association president Omar Khorshid said there was anecdotal evidence of preventable deaths and near misses caused by ramping and jammed EDs. It is often difficult to prove whether a fatality could have been avoided if the health system was not stretched, meaning incidents are often not reported and brought to public attention. People are dying in the backs of ambulances. That is happening, he said. Scott Morrison with Omar Khorshid in April. Credit:Peter de Kruijff Record ambulance ramping is becoming normal. Its ludicrous in this rich country we have, that when youre sick enough to get an ambulance, you get there and you sit in an ambulance for hours.

Something has happened post-COVID that has made it a whole lot worse  There is an emergency need for action. Dr Khorshid met with Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese in recent weeks as he aims to make federal health funding an election issue with a likely advertising campaign and targeting of marginal seats. While the health system has been strained for years, Dr Khorshid and the ministers believe the pandemic has rapidly and dramatically exacerbated existing shortcomings. The AMA campaign will push to increase the Commonwealths share of public hospital funding from 45 to 50 per cent, build new hospitals and beds (which have not kept up with population growth), reduce demand for emergency treatment through primary healthcare reform, and create performance incentives for hospitals. NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard. Credit:Janie Barrett NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard, who said he was deeply concerned by the level of demand for ED treatment, called for a comprehensive review into how the Commonwealth funds public hospitals. We are copping it far more than we ever have, and I anticipate it will continue. He also said the Commonwealth may need to increase funding for GPs.

Mr Hazzards view on hospital funding is shared by the health ministers and is set to be ticked off as a joint recommendation of the next health ministers meeting to be held before the national cabinet. But most health ministers, as well as Dr Khorshid, detect minimal appetite for reform from the federal government. Loading Queensland Health Minister Yvette DAth said the current funding model had the perverse impact of disincentivising primary health programs that diverted people away from hospitals because states receive funding based on how much activity is occurring in hospitals. The situation around Australia is unsustainable, she said. Several states have recently announced emergency funding for EDs, paramedics and triage services to divert people away from emergency care. But federal funding, which is retrospective and correlates to lower demand during 2020, is not matching states needs. Across the nation, patients are staying in hospital for much longer periods. This issue is multifaceted but the key drivers are the greater acuity levels due to people not keeping healthy last year leading to more health complications and comorbidities, and slow approval processes for NDIS and aged care packages.

Loading Hundreds of beds in most states are being taken up by disabled or older Australians who could be discharged if they received a care package, including close to 300 in Victoria and about 600 in Queensland  the equivalent of a large public hospital. Mr Foley said the problems associated with care packages amounted to Commonwealth mismanagement of aged care and NDIS; Ms DAth called it neglect, and leading Grattan Institute health economist Stephen Duckett broadly agrees. These are Commonwealth responsibilities not being met properly. The NDIS has been very slow to accept people  theyre waiting weeks and weeks  and caps on aged care provision mean people cant get home care, Dr Duckett said. There are inefficiencies and incompetence contributing to problems.

A federal government spokeswoman said hospital funding will increase from $26 billion this year to $30 billion in 2024-25. She said the governments $17.7 billion aged care investment announced in the budget would speed up assessments and create 80,000 home care packages. The government has a range of policies to discharge NDIS patients from hospital smoothly but the process is complex and affected by the lack of social housing, she said. State and territory governments are responsible for social and affordable housing. The NDIS was never intended to replace other mainstream government services, such as housing and the health system, the spokeswoman said. Several health ministers said the pressures were the most difficult they had faced in their political careers. They said the soaring level of sickness was difficult to predict last year, as was the future impact of diverting a huge amount of resources to the COVID-19 fight and away from other health services. There is also a greater level of mental ill-health and sickness among children, and healthcare staff exhaustion is leading to labour shortages. It was very difficult to model, South Australia Health Minister Stephen Wade said. And it was very difficult to know how long the pandemic was going to last.
Prabhjot Singh was one of the lucky 80 to make it onto the flight to travel home after more than two years separated from his wife, and baby son who he is yet to meet. Im feeling really great actually, he said from his cabin in Howard Springs on Saturday. Prabhjot Singh in mask and face shield while travelling in Delhi. Im still calling all my family just to make sure everyone knows. I couldnt tell anyone I was leaving until I was off the plane because it has fallen through so many time before. He said it was a relief to have finally boarded the plane, but the feeling was bittersweet. Everyone was feeling lucky but also feeling sad about the people who got left behind, he said.

Prabhjeet Singhs 17-month-old son River will meet his dad for the first time now Mr Singh has finally made it home to Australia. India recorded more than 316,000 cases on Thursday, taking its total to more than 23.7 million confirmed cases. The country has recorded almost 260,000 deaths, but the real number is widely believed to be much higher. At least 9500 Australians in India are registered with DFAT, and more than 950 are classified as vulnerable and 173 children separated from their parents. A group of passengers complained on Friday that many had not been given their final COVID-19 test results before the Australian government announced a large cohort would not be boarding due to positive test results. Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese criticised the Morrison government for the fact that more than 30,000 Australians remained in India, even though the Prime Minister had said he would bring Australians home by Christmas 2020.

The fact some Australians had not been able to board the now-resumed flights home was an indictment of the federal governments complacency and of Scott Morrisons capacity to make an announcement and then forget about it, the Labor leader said. Another passenger, who wished to remain anonymous, said he was now unable to travel to Australia as his wife had received a positive result just hours before the flight. The couple had travelled more than 120 kilometres to Delhi to undertake the three-day hotel stay required for the repatriation flight. The man said neither he nor his wife had any symptoms before they came to the hotel and he was concerned the virus could have spread in the hotel. If it could happen in Australia why could it not happen in India? he said.

While guests are not able to leave their rooms, the man said he had to use the airconditioner for relief in the hot Indian summer weather and was worried the virus could have spread that way. Theres no ceiling fan in here and the windows dont open, he said. The pair will wait another two weeks, get tested again and apply to DFAT for another flight, he said. Darwins mayor Konstantine Vatskalis said arrivals who become ill would be transported to their own state.

Because its unfair for the Northern Territory to actually carry the weight ... if theyve got a citizen whos very, very sick they should be ... looked after by their home state health system. The aircraft sent to rescue the stranded Australians arrived on Friday with 1056 ventilators and 60 oxygen concentrators to assist with Indias ongoing coronavirus crisis. Meanwhile, 38 of Australias Indian Premier League cricket players and coaches in India are expected to start returning to Australia this weekend from the Maldives as the travel ban is lifted. Loading The rest of the Australian contingent flew to the Maldives last week after the IPL was postponed due to the virus breaking through the supposedly biosecure bubble set up by tournament officials to protect players and coaches.
We were not offered any retest, which I thought should have been done because some of us are vaccinated as well  my mother and I are both vaccinated  so sometimes there could be a false positive because of vaccination. All positive cases, including Mr Joura and his mother, were told to leave the hotel by 2pm on Friday and were sent home to isolate for 14 days before they could reapply for another repatriation flight. Mr Jouras home is 45 minutes away in Delhi, but others like 53-year-old Australian permanent resident Pragya Chandel and his family had travelled hundreds of kilometres across state lines to get to Delhi. Despite Mr Chandel, his wife and two adult children all testing negative on May 9 in their home town of Nangal in Punjab state, three out of the four returned positive results on Friday before the flight.

The Chandels had to take a seven-hour taxi ride 350 kilometres back to Nangal after they were ordered to leave the quarantine hotel. Mr Chandel said he was angry that there was no contingency for those who had tested positive. Australian permanent resident Pragya Chandel (second from left), his wife and two adult children were knocked back from the first repatriation flight out of Delhi after three of the four family members tested positive. Either they can hire a medical facility and take the people direct to the medical facility and keep them for the next 14 days and treat them until the opportunity for the next flight ... or they should manage one separate flight for the positive people because you cant leave them to die, he said. Brisbane woman Neha Sandhu who organised an online support group for people refused a spot on the flight, said others who had travelled from interstate were now unable to go home.

Some had travelled interstate and there are restrictions in those states about travelling, she said. These are already vulnerable people; to leave them behind is not a good idea. Theyve been left in limbo. Mr Joura said he was worried about the prospect of having to do hotel quarantine again once he and his mother were allowed to travel. It was a bad idea for getting everyone into this hotel 72 hours prior to the flight in a hotbed area like Delhi where the viral load is so high and knowing fully well that there can be issues with hotels in terms of central airconditioning, he said.

The whole point of taking us to Howard Springs is that theres no central airconditioning there and its considered the gold standard. Mr Joura, who is now isolating in a separate room to his frail mother, said he was not showing any symptoms yet, but was worried if he deteriorated over the coming days and weeks. If it does get worse, there is no healthcare here. Theres no hospital beds, theres no oxygen supply either. Even influential people dont get the treatment. Ive heard a lot of people that I know have died because of lack of healthcare and, in some cases, lack of oxygen, he said. Mr Joura said even if his mother remained COVID-negative, she was still extremely vulnerable and it was next to impossible for her to see a doctor for her existing conditions due to the overwhelmed healthcare system. India recorded more than 316,000 cases on Thursday, taking the total to more than 23.7 million confirmed cases. The country has recorded almost 260,000 deaths, but numbers are widely believed to be much higher as the countrys health system struggles to cope with the deadly third wave.

Ms Sandhu said the government needed to provide practical arrangements for those left behind, especially for those who had to stay in Delhi, which is overrun with coronavirus. If something happens and someone gets serious with COVID symptoms  what will be the scenario then? They need to plan to have oxygen there, she said. There should always be a plan B for them. Ms Sandhu said many people who were booked for the next repatriation flight on May 22 needed to travel from the south of India and were spooked about what would happen if they tested positive in the Delhi hotel quarantine. Especially people with kids, she said. A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs said vulnerable Australians overseas were DFATs highest priority and was working directly with the positive cases to find their next flight options and provide financial assistance while they recover.
Former Eurimbla resident Sam Sarkis, one of the most outspoken critics of the compulsory acquisition process, has moved to acreage on the Central Coast and said you could not pay him to move back to Randwick, though he still missed his neighbours. Irene and Nicholas Kotsornithis outside 10 Eurimbla Avenue, Randwick, looking south circa 1956. Credit:EPHA He said the process (which was concluded by the end of 2018) was made unnecessarily stressful by the bureaucratic way that it was managed, with many residents frantically renovating and painting their homes to get a higher valuation. Mr Sarkis was told he could not take his new toilet with him. One man was told he could not take a magnolia tree that had been planted by his mother. They really dehumanised the whole thing, Mr Sarkis said. It could have been handled better. Susan Thompson, a planning professor at UNSW, said peoples memories were often tied up with their communities and she taught her students to be respectful of that when embarking on development projects. Some people associated their homes with what they had achieved through hard work or it validated decisions such as moving to Australia.

Home means so many things to us, Professor Thompson said. Its our history, its our connection with significant events in our lives. Its also our connection with people. We have a deep, emotional relationship with place and its complex and its nuanced and if were going to have a human planning system, planners and developers need to recognise that. The Randwick campus construction site, the former site of Randwicks Eurimbla precinct. Credit:Steven Saphore NSW Health Infrastructure said in a statement that more than 90 per cent of property owners reached an agreement with the government on the value of their property without needing to resort to property acquisition and the process had been conducted in line with all its statutory obligations. Health Infrastructure understands the property acquisition process can be difficult for residents and owners and has made every effort to support positive outcomes on their behalf, it said.

The Eurimbla Precinct History Association, founded in the dying days of the neighbourhoods existence, has now released a book, Remembering Eurimbla, funded by the garage sales of residents moving out of their homes and a grant from Randwick Council. Loading It tells the stories that the neighbourhood held in its bones, such as the night an escaped prisoner hid in the street, the time a bus got stuck in the cul-de-sac, wigs hanging over the washing line every Tuesday at the back of the hospital huts, billy cart races in the 1970s and feeding carrots to Pedro, the palomino horse that used to live in a paddock now occupied by the Sydney Childrens Hospital. When the association met last week, Ms Blennerhassett, who is its president, remembered how for months after she moved away from Eurimbla Avenue she dreamed that she was back there and awoke disappointed. Its funny because you know that theres a lot more terrible things happening in the world, she said.

Her fellow association member, Monique Rueger, replied: But its your personal world. When Mr Sarkis opened the book, it was beyond anything he had imagined. The insides of the jacket were illustrated with a photographic chequerboard of every house in the precinct. The hospital site photographed in 1966. Beyond the hospital, you can see the Eurimbla precinct. Credit:UNSW Archives The chapters told of the history, the architecture and the stories of those who had lived in the area, as it morphed from a semi-rural area frequented by horses from the race track to a thriving medical and university precinct. It even had a recipe for the sausage rolls that were served at the farewell party. The book gave recognition, he said. We werent just a number, which was how we had been treated [during the sell-off]. It recognised that we were people with stories, with families, with histories. Thats something.
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A Queensland teacher has been banned from applying for registration or permission to teach until the end of the year after he was suspended by the College of Teachers for inappropriate sexual messages with several former students.

The Queensland College of Teachers suspended the registration of the teacher, who cannot be named for legal reasons, in February 2019 for actively initiating contact with three former students of the secondary college he worked at.

The QCT said he engaged in inappropriate conversations that included reference to the exchange of intimate or sexual images, and drug, alcohol and steroid use with three former students.

A Queensland teacher has been banned for applying for registration or permission to teach until the end of the year after he was suspended by the College of Teachers for inappropriate messages with several former students. Credit:Eddie Jim

The communication was said to be initiated by the teacher without a valid reason or educational context.
Anthony Albanese, who is (as he never fails to remind us) the son of a single mother, living on a disability pension in public housing, is a poster-child of Blairs old-fashioned economic message. Thats not his fault  hes believed what he believes consistently over many years. But as Blair warns, now hes being matched on spending, hes heading a party that inspires as much fear as hope.

The essay nails the nub of the Australian Labor Partys current challenge: the Liberal Party has embraced the spending part with all the gusto of Gough Whitlam, negating Labors strongest differentiator ahead of the next election. That leaves Labor to be differentiated by what Blair calls a new-fashioned social/cultural message around extreme identity and anti-police politics which, for large swathes of people, is voter-repellent.

Today progressive politics has an old-fashioned economic message of Big State, tax and spend, he wrote, Which, other than the spending part (which the right can do anyway), is not particularly attractive.

Former British Labour prime minister Tony Blair was not thinking of Australia when he published an essay on the ailments of progressive parties in the New Statesman this week, but his words resonate as Australians take in Treasurer Frydenbergs budget and opposition leader Albaneses reply.

Many in Australian Labor have been warning of this for a long while. Essays by Labor Party ministers and true believers dwell on the importance of appealing to traditional Labor supporters  in The Write Stuff, published at the end of last year, essay after essay is dedicated to these values. Commentator Joe Hildebrand, whose despairing passion for the Labor Party wails from the page every time he criticises its poor decisions, regularly rips into the progressive wrong turn and the cancel culture with which it prosecutes and protects itself, in the hope that this time his words will prompt his party to fix itself. Party veteran Tanya Plibersek found herself out on a limb with the Twitter left after declaring her patriotism , though she said nothing controversial to the moderate mind. Reactions such as the one Plibersek endured have taught the centre left to keep their heads down and sign up to the sets of facts peddled by the radical left on these and more controversial issues.

But, as Blair argues  writing in the wake of the Britain Labour Partys crushing defeat in Hartlepool  Keeping your head down isnt a strategy. There is a big culture battle going on.

Progressive folk tend to wince at terms such as woke and political correctness, but the normal public knows exactly what they mean. And the battle is being fought on ground defined by the right because sensible progressives dont want to be on the field at all. The consequence of this is that the radical progressives, who are quite happy to fight on that ground, carry the progressive standard.

Radical progressives tend to inhabit cultural institutions of some influence. For instance, the Australian National University Gender Inclusive Handbook recently followed global progressive fashion by replacing terms such as breastfeeding with breast/chest feeding. Other language encouraged by radicals includes the exhortation to refer to women as uterus owners. These terms are felt as a particular humiliation and delegitimisation by many women who have gone through the pain, indignity and wonder of childbirth and breastfeeding. The sense that motherhood and womanhood are defining characteristics not to be denatured does not make them TERFs - Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminists  in their own minds.

Now another war is brewing in Australia over Critical Race Theory  another import from foreign culture wars which holds that everything must be interpreted through a lens of race and identity. CRT has become another stick that radical progressives use to beat up on the racists and bigots who refuse to embrace intersectionality or the idea that individual identity characteristics are more important than the characteristics we have in common.
Eddie Mabo won his case, changing everything, weve seen acknowledgement of country become almost commonplace at events, and we have witnessed a move towards Aboriginal economic aspiration. Eddie Mabo, whose historic High Court win on June 3, 1992 removed the legal fiction of terra nullius. There has been a shift in perception from Aboriginal people being a series of unresolvable disadvantages, to being a whole people that have potential and possibility that is now starting to be realised. What we have seen, historically, is a pigeon-holed approach to Indigenous life outcomes; in the early 80s, the focus was solely on education and getting Aboriginal children into schools. Later, the focus turned to employment, before pivoting to justice following the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. Now, I am thrilled to see (and to have played a part in) a fundamental shift in how Victoria conceptualises Aboriginal Victoria and Aboriginal people. Instead, the focus is on supporting Aboriginal people and communities to reach their aspirations. A large part of this? Adding culture and identity to the Victorian Aboriginal Affairs Framework.

Following recent research, the two most important things to Aboriginal people today is culture and identity; who we are in the 21st century and how we relate to the wider community in which we live. We have seen a shift in the attitude of Indigenous people; the onus is no longer on the government to provide, it is instead on us as a people to act. We are now asking ourselves what our potential is and what we offer the wider community. If we are to propel forward as a community, truth-telling should provide an opportunity to better tell who we are and how Aboriginal societies work. The strong points of us and how we have not only survived, but sustained. How young Aboriginal people form their identity in this world should be a focus. Credit:Janie Barrett The last thing we want from truth-telling is a story that just paints our history as heartbreak and misery  it must be about the positives and what is unique about the Aboriginal community that the rest of Australia can learn from. The big question at hand as truth-telling comes to the forefront is founded on self-determination and realisation: what does it mean to be Aboriginal in the third decade of the 21st century? How are young Aboriginal people forming their identity in this world?

My journey in government and with the First Nations Foundation has always been about Aboriginal people fully participating in the whole breadth of national life, with a focus on the economy and the role it should play in how we reduce disadvantage for Aboriginal people. However, products and services developed by the First Nations Foundation are not just aimed at the disadvantaged, theyre aimed at the aspiring Aboriginal middle class. A lot of work is focused on giving the skills and the capacity to the younger Aboriginal population who are participating in the economy more fully, but who dont have an inherited financial knowledge from their parents and grandparents, due to a forced lack of participation and understanding. By involving Indigenous people in the economy, we are given the opportunity to receive an increase in income over a lifetime of economic participation. We are given the opportunity to build wealth and acquire capital, which can then be used in perpetuating the building of said wealth. One of the reasons the First Nations Foundations products and services focus on economics is to reduce reliance on government support; when one is economically well-off, reliance on the government decreases. Thus, we can use the economy to resolve social problems, rather than relying on the government to do so. If, economically, the Aboriginal average income increases, people can afford a house or a decent rental accommodation. They can put food on the table and send their kids to a good school and suddenly, the social issues are not there anymore.
The Coghlan changes to bail laws took a sledgehammer to the system, said Ms Pappas, who is also the chief executive of the Advocacy Centre for Women. High-level government documents seen by The Sunday Age also reveal that in 2019, the government anticipated a shortfall of womens prison beds by 2023, despite a record prison spend in the 2019 budget, including a 106-bed extension to the existing Dame Phyllis Frost womens prison. Without major reforms, the government was told it would need to start planning immediately for yet another new  as yet unannounced  womens prison. A bad day Drugs and violent men had been a pattern in Rachels life since she was 14, when she was taken from her mother and placed in residential care. In 2019, Rachel and her boyfriend had been arrested and charged with stealing cars and credit cards. Rachel was bailed and, as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold and her court dates were delayed, she had managed to stay out of trouble  until the day she took the ice-cream.

Out with her boyfriend and using drugs again, she grabbed the ice-cream on a whim. I was having a bad day, it was my favourite ice-cream, she said. It was a stupid thing to do. Police were called and caught the pair after theyd pulled over on the Nepean Highway in the middle of an argument. The next thing Rachel recalls is waking up behind bars, confused and withdrawing from heroin. When I was younger, I put on a persona and acted hard, but when it came down to it, I couldnt believe I was in jail. It was really scary and I just wanted to call my mum. Loading

After six days inside, Rachel was bailed again ahead of her other charges being finalised. Her experience epitomises what many lawyers say is wrong with Victorias bail laws, which favour locking people up rather than adopting a diversion and rehabilitation ethos. We must never forget that a person who is imprisoned as a result of a remand or pre-hearing detention has a presumption of innocence,  says Rachels lawyer and 20-year criminal law veteran, Mel Walker. We are not always locking up someone for what they have done, its for what they might do. This is not sustainable and often detrimental. The never-ending cycle The Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service is among the groups calling for an overhaul of bail laws.

The laws were changed because of very tragic circumstances, said legal service chief executive, Nerita Waight. But it has made the system harder for Aboriginal people now than it was 20 years or 30 years ago. She said the imprisonment rate of Aboriginal women was not assisting the Andrews governments treaty process. Treaty and truth-telling are important processes for society as a whole. However, we need to act now on the many reports and recommendations that have been made over generations before we lose more lives to the never-ending cycle of incarceration. On Saturday, The Age revealed that in the period before COVID-19 struck the government was grappling with how to rein in prisoner numbers to delay multibillion-dollar outlays on new mens and womens prisons.

Politically risky options included winding back the 2018 changes to bail laws, abolishing prison sentences of less than three or six months, reinstating home-detention programs, and reclassifying some indictable (serious) offences as summary (minor) under the Crimes Act. By reclassifying some non-violent offences, as summary, bail would become available to more alleged offenders. The government was also considering a second stage of womens diversion and rehabilitation strategy. Options included an electronic monitoring of women on bail and new special housing programs. But in 2020, the government was spared the tough call on either new prisons or controversial reform by the onset of COVID-19, which saw prisoner numbers fall sharply as the lockdown slowed the workings of the justice system. Loading While that period of respite is now ending and the courts are working through a long backlog of cases, senior government and legal sources say substantial reform of bail or sentencing laws is unlikely before the 2022 election.
An elderly man with a bleeding intestine had to wait for more than six hours to get medical help after being taken to Fiona Stanley Hospital from Rockingham.

Another patient, a 40-year-old woman with a bile duct stone, was left under the care of paramedics for eight and a half hours, despite being flown to the hospital from Albany by the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

Patients were left to wait for more than 8 hours in an ambulance. Credit:Paul Kane

These are just two of ten cases detailed in a leaked email by St John Ambulance to doctors at Perths major emergency departments describing the top 10 ramped cases for the past month.

The email sent on May 11 highlights the extent of the states spiralling ambulance ramping figures and hospital understaffing, which doctors and nurses have warned are putting lives at risk.
Anthony Albanese has been telling his colleagues for months that he plans to kick with the wind in the final quarter in the lead-up to the next election.

So why did the New South Welshman, who is fond of the AFL metaphor, start the final quarter  Thursdays budget speech  with a couple of points and out-of-bounds on the full?

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese is applauded by colleagues after delivering the budget reply in the House of Representatives on Thursday. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

In the weeks leading up to the budget reply, Labor shadow ministers pulled together a series of policy options for their leader.

The three that got the nod - a $10 billion social housing program, clean energy apprenticeships and start up loans for students - are all worthy (though limited in size) Labor policies.
Self-funded retiree Tony Peddie fears hikes in stamp duty and land tax wont hurt the rich but will hit average Victorians hard as they seek properties in reasonable suburbs. Mr Peddie and his wife Faye sold their Lorne apartment and a small apartment in South Yarra to buy their $2.15 million home in Wallington, north of Ocean Grove, where they plan to grow their own vegetables and ride on the local bike trails. Mr Peddie was concerned the couple would face an extra $6000 or more on top of $118,000 paid in stamp duty. But because they signed the contracts and paid their deposit in early April, its unlikely they will face the new premium stamp duty rate that will apply to all contracts signed after June 30. But Mr Peddie believes taxing properties over $2 million is no longer a hit at the rich.

To suddenly turn around and say you are filthy rich if you are going to buy a property worth $2 million, you just need to see what the price of properties are, $2 million is no longer a Toorak mansion, Mr Peddie said. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video So when they say he [Treasurer Tim Pallas] is having a hit at the rich, that is, quite frankly, bullshit, he is having a hit at average, working-class Australian people because thats the sort of prices they are having to pay to get into reasonable suburbs. They are not buying Toorak mansions, that is for sure. The Peddies are in their late 70s and budgeted to also buy electric road bikes to ride from their new place to visit their daughter in Queenscliff - they hope to keep those plans should they avoid the extra stamp duty. At our age, this will be the last house we have, and we were budgeted very carefully, Mr Peddie said.

Craig Whatman, the head of Pitcher Partners Melbourne transaction taxes team, is still doing the sums on the tax hikes, but he is concerned about what a rise in land tax will do to landowners and the availability of land for new houses. The liability crystallises at the point that the rezoning happens, but it appears the payment is effectively deferred until the next transaction that occurs in respect of that land, Mr Whatman said. Some of these farmland lots of blocks that we deal with go from being worth $3 million overnight to $30 million and you are talking about a tax on 50 per cent of that gain. No one has the cash to pay that, but it also raises the question of whether this will discourage people from actually dealing with that land from a transactional point of view.

HIA executive director Fiona Nield is also concerned the taxes could hurt regional home buyers and landowners. It is unfair to be taxing landowners further on property when Victoria already has the highest stamp duty rates in the country, Ns Nield said. It is also short-sighted to be adding a greater tax burden on housing when it already contributes up to half of the states revenue each year. Equally, the activity generated from residential development supports jobs and economic activity and is key to supporting all Victorians as the state recovers from the economic shock of COVID-19. New taxes like these are passed on in higher land prices for all and stamp duty inhibits people from selling properties to allow for new homes to be built - it has direct impact on new housing affordability. Changing the goalposts after property has been purchased is unfair. It seems this will particularly impact in regional Victoria - as some urban growth land in Melbourne may be exempted.
Modis supporters argue this has been his style throughout his six years in power, namely, that he chooses when to speak very carefully. Beyond a couple of pre-vetted interviews with sympathetic interviewers throwing him soft balls, he has never spoken to the Indian media. He has never held a press conference. He prefers to let his image as a hard-working (he has not had a day off since 2014 although he is 70), vegetarian, teetotalling ascetic speak for itself. The Outlook Magazine cover is direct. Yet when giving speeches to large crowds, he has always been a powerful communicator. He knows the power of the catchy phrase, as in the promise of Achche Din (Better Days) with which he bewitched voters in the 2014 general election. He knows exactly how to work a crowd. Yet in this crisis, the loquacious Prime Minister has become a Trappist [monk], said political commentator Parsa Venkateshwar Rao jnr. The silence has continued despite the drubbing he has been getting from his enemies at home, from social media, and from the international media, including UK medical journal The Lancet which described Modi as presiding over a a self-inflicted national catastrophe.

Indians have flooded social media with images of Modi as Nero, twiddling while surrounded by burning pyres. They have complained of his monumental blunders, hubris and insensitivity. If these are better days, bring back the bad days, said one post. Another read: India has 121 languages. There is no one who knows all 121. But there is one who has been abused in all 121. In its latest issue, the cover of news magazine Outlook has the words MISSING on an empty white background. Ever since he first became Prime Minister, a cult of personality has been spun around Modi by his followers and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). According to this cult, the man can do no wrong. Volunteers prepare oxygen cylinders, provided by Khalsa Help International, for COVID-19 patients in the Indirapurma township of Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday. Credit:Bloomberg But the death toll and suffering from the second wave may end up scorching Modi. His image has taken a beating. There is no other explanation why otherwise belligerent BJP leaders and spokesmen have been uncharacteristically quiet. They can sense the public mood of anger, said an angry doctor on COVID duty in the Indian capital, New Delhi.

Susurrations of disquiet have begun. Well-wishers such as commentator Makarand R Paranjape called on Modi to show more humanity and humility or risk losing six years of goodwill. One of Modis most effusive supporters, Bollywood actor Anupam Kher whose wife is a BJP MP, shocked the party by saying on television that the criticism of Modi was valid. It is time for [the government] to understand there is more to life than image-building, he said. Political analysts say it is far too soon to speculate on how Modi will fare in the next general election which is three years away. But two events suggest he is in some trouble. Despite strenuous efforts by Modi and Shah, the party lost to a regional rival in the state of West Bengal this month. It was a huge blow because they threw everything at it. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video In the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh, the BJP fared badly in the village council elections last month. This result is significant as elections here are only one year away.

But political analyst Sanjay Kumar refuses to draw any big conclusion from either event. West Bengal was about state issues. The Panchayat polls were about local grassroots issue. Nonetheless, its clear that Modis image and popularity have been dented because his handling of the second wave was so different from the first wave, he says. In the first wave last year, Kumar adds, Modi took control of the pandemic, addressing the nation five to six times and making it clear he was in control and working to protect Indians against the virus. Loading People are hugely disenchanted with him because this time he hasnt been seen or heard. Modi has been absent, he hasnt taken control of the situation. He hasnt connected with the public in any way. For help, people have had to turn to social media to find a bed or oxygen while watching him campaigning in West Bengal, says Kumar. Despite the mishandling of the second wave, the BJP returned to power in Assam. That is why I say that he is by no means finished but his fortunes are likely to be dented. Things will only become clearer next year when BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh and, later in the year, Gujarat state go to the polls, says Jao jnr.

Jerath agrees, saying that while there is a tremendous amount of anxiety within the BJP that it will pay a heavy political price for Modis bungling, this will only be tested in these two elections, most importantly in Uttar Pradesh. Modi is an MP from the state, from Varanasi. A defeat in Uttar Pradesh, which is largely responsible for the BJPs dominance, will be a disaster, she says. Loading Kumar believes it would be a mistake to underestimate Modis ability to turn things around in his favour as the emergency gradually subsides and the coronavirus cases and death toll come down. Indians who have lost their loved ones, he says, are unlikely to forgive or forget. But this group is a small group in terms of electoral arithmetic. Its possible that those who didnt suffer bereavement or end up in ICU  a much larger group  may be prepared to give Modi the benefit of the doubt, he said.
Washington: An eight-month-old accord aimed at normalising relations between Israel and the Arab world and signed at the White House is facing its first major test as violence flares from Jerusalem to Gaza. And its proving tricky to navigate.

Weeks of public anger over Israels move to expel Palestinian families from their homes in Jerusalem were already making it more difficult for the United Arab Emirates and three other signatories of the so-called Trump-era Abraham Accords to justify deepening ties. Now thats been followed by an explosion of violence, with fighting in Jerusalem and the Hamas-run Gaza Strip leaving mounting civilian deaths, most of them Palestinians.

The signing of the Abraham Accords: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, President Donald Trump, Bahrain Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa and United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan at the White House in September. Credit:AP

As the fighting threatens to escalate into all-out war, pressure is rising on Arab governments to take a stand. While the UAE and Bahrain are unlikely to tear up their so-called normalisation deals, at least for now, diplomats and analysts say the violence will complicate efforts to translate them from ink on paper into a genuine partnership.

The Abraham Accords signed last year under the Trump administration gave Israel the false impression that they dont need to come to terms with the Palestinians, that if theyre able to forge these agreements with the Arab world, then its irrelevant. That argument has been proved dead wrong by these clashes, said Marwan al-Muasher, former foreign minister of Jordan, now vice-president of studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington.
Gaza City: A Gaza tower block housing the offices of Associated Press and Al Jazeera journalists collapsed on Saturday afternoon after being struck by Israeli missiles as violence between Israel and Hamas escalated.

The owner of the building had been warned in advance of an impending Israeli missile strike, a Reuters reporter said, and the building had been evacuated. The building also contained a number of other civilian apartments and other offices.

People inspect the damage in Beit Hanoun, Gaza City, after a night of Israeli raids. Credit:Getty Images

Earlier on Saturday morning, an Israeli air raid in Gaza City killed at least 10 Palestinians, mostly children in the deadliest single strike since the battle with Gazas militant Hamas rulers erupted earlier this week. Both sides pressed for an advantage as pushes for a ceasefire gathered strength.

The outburst of violence that began in Jerusalem on Monday and has spread across the region, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed Israeli cities, and protests and violence on the Lebanese and the Syrian borders. There were also widespread Palestinian protests in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people.
Maricopa County election officials reportedly deleted the entire 2020 election database of the voting machines before handing them over for audit.

The Gateway Pundit said that Arizona State Senate President Karen Fann discovered on Wednesday that the Maricopa County election officials, led by Supervisor Chairman Jack Sellers, deleted "all election information" from the main database, which included the "Results Tally and Reporting" of the 2020 elections.

Fann wrote to Sellers demanding an explanation on the matter. This was after the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors held an emergency meeting last week since they were unable to provide the passwords to the auditors of the 2020 election results audit along with the access to the routers used during the elections.

Fann urged the "assistance and cooperation" of Sellers in the letter she sent for the "three serious issues that have arisen in the course of the Senate's ongoing audit of the returns." The said issues are" "ongoing non-compliance with legislative subpoenas," "chain of custody and ballot organization anomalies," and "deleted databases."

"We have recently discovered that the entire 'Database' directory from the D drive of the machine 'EMSPrimary' has been deleted. This removes election related details that appear to have been covered by the subpoena. In addition, the main database for the Election Management System (EMS) Software, 'Results Tally and Reporting,' is not located anywhere on the EMSPrimary machine, even though all of the EMS Clients reference that machine as the location of the database," Fann pointed out in the letter.

"This suggests that the main database for all election-related data for the November 2020 General Election has been removed. Can you please advise as to why these folders were deleted, and whether there are any backups that may contain the deleted folders?" She stressed.

In terms of the anomalies, Fann listed the "apparent omissions, inconsistencies, and anomalies relating to Maricopa County's handling, organization, and storage of ballots" noticed by the auditors.

100 Percent Fed Up reported, as part of the anomalies, that the tamper-proof tape on the ballot boxes was cut open when the inspectors received them from the County officials. The inspectors also pointed out that there was a discrepancy in the Senate-reported number of ballots inside the boxes with that is actually in them.

Other anomalies identified were the ballot boxes were sealed with regular tape, the bags in which the ballots were stored were not sealed, and "the pink report slip is greater than the number of ballots in the batch," among others.

Fann also highlighted that the County "refused" to comply to the requirements needed in the audit such as "virtual images of routers" used during the elections with the reasoning that doing so would cost the County $6 million.

The Arizona State Senate President ended her letter hoping that the matter would be resolved constructively and that the County's officials with the necessary information or knowledge for the pending requirements to the audit be present in the meeting with the Senate set on May 18, which will be lived streamed to the public and attended by officials.

Fann emphasized that the resolution of the said issues is of "public concern."
Sanjeev Guptas plans to save his embattled industrial empire suffered a major setback as the U.K. opened a fraud investigation, prompting a potential financial partner to walk away.



For two months, Gupta has been scrambling to refinance after the collapse of his groups main lender, Greensill Capital, and recently looked close to winning a reprieve -- helped along by a surging commodity prices.

But on Friday, the Serious Fraud Office announced a probe into Guptas GFG Alliance, including into the financing arrangements with Greensill. That prompted White Oak Global Advisors LLC -- which had recently offered a lifeline with terms for a 200 million-pound ($282 million) loan for Guptas U.K. steel business -- to walk away. White Oak was also behind funding for part of Guptas Australian assets, the Australian Financial Review has said.

As with any regulated financial institution, we are not in a position to continue discussions with any company that is under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office for money laundering, White Oak said in a statement.

GFG said Friday it will co-operate fully with the SFO investigation. It declined to comment on White Oaks decision.

The fraud probe also puts other efforts to replace about $5 billion Gupta had borrowed from Greensill in question.

On Thursday, Gupta had conveyed a much brighter outlook, expressing confidence of a new future for his sprawling group of On a podcast for employees, he said it had been relatively easy to get refinancing for the Whyalla mill in Australia. He also said that GFG had been inundated by offers to help and to finance, partly due to strong commodity markets.

The picture is now bleaker in the wake of the SFO investigation, which follows months of scrutiny from lawmakers and the media over Gupta and Greensills financing practices. GFG has come under the microscope after the collapse of Greensill in March revealed it had been a recipient of financing based on expected future invoices, for sales that were merely predicted.

Trading Activities



The exact scope of the SFO investigation isnt yet clear. Bloomberg has reported four banks stopped working with Guptas Liberty House Group trading business, starting in 2016, amid concerns about what they perceived to be problems in paperwork provided by Liberty, Bloomberg has reported. In one example, the company had presented a bank with what seemed to be duplicate shipping receipts. A spokesman for Gupta has denied any wrongdoing.

The two-month period it took from starting to covertly look into GFG and its financing by Greensill to announcing a formal probe is a quick turn-around for the SFO, which often takes years to publicly confirm its taking action against a company.

It will now start to gather evidence, including securing devices and documents. However, itll likely take years for the office to make any tangible updates to the investigation, including whether it decides to charge individuals as part of the probe.

The funding from Lex Greensills eponymous firm helped GFG expand at an astonishing rate in the past five years by targeting old, unwanted assets. His loose collection of now employs some 35,000 people worldwide, with steel and aluminum plants in the U.S., U.K., France, Romania and Australia.

Staying afloat would enable Gupta to enjoy some of the best times his industrial businesses have seen. Steel prices are near an all-time high as demand recovers from the coronavirus pandemic and China cuts capacity to curb pollution. Aluminum, Guptas other major business, hit a three-year high this week amid a broad commodities boom.

Still, Greensills collapse has already taken a major toll on Guptas businesses. On Thursday, his Wyelands Bank said it would be wound up if it cant find a buyer. His steel units in France and Belgium have started creditor protection procedures, hes approached buyers for some of his engineering assets, people familiar with the matter have said, and also sought buyers for two steel plants in France.

For governments too, there is much at stake. Countries that once feted him as a savior for buying decrepit assets may have to pick up the pieces, due to the jobs at risk and some assets strategic importance to industry.
The annual general meeting of Jet Airways, which suspended operations more than two years ago, will be held on June 8, according to a regulatory filing.

The affairs of the full service carrier, which is currently undergoing an insolvency resolution process, is being managed by resolution professional Ashish Chhawchharia.

The meeting, scheduled to be held on June 8, will consider and adopt the company's audited standalone financial statements for the financial year ended March 31, 2020 together with the reports of auditors.

Besides, the appointment of statutory auditors will be discussed, as per the filing submitted to the exchanges on Saturday.

The meeting will be conducted through a two-way video conferencing facility or other audio-visual means.

The company was not able to prepare its financial results on time as directors, CEO, CFO and various other top management personal had resigned before the resolution process began in June 2019.

Jet Airways, which became a scheduled airline in 1995, suspended operations due to financial distress on April 17, 2019.

It had started as an air taxi operator on May 5, 1993, with a fleet of four leased Boeing 737-300 aircraft. The airline, which got listed on domestic bourses in February 2005, operated its first international flight from Chennai to Colombo in March 2004.

(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.)
To meet the demand of oxygen supply in the country amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has chartered the National Carrier Air India (AI) to import 'Zeolite' from different countries.

"Government of India is in the process of importing Zeolite from different parts of the world, for use in Pressure Swing Absorption (PSA) plants to boost oxygen supplies in the country. DRDO has been appointed by GOI as a charterer for these consignments. Air India will bring in zeolite for DRDO from different parts of the world," Air India spokesperson told ANI.

According to an expert, Zeolite is a key component in the oxygen production process on a mass scale.

"Zeolite-based oxygen concentrator systems are widely used to produce medical-grade oxygen. The zeolite is used as a molecular sieve to create purified oxygen from air using its ability to trap impurities, in a process involving the adsorption of nitrogen, leaving highly purified oxygen and up to 5 per cent argon," an expert said.

Air India has already flown from Rome with Zeolite and is landing in Bengaluru this evening.

"First of these two flights have taken off from Rome and to land in Bengaluru in the evening. Seven charter flights in all have been scheduled between May 15 to 18," Air India told ANI.

DRDO placed an order with Air India to bring Zeolite from all over the world.

"Air India will be flying in zeolite from Rome in seven flights followed by eight charter flights from Korea to Bangalore, between May 19 to 22. Further, we have uplift from the USA through our existing scheduled flights from EWR between May 20 to 25. Another part of this exercise is from Brussels, Tokyo and again USA, in the following weeks," National Carrier Air India told ANI.

Recently DRDO has set up an oxygen plant in AIIMS and RML hospital which generates 1,000 litres per minute.

Air India has always been playing a pivotal role in India's crusade against Covid right from the first evacuation flights that it operated to Wuhan. From evacuation to transporting medical and essential equipment, vaccines and oxygen concentrators, etc., Air India has been flapping its wings relentlessly at the service of the nation.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The mortal remains of Soumya Santhosh, who was killed in a Palestinian rocket attack in on May 11, were brought here on Saturday.

Her relatives and political leaders of various parties received the body which was brought here by an Air India flight from New Delhi.

The body was placed at the airport for a few minutes for the public to pay homage.

Political leaders including Idukki MP Dean Kuriakose, P T Thomas MLA and senior BJP leader A N Radhakrishnan were present at the airport.

Later, the body was taken to her village Keerithodu in Idukki district.

Her funeral will be held at the cemetery of Nithya Sahaya Matha Church, Keerithodu on Sunday afternoon, church sources said.

Earlier, Union Minister V Muraleedharan received the body at New Delhi airport while it was being repatriated from to Kerala via New Delhi.

"With a heavy heart, received the mortal remains of Ms Soumya Santhosh in Delhi and paid my last respects.CDA of Embassy @RonyYedidia also joined. I empathise with the pain and sufferings of the family of Ms. Soumya.More strength to them," Muraleedharan said in a tweet.

In a tweet, Rony Yedidia Clein said her family will be supported by Israel.

"Together with @MOS_MEA, I paid my respects to Soumya Santhosh as her mortal remains arrived in India on her final journey home, after she was tragically killed by #Hamas rockets. My heart is with her family, including a 9-yr old boy, who will be supported by #Israel," the Israeli diplomat tweeted.

Soumya,30, hailing from Idukki district, had been working as a housemaid in Israel for the last seven years.

She was killed on Tuesday when the rocket fell on her residence in the city of Ashkelon while she was talking to her husband Santhosh, who is in Kerala, over video call, her family has said.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The High Commission of India in the United Kingdom said that 260 more concentrators have been airlifted to New Delhi, as India fights a devastating second COVID-19 wave.

Taking to Twitter, the High Commission thanked donors for their generous contribution, along with Qatar Airways, Air Vistara and DB Schenker for free logistics.

"260 more Concentrators airlifted today to @IndianRedCross NewDelhi contributed by @O2CforIndia-226, IndiansinLondon @IIL2004-20 & St.Albans-14. @HCI_London thanks donors for generous contribution & @qatarairways @airvistara for free transport & @DBSchenker for free logistics," tweeted India in the UK.

Earlier this month, an Indian Air Force aircraft, carrying another 450 cylinders from the United Kingdom, arrived in Chennai on Tuesday, said Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

The United Kingdom on May 2 had announced that it will be sending additional 1,000 ventilators from the UK's surplus supply to Indian hospitals as part of its commitment to support India's fight against the second wave of

Earlier today, four IAF aircraft arrived in Chennai carrying cylinders from Singapore.

As per the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), Chennai Customs, working in close coordination with the state government, ensured their smooth and swift clearance.

As many as 3,43,144 new COVID-19 cases, 3,44,776 recoveries and 4,000 deaths were reported in India in the last 24 hours, the Union Health Ministry reported on Friday, taking the total cases in the country to 2,40,46,809.

There are currently 37,04,893 active COVID cases.

Several countries have come forward to help India as the country fights the second wave of COVID-19.

(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.)
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The B.1.617.2 variant of COVID-19, first identified in India, is likely to take over and dominate in the United Kingdom, said England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty on Friday.

Speaking at a press conference at 10 Downing Street, Whitty said: "The thing which has changed, which is of a very clear view that this variant is more transmissible than that the B.117 and we expect that this variant will overtake and come to dominate in the in the way the B.117 variant took over and indeed the other variants have taken over prior to that."

The medical officer also told reporters that the variant has shown a steady upward curve in the UK, adding that Bolton has seen more cases of the variant first identified in India.

Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday said that the new variant could pose a serious disruption to the easing of COVID-19 lockdown planned on June 21.

"This new variant could pose as a serious disruption to our progress and could make it difficult to move to step 4 in June and I must stress that we will do whatever it takes to keep the public safe," he said.

He also said that the will be accelerating its COVID-19 vaccination rollout amid concerns over the B.1.617.2 variant.

"The race between our vaccination program and the virus may be about to become a great deal tighter," Johnson said.

Meanwhile, Germany now classifies the United Kingdom as a "risk area" amid a rise in the number of cases of the strain first identified in India, Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the country's national agency for disease control and prevention, announced on Friday, CNN reported.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday informed that the B.1.617 variant of COVID-19, first found in India in October last year, had been detected in sequences uploaded "from 44 countries in all six WHO regions".

"As of 11 May, over 4500 sequences have been uploaded to GISAID (platform of data sharing mechanism for influenza) and assigned to B.1.617 from 44 countries in all six WHO regions, and WHO has received reports of detections from five additional countries," WHO said in its weekly epidemiological update on the pandemic.

The variant, first identified in India last year, has been classified as a "variant of global concern", with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily, a senior WHO official had said on Monday. The B.1.617 variant is the fourth variant to be designated as being of "global concern".

The WHO also revealed that the variant has three sub-lineages. "Our team has been discussing with our virus evolution group. Everything we know about it in terms of transferability, studies that are being done, in India as well as in other countries where this virus is circulating. It is important to note that B.1.617 has three sub-lineages- .1, .2, .3," Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, Technical lead COVID-19 at WHO, said on Wednesday.

The devastating second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic is believed to be largely led by this particular variant, along with others from the UK, South Africa and Brazil.

(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.)
Kentucky Senator Rand Paul reportedly alleged National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Anthony Fauci to be "culpable" for the entire COVID-19 pandemic during the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pension Committee Hearing on Tuesday.

The Gateway Pundit said Paul confronted Fauci regarding his support of the Wuhan laboratory and accused him of dishonesty while being under oath.

"On Thursday morning Senator Paul took things one step further accusing Dr. Tony Fauci of potentially being culpable for the entire pandemic!" the report said.

During the hearing, Fauci denied that the NIH was engaged in such efforts with the Wuhan Institute stating, "the NIH and NIAID categorically has not funded gain-of-function research to be conducted in the Wuhan Institute."

However, WND reported that documents from NIH contradict what Fauci says.

"NIH grant records verify that funds were sent to EcoHealth Alliance that were used for research conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The question is whether or not those funds were used for gain-of-function research at the Wuhan lab," WND said.

In addition, WND cited an exclusive report from the National Pulse regarding a press release from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The press release recounts a particular conference entitled "2nd China-U.S. Workshop on the Challenges of Emerging Infections, Laboratory Safety and Global Health Security."

This event, held in 2017, was headlined by three American professors-scientists who received almost 200 grants from the NIH. Interestingly, "75 of those grants came the NIAID, which Fauci has directed since 1984," WND noted.

In the Wuhan document, the three scientists were "Prof. Linda Saif (academician) from Ohio State University, Prof. David Relman (academician) from Stanford University, Prof. James LeDuc" who attended on May 24, 2017 to discuss "policies in response to emerging infectious diseases" with other representatives from the United States, Pakistan the Republic of Kenya, and China.

The event explicitly stated that it was a "workshop" divided into five "academic sessions" -foremost of which is that Fauci had been denying: "gain of function research," and more. The three scientists mentioned above were considered "special guests" in the event.

"Culpable"

The Gateway Pundit said Paul had a Fox News interview after the hearing where he directly stated that Fauci was culpable for the pandemic because of the said funding.

"It's even worse than your point out. The person they hired to investigate the lab for the WHO perspective is the guy who gave the money. So NIH gave the money to EcoHealth. The head of EcoHealth--they got him to investigate whether Wuhan was doing anything inappropriate in their lab. But if they were then wouldn't he be culpable?" Paul said.

"Doesn't he have a self interest in smoothing things over," he continued. "I'm not saying he did cover things up but you wouldn't appoint someone who is in the line of the supply chain of giving the money to them.

"Ultimately here's the rub. I don't know whether it came from the lab. But who could be culpable? Dr. Fauci could be culpable for the entire pandemic!" Paul said.

Paul based his claims against Fauci from a study released at the U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health website entitled, "Origin And Evolution Of Pathogenic Coronaviruses," on December 10, 2018 by three doctors led by Dr. Shi Zheng-Li of the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

Zheng-Li claimed in the document that NIH funded their study, which was originally set for bats but eventually had to make some changes such that the virus would become more lethal "with the highest possible infectivity for human cells."

Paul raised the need to investigate why the NIH was funding a "Chinese communist lab that was conducting some of the world's most dangerous research" in the first place, which was "extremely reckless."
As Tauktae furthers closer into the Indian West Coast, the Central Water Commission (CWC) on Saturday issued an 'orange bulletin' for and Tamil Nadu, predicting a severe flood situation in the two states.

Water levels are likely to reach 'danger' and highest flood levels, the CWC said.

As of 8 am today morning, rivers Manimala, Achankovil in and Kodaiyar in continued flowing in 'Severe situation', all three above their danger levels.

On Friday night, the India Meteorological Department had informed that the low-pressure area over the Arabian Sea near Lakshwadeep had intensified into a deep depression and will intensify into a cyclonic storm in the following 12 hours.

"Deep Depression intensified into a Cyclonic Storm "Tauktae" (pronounced as Tau'Te) over Lakshadweep area and adjoining southeast and east-central the Arabian Sea: watch for south Gujarat and Diu coasts", the IMD had tweeted.

A tweet by the Spokesperson of the Indian Navy, also confirmed "#CycloneTauktae-Update 1-Deep depression 240 Nm NW off Kochi on 14th evening very likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm Tauktae by 15th morning."

The is likely to impact areas including the coast of Kerala, Karnataka, Lakshadweep, Goa, and Maharashtra.

The IMD had also predicted that the cyclone would hit the Gujarat coast by May 18 morning.

"Deep Depression over Lakshadweep area and adjoining southeast and east-central Arabian Sea about 55 km north-northwest of Amini Divi. To intensify into a Cyclonic Storm during the next 12 hours. To move north-northwestwards and reach near Gujarat coast by 18th May morning", tweeted the IMD.

Disaster Response Force (NDRF) officials had assured on Friday that they were well prepared for cyclone Tauktae and 53 teams had been committed, 24 teams pre-deployed, and 29 teams were on standby-ready for the 5 most vulnerable states.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has also told officials to be vigilant and well equipped especially near coastal areas.

"In a meeting regarding Cyclone Tauktae, CM Uddhav Thackeray directed District Administration, Divisional Commissioners and District Collectors to be vigilant and well equipped especially in coastal areas of Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg," the Chief Minister's office tweeted.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan too said that the state has put in place all precautionary measures to face any calamity arising out of the cyclonic storm Tauktae.

Five districts in Kerala had been put under red alert by the IMD on Friday- Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Ernakulam.

"According to the IMD, the low-pressure area in the south-eastern Arabian Sea has intensified into a severe depression. Even though Kerala is not in the predicted path of the cyclone, heavy rains, strong winds and strong sea gusts are expected in the State till May 16," Vijayan said in a press briefing.

He further said that nine teams of the Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed as a precaution.

(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 Narendra Modi on Saturday reviewed the preparedness of states, central ministries and agencies concerned to deal with the situation arising out of Tauktae and asked them to take every possible measure to ensure that people are safely evacuated.

He also called for ensuring maintenance of all essential services such as power, telecommunications, health and drinking and their immediate restoration in the event of damages caused to them, a statement said.

At the high-level meeting which was attended by Home Minister Amit Shah and top officials concerned, Modi directed them to ensure special preparedness on COVID management in hospitals, vaccine cold chain and other medical facilities on power back up and storage of essential medicines and to plan for unhindered movement of oxygen tankers, the PMO said.

"He (PM) also directed for 24x7 functioning of control rooms. He also said that special care needs to be taken to ensure that there is least possible disruption in oxygen supply from Jamnagar. He also spoke about the need to involve the local community for timely sensitisation and relief measures," it added.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said at the meeting that Tauktae is expected to touch Gujarat coast between Porbandar and Naliya around May 18 afternoon or evening with a wind speed ranging up to 175 kmph.

It is likely to cause heavy rainfall in the coastal districts of Gujarat, including extremely heavy falls in Junagadh and Gir Somnath and heavy to very heavy rain at a few places in the districts of Saurashtra, Kutch and Diu, namely Gir Somnath, Diu, Junagadh, Porbandar, Devbhoomi Dwarka, Amreli, Rajkot, Jamnagar.

The IMD also warned of storm surge of about two-three metre above astronomical tide to inundate coastal areas of Morbi, Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts and one-two metre along Porbandar, Junagarh, Diu, Gir Somnath, Amreli, Bhavnagar and 0.5 to one metre over the remaining coastal districts of Gujarat, the statement said.

The IMD has been issuing three hourly bulletins since May 13 with latest forecast to all the states concerned.

(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 Saturday reported a net reduction of 31,091 in active cases to take its count to 3,673,802. Indias share of global active cases now stands at 20.80 per cent (one in 5). The country is second among the most affected countries by active cases. On Saturday, it added 326,098 cases to take its total caseload to 24,372,907. And, with 3,890 new fatalities, its Covid-19 reached 266,207, or 1.09 per cent of total confirmed infections.

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conducted an inquiry on the direction of the High Court regarding allegations against politicians across political parties on the alleged illegal distribution of COVID-19 medicines.

"On direction of the High Court, we conducted enquiry for the 4th day regarding allegations against politicians across political parties on alleged illegal distribution of COVID-19 medicines. Sensationalism be avoided. It considers complying Court orders its duty," tweeted.

In a notice shared by Delhi Police, it read, "The petitioner has placed instances where politicians belonging to different political parties have allegedly indulged in an illegal distribution of medicines being used for the treatment of Covid-19 disease. The petitioner has provided the web-links on the basis of which the petitioner claims that the politicians are indulging in such like activities."

"We are not inclined, at this stage, to direct initiation of any inquiry proceedings by the CBI. However, in relation to the instances falling within the jurisdiction of this Court, we permit the petitioner to place his grievances before the Commissioner of Police, who shall examine the same and respond to the same to the petitioner", read the notice.

In case the alleged incidents are found to have taken place in Delhi, should take appropriate steps by registration of FIR. The petitioner should implead Delhi Police as party respondent in this petition.

"Satyakam is present and he states that he could appear for Delhi Police and he accepts notice. Status report be filed in relation to the alleged incidents committed within the jurisdiction of this Court within a week", read the notice.

(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.)
Union Health Minister Dr on Saturday will interact with health ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat via video conferencing to review the COVID-19 situation and the progress of the vaccination drive in these states.

"At 3 PM today, I'll be holding a VC with Health Ministers of #UttarPradesh, #AndhraPradesh, #MadhyaPradesh & #Gujarat to review current #COVID19 situation & progress of #COVID19Vaccination drive in their respective States.", tweeted

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also chaired a high-level meeting on the country's situation and the ongoing vaccination drive today.

As many as 3,26,098 new COVID-19 cases, 3,53,299 discharges and 3,890 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry

The number of total cases stands at 2,43,72,907, including 2,04,32,898 recoveries, 2,66,207 deaths, and 36,73,802 active cases.

A total of 18,04,57,579 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in the country so far.

The Union Health Ministry on Friday informed that the national recovery rate is 83.50 per cent.

12 States including Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana cumulatively account for 79.7 per cent of India's total active cases, the ministry had said.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two-wheeler market leader on Saturday said it has partnered with the district administration of Gurugram to set up a makeshift 100-bed Covid Care centre in Gurugram.

The company is supporting the setting up of the centre at the Government Girls College in Sector 14, Gurugram under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) platform Hero We Care, said in a statement.

"The Covid Care centre will help augment our medical infrastructure and enable us to widen the scope of our relief activities for the affected people in the district," Deputy Commissioner, Gurugram Yash Garg said.

Stating that this is an excellent example of the public-private partnership in contributing towards the larger cause of the society, he said, "At a challenging time such as this, we urge more corporates and private organisations to come forward for similar initiatives."



Head Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) & Corporate Communication Bharatendu Kabi said this 100-bed Covid Care centre will go a long way in supporting the healthcare infrastructure in Gurugram.

The company has been taking an active role in the combat against the second wave of the pandemic. Recently it had partnered with the Ramakrishna Mission Sevashrama, Kankhal (RMSK) at Haridwar for strengthening their healthcare system and response to COVID-19 Besides, it is also extending support to COVID-19 hospitals in states, including Delhi, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.

(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.)
Union Minister Sadananda Gowda on Saturday said lockdown has to be extended if need be, as it has been yielding results, with major cities including Bengaluru witnessing a decline in daily COVID-19 cases.

The state is currently under complete lockdown till May 24.

"Lockdowns have been successful and have yielded results, cities like Mumbai, Delhi, and Karnataka's Bengaluru are examples.

There has been a decline (in Bengaluru) since the last couple of days," Gowda said.

Speaking to reporters here, the union minister who represents Bengaluru North parliamentary seat said, there is a need to break the chain.

".. it (lockdown) has been going on successfully, after May 24 if there is a need for it to be extended, it has to be done.

We have to save lives, leading life may become difficult, governments will have to take steps to improve it," he added.

Gowda's statement came a day after Revenue Minister R Ashoka batted for the extension of the statewide lockdown, aimed at controlling the spread of the pandemic.

Amid the rising Covid-19 cases in the state, the Karnataka government that had initially announced 14 days "close down" from April 27, subsequently imposed a complete lockdown from May 10 to May 24, amid continued spike in cases.

Noting that the state and central governments were ready to take all the criticism regarding COVID management, Gowda said, those in the government will not get disturbed by it.

"We have a responsibility and the commitment and we will have to fulfill it," he added.

Conceding that the government's action plan on vaccination got disturbed as people of all the age groups started coming in large number to take it, with the intensity of the second wave increasing, the Union Minister said necessary steps and policies will be implemented soon so that everyone gets the vaccine.

Karnataka on Friday reported 41,779 new cases of COVID- 19, and 373 fatalities, taking the total number of infections to 21,30,267 and the death toll to 21,085.

(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.)
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced plans to tap into the city's stockpile to send COVID-19 test kits, swabs, ventilators, pulse oximeters and other vital medical supplies to India to save lives and beat back the pandemic.

His announcement on Friday came as India recorded 3,26,098 fresh COVID-19 cases that took the national tally to 2,43,72,907, while 3,890 new fatalities pushed the death toll to 2,66,207.

In a statement posted on the official website of the City of New York, de Blasio said that just over a year ago, New York City was the center of the global pandemic.

Now it is our turn to step up and help India in its moment of crisis. We are sending vital medical equipment to India to send a clear message: nobody is in the fight against COVID-19 alone. Together, we can save lives and beat back the pandemic, the mayor said.

Kapil Longani, Counsel to the Mayor said: As a proud Indian immigrant with generations of family currently living in India, it breaks my heart to see the ongoing COVID-19 tragedy unfold.

The Mayor is a leading citizen of the world, and on behalf of the Indian community, I offer my deepest gratitude for his decision to commit life-saving resources to India.

"This pandemic highlighted our interconnectedness as a global community, and it's imperative that we stand together in solidarity to defeat this virus, he said.

Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services Melanie Hartzog said as a global city that was once considered the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, it would be unacceptable for New York City to ignore the devastating situation in India.

This horrible pandemic has taken too many lives, and we cannot stand idle as it continues to wreak havoc in another city. I stand with my colleagues in the City government to make sure we provide any and all support possible to our fellow citizens in India, Hartzog said.

When the COVID-19 struck the US Last year, New York City became an epicentre, prompting authorities to shut it in mid-March as the ravaged the metropolis.

Democratic lawmaker Grace Meng, representative of New York's 6th Congressional district in New York City, said: India is our dear friend and ally and we must continue to be there for its people in their urgent time of need. I thank Mayor de Blasio for sending this critical aid, and ask all New Yorkers to keep India in their thoughts and prayers as the country battles the surge in COVID-19 cases.

Indian-origin Assembly Member Jenifer Rajkumar said: As the first Indian-American woman elected to state office in New York, I stand in solidarity with the people of India at their time of need.

The largest Indian-American population in the Western Hemisphere is here in New York City. It was the Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. who said, Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly,' and that has never been more true than during the COVID-19 pandemic.

If there is a COVID crisis in India, then New Yorkers are in crisis. I applaud Mayor de Blasio and Commissioner Chokshi for recognizing that we are all in this pandemic together and for sending supplies to the people of India so they can fight this deadly virus, she said.

Randhir Jaiswal, Consul General of India in New York said: "We greatly appreciate the generous gift by New York City to the Government of India. The ventilators, bipaps (Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure) and testing kits which have been donated by New York will be immensely useful in fighting the pandemic in India.

The supplies being sent will further add to the robust assistance provided by the US government to India. The empathy shown by this great City is admirable.

New York's thousands of Indian-Americans are filled with anger and helplessness as they witness the unnecessary tragedy back in the country, said Harpreet Singh Toor, Co-Founder and President of South Asians for Global Empowerment.

Especially when our own situation has become so full of hope, it is the right time to join Mayor Bill de Blasio in calling for a full-scale effort to donate vaccines, COVID-19 test kits, swabs, ventilators, pulse oximeters, and every other type of relief possible to India, he said.

According to Johns Hopkins University, New York has so far reported 2,081,823 cases and 52,903 fatalities.

India has been severely affected by the unprecedented second wave of the and hospitals in several states are reeling under the shortage of health workers, vaccines, oxygen, drugs and beds.

(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.)
Business newspaper Financial Express' managing editor passed away in New Delhi on Saturday due to post-Covid-19 complications, his sister Sandhya Jain said. He had tested positive for the and had been admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

"We lost my brother this evening to Covid+ its complications. Doctors, staff at battled heroically, but the demon was too powerful. May Tirthankaras guide his onward journey; deep gratitude to all who stood by us in these darkest days," she tweeted.



We lost my brother this evening to Covid+its complications. Doctors+staff at battled heroically, but the demon was too powerful. May Tirthankaras guide his onward journey; deep gratitude to all who stood by us in these darkest days @drharshvardhan @rajivtuli69  Sandhya Jain (@vijayvaani) May 15, 2021

Paying condolences, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "You left us too soon, Sunil Jain. I will miss reading your columns and hearing your frank as well as insightful views on diverse matters. You leave behind an inspiring range of work. Journalism is poorer today, with your sad demise. Condolences to family and friends. Om Shanti."



You left us too soon, Sunil Jain. I will miss reading your columns and hearing your frank as well as insightful views on diverse matters. You leave behind an inspiring range of work. Journalism is poorer today, with your sad demise. Condolences to family and friends. Om Shanti.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 15, 2021

Anant Goenka, executive director of the Indian Express group, which owns the Financial Express, described Jain as a friend who was of unquestionable integrity and inspired with his professional commitment.

"Privileged to have known him, will cherish his passion, balance & wisdom.Your Express family will miss you," he tweeted.



Sunil Jain, Managing Editor of Financial Express lost his battle to Covid today. He was a friend, of unquestionable integrity & inspired us with his professional commitment. Privileged to have known him, will cherish his passion, balance & wisdom.Your Express family will miss you  Anant Goenka (@anantgoenka) May 15, 2021

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman expressed shock at his death.



The passing away of Sunil Jain, the Managing Editor @FinancialXpress is a big loss. Benefitted immensely from the various interactions with him. Sharp & quick, he was full of ideas. His criticism were biting, equally his suggestions constructive.Personally, will miss his counsel.  Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) May 15, 2021

A regular Twitter user, Jain had posted about his poor health on May 3 and then expressed his thanks in his last tweet on the same day after he was admitted at

"Thank you everyone for all the help. I don't even know whom all to thank. Am in AIIMS emergency now. So I'm safe hands," he had tweeted.
The number of COVID-19 cases in India is now slowing down a bit, with around 350,000 cases and fewer than 4,200 deaths every day. We know by now that on both numbers, there is considerable under-counting.

The number of cases at a national level does not also represent, or perhaps hides, what is happening in rural India. What we do know now, through anecdotal measurements, either in terms of the number of deaths or the field work of many organisations, is that cases in rural India are now much higher than ever?

What is the impact of COVID-19 on rural India? How do we put in place medium and long-term plans to improve the public health infrastructure in villages? I'm pleased to be joined by two guests today. Dr Pavitra Mohan is secretary and co-founder of Basic Healthcare Services, a non-profit that has been working primarily in southern Rajasthan. He is based out of Udaipur and was earlier a senior health specialist at UNICEF India. He has an MBBS and then an MD from the Delhi University and a masters in public health from the University of North Carolina, US. I'm also joined by Poonam Muttreja, executive director of the Population Foundation of India. She was earlier the country director of the McArthur Foundation. She has a masters in public administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. She has been speaking on many issues relating to health and other outcomes in rural India.





Edited excerpts:

Miss Mutreja, tell us what has changed and what has not, in rural India, between the first and second waves?

Poonam Muttreja: The one big difference between the first and the second wave is, we responded [in the first wave]. Even though we weren't prepared, we took time to prepare and we declared a lockdown--unfortunately within four hours and that created its own problems. We were all made to feel we needed to change our behaviours, we needed to practice social distancing and laws were put in place as well as curfews and so on.

The big difference this time is that we are neither prepared nor do I get the impression that our government is serious about preparing for either the second wave or a third wave.

The other big difference is that young people are being impacted--they are 70% of India's population. And they are moving--migrants are mainly young people going back to their villages and taking the infection with them, so it has reached the villages. We kept asking last time: Will it reach the villages? And we were just very lucky that it didn't then, but now it has.

The third big difference is that for the first time, [during the first wave], our political leadership actually led the country into believing that we need to change our social behaviours--apart from the "thali bajao"--that COVID-19 required. These [protocols] were spread by a leader in India whom people listened to, we have to admit that. Now we have the same political leadership doing rallies and allowing religious events like the big Kumbh Mela. So people in India who have seen these images on television, mainly rural, do not believe that there is a second wave or that there is a need to practise [COVID-appropriate behaviour].

Finally, our frontline health workers, especially the ASHAs, who were put into action, had the energy and enthusiasm to do it, but we let them down by not giving them any protection. So, many of them got COVID-19 or other health issues. They are demoralised, discouraged, sick and scared because they know what the second wave is. What we are hearing from the field in rural areas is that we have not developed any infrastructure to deal with any aspect of COVID.

Dr Mohan, you do a lot of work in southern Rajasthan. What have you been seeing? What has changed?

Pavitra Mohan: I think in the first phase, there was a small rise [in infections] in rural areas after the lockdown. Immediately after the abrupt lockdown, there was a very, very small increase, but after it was relaxed and many migrants started returning around May, we saw a small increase in the number of people infected. But then it kind of petered off by September and it never spread as much.

This time around, the sharp rise and the width [of the spread] is so much more. It's spreading much faster. It's affecting even deeper rural areas. We had hypothesised in the first phase that maybe if it comes to rural areas, it would not spread as fast and would probably not affect the remotest populations. But this time around, remote populations are affected hugely, both in terms of infection, but also increasingly in terms of severity and deaths.

One reason for this is that, as you said, the virus seems to be more infectious and causing more severe infection. The other significant factor is the movement between urban and rural areas, which continued and continues--that led to a significant spread. Thirdly, there was also, from the system's point of view, the inability to quickly look at some of the rising episodes of an influenza-like illness and to immediately ramp up testing. This led to a bit of complacency until it started causing deaths and hospitals started getting flooded.

This is also a huge wedding season in many rural areas, including the areas we work in. That plus the movement of migrants back and forth to attend weddings led to a faster spread this time. It's also epidemiologically a population that was neither vaccinated nor infected in the first wave. Thus, they were easy prey to the virus this time around. This led to high severity [of the disease] among the rural, and even remote rural, populations.

You run a chain of decentralised clinics. How have you been coping with the severity of the disease in this wave?

Pavitra Mohan: We were caught unawares and now, it is progressively increasing. We're nowhere near the peak, at least in south Rajasthan. There are certain places in rural areas, which seem to have been peaking. Maharashtra, for example, started much earlier and probably even in rural areas [there] the peaking has happened.

The severity, we started seeing--at least till two weeks ago--it was much more among those who were relatively better off in the rural areas, not in the remoter areas, though the infection had started spreading there. But now, increasingly we are seeing that even the remote populations and tribal populations are being [severely] affected. What we had done last year was to equip our clinics with protective measures. For example, we shifted all our clinics outdoors because it is so much easier to prevent infection there than indoors.

We had ensured that we had oxygen concentrators in each of our clinics. This was right after the first wave and this is something we had been advocating since last year. If you see some of our writings--[we wrote] that all primary health centres and community health centres need to have oxygen--not just to deal with COVID, though we thought that COVID would be an opportunity to strengthen the availability of oxygen and the health systems. But that did not happen. So, unfortunately we are now seeing this rampant [crisis over the] procurement and transportation of oxygen [and concentrators]. Since last March, we had been pushing for it. We did procure oxygen for our clinics and now, of course, oxygen concentrators, which are easier [to deal with] in these times when there is a lockdown and it is difficult to refill cylinders.

Our second measure was to rapidly look at protocols, etc. Now we are working to set up COVID-care centres with the district administration to deal with the immediate prevention of deaths due to severity.

Many people from rural India also go to cities for treatment because urban hospitals have, say, specialised healthcare, doctors and intensive care units with equipment. How do you then respond to severe cases in rural areas?

Pavitra Mohan: We should have learnt from COVID to develop more decentralised, simple technologies and appropriate care rather than the fanciest care. If you look at ventilatory care, even in America, nine out of 10 would probably not survive that. A lot of our focus has been on intensive care and hospital-based care. But what we are learning from epidemiology elsewhere, as well as India, is that a lot of care and prevention of deaths could happen at homes, at smaller health centres and, at the most, at block-level centres.

Two main things we are seeing even in severe cases: One is that there is a lot of care that is possible at home. But in hospitals, there are two things that can be made available at the most decentralised units--oxygen, and then if you really need it, at the next level, BiPAP or CPAP, which are not as expensive as ventilators. Of course, a small proportion would require ventilators but that cannot be made available everywhere.

We need to look back and see that if we strengthen our peripheral health centres with the basics, we can actually get it right nine out of 10 times and we need not rely on hospital-based care for preventing the bulk of deaths.

Ms Mutreja, we are talking about response, but there's also a problem of measurement: It is quite clear now that we are severely under-counting cases because tests are being denied for various reasons, including logistics. So if you don't know what the number of cases are, the number of deaths, how do you then respond in terms of medical infrastructure and so on? How and where do we even begin to address this, particularly in some of the largest states in India?

Poonam Muttreja: What we have to do is start doing surveillance immediately and I believe that the ASHAs played a really good role in surveillance earlier. They quarantined people who had symptoms and so on, and they did a very good collection of information.

I think now--given the severity of the situation-- we can't just leave it to ASHAs. We could get this AAA going, they are our three aces right now: ASHAs, ANMs, and Anganwadi workers. We make a team of them and they do the surveillance but we must protect them with PPEs and all the COVID-19 appropriate equipment. We must train them online and do that quickly. I know that NGOs and many of us have the capability. We can get together and do it at scale and the advantage of [inter]net is you can do the training at scale.

We also need to do testing. We have no testing facilities in most rural parts, so I would like to suggest that every MP and MLA in India ensures that his or her constituency immediately gets testing facilities. They all pool in their funds--MPLADS funds, and the MLA funds--and it should be the responsibility of the MLAs along with district-level planning.

You cannot plan at this point of time for the villages of India from Delhi or from Patna and Jaipur. You have to do it from where Pavitra Mohan is and others in the community. So I would like to suggest that we immediately start with either the collector or the district magistrate (DM). It's not the PM [prime minister] who can decide and work on this, it is the DM we need for the villages.

I think a lot of other things should be postponed and the focus should be here, and we should involve the panchayats--especially in implementing social distancing, and appropriate social behaviour. We have the material. By "we", I mean a whole bunch of NGOs--and PFI definitely has as much material as is needed. We can make it available in every regional language. We immediately have to involve NGOs across the country, who have to collaborate. And for that, the government has to [put in abeyance] the FCRA rules (at least) by six months at least, as they are becoming a bottleneck in the working of NGOs.

Dr Mohan, what you heard from Ms Mutreja is the top-down view. How are you seeing it bottom-up? Do you see this kind of participation from the local MLA, the district collector or the district magistrate?

Pavitra Mohan: I would like to say that there is a lot of mistrust right now between the public systems and the communities that they're supposed to serve. It stems partly from the abrupt lockdown last year and the forced quarantine etc., which has left a lot of fear in the minds of the people and distrust of the public systems. That is something we need to break, both for the short-term and the long-term. In the short term, you talked about testing--people are just so afraid of testing at the moment or of assisted home care because they feel like they will be quarantined, taken away, etc. This is something that we really need to work on quite urgently and seriously.

Even the way we started the vaccination, people had some misgivings initially, which is normal for any new vaccine that is introduced, especially which is injectable and which is being given to every adult. But in many places we saw that people were almost coerced into taking the vaccine [with the threat that] otherwise they would not get their old-age pensions or their name would be removed from the ration card. That led to a lot of mistrust, which needs to seriously change. Things have to be dealt with with more seriousness than is visible right now.

There is, of course, a firefighting kind of an approach right now--say, how can we quickly make some oxygen available somewhere. But engaging with the communities and working with and motivating the frontline staff--that seems to be lacking at the moment and needs to be really ramped up.

Ms Mutreja, I think it is clear that we have to focus more on prevention than cure. Just pumping in investment or getting fancy new hospitals is not going to solve the problem, at least not immediately. Any thoughts on how we can begin to do that, particularly in the context of rural India?

Poonam Muttreja: Again, I'd like to say that we can make an example by getting our political leadership--local MPs and MLAs--to participate, involving the panchayats and [encouraging] decentralised planning in terms of priorities. If we need oxygen, which primary healthcare centre does it go to? Which are the places where there are doctors who can manage the machines?

There's no point sending machines, equipment and medication to a primary healthcare centre which has a missing doctor. So community health centres too can be operationalised and it will be good for the long term--as Pavitra also said, we need oxygen regardless of COVID. We need facilities to have better equipment, better infrastructure, and we need to ramp up our 108 or 104 emergency ambulance systems--we have this across the country and let's use those for COVID patients to transport them.

As Pavitra also mentioned, home care is still a very good first option for many people, but how do they do it? I would like to see the ramping up of online medicine, where doctors can give people online advice on how to deal with the situation. Not just doctors, nurses can do it, NGO staff members--we have large numbers across the country--can do it. You don't have to be a doctor and I believe we don't have the doctors. So we may as well invest in our three frontline workers and others.

Finally, vaccination. The only thing that will save us from COVID in the long run and in the mid-run is vaccination and we need to ramp up our vaccination in rural areas--that is the only way. I think we are capable of doing vaccination in rural areas--if you remember pulse-polio [vaccinations], in one day, we did crores. We covered the whole country in two successive years. So let's go back to our own capability and management. I know this government says nothing has happened for 70 years but polio did happen and we eradicated polio, we eradicated smallpox. Can we just do what we did then?

And finally, we must have greater collaboration between whatever private sector exists--the government, the private sector and NGOs have to work together in collaboration and I do believe that local district-level coordination will help.

Dr Mohan, as you look ahead, what's your wish list when it comes to improving the quality of healthcare, especially in rural India?

Pavitra Mohan: I have a long wish list and I think we need a whole programme to probably discuss that. But to begin with, there needs to be a philosophical and technical shift--to focus on decentralised primary healthcare [rather] than the hospital-based system that we are increasingly creating. We have to move from specialised to more generalist care. We have to move from specialists to doctors, and doctors to nurses, and nurses to community health workers. We have to spend our time and energy in developing strong primary healthcare teams at the front. We need to support them, we need to mentor them. We have to move away and also have a greater belief in the public system.

I think over the years there has been not only an under-investment [in public health systems]--that is only a reflection of the dwindling belief in the public system. And we know from this epidemic, especially in rural areas, that ultimately if anything is being done it is being done only by the public systems--whether it is surveillance or ramping up some facilities. A lot is possible and we know this from states such as Kerala and some districts where public systems are stronger and could respond quickly [to the pandemic].

Thus, we have to have greater belief in public systems, more decentralised care, more support to the front and primary healthcare teams, which includes the primary care physicians, the nurses, the ANMs etc--which used to be the case earlier. Even in cities, we know how the public hospitals did ramp up their services rapidly to be able to cater to a large population and without incurring any expenditure. We know that many people are indebted to and being exploited by private hospitals. I have no qualms in saying that. Of course, private hospitals have played a role in managing a large number of people who could afford it [but they] have also shown the exploitative side of the private sector.

Even as a medical fraternity we really, really have to take a sit back and figure out how we promote rational care. There has also been a simultaneous epidemic of promoting irrational care during this pandemic.
The friend and personal pastor of Billy Graham remembered the years he had with the late evangelist, sharing the lessons from the life of the man he described as one who "reflected the face of God's grace."

In an interview with The Christian Post, Don Wilton spoke about the genuine faith and humility of Rev. Graham, inspiring him to write a book. He released "Saturdays with Billy: My Friendship with Billy Graham," honoring the legacy of his friend. It contains lessons from the life and ministry of the evangelist, as well as 20 stories about their friendship.

"Mr. Graham's heartbeat and passion and reflection of the very face of God showed deeply, penetrated my own heart and life. I've never been around a man personally like that, who so deeply and genuinely and consistently reflected the face of God's grace. As a pastor myself, one can only imagine the enormous depth of the blessing that God conferred on me every time I was with him every week," he recalled.

For 15 years, until days before the evangelist passed away in 2018, Wilton would drive to his home in Montreat, North Carolina to discuss about family, sports, politics and their spiritual lives.

"Most people, the closer you get to them, the more you realize they have clay feet. But the closer I got to this man, Billy Graham, the more I realized that he was just full of the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that showed throughout his life and his demeanor. Everything pointed to Jesus," the pastor noted.

He also observed of Rev. Graham's deep love for his family, especially for his wife, Ruth. Wilton remembered how his friend would stare out the window just to see his wife preparing food.

"It sounds very simplistic, but he had such a very tender and deep love for her that when she went on to be the Lord, he had a deep gap and grief in his heart," he revealed.

The pastor also disclosed that Rev. Graham loved "good food," especially black coffee.

However, Wilton pointed out that the most impressive thing about the evangelist was his amazing humility despite being widely famous.

"If you were to paint a picture of Don Wilton and Dr. Billy Graham, here's the picture: A nobody who thought he was a somebody, talking to a somebody who really thought he was a nobody," he said.

He added that amidst his popularity, having been someone who dealt with world leaders, royalties, celebrities and influential people, Rev. Graham "consistently exemplified the uncommon unattainable spirit of humility." He also did not elevate himself but only Jesus Christ.

Wilton said that the evangelist's life reflected Galatians 6:14.

"But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world," the verse says.

"Mr. Graham was respected by all people, and yet was unapologetic about holy living and righteousness and the wrath and judgment of God and salvation exclusively through Jesus," he further stated.

He declared that in this post-Christian culture, the modern church should emulate the evangelist's passion of keeping the Gospel of Jesus Christ as "the main thing," adding that he "passionately and unapologetically" believed in the "life-transforming power of the cross of Jesus" and loved people the same way.

The pastor also shared his concern over the country's policies that violate the Word of God, thinking of how to gauge the balance as a Christian, being a testimony while standing on the truth of God's Word.

He is hoping that by sharing his story about Rev. Graham, he would be able to encourage readers to discover the true heart of the evangelist and draw them "near to the heart of the Lord."

"I pray that people would read Saturdays with Billy and pass that on to others so that others would be blessed. That's what Mr. Graham did. His whole life was passing blessings on from one person to the next. We just pray this book is an extension of the witness of the life and testimony of Dr. Billy Graham," the pastor concluded.

Wilton is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Spartanburg, South Carolina for almost three decades. He is also the founder of the broadcast ministry, "The Encouraging Word."
Another 2,193 people in Britain have tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 4,446,824, according to official figures released on Friday.

The country also reported another 17 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 127,668. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.

England's reproduction number, known as the R number, has increased slightly to between 0.8 and 1.1, up from between 0.8 and one last week, according to the government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE).

It means that on average every 10 people infected will infect between eight and 11 others, the Xinhua news agency reported.

The latest growth rate range for the pandemic in England is estimated at minus 3 per cent to 1 per cent, according to official figures.

"This does not necessarily mean R is definitively above one and that the epidemic is increasing, but that the uncertainty means it cannot be ruled out," said SAGE. If the R number is above one, it means the number of cases will increase exponentially.

Four people in Britain have died with the variant first detected in India, according to official data released Friday.

These are the first known domestic deaths from the new variant of the virus, now designated a "variant of concern".

Public Health England (PHE) said cases of the variant known as B1617.2 in Britain have more than doubled to 1,313, up from 520 cases recorded by the PHE last week.

Scientists have raised concerns that the current vaccines may be less effective against the new variant, but the British Department of Health and Social Care said there was "no firm evidence yet to show this variant has any greater impact on severity of disease or evades the vaccine".

According to the latest official figures, more than 36.1 million people in Britain have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine.

Experts have warned that despite progress in vaccine rollout, Britain is "still not out of the woods" amid concerns over new variants, particularly those first emerged in South Africa, Brazil and India, and the third wave of pandemic on the European continent.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Russia, the US as well as the European Union have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.

--IANS

int/rs

(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 Boris Johnson has announced that the country is planning to accelerate its vaccination program for priority groups amid concerns over the spread of the Indian variant.

Speaking at a press conference at Downing Street on Friday, Johnson said those aged over 50 and those considered clinically vulnerable will be able to get a second vaccine dose after eight weeks, reports Xinhua news agency.

He said the spread of the new variant, known as B1617.2, would not affect the scheduled easing of lockdown in England from May 17.

But the Prime Minister said the variant could cause "serious disruption" to the next stage of lockdown easing on June 21.

Johnson said "at this stage" there are some important unknowns but he believes the variant is "more transmissible" than previous ones, and therefore the race between the vaccination programme and the virus could get tighter.

He said there was "no evidence" to suggest the current vaccines would be less effective against the strain.

Joining Johnson for the press briefing, England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said the country is going "in a very steady but rapid progression in terms of vaccination", starting with the most vulnerable people, including some people in their 30s.

Whitty said he hopes everybody in Britain has their first vaccine by end of July.

"That is the aim," he said.

The latest development came after four people in Britain have died due to the variant first detected in India,

Public Health England (PHE) said cases of the variant known as B1617.2 in Britain have more than doubled to 1,313, up from 520 infections recorded by PHE last week.

According to the latest official figures, more than 36.1 million people in Britain have been given the first jab of the vaccine.

--IANS

ksk/

(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.)
Union Commerce and Industry Minister discussed the proposed waiver to provisions of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) for COVID-19-specific items and raising vaccine production with United States Trade Representative (USTR), Katherine Tai, in a virtually meeting on Friday.

During the meeting, Tai conveyed her deep sympathy for the people of India as the country battles a deadly wave of COVID-19 and reaffirmed the commitment of the United States to help India, the USTR said in a readout of the call.

India is in the midst of a deadly wave of the pandemic, with 3,43,144 people testing positive for the virus on Friday, taking the country's caseload to 2,40,46,809. The death toll stands at 2,62,317.

India's COVID-19 tally crossed the 10 million mark on December 19 and in under six months it has doubled, surpassing the grim milestone of 20 million cases on May 4.

Tai explained her support for the waiver of intellectual property (IP) protections for COVID-19 vaccines and text-based negotiations at the WTO, which are part of the Joe Biden administration's comprehensive effort to expand vaccine manufacturing and distribution around the world.

Tai recognised the WTO members who have expressed support for future negotiations and welcomed an update from Goyal on India's efforts to revise and re-submit their waiver proposal, the release said.

India and South Africa have been pushing a resolution at the WTO that would force pharmaceutical companies to hand over their COVID-19 vaccine and therapy IP to manufacturers in low-income countries. The waiver is backed by nearly 100 other low-income countries, progressive groups and more than 100 Democratic Congress members.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict often seems like a nightmarish Groundhog Day of endless repetition. And indeed Hamas and are yet again battering each other. In the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority is impotent and paralyzed while advances the aggressive building of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Yet one usually overlooked group may be taking on a bigger role this time: the Palestinian citizens of Also known as Arab Israelis, at almost 2 million they comprise about 20% of Israels citizenry but face significant discrimination. Almost 6 million Palestinians in the occupied territories, also ruled by Israel, have no citizenship.

Arab Israelis have historically played a marginal role in both Israeli society and the Palestinian national movement. But with strong forces pulling in each direction, that may soon change. It may not have much impact on the current fighting, but it could transform the shape of the struggle going forward.

In some ways, Arab Israelis are being slowly integrated into Israeli life as individuals. Many Jewish Israelis lauded their heroic service as medical staff during the pandemic. But collectively theyre increasingly alienated and feel more Palestinian.

In 2018 Israel adopted a nation-state law that says only Jews have a right to national self-determination in Israel. As the recent communal violence in mixed cities between Jewish and Arab mobs demonstrates, the impulse to assert themselves as Palestinians against a shared Israeli domination is growing  as is their risk of being attacked by Jewish extremists.

A key factor thats driving them is the disappearance of the Green Line, the border supposedly separating Israel proper from the occupied territories, which formed the basis of hope for a Palestinian state.

Israel has long ignored that distinction, allowing all Jews to live under the same laws in a fully integrated state while creating a plethora of diverse rules and realities for Palestinians depending on where they live. Still, the Green Line mirage offered hope of the oppression only being temporary. This has effectively vanished in recent years with the Israeli government formally ruling out a two-state solution and human rights groups increasingly criticizing Israel for apartheid rather than occupation.

What is left is a deepening sense of shared oppression among Arab Israelis, with their second-class citizenship, and their fellow Palestinians living under de facto apartheid in the West Bank. That prompts a far more integrated Palestinian struggle, even if it takes different forms in Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem and inside Israel.

But there is another new dynamic at work too: The fractious and hitherto impotent Arab political parties in Israel have begun to inch toward a new degree of parliamentary effectiveness.

After the 2020 election the United Arab List was the third largest bloc in the Knesset, Israels legislature  a historic breakthrough  though that changed when the Yesh Atid party broke with the larger Blue and White coalition.

More strikingly, Mansour Abbas, leader of the Islamist party Raam, entered into a prolonged courtship with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in recent months to potentially join a new Israeli coalition government. Though Abbas is an Arab, and an Islamist no less, his homophobic and culturally reactionary views resonate with some right-wing Jewish groups surrounding Netanyahu.

There was considerable resistance to such an alliance. Netanyahu ultimately failed to form a majority, and the opportunity was passed to centrist politician Yair Lapid and right-winger Naftali Bennett. But Abbas again positioned himself well and is still viewed as a potential coalition partner.

Jewish outrage over communal violence could kill his chances. So could deep anger among his own constituents. But the strife could also open an avenue for Abbas to make the leap into Israeli governance.

He seems determined to continue these negotiations, denouncing rioting and lawlessness and positioning himself as an agent of responsible engagement and calm. Hes still playing the political game to acquire official power and state patronage.

Some Israeli commentators see Abbas entering government as an opportunity to address a growing internal security threat by bringing Arab Israelis closer to the social and political mainstream. A potential analogue is when Shas, a party representing once-marginalized ultra-Orthodox Mizrahi and Sephardic Jews, was brought into the Israeli government in 1984.

If Abbas efforts to get the Arab-Israeli toe into the government are rejected, as Bennetts most recent comments suggest they may be, that could dissuade other Arab-Israeli politicians and amplify the communitys sense of alienation and exclusion.

Israel faces a clear choice: Either it finds ways of integrating its Arab citizens into national life and reversing a growing trend of communal alienation and anger. Or its own Arab citizens could become a powerful part of a more unified Palestinian national movement confronting Israeli rule.

The answer should be obvious, but anger often trumps self-interest  especially between Israelis and Palestinians.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.
A Chinese spacecraft has landed on Mars, making only the second country after the U.S. to send a rover to the surface of the Red Planet.



A National Space Administration (CNSA) lander from the Tianwen-1, which has been in orbit since February, touched down on Utopia Planitia, a large plain in the northern hemisphere of Mars on Saturday at about 7 a.m. local time, according to reports by state media CCTV.

The lander was carrying the Zhurong rover, named after an ancient Chinese god of fire, which will explore the surface near the landing site.

The Tianwen-1 mission has achieved Chinas first landing on another planet, and is a milestone with great significance in Chinas development of space and aviation, according to CCTV.

NASAs Viking 2 visited Utopia Planitia in 1976, a few months after its twin, Viking 1, made history as the first probe to land safely on the planet. The U.S. space agency has sent several missions since then and its latest, the Perseverance rover, has been on the surface since February 18. On April 19, the U.S. space program became the first to fly an aircraft, the Ingenuity helicopter, on another planet.

The Mars rover could provide a public-relations boost to President Xi Jinpings government following the crash of debris from a Chinese rocket in early May that raised alarms worldwide about the secrecy of the countrys space program.

The Zhurong Mars rover is hoped to ignite the spark of Chinas interplanetary exploration and guide humanity deep into the vast yet unknown outer space, CNSA said last month.

While lagging NASAs landings by more than four decades, Chinas Mars success shows the countrys space engineers are quickly closing the gap with their U.S. counterparts.

Its the most difficult place in the solar system to land, said Emily Lakdawalla, author of The Design and Engineering of Curiosity, about the NASA rover that landed in 2012. Chinas success on its first attempt tells you that they are one of the most capable space agencies, she said.

When landing on the moon, spacecraft can use rockets to slow their descent as they approach the lunar surface. Thats possible because the moon doesnt have an atmosphere. For returns to Earth, spacecraft reentering the atmosphere can deploy parachutes to glide slowly down through the air.

Unlike the moon, Mars has an atmosphere, which makes it difficult to use rockets to decelerate. However, the Martian atmosphere is much thinner than Earths, making it harder to rely on parachutes.

Touching down on Mars requires a huge deceleration in a very short time, said Nilton Renno, professor of climate and space sciences and engineering at the University of Michigan.

Youre going 20,000 miles per hour, he said, and in seven minutes you are on the surface at rest if everything goes successfully.

CNSAs plan to address this challenge involved using the landers aerodynamic shape, parachute and retrorocket to decelerate and buffer legs to touch down, Chinese state media reported on April 24.

The European Space Agency tried to land on Mars in 2003, when its Beagle 2 probe crashed. Its ExoMars Schiaparelli spacecraft crashed in 2016 after software incorrectly estimated its altitude during an attempted landing.

The Soviet Union made several attempts in the 1970s and its Mars 3 probe reached the surface in 1971 but only transmitted back to Earth for less than a minute before going silent.

Now that the Chinese rover has reached the surface, Zhurong will begin exploring. It will need to work fast: The rover, which weighs 240 kilograms, can last three Martian months, about 92 days on Earth.
The flight crew of SpiceJet's Delhi-Zagreb flight had to spend around 21 hours inside the aircraft at the Zagreb airport as there was a sudden change in rules making negative RTPCR test results mandatory for anyone coming from India, the airline said on Saturday.

The crew were not allowed to come out of the plane and they conducted the return flight to Delhi -- after the 21-hour rest period -- without passengers or cargo.

"Prior to departure from India, email confirmation was received from Croatian authorities that RTPCR is not required for crew," the airline's spokesperson said.

On arrival in Zagreb on Tuesday, the crew, including four pilots, as well as cabin crew members, was told that the orders have changed.

"Due to sudden and massive increase in COVID cases in India, they were then instructed that RTPCR test is required. This came as a surprise," the airline's spokesperson said. India recorded 3,26,098 coronavirus cases and 3,890 deaths on Saturday.

Since the crew could not fly back immediately due the FDTL (flight duty time limitation) restrictions, bedding, food and water was provided in the aircraft, according to the spokesperson.

"Aircraft was cleaned. DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) permission was obtained. Crew rested in the aircraft for 21 hours (as mandated by regulation).

"They then flew back to Delhi. All crew confirmed that they were comfortable and happy with the arrangements," the spokesperson 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.)
UN Secretary-General on Friday called for a unified Security Council over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and regretted the lack of multilateralism.

Asked what the secretary-general expects from Sunday's emergency meeting of the Security Council on the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian escalation, Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric said: "What we would like to see is ... a strong, unified voice for de-escalation, for a cessation of hostilities and a push to get the parties back on track to find a political solution to this conflict that has been going on and on and on."

Asked for the secretary-general's comment on the fact that one single Security Council member blocked the proposal for a Friday meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, just days after all council members pledged support for multilateralism, Dujarric said Guterres is concerned about the state of multilateralism "as we've seen it during the pandemic and as we've seen it in other aspects."

"We would like to see member states put to action the ideals that we all have to live up to within this organization," he added.

With regard to the Security Council, he said the more unified the council is, the stronger its voice and the stronger its impact.

The Security Council on May 7 held a high-level debate on the need to uphold multilateralism and all council members came out in support of it. Yet days later, the United States, an ally of Israel, blocked the proposal for a Friday Security Council meeting, according to diplomats. The Security Council later agreed on such a meeting on Sunday.

(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 Stephanie Kelly and Laura Sanicola

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Washington was running out of gasoline on Friday, even as the country's largest fuel pipeline network ramped up deliveries following a cyberattack and U.S. officials assured motorists that supplies would return to normal soon.

The six-day Colonial Pipeline shutdown was the most disruptive cyberattack on record. Widespread panic buying continued two days after the pipeline network restarted, leaving filling stations across the U.S. Southeast out of gas.

With more Americans taking road trips as pandemic restrictions ease, pump prices are at their highest in years. The average national gasoline price has climbed to almost $3.04, the most expensive since October 2014, the American Automobile Association said.

As politicians discussed legislation to improve cyber defenses, more gasoline stations shut down in the capital city of the world's largest oil-consuming nation.

On Friday gas station outages in Washington climbed to 88% from 79% the day before, tracking firm GasBuddy said. President Joe Biden assured motorists supplies should start returning to normal by this weekend.

"Most of these states/areas with outages have continued to see panicked buying, which is likely a contributing factor to the slow-ish recovery thus far," said GasBuddy's Patrick De Haan. "It will take a few weeks."

Colonial Pipeline announced late Thursday it had restarted its entire pipeline system linking refineries on the Gulf Coast to markets along the eastern seaboard.

On Friday evening, the pipeline was shipping at normal rates based on shipper nominations, a spokeswoman for Colonial said.

Some states experienced modest improvements but still had a lot of gasoline outages. Some 65% of gas stations in North Carolina were without fuel, while in Virginia, South Carolina and Georgia just under 50% were empty, GasBuddy said.

Overall, some 14,144 gas stations were experiencing outages, down from a peak of 16,200, GasBuddy said on Friday afternoon.

In Washington, D.C., Dennis Li was stuck on Friday at a Sunoco gas station that was out of fuel. He had tried to find gas at four stations during the day, with no luck.

"I'm running on empty to the point where I don't want to drive anymore," said Li, who is from Annapolis, Maryland.

Minutes before the last of four stations ran out of gas on River Road in the Washington suburb of Bethesda, Maryland, drivers were mostly calm. Still, some were shocked to hear about the shortage.

Nicholas Swann had driven from his home in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington to Bethesda to get gasoline, where the wait at the Shell station was 15 minutes.

"We were originally going to drive out to the beach this weekend but we don't know if we will, because I can't make it there and back on one tank of gas," Swann said.

REGULATORS, REFINERS REACT TO OUTAGE

The hacking group blamed for the attack, DarkSide, said it had hacked four other companies including a Toshiba subsidiary in Germany.

Colonial Pipeline has not determined how the initial breach occurred, a spokeswoman said. The privately held company has focused on cleaning its networks, restoring data and reopening the pipeline.

Colonial has not disclosed how much money the hackers were seeking or whether it paid. Bloomberg News reported that it paid nearly $5 million to hackers.

U.S. lawmakers reintroduced legislation to support efforts by the Department of Homeland Security to secure pipelines and pipeline facilities from

Washington issued shipping waivers allowing U.S. refiners Valero Energy Corp and Citgo Petroleum to use foreign-flagged vessels to move gasoline and diesel from the U.S. Gulf Coast to East Coast ports.

Gulf Coast refiners that send fuel to market through the Colonial Pipeline have cut production because they have been unable to move gasoline, diesel and jet fuel through the line.

To speed delivery of fuel supplies, four states and federal regulators relaxed restrictions on fuel truck drivers.

In Georgia, one of the states worst hit by the outages, fuel delivery companies struggled to get supplies to gasoline stations.

"I don't think we've seen the end of this by any stretch of the imagination," said Deborah Latham, 67, who owns petroleum delivery company Georgia Tank Lines in Doraville, Georgia. She and her 40 drivers serve fuel stations all around metro Atlanta, including large sellers such as Kroger and QuikTrip.

"We're delivering what little fuel we can get our hands on," Latham said. "But it takes three times longer to get it because of the (tanker truck) lines, and then at the stations, cars don't get out of the way of our trucks so we can drop off fuel."

(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in New York, Laura Sanicola in Washington and Timothy Gardner in Bethesda, Maryland; additional reporting by David Shepardson, Jessica Resnick-Ault, Joseph Menn and Liz Hampton; Editing by Simon Webb, Steve Orlofsky and David Gregorio)

(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.)
Amrit Corp announced that in view of the widespread resurgence of Covid-19 virus resulting in a serious pandemic situation, the Government of Uttar Pradesh enforced a partial lock-down in the State which is continuing till 17 May 2021 unless extended further.

Consequent thereto, the Company has shut-down the Corporate Office at Noida and other establishments. The operations of Company's Dairy Milk Plant at Ghaziabad have been disrupted by the pandemic and the plant is operating at a low capacity due to slow off-take of its finished products by the company's customers.

The adverse impact on the operations of the Company due to second wave of Covid-19 is not immediately ascertainable. The Company, however, is monitoring the situation and shall take appropriate measures to mitigate the adverse impact.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem published a statement in support of Israel, calling Christian leaders to pray for the restoration of peace and calm, as well as "to stand in solidarity with Israel" and against the terror acts and rocket barrages emanating from Gaza.

The statement, from ICEJ President Dr. Jurgen Buhler, said:

"The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem stands in solidarity with Israel in the face of the reckless Palestinian rioting, terror attacks, and rocket barrages over recent days, and condemns Palestinian leaders for intentionally enflaming Muslim passions during Ramadan to ignite a dangerous religious conflict over Jerusalem."

The statement also mentioned that both of the Israeli and Arab leaders have helped steer the Middle East towards modernization and reconciliation. Nevertheless, it said that both Fatah and Hamas intended to upset the current dynamic of peace for the whole Middle East by inciting Palestinian militant groups.

By attacking on Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day), Hamas and Fatah were saying that they don't acknowledge Jewish claims to the city of Jerusalem, historically or Biblically. Instead, they have threatened to set the city on fire.

"And thus, we call upon world leaders to firmly stand against the inflammatory Palestinian rhetoric and actions," the statement concluded.

Through the Abraham Accords, the Middle East has lately undergone a substantial and unprecedented push toward normalization and peace. Both Fatah and Hamas, on the other hand, have sought to derail these developments.

"Besides their efforts to disrupt this newfound dynamic of peace for the entire Middle East, their actions also are meant to cover for their own failures, such as the canceling of Palestinian elections. Together with their backers in Iran and Turkey, they share full responsibility for this current escalation," said Dr. Susan Michael, USA director of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem.

Dr. Michael wrote of their experience of a zoom conference that was unexpectedly interrupted by sirens as international attendees watched Jerusalem-based colleagues flee to their bomb shelters. On Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day), Hamas troops in Gaza launched seven long-range missiles targeted at Jerusalem, indicating their rejection of any Jewish claim to ancient, biblical Jerusalem.

More than 1,000 rockets have been launched toward Israel from the Gaza Strip since Sunday. Some people, including six Israelis and two Arab Israelis, have been killed. Along with threatening Jews and Arabs within Israel, around 200 of the rockets landed within Gaza, killing and injuring civilians.

Correspondingly, as the upheaval in the Middle East between Israel and Palestine continues, Christian leaders and pastors in the United States are urging Christians to pray.

Franklin Graham, the founder of Samaritan's Purse, said on Facebook that he has many friends in Israel who are on both sides of the war as Jews and Arabs. The 68-year-old evangelist tweeted:

"People have been killed, families are cowering in fear in bomb shelters, and they need our prayers. As we are commanded in the Scriptures, let us 'pray for the peace of Jerusalem' (Psalm 122:6)."

Pastor Samuel Rodriguez of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference and Pastor Greg Laurie of Harvest Christian Fellowship in California both issued similar appeals to prayer for peace in Israel and the Middle East.
Ireland's High Court has dismissed a bid by bid to block a privacy regulation that could suspend the flow of data from the EU to the US.

According to a report in The Wall Street Journal on Friday, the Irish court dismissed "all of Facebook's procedural complaints about a preliminary decision on data flows that it received in August from the country's Data Protection Commission".

The court rejected Facebook's claims that the privacy regulator had given it too little time to respond or issued a judgment prematurely.

first appealed the order in part because it claimed the Irish Data Protection Commission (IDPC) and the EU's other privacy regulators "were moving too quickly and hadn't given the company appropriate time to respond," reports The Verge.

The IDPC leads enforcement of EU privacy law for and other companies that have their European headquarters in the country.

Facebook's European headquarters are in Dublin, giving Irish regulators the lead in enforcing EU privacy law for the company.

The commission still needs to submit a final draft of its order to EU privacy regulators,

If it is approved, it could have a widespread impact on all companies doing trans-Atlantic business online.

According to Facebook, a lack of safe, secure and legal international data transfers would damage the economy and hamper the growth of data-driven businesses in the EU.

--IANS

na/

(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.)
Google is leading a determined effort by US tech giants to support a programme that gives work authorisation for spouses of those possessing H-1B foreign work visas, the most sought after among Indian IT professionals.

Google is joined by 30 other companies to support the H-4 EAD ((Employment Authorisation Document) programme. An H-4 visa is issued by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to immediate family members (spouse and children under 21 years of age) of the H-1B visa holders.

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.

"Google is proud to support our nation's immigrants. We joined 30 other companies to protect the H-4 EAD programme which spurs innovation, creates jobs and opportunities, and helps families," Google CEO Sundar Pichai tweeted. Google on Friday filed a legal brief in a lawsuit called Save Jobs USA vs US Department of Homeland Security.

Tech companies that signed onto the amicus brief include Adobe, Amazon, Apple, eBay, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, PayPal and Twitter. "To support this important programme, we are leading an amicus brief with over 40 companies and organisations to preserve and protect the H-4 EAD programme," Catherine Lacavera, Vice President, Legal, Google, said in a blog post.

"This builds on an amicus brief we recently joined in support of a lawsuit filed by the American Immigration Lawyers Association to expedite the delayed processing time of H-4 work authorisations," she said. Kent Walker, Senior Vice President, Global Affairs, Google, said H-4 EAD authorisations for the spouses of high-skilled workers help American companies recruit and retain the world's best talent.

"Today we led a business coalition filing on behalf of 30 companies to preserve and protect the programme," Walker said. "H-4 EADs provide work authorisation to more than 90,000 H-4 visa-holders--more than 90 per cent women. COVID has disproportionately affected women. Ending this programme would make things worse, disrupting careers and reducing wages," he said.

"It doesn't make sense to welcome a person to the US to work but to make it harder for their spouse to work. That hurts their family and hurts our economy now and in the future," he added. The plaintiff is Save Jobs USA, a group of computer workers formerly employed by Southern California Edison and replaced by foreign workers imported on H-1B guest worker visas.

Save Jobs USA filed the lawsuit in 2015. It was delayed as former president Donald Trump's administration considered rescinding the H-4 work rule. A week after his inauguration on January 20, US President Joe Biden withdrew a Trump-era rule rescinding work authorisation for H-4 visa holders. Now, both the plaintiffs and the Biden administration are seeking summary judgment.

In the amicus brief, Google said: "The regulation at issue herethe H-4 Rule, US Department of Homeland Security, Employment Authorization for Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses, 80 Fed. Reg. 10,284 (Feb. 25, 2015)provides work authorization to more than 90,000 H-4 visa holders (spouses of certain H-1B visa holders), more than 90 per cent of whom are women.

"Invalidation of this rule would result in these talented individuals being barred from the workplace, forcibly severing tens of thousands of employment relationships across the country," it said. The results would be utterly destructive for the families impacted; by just one measure, about 87 per cent of these families have made crucial life decisions on the promise of H-4 employment, including whether to have a child and whether to buy a house, it said.

Also read: JP Morgan allocates $3.8 mn in aid for India employees amid COVID-19
Air India said it was airlifting 35 tonnes of zeolite mineral used in oxygen production plants on two flights from Rome to Bengaluru on Saturday. India has been badly hit by the second wave of the novel coronavirus infection as hospitals in several states are reeling under the shortage of health workers, vaccines, oxygen and drugs.

"The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is the charterer for the zeolite consignments," Air India said in a statement. Additionally, the national carrier is going to airlift zeolite mineral for DRDO from multiple locations across the world during the coming weeks.

"Seven charter flights have been scheduled between May 15-18 from Rome to Bangalore. This will be followed by eight charter flights from Korea to Bangalore between May 19-22. "Further, we have uplift from USA through our existing scheduled flights from EWR (Newark Liberty International Airport) between May 20-25. Next part of this exercise is from Brussels, Tokyo and again USA, in the following weeks," the statement stated.

Zeolite is used in oxygen production plants that are based on pressure swing adsorption (PSA) technology. India in a day recorded 3,26,098 COVID-19 cases that took the tally to 2,43,72,907, while 3,890 new fatalities pushed the death toll to 2,66,207, according to Union health ministry data updated on Saturday.

The active cases have reduced to 36,73,802 and comprise 15.07 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has improved to 83.83 per cent, it stated.
The Centre has dispatched 12,269 oxygen cylinders, 10,796 oxygen concentrators, and 19 oxygen generation plants to states and UTs. Besides this, the central government has also sent 6,497 ventilators/BiPAP and 4.2 lakh Remdesivir vials to the states via road and air between April 27, 2021, to May 13, 2021, the Union Health Ministry said in a release.

All these oxygen-related equipment and medical supplies were received as foreign aid. Major consignments comprising 1,506 oxygen concentrators, 434 oxygen cylinders, and 58 ventilators/BiPAP/CPAP machines were received on May 12 and May 13 from Indonesia, Luxembourg, Oman, South Korea, UK, USISPF, Finland, and Greece, the ministry added.

It further stated that it is monitoring the allocation and delivery of foreign aid to states and UTs on a regular basis. "A dedicated Coordination Cell has been created in the Union Health Ministry to coordinate the receipt and allocation of foreign COVID relief material as grants, aid, and donations. This Cell started functioning on April 26, 2021. A Standard Operating Procedure has been framed and implemented by the Health Ministry since May 2, 2021," the release said.

Meanwhile, the Indian High Commission in the UK stated that 260 more oxygen concentrators have been dispatched to Delhi to help India fight the second COVID-19 wave. The Indian High Commission thanked donors like HCI London, Qatar Airways, and DB Schenker in a tweet.

The High Commission of India in the UK tweeted, "260 more Concentrators airlifted today to @IndianRedCross NewDelhi contributed by @O2CforIndia-226, IndiansinLondon @IIL2004-20 & St.Albans-14. @HCI_London thanks to donors for their generous contribution & @qatarairways @airvistara for free transport & @DBSchenker for free logistics".

Edited by Mehak Agarwal

Also read: India Crypto Covid Relief Fund: What is it and how does it work?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a crucial meeting on Saturday, May 15 at around 11 am. He will take stock of the current COVID-19 situation and vaccination drive in the country.

In the wake of criticism by opposition leaders over the government's handling of the second wave of COVID-19, PM Modi said on Friday that the pandemic is the "worst in 100 years" and is "testing the world at every step. There is an invisible enemy before us."

He had also cautioned about the spread of COVID-19 through rural areas, as the second wave continues to wreak havoc across the country.

Also Read: COVID-19 crisis: PM Modi chairs high-level meeting to review availability, supply of oxygen, key drugs

"The pain that citizens has suffered, that many experienced, I am feeling it equally," PM Modi said while addressing a virtual event. The prime minister will also chair a meeting on Saturday to take stock of preparations to tackle the impending Cyclone Tauktae, sources told ANI.

India has been registering over 3 lakh new coronavirus cases every day for nearly three weeks, which has sparked global concerns.

India recorded 3,26,098 fresh COVID-19 cases and 3,890 deaths in the last 24 hours, showing a gradual decline in daily coronavirus count. The overall tally and death toll now stand at 24,372,907 and 266,207 respectively, as per the latest update by the Union Health Ministry on Saturday, May 15.
As India continues to grapple with the fatal second COVID-19 wave, Australia's University of New South Wales illuminated its main library tower with Indian tricolor in support of India's fight against coronavirus. It also displayed a message which read, "Stay Strong India... and all suffering from the pandemic."

The official Twitter handle of the University of New South Wales shared the image and wrote, "We've illuminated our main library tower in support of our Indian students and friends (and others around the world) who are suffering from or affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope you all stay safe, stay well, stay strong!"





Weve illuminated our main library tower in support of our Indian students and friends (and others around the world) who are suffering from or affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.



We hope you all stay safe, stay well, stay strong!  pic.twitter.com/1gf5JNkaTF  UNSW (@UNSW) May 14, 2021

Australian High Commissioner to India Barry O' Farrell shared the image on his Twitter handle.

UNSW library building, Sydney, lit up in solidarity with India, Indian students, faculty and staff. pic.twitter.com/jHNe4gzJnT  Barry O'Farrell (@barryofarrell) May 14, 2021

India recorded 3,26,098 fresh COVID-19 cases and 3,890 deaths in the last 24 hours, showing a gradual decline in daily coronavirus count. The overall tally and death toll now stands at 24,372,907 and 266,207 respectively, as per the latest update by the Union Health Ministry on Saturday, May 15.

Meanwhile, 18, 04, 57,579 have been inoculated against the infection in India till May 15 (Saturday). Out of these, 13, 93, 75,695 people got the first dose whereas 4, 10, 81,884 received the second dose of the lifesaving jab.

States like Maharashtra (1,94,69,673), Rajasthan (1,48,52,400), Gujarat (1,47,99,737), Uttar Pradesh (1,45,68,875), West Bengal (1,25,01,020) and Karnataka (1,10,65,841) have vaccinated more than one crore people so far, according to Union Health Ministry data.

Last month, the Burj Khalifa had also lit up in the colours of the Indian flag in solidarity with the country and flashed the #StayStrongIndia message.

Edited by Mehak Agarwal

Also read: Coronavirus in India: 3.26 lakh new COVID-19 cases, 3,890 deaths in 24 hours; tally past 24.37 million
The Union Finance Ministry said on Saturday, May 15, that the next GST Council meeting will be held on May 28. The announcement of the meeting comes two days after West Bengal finance minister Amit Mitra urged the FM to hold a Council meeting to deliberate upon revenue-related matters.

Finance ministers from other opposition states like Punjab had also urged the centre to convene a meeting of the Council earlier this month.

Also Read: Call on bringing fuels under GST to be taken closer to GST Council meet: Sitharaman

A tweet from the FM office said a short while ago, "Smt @nsitharaman will chair the 43rd GST Council meeting via video conferencing at 11 AM in New Delhi on 28th May 2021. The meeting will be attended by MOS Shri @ianuragthakur besides Finance Ministers of States & UTs and Senior officers from Union Government & States."

Smt @nsitharaman will chair the 43rd GST Council meeting via video conferencing at 11 AM in New Delhi on 28th May 2021. The meeting will be attended by MOS Shri @ianuragthakur besides Finance Ministers of States & UTs and Senior officers from Union Government & States. a NSitharamanOffice (@nsitharamanoffc) May 15, 2021

In a letter to FM Sitharaman earlier this week, Mitra urged the Centre to call for a meeting to discuss enhanced compensation to the states in wake of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic leading to lockdown and restrictions.

Also Read: GST Council meeting: Centre vs States again on compensation issue

"As per GoI projection, the shortfall was expected to be Rs 1,56,164 crore in 2021-22, without taking into consideration the impact of Covid Wave-2. Now due to Covid Wave-2 and lockdowns, the compensation will be much higher than what was earlier projected," Mitra said in the letter.

Earlier this month, Punjab FM too had raised concern about the Centre taking decisions unilaterally on subjects that come under the purview of the GST Council and demanded an immediate meeting of the Council.

The last GST council meeting was held in October last year.
Swimlane, provider of the industry's leading security automation platform, and Elastic (NYSE: ESTC), the company behind Elasticsearch and the Elastic Stack, today announced a strategic partnership to help global security teams break down silos in their security processes, and provide a force multiplier to security operations teams that are perpetually overwhelmed.

This partnership will enhance existing product integrations and jointly develop new capabilities to help security teams be more efficient and effective in protecting their organizations.

The combined power of scale and automation

Key integrations will enable even highly distributed security operations teams to significantly reduce friction associated with context-gathering tasks and threat containment  providing critical time savings that help analysts triage alerts quickly while minimizing damage from threats.

Swimlane and Elastic plan further enhancements to the product experience through:

An extensible framework that extends beyond the security operations center to other aspects of ITOps, DevOps, Cloud, and more

Expanded use case support that helps improve key metrics such as dwell time, mean time to resolution (MTTR), and false-positive rates

Capabilities that bring automation to a wider variety of security data, including real-time enrichment from an extensive ecosystem of integrations

Improved compliance and audit capabilities to support decision-making and record keeping

Built on a solid foundation

Swimlane has long provided robust integrations with the Elastic Stack, enabling security teams to optimize incident response, threat intelligence management, and threat hunting. New integrations with Elastic Security will enable SOC teams to leverage expanded support for alert triage, case management, and incident investigation as performed through the Cases and Timeline capabilities within Elastic Security, as well as the ability to automate management of SIEM analytics based on security events and telemetry.

Combined with the broad visibility provided by Elastics massively scalable approach to searching across any data source  security data, observability data, IoT data, and more  customers will benefit from better utilization of existing security investments.

The importance of transparency in security

Swimlane and Elastic share a strong belief in an open approach to security.

Swimlane offers an extensive set of integrations with the most common security tools of the cloud era, supported by a rich community of users and security experts who openly share best practices in playbook development and incident response.

Elastic prioritizes making it easy to integrate and develop functionality using the Elastic Stack. Elastic code is housed in public repositories and the company maintains a commitment to an open development process and transparent and direct engagement with the community.

See more on Swimlanes integrations here and Elastic integrations here.

Supporting Quotes:

Together, Swimlanes platform and Elastics solutions enable a unique combination of visibility and actionability that security teams need to address modern threats and improve overall cybersecurity posture, said Cody Cornell , Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Swimlane. The technology surface area that teams are responsible for is larger than ever and is only growing. The ability to aggregate, search, and action security telemetry at scale will be one of the key success factors for security teams today and into the future.

, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Swimlane. The technology surface area that teams are responsible for is larger than ever and is only growing. The ability to aggregate, search, and action security telemetry at scale will be one of the key success factors for security teams today and into the future. Swimlane is an important component of the Elastic ecosystem. We are committed to deepening the partnership between Elastic Security and Swimlane to deliver the best integrated product experience to customers, said Nate Fick, General Manager of Security, Elastic.

About Swimlane

Swimlane is at the forefront of security automation solutions, including SOAR use cases, and was founded to deliver scalable and flexible security solutions to organizations struggling with alert fatigue, vendor proliferation and chronic staffing shortages. Swimlanes security automation platform helps organizations address all security operations (SecOps) needs, including prioritizing alerts, orchestrating tools and automating the remediation of threatsimproving performance across the entire organization. Swimlane is headquartered in Denver, Colo. with operations throughout North America, Central America, Europe, the Middle East and Australia. For more information, visit www.Swimlane.com.

About Elastic

Elastic is a search company built on a free and open heritage. Anyone can use Elastic products and solutions to get started quickly and frictionlessly. Elastic offers three solutions for enterprise search, observability, and security, built on one technology stack that can be deployed anywhere. From finding documents to monitoring infrastructure to hunting for threats, Elastic makes data usable in real time and at scale. Thousands of organizations worldwide, including Cisco, eBay, Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, The Mayo Clinic, NASA, The New York Times, Wikipedia, and Verizon, use Elastic to power mission-critical systems. Founded in 2012, Elastic is a distributed company with Elasticians around the globe and is publicly traded on the NYSE under the symbol ESTC. Learn more at elastic.co.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210513005839/en/
While Israel and Palestine engage one another in deadly conflict, violent clashes have also erupted between Israeli and Palestinian protesters in New York City, as protests have raged throughout the United States, and police have tried to keep the squabbling groups apart.

According to The Sun, protesters massed outside the Israeli embassy in Manhattan last evening as hundreds gathered to decry the deaths of at least 55 people in Gaza and Tel Aviv, including children.

Demonstrators carrying the Palestinian flag in favor of ending Israel's occupation of the West Bank were spotted in the photos taken by a correspondent. A street footage was also shown, which showed many violent confrontations happening in the middle of the street.

There was also a handful of pro-Israel counter-protesters at the embassy.

Tensions rapidly escalated, with the two rival factions exchanging shouts and accusations, with some of the clashes turning in blows.

During the heated conflict, one guy was spotted covered in blood after being whacked with a chair.

According to CBS2, a small group of individuals from both sides got together to try to have a calm discourse, but their attempts were mainly drowned out by yelling.

"I just want peace I don't want there to be violence anymore. I don't want kids to die. Moms to die, families to die, lose their homes," says one Free Palestine activist to NBC-NY.

According to the New York Police Department, no arrests were made during the protest on Tuesday.

Demonstrations also took place in Washington DC and Los Angeles, as tensions between Hamas and Israel erupted brutally throughout the night of Tuesday and in the morning of Wednesday.

Large groups of pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered in front of the State Department in Washington, D.C., with Democratic legislators Rashida Tlaib and Andre Carson joining them.

Tlaib claimed in her speech that Israel's recent "racist" treatment of Palestinian citizens was unacceptable, and that the Biden administration's backing for Israel had devolved into persecution of Palestine.

Similarly, outside the Israeli embassy in Los Angeles, a mob of more than 100 pro-Palestine demonstrators assembled.

Human rights violations and restrictive measures were alleged by speakers at the gathering against Israel's government.

Sami Wassef, one of the demonstrators, told the Los Angeles Daily News, "You can see Israeli aggression especially in Northern Jerusalem and Gaza. Houses are being confiscated and families thrown out."

What We Know So Far

On Tuesday night and Wednesday, heavy battles broke out between Israelis and Palestinians in and around Gaza.

As Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist organizations launched barrages of missiles toward Tel Aviv and Beersheba, Israel launched hundreds of attacks in Gaza into the early morning hours of Wednesday local time.

According to the Gaza health ministry, at least 49 Palestinians have been killed in the territory since Monday. Children were said to account for at least 10 of the victims.

Meanwhile in Israel, medical sources reported that six individuals have died.

The White House criticized Hamas' rocket assaults on Tuesday, saying Israel has a legal right to self-defense.

Biden, on the other hand, deployed his press secretary, Jen Psaki, to put pressure on Israel over the situation of Palestinians, urging that Jerusalem be a city of "coexistence."

Elsewhere, former President Donald Trump issued a statement stressing that the United States "will always strongly support Israel's right to defend itself."

Israel's adversaries knew that the United States stood strongly with Israel and there would be swift retribution if Israel was attacked," Trump added, explaining why his administration was dubbed as the "Peace Presidency."

The violence began on Monday, when over 160 rockets were fired from Gaza onto civilian gatherings, hitting as far as Jerusalem while hundreds of Israelis celebrated Jerusalem Day.

The escalation was quick after that.

Sixteen individuals were killed in Israeli air raids on Gaza on Wednesday.

According to witnesses and health authorities in Gaza, the Israeli's counterattack killed three individuals in a car, including a lady.

With sirens screaming in Tel Aviv, marking numerous rounds of missile attacks in Israel's heartland, many Israelis had a restless night.

As interceptor missiles from the Iron Dome Aerial Defense System flew across the sky, Israelis rushed to bunkers or laid down on the ground in towns more than 45 kilometers along the coast from Gaza.
cargo flights departed from China to India between May 1 and 13, with 31 flights going the other direction.

Several Chinese airlines are considering suspending cargo flights to India amid the Southeast Asian countrys deepening Covid-19 crisis.

At least two state-owned airlines reduced cargo flight schedules between China and India, citing increasing instability as the coronavirus surges in India, Caixin learned. The two carriers are applying to suspend flights in and out India, sources familiar with the matter said.

India has reported more than 300,000 daily infections for 22 consecutive days, highlighting its slide into the worlds worst health crisis. The country reported 4,120 Covid-19 deaths Thursday with 362,700 new infections. Total deaths reached 258,300.

Several countries including the United States, Australia, the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia have issued bans on travelers from India, citing the severity of the pandemic.

As the pandemic escalates in India, there are rising difficulties making contact with freight recipients and getting payments, said one airline cargo department employee. Traders are also reducing freight orders due to stricter quarantine requirements on goods from India, the person said.

While Chinese airlines evaluate risks, fares for air cargo transport from China to India are surging because of rising demand for China-made medical supplies.

The current fare for freight transport from China to India is about 70 yuan ($11) per kilogram, nearly double from a week ago, said a person from logistics company Kuehne + Nagel International AG. Booking air cargo space has become increasingly difficult since April, mainly due to demand for face masks and oxygen generators, the person said.

China had exported 5,000 ventilators, 21,569 oxygen generators, 21.5 million face masks and 3,800 tons of medicines to India since April, Chinese Ambassador to India Sun Weidong said May 2 on Twitter, citing data from Chinas General Administration of Customs. Chinese companies are speeding up production of an additional 40,000 ventilators that will be delivered to India, Sun said.

According to flight tracking platform VariFlight, 36 cargo flights departed from China to India between May 1 and 13, with 31 flights going the other direction. Logistics companies including SF Express, YTO Express and FedEx were the main operators of the flights.

In late April, the cargo unit of state-owned Sichuan Airlines said it would suspend services on six routes to India for 15 days because of the pandemic. The company said it was assessing its virus prevention measures and studying new plans to ensure the safety of flights.

The news spurred complaints from Indian media that such a move disrupts trade. Chinas Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin at an April 26 routine briefing reiterated Beijing's support for India's fight against the pandemic.

We stand ready to offer support and assistance to the best of our capability if the Indian side informs us of its specific needs, Wang said.

The Indian government extended a suspension of scheduled international flights until May 31 because of the outbreak. The ban excludes cargo flights and certain chartered flights, according to the country's aviation authority. India halted international flights March 23, 2020. Passenger flights between China and India have remained suspended.

The World Health Organization said this week that the highly potent double mutant coronavirus variant from India, which is responsible for the countrys devastating outbreak, has been found in as many as 44 countries.

Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com) and editor Bob Simison (bobsimison@caixin.com)

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Follow the Chinese markets in real time with Caixin Globals new stock database.
The country recorded 24 new virus cases locally Friday, with more than half coming from a cluster originating at Changi Airport.

(Bloomberg)  Singapore is returning to the lockdown-like conditions it last imposed a year ago, banning dining in and limiting gatherings to two people as a rising number of untraceable virus infections pressures one of the most successful places in the world at Covid containment.

For four weeks from May 16 to June 13, gathering sizes as well as household visitors will be cut to a maximum of two people from five; working from home will be the default; and food places can do only takeaways and deliveries, the health ministry said Friday in a statement. The resurgence also puts a highly anticipated travel bubble with Hong Kong in doubt.

The Singapore dollar extended its decline after the announcement of the new rules. The citys benchmark stock index bucked Asias positive trend to sink as much as 3.2%, the most since June last year, before ending 2.2% lower. Shares linked to travel and consumption were among the biggest losers, with bellwether Singapore Airlines Ltd. sliding as much as 7.3%.

A pattern of local unlinked community cases has emerged and is persisting, the statement said. We need to act decisively to contain these risks as any one leak could result in an uncontrolled resurgence of cases.

The country recorded 24 new virus cases locally Friday, with more than half coming from a cluster originating at Changi Airport. The number of unlinked infections  the most concerning to officials as they signal undetected spread in the community  has risen to 15 in the past week from 7 the week before, the health ministry said Thursday.

While the numbers are far smaller than outbreaks in countries like the U.S. that are charging ahead with opening up, the flare-up is a major setback by Singapore standards as the city-state is one of handful of Covid havens that previously nearly eliminated the pathogen domestically. These places are now struggling to find a path to reopen as vaccination drives lag behind those of major Western economies.

The new rules are the most restrictive since Singapore went into a so-called circuit breaker partial lockdown in April last year, where schools and most workplaces were closed except for essential services and key economic sectors. Officials at a briefing Friday emphasized the need to stay home and go out only for absolutely necessary errands and said they will review the measures after two weeks.

The return to near-lockdown in Singapore puts in doubt high-profile global initiatives meant to showcase its control of the virus. A long-gestating air travel bubble with Hong Kong, set to start May 26, is now unlikely to go ahead on schedule. Singapore was also set to host the Shangri-La Dialogue early next month, which organizers say they remain committed to, and the Davos-based World Economic Forum in August.

Singapores new rules for the next month include:

 Fewer people allowed in shopping malls and showrooms.

 A maximum of 100 people allowed at business meetings and live performances with pre-event testing, and as many as 50 people without testing.

 Operating capacity at attractions cut to 25% from the current 50%.

 Wedding receptions will not be allowed.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Friday authorities are testing more intensively and trying to ring-fence transmissions, and the stricter restrictions are needed to prevent more cases.

The new measures will be difficult for everybody, Lee said in a Facebook post.

Hong Kong Travel Bubble

Officials in Hong Kong and Singapore signaled that a travel bubble first scheduled to start last November will be delayed again in light of the outbreak in Singapore.

Transport minister Ong Ye Kung said Friday at a briefing that its very likely that Singapore may not meet the criteria for the arrangements to go through; the government will make an announcement early next week on the bubbles fate after reviewing local cases.

According to the terms of the agreement, the travel bubble will be closed for two weeks if the seven-day moving average of daily unlinked local cases is more than five in either city. Its currently just above two in Singapore and near zero in Hong Kong.

Theres a high chance the air travel bubble will not go ahead as scheduled, Hong Kong Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau said Friday, citing Singapore authorities. Yau said he will speak to Singapores new Transport Minister S. Iswaran early next week.

Job Support

Given the new ban on dining in, the Singapore government will increase job support subsidies for food and beverage companies and waive rental for one month for hawker stall and coffee shop tenants.

It is also stepping up virus testing starting May 15 and will begin using rapid test kits for people with symptoms at health centers.

As of May 13 the country fully vaccinated more than 22% of its population, or about 1.3 million people, the health ministry said. While thats the fastest in Asia, it lags behind the U.S at 36% and Israel at 56%.

The number of new local cases rose Thursday to 24, the highest since last July. Changi Airport is now the single biggest cluster of Covid cases, raising fears that travelers spread the pathogen to airport staff and visitors despite strict post-arrival quarantine regulations.

Contact editor Bob Simison (bobsimison@caixin.com)

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(The Straits Times)  The air travel bubble to allow for quarantine-free travel between Singapore and Hong Kong is likely to be delayed yet again, given the rising number of Covid-19 community cases in Singapore.

Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung on Friday said: "It is very likely that Singapore will not be able to meet the resumption criteria.

"What we will do now is to closely monitor the numbers the next few days to review the start date, and early next week, we will make a decision and an announcement."

The bubble was slated to take off on May 26, six months after its initial planned launch in November last year. It was deferred by both parties due to the worsening Covid-19 situation in Hong Kong.

Both cities had agreed that the air travel bubble will be suspended when the seven-day moving average of the unlinked community cases in either Singapore or Hong Kong increases to above five.

There have been 15 unlinked Covid-19 cases in Singapore in the past week. This works out to a moving average of about two cases a day, which is still below the threshold to trigger a pause in the travel bubble.

Mr. Ong, who was speaking at a virtual press conference held by the task force combating the pandemic, said he had briefed Hong Kong's Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau on Friday morning about the Covid-19 situation in Singapore.

He said that both cities are strongly committed to the bubble, but have to start it safely. They would also respect the resumption mechanisms that both sides had agreed on.

Mr. Ong said that Hong Kong is a "very safe region" now, with daily Covid-19 cases ranging between zero and two.

Earlier this week, both cities had expressed optimism that the bubble could still take flight.

On Wednesday, Mr Yau noted that the seven-day moving average of unlinked cases in both cities was below the threshold of five that would trigger a pause in the arrangement.

Singapore's Transport Ministry the same day said that Hong Kong was "recording very low or zero daily cases currently", adding that it will continue to monitor the Covid-19 situation in both cities.

This story was first published in The Straits Times.
Zhengzhou Zoo in Henan province fed animals specially made zongzi on Wednesday, ahead of the Dragon Boat Festival on June 14. Zongzi, also known as sticky rice dumplings, is a traditional food for the festival made of different fillings and wrapped in bamboo leaves. Each year, zoos and safari parks across the nation prepare zongzi stuffed with special ingredients suitable for different animals to celebrate the festival

Jun 10, 2021 05:44 PM
In an effort to justify the human rights violations the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been carrying out for years against the Uyghur Muslim minority communities in Xinjiang, China is now claiming that these ethnic minority groups are growing more rapidly than the Han population. This has become their justification for the CCP's genocidal policies in Xinjiang Province, where women are being sterilized and children are being sent to state-run schools in an attempt to erase their culture.

"The growth rate of population of ethnic groups excluding Han is significantly higher than that of Han ethnic group over the last decade," the state-run China Daily claimed. However, Radio Free Asia reported that the Han population accounts for up to 91.1% of China's total population, with a growth rate of about 4.9%. According to 2020 census figures, the growth rate of the population from other ethnic groups-the mere 8.9%- is at about 10.3%.

The CCP insists through state-run media, however, that the Han population is growing slower than other ethnic groups such as the Uyghurs in Xinjiang, justifying their mass incarceration, as well as "forced sterilization, organized rape, and forced marriage of Uyghur women."

World Uyghur Congress exile group spokesman Dilxat Raxit reported that birth rates among Uyghurs made a sharp turn downwards because of the CCP's human rights violations against the community, including the incarceration of more than 1.8 million Uyghurs in what the communist state calls "re-education camps."

The Australian Strategic Policy Institute found that the sharp drop rate of births in Xinjiang is "the most extreme over a two-year period globally since 1950" and is more than double the rate of declina during Cambodia's Khmer Rouge genocide between 1975 and 1979.

"The Chinese government is using its claim that ethnic minority groups are growing more quickly than the Han Chinese to mask its plans to eradicate the Uyghur ethnic group," Raxit argued. But it seems the Uyghur population growth rate isn't the only thing that China is spreading lies about.

According to Nikkei Asia, the Chinese government said on Thursday that their population continued an upward trend in 2020 despite the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused more deaths than births in several regional Chinese states. The Chinese National Bureau of Statistics released a "single sentence statement" on its official website, saying, "According to understanding, the population of our country has continued to increase, while specific numbers will be published in the Seventh National Population Census Bulletin."

However, they did not show any statistics to support their claim.

Experts believe that the CCP's announcement is to undermine the recent Financial Times report that showed how China is experiencing its first population decline since the Great Leap Forward, described as "a disastrous socio-economic program five decades ago that led to the deaths of millions by famine and other forms of unnatural deaths under Chairman Mao Zedong's rule."

The revelatory FT report showed that China's total population in 2020 was about less than 1.4 billion, but it was reported to be more than 1.4 billion in 2019. In addition, China saw 14.65 million births in 2019, but registration of births in 2020 declined by 15% in 2020.


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A Christian woman reveled in her experience of finally attending an in-person worship service in church on Mother's Day, after a year of being contented with virtual services, calling it a "special" and "joyful" moment.

A Florida woman recently shared her experience attending an in-person worship gathering in church after a year of complying with social distancing guidelines set by COVID-19 restrictions. Bea L. Hines, a regular churchgoer to The Church of God Tabernacle (True Holiness) in Liberty City, in Miami, Florida, spoke about her experience visiting a church in New Orleans with her family.

"There's just something special about being in the House of God on the Lord's day," Hines wrote for the Miami Herald.

She recounted how she was in the city with her goddaughter and her goddaughter's husband, who was a minister, and their family. They gathered to celebrate her goddaughter's daughter's graduation and Hines was soon invited by one of her classmates to attend Watson Memorial Teaching Ministries.

Feeling comfortable and "at home," she soon became a member of the congregation. On Mother's Day, Hines attended an in-person worship gathering.

"It was the first time in more than a year that I had attended church in person," Hines said. "Just walking into the sanctuary after so many days of virtual church gave me such a joyful feeling. Although I was many miles away from my own church, I felt at home."

Hines recounted how Watson Memorial Teaching Ministries reminded her of her own church, saying, "I could feel the loving warmth that even the masks could not conceal." She added that she "felt the love flowing" from the reverend and the other worshipers as they sang songs of praise. She said that singing together with them gave her a "warm, happy feeling."

"As I prayed and joined in the singing, I realized how much I probably took for granted about being assembled in the house of the Lord with my brothers and sisters for worship," Hines admitted.

Hines shared however that "living a life of faith" does not mean trials and tribulations will not come into one's life. She explained that these challenges will be there to remind people that it is "faith in the Lord and service to His people" that will help push through even toughest times, such as a global pandemic.

Hines shared that the COVID-19 pandemic has been a "time of learning" in which people "learned new ways" to be "creative" despite the safety precautions and restrictions implemented by health authorities. According to The Blaze, Hines' home church in Liberty City was forced to hold virtual ceremonies as COVID-19 took a toll on its communities.

Hines admitted that one of the best things about in-person worship gathering in church is the "sweet fellowship among parishioners" and Holy Communion, as well as the teachings of the minister. She reveled in the feeling, saying that participating in songs and praises made her feel grateful to be able to set foot inside "His house" after the challenging year of COVID-19.

"We were in the sanctuary of the Lord, basking in His glory," Hines concluded.
Chino, CA (91710)

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Clear skies. Low around 55F. W winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to less than 5 mph.
Most United States citizens consider ourselves fortunate to live in a modern, mature democracy. We appreciate the great freedoms and abundant material things our democracy affords us. But while we all know the old adage that freedom is not free, neither is democracy. Our system depends on citizens being in ultimate control of the government through a written constitution with checks and balances, frequent elections, term limits, free speech, free press, the right to petition the government, the right to bring lawsuits against the government, referendums, recalls, and more. Unfortunately, too few of us take the time to actively participate in our democracy.



Which brings up another adageyou only get as much out of a thing as you put into it. So, how much are we putting into our democracy? How much are we as a country investing in making sure our citizens are informed, knowledgeable, and prepared to fully participate in our continuing experiment in self-government?

Our Current Investment in Civics Education

Schools can help prepare our youngest citizens for their critical role in our democracy. In fact, public education in the United States historically had the three related purposes of preparing students to participate in life as citizens, to engage in adult work and careers, and to become functioning members of their communities.

The first goal is essentially civics education. What value do we place on achieving this goal today? Governments at all levels have given little support to developing civics education over the last thirty years, according to the March 2, 2021, Educating for American Democracy report sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the U.S. Department of Education. At the federal level, we spend five cents on civics education per student each year, significantly less than the fifty-four dollars per student for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics education. Danielle Allen, Director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University, discussed this disparity in an Oct. 8, 2020, interview on Harvard EdCast titled The Role of Education in Democracy. Her point was not that less money should be spent on STEM, but that the lack of support for civics education results in an inability for young people to understand democracy, be motivated to participate in it, [and] to have the skills and tools they need to participate effectively in democratic self-government.

The Cost of Neglecting Civics

In a wonderful, wide-ranging discussion sponsored by the Center for Strategic and International Studies on April 14, 2021, titled Civics as a National Security Imperative, United States Supreme Court Justices Sonya Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch discussed the importance of civics from their perspective as judges of the highest court in our country. Justice Sotomayor cited the wide disparity on STEM and civics spending discussed above. Both Justices discussed the troubling lack of knowledge about how our government functions, the low rate of participation in government, the surprisingly large number of people who disapprove of democracy, and how pervasive false information is in our society, especially as spread by social media.

The Justices identified these dangers as resulting from a lack of civics knowledge, which equips citizens to discern false information regarding our government and its functioning. Justice Gorsuch noted that more often in history, democracies fall not from external threat but from internal discord. He noted democracy is not an automatic thing. Recently, foreign enemies capitalized on our internal divisions and discord to further divide us, and Justice Gorsuch noted, it is no surprise that a lot of the false misinformation spread on social media is deliberately spread by our enemies to sow disagreement internally in the country.

Our democracy suffers when we as citizens are unable to fulfil our responsibility as the ultimate control of government. We have to make reasoned decisions at the ballot box and in the other means of exercising our power. We cannot fulfill this responsibility when we do not know how our government functions. As Justice Gorsuch stated, when we are uninformed, not only do we allow unresponsive and dysfunctional government, but we also allow foreign and domestic threats to endanger our democracy.

Among the strengths of the American legal system are civility, civil discourse, constructive disagreement, critical thinking, and respectful dialogue. Both Justices spoke of how society at large could use these principles, practiced every day in our courts, to bridge the divides we now face.

By failing to educate our young people and ourselves on our government and our civic responsibilities, we risk losing the freedoms we value so highly. We may have well-educated STEM students, but if we lose our democracy, in what kind of country will they live? In that event, we will all have to ask ourselves, did we pay the appropriate price for democracy?

Curtis L. Collier

United States District Judge

Chair, Eastern District of Tennessee Civics and Outreach Committee



Carrie Brown Stefaniak

Law Clerk to the Honorable Curtis L. Collier

Immediate Past President, Chattanooga Chapter of the Federal Bar Association



Eliza L. Taylor

Law Clerk to the Honorable Curtis L. Collier

* * *

In the recent opinion What is the Price of Democracy?, the authors advocate a return of basic civics in the education curriculum. I wholeheartedly agree and thank them for their advocacy. However, I find it somewhat disturbing the learned authors used the term democracy 15 times, but not once used the term Republic in their writing. Both terms are necessary to accurately substantiate and better explain the authors advocacy.

To illustrate, the opening paragraph should have read Most United States citizens consider ourselves fortunate to live in a modern, mature democratic Republic. We appreciate the great freedoms and abundant material things our democracy affords us. But while we all know the old adage that freedom is not free, neither is democracy.

There are other places in the opinion where Republic rather than democracy is the proper term to describe our country. By using the noun Republic appropriately to accurately describe the United States, and the use of democracy to describe the political process used to operate our Republic, the authors would demonstrate the difference and help inform a reader who may not have the benefits of a Civics class.

Ironically, the misused terminology helps to show the need and necessity to return a course in United States civics to our Republics education curriculum.

Bryan Bowen
I heard on the news early this week that Chattanooga had 55 shootings this year as compared to 35 this time last year. And this was before the shooting the other night that took two lives. So what are the "concerned" clergy complaining about? Well, of course, Sheriff Hammond and his dedicated officers who enter the war zone every night.

I would suggest maybe they concentrate their efforts on why so many blacks as young as 12 are on the streets at 4 a.m. Or why so many are shot while either sitting in their car or on their porch? Where exactly are their parents and why do they have no concern about their kids being out at every hour of the night?

Douglas Jones

Ooltewah

* * *



I agree with Douglas Jones wholeheartedly. It seems that in today's woke environment, the plight of young black people only matter to the clergy and BLM if they can find a white person to blame.

Critical race "theory", please.

I for one am sick of hearing people trying to find someone to blame for their self-induced problems.

Sam Lewallen, Jr.

* * *



Douglas, when you used cops and crooks in the same sentence as if there's not distinction between the two, doesn't that proves just how much lower civilized society has sunken into that deep dark abyss of inhumanity?

Here's a clue: Crooks are going to do what crooks have always done. Commit crimes. Beat up, shoot, rob, take advantage of vulnerable citizens.

The cops position is to 'protect and served' those citizens who'd otherwise become victims of crooks. When cops start to behave no better than the crooks they arrest, then all that 'protect 'n serve' has failed. And all we're left is who gets to us first; to beat up, rob, use us as target practice. Whatever.

And that's where many of us are now. Should we take our chances fighting off the crooks or crooked cops? If I defend myself against a crook, survive it or not, I become a she'ro! You'll be the first to praise my bravery. If I defend myself against a crooked cop, survive it or not, I become the villain who "didn't comply." Who caused the cop to "fear for his/her life." And therefore, I got what I deserve for 'not following commands.' I'm then the criminal, likely with a felony. There's really not a good choice in there anywhere between the two.

Those 'mysterious' drive bys-- are questionable, as they should be. Anyone can carry out a drive by and blame it on the obvious and expected. Even you, Douglas, can drive up, spray a few bullets and ta-da! Quickly exit the area, and it will all be blamed on the obviously expected.

See? Simple.

Brenda Washington
A Soddy Daisy man has been charged with rape of a child.

Police said on Dec. 11, James Roy Stamey, 46, took a child from her home in Soddy Daisy and drove her to another residence. Police said he raped the child, and that a later investigation discovered photos depicting Stamey committing sexual battery against the child and her brother. The childrens mother said the suspect did not have permission to take the children from her home.



On Jan. 21, the sheriffs office spoke to the childrens mother, who said her daughter told her about Stamey sexually abusing her.

The mother spoke to the sheriffs office again on Feb. 14. Police said she told them about photographs depicting Stamey sexually assaulting her children. She said she did not know of the photographs previously, and only found them when she was looking through a shared cloud-based file she had downloaded from her phone. Police said she then turned her phone in to the sheriffs office as evidence. A detective was able to confirm the photos were sexually explicit, and the mother confirmed the photos were taken at her residence.

Detectives interviewed the mother and children on March 30. Police said one child said Stamey stated, "Youre going to feel something youre never going to forget and she described the assault in detail.

Police interviewed Stamey on April 1, and he agreed to speak to detectives in a recorded interview. The detectives said Stamey denied assaulting and raping the children until he was shown copies of the sexually-explicit photos. Police said Stamey then admitted to participating in the incidents, and said his alcohol and drugs were to blame for his actions. Police said he admitted to taking one of the children from her house, but denied sexually assaulting her.

One witness said at the time of the incident Stamey afterward went onto her bed and passed out. She told police that she was afraid to report the sexual assault because she believed Stamey would have hurt her and the victim.

Stamey is charged with rape of a child, especially aggravated kidnapping, three counts of aggravated sexual battery, two counts of especially aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, and two counts of indecent exposure.
Every episode of the Jessica Biel produced Freeform TV series Cruel Summer gives a little more background on Martin Harris (Blake Lee). Before he kidnapped Kate Wallis (Olivia Holt), he talked to her numerous times and groomed her. At one point in Cruel Summer Episode 5, the assistant principal told Kate that he mistook her for an adult. What does Martin Harris have to do with the mystery of who Annabelle is?

Cruel Summer Blake Lee as Martin Harris | Bill Matlock/Getty Images

How did Martin Harris die in Cruel Summer?

Viewers found out how Martin Harris died in Cruel Summer Episode 1. At the very end of the episode, in a 1994 clip, Jeanette Turner (Chiara Aurelia) and her parents, Cindy (Sarah Drew) and Greg Turner (Michael Landes), watch a breaking news report.

Tonights top story, missing teenager Kate Wallis was rescued today, and her abductor has been killed in a deadly shootout, the reporter announces. And in a shocking and disturbing turn of events, Kate Wallis alleged kidnapper was Martin Harris, who was the assistant principal at Skylin High School in Texas.

RELATED: Cruel Summer Freeform: Chiara Aurelia Stole This 1 Item From Jeanette Turners Wardrobe

As far as viewers understand, Martin Harris died on June 21, 1994, as Jeanette and Jamie Henson (Froy Gutierrez) returned home from Jeanettes birthday celebration. Vincent Fuller (Allius Barnes) heard the gunshot and came outside to ask Jeanette and Jamie if they heard it as well. Jamie insisted that it was a car backfiring; however, we know that it was the gunshot from Martin Harris home.

Kate Wallis mentions Annabelle in her therapy tapes

In Cruel Summer Episode 4, we found out more details about Martin Harris and Annabelle when Kate listened to her old therapy tapes from 1994. Kate told a story around the campfire to her parents in 1995 about a girl named Annabelle. The story sounded very similar to what happened to Kate when Martin Harris abducted her. At first, viewers thought Annabelle was another name for Kate or an alternate personality she created. However, later, when she listened to her therapy tapes from Sylvia Parks (Lee Eddy), things sounded a little different.

Things got worse, much worse, Kate told Sylvia. He came downstairs right before I was rescued, and something was different. Something was wrong  that was when I met Annabelle.

Who was Annabelle? Sylvia asked.

I dont know, Kate responded. I cant remember.

Who is Annabelle on Cruel Summer?

One new Cruel Summer fan theory about Martin Harris and Annabelle could have some truth to it.

So, I have another theory, which is that Martin killed his father to defend himself from prolonged abuse, one viewer wrote on Reddit. Martin created the split personality of Annabelle to cope with having to kill, and his family swept the abuse and the incident under the rug and publicly claimed it as a suicide. Thus, Kate only meets Annabelle on the last day of her captivity because Martin only brings out Annabelle when he has to kill, a decision he likely came to because he realized the captivity had no end in sight.

RELATED: Who is Annabelle in Cruel Summer? Episode 5 Revealed Subtle New Clues

Some viewers think if Martin Harris is Annabelle, the writers are not very creative. The fans pointed out that it is a tired TV trope.

I really hope that Annabelle isnt a split personality thing, another fan added. Dissociation and DID are real responses to trauma, but its lazy writing. Im hoping Annabelle is a gun that ties into Martins fathers death. I feel like theres a plot reason Martin tells Kate about his father.

Many fans feel that if Annabelle isnt Martins split personality emerging, then its his gun or a former student.

Viewers find out more when Cruel Summer Episode 6 airs on May 18, 2021, on Freeform.
Shows like Doctor Who and Back To The Future are extremely popular with audiences because they give them a chance to create an imaginary world where time travel is possible. Although time travel shows enjoy incredible popularity, some countries dont think such shows promote good tv.

China, for instance, banned shows that involve time travel. Authorities instructed citizens to uphold Chinas values and not watch anything that would prompt a history rewrite. But why exactly is the country against time travel shows such as Doctor Who? Find out.

(L-R) Pearl Mackie and Peter Capaldi | Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images

The premise of Doctor Who

RELATED: Doctor Who Fans are Freaking Out Over the Thirteenth Doctors Tuxedo

The show follows the eponymous characters adventures, a rogue time traveler with a relatively unknown origin who prefers to be called the Doctor. The Doctor fled his planet (the planet of the Time Lords) in a stolen time machine that travels into and out of the time vortex.

The time machine called TARDIS, short for Time and Relative Dimension In Space, has a more extensive interior but looks smaller on the outside. It is equipped with a chameleon circuit that helps cloak the machine by disguising it as local objects. However, due to a malfunction in the machine, the TARDIS resembled a blue British police box and remained fixed that way.

Throughout the show, the Doctor often goes through various events that pique his curiosity while trying to prevent evil forces from tampering with history and humanity. He employs the help of other humans and frequently collaborates with a military task force called UNIT anytime Earth is under threat.

The Doctor also has a versatile sonic screwdriver that he uses anytime he finds himself in a bind. Seeing as he is a centuries-old Time Lord, he can regenerate in case of any mortal damage on his body. He takes on a few appearances, personalities, and, as seen in recent seasons, gender identity.

Why is the show so popular

RELATED: Doctor Who Creator Russell T. Davies Said The Show is Designed To do This

Doctor Who first premiered in 1963 but went off the air in 1985. When it came back in 2005, the show gained a substantial following and viewership, making it a success 12 seasons later. So what is the secret to Doctor Whos success?

One reason why the show is likely so popular is the cleverness that goes into writing the storylines and characters. Throughout the show, viewers have seen the Doctor regenerate and take on a new form. This allows him to reinvent himself every time, and the good thing is that it never has to end since the rogue Time Lord never has to die or go back to his planet.

Another clever aspect of the show is its setting. The writers didnt consider one specific location. Doctor Who is set in the entire universe, which means that the writers can imagine anything, and it would still make sense and fit into the storyline.

Another aspect is that the Doctor never takes himself too seriously. The writers incorporate fun and manage to create a healthy balance between a dark storyline and a fun one without diluting either of the two. It also portrays humanity differently from other shows while creating a brilliant mix between optimism and realism.

Why China banned Doctor Who and other time travel shows

China is no stranger to banning popular tv shows. Shows like The Big Bang Theory and Winnie The Pooh have fallen victim to banning in the country. According to Daily Mail, China decided to add a few more shows to its list of contraband materials in 2011, including the popular Doctor Who.

Outlining the possible reasons for banning the time travel hit, the Chinese government declared Producers and writers are treating serious history in a frivolous way, which should by no means be encouraged anymore. Shows like X-Files, Star Trek, and films like Terminator, Back To The Future Trilogy, and Bill and Teds Excellent Adventure also made it to the list of materials creatives in China arent allowed to air or make.
Ina Garten, known to her legions of fans as the Barefoot Contessa, is one of the longest-running and most popular chefs on the Food Network. Since 2002, Garten has helmed her series Barefoot Contessa, has published multiple bestselling books and has even released specialty product lines.

For fans, Garten is one of the more authentic chefs on the air, regaling her viewers with how to prepare simple, tasty meals to serve to friends and family  and doing it all with a touch of class and more than a little sass. Garten excels at offering up appetizer recipes, and when it comes to a tasty party dip, fans could do worse than to prepare Gartens signature guacamole, which is made utilizing a disarmingly clever trick.

What is Ina Garten best known for?

Ina Garten | Brad Barket/Getty Images for The New Yorker

RELATED: Ina Gartens Barefoot Contessa Cookbooks in Order

Garten got her start in the culinary world as the operator of a specialty food store in the Hamptons. Naming the shop Barefoot Contessa, Garten employed a stable of talented chefs and bakers, all while doing the bulk of the cooking herself.

Eventually, the success of the store led to Garten publishing her first bestselling cookbook, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook. Encouraged by her newfound popularity as a celebrity chef, Garten signed a deal with the Food Network to star in her very own cooking show  and in 2002, Barefoot Contessa premiered on the Food Network.

In the decades since her emergence on the lifestyle scene, Garten has become something of a pop culture phenomenon, known by fans for her signature phrases like storebought is fine, and how bad can that be? Gartens recipes also stand the test of time, and she has received a lot of praise for the way she always allows the ingredients themselves to shine through.

How does Ina Garten prepare guacamole?

Can you ever make too much guacamole? My secret is freshly squeezed lemon juice to keep the guacamole bright green. https://t.co/byVKCBaxlJ pic.twitter.com/7AIeA1byfg  Ina Garten (@inagarten) July 20, 2017

RELATED: Ina Garten: 10 Things You Might Not Know About the Barefoot Contessa

Garten doesnt shy away from a fancy appetizer, but the chef also knows that sometimes, simple is best. Therefore, she recommends making guacamole for family and friends who enjoy a hearty, flavorful party dip or Tex-Mex themed side dish.

According to BuzzFeed, Gartens hack for making guacamole is one that every aspiring home cook should have in their arsenal.

To make Gartens guacamole, combine avocado, lemon juice (freshly squeezed is best), hot sauce, chopped garlic, red onions, salt, and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Then, rather than smashing the ingredients together with a fork, as traditional guacamole is usually prepared, Garten recommends taking a large kitchen knife and slice the avocado directly in the bowl.

According to Garten, This is the secret to really good guacamoleI dont puree it. All I do is cut into it just like this so its really chunky. It mixes the ingredients together, and it stays really chunky. The end result is guacamole that is chunky, rather than pureed, with bites of red onion and creamy avocado in every mouthful.

How is traditional guacamole often made?

RELATED: Barefoot Contessa: Ina Gartens 4 Best Brunch Recipes for a Crowd

Those who make guacamole often know that Gartens recipe differs from the traditional in a few significant ways. Traditional guacamole typically features the unique herb cilantro, as well as chunks of tomato and jalapeno peppers, to give the guacamole a kick of spice. Depending on the recipe, it might call for white onion, rather than red, although both types are often utilized.

According to Saveur, Mexico-born chef Roberto Santibanez makes his chunky, creamy guacamole in the traditional manner: by first grinding the flavoring agents to a paste using a mortar and pestle, then gently mixing in chopped avocados.

No matter how you make guacamole, guests are guaranteed to love this simple, fresh-tasting dip that will encourage everyone to go back for seconds and thirds.
Kandi Burruss is one of the stars of The Real Housewives of Atlanta. The reality TV personality has been a mainstay since joining in season 2. Burruss has showcased her ups and downs and fans will get to see how her empire keeps on growing. Bravo has confirmed that the Kandi OLG Project is set to premiere in late 2021 as the spinoff becomes official.

Kandi Burruss | Tommy Garcia/Bravo

What is Kandi Burruss spinoff going to be about?

Burruss has created quite an empire in Atlanta. The Grammy-award winning star is expanding her culinary establishments and making a show about it. RHOA fans got an insight into the making of the Old Lady Gang restaurant during season 5. The southern eatery is based on recipes from Burruss mother Joyce Jones and the latters sisters: Bertha Jones and Nora Wilcox.

In this new docu-series, well watch as Kandi, Todd [Tucker], and the Old Lady Gang (comprised of Mama Joyce, and Aunts Nora & Bertha) continue to build their restaurant empire while keeping their over-the-top and opinionated staff in line and making their vision come to fruition, the press release states.

Burruss and her husband Tucker will serve as executive producers in this show seemingly similar to Vanderpump Rules.

The new series follows the staff in and out of the restaurant, witnessing how workplace slights bleed into their social lives, the shows description continued. Everyone at OLG has a passion  be it for dancing, comedy or just to follow in Kandis mogul footsteps, and these dreams can get in the way of running food and ensuring customers dont leave those dreaded one-star Yelp reviews.

Kandi Burruss, Joyce Jones, Bertha Jones, Nora Wilcox, and Todd Tucker | Eric McCandless/Walt Disney Television via Getty Images

RELATED: RHOA: The Porsha Williams-Kandi Burruss Feud Over Unaired Confrontation Explained

And the fact that some are single and constantly flirting with the cute clientele  and each other  doesnt exactly help things either. Its a monumental task to face, but if anyone can do it, its Kandi!

Bravo has only confirmed that it will premiere in Late 2021 but has not specified the actual date yet.

How RHOA Season 13 ended

RHOA fans are some of the most loyal and despite being a difficult year due to the pandemic, the ladies delivered. This season the show consisted of Burruss, Cynthia Bailey, Kenya Moore, Porsha Williams, and newcomer Drew Sidora. At the end of each season, production updates on what the ladies are doing since the show stopped filming.

With the end of season 13, the epilogue cards were there to tell us what the peaches were up to now.

Moores card read, Kenya is planning another girls trip she and Brooklyn are heading to Paris soon. Kenya has officially filed for divorce. She wants no Moore of the Daly drama.

Sidoras card said, Josiahs dad has been forming a relationship with his son. Drew continues to decorate her new home, so it will be perfect just like her marriage, her three children, and her hairline.

Cynthia Bailey, Kenya Moore, Porsha Williams, Kandi Burruss, and Drew Sidora | Tommy Garcia/Drexina Nelson/Bravo

RELATED: RHOA: Wendy Williams Suggests Bravo Take Porsha Williams Peach and Give It to Falynn Guobadia

Porsha remains in the frontline of social justice issues. Shes also back to eating meat but has managed to stay away from the Hot Dog Factory, read the card for Williams.

For Burruss life update, the card read, Kandis acting career is blossoming. She returns for her second season of The Chi soon. And no hometown native Drew will not be on it.

Finally, Baileys card said, Cynthia and Mike have decided Atlanta is home and Mike will be moving permanently. They are currently looking for the next Lake Bailey on the Hill. Her bachelorette swing will have its own special room.

The Real Housewives of Atlanta is expected to return to Bravo later this year.
Good morning!

A good story about the Hmong people in the USA:

FRESNO, Calif. -- It's been 46 years since Hmong people first began migrating to the U.S. from Laos and Thailand. Today, the Fresno area has the second-largest Hmong population in the country behind Minneapolis, with about 33,000 people living in the region.



During the Vietnam War, Hmong boys and men were recruited to fight in the CIA-sponsored operation known as the Secret War to prevent communism from spreading deeper into Southeast Asia. After the U.S. pulled out of Laos, communist forces retaliated against those who sided with the Americans. Thousands died and thousands fled to refugee camps in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.



"Life in the refugee, that difficult. You cannot go outside, you cannot play around. We had to wait for someone to give us food to eat. That's it," said Cha Fong Lee.



Lee and his family escaped to a Thai refugee camp for a year before resettling in Santa Ana, California.



"We don't know what to do, we don't know where to go. We just say, 'OK, come to America.' Then we come here. That's it. We don't know the future," he said.

Baby names, 2020.

Cats and rats and what are the words?

CHICAGO  For the sixth consecutive year, Chicago has been named the rattiest city in America according to Orkin. To combat this issue, the Tree House Humane Society has placed over 1,000 feral cats onto Chicago streets since 2012. Weve had a lot of our clients tell us that before they had cats, they would step outside their house and rats would actually run across their feet, Sarah Liss of Tree House said. Liss said the cats generally do not eat a lot of rats, although the cats will kill some rats in the beginning when they arrive in a new location. After they get acquainted to the space though, much less effort is required on the cats behalf.

Jobs available, workers not so much:

WASHINGTON (AP)  U.S. employers posted a record number of available jobs in March, illustrating starkly the desperation of businesses trying to find new workers as the country emerges from the pandemic and the economy expands. Yet total job gains increased only modestly, according to a Labor Department report issued Tuesday. The figures follow an April jobs report last week that was far weaker than expected, largely because companies appear unable to find the workers they need, even with the unemployment rate elevated at 6.1%. Job openings rose nearly 8%, to 8.1 million in March, the most on records dating back to December 2000, the government said. Yet overall hiring that month rose less than 4% to 6 million. The hiring number is a gross figure, while the governments jobs report  which said 770,000 jobs were added in March  uses a net total. Tuesdays report is known as the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS. A separate survey of small businesses by the National Federation of Independent Business found that 44% had jobs they couldnt fill, also a record high.

A thats too bad story:

NORWALK, Calif. (KTLA)  The mystery woman who bought a $26 million SuperLotto Plus ticket nearly six months ago put the ticket in the laundry, and it was destroyed, according to the manager of the Norwalk, California gas station where it was sold. The winner had until the end of the day to claim the prize, which was purchased for the Nov. 14, 2020 drawing from the Arco AMPM at 10602 Imperial Highway in Los Angeles County. The stores manager  who would only give his name as Frank  said surveillance video shows the individual who purchased the ticket, and shes known to store workers. The woman recently came into the AMPM and said she had bought the ticket, put it in her pocket and then laundered that very, very valuable slip of paper, destroying it, according to the manager. When the manager suggested the woman talk to waiting reporters who were hoping to identify and interview the winner, the woman declined, he said.

That explains it:
Radical Islamic jihadists killed over 1,400 Nigerian Christians in first 4 months of 2021: report

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Islamic jihadists murdered at least 1,470 Christians and abducted over 2,200 in Nigeria in the first four months of this year, a report has revealed. More than half of the killings were carried out by Muslim Fulani herdsmen.

The number of Christians murdered within the first four months of this year is the highest since 2014 and goes beyond the total number of Christians killed in 2019, a Nigerian civil society group, Intersociety Rule of Law, says in a report released this week.

Northwestern Kaduna state recorded the highest number of Christian deaths, at 300, according to the investigation which took weeks to compile all of the killings in the majority Christian areas of the country.

The north-central Benue state witnessed 200 murders of Christians, followed by the central Plateau state with 90 Christian deaths, says Intersociety, an organization headed by Christian criminologist Emeka Umeagbalasi.

The northern Muslim-controlled Nigerian Army also killed at least 120 Christians in the states of Benue, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Imo, Abia and Ebonyi, it adds.

Of the 2,200 Christians abducted, Kaduna state recorded the highest number with 800 abductions. Out of these 800 Christians abducted, 600 were indigenous Christians, including those abducted in Muslim-held areas of Birnin-Gwari, Igabi and Giwa Local Government Areas.

Niger state recorded the second largest number of Christian abductees, at 300.

Through interviews and open-source reports, the group learned that 220 Christians are most likely to have died or been killed in captivity of their abductors.

This represents 10% of 2,200 abducted Christians across the country, especially Christian travelers and rural others among them are male and young female farmers including those abducted and raped to death or killed after being raped, explains the report, which relies on what it deems to be credible local and foreign media reports, government accounts, reports from international rights groups and eyewitness accounts to compile statistical data.

The report notes that the Nigerian government falsely claims that the high number of murders and abductions in the country can be attributed mostly to herder-farmer clashes and not due to religious motives.

Nigerias federal government and the governments of the affected states have made several deliberate attempts to cover the egregious and grisly massacre of Christians in Nigeria by falsely labeling them as herders-farmers clashes, or attacks by bandits, or killings that cut across Muslims and Christians, it says.

To explain that, the report categorized the non street crimes butcheries ravaging the country into: (1) killings with disproportionate reprisals by Fulani Muslim Bandits against Hausa Muslims (Yansakai), (2) killings and acutely disproportionate reprisals by Fulani Muslim Herdsmen against indigenous Christians in the North and nowadays Southwest, Southeast and South-south, and (3) killings and zero reprisals by Fulani, Kanuri and Shuwa Arab (with some Hausa Muslim foot soldiers) controlled Boko Haram, Ansaru and others against Christians, moderate Muslims and Government targets.

The report adds, Apart from killings, maiming and abductions by the  Jihadist groups, Governments and local institutions in the Muslim-controlled northern States are also making life very unbearable for their indigenous Christians communities. These include Katsina State where under-age Christian girls are forcefully married to Muslim men and converted to Islam.

The Global Terrorism Index ranked Nigeria as the third-most affected country by terrorism and reported over 22,000 deaths by acts of terror from 2001 to 2019.

The U.S. Commission on International and Religious Freedoms 2021 report warned that Nigeria will move relentlessly toward a Christian genocide if action is not taken.

Islamic extremism, particularly in northeast Nigeria, has led to thousands of deaths and millions displaced in recent years.

Nigeria was the first democratic nation to be added to the U.S. State Departments list of countries of particular concern under the International Religious Freedom Act for engaging in tolerated systematic, ongoing and egregious violations of religious freedom.
Texas Republican lawmakers intentionally derailed bill to ban child sex-change procedures, insiders say

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Despite Texas' reputation as a conservative bastion, a bill banning chemical and surgical sex changes for children younger than 18 failed to be scheduled for a vote in the House after stall tactics were deployed, according to activists and insiders.

A bill to prohibit medicalized gender-transitioning of children  the prescribing of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and performing cosmetic surgeries such as mastectomies and genital mutilation  passed the state Senate in late April. But when the bill moved to the House, it stalled in the Calendars Committee which didn't put the bill on the docket to be debated and voted on in the lower chamber.

Child advocacy groups who were in Austin lobbying lawmakers to pass the measure said Republicans on the committee used stall tactics to evade having to vote on the contentious measure that was opposed by LGBT activists and major corporations.

The text of the legislation, HB 1399, bans the experimental practices on children suffering from gender dysphoria for the purpose of transitioning a child's biological sex as determined by the sex organs, chromosomes, and endogenous profiles of the child or affirming the child's perception of the child's sex if that perception is inconsistent with the child's biological sex.

An exception was granted in the legislation for those with rare disorders of sexual development, also known as intersex conditions. The bill also would have banned medical insurance policies from insuring doctors against the damage caused by experimental gender-transitioning drugs and elective cosmetic surgeries.

Tracy Shannon, a Houston-area activist and blogger who was part of the lobbying efforts in support of the legislation, told The Christian Post on Friday that a seemingly impenetrable barrier exists between the elected officials and the general public, and that is their staffers.

The staffers, Shannon said, always gave them the same one-line answer: "The bill is going through the process and the representative supports the bill."

"We asked what the process was that the bill was going through while HB1399 languished in Calendars [Committee] which is headed by [Republican state Rep.] Dustin Burrows of Lubbock and has a majority of Republicans on the committee. When we inquired why not one member motioned to schedule the bill, we were verbally attacked, mocked and called liars," Shannon said.

"We spend a lot of time, money and energy lobbying our representatives [only] to be treated with disdain. It is shameful," she asserted, noting that Republican politicians in the House will now return to their districts and claim they co-authored, authored, or supported these gender modification bills that they did not push to get out of the House committee.

Texas-based political consultant Luke Macias tweeted Friday: "Republican legislators in the Texas House kill a bill that would ban sex-change surgeries on children. 93% of voters supported a ballot measure to ban it but evidently GOP leadership represent the other 7%."

CP called the House Calendars Committee earlier this month to ask if the bill would make it out of committee and was told the bill was "making the rounds" among its 11 members who decide which bills will go to the House floor for consideration.

The ongoing fight over transgender medicalization of children gained international attention in 2019 when the plight of then-7-year-old James Younger garnered international headlines.

Younger continues to be at the center of a bitter custody dispute between his parents. His mother, Dr. Anne Georgulas, a pediatrician, was intent on transitioning her son into a girl named Luna despite the objections of the boy's father, Jeffrey Younger, who has long referred to the medicalized gender transitioning of children as a form of "chemical castration."

In a January 2019 interview with Macias on his podcast, Jeffrey Younger described the psychological dynamics and how he has had to navigate the various hurdles in order to save his son from irreversible medical harm.

"You have to see your son sexually abused, and you have to maintain your calm, he explained, "because the courts are not going to be fair to you. And the only way you can survive this and get your son through this alive is to calmly allow your son to be tortured right before your eyes and outlast the opposition. Thats what its like, Younger recounted at the time.

Although bills banning the puberty blockers and genital mutilation of children have been put forward by Republican legislators at the state level, their efforts have faced intra-party opposition through various legislative processes and because of the influence of economically powerful entities.

A bill that would have banned the medicalized gender transitioning of minors in heavily Republican South Dakota died last year in a state Senate committee in part because of the influence of the Chamber of Commerce.

Earlier this year, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchison, a Republican, vetoed a bill prohibiting the use of experimental drugs and genital mutilation of gender dysphoric minors, citing limiting government principles and interference between doctor-patient relationships. The overwhelmingly Republican Arkansas legislature ultimately overrode his veto.

Matt Rinaldi, a former Texas state representative, said the way in which the bill was handled in the Calendars Committee, which held the bill back for consideration on the last day, was intentional and an indication that Republicans didn't consider it a priority.

When they schedule something on the last day, theyre setting it up for the Democrats to filibuster it. If they wanted it to pass, it would have already passed, Rinaldi said in an interview with the National File.

If you look at the calendars the last several sessions, and look on the last day, youll see a host of bills that are conservative firebrand bills that they knew they would never get to, and thats all for them escaping accountability, he explained.

I think its absolutely disgusting that bills like banning the mutilation of children and sex-change surgeries are even being delayed," he added. "If we cant, as a party, holding both Houses of the Legislature and the governors mansion, if we cant pass that bill, whats the case for voting for them at all, in any election? Theyre absolutely terrible.
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Gas is a fossil fuel, so it endangers our planet, right? At least thats what radical environmentalists and climate activists want you to believe.

The problem? Their perspective is completely detached from energy reality and obstructs alleviation of energy poverty.

Gas is a fossil fuel wonder. It has been a game changer in meeting human civilizations energy demand for clean fuel for cooking and heating. So much so that the very organizations that ask countries to reduce fossil fuel emissions actually fund their acquiring more and more gas resources.

Africa, especially, is in dire need of more gas resources. The recent anti-fossil fuel policies and exhaustion of funds for gas exploration pose a serious threat to the continents ambitions to tackle energy poverty and deaths due to use of solid cooking fuels.



Gas as a cooking fuel is revolutionary

People across the globe are becoming increasingly aware of natural gas. It is touted as the perfect transitional energy source that enables economies to switch from coal to renewables.

What many anti-fossil activists do not realize is that gas as an energy source has been revolutionary in modern society during the 20th and 21st centuries, even before we began using it for electricity generation at a large commercial scale.

People across the world were traditionally using highly polluting, less efficient, more time-consuming sources of cooking fuel like wood, charcoal, and dung.

Air pollution from these fuels is responsible for almost 5 percent of the global burden of disease. Recent scientific studies tell us that burning solid fuels [for cooking and heating] kills about 4 million people every year, a number which is higher than the combined impact of HIV-AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. These fuel sources also resulted in large-scale deforestation.

The introduction of Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG)a product extracted by refining crudeas a cooking fuel transformed the way human civilization made food. Today, it continues to transform billions of lives across the world. LPG is also used for heating and transportation purposes in many parts of the world.

Experts tell us that Household transition to cleaner cooking fuels (LPG) has historically been understood as an energy ladder, with clean energy access resulting from improvements in household socioeconomic status. A study done on the LPG adoption in Cameroon between 1975 and 2016 revealed the existence of a short-run unidirectional causal relationship ranging from LPG consumption to economic growth.

The World Bank and United Nations have dedicated time, energy, and resources during the past three decades to alleviating energy poverty related to cooking. The United Nations Sustainable Energy for All Initiative states, Increasing household use of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) is one of several pathways to meet the goal of universal access to clean cooking and heating solutions by 2030.

However, not all parts of the world have made this switch to LPG. Millions in Africa still use wood and charcoal and live in persistent energy poverty.

Africa in dire need of a major LPG push

When it comes to LPG consumption, Sub-Saharan African countries are ranked far lower than their North African neighbors like Egypt, Morocco, and Algeria in global rankings. Approximately 900 million people cook with polluting fuels in Sub-Saharan Africa.

A systematic review on the health impacts of solid cooking fuels in Sub-Saharan Africa found out that wood smoke caused acute respiratory illness, impaired lung function, increased blood pressure, low birth weight, oesophageal cancer, sick building syndrome, non-syndromic cleft lip and/or cleft palate and under-five mortality.

Women are worse affected than men, as they are more often involved in cooking. Unfortunately, studies predict that the number of people relying on solid cooking fuel could remain as high as 660820 million by 2030 if there are no major interventions to make LPG more affordable and accessible.

Besides the direct and immediate positive effect on the health of nearly 1 billion people in Sub-Saharan Africa, the transition to LPG will also help protect Africas forests. In Ghana alone, forests were unsustainably felled for wood and were disappearing at a rate of approximately 2 percent per year. LPG can change that situation throughout Africa.

West Africa and South Africa: Making progress

Using LPG as household fuel has been expanding in several countries in West Africa since the early 1990s. Ghana, Senegal, Togo, Benin, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, and Ivory Coast have managed to develop an LPG market due to government support and subsidies. Yet West African average per capita LPG consumption is only 3.5 kilograms per annum and is low by international standards.

Despite being the top LPG consumer in West Africa and a leading exporter of LPG, Nigerias consumption is still low due to affordability. Domestic consumption is only around 15 percent of the total produced per year in the country. The per capita consumption rate is only 1.8 kilograms, and 80 percent of the Nigerian population relies on the use of biomass fuels for cooking.

There are only a few countries where the LPG situation is much better and the support for an LPG transition is growing.

South Africa, which has been plagued by blackouts in recent years, is promoting LPG so that consumers can use gas for cooking and heating. Interventions to expedite LPG use in the past 7 years have resulted in beneficiaries improving their living standards and saving on electricity bills. The ruling African National Congress economic committee has suggested that promoting LPG will ease electricity demand.

South Africas current per capita consumption of LPG stands at 5.5 kilograms per annum. It is still miniscule in comparison to Moroccos 44 kilograms. South Africa aims to double its LPG usage within the next five years.

Energy companies and the need for policy interventions

To make their LPG dream come true, South Africa is securing imports from private producers like Total and Saudi Aramco, which are involved in large offshore gas and petroleum projects.

LPG producers and distributors have played a key role in making LPG accessible to millions of households in Africa. Vivo energy, for example, is a major supplier of LPG in Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Mauritius, Morocco, Tunisia, and Uganda.

Efforts by energy companies are not sufficient to make significant progress when it comes to LPG transition. Governments must address the exciting technological gap in the production, import, and transportation of LPG. In many African countries, LPG is unaffordable due to lack of proper facilities for transportation and distribution.

Introduction of LPG subsidy policies may be necessary in some cases to facilitate the transition. India, for example, managed to increase LPG consumption significantly in the last four years through the introduction of LPG subsidies to poor households.



A long-term vision for LPG transition may also require approval of more oil and gas projects, which can be quite challenging given that major international funders are now refusing to fund new fossil fuel projects in Africa.

This means that international agencies like the African Development Bank and the United Nations must encourage international donors to invest in African oil and gas projects, and reverse the growing trend of anti-fossil funding bias.

But American President Joe Biden has called for reducing funding for fossil fuel projects globally, and his Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry is asking global leaders to reduce fossil fuel consumption. If they successfully persuade their counterparts in Europe and elsewhere, it could mean disaster for Africa, where countries are just beginning to help their communities escape the centuries-long bondage to dirty and choking solid cooking fuels.

LPG has been a life-saver for billions around the world. Let not the medias evil image of fossil fuels distort their real-world importance.
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Hamas fired large fusillades of rockets at Tel Aviv and other civilian areas in Israel Thursday as the conflict in the Holy Land continues to escalate. More than 1,800 rockets and mortar shells have been launched toward Israel this week; the large number is intended to overwhelm Israels Iron Dome air defense system.

Armed drones were sent into southern Israel as well. Ben Gurion International Airport was closed to incoming passenger flights. The Israeli military responded Friday morning with a combined air and artillery barrage intended to destroy Hamas tunnel system.

Earlier this week, I discussed this conflict in the context of Jewish and Muslim historical narratives. Today, lets seek to understand it in relation to recent developments and events. Then well focus on practical ways we can make a difference.

Why now?

Hamas means zeal in Arabic and forms an acronym (spelled backwards) for Islamic Resistance Movement. Its official charter calls for the destruction of Israel and raising the banner of Allah over every inch of Palestine. When it attacks Israel, it is doing what it was created to do. (For more, see my 2014 paper, 4 Crucial Questions About Hamas.)

The story behind the story, however, is Irans support for Hamas. It backs Hamas and Hezbollah (the terrorist organization that dominates Lebanon to the north of Israel) as it seeks to extend its influence across the Middle East. Iran is Shiite and Persian; it is locked in a geopolitical conflict with Saudi Arabia and other Sunni Arab nations.

Israels recent peace accords with some of these countries threaten Irans dominance of the region. By empowering Hamas to attack Israel, it has provoked an Israeli response that it can caricature as an attack on all Muslims. Since the Quran requires Muslims to defend Islam, Iran may be hoping that the present conflict will rally all Muslims in opposition to the Jews, defeating Israels peace initiatives with the Sunni world. As I noted earlier this week, Iran also believes that engendering such conflict and chaos prepares the way for the coming of the Mahdi, its Messiah.

Hamas has taken advantage of tensions over the possible expulsion of six Palestinian families from East Jerusalem and the Jerusalem Day march that coincided with a significant Muslim holiday. Its leaders have also sought to position themselves to win Palestinian legislative elections scheduled for May 22 (but now indefinitely postponed). With Irans help, it has developed more extensive rockets and other weaponry than ever before and is using these munitions to target civilian populations more than ever before.

Israel has dealt with Hamas in the past and undoubtedly will continue to do so. But what is happening between Jewish Israelis and Arab Israelis is especially troubling for the future.

'This is different from anything Ive seen'

Of the 9 million people who live in Israel, 2 million are Arab. (Another 2 million Palestinians live in Gaza and 2.7 million in the West Bank.) Most Jews and Arabs in Israel have learned to live peaceably as neighbors since the State of Israel was founded in 1948.

However, the country is now experiencing the worst internal Jewish-Arab conflicts since the last Intifada (uprising) in 2000. The Times of Israel reports that scenes of unrest, rioting, hate rallies, and growing social chaos spread throughout numerous cities, some of which were once seen as symbols of coexistence. TikTok and other social media platforms are being used to encourage and inflame street protests as activists on both sides take out their pent-up anger and frustration on the other.

In one particularly shocking scene, hundreds of Jewish extremists in the town of Bat Yam vandalized Arab property and then assaulted an Arab driver in his car, dragging him from the vehicle and beating him savagely. Jewish mobs were seen roaming the streets of Haifa and Tiberias looking for Arabs to assault. An Arab at the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem was stabbed by Jews and seriously injured. The chant death to Arabs was heard in Jewish rallies.

Meanwhile, Arab riots were reported in Jerusalem, Lod, Haifa, Tamra, and elsewhere. A Jewish man in Acre was hospitalized in critical condition after he was assaulted with rocks and iron bars. A Jewish man in Tamra was stabbed and assaulted by an Arab mob; an Arab paramedic said the attackers almost burned the man inside his car before he helped evacuate him to safety. Israel has called up ten companies of reservists to support police in quelling such street violence.

One Tel Aviv resident said, I think this is different from anything Ive seen, and Ive been living here for twenty-four years. I just want to point out that were all Israelis, so Jews, Arabswere all Israelis.

Tzipi Livni, a former cabinet member and former chief negotiator in peace talks with the Palestinians, said, What was maybe under the surface has now exploded and created a combination that is really horrific. I dont want to use the words civil war. But this is something that is new, this is unbearable, this is horrific, and Im very worried.

Four biblical responses

Unlike the conflict with Hamas, which is centered in a small geographical area and can be managed through military means, street violence is a police matter that is difficult to quell. Thats why political leaders from across the spectrum are decrying this violence. Israeli Defense Minister Benny Ganz is warning that Israeli internal divisions are no less dangerous than Hamas.

How can Christians intercede biblically in these tragic days?

One: Pray for Jewish, Palestinian, and world leaders (1 Timothy 2:12). Ask God to give them wisdom and practical guidance.

Two: Pray for Gods shalom, the Hebrew word for peace (Psalm 122:6). It is far more than the cessation of violenceit is true and lasting peace with God, others, and ourselves.

Three: Pray for Jews and Muslims to turn to Jesus as their Messiah and Savior. He is the only path to the peace all people seek (John 16:33).

Four: Pray for ways to love the Jews and Arabs you know (John 13:3435). Anti-Semitism is rising in America and around the world; many Arabs face oppression and discrimination in America and the West as well. Look for opportunities to demonstrate Gods love in your compassion by building relationships centered in grace.

A Zen proverb says, Obstacles do not block the paththey are the path. Lets see the unfolding tragedy in Israel as the path to intercession that could lead to spiritual awakening in the Middle East and beyond. And lets resolve to walk that path, to the glory of God.

Why not right now?

Originally published at the Denison Forum
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There are many Christian leaders and believers in America who believe that another great awakening is our only hope. They (or, more accurately here, we) believe that only a sweeping revival movement, leading to national reformation, will turn the deadly tide in our country. As we have said repeatedly, it is literally revival or we die.

Yet not everyone means the same thing when they speak of the coming great awakening. To some, it is a spiritual outpouring which will result in massive repentance in the Church and massive salvation in the world. To others, it is a political upheaval, with the military restoring Trump to power, a Democrat-run pedophile ring being exposed, and the American people waking up to this reality. Not all great awakenings are the same!

As conveniently summarized by a secular news site (with reference to the larger Q conspiracy), QAnon purports that America is run by a cabal of pedophiles and Satan-worshippers who run a global child sex-trafficking operation and that former President Trump is the only person who can stop them. The information supposedly comes from a high-ranking government official who posts cryptic clues on 4chan and the even more unfettered site 8chan under the name Q.

Accordingly, It claims the military, supposedly eager to see the deep state overthrown, recruited Donald Trump to run for the president. But the deep state, which controls the media, quickly tried to smear him through fake news and unfounded allegations of collusion with Russia. It goes on to insist that despite the deep state's best efforts, however, Mr. Trump is winning, and that Q is releasing sanctioned leaks to the public in order to galvanize them ahead of The Storm, which is the moment when the deep state's leaders are arrested and sent to Guantanamo Bay. QAnon believers have called this process The Great Awakening.

Of course, there is some truth in the myth of these fantasies, enough to fuel the imaginations of the faithful. But in the end, this is nothing less than conspiratorial nonsense.

Interestingly, this article was most recently updated on March 29, indicating that this is far from a dead issue. And it was just two weeks ago, that I was sent a meme posted on the Facebook page of a Trump prophet, depicting the president standing behind a lectern, the sunlight flashing around him, and the caption, THE BEST IS YET TO COME!

In response, one of this prophets followers posted, Yezzzzz.....time has been ticking but God is working. Many have scoffed at the Prophets of the nations simply because time has passed when God didn't promise the process would be quick and easy! In fact, he is doing a sellout checker to test and see who will stick and stay, come what may. He is building a strong and faithful ARMY for the ..... GREAT AWAKENING!

This, of course, is the QAnon great awakening, not the spiritual awakening we are praying for. And in the end, it has virtually nothing to do with renewal in the church or reformation in the society. It is not about Jesus; it is about myth and fantasy.

As explained by a Q proponent in the book QAnon: An Invitation to The Great Awakening (sometimes simply attributed to WWG1WGA, which means, where we go one, we go all), While a lot is improving, it still puzzles many that most of these known criminals are still free. Especially higher ups like the Hillary Clinton, the Bushes and Obama. That is coming in the next chapter of the story. Thats why we have Q. The good guys, with control over the NSA, began the Q intelligence dissemination program to invoke an online grassroots movement called The Great Awakening.

And that is the awakening of which these Christians speak, some of them with explicit reference to Q, and some of them without any knowledge of Q, simply picking up the concept via word of mouth and social media.

Whole books have been written on the subject, some by proponents and some determined to expose it. Titles (which, for some reason, are quite long!) include Simon Smith, QAnon and the Great Awakening: The Battle for Earth and Our Souls: The Awakening Begins an Enlightening Analysis about What Is Wrong in Our Society; Michael D. Quinn, QAnon: An Objective Guide to Understand QAnon, The Deep State and Related Conspiracy Theories: The Great Awakening Explained; and Donald Jones, Qanon: The Complete Guide To Understanding Conspiracy Theories such as The Deep State, The Storm and The Great Awakening That Will Make America Great Again.

That was just a sampling, indicating that, when many people speak of the coming great awakening, they mean something very different than the great awakening for which we pray and cry out (For more details on this false awakening concept, see James Beverleys important book TheQAnon Deception.)

Of course, I stand with all those fighting against human trafficking, and, as I have mentioned in the past, a number of grads from our ministry school are battling this horrific evil in America and the nations. And may pedophiles be brought to swift justice, stopped before they destroy more innocent lives.

But again, in reality, this has nothing to do with the anticipated great awakening of Q, and the sooner we dismiss such nonsense for good  Im appealing to all those who still expect it  the better it will be.

Instead, lets put our efforts into seeking God earnestly until He rains down repentance and revival and reformation on America, starting with each of us.

Thinking back to Americas First Great Awakening in the colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, Benjamin Franklin said that it seemed as if all the world were growing religious [which he meant in a totally positive sense], so that one could not walk through the town in the evening without hearing psalms sung in different families of every street.

Could you picture your neighborhood, let alone your city, looking and sounding like that?
Actor David Oyelowo Speaks Out Against 'Goody Two-Shoes' Christian Films

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David Oyelowo has made a name for himself in Hollywood, and now the actor is calling for Christian films to be more realistic.

Oyelowo stars in the film "A United Kingdom" and spoke about the need for Christian films to do more than just make the world seem perfect.

"If you're going to make Christian films which paint the world as a goody two-shoes place where perfect Christians help people who aren't so perfect come to the light, that's just not the world we live in," he told the website Premier.org.

In a previous Relevant Magazine report, the British actor spoke more about various types of Christian films in Hollywood. From Oyelowo's perspective, films that attempt to recreate Biblical stories in Hollywood are not accurately doing so.

"Hollywood has done some of these films and some of them are ginormous Biblical movies, but you can tell the people making these are not invested in the truth of what those stories are Biblically. It shows in the work," he said. " It shows that they've just basically treated it as, 'OK, millions of people believe in this certain Old Testament story. It has action elements, it has epic elements, it has murder, it has this that and the other.'"

Oyelowo believes people recreating Bible stories in Hollywood have a motivation to, "go make a movie, and at the very least, all the Christians will come and 'we'll break even and if we go beyond that, great.'"

While he believes that "the Bible I read, it doesn't really correlate with those films," Oyelowo also believes that on the opposite side of the spectrum, there is another type of Christian film that is being produced for the masses.

"On the other side, you have films being made that are basically preaching to the choir. They are an extension of what you sometimes get in a church service, which is that the youth group put together a play to illustrate a Biblical story or a Biblical scene," he said. "Everyone goes. And isn't that wonderful because we are people of grace and we are people who love the message."

He went on to reveal that some of the production value is lacking in these types of films that aren't viewed outside of churches all too often.

"So as long as that's coming through, we're very forgiving of the fact that it's not well acted, it's not well written and really no one outside of this church would be interested in it," he wrote.

"I think that there are films that are basically extensions of what you get in any given church on a Sunday morning."

The British actor's new movie "A United Kingdom" tells the true story of Botswana's first president Seretse Khama who married a white woman from the United Kingdom. Oyelowo said the film echoes his faith and belief in how God sees race in a relatable way.

"They fell in love because they just loved the other person and not anything because of race; those impositions came from without, as opposed to within and it shows what they could achieve together. I think that God doesn't see color," he told PRemier. "This absolutely chimes with my faith, in that I think Seretse Khama and Ruth were motivated by love and that love has a power that cut through governments, cultures, all kinds of resistance that your average person probably wouldn't weather. That, in and of itself, is something that I deeply admire and can relate to, as a Christian who deeply believes in love myself."
Actor David Oyelowo of 'A United Kingdom': 'Christ Is the Rock on Which I Build My Life' (Interview)

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David Oyelowo did not have to look very far for inspiration for his newest film, A United Kingdom.

The 40-year-old actor, known for his lead roles in Selma (2014) and Queen of Katwe (2016), plays Seretse Khama, an African man and the prince of Bechuanaland (now Botswana) who is told by his family and his country not to marry the love of his life, a white British woman named Ruth Williams. When they do marry, he is placed in exile and prevented from re-entering his homeland.

The movie is set in the 1940s and 1950s and is based on a true story about an interracial marriage  a story that is unfamiliar to most Americans. The British government also opposed the marriage, as did Williams' parents.

The film is personal for Oyelowo, who was born in the United Kingdom but grew up in Africa and, like Khama, is married to a white woman.

"It just made me feel very blessed that I didn't have to go through that," Oyelowo told The Christian Post.

A United Kingdom (PG-13), which is expanding this weekend, is but the latest historical film for Oyelowo, who was nominated for a Golden Globe and a Critics' Choice Movie Award for his portrayal of Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma. He has starred in other true-to-life films, including Queen of Katwe.

Oyelowo said he is drawn to inspirational historical films partially because of his Christian faith and his desire to play leaders who "exhibit characteristics that I already aspire to." He calls Christ "the rock on which I build my life."

"I pray about what I should and shouldn't do [in movies], and of course who you are dictates what you are drawn to, and so I am sure that the roles I play, the films I do, are a reflection of what I believe," he said. "They would have to be. There is no doubt that there is a correlation between my faith as a person and the roles I play."

A father of four children, Oyelowo spoke recently with CP about A United Kingdom, his movie career, and his faith. Following is a transcript, edited for clarity:

CP: This is a story that is going to be new to a lot of Americans. Is this a well-known story among British people?

David Oyelowo: No, it is not. It is not even a well-known story among people from Batswana. And I think the reason for that is that it's a moment in history when Great Britain was not behaving in the most honorable fashion, so it's a piece of history that has been a bit sidelined.

And the thing that really struck me when someone handed me the book several years ago is that as a proud person of African descent I did not know this story, but also I so recognized this man, Seretse Khama. My father is a prince himself and is someone who is very connected to his community and has a huge capacity for love.

I was born in the U.K. but lived in Nigeria for several years. There were so many things about Seretse Kama I identified with and I feel are recognizable, but I feel are almost never seen in a film around an African character of his nature. So that was another motivating factor for me.

CP: This is another historical drama for you. Why do you keep landing in these true-to-life inspiring roles?

Oyelowo: I'm not on a quest to be in inspiring films or to be inspiring in an overt way. I'm drawn to these films partly because they bring to a context as to what it is to be a black person.

I find that a lot of films have characters that are stereotypical in relation to the black experience. These are the kinds of characters that we don't get to see as much  a civil rights activist [Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma] who is an inspirational and true leader, an ordinary man [Robert Katende in Queen of Katwe] who sees talent within this young 10-year-old girl in a slum in Uganda and helps her become a chess champion, an African prince [Seretse Khama] who will put everything on the line for love, and yet he loves his country. These are the kind of characters and the kind of roles I personally don't see every day, and that's partly why I'm drawn to them.

CP: Has playing these roles changed your view of the world or life in general?

Oyelowo: It's inspired me to be my better self. I think partly why I gravitate toward them is because these characters exhibit characteristics that I already aspire to.

But you can't step into Dr. King's shoes and not come away feeling the need to be more socially active, more socially invested in your community.

I definitely hug my wife a bit tighter having done A United Kingdom, because I also am married to a white lady. And I'm just so grateful that we did not have to go through what Seretse and Ruth did.

CP: You grew up Baptist and consider faith an important part of your life. Could you tell us a little bit more about your faith background and how that has guided your life?

Oyelowo: I was raised Baptist but at the age of 16 I realized I was basically piggybacking on my parents' faith  it wasn't yet real for me. So at that stage I reached out to God and said if you don't turn out for me personally within three months, I'm out. And He did. And that was the point at which I became a born-again Christian and have been ever since. That's the rock on which I build my life.

Jesus Christ is the rock on which I build my life and has been my guiding light through everything  my marriage, my career, how we parent our children, and certainly the choices I make in everything I do are guided by the moral compass that my faith gives me.

A United Kingdom is rated PG-13 for some language, including racial epithets, and a scene of sensuality.
Ex porn star-turned-Christian on importance of healthy friendships, how to identify 'toxic' people

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Christian author and speaker Brittni De La Mora weighed in on the crucial role friendships play in living a God-glorifying life and identified the various kinds of toxic people Christians should avoid allowing in their inner circle.

Brittni, a former porn star who famously left the industry behind to become a Christian, recently discussed the topic on an episode of Lets Talk Purity, a show she co-hosts alongside her husband, Rich De La Mora.

I've had my fair share of great friendships that have been a blessing, that have been destiny friendships, but then I've also had some friendships that have really, especially since becoming a Christian in the last eight years, have tried to hinder me in some way or another. And I know that this isn't an isolated incident, she said.

LISTEN: Subscribe to the Lets Talk Purity Podcast on Edifi

Rich stressed the importance of healthy peer friendships, adding: I've seen people who stayed in an impure place because of the people that are around ... we have to be very intentional and we have to take a look at our friendships ... I think it's very important before we invest, we need to learn to investigate.

Brittni shared how, when she left the porn industry and began going to church, she realized she needed to change her lifestyle. But the man she was dating at the time encouraged her to return to stripping to make ends meet.

The old me would have been like, Yeah, you're right.' But no, I was such a person of conviction, I was like, 'No, God set me free from that, she recalled. If you're not a person of conviction, especially, your friendships will definitely hinder you.

Brittni identified different types of toxic friends, including yes people and performance-based people who fail to hold others accountable or reveal their true character.

We need people in our lives who can tell us the truth even when it hurts, she said.

A sign of a toxic friend, Rich added, is one who pulls you away from Christ or makes you compromise your faith: Your friends who are for you  you know they're going to make sure that you become all that Christ has called you to be ... we have to be really wise. The serpent knows how to get in cracks and crevices.

Ive seen some of the strongest leaders I've ever seen, some of the most brilliant gifted people in ministry, get pulled away because of bad friendships, he added. Be careful with people who try to compromise your convictions.

The couple also cautioned listeners against befriending those who are intimidated by them, stressing the importance of having friends who can both celebrate and uplift those around them.

A confident person is going to cheer you on, whereas an insecure and an intimidated person  you just can't trust them, Brittni said. They're not going to push you closer to the things that God has for you. They are going to try to tempt you to just be mediocre ... they're going to gossip behind your back. Its very hard to be friends with an insecure person because they are jealous of you.

Brittni added that many people were there for her when she was stumbling into church drunk and on drugs  but the more success she found, the smaller her circle became because people became envious.

I think God is so good at pruning friendships, she said. And so if there are friendships in your life that God has been pruning, He's removed people out of your life, or He's convicting you to maybe close the door on them, don't fight Him. Don't fight Him because your bad friendships, your toxic friendships, will definitely hinder your destiny.

Rich added that Jesus exemplified how to have a tight-knit inner circle, adding: Toxic people tolerate you. People who are healthy people honor you. You have to know the difference.

For those who are forced to have toxic people in their lives for various reasons, Brittni advised setting boundaries.

Boundaries are the most beautiful thing because they keep toxic people at bay where you can love them, you can even minister the Gospel to them, you can show them the love of Jesus, but they aren't impacting your heart, she explained.

Previously, Brittni highlighted the pivotal role friends play in recovering from drug or alcohol addiction: Part of the reason why I didn't go back to drugs was [that] I got rid of all my friendships, all the connects, all of my hookups, and I literally surrounded myself with church people, she said.

Anybody that might be a temptation to you  get them out of your life, and keep pressing in with God. Go to church, serve in your church too ... take your eyes off of yourself and your problems and put them on helping other people ... you have to be in the right environment.
Survivor wants Atlanta spa shooter charged with killing 8 to be ultimately judged' by God

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Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz, the only person to survive being shot by Robert Aaron Long, 22, during a March shooting spree that left eight people dead at three massage parlors in Georgia, says he wants him to be ultimately judged" by God after a prosecutor announced she plans to seek the death penalty for his crimes.

I dont want the world to hear me saying that he should or shouldnt die, Hernandez-Ortiz told WSBTV Wednesday through his translator and attorney Doug Rohan.

Hernandez-Ortiz said he was at Youngs Asian Massage in Cherokee County on March 16 when he came face to face with Long.

I heard the shots fired as I was inside the room. I opened the door. I could see the victims. I saw the attacker and I looked at him eye to eye. I begged him not to shoot me, he said.

Long reportedly shot Hernandez-Ortiz in his face and the bullet traveled through his throat and lodged into his stomach.

People dont typically get shot in the face and survive, without there being a miracle. So I want him to also understand the miracle of God, and ultimately be judged by that God, Hernandez-Ortiz said. I dont have any hate in my heart toward the attacker, but certainly at the end of the day, I want to see justice done.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis announced at a news conference Tuesday that she plans to get justice for four of Longs victims killed at two of the Atlanta-area spas: Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63.

"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 a press briefing Tuesday cited by ABC News. "Unfortunately, a case has arisen in the first few months of my term that I believe warrants the ultimate penalty, and we shall seek it."

Willis also noted that she would seek hate crime charges in the case because six of the victims were Asian women, while two were white.

Long was further indicted by a separate grand jury in Cherokee County Tuesday for the shooting at Youngs Asian Massage that claimed the lives of Xiaojie "Emily" Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Delaina Yaun, 33; and Paul Michels, 54. Hernandez-Ortiz was the only shooting victim to survive. Six others were present at the time of the shooting but were not hurt.

The Washington Post reported that Gold Spa, one of the businesses attacked, had been the subject of prostitution stings by the Atlanta Police Department. The newspaper obtained police reports indicating that police conducted seven undercover stings at Gold Spa and made 10 arrests during a two-year period from 2011 to 2013.

A spokesperson for the Cherokee County District Attorney D.A. Shannon Wallace told WSBTV that she will make a decision on whether to pursue the death penalty before Longs arraignment.

Cherokee has traditionally been very conservative, and the death penalty is viewed as a conservative issue, so I have every expectation that Cherokee will likely announce they are going down the same path, said Rohan.

Dana Toole whose sister, Delaina Yaun, was killed at Youngs Asian Massage, said if the death penalty is the best option for justice in this case, and she will not oppose it even though she knows Longs death wont bring her sister back.

It wont bring her back, I just put it in Gods hands, because its not my choice to take another life, Toole told WSBTV. What is justice in this case? Making sure he stays where hes at. If the death penalty is proceeded forward, then so be it.

Prior to the shootings, Long was a devout member of Crabapple First Baptist Church in Milton, Georgia, where he worshiped with his family and was a youth leader years earlier.

Tyler Bayless, who said he lived with Long in an Atlanta halfway house for recovering addicts named Maverick Recovery in late 2019 and early 2020, said the former youth worker confessed to struggling with sexual sins he committed at massage parlors and doesnt believe his actions were racially motivated.

I lived with Robert Aaron Long for a few months. I can tell you right now that this is not racially motivated killing, but the product of an emotionally disturbed young man who was religious to the point of mania and who felt deep shame about why he frequented these places, Tyler Bayless revealed in a Facebook post in March. I wonder how this would have gone if he had been in an environment where he wasnt repeatedly told how sinful he was for the things that drove him. What a tragic loss of life, and a kid that was all around one of the sweeter people youd meet.

Shortly after the shooting, Crabapple First Baptist Church announced that they rescinded Longs church membership.

We want to be clear that this extreme and wicked act is nothing less than rebellion against our Holy God and His Word, a statement from the church said. Aarons actions are antithetical to everything that we believe and teach as a church. In the strongest possible terms, we condemn the actions of Aaron Long as well as his stated reasons for carrying out this wicked plan.

The church did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Christian Post Thursday on the death penalty being sought for Long.
Nigerian church warns against use of spiritual perfumes after death of man engulfed by flames

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Following the death of a young man who died during a prayer meeting, one of the most popular churches in western Nigeria is warning against the use of spiritual perfumes.

At a prayer meeting held at The Celestial Church of Christ in Lagos on May 3, it's believed that a priest who was leading the gathering sprayed Kayode Badru with a perfume that then caught fire and engulfed him in flames, according to the BBC. He was set ablaze by a candle that was part of the service. Such prayer events include the spraying of perfumes and lighting candles to symbolize good light and aura.

Badru succumbed to the injuries he suffered and died at the hospital two days later.

The church said in a statement Saturday that spiritual perfumes "should be diluted with water," stressing that "the spraying or pouring of undiluted Spiritual Perfumes in its volatile state with a lighted candle is an imported culture not originally part of the tenets of the Celestial Church of Christ."



The statement continued: We are all advised to adhere to this directive, any Parish or member that goes against this directive will be solely responsible for the resultant effect. The Pastor has also directed the Pastor-in-Council to come up with a policy document to curb alien practices that have been introduced into the Tenets and Doctrines of the Church to safeguard the Churchs divine culture as instructed by the Spirit of God through the Pastor Founder.



Whether the perfume was diluted with water when Badru was sprayed is unknown.



In an interview with BBC Pidgin, Imolemitan Ojo, a senior pastor of the church, said police had arrested both the priest who led the prayer session and some of the elders who were present. As is spoken in Nigeria, Pidgin is an English-based Creole tongue, a common language used across the nation. Those who attend services at The Celestial Church of Christ do so barefoot and wear one-piece white garments.



Badru was reportedly a wealthy man who has been living in Dubai and had visited the church, where he is a member, for a thanksgiving ceremony. NgNews247, however, reported Monday that he had flown into the West African nation from the United Arab Emirates for the graduation ceremony for 40 people he had sponsored to attend the Academy For Innovative Art And Technology.



The Celestial Church of Christ was founded in 1947 by Samuel Bilehou Oshoffa in Porto-Novo, Benin, and has branches worldwide.
This Thursday, Google Cloud announced that it reached an agreement with the company SpaceX to offer satellite internet services through Starlink . The tech giant, owned by Alphabet Inc. , will provide its cloud infrastructure for Elon Musk's connectivity project.

This agreement involves SpaceX installing Starlink ground terminals in Google's cloud data centers, which will connect to Starlink satellites .

Thus, Musk customers will be able to access the internet from Google's infrastructure, while 'Big Tech' will be able to provide a faster and more secure connection in hard-to-reach areas, such as large rural areas.

It may interest you: The German scientist who predicted that a person named 'Elon' would take humanity to Mars

This service will be available to business customers of both companies from the second half of 2021 , Google said in a statement . The first Starlink terminal in a Google data center will be located in Ohio, United States. The rest of the data centers will be announced in the coming months.

"Applications and services that run in the cloud can be transformative for organizations, whether they operate in a networked or remote environment," said Urs Holzle , vice president of infrastructure for Google Cloud . The executive also assures that SpaceX will help provide " fluid, secure and fast access to critical applications and services that customers need to keep their equipment running ."

Deployment of 60 Starlink satellites confirmed pic.twitter.com/RarbrcfUml - SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 9, 2021

Don't forget that in 2015, Google invested $ 900 million in Space X, Elon Musk's aerospace company. This in order to have access to its technology in the future.

Google, SpaceX and Starlink go against Amazon

This alliance also strengthens the position of both companies in the competition against the cloud services of Amazon , the company of Jeff Bezos . It provides hosting on its AWS cloud and also plans to launch some 3,000 satellites into orbit with the Kuiper project , to provide satellite internet .

For now, SpaceX has put 1,625 satellites in orbit , of which 1,550 are in operation and provide beta-phase satellite internet to customers in various parts of the world. In fact, you can already request the Starlink service in Mexico . Meanwhile, Amazon is just about to launch its own.

Last October, Microsoft also struck a similar agreement with SpaceX to connect its Azure cloud to Starlink and use its satellites to offer mobile data centers globally.

Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
PITTSBURGH (AP)  When he was working on the master plan for the post-9/11 World Trade Center site in New York City, architect Daniel Libeskind confronted a dilemma much like the one he will now face in helping revive another target of terrorist violence, the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill.

The question is how to memorialize a terrible event that no one should ever forget, yet at the same time create beautiful, inspiring spaces where people will want to live and work, Mr. Libeskind later wrote of the World Trade Center project.

If you make it too brutal, or too sad, no one will want to be there; if you wipe the slate clean, and proceed as if nothing happened, you just bury the pain and prevent healing, he wrote in his book, Edge of Order.

Officials of Tree of Life / Or LSimcha Congregation recently announced the choice of the New York-based Mr. Libeskind to be lead architect for the reconstruction of their synagogue, which has been closed since Oct. 27, 2018.

On that Shabbat morning, a gunman killed 11 worshipers from Tree of Life and two other congregations meeting there, Dor Hadash and New Light. Two more worshipers and four police officers were also injured in the attack. The suspect, who authorities say voiced hatred toward Jews online and at the scene, is awaiting trial on capital charges.

Tree of Lifes selection committee reviewed proposals from about a dozen architectural firms, interviewed finalists and were convinced Mr. Libeskind had both the professional skills to lead the site renewal and also the personal experience to understand the projects importance, as a child of Holocaust survivors who immigrated here with his parents after facing communist-era antisemitism in Poland.

He gets it, said Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, who spent much of his life in the New York metropolitan area and saw the post-9/11 transformation of the World Trade Center under Mr. Libeskinds master plan. Rabbi Myers sees that project as having incorporated the many stories of those affected by 9/11 while creating a site thats both a memorial and a place of daily life and work.

We have complete confidence hell be able to do the same thing here, said Rabbi Myers, a survivor of the 2018 attack.

Preliminary plans at Tree of Life are to preserve its large, main sanctuary, which was vacant on the day of the attack.

Other portions of the complex, including the chapel and other places where the murders occurred, are slated for demolition, although the historic stained-glass windows of both the chapel and the sanctuary are being preserved.

The reconstructed campus will also serve as the new home of the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh, now located in Greenfield. The congregation envisions hosting programs with groups from the broader community.

Mr. Libeskind was chosen as master planner for the World Trade Center redevelopment after 9/11. His plan, called Memory Foundations, underwent significant changes with the involvement of architects, politicians, developers and others.

But the final result incorporated key essentials.

They included reserving the footprint of the original twin towers as a memorial, while constructing one tower whose spire reaches the symbolic height of 1,776 feet. The tower is flanked by other buildings while retaining enough open space for the sunlight to spread across the landscape during the mid-morning hours of every Sept. 11.

The memorial portion takes visitors to the bedrock of the site, symbolizing the great foundations from which New York rises to the aspirational heights of its skyline, Mr. Libeskind has said.

Tree of Life  where the date 10/27 is freighted with meaning in the way 9/11 is nationally  has its own set of needs for the site. These include memorializing those lost in the nations deadliest anti-Semitic attack, while enabling the site to be a space for Jewish worship and celebration, for education on past and present intolerance, and for community-building, all in defiance of the terrorists aims.

Regardless of the transformation that takes place, its easy to say its a site of 10/27, and thats all, Rabbi Myers said. To me, thats not what were poised to become. Were poised to transform that site of massacre into something incredible, thats welcoming to all people, with so many different components: worship, study, reflection, creativity. To me, the only impediment is your imagination.

He added: I want it to be more than that people come and have this Wow moment because of architecture. I want the Wow moment to be, Look how they transformed a site of massacre into this beacon of hope. 

Tree of Lifes congregation began worshiping at Rodef Shalom Congregation nearby in Shadyside after the attack. Since the onset of the pandemic, the congregation has largely been worshiping online, though it hopes to resume in-person worship soon. Dor Hadash and New Light, also worshiping at nearby synagogues, have decided to remain at their current locations.

Rodef Shalom has been wonderful hosts and continue to be, but were eager to get back into our own home, Rabbi Myers said. The congregation has made its home at the corner of Shady and Wilkins avenues for generations.

It would have been easy to say that evil chased us from our home and we could not return, he said. Were poised to be able to return.

Mr. Libeskind, who will be working with the Pittsburgh architectural group Rothschild Doyno Collaborative, will be visiting the site later this month to begin the design process. Tree of Life officers said they were won over by his articulation of the architectural problems to solve:

The challenge in Pittsburgh is to create a powerful and memorable space that addresses the worst anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history, he wrote to the congregation as it sought a lead architect.

When my parents, survivors of the Holocaust, and I came as immigrants to American we felt an air of freedom as Jews in this country, wrote Mr. Libeskind. What transpired in Pittsburgh has made me reflect on this belief and ask the question: How do we mark the event while affirming that America is the land of the free?

He said the project must address the current intolerance and the all too short memory of crimes against humanity.

Hatred is a force that has shaped much of my life, Mr. Libeskind added. Today, we see the flames of hate being fanned by leaders and politicians around the globe.

Yet I wholeheartedly believe in the light and optimism of the human spirit  that we overcome by telling stories and lifting our voices.

___

Online:

https://bit.ly/3odqvTz
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP)  As a youngster, Matt Noland explored the USS Kidd Veterans Museum in Baton Rouge  and the World War II-era ship in his hometown played a part in his decision to follow a career in the Navy.

Now hes second in command of the modern USS Kidd, a guided missile destroyer based in Everett Washington that provides air defense, anti-submarine defense and anti-surface warfare. And, on Wednesday, hell become the commander of the ship and its crew of 350.

Noland, 43, has served as executive officer of the ship for the last 20 months, making sure the ship ran like a well-oiled machine for Commander Nathan Wemett, whos leaving for duty on the administrative staff of an overseas Navy base.

All the ships five departments and the divisions in those departments come together for the first time at the level of executive officer, Noland said in an interview last week.

Nolan said its the hardest job hes ever had  but also the best job.

Youre in the position every single day to be a positive example to hundreds of people, Noland said. Thats humbling and exciting and makes you want to be a better person every day.

The commanding officers job will be even better, he added. I cant wait.

A graduate of McKinley High School and LSU, Noland, who holds a masters degree in strategy from the Naval War College, has served on two guided missile cruisers and one guided missile frigate and has been stationed in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Japan.

He served as a warfare and tactics instructor at the Navy base in San Diego, the principal home port of the Pacific fleet, before becoming executive officer of the USS Kidd in September 2019.

Theres nowhere else in the Navy that provides the opportunity to really lead people from such an early moment in the career pipeline, Noland said. Our young officers are leading sailors from the very beginning.

Its demanding from day one, but I cant imagine a more rewarding experience, from its earliest beginning to its fullest realization, he said.

Noland will be wearing his dress blues at Wednesdays ceremony on the USS Kidds pier in Everett, Washington, when he and outgoing Commander Wemett each read their official orders with respect to the change of command.

Its honoring the commander whos leaving, Noland said.

Nolands wife, Elizabeth, and their three daughters, as well as his parents, grandmother, sister and niece, from Baton Rouge, will be there too.

Noland, who joined the Navy ROTC in college and graduated from LSU with a degree in history, said he decided to follow a Navy career, after meeting fellow students who were Marines.

The USS Kidd Veterans Museum was part of it, too, he said.

Noland hopes to one day be able to establish a connection between todays sailors of the USS Kidd, the third ship to bear the name, and the USS Kidd Veterans Museum in Baton Rouge.

The ships are named for Rear Admiral Isaac C. Kidd, who was killed in action aboard the USS Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor, the first American flag officer killed in WWII.

Noland envisions a day when he could perhaps partner with the USS Kidd Veterans Museum and send some of his top sailors to take part in a ceremony there.

They could sample that good Louisiana cooking, too, he said. Everybody needs to.
SANTIAGO, Chile (AP)  The face of a new Chile began taking shape this weekend as the South American country was electing 155 people to draft a constitution to replace one that has governed it since being imposed during a military dictatorship.

Nearly 80% of voters in a plebiscite last year chose to draft a new charter for the nation following a year of protests, though there is much less consistent agreement over what it should contain.

Activist groups have mobilized in hopes of enshrining equality for women, protections for the environment, for Indigenous people, for or against the right to abortion. Conservatives hope to maintain a dominant private sector and rules making it hard to pass major reforms in the legislature.

Their ability to get any strong clauses may be limited, though: Two-thirds agreement is required, so any bloc that can muster a third of the votes in the constitutional convention can block any clause.

The governing center-right coalition and other conservative parties are running a single slate in the two-day voting, while the left and center-left are divided among several tickets.

This is one of the most important elections in our history, said President Sebastian Pinera as he cast a vote Saturday.

The document that emerges from the wrangling will go to a public vote in mid-2022. If rejected, the current constitution will remain in force.

The makeup of the body reflects a wave of revulsion against the current political system that was obvious during unrest that spread across the nation in late 2019, with a grab-bag of protests against increased taxi fares, inadequate pensions and health care, poor schools and general inequality in one of Latin America's richest nations.

Members of congress are barred from the convention and by law half of the body must consist of women  the first time any constitution has been drafted in conditions of gender parity, according to the United Nations.

I dont believe in the current politicians. ...Its the hour for us, for all who have been fighting for a most just country, to be part of the change, said candidate Natalia Aravena, a 26-year-old nurse who lost an eye during the the recent wave of protests.

Seventeen seats are reserved for Indigenous peoples, who are not mentioned in the existing constitution.

The left, especially, has long detested Chile's current constitution, which was written and imposed under the 1973-1990 military dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet.

That document, which created a strong presidency and guarantees protections for private property, has guided the nation through a period of overall prosperity but also of intense inequality. It also gives broad powers to security forces that civil libertarians see as excessive.

The old constitution was amended over the years, notably with the 2005 repeal of an article that had allowed appointed senators and senators for life in Congress.

The vote originally was scheduled for April, but was delayed by an upsurge of COVID-19 cases. Overall, Chile has been among the countries most successful at vaccinating its population, with nearly 60% of Chileans getting at least one dose, though most of the country's districts remain under some sort of pandemic restrictions.

The election will also decide mayoral and gubernatorial posts across the country.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Robert Collier says that during the seven years he worked as an operating room aide at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, white nurses called him and other Black employees boy." Management ignored two large swastikas painted on a storage room wall. And for six months, he regularly rode an elevator with the N-word carved into a wall.

Collier ultimately sued the hospital, but lower courts dismissed his case. Now, however, beginning with a private conference that was scheduled for Thursday, the Supreme Court is considering for the first time whether to hear the case. (Although the court did not comment, the case remained on its calendar, which likely means it was discussed Thursday.)

Focusing on the elevator graffiti, Collier is asking the justices to decide whether a single use of the N-word in the workplace can create a hostile work environment, giving an employee the ability to pursue a case under Title VII of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.

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Already, the courts two newest members, both appointed by President Donald Trump, are on record with seemingly different views. The case is also a test of whether the justices are willing to wade into the ongoing, complex conversations about race happening nationwide. The public could learn as soon as Monday whether the court will take Collier's case.

Jennifer A. Holmes, a lawyer with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, which has urged the court to take the case, says she hopes the conversations taking place nationally will push the justices in that direction.

Doing so gives the court an opportunity to show that theyre not insensitive to issues of race, Holmes said. And courts are "all the time" confronting workplace discrimination claims involving use of the N-word, she said. The question for the justices, she said, is just whether someone who experiences an isolated instance of the N-word can advance their case beyond the beginning stage.

Two of the court's nine justices have experience with similar cases.

In 2019, as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote an opinion for a panel of three judges who unanimously ruled against a Black man who sued over alleged discrimination and had his case dismissed at an early stage. Among other things, he claimed a former supervisor at the Illinois Department of Transportation called him the N-word.

The n-word is an egregious racial epithet," she wrote. But she said previous cases have made clear that an employee can't win his case simply by proving that the word was uttered. He also must prove that use of this word altered the conditions of his employment and created a hostile or abusive working environment.

Barrett's colleague, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, has said he sees things differently.

In 2013, as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Kavanaugh was a part of a three-judge panel including now-Attorney General Merrick Garland that sided with a Black former Fannie Mae employee who sued alleging racial discrimination. The judges ruled that the man, who said he was called the N-word by a supervisor, shouldn't have had his case dismissed at an early stage.

Kavanaugh wrote separately about probably the most offensive word in English. His view, he said, is that the word's use in the workplace by a supervisor suffices by itself to establish a racially hostile work environment.

The Supreme Court itself has yet to squarely address the issue. The justices have said that the mere utterance of an ethnic or racial epithet" doesn't allow a person to sue under the Civil Rights Act's Title VII. But in a 1998 case, the court suggested that a single, extremely serious incident could.

The hospital's lawyers, for their part, have urged the court not to take Collier's case. Parkland, the hospital where President John F. Kennedy was taken in 1963 after he was fatally shot, says the case's "factual record ... is neither strong nor clear. And Collier himself previously said that the racial graffiti he saw had no appreciable effect on his job performance.

In a statement to The Associated Press, hospital spokesman Michael Malaise noted that there is no evidence that any Parkland employee was responsible for the alleged graffiti or that it was directed specifically at Mr. Collier. Over 70% of hospital staff members self-identify as minorities and the hospital's diversity is one of our strongest assets, he said.

Collier was fired by the hospital in 2016 after a conflict with a supervisor. He brought his lawsuit after he was fired. His attorney, Georgetown law professor Brian Wolfman, declined an interview request on his client's behalf. During a 2018 deposition, however, Collier talked about how seeing the elevator graffiti made him feel.

I would say it was something I noticed and complained about, Collier said. And that every time I would have to catch that elevator by not seeing anything done about it ... it was upsetting ... Because I would have wanted to see it gone away pretty much instantly.
Litigation targeting former dam owner Boyce Hydro is still underway in Michigan's court system.

Following the disastrous mid-Michigan dam failures on May 19, 2020, many local residents blamed Boyce for the incident, with some lawsuits also targeting other state agencies as well.

Below is a list of active lawsuits filed against Boyce Hydro and other parties in response to the dam failures and the flooding that followed. All listed lawsuits were filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

On May 22, Kimberly Borchard, Timothy Dana and Holly Kovacs sued Boyce Hydro, its subsidiaries and co-owners, along with the Four Lakes Task Force (FLTF), on counts of negligence, nuisance, trespass, strict liability and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Charges against FLTF were dropped in May 2020. On March 31, 2021, it was decided the case will go to trial. A settlement conference is set for Oct. 6, 2021 before Judge Thomas Ludington, with a jury trial set for March 1, 2022.

On May 22, Carol Clarkson and three other plaintiffs sued Boyce Hydro, its subsidiaries and co-owners on two counts of negligence, gross negligence, common law trespass, statutory trespass and trespass-nuisance. The lawsuit also initially named the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy as defendants, though the plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed those charges on June 22. A settlement conference is set for Aug. 10, 2021 before Judge Thomas Ludington, with a jury trial set for Feb. 1, 2022.

On May 27, Robert Woods and Holly Johnson sued the FLTF, Michigans Attorney General Dana Nessel, Midland County, Gladwin County, the State of Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy and the Department of Natural Resources, Boyce Hydro and all its subsidiaries and owner Lee Mueller on counts of negligence and gross negligence, trespass and two counts of deprivation of property. FLTF was dismissed as a party on Oct. 20, 2020. A settlement conference is set for July 21, 2021 before Judge Thomas Ludington, with a jury trial set for Feb. 1, 2022.

Cases dismissed

While some litigation efforts are going forward, a few will not be making it to trial.

On May 27, John Colburn sued Boyce Hydro, its subsidiaries and co-owners on a total of four counts, including negligence, strict liability, nuisance (public and private) and trespass. The case was closed on Oct. 1 after Colburn filed a voluntary dismissal.

On July 13, Charles Kinzel and Debra Kroening filed a class action lawsuit against Boyce Hydro, its subsidiaries and co-owners on counts of negligence, strict liability for abnormally dangerous activity, statutory trespass and nuisance. The case was dismissed without prejudice on Dec. 17, 2020.

On May 22, Whitney Cable and three other plaintiffs sued Boyce Hydro, its subsidiaries and co-owners on counts of negligence, nuisance and trespass. The case was dismissed on March 2, 2021.

On June 5, Attorney General Dana Nessel, along with MDNR and EGLE sued Boyce Hydro, its subsidiaries and co-owners in the U.S. District Court for Western District of Michigan. Litigation was halted when Boyce Hydro filed for bankruptcy on July 31. A stay of proceedings was ordered on March 17, 2021.
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP)  Ethiopia has again delayed its national election after some opposition parties said they wouldnt take part and as conflict in the countrys Tigray region means no vote is being held there, further complicating Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's efforts to centralize power.

The head of the national elections board, Birtukan Mideksa, in a meeting with political parties representatives on Saturday said the June 5 vote in Africas second most populous country would be postponed, citing the need to finish printing ballots, training staffers and compiling voters information. The board said she estimated a delay of two to three weeks.

Ethiopia last year delayed the vote, the first major electoral test for Abiy, citing the COVID-19 pandemic. That heightened tensions with the Tigray regions leaders, who declared that the prime minister's mandate had ended and defiantly held a regional vote of their own that Ethiopia called illegal.

Since then, war in Tigray has killed thousands and led the United States to allege that ethnic cleansing against Tigrayans was being carried out in the western part of Tigray, a region of some 6 million people. The term ethnic cleansing refers to forcing a population from a region through expulsions and other violence, often including killings and rapes.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday said the U.S. is gravely concerned by the increasing number of confirmed cases of military forces blocking humanitarian access to parts of Tigray, calling it unacceptable behavior. The statement again urged the immediate withdrawal from Tigray of soldiers from neighboring Eritrea who witnesses say have blocked or looted aid and carried out atrocities including gang rapes. Both Eritrean and Ethiopian authorities have repeatedly promised such a withdrawal, Blinken said.

Ethiopia's prime minister, who introduced sweeping political reforms after taking office in 2018 and won the Nobel Peace Prize the following year, has vowed that this election would be free and fair. Abiy will keep his post if his Prosperity Party wins a majority of seats in the national assembly.

But questions about the vote have been growing amid sometimes deadly ethnic tensions in other parts of the country of some 110 million people and more than 80 ethnic groups.

The campaign director for one of Ethiopia's largest opposition parties, Yilkal Getnet with the Hibir Ethiopia Democratic Party, told The Associated Press his party has long believed the country is not ready to hold an election at this time.

There are lots of peace and security challenges across the country in addition to the border issue with Sudan, Yilkal said, adding that the safety of millions is in question. As opposed to the ruling partys thinking, we dont believe that the election will solve these problems. A national dialogue on a range of issues should come first.

The European Union recently said it would not observe the vote, saying Ethiopia failed to guarantee the independence of its mission and refused its requests to allow the importation of communications equipment. Ethiopia replied that external observers are neither essential nor necessary to certify the credibility of an election.

The opposition Oromo Federalist Congress earlier this year pulled out of the vote. Several of the party's leaders remain behind bars after a wave of violence last year sparked by the killing of a popular Omoro musician.

Late last month, five U.S. senators wrote to the U.S. special envoy for the Horn of Africa, Jeffrey Feltman, expressing concerns about Ethiopias ability to hold fair elections while the Tigray conflict continues.

In response to that, Ethiopias national election board said it was striving to ensure the poll will be free. Shortfalls are inevitable given factors such as population size, development deficits at all levels, a nascent democratic culture and an increasingly charged political and security environment, it said.

The election board has said some 36.2 million people have registered to vote. It was hoped that up to 50 million would do so.

We are deeply concerned about increasing political and ethnic polarization throughout the country, the State Department said Friday.
BANGKOK (AP)  The U.S. and British embassies in Myanmar expressed concern about reports of fierce government attacks on a town in western Chin state, where the ruling junta declared martial law because of armed resistance to military rule.

The fighting began around 6 a.m. Saturday when government troops reinforced by helicopters began shelling the western part of the town of Mindat, destroying several homes, said a spokesman of the Chinland Defence Force. It is a locally formed militia group opposed to the February coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.

Helicopters also took part in the attack, according to the spokesman, who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

Mindat town is now under siege and is bracing for an all-out assault by the junta troops from air and by land, said a statement by the Chin Human Rights Organization.

The shadow National Unity Government, set up by lawmakers who were blocked by the army from taking their seats in Parliament, warned that within the next 48 hours, Mindat can potentially become a battleground and thousands of people are facing the danger of being displaced. Many have already left the town of about 50,000 people, said a resident contacted by phone who was also fleeing.

The Mindat Township Peoples Administration, another opposition grouping, claimed that 15 young men had been seized by government troops and used as human shields. It said at least five defenders of the town had been killed in clashes and at least 10 others wounded.

None of these details could be independently verified, but a Myanmar state television broadcast Saturday night reported that fighting was going on, and acknowledged the towns defenders have been putting up stiff resistance against the army.

The militarys use of weapons of war against civilians, including this week in Mindat, is a further demonstration of the depths the regime will sink to to hold onto power, the British Embassy said on Twitter. We call on the military to cease violence against civilians.

The U.S. Embassy said it was aware of increasing violence in Mindat, including reports of the military shooting civilians, and urged that evidence of atrocities be sent to U.N. investigators.

Detailed tallies compiled by several different watchdog groups say government security forces have killed upwards of 750 protesters and bystanders as they have tried to suppress opposition to the militarys seizure of power. In April, security forces were accused of killing more than 80 people in one day to destroy street barricades that militants had set up as strongholds in the city of Bago.

In many or most cases, police and soldiers were trying to break up peaceful protests, though as they increased the use of lethal force, some protesters fought back in self-defense. In recent weeks there has been an upsurge in small bombings in many cities, mostly causing little damage and few casualties.

The junta says the death toll is less than 300, and the use of force was justified to quash what it calls riots.

Mindats resisters are only lightly armed, mostly with a traditional type of single-shot hunting rifle, but the territory around the town is mountainous and wooded, favoring defenders over attackers.

The report on state television MRTV listed past attacks on government forces and installations, most recently on Thursday, when it claimed a force of about 100 blocked security forces from entering the town, destroying one vehicle and leaving an unspecified number of security forces dead and missing.

In a later attack, it said, an even bigger force was said to have launched an attack from the city on security forces patrolling nearby, destroying six vehicles and causing an unspecified number of government casualties.

The opposition government earlier this month announced a plan to unify groups such as the Chinland Defense Force into a national Peoples Defense Force, which would serve as a precursor to a Federal Union Army of democratic forces including ethnic minorities.

Khin Ma Ma Myo, deputy defense minister of the shadow government, said one of the duties of the Peoples Defense Force is to protect the resistance movement from military attacks and violence instigated by the junta.
The first time Brian Antisdel was in Midland, the city was under water.

While in Texas in May 2020, he received a phone call that his home state was flooding. With his dogs in the back seat, he hurdled down the long path to Michigan in his van. After 19 hours and a half, with minimal power naps, he was driving into the city.

He first noticed the water lines on the trees, then road closures, then downtown Midland engulfed by flood water. He said people were lost and stranded. Animals were dying. Sanford had houses floating down the road.

It was powerful, Antisdel said, who was originally from Dowagiac, Michigan. All the water that was supposed to be in the river was in the streets. It was one of the worst disasters I ever dealt with.

But as the national boots on-ground commander of the United Cajun Navy, an organization that responds to national disasters, he could not let his emotions overwhelm him. There was work to do.

He was one of many people who waded into Midland from out of town after the Edenville Dam failure last year. The flood put parts of Midland County under 10 feet of water and damaged over 4,000 homes. Volunteers from across the state and country helped with flood relief in the immediate aftermath and months after the flood.

Holly Miller, president and CEO of United Way of Midland, said the community received a lot of help from Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD) groups. She said VOAD groups include religious organizations and disaster response teams.

These groups help with the immediate aftermath of a disaster. At Midland, this included mucking out homes, mold suppression and supply deliveries.

Our VOAD groups were not here (in our) our community to rebuild houses back together, Miller said. What they were here to do (was) stabilize.

Antisdel said United Cajun Navy is part of the VOAD coalition and helped stabilize Midland. His job is to come to a disaster first, assess the situation, and report back to the United Cajun Navy on what is needed.

With a team of navy members and residents, they began helping Midland  whether it was delivering water pallets, cooking for people, mucking out homes, or rebuilding them.

It was just the most powerful thing ever to have everybody working together, Antisdel said. That never happens.

Samaritans Purse, another VOAD group, also helped with flood relief. Program director Lorenzo Torres drove from his home state of North Carolina to Michigan the morning after the dam broke. His 10-and-a-half-hour car ride brought him to Midland, where he assessed the situation and requested supplies for the relief effort.

The organization partnered with the Calvary Baptist Church of Midland, where the group set up its base of operations. From there, Samaritans Purse sent out volunteers who went door to door asking if homeowners needed help cleaning out their homes. They also helped retrieve personal belongings and mucked out peoples homes.

Our work comes with a high-quality control standard, Torres said. What we like to tell people is once we are done with their home, their home is essentially contractor ready.

Altogether, United Cajun Navy was here for about two months, and Samaritans Purse stayed for about six weeks. However, Midland and its residents left a strong impact on Antisdel, who made friends while helping people in the county. He said many residents who volunteered were made members of the United Cajun Navy.

Cathy Mapes, a United Way volunteer who helped coordinate the VOAD volunteers, said she was told many times by the VOAD how strong the community response was to the flood. Antisdel said Midlands response really helped save lives.

If every community was like Midland, we could save a lot more people and animals, Antisdel said. It was stellar, day one.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP)  Indiana could pay about 50% more a year for prison medical services with a new contractor picked by state officials.

The four-year contract with Centurion Health will pay an average of about $160 million a year to the company that submitted the most expensive of four vendor proposals, The (Fort Wayne) Journal Gazette reported. That compares to an annual $106 million cost the previous four years.

General medical services are included in the contract as well as behavioral health, addiction recovery and maternal child health for the nearly 24,000 inmates in the state prison system.

The departing contractor, Wexford of Indiana LLC, bid about $30 million less a year but Department of Correction spokeswoman Annie Goeller said price is only one factor considered.

While the contract award recommendation letter from the Indiana Department of Administration said Centurion had the lowest rating for cost among the four bids, it had the best score for management assessment/quality and beat out Wexford in the final overall scoring.

Our goal is to ensure the care provided focuses on prevention and community accepted standards, which we believe will ultimately produce the best outcomes in the most cost-efficient and effective manner, Goeller said.

Wexford received a three-year contract for $309 million in 2017 and was given a one-year, $116 million extension. Centurion's contract, which is scheduled to be finalized by July 1, is for $643 million over four years.

Wexford spokeswoman Wendelyn Pekich said the company was disappointed and surprised over not winning the new contract.

Centurion, a subsidiary of Missouri-based Centene Corp., is facing a controversy in Tennessee, where state prison officials are going to rebid a $123 million contract the company received for behavioral health services after a lawsuit accused a state official of rigging the bidding process.

The size of Centurions Indiana contract apparently exceeds the funding provided by the Legislature in the new two-year state budget. The budget that takes effect in July combined the medical, food and educational services line items with a total of $160 million a year.

The Centurion contract alone would be $160 million a year when divided equally, although the earlier years of the contract are less. The medical services line item in the previous state budget was $97 million, with $36.3 million to cover food expenses and $11.4 million for education costs.

The contract was awarded after the budget was approved, and adjustments to appropriations could not be made, Goeller said. We are in discussions with the State Budget Agency and are considering options.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP)  An unassuming plot of land sits on the east side of Indianapolis on 30th Street. From the outside, it looks like an empty lot with a couple of shipping containers on it. But inside those containers is an entire garden.

And among the plants, you can find DeMario Vitalis.

Vitalis was the first in Indiana to own this type of hydroponic farm inside of a shipping container. The unique method involves planting seedlings of plants such as herbs and lettuces on vertical panels and feeding them controlled levels of water, nutrients and light  no soil required.

Its a mode of farming uniquely suited for urban environments. Vitalis is able to produce almost 5 acres of food a year from two 40-foot shipping containers. It also uses 99% less water than traditional farming, according to the company that makes the containers.

Vitalis sells his fresh herbs, lettuces and more to people in the community through online platforms such as Market Wagon.

The climate control is a huge advantage for Vitalis, who set up his farm, called New Age Provisions, in the latter half of last year. Regardless of the outside weather, he can grow anything he wants.

It can be 30 degrees outside and raining, he said, but inside its 65 degrees. In here Im watching Netflix and planting seeds.

Even though he now spends much of his time dedicated to plants, Vitalis wasnt a farmer when he started all of this. He was just an entrepreneur looking for his next project, and farming  which connected to his history as a descendent of enslaved people and Southern sharecroppers  felt like the right choice.

It was just a way to become an entrepreneur, he said, and also get back into the type of occupation my ancestors once had.

Vitalis was looking for something that would put a piece of property he owned to use, and he had a hunch shipping containers were key.

At first, he thought he would set up some modular tiny homes built out of containers. But then he came across Freight Farms, a Boston-based company that could cram 2.5 acres of production into one shipping container, and the decision was made.

Although born in San Francisco, Vitalis family is originally from the South, and he moved around quite a bit before settling in Indiana.

Three of my four grandparents started off from the South, Vitalis said, So we were part of that Black migration when we moved eventually from the South to San Francisco on the West Coast.

After living in Germany, Kansas and other places as his stepfather moved around with the military, Vitalis mother decided to move him to Indianapolis, where he stayed and attended Arlington High School and Purdue University.

Vitalis mother Barbara Johnson is a cook, so food has always been important to the family. And the herbs and vegetables grown by her son, she said, are absolutely wonderful.

I just believe that you can always inspire a person with a good meal, she said.

Even so, farming or food production was never anything they did at home, she said. But she knows its something he feels close to because of the familys history.

I guess it was just in his blood, she said.

Vitalis was one of the first Black owners using a Freight Farms shipping container to start a small business in the country, said Caroline Katsiroubas, marketing and communications director for the company.

He in particular wanted to be a catalyst for more Black farmers to join the Freight Farming community, she said, and Ive definitely seen the impact.

It wasnt easy learning how to grow food.

Despite two degrees from Purdue University and a Masters degree from Wayne State University, Vitalis doesnt have a background in farming, and had to put himself through some education before diving into his urban farm. He took online classes and even visited Freight Farms in Boston to learn about the equipment and process.

It does take a learning curve, he said. Its not easy to learn how to farm; you have to learn how to react to the plants.

Sometimes his daughter will help him with the planting. Johnson, too, will help out and trim plants, clean or help with planting, and occasionally brings her grandson along. Understanding how the farm works was a learning curve for her, too.

I didnt know anything about hydroponic farming, she said. When I saw that wall of plants, I didnt think it was possible.

Funding was another obstacle. The farms cost $100,000 each.

After some research, Vitalis found that the U.S. Department of Agriculture will supply loans for these types of businesses, so he requested $50,000 to help him pay for one container and was promptly denied.

The people evaluating the profitability of these containers simply didnt understand how it worked or how much it could produce, he said. But instead of giving up, he pushed back. Black farmers have historically been discriminated against when trying to obtain USDA loans, and he was motivated to make sure his business plan was being fairly evaluated.

Theres a history behind that, he said. I was just one of many.

Vitalis appealed the decision and won. Then, he turned around and asked for $200,000 instead  and got it.

Finally one day, a semi-trailer pulled up outside his property with the containers, picked them up with an enormous crane and plopped them right down behind the nearby building.

It was pretty interesting to see a big old 40-foot container fly over a building, Vitalis said. It was not easy, but you know, God was on my side and I was able to get through the hurdles that were put in my way.

In a hydroponic farm, everything is vertical  and everything is controlled.

At first, the plants start as seedlings or seeds and are placed on shelves under LED lights, and water flushed with nutrients is dispensed to them with attached machines.

After a few weeks, the plants are large enough to transfer to a series of vertical panels that roll along tracks. These panels are also connected to machines for dosing water and nutrients, and placed in between LED lights. The water circulating through the plants is saved and re-cycled through the system, conserving water and nutrients.

Although the space may seem tight, one container can output the equivalent of 1,000 heads of lettuce each week, Katsiroubas said.

And throughout the whole process, Vitalis controls the light, temperature, nutrients and water. The plants live in a perfectly contained ecosystem thats never under threat from drought, flooding or pests.

It has its own brain, Vitalis said.

Its a big advantage, he said, because he can grow food year-round and he doesnt have to worry about pesticides or herbicides. Its also hyper-local, he said. When he gets an order, the food comes from the planter into the customers hands within a matter of hours.

David Bosley, Vitalis former boss at Cummins, Inc., used Vitalis greens for his Thanksgiving meal and said he was impressed by the packaging and freshness. At first, he said, the idea of a hydroponics farm was surprising.

I thought it was rather novel, he said, but I also thought, well thats just like DeMario.

Nobody was surprised that Vitalis made New Age Provisions happen.

Hes always been one to tackle a project without giving up, Bosley said. And hes always been a trailblazer and hard worker, his mother said. She thinks its something he may have picked up from her, since she worked multiple jobs and attended school while caring for him and his siblings.

Im even more amazed with my son, Johnson said. Hes satisfying a need in the community and following a dream. It was his vision and he brought it to fruition.

__

Source: The Indianapolis Star
Chinese vaccines a safe and affordable option for Bangladesh

17:53, May 14, 2021 By Md Enamul Hassan ( People's Daily Online

Chief of Air Staff of the BAF Masihuzzaman Serniabat and other senior officials pose for photos after receiving the vaccines in Dhaka, Bangladesh on May 12, 2021. (Xinhua)

The coronavirus pandemic continues ripping through many countries around the world. After Europe and the Americas, South Asia has now become its new epicenter. India is now the worst victim of the latest wave of the virus, and other countries in the region are also struggling to get rid of coronavirus with their high infection rates.

In the fight against COVID-19, Bangladesh  with its limited resources  nonetheless went on to achieve remarkable success during the first wave of the virus. The countrys government earned praise from the international community for its initiatives to mitigate impacts from the highly infectious disease.

However, the new wave of the virus has turned the situation upside down in Bangladesh. With the current variants being more deadly than earlier ones, Bangladesh has been faced with a fresh spike in the number of infections and fatalities in recent weeks. As a result, the government has intensified its fight against the virus. It has also widened its international cooperation, and especially with China, in this effort.

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen attended a virtual foreign ministers' meeting on April 27 with participants that included China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Bangladesh approved a proposal for the local manufacturing of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine. Local companies that intend to collaborate with Chinese pharmaceutical companies will begin co-production of the vaccine as soon as possible.

Bangladesh is also going to join China's initiative to establish a COVID-19 vaccine storage facility for South Asia. All the countries in the region can access doses from the facility for their urgent need without the need for any additional bureaucratic red tape. Bangladesh will plan to purchase vaccines from China since ramping up their production is impossible to achieve overnight.

As far as I know, the Bangladesh embassy in Beijing is trying its best to turn the government's will into action by forging ahead with their countrys cooperation alongside China in the fight against COVID-19. As China has already been flooded with demands for vaccines from around the world, the Bangladesh Ambassador to China, Mahbub Uz Zaman, is now in the process of redoubling his efforts and making the most of his personal connections with Chinese officials to get the vaccines delivered as soon as possible.

As a time-tested friend, China has also responded by extending its helping hand to Bangladesh. Donations of 500,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine have already been handed over to Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has expressed its gratitude to China for commendable efforts in combating coronavirus and for its unwavering support to various countries around the world, including Bangladesh, in efforts to prevent renewed global outbreaks.

Both the Chinese and the Bangladesh governments have been trying their best to do their part to save the people of Bangladesh from the devastating pandemic. The Bangladeshi people are also grateful to the Chinese and have firm confidence in Chinese vaccines.

But unfortunately, some media outlets are still running half-true and untrue stories targeting the Made-in-China vaccines. These stories are nothing but tools of propaganda circulated around just to smear China and people will never buy them. Now the world knows that the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine has been listed by the World Health Organization (WHO) alongside others as a COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, which has provided a green light for the global administration of this vaccine.

Everybody knows that Chinese vaccines have been proven to protect people against COVID-19 in a safe, effective, and affordable way. Many countries have so far granted market approval or emergency use for two Chinese vaccines. As a result, China's vaccine producers have been required to plan and increase their production capacity and contribute to vaccine accessibility and affordability in developing countries.

Chinese vaccines adopt a more traditional method that has successfully been used to develop many well-known vaccines, such as rabies, over the years. One of the main advantages of Chinese vaccines is that they can be stored in a standard refrigerator at 2-8 degrees Celsius, while Moderna's vaccine needs to be stored at -20C and Pfizer's vaccine at -70C. This means that Chinese vaccines can be more readily adopted for use in Bangladesh and other developing countries, many of which may not be able to store large amounts of vaccines at such low temperatures.

If we look at the level of efficacy for these vaccines, we can see that the WHO has recently approved the Sinopharm vaccine for emergency use, which is a prerequisite for inclusion in the global vaccine solidarity initiative, also known as COVAX. The WHO has said that the vaccine is easy to store, making it suitable for locations with limited resources, and presented evidence showing that the vaccine achieved a 79 percent effective rate in clinical trials.

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, adding that We urge the manufacturer to participate in the COVAX Facility and contribute to the goal of more equitable vaccine distribution.

Md Enamul Hassan is a news editor and broadcast journalist at China Media Group (CMG) in Beijing, China.

(Web editor: Xian Jiangnan, Bianji)
NEW YORK (AP)  News organizations demanded an explanation Saturday for an Israeli airstrike that targeted and destroyed a Gaza City building housing the offices of The Associated Press, broadcaster Al-Jazeera and other media outlets.

AP journalists and other tenants were safely evacuated from the 12-story al-Jalaa tower after the Israeli military warned of an imminent strike. Three heavy missiles hit the building within the hour, disrupting coverage of the ongoing conflict between' Gazas Hamas rulers and Israel. At least 145 people in Gaza and eight in Israel have been killed since the fighting erupted on Monday night.

The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today, AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said. He said the American news agency was seeking information from the Israeli government and engaging with the U.S. State Department to learn more.

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al-Jazeera Media Network, called the strike a war crime and a clear act to stop journalists from reporting on the conflict. Kuwait state television also had office space in the now-collapsed Gaza City building.

The targeting of news organizations is completely unacceptable, even during an armed conflict. It represents a gross violation of human rights and internationally agreed norms, Barbara Trionfi, the executive director of the International Press Institute, said.

In a standard Israeli response, the military said that Hamas was operating inside the building, and it accused the militant group of using journalists as human shields. But it provided no evidence to back up the claims.

Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus claimed that Hamas used the building for a military intelligence office and weapons development. He alleged a highly advanced technological tool that the militant group used in the fighting was within or on the building."

But Conricus said he could not provide evidence to back up the claims without compromising intelligence efforts. He added, however: I think its a legitimate request to see more information, and I will try to provide it.

Pruitt, the AP's CEO, said the news agency had been in the building for 15 years and we have had no indication Hamas was in the building or active in the building.

"We have called on the Israeli government to put forward the evidence," he said. This is something we actively check to the best of our ability. We would never knowingly put our journalists at risk.

Some press freedom advocates said the strike raised suspicions that Israel was trying to hinder coverage of the conflict. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists demanded Israel provide a detailed and documented justification for the strike.

This latest attack on a building long known by Israel to house international media raises the specter that the Israel Defense Forces is deliberately targeting media facilities in order to disrupt coverage of the human suffering in Gaza, the groups executive director, Joel Simon, said in a statement.

The Washington-based National Press Club called the strike part of a pattern this week of Israeli forces destroying buildings in Gaza that house media organizations" and also questioned whether the assaults seek to impair independent and accurate coverage of the conflict.

We call upon Israeli authorities to halt strikes on facilities known to house press, the National Press Club said. "Reliable media organizations are the best sources of accurate information about events in Gaza, and they must not be prevented from doing their vital job.

The bombing followed media consternation over an Israeli military statement that prompted some news organizations, including The Wall Street Journal, to erroneously report early Friday that Israel had launched a ground invasion of Gaza.

Israeli military commentators said the media had been used in a ruse to lure Hamas militants into a deadly trap. Conricus denied that the military engaged in a deliberate deception when it tweeted falsely Friday that ground forces were engaging in Gaza, calling it an honest mistake.

The AP, based on its analysis of the armys statement, phone calls to military officials and on the ground reporting in Gaza, concluded there was no ground incursion and did not report there was one.

The strike on a building known to have the offices of international media outlets came as a shock to reporters who had felt relatively protected there.

Now, one can understand the feeling of the people whose homes have been destroyed by such kind of air attacks, Al-Jazeera producer Safwat al-Kahlout, who was at the bureau in Gaza when the evacuation warning came, told the broadcaster Saturday. Its really difficult to wake up one day and then you realize that your office is not there with all the career experiences, memories that youve had.

APs top floor offices and roof terrace on the now-destroyed building had provided a prime location for covering fighting in Gaza. The news agencys camera offered 24-hour live shots this week as Hamas rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city.

Just a day before the bombing, AP correspondent Fares Akram wrote in a personal story that the AP office was the only place in Gaza were he felt somewhat safe.

The Israeli military has the coordinates of the high-rise, so its less likely a bomb will bring it crashing down, Akram wrote.

The next day, Akram tweeted about running from the building and watching its destruction from afar.

The New York Times joined other news organizations in expressing alarm about the targeting of al-Jalaa tower.

The ability of the press to report on the ground is a profoundly important issue that has an impact on everyone." the newspaper's vice president of communications, Danielle Rhoades Ha, said. A free and independent press is essential to helping to inform people, bridge differences and end the conflict.

___

Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this report.
COLLINSVILLE, Miss. (AP)  One mother, one daughter  and two foster grandparents.

Vallonia Davis and her daughter, Vanessa Alford, spend their free time together helping out at West Lauderdale Elementary School.

I dont know what I would do without her, Alford said of Davis. A lot of people call me little Val, and say Im just like my mom.

The Bailey natives volunteer at the school from 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. every day except for Wednesday. Davis works in one class, while Alford helps out in another.

The Lauderdale County Foster Grandparent was established in 1972 to provide volunteer opportunities for people age 55 and older. The volunteers serve as tutors and mentors in schools and other settings in Lauderdale, Clarke, Jasper and Kemper counties.

Davis  known as Grandma has been a foster grandparent for more than 26 years, helping out in Donna Woodalls pre-K exceptional needs class for the last five years.

Before joining the program, she was a cafeteria manager in the Meridian Public School District, spending 16 years at Meridian High and a decade at Carver Junior High.

I decided to become a foster grandparent because it gave me something to do and I enjoy the little children, said Davis, 88. It keeps me young...I do this to keep myself going and active.

Woodall, the teacher, described Davis as an asset to her classroom.

Shes the one they go to when theres a little down time, when they need someone to read a story, or if they want to climb up in her lap to get a few extra hugs, she said. Thats what they know Grandma is really good at.

Like her mother, Alford also has a passion for helping children, serving as a teaching assistant and working at the Toomsuba Head Start.

This is not really new to me, she said of being a foster grandparent. Im like my mom and I enjoy kids.

Before she was a foster grandparent, Alford would drop her mother off at the school. Eventually, she decided to join her in the classroom.

I used to take momma to work, every morning, Alford recalled. When they dropped the age level, I said okay, Im taking you and coming back to pick you up, so I might as well join too.

Alford said being a foster grandparent allows her to help children succeed.

I had to do it again because I like the kids, she emphasized. Once you see that you are helping them  that just gives me joy...I would encourage other senior citizens to join this program.

For her part, Davis said she doesnt plan on slowing down anytime soon.

Im trying to hopefully do it for another year, she said with a smile. Id like to stay home and sit on the couch, but my daughter wont let me.
NEW YORK (AP)  Organizers of New York Citys Pride events said Saturday they are banning police and other law enforcement from marching in their huge annual parade until at least 2025 and will also seek to keep on-duty officers a block away from the celebration of LGBTQ people and history.

In their statement, NYC Pride urged members of law enforcement to acknowledge their harm and to correct course moving forward.

The sense of safety that law enforcement is meant to provide can instead be threatening, and at times dangerous, to those in our community who are most often targeted with excessive force and/or without reason, the group said.

It will also increase the event's security budget to boost the presence of community-based security and first responders while reducing the police department's presence.

Police will provide first response and security only when absolutely necessary as mandated by city officials, the group said, adding it hoped to keep police officers at least one city block away from event perimeter areas where possible.

Word of the ban came out Friday when the Gay Officers Action League said in a release it was disheartened by the decision.

The group called the ban an abrupt about-face and said the decision to placate some of the activists in our community is shameful.

The parade is scheduled for June after the coronavirus prevented many Pride events worldwide last year, including in New York which instead hosted virtual performances in front of masked participants and honored front-line workers in the pandemic crisis.

The disruptions frustrated activists who had hoped to collectively mark the 50th anniversary of the first Gay Pride parades and marches in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco in 1970.

Those marches came a year after the 1969 uprising outside Manhattan's Stonewall Inn, a gay bar, in response to a police raid. The uprising is largely credited with fueling the modern LGBTQ rights movement.

Pride season occurs this year amid activism inspired by the response to racial injustice and police brutality in the wake of George Floyds death last year at the hands of police in Minneapolis.

Pride NYC's announcement Saturday follows a division among organizers in recent years in planning for celebrations of LGBTQ pride in New York City.

In 2019, there were two marches in Manhattan after some in the community concluded that the annual parade had become too commercialized. The Queer Liberation March aimed for a protest vibe, saying the main Pride march was too heavily policed by the same department that raided Stonewall a half century earlier.

The New York Police Department commissioner apologized for the raid during a briefing in 2019, calling it "wrong, plain and simple.

Detective Sophia Mason, a spokesperson for the New York Police Department, said on Saturday the department's annual work to ensure a safe, enjoyable Pride season has been increasingly embraced by its participants.

She added: "The idea of officers being excluded is disheartening and runs counter to our shared values of inclusion and tolerance. That said, well still be there to ensure traffic safety and good order during this huge, complex event.
MILFORD, Conn. (AP)  The search for a Connecticut toddler who went missing in December 2019 and whose father is accused of killing her mother is still continuing, according to a state prosecutor.

At pretrial hearing for the father, Jose Morales, on Friday, a prosecutor revealed that local law enforcement continue to track down anonymous tips, tips provided through the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and leads from other agencies in hopes of finding Vanessa Morales, Hearst Connecticut News reported.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (AP)  A Salt Lake police K-9 officer already facing a criminal charge accusing him of releasing his dog on a Black man who was kneeling in his yard with his hands up has been charged in connection with a second biting incident.

The Salt Lake County District Attorneys Office filed amended charges on Tuesday against Nickolas John Pearce, 39, of Herriman, charging him with a second count of aggravated assault, a second-degree felony the Deseret News reported.
SHREVEPORT, La. (AP)  After a winter freeze that crippled drinking water systems across the region, the city of Shreveport is launching a $36.5 million project designed to improve its drinking water infrastructure.

The city is renovating its service pump station that was built in the 1930s, the Shreveport Times reported.

We learned in February how critical it is to have a reliable water system, William Daniel, Water and Sewerage director, told the newspaper. The completion of this project will guarantee a more efficient system to deliver safe drinking water to our residents.

The money will go toward renovating deteriorated parts of the building and repurposing space so it can be more effectively used, the newspaper said. The work will also include installing new backwash and high service pumps. That will help increase the reliability and capacity of those systems. The renovations will also address updates to the electrical systems.

The water system serves about 70,000 customers, according to the newspaper. A spell of freezing temperatures in February froze water equipment, burst pipes and exposed widespread problems with drinking water systems across parts of the South, including Shreveport. Residents of the city of roughly 200,000 people went days without drinking water or having to boil their drinking water to make it safe to consume. Tanker trucks brought water to hospitals, and residents in many areas scooped up snow and melted it in their bathtubs to flush.

Many water systems have decades-old pipes that are susceptible to breaking, and many systems in the South were not built with such low temperatures in mind. During a February interview with The Associated Press Mayor Adrian Perkins pointed to old, aging infrastructure, just like most American cities.
More than a dozen states quickly embraced new federal guidelines that say fully vaccinated Americans no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most cases. But other states and cities and some major businesses hesitated amid doubts about whether the approach is safe or even workable.

As many business owners pointed out, there is no easy way to determine who has been vaccinated and who hasnt. And the new guidelines, issued Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, essentially work on the honor system, leaving it up to people to do the right thing.

Labor groups and others warned that employees at stores, restaurants, bars and other businesses could be left exposed to the coronavirus from customers and could be forced into the unwanted role of vaccination police.

Several major chains, including CVS, The Home Depot, Macys and supermarket giant Kroger Co., said they still are requiring masks in stores for the time being, though some said they are reviewing their policies.

Half the states had mask requirements in place for most indoor spaces when the CDC issued its recommendations amid tumbling cases and rising vaccination rates.

Nearly 47% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, and cases have dropped to their lowest level since September, at an average of about 35,000 a day. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky noted in making the announcement that the vaccine has proved powerfully effective in preventing serious COVID-19 illness.

Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Ohio, Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Kentucky, Washington, Maine, Vermont, Connecticut, North Carolina, Kansas, Colorado and Rhode Island announced plans to fall in line with the CDC guidance either immediately or in coming weeks.

Other states, such as California, Wisconsin, New Jersey, Hawaii and Massachusetts, and cities like Minneapolis and St. Paul, kept mask rules in place for the time being.

Industry leaders warned of the potential for confusion and hard feelings among customers because of the varying rules from place to place. Even in states that have dropped mask mandates, stores and other businesses still can require face coverings if they want.

Confusion over the guidance extended to the White House, where press secretary Jen Psaki said: I think were still figuring out how to implement it.

The CDC and the Biden administration had faced pressure to ease restrictions on fully vaccinated people in part to highlight the benefits of the shots and motivate other people to get inoculated.

The CDC announcement sent airline stocks soaring, though the guidance still calls for masks in crowded indoor settings such as planes, buses, trains, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters, and says people should obey all local and state regulations.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said the 1.7 million-member union still is trying to sort out what the change means for schools. Many school districts already ditched mask requirements in recent weeks, as had many states and cities, as virus numbers fell.

.

Total cases in west-central Illinois counties as of Friday, according to individual county health departments, and vaccination rates, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health, were:

Brown County

703 total, 689 recovered, seven deaths

Fully vaccinated: 21.8%; 65 or older: 72.73%

Cass County

2,003 total, 1,956 recovered, 35 deaths

One new case and one additional death.

Fully vaccinated: 35.44%; 65 or older: 74.91%

Greene County

1,426 total, 1,369 recovered, 48 deaths

Fully vaccinated: 25.4%; 65 or older: 58.96%

Jersey County

2,689 total, 2,636 recovered, 49 deaths

Five new cases.

Fully vaccinated: 34.51%; 65 or older: 79.72%

Macoupin County

4,870 total, 4,542 recovered, 111 deaths

Five new cases.

Fully vaccinated: 33.36%; 65 or older: 79.13%

Morgan County

3,994 total, 3,833 released from restrictions, 103 deaths

Two new cases and one additional death, that of a woman in her 60s.

Fully vaccinated: 34.19%; 65 or older: 77.33%

Pike County

1,757 total, 1,705 recovered, 48 deaths

Fully vaccinated: 25.57%; 65 or older: 67.66%

Sangamon County

18,762 total, 234 deaths

38 new cases.

Fully vaccinated: 40.98%; 65 or older: 86.24%

Schuyler County

725 total, 689 recovered, 17 deaths

Fully vaccinated: 32.88%; 65 or older: 70.14%

Scott County

479 total, 476 recovered, one death

Fully vaccinated: 26.72%; 65 or older: 64.25%

Statewide, 1,841 new cases of coronavirus disease and 49 deaths were reported Friday, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

There have been 1,363,507 cases and 22,369 deaths in Illinois.
Yale University is requiring its faculty and staff to get coronavirus vaccinations before the fall term, extending a requirement already imposed for students.

The private university announced the new requirement Friday. It said faculty members, staffers and academic trainees must be fully inoculated by Aug. 1, though there are provisions for exemptions for reasons based on medical conditions or religious or strongly held" personal beliefs.
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New York City Mayor de Blasio made an unusual appeal to his constituents to get vaccinated. In what felt like a bit of surrealist or absurdist performance art, Hizzoner greeted those who tuned into his virtual press conference on Thursday by eating a burger and fries on camera. One of the incentives the city is offering to get vaccinations is a gift card from Shake Shack, and de Blasio seemed to want to entice viewers by showing them what could be theirs with just one easy shot. Mmmmm, vaccination, de Blasio said as he took a bite, encouraging New Yorkers to associate the jab with a delicious burger. Not the traditional route, but hes a term-limited mayor, why not get weird. Keep reading for the rest of this weeks news.

NYC candidates face off in first debate

After months of Zoom forums, sometimes several a day, the eight leading Democratic candidates for mayor of New York City took to the televised virtual debate stage for the first time to square off against each other. Front-runners Andrew Yang and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams were on the defensive, as the other six candidates sought their own quotable zingers. Although the debate got heated at times, with a number of personal attacks, no one had a true breakout moment. Public safety, crime and policing were at the center of the debate as crime in the city continues to be on the rise and a number high-profile shootings  including one in Times Square  have dominated headlines. Yang explicitly denounced the defund the police movement. Adams and Maya Wiley traded barbs about a past comment from Adams when he called stop and frisk a great tool and Wileys tenure as chair of the police watchdog agency the Civilian Complaint Review Board. The debate also came soon after Kathryn Garcia received The New York Times endorsement, increasing her profile and helping to boost a campaign that had otherwise struggled to gain traction.

Stefanik ascendent

After the House GOP conference ousted its No. 3 leader Liz Cheney for speaking out about former president Donald Trumps false claims about voter fraud, members voted for Rep. Elise Stefanik to replace her. Stefanik, who started her career as an upstate moderate and had distanced herself from Trump in the past, is a rising star in Republican politics who has become a staunch defender of Trump. As the conference sought to remove Cheney, Stefanik shored up support from many lawmakers even as some conservatives and members of the base questioned her somewhat moderate voting record.

Israel-Palestine conflict seeps into New York politics

As tensions between Israel and Palestine boiled over with the worst violence in years, reactions to the conflict drew scrutiny close to home. Protests in support of both Israel and Palestine broke out in New York City as politicians faced backlash for their own responses. Andrew Yang tweeted in support of Israel, saying Im standing with the people of Israel who are coming under bombardment attacks, and condemn the Hamas terrorists. His remarks drew swift condemnation from members of the left, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and many New York Muslims. He was uninvited from an event to distribute food at the end of Ramadan. In the wake of the criticism, Yang walked back his comments and apologized for not recognizing the suffering of Palestinian citizens amid the conflict. Other candidates weighed on the violence as well, though none received the kind of backlash Yang faced. On the other side, Democratic socialist Assembly Member Phara Souffrant Forrest angered Jewish leaders when she tweeted a map that displayed a Palestinian state occupying all of Israel along with #FreePalestine. She later deleted the tweet with the image that she said misrepresented her position, and that she favors peace and justice, but stands against apartheid.

Masks still needed in New York

As more and more people get vaccinated  Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that 50% of New Yorkers 18 and over are vaccinated  the CDC issued new mask guidelines stating that fully vaccinated people no longer have to wear masks indoors or outdoors in many instances. But Cuomo isnt ready to adopt those guidelines yet and said he would review them before making any decisions for the state, meaning that vaccinated people still legally have to wear their masks in many settings around unvaccinated people. In the meantime, pop-up vaccination sites run by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority are being well received as the state tries to increase the slowing rate of vaccination. Similar sites will be set up in Western New York, and likely other parts of the state as well.
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ohio -- The city has posted six license plate readers at key intersections in a move Highland Heights Police Chief James Cook believes will help the department better apprehend suspects.

The addition of the automatic license plate readers (LPRs) follows a trend that several other nearby police departments are undertaking. Among the cities that now employ the LPRs are Mentor, Willoughby, Mayfield Heights, Hunting Valley and Pepper Pike. In Richmond Heights, Police Chief Thomas Wetzel is also seeking the approval of council to lease two such license plate reading cameras, while in Beachwood, the city is considering the purchase of LPRs.

Cook said that the cameras are not being used to keep track of motorists comings and goings. Speaking about the use of the LPRs in Highland Heights, Cook said, We are not checking these cameras every day. It would certainly be too time consuming. We are focusing on them when there is criminal activity and we find that they would help us solve a case that is criminally related.

Were not going to look at them every day and say, Lets see who went through this intersection. Thats way too time consuming. Were using them specifically to address criminal activity as an investigative tool.

The intersections where the LPRs were stationed within the last 45 days are at Highland and Bishop roads, Wilson Mills Road and Bishop/Brainard roads, and Wilson Mills Road and Alpha Drive. There are two LPRs at each of the intersections.

Meanwhile, the HHPD is continuing to utilize a camera that is located over Wilson Mills Road, on the Mayfield Village side of the street, in the vicinity of Dennys Restaurant, 6207 Wilson Mills Road. That camera was paid for through a Cuyahoga County grant. Cook said the department also has a camera stationed at Wilson Mills Road and Alpha Drive the images from which are displayed in the HHPD dispatch center. These two are motion detector cameras that do not read license plates.

Cook said that the LPRs are not used to catch speeders. Theyre not designed for speeding. Theyre designed to basically record license plates. Needless to say, we dont use them (LPRs) to run plates and say, Look, this driver doesnt have a license, or This one has a suspended license. Theyre essentially used if theres a crime committed and were looking for something criminally. Wed use it to check to see if that vehicle went through. They work very well.

Highland Heights is leasing the cameras from Flock Safety at a cost of $16,500.

I think well expand on them, Cook said of adding more LPRs. Were testing the six out and were happy with them. Well try them for nine or 10 months and then look at additional places we would put them.

Council chamber work

Mayor Chuck Brunello, Jr. said interior demolition work on the council chambers at city hall has been completed and the room cleared. Its a big room (when emptied), he said. Youd never know there was that much wasted space in that room.

The city plans to use $200,000 in American Rescue Plan Act money towards the project, now estimated at $475,000. Plans call for a dais that allows council members and city directors to face audience members, which wasnt always the case in the past. Formerly, those participating in the meeting sat in a circular dais surrounded on three sides by audience members.

A rendering of the renovated Highland Heights City Council Chamber, scheduled for December completion.

Audience seating will be ADA compliant in that it will be on one level, instead of three as in the former chambers, built nearly 40 years ago. The new design will also allow for improved audio and two screens upon which video can be viewed.

City Council, since the pandemic began, has conducted only one meeting entirely over Zoom, and held all others in person at the next-door Highland Heights Community Center.

Were looking to get in there (new chamber) by the first meeting in December, if not sooner, Brunello said.

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PARMA HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Two people remain hospitalized after they were shot outside of a Parma Heights shopping plaza early-Saturday, police say.

A 25-year-old woman was shot in the neck while a 22-year-old man was shot in the abdomen in the shooting that happened about 2 a.m. outside of Arabica Coffeehouse and Hookah Bar on Pearl Road near York Road, according to a news release from Parma Heights police.

Police received a call initially about a large crowd of people hanging in the parking lot while the coffeehouse was closing for the night, police said.

Police then got a call about a single shot being fired in the back of the plaza. Officers quickly took a 21-year-old man and two 27-year-old men into custody.

Police then heard additional shots being fired in the front of the property and found the man and woman injured.

Paramedics took the two to a local hospital where their current conditions were not immediately available.

Police have not released the circumstances surrounding the shooting and its unclear if any formal charges have been filed as of Saturday evening.

Read more crime stories on cleveland.com:

Grand jury indicts Lorain man in deadly Easter Sunday shooting

Woman carjacked at gunpoint in Brooklyn Walmart parking lot, police say

ACLU sues Ohio Parole Board over confidential letters from victims families in hearing process

Bond set at $100,000 for Willoughby father accused of killing 3-week-old son

Man shot to death in Clevelands Collinwood-Nottingham neighborhood, police say
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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 14)  The country's bet to the Miss Universe 2020 pageant Rabiya Mateo donned a Philippine-flag inspired outfit with a touch of Victoria's Secret for the national costume competition on Friday. Despite her stellar performance, she ended up apologizing to fellow Filipinos and her supporters.

The Ilongga beauty rocked red and blue wings and three stars to represent the colors and symbols of the country's flag. She also wore mismatched heels and kept her hair wavy and flowing to complete her look.

"I feel like I'm a Victoria's Secret angel. I'm gonna fly," she said during a backstage interview.

She was wearing a creation of late Filipino international designer Rocky Gathercole.

However, several fans online were quite unsatisfied with her look, questioning why she didn't wear the headpiece crafted by Bulacan jewelry designer Manny Halasan.

A few hours after she took the stage in Florida, an emotional Mateo went live on Instagram to explain her side and apologize to her supporters.

"I'm sorry kung na-disappoint man kayo sa akin. I know na I did my best, I even cut my finger and 'yung stockings ko punong-puno na din ng dugo, but I kept fighting," she said while wiping off tears.

[Translation: I'm sorry if you were disappointed in me. I did my best. I even cut my finger. My stockings had blood, but I kept fighting.]

"In my self kanina, I felt really great. Feeling ko nung naglalakad ako I was so beautiful. Nakita ko yung cheer ng mga judges, nakita ko ang mga sigaw ng mga Pilipino kaya nagpapasalamat talaga ako sa suporta," she added.

[Translation: I felt great. I felt so beautiful while walking. I saw the cheers of the judges and the Filipinos who were screaming for me. I am thankful for the support.]

Former beauty queen Shamcey Supsup, who sits as the national director of Miss Universe Philippines Organization, told ABS-CBN's MJ Felipe that they decided not to make Mateo wear the headpiece since it kept falling off.

To add to that, the feathered wings were already too heavy.

"There were more accessories to the costume but the wings was 21 kilos already," Jonas Gaffud, the creative director of Miss Universe Philippines, said.

Halasan also took to Instagram to share glimpses of the headpiece he created for Mateo. However, he did not explain what happened.

"Looking at the National costume for Miss Universe 2020, I hope to share the vision with everyone. Its patriotic, historic, triumphant. Victorious... I always believe in perfect timing. If it is not yet for you, let time and experience make you better and excellent. There is a time for everything," he wrote.

Pageant expert Norman Tinio said a number of candidates in the pageant stood out with their costumes, adding that Mateo could have made a better impression had she worn the complete outfit.

"I love what Rabiya wore," he told CNN Philippines' News.PH. "Ang sentiment ko lang naman is sana nakumpleto 'yung look [My only sentiment is I would have wanted to see the complete look] because that would have made a greater impact."

Other Asian candidates, like Singapore and Myanmar, opted to use the stage to speak up on current issues such as anti-Asian hate crimes and the anti-junta movement in Myanmar.

Mateo's predecessor, Gazini Ganados, brought home the national costume award in 2019 for her Philippine-eagle inspired outfit created by designer Cary Santiago.

This year's pageant will be held at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida on May 16 (May 17 in Manila).
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 14)  President Rodrigo Duterte said he has invited former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile to ask for his guidance on matters related to the West Philippine Sea.

In a taped address aired Friday, Duterte said "we have respectfully invited Senator Enrile to come here kasi hindi man ako puwedeng makalabas na mag-usap. Pakinggan natin siya," adding that he hopes the former lawmaker will be his guest on his Monday address.

[Translation: I can't go out to talk to him. Let's listen to him.]

"He was there right at the beginning. So sa kanya ako makinig kasi sa kanya ako bilib sa utak at pag-intindi nitong problema itong ating West Philippine Sea," the President said.

[Translation: I will listen to him because I admire his knowledge and understanding of our problem in the West Philippine Sea.]

For the past televised Cabinet meetings, Duterte has been constantly blaming officials from the previous administration, saying their decision to withdraw Philippine vessels led to the current situation in the disputed waters, where over 287 Chinese vessels were recently spotted.

During his speech, Duterte also emphasized Manila will not pull its vessels out of the West Philippine Sea amid Beijing's incursions.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. has also ordered for the filing of another diplomatic protest against China.

In 2016, an international tribunal in The Hague recognized the Philippines' sovereign rights in areas of its 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone that Beijing contests. China, however, has repeatedly rejected the landmark ruling.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 15)  The country listed ten new COVID-19 cases of the so-called "double mutant" variant first detected in India, bringing the total to 12, the Department of Health said on Saturday.

Of the ten cases, one was a seafarer from Belgium, while the rest were crew members of the MV Athens Bridge which arrived from India earlier this month.

The seafarer arrived on April 24 and completed isolation on May 13. Meanwhile, four of the crew members are still in a hospital but are in stable condition and the other five are in an isolation facility. There were 12 crew members on the vessel that tested positive for COVID-19 but the DOH said the samples of the other three were not eligible for genome sequencing. The three are in an isolation facility.

The country recorded its first two cases of the variant from India four days ago. The DOH said that the sole infected close contact whose sample was eligible for sequencing tested negative for the highly transmissible variant.

Apart from the variant from India, the DOH also found 13 new cases of the B.1.1.7 variant from the United Kingdom, seven cases of the B.1.351 variant from South Africa and one new case of the P3 variant discovered in the country.

Of the 13 cases of the variant from the UK, one person died while 12 recovered. On the other hand, one person died, four got better, and two are currently ill among the new cases of the variant from South Africa. The additional case of the variant in the Philippines died on February 28, the DOH added.
(CNN)  US President Joe Biden and the White House are showing little willingness to bend to pressure from liberal Democrats calling for more robust condemnation of Israel's actions amid the worst regional violence in years.

Speaking at the White House, Biden said he did not detect a disproportionate response to Hamas' rocket attacks from Israel, which has launched airstrikes in Gaza that have so far killed at least 87 people, including 18 children and eight women, according to the Gaza-based Palestinian Health Ministry.

Later, press secretary Jen Psaki declined to say whether Biden pressed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the growing Palestinian civilian death toll in a telephone conversation on Wednesday.

"In our view, attacks from Hamas into civilian neighborhoods is not self defense, so he certainly reiterated that, but also reiterated the need to move to de-escalate the situation on the ground," she said.

Behind the scenes, officials have been more forceful with their Israeli counterparts, including urging against evicting Palestinians from their homes in East Jerusalem, according to officials familiar with the matter. And a readout of Biden's phone call with Netanyahu said he "shared his conviction that Jerusalem, a city of such importance to people of faith from around the world, must be a place of peace."

But in his public statements on the crisis, Biden has hewed toward staunch support for Israel, despite calls from within his own party to adopt a tougher stance.

"One of the things that I have seen, thus far, is that there has not been a significant overreaction. The question is, how we get to a point where  they get to a point where there is a significant reduction in the attacks, particularly the rocket attacks that are indiscriminately fired into population centers," Biden said at the White House when asked whether Netanyahu is doing enough to stop violence from escalating.

His answer reflected the longstanding view of both Republicans and Democrats that Israel has a right to defend itself against attacks from Hamas, which the US considers a terror organization. A day earlier, Biden told reporters Israel "has a right to defend itself when you have thousands of rockets flying into your territory."

Biden has only spoken publicly about the increasing Middle East violence when questioned at the end of events. Officials said they believe he can play a more productive role in private discussions, including with Netanyahu, than in making public statements.

But officials are also mindful of the delicate  and somewhat new  political pressures Biden is facing on the matter. Though he has been versed in this issue for decades as a senator leading the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and later as vice president, a growing strain of Democratic politics has been harshly critical of Israel's actions.

After Biden said Wednesday that Israel has a right to defend itself  without mentioning anything about the Palestinians  progressive Democrats pounced.

"Blanket statements like these w/ little context or acknowledgement of what precipitated this cycle of violence - namely, the expulsions of Palestinians and attacks on Al Aqsa - dehumanize Palestinians & imply the US will look the other way at human rights violations. It's wrong," wrote Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York on Twitter.

Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, responding to the White House's readout of Biden's telephone call with Netanyahu, decried its lack of mention of Israel's treatment of Palestinians.

"No mention of Sheikh Jarra. No mention of the al-Aqsa raid," she wrote, referring to recent incidents in Jerusalem, including the planned evictions. "No mention of the 13 innocent children killed in air strikes. No mention of the ongoing occupation of millions in an open air prison."

"You aren't prioritizing human rights. You're siding with an oppressive occupation," she wrote.

Psaki, questioned about those statements, said Thursday the US was opposed to any civilian deaths.

"Let me be very clear: it is a tragedy for the loss of any life -- civilian, a child -- and we've certainly seen that as this violence has escalated. Our objective and our approach is to work with leaders in the region, whether they're the Israelis or the Palestinians, or leaders from other countries who can play an integral role in influencing Hamas, to de-escalate and move toward a more stable peace," she said.

As Hamas continues sending a barrage of rockets into Israel, and Israel pounds Gaza with airstrikes, the White House is closely watching nascent ceasefire negotiations led by Egypt to bring an end to the violence, according to senior US officials, even as the outcome of those talks remains unclear.

On Wednesday, Biden said he believed the crisis would not be prolonged after his conversation with Netanyahu. But he did not say what role the US would play in bringing it to an end.

Officials said part of his optimism has been rooted in the conversations American officials have been having with allies in the region, including Egypt and Qatar, who have relations with Hamas and could help strike a deal to end the bombardments. His national security adviser Jake Sullivan has spoken to officials from both countries over the past two days.

The White House efforts at engaging with the Palestinians to stem the violence are limited. Administration officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, have spoken to President Mahmoud Abbas. He has little control over Hamas or Gaza and there is an inherent limit to the amount of influence the US can exert on the situation because the US does not engage with Hamas, which the nation labels a terror organization.

Instead, officials say telephone lines at the White House and State Department have been blinking non-stop since the violence began over the weekend with calls to other regional players. The White House said Wednesday there had been more than 25 calls and meetings among senior US officials and regional counterparts.

Encouraging and monitoring those efforts is one of the primary current objectives of the White House amid the crisis, officials said.

"What our objective is in the short term is that Egypt, Tunisia, other important countries in the region certainly can play a role in conveying to Hamas and leaders of Hamas the reasons for de-escalation, and how that could be beneficial. And that's a role they have played historically, at moments in time," Psaki said on Thursday.

This story was first published on CNN.com "White House not bending to pressure from progressives to condemn Israel"
US, 15 May 2021 As you know, men and women need several essential items in the kitchen while they are preparing something special, and a knife is a primary thing that is used by individuals to cut the vegetables and other food items. It is very essential to have a sharp knife in the kitchen to cut almost every single thing, but some individuals dont have a sharp knife due to which they fail to cut the food items effectively. Whenever they try to crush the vegetables with a blunt knife, they get failed to cut the vegetables properly. There are many individuals who feel some pain in their hands while using a knife for many hours in the kitchen due to the shape. Individuals want the perfect size sharp knife that people can conveniently utilize to cut the food items and can handle for a long time. It is quite hard for people to find the best knife in the market for use in their kitchen.



The online world is loaded with so many branded knives that promise to provide the best working in the kitchen, but not all knives provide the best results. It is suggested that whenever people are using a sharp knife, then they should be careful while using it to cut vegetables as a sharp knife can be a reason behind a misshapen. There are many individuals who are looking for the best and most powerful knife that can help them to cut almost every food item effectively. If you are struggling to find the best knife, then dont get worried because the most effective knife is here named Huusk. It is actually a Couteau japonais that is made by using the most effective material. If needed, interested individuals can click here or visit our official website to know more about Huusk Opinion.



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I've been a reporter and editor at Missouri community newspapers for 35 years and joined the Columbia Missourian in 2003. My emphasis at the Missourian is on local government and elections. You can reach me at swaffords@missouri.edu or at 573-884-5366.

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With 55 updates, three publicly reported vulnerabilities and reported public exploits for Adobe Reader, this week's Patch Tuesday update will require some time and testing before deployment. There are some tough testing scenarios (we're looking at you, OLE) and kernel updates make for risky deployments. Focus on the IE and Adobe Reader patches  and take your time with the (technically challenging) Exchange and Windows updates.

Speaking of taking your time, if you're still Windows 10 1909, this is your last month of security updates.

The three publicly disclosed vulnerabilities this month include:

CVE-2021-31204 - .NET and Visual Studio Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability Important

CVE-2021-31207 - Microsoft Exchange Server Security Feature Bypass

CVE-2021-31200 - Common Utilities Remote Code Execution Vulnerability Important

You can find this information summarized in this infographic.

Key Testing Scenarios

There are no reported high-risk changes to the Windows platform this month. For this patch cycle we have divided our testing guide into two sections:

Microsoft Office

The main scenario to be tested is to convert legacy documents (*.doc) that contain shapes and pictures to the modern document format (*.docx). The change is in wordconv.exe.

Test loading and adding charts, with the all important File/Open/Print/Save (FOPS) testing regime.

For Sharepoint, test adding webparts to a TEST site, in particular the DataFromWebPart

Windows desktop and server platforms

Bluetooth: external dongles ( IrDA connections and mice especially) will need a connection test.

Fonts will need a test, particularly private fonts (a FOPS test will probably suffice).

Test folder redirection , noting any I/O performance issues.

And here's the testing scenario that should bring joy to the hearts of all desktop (and server) engineers: you need to test OLE automation this month. What does this mean? Roughly it translates to finding (and testing) the key business logic in core, internally developed business-critical apps that rely on complex, multiple, interdependent components that sometimes need a remote service from a little-known server that is still running a very, very specific version of Visual Basic 5.

Known Issues

Each month, Microsoft includes a list of known issues that relate to the operating system and platforms included in this update cycle. Here are a few key issues that relate to the latest builds from Microsoft, including:

System and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 1809 or later to a newer version of Windows 10. Devices will only be impacted if they have already installed any latest cumulative update (LCU) released Sept. 16, 2020 or later and then proceed to update to a later version of Windows 10 from media or an installation source [that] does not have an LCU released Oct. 13, 2020 or later integrated.

Devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

After installing KB4467684, the cluster service may fail to start with the error 2245 (NERR_PasswordTooShort) if the group policy Minimum Password Length is configured with greater than 14 characters.

You can also find Microsofts summary of known issues for this release in a single page.

Major Revisions

Microsoft has not (as of May 14) published any major revisions for this Update Tuesday release.

Mitigations and Workarounds

So far, it does not appear that Microsoft has published any mitigations or work-arounds for this April release.

Each month, we break down the update cycle into product families (as defined by Microsoft) with the following basic groupings:

Browsers (Microsoft IE and Edge);

Microsoft Windows (both desktop and server);

Microsoft Office (Including Web Apps and Exchange);

Microsoft Development platforms ( ASP.NET Core, .NET Core and Chakra Core);

Adobe (Reader, yes Reader).

Browsers

Browser updates are back with a vengeance. And, this time it's personal. Holy cow: 35 critical updates for Edge (the Chromium version) and a critical update for Internet Explorer 11 (IE11). All of the reported vulnerabilities could lead to a remote code execution scenario. All of them.

The Chromium updates should be relatively easy to deploy due to the Chromium project's separation from the desktop operating system. The IE11 update is a complete refresh of the binaries. Any legacy apps will need to be tested against this new build. Add this update to your Patch Now release effort.

Microsoft Windows

Microsoft released three updates rated as critical and 22 rated as important for this cycle. The critical patches address issues in Hyper-V, how Windows handles HTTP requests, and OLE automation server issues. We don't see an urgent need to rate these reported vulnerabilities as "Patch Now," and we think that some testing will be required before production deployment. Further adding to these concerns, Microsoft has published a few minor UI issues with this update:

"The May Windows update might cause scroll bar controls to appear blank on the screen and not function. This issue affects 32-bit applications running on 64-bit Windows 10 (WOW64) that create scroll bars using a superclass of the USER32.DLL SCROLLBAR window class. In addition, a memory usage increase of up to 4 GB might occur in 64-bit applications when you create a scroll bar control."

This month's security updates cover the following core Windows functional areas:

Windows App Platform and Frameworks;

Windows Kernel;

Microsoft Scripting Engine;

Windows Silicon Platform.

The patch that wins the highest rating this month is CVE-2021-31194  a serious vulnerability in the Microsoft OLE automation engine. This update will be a tough one to test as you will need to find an application with an OLE server and compare the results across the two builds. Microsoft has also provided some guidance on removing remote access to JET databases, whichcan be found here. Add these Windows updates to your standard release cycle with an emphasis on testing your core business apps for OLE, JET, and Hyper-V dependencies.

Microsoft Office

This month's patches and updates to the Microsoft Office productivity platform affect the following baseline versions:

Office 2013 (client): SP1 - 15.0.4569.1506;

SharePoint 2013 (server): SP1 - 15.0.4569.1506 and 15.0.4571.1502;

Office 2016 (client): RTM - 16.0.4266.1001;

SharePoint 2016 (server): RTM - 16.0.4351.1000.

We get an easy ride this month with Office patches. No critical rated vulnerabilities and only 17 rated important. If you are still using JET databases, you will need to ensure that you have removed remote access with this support note from Microsoft. Add these relatively minor patches to your standard Office update schedule.

Microsoft Exchange

After you have updated Adobe Reader (see below), you will need to spend some time with Microsoft's latest Exchange server update. With three updates rated as important, and a single patch published as moderate, this update cycle is paired with some serious spoofing and security bypass issues.

Microsoft has released the following note on the technical challenge of updating your Exchange server, including, "When you try to manually install this security update by double-clicking the update file (.MSP) to run it in Normal mode (that is, not as an administrator), some files are not correctly updated. When this issue occurs, you dont receive an error message or any indication that the security update was not correctly installed. However, Outlook Web Access (OWA) and the Exchange Control Panel (ECP) might stop working."

Take your time, these issues are not time-sensitive (like last month). We are still hearing and experiencing Exchange server update issues and though we don't expect compatibility or functionality issues with this Exchange update, getting the logistics right with this May update may require some thinking. Add this Exchange Server update to your regular patch release regime.

Microsoft development platforms

Microsoft has published five development tool updates  all rated as important  affecting Visual Studio and Microsoft .NET (which has an inter-linking dependency back to Visual Studio). The following specific product groups are patched this month:

Visual Studio Code Remote - Containers Extension;

Microsoft Visual Studio 2019;

.NET 5.0 and .NET Core 3.1.

The update to Visual Studios Container component (CVE-2021-31204) probably requires the most attention this month, due to the public reporting of this remote code execution vulnerability. The remaining four issues require user interaction and local access to the target system (hence, the important rating from Microsoft). Add these updates to your standard development update release cycle.

Adobe (this month it's Reader, Adobe Reader)

While Microsoft has not included an Adobe patch in its release cycle, there has been a critical patch to Adobe Reader in Adobes latest patch update. Adobe has reported that the vulnerability CVE-2021-28550 has been exploited in the wild. Unfortunately, this makes the Adobe issue a zero-day that affects all Microsoft devices with a remote code execution vulnerability that could result in complete access to the compromised system.

Add the Adobe Reader update to your "Patch Now" release schedule. And, yes, I really did think that we could retire this section. Maybe next time.
According to the most recent available data: More than 810,000 people reside in assisted living facilities.

Assisted living costs an average of $4,300 per month.

The population of adults older than 85 will double by 2036 and triple by 2049.

7 out of 10 people require assisted living care in their lifetime.

require assisted living care in their lifetime. The U.S. will need nearly 1 million new senior living units by 2040. Nearly 30,000 assisted living facilities operate in the United States. On average, each assisted living facility accommodates 27 to 33 residents.

National senior living statistics About 2% of seniors in the U.S. live in assisted living facilities. The average cost of assisted living in the U.S. is $4,300 per month. For context, the estimated median monthly cost for a 44-hour-a-week home health aide is $4,576. An additional 4% of seniors live in nursing homes. The median cost of nursing homes nears $9,000 per month for a private room, making assisted living an affordable and popular choice for seniors who need more than just care during the day. As of 2019, California has 1,246,079 nursing facilities, the most of any state in the country. Assisted living is more affordable than other senior care options, but its still a major expense. However, not everyone appropriately budgets for elder care plans. Common conditions of assisted living residents High blood pressure

Arthritis

Heart disease

Alzheimers or dementia Common features across assisted living facilities Pharmacy access

Nutritional guidance

Physical and occupational therapy

Nursing care

Hospice care

Assisted living demographics Assisted living facilities provide housing to aging residents with varying levels of independence. For some, this can mean taking care of their own hygiene needs while nurses manage their medications. Other residents may need assistance with everyday tasks and more intensive medical treatment. In addition to Alzheimers and dementia, some of the most common conditions of assisted living residents are high blood pressure, arthritis and heart disease. About 71% of residents have memory impairments. About 42% of residents have moderate to severe memory loss, and an additional 29% of residents have mild impairments. Memory care is more expensive than traditional assisted living  usually 20% to 30% more than the average.

About 42% of residents have moderate to severe memory loss, and an additional 29% of residents have mild impairments. Memory care is more expensive than traditional assisted living  usually 20% to 30% more than the average. The average length of a stay in an assisted living facility is 22 months. As care needs become more intense, most assisted living residents move to nursing homes or other types of senior care.

As care needs become more intense, most assisted living residents move to nursing homes or other types of senior care. The majority of residents are women. About 71% of assisted living residents are women. This discrepancy is because many women outlive their spouses, leaving them without in-home support and in greater need of the care assisted living facilities provide.

About 71% of assisted living residents are women. This discrepancy is because many women outlive their spouses, leaving them without in-home support and in greater need of the care assisted living facilities provide. The majority of residents are in their 80s. The average age of assisted living residents is 84. Though most facilities allow patients as young as 65, 52% of residents are over 85 and 30% are between 75 and 84.

Assisted living data trends and predictions The assisted living industry is expected to accommodate many more residents in the next 10 to 20 years. Heres a breakdown of the current state of assisted living and what we can expect over the next two decades: The number of people over 65 will grow by 42%.

The number of people over 85 will grow by 111%.

About 986,000 new assisted living units will be necessary. The reason for this growth: Baby boomers are currently 57 to 75 years old and represent 21.19% of the population. This is a sharp increase for this demographic  20 years ago, the silent generation made up only about 15.4% of the population when it was aged 56 to 73. This change in the U.S. aging population will likely create an increased demand for assisted living care. According to research from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC), the U.S. will need almost 881,000 new facilities by 2030 and 986,000 by 2040. 1. Assisted living facility costs will continue to increase As the assisted living industry is expected to grow, so are its costs. By 2030, Genworth estimates the national median cost of monthly care will be $5,779, and it may reach $7,776 by 2040. Research from the peer-reviewed journal HealthAffairs suggests that these rising costs paired with other generational factors could make assisted living care out of reach for a growing number of middle-income people. Future seniors have lower overall savings and are less likely to have pensions, as defined-contribution retirement plans have grown, the study states. This trend may increase pressure on the already decreasing number of familial caregivers per senior. 2. Assisted living chains and franchises will increase 56% of assisted living facilities are chain-owned, including big companies like Brookdale Senior Living, Life Care Services and Genesis Healthcare. These are often larger communities that serve more than 100 patients per location. There are also many local assisted living providers of varying sizes across the country. 3. Possible staffing shortages are ahead The assisted living industry will likely face challenges in meeting the projected growth, specifically regarding staffing needs. Experts from the Senior Living Innovation Forum suggest that better pay, benefits and opportunities for advancement can improve employee retention to ensure theres enough staff to meet the growing need for these facilities. 4. More specialized memory care options will be available Facilities dedicated to memory services are becoming an increasing component of long-term care. Fourteen percent of communities have entire floors and wings dedicated to serving patients with dementia, Alzheimers disease and similar conditions. Nearly 9% of residences exclusively serve these patients. Memory care-specific communities are increasingly popular because their caregivers have been trained to care for patients with dementia, Alzheimers disease and cognitive loss. Additionally, many facilities offer specialized care and activities for people with dementia to stimulate cognition. According to data from the National Center for Health Statistics, 71% of facilities with memory care units were considered large (26 to 100 beds) or extra-large (more than 100 beds). Fifty-six percent of communities without dedicated memory care service were deemed small (10 beds or fewer).

Assisted living facility statistics by state The financial burden of assisted living varies by state. It ranges from a median monthly price of $3,000 in Missouri to $6,690 in Delaware. Below, compare the total number of facilities and the average cost of assisted living by state. Currently, Medicare covers up to 20 days of assisted living care. Most state Medicaid programs cover some assisted living costs, but the amount and days covered vary by state. Most residents need other financing methods beyond just insurance. Number of assisted living communities Maximum licensed capacity Average monthly costs Average yearly cost Alabama 300 9,700 $3,150 $37,800 Alaska 100 1,800 $6,650 $79,590 Arizona 1,400 24,900 $3,900 $48,000 Arkansas 100 5,800 $3,500 $42,000 California 5,900 127,000 $5,000 $60,000 Colorado 400 14,600 $4,575 $54,900 Connecticut 60 1,700 $6,633 $75,600 Delaware 30 2,100 $6,690 $80,820 Florida 2,400 75,100 $3,700 $44,400 Georgia 900 25,200 $3,900 $48,000 Hawaii 300 5,200 $5,00 $60,000 Idaho 200 8,300 $3,675 $44,100 Illinois 400 31,000 $4,575 $54,900 Indiana 200 20,300 $4,382 $52,584 Iowa 50 1,700 $4,073 $49,149 Kansas 400 12,100 $5,090 $61,080 Kentucky 200 12,500 $3,699 $44,385 Louisiana 100 5,300 $3,675 $43,665 Maine 240 6,500 $5,942 $71,298 Maryland 900 17,500 $5,000 $60,000 Massachusetts 300 13,600 $6,300 $73,020 Michigan 1,700 36,500 $4,200 $50,400 Minnesota 800 30,600 $4,283 $52,390 Mississippi 100 6,400 $3,713 $44,550 Missouri 400 19,900 $3,000 $36,000 Montana 200 5,900 $4,213 $50,550 Nebraska 200 11,300 $4,188 $50,250 Nevada 200 4,200 $3,595 $43,140 New Hampshire 100 4,800 $6,650 $79,800 New Jersey 200 21,300 $6,650 $79,800 New Mexico 100 4,200 $4,050 $48,600 New York 500 35,500 $4,800 $57,600 North Carolina 900 39,900 $3,800 $45,600 North Dakota 100 5,300 $4,096 $29,149 Ohio 600 42,800 $4,350 $52,200 Oklahoma 200 10,500 $3,750 $45,000 Oregon 1,500 31,500 $4,659 $55,905 Pennsylvania 1,000 62,900 $3,955 $47,457 Rhode Island 50 3,900 $4,950 $59,400 South Carolina 300 12,300 $3,988 $47,850 South Dakota 100 4,600 $3,638 $43,650 Tennessee 300 17,400 $4,039 $48,465 Texas 1,300 48,700 $3,998 $47,970 Utah 200 7,100 $3,400 $40,800 Vermont 90 2,400 $5,310 $63,720 Virginia 400 26,400 $4,850 $58,200 Washington 2,000 41,500 $5,750 $69,000 West Virginia 50 3,600 $4,000 $48,000 Wisconsin 1,000 36,100 $4,400 $52,800 Wyoming 20 800 $4,174 $50,100 Number of assisted living communities 300 100 1,400 100 5,900 400 60 30 2,400 900 300 200 400 200 50 400 200 100 240 900 300 1,700 800 100 400 200 200 200 100 200 100 500 900 100 600 200 1,500 1,000 50 300 100 300 1,300 200 90 400 2,000 50 1,500 20 Maximum licensed capacity 9,700 1,800 24,900 5,800 127,000 14,600 1,700 2,100 75,100 25,200 5,200 8,300 31,000 20,300 1,700 12,100 12,500 5,300 6,500 17,500 13,600 36,500 30,600 6,400 19,900 5,900 11,300 4,200 4,800 21,300 4,200 35,500 39,900 5,300 42,800 10,500 31,500 62,900 3,900 12,300 4,600 17,400 48,700 7,100 2,400 26,400 41,500 3,600 36,100 800 Average monthly costs $3,150 $6,650 $3,900 $3,500 $5,000 $4,575 $6,633 $6,690 $3,700 $3,900 $5,000 $3,675 $4,575 $4,382 $4,073 $5,090 $3,699 $3,675 $5,942 $5,000 $6,300 $4,200 $4,283 $3,713 $3,000 $4,213 $4,188 $3,595 $6,650 $6,650 $4,050 $4,800 $3,800 $4,096 $4,350 $3,750 $4,659 $3,955 $4,950 $3,988 $3,638 $4,039 $3,998 $3,400 $5,310 $4,850 $5,750 $4,000 $4,400 $4,174 Average yearly cost $37,800 $79,590 $48,000 42,000 $60,000 $54,900 $75,600 $80,820 $44,400 $48,000 $60,000 $44,100 $54,900 $52,584 $49,149 $61,080 $44,385 $43,665 $71,298 $60,000 $73,020 $50,400 $52,390 $44,550 $36,000 $50,550 $50,250 $43,140 $79,800 $79,800 $48,600 $57,600 $45,600 $29,149 $52,200 $45,000 $55,905 $47,457 $59,400 $47,850 $43,650 $48,465 $47,970 $40,800 $63,720 $58,200 $69,000 $48,000 $52,800 $50,100

Bottom line As the senior population continues to grow, the need for more assisted living facilities is likely to increase drastically. Though assisted living is a more affordable alternative to nursing home care for many older adults, the cost of these facilities is also expected to rise as the industry expands. No matter the size of the facility, you should always confirm the residence is licensed. The level of care needed is also an important factor in choosing a facility  smaller units may have relationships with doctors and local hospitals rather than on-call medical professionals.

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Warren managed to raise around $19,000 to produce the movie, which is roughly about $160,000 (or about one-fifth of the average indie film budget) in today's dollars. He managed to save money where he could, mainly by promising his cast and crew a percentage of the film's profits in lieu of actual wages. The only ones who actually got paid for their time were seven-year-old Jackey Neyman and her dog, who got a bicycle and a 50-pound bag of dog food, respectively.

The entire movie was filmed on a hand-wound 16mm Bell & Howell camera, which could only shoot 32 seconds of footage at a time. Since many of the film's cast and crew held day jobs, most of the film was shot at night. The lights used for filming attracted swarms of moths, but wasn't nearly as much of a distraction as the acting. Because all of the equipment was rented, Warren only did two takes of each shot so he could return the equipment on time, promising any errors could be fixed in post-production, which can't even be done in iMovie, let alone a mid-'60s film lab.

Sun City Films You can't fix this in post. You can't even fix this in during.

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They didn't even record audio on set, opting instead to dub in all dialogue and sound effects later. Of the sixteen total speaking parts in the film, the ten female characters' voices were all dubbed by one woman. There were even scenes where Warren dubbed all of the voices himself, and didn't even try to make them sound different.

During filming, Warren signed the actress Diane Mahree up for a west Texas beauty pageant without telling her, thinking that would generate publicity for the film. Warren also tried to coerce Mahree to remove her top for one scene, but quickly backpedalled on that after she was rightfully upset at the suggestion.

Sun City Films "Haha, I was only testing you!" -- actual thing Warren then said

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John Reynolds, who played the satyr-like henchman Torgo in the film, was reportedly on LSD the entire shoot. Torgo's fate was left open-ended, as Warren toyed with the idea of Torgo returning for a sequel. Reynolds himself had to deal with personal demons far worse than Torgo, and wound up committing suicide a month before the film's premiere.
The bestselling Wingfeather Saga childrens book series is becoming a fantasy animated series and organizers are raising funds to help bring this Christian series to life.

"VeggieTales" and Dreamworks veteran J. Chris Wall has partnered with Angel Studios to release the project for both parents and their children.

Following in the footsteps of the record-breaking first multi-season series about Jesus, "The Chosen", "Wingfeather Saga" is looking for fans to come on board and invest in the family-friendly animated series.

The cartoon series will be distributed by Angel Studios, a new movie and TV studio platform putting the power of Hollywood into the hands of Americans.

Source:The Christian Post
Child safety advocates and campaigners against sexual exploitation are calling on Facebook to scrap its plans to launch an Instagram platform for children younger than 13.

A cohort of advocates under the banner of the Campaign for a Commercial-free Childhood are urging Facebook to cancel its plans to launch a version of Instagram designed for pre-teens, highlighting the social ills and perils of digital technology. The campaigners include advocacy groups from around the world and concerned individuals, including the creators of the 2020 documentary film that scrutinizes social media, "The Social Dilemma."

In the elementary and middle school years, children experience incredible growth in their social competencies, abstract thinking, and sense of self. Finding outlets for self-expression and connection with their peers become especially important. We are concerned that a proposed Instagram for kids would exploit these rapid developmental changes, the April 15 letter from CCFC advocates to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg reads.



Excessive screen media use and social media use is linked to a number of risks for children and adolescents, including obesity, lower psychological wellbeing, decreased happiness, decreased quality of sleep, increased risk of depression, and increases in suicide-related outcomes such as suicidal ideation, plans, and attempts. Fifty-nine percent of U.S. teens have reported being bullied on social media, an experience which has been linked to increased risky behaviors such as smoking and increased risk of suicidal ideation, the letter, which contained footnotes documenting the studies undergirding its claims, continued.

The child safety advocates also noted that the social media platforms are saturated with child sexual abuse materials and exploitation of minors. Last year alone, according to Business Insider, Facebook reported more the 20 million child abuse images. In 2019, The Atlantic reported that Instagram was criticized for failing to respond to reports of exploitation in a timely fashion.

Source:The Christian Post
Andrew Shiira, once the director of worship planning at Lake Shore Church, was getting ready to graduate from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary on Saturday. A few months later in November, he was expected to move on to wedded bliss with his fiancee, but his life was upended Thursday when he was arrested on 10 counts of child pornography.

Shiira, whose father is president of the Hawaii Baptist Academy, was being held at the Orleans Parish Prison after his arrest, according to Baptist Press. Officials there told The Christian Post Friday morning that he was no longer in custody.

In a statement released on their website, the NOBTS said they were made aware of criminal online sexual misconduct allegations against Andrew Shiira and were in complete cooperation with law enforcement.

We offered any assistance we might provide to complete the investigation. Currently, we have no evidence of any physical harm or sexual harassment pertaining to our campus population by Mr. Shiira, the seminary said in their statement.

Source:The Christian Post
Forty years after the unsuccessful assassination attempt against Pope St. John Paul II, a writer who extensively studied his papacy is encouraging the faithful to embrace the late popes model of forgiveness and reject cancel culture, which he characterized as the opposite of forgiveness.

Thursday marked the 40th anniversary of the assassination attempt against Pope St. John Paul II, which took place just six weeks after the newly elected president of the United States, Ronald Reagan, was shot. In an interview with The Christian Post, Patrick Novecosky, a Catholic public speaker and journalist who wrote the book 100 Ways John Paul II Changed the World, reflected on the legacy of John Paul II as well as the state of the Catholic Church and Western society today.

As Novecosky explained, on May 13, 1981, Pope St. John Paul II was hit four times, twice in the abdomen, and the [bullets] that struck him in the abdomen were within millimeters of a major artery, so he lost a lot of blood. Despite the pain he was suffering, John Paul II immediately forgave Mehmet Ali Agca, the man who attempted to kill him.

As he was being rushed to the hospital, he told his aides, I forgive my assailant, I forgive him from my heart. And he reiterated that ... he actually called him my brother.' I forgive  my brother who did this, Novecosky recalled. As he was recovering, he actually lobbied the Italian government to pardon this guy.

Source:The Christian Post
The nations top health official denied the existence of a federal law that bans partial-birth abortions nationwide during a congressional hearing this week, receiving criticism from a prominent pro-life activist organization.

Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., asked Health & Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra during Wednesdays House Energy and Commerce Committees Health Subcommittee hearing if the administration would uphold legislation banning partial-birth abortion.

Bilirakis also asked Becerra, the former attorney general of California and former member of Congress, if he believed the practice was illegal.

We will continue to make sure we follow the law. With due respect, there is no medical term like partial-birth abortion, and so I would probably have to ask you what you mean by that to describe what is allowed by law, Becerra said. Roe v. Wade is very clear. It [set a] precedent that a woman has a right to make decisions about her reproductive health and we will make sure that we enforce the law and protect those rights.

Source:The Christian Post
Arguably the most radical and beneficial concepts spawned by the American Revolution are enshrined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

In fact, it is often argued, I believe accurately, that if James Madison had not assured the most prominent Baptist leader of the late 18th century, John Leland, and that if the Baptists voted for ratification of the Constitution, then he would guarantee the first Congress under that new government would pass what came to be known as the First Amendment.

In spite of being severely persecuted by late colonial and early federal state governments, Baptists had grown during the Revolutionary period to being the decisive swing vote for or against ratification. Leland and Madison had a 3 hour meeting a few miles from Madisons home and the quid pro quo was agreed upon. An example of the discrimination by state governments and their established state churches (Anglican in the South, Congregational in New England) is the fact that in the decade prior to 1776, 500 Baptist preachers were imprisoned by colonial Virginia authorities for disturbing the peace, a euphemism for preaching without a license from the state authorities to do so.

The Baptists, having been assured the new Constitution would not bring with it an established national church similar to the hostile ones they faced in nine of the 13 original states, voted by significant majorities for the ratification cause.

Source:The Christian Post
Suppose you were Mark Zuckerberg, recently ordered by an advisory board to decide how long former President Donald Trump should stay banned from Facebook. How do you make that decision without alienating key constituencies  advertisers, shareholders, users, lawmakers and others  while staying true to your own sense of what Facebook should be?

Its a hypothetical exercise, but one that illustrates the high-wire act Facebooks leadership now has to pull off.

Facebook's quasi-independent oversight board last week said the company was justified in suspending Trump because of his role in inciting deadly violence at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. But it told Facebook to specify how long the suspension would last, saying that its indefinite ban on the former president was unreasonable.

The ruling, which gives Facebook six months to comply, effectively postpones any possible Trump reinstatement and puts the onus for that decision squarely back on the company  the exact scenario Zuckerberg was likely trying to avoid in the first place.

For years, he and other Facebook executives have insisted that Facebook should not be the arbiter of truth and that as a tech company it shouldnt be making decisions on thorny societal matters such as free speech. Zuckerberg has stated publicly numerous times that he supports government regulation, although the rules Facebook wants arent always the same as those regulators might seek.

The company said this week it has no updates on its plans for Trump's accounts beyond what it said last week, when it said it will review the board's decision and determine an action that is clear and proportionate." It plans to respond to the boards recommendations within 30 days of the decision.

Here are some of the constituents that could have strong and wildly different reactions to Facebook's ultimate decision.

USERS

Facebook has more than 2.7 billion users worldwide  most of them outside of the U.S. For most, Trump's presence or absence on the platform is unlikely to greatly influence whether they should stay or they should go. Most people remain on Facebook even if they're not entirely happy with it, studies show.

While some users are leaving Facebook  often citing the toxicity of political conversations and the platform's broader actions against hate speech and misinformation  enough are staying (and joining) for the company to report rising user numbers quarter after quarter. For those who've left, even a decision to keep Trump off the platform forever is unlikely to make a difference.

Younger social media users are more likely to be liberal and, based on Pew Research studies, are more likely to use newer social media platforms that are still growing in the U.S. such as TikTok or Snapchat. In other words, if Facebook wants to keep expanding Instagram, its platform most popular with that demographic, banning Trump permanently is unlikely to hurt.

While many Americans might look to Facebooks final decision as a thumbs up or thumbs down on Trump, the approach the company takes could also affect its relationship with users around the world and their local and national political leaders, said David Kaye, a former United Nations special rapporteur on free speech.

What kind of platform does Facebook want to present to the world? asked Kaye, now a law professor at the University of California at Irvine. A platform that cares about its users, cares about offline harm, and devotes resources to solving problems about offline harm? Or do they want to be known as the place that facilitates ethnic cleansing?

U.S. POLITICIANS AND REGULATORS

Whatever Facebook decides will probably enrage one side of the political aisle.

That could be even messier if Trump decides to run for president again in 2024, since hed once again be a major political figure. Facebook isnt bound by the U.S. First Amendment, which prevents the government from muzzling free speech, so it can technically do whatever it wants under its rules. But a private company banning a major party candidate from its service could be complicated and might invite further scrutiny from antitrust enforcers over its power.

Of course, Twitter banned Trump permanently without a backward glance, and its still standing. Its shares, which briefly dipped after it announced the Trump ban in January, have since recovered. But a permanent silencing of the former president on Facebook would still anger Trump and his supporters.

Since before Trump was even elected, a vocal and growing set of conservative politicians have pushed the narrative, with no proof, that Facebook and other tech companies are biased against conservatives. A permanent ban would further cement this belief, possibly pushing sympathetic users to other, smaller platforms.

On the other hand, allowing Trump on Facebook again could fuel the push by some civil rights advocates to seek stricter rules against harmful misinformation  perhaps in ways that could hurt Facebook's business model, which thrives on any kind of engagement.

SHAREHOLDERS AND ADVERTISERS

Facebook holds so much sway over how online advertisers reach consumers that whether Trump is on or off the platform is unlikely to matter much to them, said Cathy Taylor, of the London-based World Advertising Research Center.

Theres not many places for them to go to spend their ad dollars, she said. "They kind of are backed into being on Facebook whether they like it or not."

Taylor said major marketers did get the company's attention last summer when they launched a boycott pushing Facebook to take a stronger stand against hate speech, but those big brands  from Starbucks to Unilever  still accounted for less than 1% of Facebook's revenue in the U.S.

The company's stock is trading close to last week's record high, despite some skittishness due to regulatory pressure on Facebooks plans for an Instagram aimed at children. Its advertising revenue is soaring, thanks in large part to a boost in online ads during the pandemic. Revenue grew 48% to $26.17 billion in the first three months of this year  a pace more typical for startups than for massive global corporations.

And as long as Facebook profits from advertising spending, the company's shareholders will stay happy, too.

Facebook in particular has tons of small and mid-sized businesses that dont even enter into these big political conversations," Taylor said. Theres no sign that anything is changing with these social media sites based on whether or not Donald Trump is on the platform.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  Israel slammed the Gaza Strip with airstrikes, in a dramatic escalation that included bombing the home of a senior Hamas leader, killing a family of 10 in a refugee camp  most of them children  and pulverizing a high-rise that housed The Associated Press and other media.

The Hamas militant group continued a stream of rocket volleys into Israel, including a late-night barrage on Tel Aviv. One man was killed Saturday when a rocket hit his home in a suburb of the seaside metropolis.

With a U.S. envoy on the ground, calls increased for a cease-fire after five days of mayhem that have left at least 145 Palestinians dead in Gaza  including 41 children and 23 women  and eight dead on the Israeli side, all but one of them civilians, including a 5-year-old. President Joe Biden, who has called for a de-escalation but has backed Israels campaign, spoke separately by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Still, Israel stepped up its assault, vowing to shatter the capabilities of Gazas Hamas rulers. The week of deadly violence, set off by a Hamas rocket Monday, came after weeks of mounting tensions and heavy-handed Israeli measures in contested Jerusalem.

Early Sunday, Israeli warplanes struck several buildings and roads in a vital part of Gaza City. Photos circulated by residents and journalists showed the airstrikes created a crater that blocked one of the main roads leading to Shifa, the largest hospital in the strip.

The Health Ministry said the latest airstrikes left at least two dead and 25 wounded, including children and women. There has been no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

On Saturday, Israel bombed the home of Khalil al-Hayeh, a senior figure in Hamas political branch, saying the building served as part of the groups terrorist infrastructure. There was no immediate report on al-Hayehs fate or on any casualties.

The bombing of al-Hayeh's home showed Israel was expanding its campaign beyond just the groups military commanders. Israel says it has killed dozens in Hamas military branch, though Hamas and the smaller group Islamic Jihad have only acknowledged 20 dead members.

Since the conflict began, Israel has leveled a number of Gaza Citys tallest office and residential buildings, alleging they house elements of the Hamas military infrastructure. On Saturday, it turned to the 12-story al-Jalaa Building, where the offices of the AP, the TV network Al-Jazeera and other media outlets are located, along with several floors of apartments.

The campaign will continue as long as it is required, Netanyahu said in a televised speech on Saturday evening. He alleged that Hamas military intelligence was operating inside the building. Israel routinely cites a Hamas presence as a reason for targeting certain locations in airstrikes, including residential buildings. The military also has accused the militant group of using journalists as human shields, but provided no evidence to back up the claims.

The AP has operated from the building for 15 years, including through three previous wars between Israel and Hamas, without being targeted directly. During those conflicts as well as the current one, the news agencys cameras from its top floor office and roof terrace offered 24-hour live shots as militants rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city and its surroundings.

We have had no indication Hamas was in the building or active in the building, AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said in a statement. This is something we actively check to the best of our ability. We would never knowingly put our journalists at risk.

In the afternoon, the military called the buildings owner and warned a strike would come within an hour. AP staffers and other occupants evacuated safely .

Soon after, three missiles hit the building and destroyed it, bringing it crashing down in a giant cloud of dust.

The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today, Pruitt said. We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing APs bureau and other news organizations in Gaza.

This is an incredibly disturbing development. We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life, he said, adding that the AP was seeking information from the Israeli government and was engaged with the U.S. State Department to learn more.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken later spoke by phone with Pruitt, offering his unwavering support for independent journalists and media organizations around the world and noted the indispensability of their reporting in conflict zones, according to a statement.

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al-Jazeera Media Network, called the strike a war crime aiming to silence the media and to hide the untold carnage and suffering of the people of Gaza.

Later in the day, White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted that the U.S. had communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility.

In the early hours Saturday, another airstrike hit an apartment building in Gaza Citys densely populated Shati refugee camp, killing two women and eight children.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters that his wife and her brothers wife had gathered at the house with their children to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday ending the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. The only survivor was Hadidis 5-month-old son, Omar.

The blast left the childrens bedroom covered in rubble and smashed the salon. Amid the wreckage were childrens toys, a Monopoly board game and, sitting on the kitchen counter, unfinished plates of food from the holiday gathering.

There was no warning ... You filmed people eating and then you bombed them? a neighbor, Jamal Al-Naji, said, referring to Israels surveillance over the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In his call with Netanyahu, Biden expressed his strong support for Israels campaign but raised concern about civilian casualties and protection of journalists, the White House said.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tweeted Saturday that he had spoken again with Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz and reaffirmed Israels right to defend itself and condemned Hamas deliberate targeting of Israeli citizens. Austin added: I also expressed my hope that calm can be restored soon.

The bombings took place a day after U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived in Israel as part of Washingtons efforts to de-escalate the conflict. Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian intelligence official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.

Mediators from Egypt, which works closely with Israel on security issues and shares a border with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, appeared to be growing alarmed. The intelligence official said Egypt hopes the U.S. intervention could halt the Israeli assault. The U.N. Security Council was set to meet Sunday.

The tensions began in east Jerusalem earlier this month, when Palestinians protested attempts by settlers to forcibly evict a number of Palestinian families from their homes and Israeli police measures at Al-Aqsa Mosque, a frequent flashpoint located on a mount in the Old City revered by Muslims and Jews.

Hamas fired rockets toward Jerusalem late Monday, triggering the Israeli assault on Gaza. Since then, Hamas has fired more than 2,000 rockets, though most have either fallen short or been intercepted by anti-missile defenses. Israels warplanes and artillery have struck hundreds of targets around blockaded Gaza, where some 2 million Palestinians live.

The turmoil has also spilled over elsewhere, fueling protests in the occupied West Bank and stoking violence within Israel between its Jewish and Arab citizens, with clashes and vigilante attacks on people and property.

Palestinians on Saturday marked the Day of al-Nakba, or the Catastrophe, commemorating the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what was now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. Thousands of Arab Israelis marched in a Nakba rally in the northern Israeli city of Sukhnin, and scattered protests took place in the West Bank.

Palestinian health officials reported the deaths of two Palestinians by Israeli fire in the West Bank on Saturday. One of the shootings occurred when the army said it thwarted an alleged car ramming.

___

Keath reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue in Beirut and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.
WATERLOO, Iowa (AP)  One man is dead and two women were injured in an early morning shooting Saturday in Waterloo, Iowa.

Neighbors reported hearing what sounded like eight to 10 gunshots followed by yelling around 3:30 a.m., the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reported.
STAMFORD  Since March of last year, Stamfords health department has conducted more than 1,700 inspections that involved checking whether various businesses and facilities were following COVID-19 safety guidelines and rules, according to data from the citys Office of Public Safety, Health and Welfare.

Many of those inspections  about 930  were routine health inspections that included a review of whether establishments were adhering to COVID-related protocols. Another 450 or so were evening and weekend inspections to ensure establishments were following rules like requiring masks and limiting capacity.

The rest of the inspections took place in spring 2020 when sit-down dining was prohibited and hair salons and barbershops were closed.

From March 2020 to April 2021, the health department issued 72 written warnings and 21 fines totaling $2,950, according to the citys data, which The Stamford Advocate obtained through a Freedom of Information request.

The Stamford Department of Health, according to city records, also shut down three businesses in November for violations of COVID safety rules.

At the Peruvian Club on Atlantic Street, patrons playing pool and sitting around the establishment were not wearing masks, and patrons sitting at the bar area were drinking without food, according to city documents.

Cafe Luna on West Broad Street and Reyes Bar & Restaurant on Stillwater Avenue were closed by the city health department for violating health and safety guidelines relating to overcrowding, wearing masks, and serving alcohol without food, according to a press release from November.

The city Department of Health cleared Reyes to reopen on March 11, saying it was in compliance with COVID-19 protocols.

A re-inspection of the Peruvian Club on Feb. 12 noted that previous violations had been corrected. On Feb. 19, a health inspector wrote that the owners have submitted a plan to indicate how they will meet the COVID requirement which has been reviewed and approved, according to city documents.

Cafe Luna remains closed.

Efforts to reach managers at all three businesses were unsuccessful.

Local health departments can voluntarily report to the Connecticut Department of Public Health how they have been enforcing the states rules for reopening. The enforcement activities reported by local departments can range from warnings to fines to closures, DPH spokesperson Maura Fitzgerald said.

Stamfords health department has reported more than 60 enforcement activities to the state  more than any other local health department, Fitzgerald said.

When it came to enforcing COVID safety protocols, the citys goals were to reduce risk and educate local businesses, said Ted Jankowski, Stamfords director of public safety, health and welfare.

The goal was not really to penalize establishments who were struggling during COVID, Jankowski said. But if we had to close them down because they were not in compliance, then we had to close them down.

Heather Cavanagh, the president and CEO of the Stamford Chamber of Commerce, agreed with Jankowski, adding that the chamber and the city collaborated to boost compliance.

If a complaint got funneled to me, then we all (would) work together to try to resolve that complaint with regard to that business, Cavanagh said. Health and welfare and safety was the first priority, and if somebody is not complying with that, with the way that the virus would spread, it could cause a superspreader event.  We were all trying to break that curve, and if youre not adhering to the guidelines, then we have to do something about that.

Jankowski said that most of the time, businesses would make changes to bring themselves into compliance after receiving a verbal or written warning.

The city has conducted COVID inspections at restaurants, bars, delis, bakeries, supermarkets, convenience stores, flower shops, pharmacies, gyms, apartment buildings and salons, among other places, Jankowski said.

For the most part, inspections of restaurants were the responsibility of health department inspectors. Jankowski said the citys civil citation officers inspected most of the other kinds of businesses.

Overall, Stamfords citation officers performed more than 280 inspections that included checking for compliance with COVID rules. They issued eight written warnings but no fines.

Jankowski said that at times, a task force including a health inspector, a citation officer and a Stamford Police Department officer would respond to complaints about businesses flouting the rules.

Mayor David Martin said the citys enforcement efforts were always in service to the publics health.

Many of our restaurants and businesses adapted quickly to the health and safety guidelines required by this pandemic, Martin said in a statement. We believe that after our initial serious enforcement actions, we saw greater compliance among businesses and residents compared to some other cities.
If someone asked me to define the credit union brand, I would say that credit unions are not-for-profit financial institutions focused on improving the financial lives of their communities.

I must be honest, though. While improving the financial lives of a community is a noble purpose, it can be perceived as a bit shallow by people my age (33) and younger. I personally love what credit unions stand for, but I speak from privilege. I joined a credit unionboth as an employee and as a memberwhen I was 23, so I know the inside, deeper story of the good credit unions do.

When I think about the next generation of credit union members and employees, however, I am concerned that many credit unions are leaning into assumed loyalty. But credit unions cant coast when it comes to attracting and keeping young employees and members.

For employees, research is showing that millennials and Gen Zers are staying, on average, one to two years in a specific position. To keep young professionals engaged in the credit union movement, there must be tangible pathways for career development, including roles that stretch us and enhance our technical skills. Todays young potential members (millennials, Gen Z and the generations that will follow them) need to find alignment with a brands purpose immediatelyotherwise, theyll stop paying attention. I believe that credit unions, as cooperatives, are trying to do their due diligence to gain insight into young peoples attitudes and opinions about financial services and to learn more about our financial habits. Efforts are being made to understand the wants/needs of these groups. What I think is missing is understanding the perception young people have about credit unions. Perception is quiet, yet very powerful. This is how we understand and interpret something, and heres an inconvenient truth about perception: What people perceive can quickly become what they believe, if you do not challenge it.
The U.S. flag waves in the wind at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Russia, on April 16, 2021. (Xinhua/Evgeny Sinitsyn)

The diplomatic mission of the Czech Republic would be granted permission to hire 19 employees from Russia, while the U.S. diplomatic mission is forbidden to hire locals.

MOSCOW, May 14 (Xinhua) -- Russia has included the United States and the Czech Republic in a list of countries that have been classified as "unfriendly," according to a document published Friday on the country's official legal information portal.

"To approve the attached list of foreign states committing unfriendly actions against Russia, citizens of Russia or Russian legal entities, against which countermeasures established by the decree of Russian President [Vladimir Putin] dated April 23, 2021, No. 243 ... shall be applied," the document read.

According to the document, the diplomatic mission of the Czech Republic would be granted permission to hire 19 employees from Russia, while the U.S. diplomatic mission is forbidden to hire locals.

Earlier in April, Putin signed a decree on countermeasures to "unfriendly actions" of foreign states amid an intensified diplomatic row with the United States and some European countries.

The government has since formed a list of foreign countries "committing unfriendly actions" toward the Russian Federation, Russian citizens or legal entities.

These countries will either receive a cap on the number of locally hired employees or be completely banned from employing Russian staff at their diplomatic missions.
Common sense has now been defeated in this country. There is really nowhere to turn if you still believe in it.

For years, many have assumed that a reasonable, conservative, Christian view of life was still upheld in several important places. But they have been wrong.

The Long March of the Left through the institutions of Britain has included almost all such places. The buildings still stand, the lawns are still neatly mown, the windows sparkle and the people look the same.

But put them to the test and it is as if you have wandered on to the set of Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. Normal-seeming people mouth the mad slogans of the ultra-Left. And they are in charge.

Last Sunday, my colleague Ian Gallagher demonstrated this with his devastating report on the treatment of a school chaplain, Dr Bernard Randall, by an allegedly Christian independent school.

Dr Randall, a plainly reasonable, well-educated and tolerant person, did no more than deliver a sermon calling for more tolerance.

Dr Randall, a plainly reasonable, well-educated and tolerant person, did no more than deliver a sermon calling for more tolerance

The heart of it ran: 'Whichever side of this conflict of ideas you come down on, or even if you are unsure of some of it, the most important thing is to remember that loving your neighbour as yourself does not mean agreeing with everything he or she says; it means that when we have these discussions, there is no excuse for personal attacks or abusive language. We should all respect that people on each side of the debate have deep and strongly held convictions.'

Dr Randall says he was then reported to the counter-extremism body Prevent, and told that his future sermons would be censored in advance and monitored. He has since lost his position.

From time to time, I receive letters from parents of children in the state school sector, revealing just how relentlessly they are propagandised in favour of the modern Left-wing consensus.

Who is really surprised by that, or by the leaden dominance of such thought in our universities? The education industry was the first and easiest target of the cultural revolutionaries when they fanned out from the campuses in their thousands after 1968.

The same people are in the police, the legal profession, the HR departments of major employers, the NHS, and now the Armed Forces.

They took over the Labour Party years ago and are now busy doing the same thing to the Tories.

They are, of course, in the BBC and the publishing industry, and in the Church of England, whose current leader is caught up in a Maoist campaign to get rid of politically suspect monuments.

For the moment, you are reasonably safe from this if you keep quiet. But I am genuinely unsure how long that can last.

We are moving rapidly  as the past few months have shown  towards a society in which compliance with the official view is actually demanded.

I can only warn you, as I have done for years. But I don't suppose anyone will believe me, even when the evidence is so strong. It can't happen here, can it?

The BBC took a great book... and added lesbians, smoking and Nigel Farage!

I always got the impression that my mother had a pretty good time in the Women's Royal Naval Service  the Wrens  during the Second World War.

It was a great time for spirited and adventurous young women, and she was definitely one of those. And it was thanks to her that I read and loved Nancy Mitford's marvellous book The Pursuit Of Love, which I have reread many times in the past 50 years.

What a miserable job the BBC have just made out of dramatising it. As usual in re-creations of the past, several characters are ambassadors from 2021, sinless believers in equality and diversity, accompanied by modern music to let us know they are OK.

The rather complex eccentric Uncle Matthew is played by Dominic West as a crude Nigel Farage figure with a joke moustache the size of the Forth Railway Bridge

They tell us who and what we can approve of about the world of 80 years ago, and also make it clear who we should disapprove of  though the book has perfectly good heroes and villains of its own.

The rather complex eccentric Uncle Matthew is played by Dominic West as a crude Nigel Farage figure with a joke moustache the size of the Forth Railway Bridge. Do they really think that a man who hunts his own children with bloodhounds has no sense of humour?

There is a stupid feminist speech directed at the kindest single character in the book. There is a lot of camp cavorting, in which the rather plump Lord Merlin is portrayed as slender and desirable. There is the usual incessant smoking (I have checked the text and there is barely a mention of it). There is a repeated suggestion that the two main characters, Fanny and Linda, have lesbian yearnings for each other.

But above all it lacks the spirit of the book, the sheer toughness, independence and courage of that generation of women, which had absolutely nothing to do with 21st Century ideas of third-wave feminism, and was deeply entangled with patriotism. If such people existed before Germaine Greer and Betty Friedan came along to tell us what women should think, much of the myth of pre-1960s female enslavement comes apart.

In one very telling moment, clumsily bungled in the drama, Linda is appalled by her daughter Moira's desire to take refuge in America from the coming air raids. 'Children might or might not enjoy air raids actually in progress, but a child who was not thrilled by the idea of them was incomprehensible to her, and she could not have imagined having conceived such a being.'

Well, quite, I thought when I first read it half a century ago, and as I think now. Please read the book.

Seeking peace has caused so much misery

I've been glad over the past few years that antisemitism has become so unpopular.

Alas, there had already been many years of such antisemitism, especially in the BBC, whose crude and biased reporting continues to help millions misunderstand the situation in Israel. I'll make one point about this mess, confirmed by many visits.

If you really care about the conditions in which the Arabs of the region live, which you should, then the last thing you should support is any more conflict or any more attempts at a 'solution', which no Arab leader will ever actually agree to.

Fifty years of supposedly seeking a peace deal have made life for Arab men, women and children vastly worse.

As one Arab Israeli of my acquaintance likes to complain: 'Oh, for the good old days before we had peace.'

I have not voted for 30 years and now I am pretty certain I shall never do so again. The plan to demand 'proof of identity' at polling booths, put forward by a Prime Minister who once said he would rather eat an ID card than show it to an official, rules me out anyway. Actual polling fraud is concealed in the postal voting system. Why not fix that?

Well, I told you that the Blair creature was a menace, not the safe pseudo-Tory he claimed to be. I told you Theresa May was useless, and that Gordon Brown was a dogma-driven hardliner. And I also told you that David Cameron was slippery. Right every time. Now will you believe me about a few more things? It will save you a lot of trouble.

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Just two weeks ago the European Parliament finally ratified our agreement with the EU. Now we can start to make it work.

This agreement gives us full control over our own laws, courts, borders and money. It ends alignment with the EU and thereby gives us freedom to reach trade agreements with the rest of the world.

That is all I have always wanted from Brexit  free trade and friendly relations with our neighbours as a sovereign country. That is what Britain has stood for over the best part of two centuries since the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846.

After the interlude of EU membership, we are going back to our roots.

We are doing so in a positive and pragmatic way. That's how I want to work with my opposite number, Commissioner Maros Sefcovic.

Two weeks ago, the European Parliament ratified our agreement with the EU. It gives us control over our laws, borders and money, says Brexit Minister Lord Frost (pictured on February 24)

It's true that we could be forgiven for thinking, after the past few months, that our European friends have not all seen things in the same way.

From the unfortunate attempt to put a hard border on the island of Ireland for vaccine exports, to the threats to cut off electricity to Jersey or to retaliate against our financial services, we haven't always heard much enthusiasm to make things work.

Equally we know that, at a practical level, European authorities have co-operated constructively with us to keep goods and lorries moving through new customs controls and the challenges presented by Covid.

We did not see the queues in Kent that many expected and goods exports to the EU are now back above last year's levels.

This is a big change in our relationship. Things may well continue to be a bit bumpy. But where there are difficulties we can work through them as sovereign equals.

Defending our interests when that is necessary  as we showed in Jersey recently  but always being constructive when we can.

But one area remains unsettled. Our new relationship with the EU won't be right until we have dealt with the problems arising from the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The Protocol as we now have it was a huge improvement on the old 'backstop' which it replaced. This would have kept the whole of the UK locked in the EU customs union and single market until the EU gave us the keys.

The fundamental aims behind this new Protocol are worthy ones  to protect the peace process and the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement, to support Northern Ireland's prosperity by keeping borders and trade open, and to minimise disruption to everyday life in Northern Ireland.

It is perfectly possible to deliver those aims while at the same time protecting the EU's single market  but not in the way the Protocol is currently operating.

I saw this for myself this week when visiting Arcadia, a deli which has been an institution in Belfast for the best part of a century.

Its shoppers have always been able to choose from a variety of goods, from artisan jams, to pork pies, to Norfolk sausages, from all over the UK.

David Frost said shoppers at Belfast deli Arcadia (pictured: owner Mark Brown), have always been able to choose from a variety of goods from all over the UK but choices may now shrink

But now the choice on their shelves may shrink fast. Stores like this are reporting that their small suppliers based in the rest of the UK are beginning to stop sending them their products.

They find it too difficult and too time-consuming to deal with the paperwork. This means less choice for Northern Ireland consumers than in the rest of the UK.

This is just one snapshot. It isn't just local delis feeling the effects. Businesses have been putting in extraordinary efforts to make things work. But risks to the supply of all kinds of products remain and may well get worse as the year progresses.

Yet there is no evidence that goods not meeting EU standards are getting into the EU's single market via Northern Ireland.

All this paperwork and checks  to deal with a risk that does not exist.

The EU takes a very purist view of all this. It seems to want to treat goods moving to Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK in the same way as the arrival of a vast Chinese container ship at Rotterdam. We did not anticipate this when we agreed the Protocol and it makes no sense.

I totally understand why this makes unionism in Northern Ireland anxious and why consent for the Protocol is now fragile. Protests have been occurring and political stability is at risk.

Our overriding aim has always been to protect the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement. If the Protocol is not protecting it, it is not working.

The EU has a responsibility here. The Protocol is a shared UK-EU agreement. The EU needs, rapidly, to find a new approach and new solutions.

Northern Ireland is fully part of our UK union. We have seen this in action with the vaccine rollout and the furlough scheme.

If the Protocol operates so as to damage the political, social, or economic fabric of life in Northern Ireland, then that situation cannot be sustained for long.

We are responsible for protecting the peace and prosperity of everyone in Northern Ireland and we will continue to consider all our options for doing so.

So my message to our friends in Europe is: stop the point-scoring and work with us. Seize the moment, help find a new approach to Northern Ireland, and then we can build a new relationship for the future.
Arthur Greenwood is not much remembered these days, but in September 1939 he performed a great service to his country.

As Nazi troops poured into Poland, blowing apart Prime Minister Neville Chamberlains policy of appeasing Hitler, Arthur  the deputy leader of the Labour Party  stood up to speak in the House of Commons.

From the Opposition benches, the Conservative MP Leo Amery yelled: Speak for England, Arthur! And he did, demanding Hitler be stopped.

But Arthur Greenwood didnt just speak for England. The Yorkshireman spoke for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and the entire United Kingdom.

Inevitably, Scotlands First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has been forced to confront a blizzard of questions about the road to independence. But thats only half the unfolding story

Today, more than 80 years later, is there anyone in British politics who truly speaks not just for England but for the entire United Kingdom?

This has become of prime importance at a time when Scottish independence supporters are demanding a second referendum, in the belief that they would win it.

The Scottish National Party fell one seat short of an overall majority in the Holyrood parliament elections this month, but with the Green Party being strongly pro-independence, too, we face months, perhaps years, of wrangling between Holyrood and Westminster over the future of the UK.

Inevitably, Scotlands First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has been forced to confront a blizzard of questions about the road to independence. But thats only half the unfolding story.

The issue of Scottish independence raises very difficult questions for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, too. The first is: Who speaks for the United Kingdom?

Opinion polls show that Boris Johnson is not highly regarded by a majority of Scots. Scotland has not voted for a Conservative government since the 1950s.

Wales has a Labour government and Mr Johnsons relations with Ulster Unionists are  to put it politely  somewhat fraught.

Moreover, the PMs strategy for dealing with Scottish independence is to say No to a second referendum, and hope the prospect goes away.

If Mr Johnson cannot credibly  and honestly  be a latter-day Arthur Greenwood, without doubt the rest of us need to think hard about the huge issues that the entire United Kingdom  from Shetland to the Scilly Isles  might have to face

However, it wont. A London government saying No will simply stiffen the resolve of those who want independence and could convert waverers to their cause. Expect to hear the SNP repeating loudly that refusing a democratic vote would mean Scotland being governed without its consent.

Mr Johnson also said No to a post-Brexit border in the Irish Sea. That No didnt last long. Nevertheless, while Ms Sturgeon considers how to force the referendum issue, she faces difficult issues about how an independent Scotland would work, including what were called four fundamental questions posed by the former Tory leader Lord (William) Hague.

First  currency. Would an independent Scotland keep the pound  and be subject to decisions from the Bank of England  or would Scotland invent its own currency and prepare to join the euro?

Second, as Lord Hague put it, since tax revenues per head are about 300 lower in Scotland than UK-wide and government expenditure about 1,600 higher, would the Scots have to pay higher taxes and an independent Edinburgh government have to borrow more?

Third, what kind of border would there be between an independent Scotland and England, especially if Scotland were allowed to join the EU? And fourth, what would happen with regard Scotlands security, since Nato sets a target of two per cent of GDP spent on defence and the SNP has serious reservations about spending huge sums during current times of hardship?

These vital questions need clear answers. Also, theres the very tricky question about whether Scots living in England should get a vote on independence.

Not many realise, too, that an independent Scotland would profoundly change things for England. This is something rarely mentioned at Westminster.

For example, it would mean the UK losing 32 per cent of its total landmass. To put that in perspective, when Germany was defeated in the First World War, under the crippling terms of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, it was stripped of 13 per cent of its total landmass. This resulted in years of bitterness, leading to the Second World War.

Scottish independence would rewrite the map of the UK in an even more brutal fashion. In the seas around the UK, Scotland has 900 islands of which 118 are inhabited, stretching from Shetland to the Western Isles.

She faces difficult issues about how an independent Scotland would work, including what were called four fundamental questions posed by the former Tory leader Lord (William) Hague

It has a coastline of 11,646 miles and the area of Scotlands seas is roughly 177,607 square miles, or two-thirds of the UKs total and twice as vast as the seas around England.

Has the Westminster Government considered the significance of this? Who would have fishing rights?

Geographically, Scottish independence implies a downsizing from Great Britain to what some disparagingly call Little England.

Crucially, too, what would happen to the defence of the realm?

SNP policy is to get rid of all nuclear weapons based at Faslane, on the Clyde just north of Glasgow. Where would England then relocate Trident submarines, or their successors?

Alternative sites, such Milford Haven in Wales, Falmouth in Cornwall, and Devonport, near Plymouth, would require many years of engineering work to accommodate them. In any case, would Wales  with its Labour government  accept the nuclear deterrent force? Would the people of Devon or Cornwall?

And what of Boris Johnsons defence review in March, which announced that the Army would be cut to just 72,500 soldiers by 2025?

The National Army Museum says these cuts will take the British Army to the lowest level since the war of the Spanish Succession in 1714. The Johnson plan is to increase the number of nuclear warheads to 260. But if Scottish independence goes ahead, is any of this credible?

Crucially, too, what would happen to the defence of the realm? SNP policy is to get rid of all nuclear weapons based at Faslane, on the Clyde just north of Glasgow. Where would England then relocate Trident submarines, or their successors?

Meanwhile, there is the 96-mile land border between England and Scotland. Would what could become an EU border right across this island that we share be as chaotic, cumbersome and irritating as the post-Brexit customs border in the Irish Sea? Would people travelling to either side need passports?

The Queen might be exempt when she goes between Windsor and Balmoral, but what about everyone else?

Equally important would be the effect on Britains role in the world. When the Soviet Union disintegrated, Russia applied to the United Nations to retain Permanent Five status on the Security Council. There were no objections.

After Scottish independence, would England (or England and Wales) automatically inherit the UK position on the Permanent Five, or would Brazil, India and Nigeria object? Would Russia? China? France?

Ever since Tudor times, English foreign policy has been designed around one big idea, or rather, one big fear. Englands leaders have always tried to prevent any power or alliance uniting Europe and leaving England isolated. The United Kingdom, formed in 1603, worked with others against France until the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, and against Germany in 1914 and at the time of Arthur Greenwoods Who speaks for England? moment in 1939.

Back then, the UK went on to help create the alliance of Nato against Soviet domination in Europe. An independent Scotland joining the EU would leave England surrounded by a union of European powers from Ireland to Poland.

In the 16th Century, the Elizabethans feared encirclement. Would Boris Johnson fear it, too?

I believe that just saying No to an independence referendum isnt a strategy. Its defeatism. If Mr Johnson cannot credibly  and honestly  be a latter-day Arthur Greenwood, without doubt the rest of us need to think hard about the huge issues that the entire United Kingdom  from Shetland to the Scilly Isles  might have to face.

Make no mistake, unless the English start to engage in this debate and stop thinking it is purely a matter for the Scots, the future of life south of the border could irreparably change.

Gavin Esler is the author of How Britain Ends (Head of Zeus).
When all this Prince Harry madness first began, there was little doubt in some people's minds who was to blame  Meghan Markle, with her fancy American ways, well-turned ankles and fashionable Californian psychobabble.

They were convinced that she had in some way brought about a fundamental change in the Prince's character, substituting 'our' Harry  the happy-go-lucky party Prince  for an earnest, preachy eco-bore.

Where once he seemed so relaxed that he was practically horizontal, all of a sudden he became tight-lipped and tense.

When all this Prince Harry madness first began, there was little doubt in some people's minds who was to blame  Meghan Markle, with her fancy American ways, well-turned ankles and fashionable Californian psychobabble

Again, we've seen glimpses of that before, but last week he finally spelled it out in detail, accusing not only Prince Charles but even his poor grieving grandma herself, of being emotionally inadequate

There was only one plausible explanation: Meghan. She had stolen his heart and was now busy reformatting his mind, undermining his relationship with his family, his country, his Crown, and reshaping him as her ticket to fame and fortune.

Now, I'm not saying there isn't some truth in that. After all, there's no doubt that the pre-Meghan Harry was very different to the post-Meghan model.

And there's also no doubt that since they moved to America, she has wasted no time cashing in on her Royal connections.

The reason teenagers are so impossible, says new research, is because their brains haven't yet developed the capacity for empathy and struggle to take in complex forms of communication. A relief to know it's not personal! It also explains another mystery: why so many young people fall under the spell of bigots like Jeremy Corbyn and Nicola Sturgeon. If one more female friend asks me if I've been wild swimming lately, I'll scream. No, I don't want to spend my spare time dodging ducks and picking pondweed out of my toes. Besides, seeing as every middle-class woman between the ages of 35 and 70 seems to be at it, isn't it now about as 'wild' as a trip to Waitrose? Advertisement

She is already possibly the most famous woman in the world, and well on her way to becoming one of the richest.

But I don't think she's the only one to blame. I believe Harry is just as complicit. It's only that we've never really wanted to accept it because in our minds he is still that tragic young boy at his mother's funeral.

But that Harry is gone now and the man we see before us is a very different kettle of fish. Far from being brainwashed by Meghan, I think he's just starting to be himself.

It now transpires that for a long time he has hated being a Royal. He has intimated as much on many occasions, in particular when he was a serving member of the Armed Forces.

But last week he finally came out and said it, comparing being a Royal to 'a mix between The Truman Show and living in a zoo', and telling the American podcast host Dax Shepard: 'I was in my early 20s and I was thinking, 'I don't want this job, I don't want to be here. I don't want to be doing this.'

Not only that, it seems he has always harboured deep resentment for his father and that whole 'Firm' side of the family for the unfair way he felt his mother was treated.

Again, we've seen glimpses of that before, but last week he finally spelled it out in detail, accusing not only Prince Charles but even his poor grieving grandma herself, of being emotionally inadequate.

As for his brother, it's surely no coincidence that as William has gradually settled into his role as a working Royal, clearly relishing every moment of it, the relationship between the siblings has soured.

The more you think about it, the clearer it seems  however much Meghan may have seen Harry as a way in, he saw her as a way out, an opportunity to escape from a role that he clearly considered toxic ('Look what it did to my mum') and torturous ('It's the job right? Grin and bear it.').

It seems Harry has always harboured deep resentment for his father and that whole 'Firm' side of the family for the unfair way he felt his mother was treated. Again, we've seen glimpses of that before, but last week he finally spelled it out in detail, accusing not only Prince Charles but even his poor grieving grandma herself, of being emotionally inadequate

Whether consciously or unconsciously, he married someone who he knew would never take to public life in Britain  indeed who was deeply unsuited to it  and who, ultimately, would provide him with the perfect excuse to leave.

Harry has always claimed he stepped down as a working Royal and moved to America to protect his own family. That he had no choice, that it was the only sane option. But if you ask me it's got nothing to do with that.

He did it to pursue his dream. His own dream of freedom  which is fast becoming the Royal Family's ultimate nightmare.

Chipping Norton was always Leftie

The Oxfordshire town of Chipping Norton has gone from true blue to blood red in the latest local elections. Given the nature of its fashionable inhabitants  from the Camerons to the Beckhams via Jemima Goldsmith and Elisabeth Murdoch  this may come as a surprise to some.

Not to me. Many moons ago I used to move in such circles, and one thing was always clear: despite the titles, the money and stately homes, this lot are all achingly Left-wing.

In fact, outside of North London you won't find a bigger bunch of champagne socialists. Ironic, given what a Labour government would do to their cosy way of life.

The Oxfordshire town of Chipping Norton has gone from true blue to blood red in the latest local elections. Given the nature of its fashionable inhabitants  from the Camerons to the Beckhams via Jemima Goldsmith and Elisabeth Murdoch  this may come as a surprise to some. (Above, Samantha Cameron and Victoria Beckham)

So the DUP has gone ahead and elected Edwin Poots as its new leader, a creationist who doesn't believe in evolution and thinks the world is 6,000 years old. I fear we may be witnessing the dawn of a new Dark Ages in Irish politics.

I don't really know what to say about the barbaric murder of a young British mother in Greece by a gang of thieves. What kind of a monster can torture a woman in front of her baby daughter? I've never been much of a believer in the death penalty. But some people just don't deserve to walk this Earth.

A female student is facing expulsion from Abertay University, Dundee, for saying women are born with female sexual organs and men are stronger. She was branded transphobic and her comments labelled 'discriminatory' and 'offensive'. What is discriminatory and offensive is denying women their fundamental biological identities in the name of bogus inclusivity.

Pop star Paloma Faith has become the latest celebrity mum to pose with breast pumps attached to her nipples, thus simultaneously virtue-signalling her credentials as a parent and providing a modicum of titillation for those who are that way inclined.

I'd be more likely to buy her earth mother act were it not for the fact that her hair and make-up are immaculate. As I recall, neither was a priority when I was breastfeeding.

Pop star Paloma Faith (above) has become the latest celebrity mum to pose with breast pumps attached to her nipples, thus simultaneously virtue-signalling her credentials as a parent and providing a modicum of titillation for those who are that way inclined

Church schools must keep the faith

According to new Church of England guidelines, its schools are to avoid singing hymns that are 'too confessional'. Nor should there be any 'assumption of Christian faith in those present'.

The directive doesn't go quite as far as suggesting they do away with mentioning a Christian God altogether, but they might as well.

Both my children attended CofE schools and there were plenty of other pupils from different faiths. It was never a problem during church services  they simply abstained or did something else, and everyone was very respectful.

The truth is that the more the CofE continues to bend itself out of shape in a pathetic attempt to curry favour with the woke mob, the faster it will haemorrhage members.

Very few parents who send their children to church schools these days subscribe to any proselytising form of Christianity. But they do want a basic Christian framework.

If even that is being dismantled, it's hard to see what the point is.

No doubt much of the focus of next year's public inquiry into Britain's Covid response will be on the procurement of PPE and the timetable of lockdowns; but one scandal that must not go overlooked is the question of how nearly one in five women was made to wear face coverings while giving birth  despite official guidance saying they should not be asked to do so.

So many of the rules surrounding the pandemic have seemed illogical; but that is nothing short of sadistic.

Sales of 'green' cars overtook diesel vehicles last week. Isn't it funny: not so long ago 'clean diesel' cars were the future and we all rushed out and bought them, only to discover that they were, in fact, a massive con.

So amid all the evangelism for electric, it's worth remembering that there are serious concerns about the ethical credentials of lithium batteries, not to mention a lot of unanswered questions about how the widespread use of chargers will impact on the National Grid. I'm reserving judgment.
What is the point of the Most Reverend Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury? When one of his clergy, school chaplain Bernard Randall, is severely mistreated simply for stating the Christian position in a reasoned and tolerant way, the most powerful and important figure in the Church of England has no comment to make.

No comment? It is strange enough that the Archbishop is on sabbatical leave  surely, having attained such a great and honoured position, most people would wish to exercise it to the full for every minute that was granted to them. It was striking that he also found time to respond to the Black Lives Matter campaign by announcing a review into the acceptability of hundreds of monuments and statues in Anglican churches, hardly a major preoccupation of most churchgoers.

Boris Johnson surely knows better, as do the growing number of Tory MPs elected by their party's new Red Wall supporters

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby (above) was lambasted for not supporting a chaplain who was reported to an anti-terrorism programme for questioning his school's LGBT policies

But his mumbled evasion of an important Christian issue illustrates a greater problem with this country as a whole. A sweeping cultural revolution has taken possession of all the commanding heights of society, slowly, stealthily and without in any way seeking or wanting the approval of the great majority of the people.

Those in positions of authority either actively support it or are unwilling to stand up against it. And so it grows, to such an extent that a conductor on a railway train has been publicly disowned by his employers for calling passengers 'ladies and gentlemen', words which apparently offended a non-binary passenger. And, as we laugh, we also grasp that this is normal and that the conductor had better watch out in future.

For the whole weight of society's machinery now takes the side of such complainers. Unmoderated by humour or proportion, immune to mockery or reason, increasingly ready to punish dissent with discipline or dismissal, the great force of wokery has erupted into all our lives. And as we do not know how to stop it, millions of us find ourselves forced to put up with it or even give in to it even though we do not agree with it. This is why it has now become a matter for the Government. Unless freedom of thought and speech are defended by the highest in the land, and unless the gains of the cultural Left are reversed in schools, universities, broadcasting and elsewhere, the rule of wokery will just continue until nobody dare resist it at all.

Reverend Dr Bernard Randall, 48, (above) delivered a sermon in which he told pupils at Trent College near Nottingham they were allowed to disagree with the school's new LGBT policies

Yet wokery is not at all popular. There is no public demand for it. The Labour Party now suffers at the polls, at least partly because people (not wholly incorrectly) associate it with the ferocious intolerance of the new sexual and cultural revolutionaries. When Keir Starmer and his deputy Angela Rayner took the knee last year, they may well have ensured their recent defeat in Hartlepool.

The Tory Party has had its own problems with this. David Cameron, whose reputation sinks lower by the day, mistakenly thought that an identification with woke causes was the road to power. Boris Johnson surely knows better, as do the growing number of Tory MPs elected by their party's new Red Wall supporters.

So the Premier does not just have an opportunity to consolidate the support of millions of new voters, but a duty to the country. By declaring and waging a war on wokery, making sure that the freedom Justin Welby won't stand up for is upheld by the Government, and that common sense rules once more in our lives.
What Colin Dexter did for Oxford, Julie Wassmer may well do for Whitstable. Shes the author of the Whitstable Pearl books, a series of seven whodunnits (an eighth is out next month) centred on Pearl Nolan, a restaurateur turned amateur detective in the bustling seaside town in Kent famous for its oysters.

Now theyve inspired a six-part TV series available to stream later this month starring After Lifes Kerry Godliman in the title role, with Frances Barber as her mother and Liars Howard Charles as DCI Mike McGuire, a London detective seconded to Kent.

The series  based on the first and fifth novels plus four new mysteries written for the TV series  starts with Pearl discovering the drowned body of a local oyster fisherman.

She forms an unlikely partnership with McGuire, and when a second body shows up Pearl finds herself pulled into the dark underbelly of the town. Of the five other cases, one is an art theft and another is a cold case involving an old friend of Pearls  but all have the salty whiff of Whitstable as a backdrop...

Kerry Godliman plays restaurateur and amateur private eye Pearl Nolan in a six-part TV adaptation of Julie Wassmer's whodunnit books. Pictured: Kerry Godliman as Pearl with Howard Charles as DCI Mike McGuire

MYSTERY ON THE MENU

Pearl Nolan, whos approaching 40, runs the Whitstable Pearl restaurant with her 19-year-old son Charlie and waitress Ruby, but has also set up a detective agency.

Pearl was in the police force when she was younger but had to leave when she got pregnant, and shes dreamed of being a private detective, says Kerry Godliman.

Shes become a successful restaurateur but hasnt lost the desire for detective work. Shes close to her mum Dolly, but each is harbouring secrets.

'Her other key relationship is with Mike McGuire, a police officer drafted in from the Met, and although they seem very different from one another theres a connection between them. Shes the yin to his yang.

Author Julie Wassmer believes Kerrys the perfect actor to bring Pearl to life. Shes pulled off the sense of Pearl being somebody with wit allied to a sense of justice and perseverance, says Julie. She manages to be funny and warm and cool at the same time.

SPARKS WILL FLY

The complementary talents of Pearl and Met detective Mike McGuire combine to make them a considerable force, says Julie Wassmer.

Hes a stickler for police procedure, shes someone who listens to her gut. And murder is the pebble thats thrown into the ostensibly calm pool that is called Whitstable. As McGuire comes to discover, crime in a seaside town is not confined to the theft of bicycles.

Julie Wassmer said Met detective Mike McGuire is a stickler for police procedure, meanwhile Pearl is someone who listens to her gut. Pictured: Julie Wassmer and Kerry Godliman

Howard Charles, familiar to television viewers as Carl Peterson in Liar and Porthos in the BBCs The Musketeers, plays tough guy McGuire. As soon as I read the first episode I fell in love with the character, says Howard.

Hes a city boy who sees his posting to Whitstable as a penance. And I was particularly attracted to the potential relationship between him and Pearl. The first time I met Kerry was at an audition called a chemistry test, and I could tell straight away we were going to have a really enjoyable three months shooting the series.

'She brought serious weight to her role: shes playful, shes open, she makes you forget the crew surrounding you as you shoot a scene.

Director David Caffrey, whos also worked on Line Of Duty and Peaky Blinders, agrees. I saw Kerry in Ricky Gervaiss After Life, and she managed to bring the empathy from that experience to Whitstable Pearl, he says. Shes got a really strong warmth to her with an underlying toughness and she and the London copper who comes into her life genuinely sparked off one another.

Pearl, who is approaching 40, hasn't lost her interest in detective work, despite running a successful restaurant with her 19-year-old son Charlie and waitress Ruby, played by Isobelle Molloy (pictured)

WHITSTABLE'S WONDERFULLY WINTRY LIGHT

All the exterior shots were filmed in and around Whitstable but not at the time of year the team had planned.

The pandemic pushed production into the winter months, so we filmed from October to January, says director David Caffrey.

But that played into our hands. With the tide out and the sun setting lower in the evenings, the winter light gave a Scandi-noir feel, perfect for scenes of murder and mayhem. Whitstable Pearl has all the fun of Midsomer Murders and Doc Martin, but overlaid with darker elements.

Coronavirus also impacted on some interiors, none more so than Pearls restaurant.

Any restaurant in Whitstable would have been far too small to use given that social distancing would have made it look as if Pearl had very few customers, says Julie Wassmer.

So the producers constructed an enormous interior at a conference centre near Maidstone, and that brought bustle to proceedings.

Author Julie Wassmer revealed Pearl (Kerry Godliman) and her mother Dolly (Frances Barber) are both harbouring secrets, despite being close. Pictured: Pearl and Dolly in the series

POLISHING UP PEARL

Author Julie Wassmer first discovered Whitstable with her husband when they took a wrong turn on their way to Broadstairs. It was love at first sight and theyve lived there for 21 years now.

Yes, were DFLs  thats what the locals call those of us Down From London  but perhaps because of that Ive never taken for granted how special Whitstable is, she says.

Director David Caffrey said the pandemic pushed production into the winter month. Pictured: Whitstable

She didnt take up writing books until her early 40s after working in commercials and as a scriptwriter for EastEnders for almost 20 years (I loved it because I was born in Bow in east London) while also contributing to Londons Burning and Family Affairs.

The legacy of all of that is that she certainly knows how to create a cliffhanger. Id wanted to write a crime novel for years, she says.

I began by trying to create a male private eye but I somehow never felt I got to know him very well. In 2012 though, he became she and Pearl was born. Then I surrounded her with things I love  good food, Whitstable and crime mysteries.

A MOTHER WITH SECRETS

A crucial piece of the Whitstable Pearl jigsaw is Pearls mother Dolly, played by Frances Barber, a rebel with many causes whos as scatty as Pearl is dogged and pragmatic according to author Julie Wassmer.

Yes, youre allowed to say that about me too, chuckles Frances. Julie has come up with such an interesting creation. Dollys shrouded in mystery. For instance we dont know what happened to her late husband, Pearls father.

'But there are reasons why Dollys kept secrets. It all becomes clear though, and theres quite a sting in the tail. But its also very moving.

Whitstable Pearl is available to stream from 24 May, visit acorn.tv for details of a free 30-day trial.
Your four-legged friend is obviously top dog in your house, but do they have what it takes to be crowned Britains Next Top Dog? Find out by entering a new national photographic competition that not only celebrates our love for our canine companions and the joy theyve given us during the past year, but will also raise vital funds for Cancer Research UK.

All you have to do is send in a photo of your beloved pet, and if they make it to the shortlist in one of six categories (see box below) theyll be judged by a panel of eight celebrity dog-lovers: Graham Norton, Nigel Havers, Stephen Fry, Gabby Logan, Jeremy Vine, Jake Humphrey, Clare Balding and Saira Khan.

The winner in each of the categories will then be put to the public vote to find the overall winner  Britains Next Top Dog.

Talk show host Graham suffered double heartbreak recently when his labradoodle Bailey  his significant other  died eight months after he lost his beloved rescue dog Madge.

Dog owners across Britain are encouraged to enter a national photography competition designed to crown Britains Next Top Dog and raise funds for Cancer Research UK. Pictured: Graham Norton and his labradoodle Bailey, who died last year

Madge was a terrier mix rescue dog and Bailey was a very large labradoodle. Madge died at Christmas 2019, but big old Bailey stayed by my side until August last year. Lockdown without him has been very dull indeed, says Graham, 58, who spent much of it in Ireland.

If I could have asked Bailey one question, it would have been, Why did you hate suitcases with wheels so much? Dogs have helped many of us through the last year, so the opportunity to stare at pictures of them while raising money for such a worthwhile cause was too good to miss.

'Cancer continues to bring such devastation that every effort to find improved treatments and cures should be supported.

Nigel Havers recognises what a help his dog has been during lockdown. My personal experience with dogs is long and varied, says the Chariots Of Fire and Downton Abbey star, 69.

We had corgis when I was a child and my first wife Caro was very fond of chocolate Labs  gorgeous, sloppy creatures who took up a ridiculous amount of space in a London flat.

Nigel Havers who tragically lost his second wife Polly to cancer in 2004, said his black poodle gives love and affection no matter what. Pictured: Nigel in 1995

'My wife George and I now have a very beautiful coal black poodle called Charlie. Shes adorable, she rules our lives and were happy to be her slaves. Long may she reign.

During lockdown Charlie got George and myself out every day in the rain, snow and sun. She knows nothing about social distancing or super spreaders and brooks no argument  out we must go, walking at least eight miles each day, staying fit and breathing deep as we walk through the glorious English countryside.

'She also amuses us when we feel a bit depressed, and gives us love and affection no matter what. A dog should be compulsory.

Nigel is an avid campaigner and fundraiser for research into cancer after the tragic loss of his second wife Polly, who died in 2004 at the age of 54.

Nigel said there are truly wonderful strides being made by Cancer Research to conquer all forms of the disease. Pictured: Gabby Logan with her dogs Milo and Maggie

Cancer Research UK means a huge amount to me personally. Polly died of ovarian cancer and during that time I got to know a lot about the amazing work being done for all forms of this disease, and what truly wonderful strides are being made by Cancer Research in their quest to conquer cancer once and for all.

'Such positive things are happening, and every day we see the progress thats being made, he says.

Actor, writer and comedian Stephen Fry, who lost 5st following his battle with prostate cancer in 2018, agrees.

As someone whos experienced the dubious pleasures of cancer, the thought that theres a charity like this working so hard and achieving so much is a cause for cheering.

'The last few years have seen all kinds of research advances and Im sure that with enough support a final effort over the next decade or so will make strides never thought possible. Hundreds of thousands of lives will be saved, enhanced and lengthened.

Clare Balding, who has suffered from cancer, was devastated when her Tibetan terrier Archie died last year. Pictured: Clare with her late dog Archie

HOW TO ENTER YOUR BELOVED PET Britains Next Top Dog wants as many British dog owners as possible to enter. Submit your photos in one of six categories: Puppy Dog, Pampered Dog, Playful Dog, Working Dog, Off-Road Dog and Urban Dog. It costs 10 per photo and theres no limit on entries, so there are lots of opportunities to submit different photos of your dog or dogs to different categories. Visit britainsnexttopdog.com and for each entry, fill in the entry form with your contact details, a few words about your pet and a jpeg of your photo. The competition features six categories, including Pampered Dog, Off-Road Dog and Urban Dog (file image) The BNTD team will shortlist the entries and the judges will then select the winner of each category from the shortlists. These six winners will form the final shortlist for Britains Next Top Dog 2021, voted for by the public using Text To Donate. Each vote will raise 3. Prizes include a weekend retreat for eight (plus two dogs!), a choice of Samsung or iPhone, doggie treats and accessories, a portrait of your pet and the unique winners Trophy Bowl specially designed by Emma Bridgewater. The competition opens today and the closing date for entries is 12 June. The category winners are announced on 20 June  the same day the national vote opens. The national vote closes on 27 June and the Top Dog 2021 winner will be announced on 30 June. All proceeds go to Cancer Research UK, and if you dont have a dog you can simply click on Make A Donation. Advertisement

Stephen, who is now cancer-free, doesnt have a doggie companion, so how is his relationship with dogs? Cordial for the most part. We always seem to get along.

'Sadly Im not an owner  I always think that when Im able to have a dog it will be a good sign that I have settled down in life. At the moment Im always popping hither, and very often thither too. It wouldnt be fair, he says.

Ive borrowed a few neighbours dogs to accompany me on walks though, and of course there is nothing to bring the anxious, fearful and angry world of humans into perspective like the enthusiastic, trusting and loving attitude of dogs. They shame us into being better.

Clare Balding of course is the epitome of an animal lover, having grown up with thoroughbred horses and countless dogs at her father Ians racing stable.

Shes presented TV coverage of everything from the Olympics and Trooping the Colour to Royal Ascot and Crufts, and its at the latter where shes most in her element.

Britains Next Top Dog wants as many British dog owners as possible to enter. Pictured: Sports presenter Jake Humphrey with his pet Belle

She loves being surrounded by dogs and dog-lovers, seeing it as an unmissable opportunity to learn more about different breeds and hear their owners stories.

As someone who has suffered from cancer too, Clare jumped at the chance to become a judge for Britains Next Top Dog.

Im always happy to celebrate the joy dogs bring and this is a great way of doing just that, she says. I grew up with boxers and lurchers in the countryside.

'The dogs got a lot of love and attention and I spent most of my childhood thinking it would be a good idea to be one of them, so I was very much one of the pack and spent most of the time thinking I was a dog.

Britains Next Top Dog particularly resonates with Clare who was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2009, a rare form of the disease that affects about 1,750 people every year in the UK.

I underwent three lots of surgery and treatment, recalls Clare, 50. And Ive never stopped thanking Cancer Research UK for ensuring that thyroid cancer has very successful rates of treatment with radioactive iodine. I have recovered fully.

Weve always been a nation of dog-lovers, but only one can go walkies with the ultimate accolade of Britains Next Top Dog 2021. Will it be yours? Pictured: judge Saira Khan

But she also recognises the healing power of dogs. Her Tibetan terrier Archie  whose grandfather Fabulous Willy won Crufts in 2007  was a part of Clares life with wife Alice Arnold for 15 years, and they were devastated when he died last year.

He loved having us at home during lockdown. It was such a blessing to have that excuse to go out and walk him, and to see so many other dog owners out, recalls Clare.

Archie lived a very healthy life until he reached 15 when he started slowing down, then he didnt want to go for a walk any more. At the start of the first lockdown he was in pain and we helped him as much as we could but by the summer it was clear hed reached the end of the road.

His favourite vet took him and we werent allowed to be with him because of Covid, but we knew he was in loving arms to the end. Ive since been mournfully looking at other peoples dogs and petting them whenever Im allowed or borrowing them to take for a walk.

Weve always been a nation of dog-lovers, but only one can go walkies with the ultimate accolade of Britains Next Top Dog 2021. Will it be yours?

To enter the competition or to donate, go to britainsnext topdog.com.
Pets can be incredible source of love and comfort - but these photos prove they can also have you sleeping with one eye open.

Owners from around the world have shared photos of their pets at their scariest and the best examples have been collated in a gallery by Bored Panda.

In one snap, a dog that would be adorable at any other given time looks like it's ready to attack, with his teeth bared and haunches raised.

In another, a sinister-looking Sphynx cat from the US looks strikingly like an evil genius.

Here, FEMAIL shares a selection of the best...

People from all over the world have shared terrifying pictures of their pets. This small and fluffy dog from Mexico's grin is sure to haunt your nightmares

This rescue cat from Los Angeles showed its evil side in a picture that makes it look like it has no pupils

An owner from the US said their dog loved to have their face blown with a leaf blower, even though they looked like a nightmare villain

Who knows what evil schemes this sinister-looking Sphynx cat from the US has been plotting

This dog, from the US, looks like it's about to commit a vicious attack, but really, it's just yawning

This dog from Hungary looked terrifying as its shook d its fur after a dip in the local lake

In the US, a black cat stretching its back on its cat tree gave his owner a terrible fright

This dog's owner used tomato juice to get a bad smell out of their hair, but the dog ended up looking like it had committed bloody murder

In the US, this dog jut wanted to play fetch, but ended up looking like a nightmarish creature

One person from the UK accidentally took a picture of their dog mid-sneeze, with terrifying results

A person from the US got a fright when they looked up and saw their cat staring at them from a hole in the ceiling

Would you be scared if an angry-looking cat crawled out from the bed with a pair of tweezers?

An American passerby was startled by this group of cats looking like they were having a secret meeting

This dog, believed to be from the US, looks perfectly normal, but its shadow look like an angry wolf ready to attack
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Miss Universe 2021 contestants swapped their 'political' national dress for swimwear for the 69th annual beauty competition's infamous bikini round.

With a number of beauty queens using their platform on Friday morning to highlight social injustice and patriotic messages, last night the women stripped down to colourful two-pieces and stilettos for the preliminary competition, ahead of Monday's official pageant.

Showing off their stunning physiques, the contestants also donned colour-coordinating kimonos and sashes revealing their respective countries as they strutted across the stage at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Florida.

The bikini round was followed by the evening gown competition which saw hopefuls dress in elegant, glitzy figure-hugging gowns.

Miss Universe 2021 contestants swapped their 'political' national dress for swimwear for the 69th annual beauty competition's infamous bikini round (pictured: Miss Indonesia Ayu Maulida Putri)

With a number of hopefuls using their platform on Friday morning to highlight social injustice and patriotic messages, last night the women stripped down to colourful two-pieces (pictured left: Miss Great Britain Jeanette Akua and right, Miss Thailand Amanda Obdam)

Ahead of Monday's official pageant, the stunning contestants showed off their impressive physiques for the preliminary competition last night (pictured: Miss USA Asya Branch)

Miss Myanmar, Thuzar Wint Lwin (pictured left in the bikini round), held up a sign which urged for 'prayers' for her country during the previous national dress round. The Asian nation has been embroiled in unrest since the military carried out a putsch on February 1, disputing the results of an election that resulted in a pro-democracy party winning power

Miss Poland Natalia Pigua (left) and Miss South Africa Natasha Joubert don pink and yellow bikinis for the round, held at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino

Miss Argentina Alina Akselrad appears onstage at the Miss Universe 2021 Preliminary Competition at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino

Yesterday Lola de los Santos Bicco, the official representative for Uruguay, appeared onstage at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Florida donning a multi-coloured ensemble with a powerful message which read: 'No more hate, violence, rejection, discrimination.'

Among the others calling for their message to be heard was Miss Myanmar, Thuzar Wint Lwin, who held up a sign which urged for 'prayers' for her country. The Asian nation has been embroiled in unrest since the military carried out a putsch on February 1, disputing the results of an election that resulted in a pro-democracy party winning power.

Across Myanmar, citizens have been pushing back against the ruling junta, staging massive demonstrations which have been met with violence by the military and led to the deaths of hundreds so far.

Elsewhere, Miss Singapore Bernadette Belle Ong, who donned a pair of thigh-high red boots, decided to include her powerful message into her costume.

The beauty contestant shone a spotlight on the #StopAsianHate movement through a sequinned bodysuit which included a hashtag on a flowing cape.

Other memorable performances included Miss Philippines Rabiya Mateo, who stood out in a pair of red and blue wings and three stars which represented the colours and symbols of her country's flag.

Miss Russia Alina Sanko (left), Miss Mexico Andrea Meza (centre) and Miss Ukraine Yelyzaveta Yastremska (right) on stage during the bikini round at Miss Universe 2021

Miss Netherlands Denise Speelman donned a vibrant blue bikini and silver stilettos with a floating gold kimono during last night's Preliminary Competition bikini round

Miss Costa Rica Ivonne Cerdas Cascante (left) and Miss Mauritius Vandana Jeetah (right) both looked striking in their matching bright yellow bikinis

Miss Romania Bianca Lorena Tirsin strikes a fierce pose, sending her turquoise kimono flying around her in last night's bikini round

Miss Barbados Hillary Ann Williams (left) and Miss El Salvador Vanessa Velasquez (right) strut their stuff on stage at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino

Miss Philippines Rabiya Mateo (left), Miss China Jiaxin Sun (centre) and Miss Singapore Bernadette Belle Ong (right) onstage at the Miss Universe 2021 Preliminary Competition bikini round

Yesterday Bernadette Belle Ong made a fashion and political statement, writing on Instagram: 'This year's national costume is inspired by the Singapore flag. The red of the flag represents universal fellowship, and white purity. These ideals ring true not just for Singapore but also at an international competition like Miss Universe that brings women together to empower each other and address important issues. #stopasianhate'

Miss Cameroon Angele Kossinda (left) and Miss Nepal Anshika Sharma (right) flash dazzling smiles as they stride across the stage in their swimwear

Miss Dominican Republic Kimberly Jimanez (left) and Miss Peru Janick Maceta Del Castillo (right) strike a pose in their matching yellow bikinis

Miss Ghana Chelsea Tayui is a commanding presence on stage, grinning as she shows off her trim physique during the bikini round

Miss Venezuela Mariangel Villasmil (left), Miss Portugal Cristiana Silva (centre) and Miss Romania Bianca Lorena Tirsin (right) on stage during the bikini round

Miss Uruguay Lola de los Santos dons a vibrant baby blue bikini teamed with a gold kimono as she takes to the stage during the bikini round

Yesterday Lola de los Santos Bicco, the official representative for Uruguay appeared onstage at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino donning a multi-coloured ensemble with a powerful message which read: 'No more hate, violence, rejection, discrimination' (pictured)
Missed cancer symptoms. Untreated infections that turned into fatal sepsis and pneumonia. Notices on GP surgery entrances warning patients not to come in under any circumstances.

And elderly and vulnerable patients who simply gave up trying to contact their doctor after being left bewildered by online forms and long telephone queues.

Over the past 14 months, while all surgeries have been working throughout the pandemic, in many cases, it's been behind closed doors.

Face-to-face appointments quickly became an exception, rather than the rule.

Readers in their droves have written in, telling us of their frustration, anger and distress at the situation  and we have carried reports from medical insiders who are equally worried by the apparent desire among policymakers to make this new digital-first regime the new normal.

From Monday, all patients will be able to request an in-person appointment with their doctor, unless they have Covid symptoms. Pictured: Stock image

Many GPs are struggling to cope with the huge demand from telephone and online consultations, alongside spearheading local vaccination drives, with some warning they are at breaking point.

But now, finally, there is hope. In a victory for our campaign to Let Us See Our GPs Face To Face, on Friday NHS England agreed that the situation had to change  to benefit both patients and overwhelmed practices.

From tomorrow, as pubs and restaurants reopen and everyone is allowed to hug loved ones, all patients will be able to request an in-person appointment with their doctor, unless they have Covid symptoms.

In updated guidance, NHS England has instructed that waiting rooms and receptions in all GP surgeries must open, with social-distancing measures in place.

In updated guidance, NHS England has instructed that waiting rooms and receptions in all GP surgeries must open, with social-distancing measures in place. Pictured: Stock image

Telephone and online appointments  popular with many patients, who find them more efficient  will remain. Pictured: Stock image

The cries of despair from MoS readers that forced Ministers to intervene My wife suffers with arthritis and recently it got considerably worse. After spending nearly an hour waiting on the phone to speak to a GP, I was told to ring back in the afternoon as there were no more appointments. Having done so, I was then told afternoons were emergency only and I must ring back again in the morning. I went to the surgery in the morning, and the receptionist told me I could not make appointments at the window  I had to ring in. When I called, I spoke to the same receptionist. Eventually a doctor called. He prescribed painkillers but they made my wife feel ill. Another call and they reduced the strength. I told them she had developed a pain under her shoulder blade, but they put it down to the way she slept. At this stage she had developed a very croaky voice. My wife died, Sunday morning, in bed. I was later informed she'd had pneumonia. Had she seen a doctor face to face the week or more before they would have realised the problem. Gordon Johnson, Luton My sister, aged 74, who lives in Wiltshire, had breast cancer in 2007. During the first lockdown, a lump appeared on the operation scar. She tried many times to see a doctor at her surgery but was refused despite explaining to them about her previous cancer problem. She was told by phone that it was an infection and prescribed antibiotics  twice. When she eventually managed to see her own GP, she was horrified and told my sister that she should have explained to the surgery staff about her previous breast cancer, which my sister had already done. The lump was diagnosed as a reoccurrence of the cancer. She then had to wait for an MRI scan to see if it had spread to other parts of her body. Thankfully, it hadn't but she had to have a mastectomy. Valerie Thorne Before Christmas I phoned my GP surgery to tell them my blood pressure was high (I took my own test). After a short conversation I was told to double the statin I was taking and to get a blood test as soon as possible. This took two weeks. When the results came back, the doctor rang, panicked, and said I had to go to hospital. It turned out the double dose had damaged my kidneys. I was discharged three days later, on Christmas Eve. Norman Court, Wakefield I had a suspected lump on my breast and was told to photograph it and send the picture to my GP. Apart from the difficulty of photographing my own breast, I was then told the photo wasn't good enough so I had to do it again. Eventually, my GP told me she couldn't tell what the problem was so sent me to a specialist. If she had seen me in the first place, she could have seen that it was actually eczema. Anonymous In January, I stumbled while out walking and felt a sharp crack in my left knee and my leg would not straighten. I requested an appointment with my GP. A practice pharmacist phoned and asked me to submit a photograph of my knee and I was referred to a physiotherapist for a consultation via the telephone. They recommended some exercises but refused my request for an X-ray. I saw a private specialist in March, was given an X-ray and immediately placed on a waiting list for replacement knee surgery. By refusing to see me face- to-face, my diagnosis has been delayed by almost two months and it has cost me 600 in private consultation fees. Anonymous, via email I worked in a surgery for ten years and wonder what is happening to those people whom the doctors always referred to as the 'door handle patients'. A patient comes in with a specific problem, eg a cold, then, as they are leaving and have their hand on the door handle, they turn around and say: 'Oh, by the way, doctor, nothing to worry about I'm sure, but I am regularly passing blood.' This happens all the time in a surgery and it will never occur on a Zoom call. It is particularly a male issue as they are more reluctant to make an appointment in the first place. Michele David At 77 years of age, I cannot take a picture of the underneath of my toes and even if I could I have no idea how to send it to the surgery. They have to acknowledge that most oldies are in the same position. After a telephone consultation with a consultant last week, he told me to call the surgery regarding medication. I came off the phone in tears. A recent referral to the vascular clinic was sent by the surgery to the wrong clinic and I now have to wait for another two months for a new appointment. Carol Day Just over a fortnight ago my leg became swollen, red and angry. I was limping and the pain was keeping me up at night. I called my GP and they said I had to fill out an online form. I did this and it told me I couldn't see a doctor, and I should call 111. I did and the woman on the phone told me I had to go and see my GP! Eventually I went to A&E and the doctor did an MRI scan and took blood. I am awaiting the results. I've been backwards and forwards for two weeks and can't help feeling it could have been sorted sooner if I'd been offered a face-to-face appointment. Alison Parr Last September, I had a knee replacement and knew as soon as I tried to walk on it that the operation wasn't a success. My GP would only offer telephone consultations. They told me just to be thankful and get on with it. The leg kept giving way and little over a week later, I fell and hit the floor in my living room hard, and was taken to hospital by ambulance. Later, the doctors found I have a heart problem. Throughout the entire period I have not had a face-to-face appointment with my GP. Stuart Eels I am 86 years old, very deaf and a recent widow. I've had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for years but now feel far more breathless, with pains between shoulder blades. Was it my heart? I phoned to get an appointment to see a doctor, explaining I'm deaf. The receptionist said a nurse would have to call me first and decide whether I could see the doctor. The nurse phoned the next day and I was vetted. She said a doctor would phone. No, I want to see a doctor, I'm deaf, etc. She just repeated the time the doctor would be phoning. A doctor did call and is arranging an X-ray and blood test, but still no one has said they'd see me. Judy Sharman, Martock Advertisement

Telephone and online appointments  popular with many patients, who find them more efficient  will remain.

But the system of 'total triage', brought in at the start of the pandemic to help GPs work remotely  which required patients to give their reason for wanting an appointment by filling in an online form or speaking to a receptionist  will now be scrapped.

Patient groups and politicians have lined up to welcome the news.

Dr Dan Poulter, MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, and a psychiatrist, said: 'Great credit should go to The Mail on Sunday for highlighting this very important issue.

'This campaign will help improve the quality of care patients receive and could help save lives.

'While there are some advantages for routine issues like repeat prescriptions, it is absolutely essential that the majority of GP appointments take place face to face.

'It's very easy to misdiagnose or miss important signs or symptoms over a virtual consultation. They are not a sustainable or safe model of care.'

Dr James Davies, MP for Vale of Clwyd and an NHS GP, agreed, saying: 'While new ways of working have their place, many patients now want to see a return to some kind of normality in the operation of GP services.

'Now that people will generally be able to mix indoors, albeit in small groups, it's right that face-to-face appointments are once again available routinely.'

The Patients Association chief executive, Rachel Power, said: 'Our latest research shows patients feel a remote appointment is less good than a face-to-face one, although some feel it makes no difference, and a small minority prefer remote consultations.

'We are delighted that face-to-face appointments are to be restored as the default way for patients to see their GP, with the option of phone or video appointments for the smaller number of people who prefer them.'

However the announcement triggered a fierce backlash from GP groups and social media commentators.

On Friday, a number of Local Medical Committees  groups that represent grassroots GPs across the UK  wrote to their members urging them to 'delete [the new NHS England guidance] or file it as a memento to incompetence.'

The startlingly worded letter claimed, correctly, that the guidance 'has no contractual force'  indeed, practices are under no obligation to follow such dictats.

It suggested even reading it would 'only make you wonder how much wider the gulf can get between NHS England's understanding of the current state of General Practice and the reality of day-to-day life for you and your practice teams.'

The British Medical Association's GP leader Dr Richard Vautrey accused health chiefs of being 'tone deaf' for not recognising 'the efforts GPs are making and the stress they are feeling as a result of the massive workload pressures they are currently experiencing.' He also warned that changes could not 'happen overnight'.

On Twitter, one poll suggested 50 per cent of GPs planned to ignore the guidance, while a further 20 per cent claimed they'd consider industrial action. One in ten claimed they'd rather retire or resign.

Others highlighted the potential Covid risk of bringing patients back into small waiting rooms and claimed NHS England was 'appeasing the media but not safeguarding the public or the GP profession', calling the guidance 'shocking'.

While many doctors have been supportive of our campaign, last week it was called 'distasteful' by the editor of Pulse, a magazine for GPs, who claimed it was 'easier than ever' to contact a family doctor.

Others claimed highlighting the stories of patients who are clearly struggling was a 'concerted campaign to turn the public against #TeamGP' and that we were 'oblivious to the world around [us] or just plain stupid'.

Yet official data shows that only 30 per cent of GP appointments in March were in person, and face-to-face meetings were permitted only where 'clinically necessary'.

Despite evidence that total triage and online consultation forms have actually increased GP workload, and that GPs were suffering from long days in back to-back telephone appointments, there was huge resistance to the new guidance.

Many GPs have complained of feeling 'burnout' and 'compassion fatigue' after spending days on the telephone, without physical contact with patients, or their colleagues.

Speaking to The Mail on Sunday's Medical Minefield podcast last week, Professor Dame Clare Gerada, former chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners, said: 'I've missed the human touch with my patients during the pandemic. I adore seeing patients and [so do] my colleagues. So we're on the same page about this.

'We want to make this work for patients, we want to make it work for the profession and the NHS.'

Royal College of General Practitioners current chairman Professor Martin Marshall said last week: 'Remote working has been challenging for many GPs, particularly when delivering care to patients with complex health needs.

'GPs have reported constant remote consulting to be exhausting in a different way to seeing patients in person  and that it can make it harder to pick up on 'softer' cues, which can be helpful for making diagnoses.

'Furthermore, these new ways of working do not reduce GP workload  in fact, there is evidence to suggest triage results in an increase in consultation numbers and remote consultations can take longer.'

Prof Gerada agreed that email and digital services had, in many cases, increased pressures on GPs.

'The problem is, my colleagues are [now] drowning in work. A friend told me that she went to see her GP who basically burst into tears.

'We can't be in the situation where doctors are crying in their consulting room, because they can't deal with the workload.

'We have to sort this. GPs are the front door of the health service, and if we don't protect that, then I'm afraid all of us are going to suffer.'

A conference of GPs last week voted in favour of carrying out a 'full impact assessment' of online consultations amid reports that many GP practices were being left overwhelmed with demand.

One practice reported some patients were submitting requests every day.

Dr Farah Jameel, of the British Medical Association GP executive committee, told the conference: 'There is a risk that instead of streamlining processes and reducing workload opening up more routes of access via online consultations could have the opposite effect.'

She added that 'clearly more work needs to be done to understand the impact of this on practice workload, and in turn, patient access'.

At the heart of our campaign has, of course, been the thousand or so readers who contacted us with their stories over the past few months  all of them deeply personal.

Without them, this change would not have come.

And if there is any remaining doubt among GPs that the shift in guidance was anything but vital, their letters published on the right  many of them heart-breaking  make it crystal clear.
Like most doctors, my dad, a retired GP, has a fair few war stories from his days on the beat.

One that's been wheeled out a lot has been playing on my mind over the past few months: the time he saved a young man's life by looking at the back of his throat.

It's not just because it's particularly dramatic  which it is  but it also perfectly illustrates the vital importance of being face- to-face with your GP.

Dad had been visiting a patient at home when, just as he was about to leave, she asked: 'Now you're here, would you mind taking a look at my grandson? He's just in the next room.'

He'd got a bad case of tonsillitis. It was so bad he couldn't speak, she said.

Like most doctors, my dad, a retired GP, has a fair few war stories from his days on the beat, writes BARNEY CALMAN. Pictured: Stock image

On examining the young man's throat, it was clear he was suffering from epiglottitis  the medical term for swelling of the flap that closes over the windpipe at back of the throat when we swallow, the epiglottis.

Acute epiglottitis can be triggered by a throat infection and it's considered life-threatening.

The swelling can block the windpipe, with rapid, fatal consequences. Dad says he considered driving the guy to hospital but then decided it would be wiser to call an ambulance.

Paramedics arrived. The lady's grandson was taken to hospital. Dad went on his way. A while later, he received a discharge report: in the ambulance, the young man had gone into respiratory arrest.

But the paramedics were immediately able to intubate him (stick a tube down his throat), allowing him to breathe.

After a short spell in hospital, he was well enough to go home.

Of course, this all goes to show my dad is an absolute hero of the old-school variety  dads, on the whole, are, aren't they? But my point is this: imagine if that whole incident had occurred via a phone call, or email consultation?

A sore throat and losing your voice are unremarkable symptoms. My dad even admits he was a bit begrudging at having the surprise extra appointment thrust upon him  until he saw how unwell this chap was.

And if he hadn't seen him and acted swiftly, this young man would probably have died.

One that's been wheeled out a lot has been playing on my mind over the past few months: the time he saved a young man's life by looking at the back of his throat. Pictured: Stock image

It's one of endless examples that could be given to show why face-to-face appointments will always be better than remote ones. Pictured: Stock image

It's one of endless examples that could be given to show why face- to-face appointments will always be better than remote ones.

There are things that needn't be done in person: general check-ups for repeat prescriptions, if you're low-risk, for instance.

Or having to actually go to your GP to collect a physical prescription, then giving it to the pharmacist, rather than having it all done by email.

But, until last week, there appeared to be a push from policymakers to make remote consultations default  to make it as hard as possible to get in-person consultations.

It was plain to anyone who'd been paying attention that the click-or-phone first system was already deeply unpopular with vast swathes of the population.

I'd argue it would also have been dangerous. The Mail on Sunday has been campaigning on this issue since last autumn, when it became apparent that, although the first lockdown had ended, some GPs were still not seeing their patients in person.

Letters have poured in from readers who made it clear it was causing so much misery, and so we spoke up on their behalf.

It's what we are here for. And if the news of NHS England's U-turn on Friday is anything to go by, this time those in power have listened.

Their instructions, sent out to GPs on Friday, were unequivocal: GP practices must all ensure they are offering face-to-face appointments; patients should be asked whether they'd rather have a remote or in-person appointment; and doctors should respect their preferences for face-to-face care unless there are good clinical reasons to the contrary (such as Covid symptoms). To be honest, this should have happened ages ago.

Some doctors on social media have accused us of 'bashing GPs' and medical magazine Pulse actually blamed the media for creating the problem: on its February 9 cover, laid out to look like a poison pen letter, were the words: 'How the media created an anti-GP storm.'

Clever art concept, but there's also no basis for this kind of statement. Why on Earth would we?

A British Medical Association spokesperson hit out at NHS England for not understanding how stressed out GPs are right now (which I'm sure they are  like everyone in the NHS they've had a hell of a year), calling the guidance 'tone deaf'.

But I'd argue the same about the rather hysterical backlash going on at the moment  since all that's being suggested is going back to how things were before the pandemic, while still continuing to offer digital services where appropriate.

Acute epiglottitis can be triggered by a throat infection and it's considered life-threatening. Pictured: Stock image

The worst fury seems to come from doctors who say they they've never stopped seeing patients face to face. But no one ever said ALL doctors had.

My own GP has been outstanding, for instance. Many of my colleagues and friends say similar.

But I've been able to step outside of my own experience, and believe the clear evidence that other patients are having an absolutely torrid time.

Why can't these outraged GPs do the same?

And where is the voice of caution, that there has been little or no proper training in or evaluation of this new digital method?

A phrase often repeated was that GPs were seeing patients in person 'where necessary'  but how could they be sure? Aside from all this, no one thought to consult the patients. What about those who struggle to hear, or see? What about the ones who aren't online?

And what about privacy? Some people might not wish to have a phone consultation in front of whoever else happens to be at home.

Without the sanctuary of a consulting room to go to, some people would doubtless avoid coming forward for treatment. My dad himself has been on the receiving end of this kind of poor practice.

He recently had surgery to remove a benign brain tumour  which seems to have been a success. But he's since developed very swollen lower legs.

Puffy ankles are a common side effect of amlodipine, the blood pressure tablet he takes. But this is much worse  profound swelling, up to the knee.

One GP he spoke to on the phone said he should consider exercising more. If that doctor had set eyes on his patient, he'd realise what nonsense that was.

Eventually, Dad get an in-person appointment and a referral for tests  the worry was heart failure or DVT.

The tests, thankfully, came back all clear, so the search for an answer is ongoing. In the meantime, it's yet another case-in-point.

It's important not to think everything before the pandemic was a bed of roses. It wasn't.

And face-to-face appointments aren't infallible. Diagnoses are missed. It happens. But if it does and the doctor hasn't even set eyes on the patient, would they really be able to say: 'Well, I did everything I could have done'

The gold standard of diagnosis involves asking a patient questions and examining them in some way  even if it's just laying eyes on them, in person.

Then, a course of action can be decided on. Remote consultations have their place but they can't, as it stands, completely replace this.

And it's hard to understand why anyone thought otherwise.
It was a distinctly gloomy end to a week that had, at its start, seemed filled with promise.

On Friday, the Prime Minister warned his plans to end all Covid curbs were in jeopardy due to the rapid spread of the Indian variant of Covid-19.

The Government was 'taking nothing off the table' in the fight against it.

Scientists speaking to The Mail on Sunday say the Prime Minister is right to be cautious.

Last week, the UK saw its biggest rise in Covid cases since early January  helped by the rise of this new mutation.

As one expert warned: 'A third wave of infections is already upon us.'

Crucially, Government scientists have said the Indian variant was 'up to 50 per cent more infectious than the Kent variant'  the latter being the most prevalent version of the virus in the UK at present.

Last week, the UK saw its biggest rise in Covid cases since early January  helped by the rise of this new mutation. Pictured: Bolton, Greater Manchester

Experts say the elderly and clinically vulnerable are now well protected through vaccination, but argue that a rise in cases could make the rare occasion where vaccines don't work more common.

Experts also argue that a rise in infections could lead to the virus reaching pockets of vulnerable, unvaccinated people across the country  those who opted not to have the jab, for instance.

All this could lead to a new wave of infections  which the Government advisory body SAGE warned could be as large as the first wave.

But last night, an intriguing theory began to circulate: could the reason the new variant is spreading so rapidly in certain hot-spots be simply due to behavioural factors?

The mutation arrived via travellers returning from India, into multi-generational homes in locations like Bolton, Greater Manchester, Blackburn in Lancashire, and Sefton in Merseyside.

These regions have seen a rapid spread through these households, and among those employed in industries where social distancing may be harder, and home working not an option.

However data suggests that, once it gets outside of these communities, the Indian variant does not spread quite as rapidly. University of Leicester virologist Prof Julian Tang said: 'When you look at transmissibility, you have to be very careful.

Crucially, Government scientists have said the Indian variant was 'up to 50 per cent more infectious than the Kent variant'  the latter being the most prevalent version of the virus in the UK at present

Modellers often say they have taken behavioural factors into account, but it's often not that simple.

'We saw this with the Kent variant last winter  the most rapid spread was seen in areas that were released into Tier Two after the November lockdown.

'Places like London had the least restrictions, and the most mixing, so we saw the highest transmission of that variant.

'This would indicate it wasn't to do with any inherent genetic quality of the virus, but more due to the environment it was placed in. The same could be true of the Indian variant.

'It could have genetic changes that make it a bit more transmissible, but without properly looking at the virus in a lab setting, it's impossible to say.'

Crucially, at present, there is no evidence to suggest Covid vaccines are ineffective against the Indian variant.

On Friday, Public Health England confirmed that between May 5 and May 12, out of a total of 97 Covid deaths during that period, four deaths were linked to the mutation.

However, fully vaccinated Britons still have a very low risk of becoming seriously ill if they catch it, experts believe. This has, so far, been reflected in the data.

While 12 per cent more Covid cases were reported last week than the week before  just over 2,200  hospitalisations have continued to fall.

Thousands of people queued on the streets of Bolton on Saturday after it emerged there were 4,000 available vaccines that 'must be used today'

Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick, said the rise of the variant was reason to be cautious but maintained there was no need to panic. Pictured: Bolton

Now, a little more than 1,000 people are in hospital with the virus in the UK. Paul Hunter, professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia, said: 'This variant is going to spread widely. But the most important question is whether more people are going to end up in hospital as a result.

'Right now, there's nothing to suggest that is happening.'

Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick, said the rise of the variant was reason to be cautious but maintained there was no need to panic.

He said: 'All indications are that the vaccines are going to continue to do their job.'

On Friday, the Government announced it would be stepping up vaccination efforts in hotspots. People over 50 living in areas of high infection will be offered their second dose of the vaccine early.

A study published last week by Cambridge University scientists, found that 33 staff members of a care home in New Delhi, who were all fully vaccinated with the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab, tested positive for the Indian variant  though none of the staff members was seriously ill as a result of infection.

Scientists involved in the study still say the findings were 'worrying'. Ravi Gupta, professor of clinical microbiology at Cambridge University, said: 'We thought everyone would be protected [but] the virus was able to get around the vaccine.'

But others have stressed the need for calm. Prof Hunter said: 'There is reasonable evidence to suggest it can lead to infections in vaccinated people, but that doesn't really matter unless you get seriously ill.'

What's more, there is nothing to suggest fully vaccinated people in the UK are being infected with the Indian variant. In Bolton and Blackburn with Darwen, cases have risen sharply in younger groups.

But, in the over-60s, the majority of whom should have had both jabs, infections are holding steady. Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty said it was possible vaccines were working as a 'firebreak', protecting over-45s from infection.

With much still unknown about the variant, scientists say the next step out of lockdown needs to be taken with caution.

Some have suggested the rise of the Indian variant calls into question the fourth and final step out of lockdown, on June 21

Government scientists say a 'significant resurgence of hospitalisations' is possible as a result of easing restrictions.

From tomorrow, indoor social mixing will be allowed for the first time in more than five months.

Prof Hunter said: 'Monday's relaxations are a biggie. Even without this new variant, meeting indoors was always going to be a nervous point in the plan because the majority of infections take place indoors.

'We are going to find out very soon if it leads to a rise in hospitalisations.'

Prof Young says a slow and steady approach in the next few weeks will be important. 'I don't think there's any reason to say tomorrow's easing shouldn't take place, but it needs to be done cautiously.'

Some have suggested the rise of the Indian variant calls into question the fourth and final step out of lockdown, on June 21.

If there were a wave, as some have suggested, as big at the first, then the Government would presumably have no other option.

Prof Young, though, doesn't see this happening, saying. 'Any rise in hospitalisations and deaths we see won't be anywhere near previous waves because we have the vaccines now.

'While it is still spreading we have to be cautious, but I don't think variants should stop us getting back to some sort of normality.'
Until last summer, Sunita Hind was a happy-go-lucky person who enjoyed weekly shopping trips in town with her girlfriends. But today, even a visit to her local hairdresser feels terrifying.

'I am living in a constant state of fear,' says the 38-year-old writer from Derby.

'The thought of coming into contact with other people makes me terrified. I thought I'd be jumping for joy at the idea of going to get my hair done.

'But all I can think of is the people who might come too close to me.'

Sunita was diagnosed with anxiety by her GP last summer. She rarely ventures out  despite having had both her Covid jabs.

Two weeks ago, she suffered a panic attack in her local Asda.

'It was all the people swarming around me. Having spent so long in my little bubble at home, where I felt safe, it was way too much.'

Until last summer, Sunita Hind (above) was a happy-go-lucky person who enjoyed weekly shopping trips in town with her girlfriends

Sunita began to feel anxious following a hysterectomy last June, months after doctors found a cancerous cyst on her ovaries.

'I was alone surrounded by a load of doctors in hazmat suits,' she says. 'The memory haunts me.'

Her anxiety is rooted in a fear of what would happen if she caught Covid.

'Because of the cancer, I'm convinced I will die,' she says. 'I remember reading the reports about women of colour being more likely to be put on a ventilator and I thought, well, that will happen to me.'

From tomorrow, Britain takes another major step back to normal, with indoor social mixing allowed again.

Restaurants, pubs  even going to friends' houses are back on the menu. But not for Sunita. She's been left wondering whether life will ever be the same again. And she is far from alone.

The number of Britons suffering signs of depression, anxiety, addictions and eating disorders have at least doubled since before the pandemic, according to Office for National Statistics data.

Meanwhile, calls to mental health charity Mind's helpline have shot up by 150 per cent.

You might say, given the circumstances of the past 15 months, this situation is not altogether surprising.

Sunita (right) was diagnosed with anxiety by her GP last summer. She rarely ventures out  despite having had both her Covid jabs

Some two million of those at highest risk from Covid spent at least four months shielding: not venturing outside even for a walk.

Covid has claimed the lives of more than 128,000  in many cases leaving behind fearful loved ones.

Despite this, at the end of the first wave, referrals to mental health services were less than half what they were in 2019.

Now, speaking to The Mail on Sunday, Britain's top mental health specialists warn that the worst of the UK's mental health crisis is yet to come.

The fall-out from the pandemic is likely to continue for the next three to five years, according to a new report by the Centre for Mental Health.

'The drop in referrals is a sign that people have either been reluctant to, or are not able to, access their GP for help during the lockdowns,' says Dr David Crepaz-Keay, head of social issues at the Mental Health Foundation.

'Research from past pandemics shows a delay in people coming forward for help. The event itself offers a distraction, they are focused on simply getting through the day-to-day.

'But as soon as normality begins to return, the serious mental health issues come to the fore. Some will already have a diagnosis and will suffer a relapse, while others will be experiencing something for the first time.

'These conditions may well continue for years beyond the end of the pandemic.'

Studies have shown the SARS global outbreak in 2003 was directly linked to a 30 per cent increase in suicides in people aged over 65 in the years following the crisis.

A study of the after effects of the Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine found that, two decades later, those directly involved with the event were more likely to be depressed than those unaffected.

Dr Adrian James, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, says that referrals are already beginning to creep up.

'GPs and colleagues in emergency departments say, right now, they are seeing unprecedented numbers of people presenting with mental illness,' he adds.

'It's to be expected, given the job losses, grief and social isolation millions have been through.'

One of the most common problems is somewhat obvious: anxiety about health, disease and contamination. Data collected by the Office for National Statistics found that half of Britons felt more anxious than usual during the past 12 months.

Occasional anxiety  racing heart, sweaty palms and intrusive thoughts  is normal.

But it becomes a medical problem when it happens regularly enough to interfere with daily life, and cause significant distress.

Covid has claimed the lives of more than 128,000  in many cases leaving behind fearful loved ones. Pictured: Stock image

Now, speaking to The Mail on Sunday, Britain's top mental health specialists warn that the worst of the UK's mental health crisis is yet to come. Pictured: Stock image

Experts say many people's normal, manageable anxiety has been 'tipped over the edge' by the pandemic.

Last week, a poll of nearly 3,000 Britons found that one in five were hesitant to return to normal because of relentless health-related worries.

The researchers, at the London South Bank University, have termed this 'Covid-19 anxiety syndrome'  an unnecessary concern about mixing with others, touching objects and using public transport, for fear of contracting the virus.

They say the 20 per cent of Britons who suffer this will struggle to 'disengage' with the threat of the virus which 'may make return to normal living harder'.

Dr Ahmed Hankir, a psychiatrist working in emergency care at the Maudsley Hospital in South London, says: 'We've had a definite rise in people reaching crisis point with their anxiety, some ending up in need of a hospital admission due to uncontrollable panic or self-harm.'

He warns he's noticed an increase in exacerbations of obsessive compulsive disorders in patients, a mental health condition characterised by unwelcome thoughts, urges, worries and doubts, and compulsions to carry out repetitive activities links to those worries  such as constant hand-washing.

'We think it's been sparked by worries about catching the virus,' adds Dr Hankir.

'A lot of the anxiety we see is steeped in a fear of contamination or extreme worries about their health. Once these thought patterns have taken hold, it is very difficult to reverse them.'

And it's not only the fear of illness that's causing anxiety. The constantly changing regulations about what we can and can't do is also a factor. 'The brain does not cope well with question marks, or feeling like something is beyond our control,' says Dr Hankir.

'We ruminate about what could happen. Obsessive behaviours can serve as a distraction, making us feel we're in control.'

And experts say as the country opens up, more of these patients will reach crisis point. 'For the past six months, patients have had a justification for their health anxieties, because there was a legitimate threat,' says Dr Crepaz-Keay.

'But now, they will suddenly be forced into a world full of the crowds they are scared of. Seeing everyone celebrating being together makes patients' mood dip further, because they think why aren't I feeling as happy? This can often spiral into depression.'

Dr James says: 'Exposure to a situation someone finds frightening has to be done in baby steps. There's a risk that the patient becomes overwhelmed and acutely anxious. 'This heightens the fear of exposing themselves to the situation again, so they may avoid it, leading to a vicious cycle.'

Then there are the effects of prolonged isolation. A recent survey by care company Elder found that, during the three lockdowns, 40 per cent of over-70s didn't leave their homes.

One in five said they had contact with another person once every fortnight.

Studies after the 2003 SARS epidemic found that quarantine was linked to the development of long-term depressive symptoms, and alcohol abuse.

'Last week I was called to the bedside of an older woman who had been on her own pretty much since the start of the pandemic,' says Dr Hankir.

'She'd become so lonely she'd developed psychotic depression and hallucinations.

'We needed to admit her to hospital but there weren't enough psychiatric beds.'

COVID Q&A: Are people still following the rules and can we hug safely? Are people still following Covid precautions? A: Yes. The majority of Britons are continuing to obey the safety instructions set out by the Government in March 2020. According to data released on Friday by the Office for National Statistics, 88 per cent of adults reported always or often washing their hands after returning home. A massive 97 per cent said they were still wearing a face covering where needed, and 79 per cent were keeping their distance from people outside their household. This final figure, however, has fallen from 88 per cent in April. There are signs that Britons would like to see the end of many of these restrictions. More than two-thirds of respondents said they would be less likely to attend an event in the future if they had to social-distance, while about a half said that having to wear a face mask would put them off. Last Monday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he believed the UK was moving towards a stage where people could cease eventually to rely on detailed Government edicts, and make our decisions  based on the best scientific advice  about how to protect our families and those around us. Is it now safe for us to hug each other? A: Yes, but experts have urged people to be selective in who they hug. As the virus is spread through breathing, close contact with someone carrying the virus raises the risk of becoming infected. However, people who have had two doses of the vaccine are unlikely to catch coronavirus, and are even less likely to get seriously ill with it. So as more than 95 per cent of those vulnerable to the pandemic have now been fully vaccinated, Government scientific advisers have agreed that it is safe for people to hug. Meanwhile, other scientists have warned that hugging among the unvaccinated still poses a risk to infection levels. Professor Cath Noakes, an expert in airborne disease, said that too much hugging could perpetuate an awful lot of additional close contact that could spread the virus. She suggested that people should limit who they hug to very small numbers of close family. Advertisement

Worryingly, Dr Hankir says these cases of acute mental illness are becoming increasingly common. 'I've been most struck by the rise in psychosis in people who've never struggled before,' he says. 'People wanting to harm themselves or self-harming, because a voice in their head is telling them to.

'More often than not the situation has arisen because of the pandemic. Either they've become unemployed, cut off from people they love, or have been self-medicating with narcotics to distract from the isolation.'

Early Chinese studies identified an unexpected rise in patients developing schizophrenia since the start of the pandemic, due to dramatic changes in lifestyle and social isolation.

And for these very sick patients, there is no quick fix. Many will require hospital treatment and several courses of talking therapy  for which the waiting lists are already lengthy.

Only one in seven schizophrenia patients are fully recovered two years after the onset of their illness, according to a review by medics from Oulu University Hospital in Finland.

There's even been suggestion that Covid infection itself could trigger mental health problems.

In November, researchers from the University of Oxford analysed the medical records of 62,000 Covid patients and found one in five received a psychiatric diagnosis of either anxiety, insomnia or depression three months after testing positive.

Covid sufferers when compared with a group of flu patients were 50 per cent more likely to become mentally ill.

Medics suggest that inflammatory proteins released by the immune system as part of its attack on the virus can cross the blood-brain barrier, damaging neurological pathways. But the exact reason remains unclear.

'We think people become mentally ill because of the psychological and social effects of being unwell with Covid, rather than how it affects the brain,' says Professor Paul Harrison, associate head of psychiatry at the University of Oxford and a lead researcher in this area.

'Patients are worried they might die, or are lonely and stressed about losing finances when they have to self-isolate.'

Already, some areas of child and adolescent mental health are seeing soaring demand. Eating disorder services have three times as many patients on their books as they did in 2019, according to the most recent figures.

British doctors have also reported an alarming rise in children as young as ten needing urgent care after self-harming or taking overdoses.

Experts say being ripped apart from their peer group, forcing them into the hands of Instagram for social contact, is a major factor behind this.

Studies show that social comparison  taking cues on how to behave from peers  is crucial for helping young people develop a healthy sense of who they are, and how to interact with others.

Without this, children are bound by unrealistic ideas about how they should behave or what they must look like, usually thanks to social media, and become self-conscious in social situations.

Dr James says: 'For many children, unrealistic content online will be their only interaction with other people  and they aren't able to see their friends to help them understand what's real and what isn't.

Added to this, thousands of children will have been trapped in a home they aren't happy or comfortable in, cut off from other support.'

British studies have noted an increase in 'clinginess' in children since last March, a known risk factor for social anxiety disorder in adulthood.

'If you have 30 to 40 years of adult life to draw on, you'll be better prepared for coping with challenging situations than people in their 20s or teens,' says Dr Crepaz-Keay.

But amid the gloom, there is hope. In March, the Government announced a mental health recovery plan to tackle the psychological fall-out of the pandemic, including extra psychiatric training for NHS staff, increasing community initiatives and mental health teams in schools  funded by an extra 500 million.

Dr James is 'grateful' for this boost, but says a single giant wad of cash still isn't enough. 'We need continued boosts of funding for years to come,' he says.

'Some specialities are still slipping through the cracks  like addiction services. This area has been chronically underfunded, so many local authorities have chosen to close many of the clinics.

'Meanwhile, the number of patients with addiction problems has shot up during lockdown.'

Today, Sunita takes a daily anti-anxiety pill and has fortnightly cognitive behavioural therapy, over the telephone. Her scans show no signs of cancer and she received her second Covid jab last month.

Still, she's not planning on going to a pub or restaurant any time soon.

'I might see my family when we're allowed next week  but only because it's only a few, familiar people,' she says. When will Sunita to go back to normal, properly?

'I don't know. But now is definitely not the right time.'
Heart-failure patients could soon be offered pacemakers programmed to mirror their natural pulse patterns.

Pacemakers  a vital part of treatment for those suffering heart failure  are implants that work by sending an electric pulse through the heart, helping it beat in a regular pattern.

A standard pacemaker is programmed with a 'one-size-fits-all' algorithm, but researchers at the University of Leeds, funded by the British Heart Foundation, have developed a way to programme pacemakers after analysing how hearts perform under pressure.

Their 'bespoke' device increases to this rate when the patient exercises.

Heart-failure patients could soon be offered pacemakers programmed to mirror their natural pulse patterns. Pictured: A typical pacemaker

Covid differs in children

Children with Covid are unlikely to suffer typical symptoms such as a fever or cough, or loss of sense of smell, a new study suggests.

Experts examined data on 12,306 children with laboratory-confirmed Covid-19 across the US, finding that while one in five did have 'classic' symptoms, one in ten suffered stomach symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

A further one in ten had skin symptoms, such as rashes, and one in 20 suffered headaches.

The study also confirmed that children and adolescents are likely to experience milder illness than adults.

Children with Covid are unlikely to suffer typical symptoms such as a fever or cough, or loss of sense of smell, a new study suggests

Yoga could be a treatment for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), say psychologists.

ADHD is thought to affect between three and five per cent of children, and most cases are diagnosed when children are aged six to 12.

After special yoga and breathing-exercise classes, children experienced improved attention and decreased hyperactivity, were less tired and could engage in complex activities for longer.

Researchers at Russia's Ural University said yoga improved oxygen supply to the brain, which had a knock-on effect on behaviour.

The Government's televised Covid press conferences helped fight fake health news during the pandemic.

A study by the University of Liverpool has shown that the number of Twitter posts containing misinformation fell in the 48 hours after Prime Minister Boris Johnson's announcement of a national lockdown on March 23 last year.

Dr Mark Green, lead author of the paper, said: 'Our study shows that clear and consistent messaging by governments can be helpful in containing the spread of misinformation.'
Malice In Wonderland: My Adventures In The World Of Cecil Beaton

Hugo Vickers Hodder & Stoughton 25

Rating:

At the age of 28 in 1979, Hugo Vickers was commissioned to write the biography of the flamboyant photographer, designer and aesthete Sir Cecil Beaton.

Vickers paid two brief visits to the 76-year-old Beaton, and had just finished writing him a thank-you letter when the news came through that he had died. So Vickers first act as biographer was to attend his subjects funeral.

Over the next five years, Vickers buzzed around the world interviewing Beatons friends and enemies  two categories that came with a large overlap. These frenemies were, for the most part, camp, wealthy, waspish, posh, arty and elderly: many of them had been born in the 19th Century.

Hugo Vickers was commissioned to write the biography of the flamboyant photographer Sir Cecil Beaton (above, Beatons 1956 portait of a vulnerable-looking Marilyn Monroe in bed)

Fortunately, he kept a diary of all his meetings, which, now that virtually all his interviewees are dead and gone, he has chosen to publish. Its a fascinating document, a window on to a lost world of glamour, grandeur and snobbery.

If you write a book about coal miners, you will spend a lot of time in coal mines, Vickers observes. If you write about Cecil Beaton, you find yourself in London, New York, Paris, Monte Carlo and San Francisco.

Quite so. Over the course of his researches he encounters, to name but a few, the Queen Mother, Julie Andrews, Audrey Hepburn, Princess Margaret, Sir John Gielgud, Margaret, Duchess of Argyll, Jeremy Thorpe, Princess Diana, Truman Capote, Lady Diana Cooper and Princess Grace.

For the most part they are full of gossip and general bitchery, much of it directed against their dear, departed friend. Often, an interviewee will kick off by saying how talented and charming Cecil was, before adding Of course, he could be very spiteful or He was a crashing snob.

And then the vituperation gushes forth.

If you write about Cecil Beaton, you find yourself in London, New York, Paris, Monte Carlo and San Francisco. (above, the photographer in Paris in a 1967 picture by Jack Burlot)

He could be a real bitch, Cecil, said Sir Roy Strong, no slouch himself in that department.

Even the Queen Mother couldnt resist a poke at her old photographer. What fun he was, she recalled, before adding: Of course, there was another side to him. Pins going in here, there

One of the few interviewees still alive, David Bailey, told Vickers that he once asked Beaton why he hadnt gone into the film business. I cant afford a new set of enemies, he had replied.

In death, Beaton reaped what he had sowed in life. His own diaries could be savage and merciless, particularly towards women. He described Princess Anne as a bossy, unattractive, galumphing girl, Katharine Hepburn as a rotten ingrained viper, Joan Plowright as like a deficient house-parlour-maid and the Queen Mother as fatter than ever, yet wrinkled.

He seemed to look for the worst in everyone. You might think Cecil is listening to what you were saying but in fact hes counting the hairs in your nostrils, recalls one interviewee.

Vickers includes stories of extreme rudeness: Beaton once wrote a letter to an old enemy saying he was glad she was sitting at home getting older and uglier. He signed it Yours never.

Small wonder, then, that these old acquaintances were often less than complimentary about him. Many of them were particularly nosy about his sex life. One New Yorker claims to have spotted him outside the Dakota building in New York in a clinch with Laurence Harvey.

Another said that he once boasted of having an affair with Gary Cooper.

Others suggest he had at least some interest in women. The catty ballet critic Dicky Buckle tells Vickers that the actress Coral Browne had sex with Cecil. He was just like a stoat, she said.

It was all over in two minutes. Truman Capote, not the most reliable of witnesses, declares that Cecils passions extended wider. Hed pounce on anything: women, men, dogs, fire hydrants, Spanish puppies

Shall I tell you my Cecil Beaton story? the 74-year-old Maureen, Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava asks Vickers. Evidently, he had leapt on her and pinned her to a bed.

She had reacted in fright and in astonishment by laughing at him. He was enraged and left. The next day, at a dinner party, he declared to the assembled company that she was the bloodiest bitch in England.

After that he went back to men, recalled the marchioness.

He boasted of having had a long-standing affair with the reclusive beauty Greta Garbo. But most of Vickers interviewees doubt this. I dont believe a word of it, says Lady Ashton.

The thought of a woman would scare the pants off him. Sir Roy Strong dismisses it as a fantasy. Among his rival photographers, Irving Penn thinks Beaton never got anywhere with her and Horst scoffed at the idea: He made it up.

On the other hand, Truman Capote is adamant that the romance with Garbo was real. Cecil was one of the few people who gave her any physical satisfaction.

Its all good fun, though these conflicting memories and impressions show the impossible nature of the biographers task. Who is telling the truth? Audrey Hepburn says that she 'really adored' Beaton, and his old Cambridge University porter remembers him as a very nice gentleman, a very refined man.

Others tell the opposite story. The choreographer Sir Anton Dolin speaks for many when he describes him as a horror.

The philosopher William James once said: We have as many personalities as there are people who know us. Vickers diaries show how true this is. They also suggest that a patchwork of often contradictory reminiscences may well come closer to the essence of a person than anything more coherent, such as an old-fashioned cradle- to-grave biography.

Malice In Wonderland also works well as an elegy, sad and comical, to a passing era. One of Vickers interviewees, the 93-year-old actress Cathleen Nesbitt, was once the girlfriend of the poet Rupert Brooke, who died in 1915.

Vickers knocked on the doors of many elderly aristocrats on their uppers who had once been carefree beauties, with the world at their feet. It is rather galling to think that having once owned 400 acres of Central London, I dont even have a flat over a garage now, complains a former Duchess of Westminster.

Some of his explanatory footnotes are very funny indeed. He describes Doris Delevingne, Viscountess Castlerosse as the one-time lover of Cecil, whose spirited attitude to sex was, There is no such thing as an impotent man, only an incompetent woman. 

In passing, he reveals that the novelist Caroline Blackwood had told him that in moments of sexual frenzy, the eyes of the publisher Lord Weidenfeld pop right out on stalks and he has to spoon them in with olive oil.

Vickers himself is a beguiling mixture of innocence and sophistication, adoration and detachment. He views his grand interviewees with the eyes of a butterfly collector, ready with his net.

When he interviews the notorious Margaret, Duchess of Argyll, he finds her really rather wonderful; when I interviewed her, around the same time, I found her utterly horrible.

In a crowded field, his favourite aristocrat of all is undoubtedly Lady Diana Cooper, extraordinary and fascinating, who, even at the age of 88, holds a magnetic allure. Her beauty astonishes even now, the 28-year-old Vickers writes in his diary, and when her gown slips on her right shoulder her skin is soft as chiffon.

Steady on!

He has a keen ear for speech. Fixing to interview Princess Grace, she won me by saying, All rightee. Ill see you then.  He notes how, in line with the aristocratic need to pronounce names idiosyncratically, the Queen Mother pronounces Osborne House Osbn and Anthony Edens widow, Clarissa (still with us at 100, incidentally), pronounces Cecil Sissel.

He is good, too, on the muddles and mishearings involved in any conversation. Talking to Enid Bagnold, the 90-year-old author of National Velvet (and great-grandmother, incidentally, of Samantha Cameron), he records this exchange about Cecil Beaton:

He was very touchy. Hes dead now, of course.

Im sad. Id hoped to talk to him.

Youre glad?

No. Sad.

Oh! Sad. I thought you said glad.
Tracy with nine-year-old Ada in 2018, together briefly for the first time in 18 months

When Tracy Glovers ex came to collect their daughter for an overnight stay, she waved her little girl off with a see you tomorrow. The next day, a phone call from 1,000 miles away sparked four years of separation, torment and a desperate battle to see her child again. But, bafflingly, the law has other ideas

A few months ago, in the middle of the pandemic, Tracy Glovers 12-year-old daughter Ada* felt unsettled, unable to sleep, and frightened by a film shed seen online  so she rang her mother 1,000 miles away.

She asked if we could talk until she felt better, says Tracy, so we talked for two hours until Ada began drifting off. Every now and then, Ada would break the silence to check, Mum, are you still there? until finally, Tracy could hear her daughters slow breaths of sleep. And thats her way of having her mothers love, says Tracy, through her phone.

In the past year, weve all experienced heartbreaking separation from our loved ones. Weve lived online, connected through screens and held on as reunions have been put back. But Tracy, 46, has lived like this for five years. While Tracy lives in Shipley, West Yorkshire, her daughter Ada, 12, is in the Czech Republic. Adas father took her there one night in November 2016 without Tracys knowledge or permission.

With Covid, it feels like my inner world has become the outer world, says Tracy. This isolation, the constantly shifting goalposts, the never knowing when its going to change. With Covid, though, we understand why. For me, its a form of torture. Ive no idea when Ill see my daughter again.

Tracys story shows the true cost of a custody battle when it spans international borders. When she first became involved with Alex*, her ex-partner and Adas father, she couldnt have imagined the pain that lay ahead. At the time, I was 30 and Alex was 26, says Tracy. He was strikingly handsome  quite tall, tanned, lovely face.

In Shipley, where we met, he stood out like a sore thumb. He seemed to have a chivalrous quality  he was polite, a little bit romantic, he held my hand so gently. He seemed like someone I could trust.

Alex was from the Czech Republic, working his way around the world having already been to Australia and New Zealand. Tracy was working in a pub and, within six months, Alex had moved into her flat. At 33, just as Tracy was completing her teacher training, she found she was pregnant.

It was the right time, she says. I finished my training and qualified, but Id never been a massive career woman and definitely wanted to be a mum. Having my daughter was my dream come true.

Ada was also Tracys first blood relative, which made her arrival even more momentous. I was adopted, says Tracy, and like quite a lot of adopted children, Id grown up with this absence. To have this child who unconditionally loved me exactly as I was  it was wonderful.

When Ada was just a few months old, Tracy and Alex decided to try life in the Czech Republic. Although he was a qualified land surveyor, Alex had struggled to find steady work in Britain and Tracy was keen for Ada to learn about her heritage. They moved to the village where Alex had grown up and his friends and family still lived.

While Alex slotted back into his former life with a job and a social life, Tracy felt extremely isolated. It really was in the middle of nowhere, she remembers. I didnt speak Czech and I sensed a lot of antipathy towards me as a foreigner. When wed met, I was a free-spirited British woman, but now I was supposed to live the life of a traditional Czech housewife and it was very limiting, she says. Alex didnt like me going to the pub, he didnt even like me going to the shop. He would sometimes refuse to give me any money. I was a mother  that was my only role  but I wanted stability for Ada so I shut my mind off and tried to create the environment she needed.

Ada and Tracy spent all their time together. We formed a really strong bond, she says. We did a lot of drawing, painting, playing games. The weather is more extreme there so you get better summers where we could take beautiful walks, or go fruit-picking, and then snow in winter. Id pull Ada around the village on a sledge.

As the years passed and Tracy became increasingly unhappy in her relationship, she began to research her parental rights. Thats when I discovered that under the Hague Convention  which governs international child custody cases  a childs base is considered to be the country where theyve lived longest. That takes priority over who is the primary carer. I remember reading in horror as it dawned on me that I was living in a prison  Ada and I could never leave without Alexs consent.

By the time Ada was seven, Tracy and Alexs relationship had broken down and Tracy was desperate to return to the UK where they could live as separated parents.

I knew the law was completely on Alexs side, so it meant negotiating with someone who changed like the weather, she says.

I remember begging him to book the ferry tickets and eventually he did  though he wouldnt allow me to tell his parents or inform Adas school. The car was loaded with all of Adas toys, my crockery, my nicest cushions. As far as I knew, we were going for good. On the ferry, as we approached England and I saw the white cliffs of Dover, I cried with relief.

Back in Shipley, Tracy and Ada were living with Tracys mum and Alex was staying with a Czech friend who lived nearby. Tracy had an interview for a teaching position. Theyd only been back for about a week when Alex collected eight-year-old Ada for her first overnight stay. She took a little rucksack but nothing else  not even her glasses. I woke the next morning and it was a beautiful sunny day, even though it was November. It felt like the start of our new life, says Tracy.

I texted Alex but he didnt text back. When he rang, my stomach started turning. I knew he wouldnt call me unless something wasnt right. He told me, Were in the Czech Republic. Hed taken Ada back on a plane. I just felt utter horror. I knew it was going to be virtually impossible to get her back.

This proved true. In the early months, Tracy hoped Alex would change his mind, but as more time passed she realised he was very unlikely to bring her back. While Tracy has involved UK police and consulted solicitors, Alex has fought his case through the Czech courts in her absence. He has successfully charged her (in Czech law) with being a child abductor, meaning that if Tracy ever returned to the Czech Republic just to live near her daughter, she risks arrest and imprisonment. Now Tracy has no rights to see her daughter.

Tracy has never forgotten the first time Alex let Ada speak to her on the phone, about five days after their separation. She asked, Mummy, are you coming too? He told me you were coming! and she was crying uncontrollably. At that point I was beyond sobbing. I was physically sick with the utter horror.

For the next 18 months, Tracy only had phone calls with her daughter, which were dependent on Alex agreeing to put Ada on the line. Hed often say she was busy. In the summer of 2018, he agreed to bring Ada to Shipley and leave her with Tracy for six weeks. We met in the town centre, says Tracy. Shed said to me, Mum, when I see you again, youll pick me up and twirl me round! so thats what I did. She had freckles, she was slightly different. Id been worried it would be strange, but as we walked down the street she reached for my hand and very quickly she was my daughter again. When she got to my flat, she said, I know this, it smells familiar. I think she could remember the smell of her mother.

Ada has visited twice more  Christmas 2018 and summer 2019. We do very simple things like we always used to, says Tracy. We go on walks, go shopping. Shes fascinated by my make-up and always ends up destroying it! The last time I saw her, she was entering puberty and significantly different. She was beautiful but unaware of it. Shed put her hand over her mouth when she giggled  there was this sweet shyness. I knew I was missing a butterfly emerging.

While saying goodbye had always been painful, the parting scene at the end of that last visit was extremely traumatic. Ada has always insisted that she wants to live with her mother. When she arrived that summer, she was on her bed, rolling around saying, My stomach hurts because weve got six weeks together then I know Ill have to leave you. Ive got this stomach-ache of sadness.

On the morning her father was picking her up, she was saying, Beg him, Mummy! Beg him to let me stay. She began to cry and didnt stop for four hours, hyperventilating. When Alex arrived to take her, she was on the floor  that was almost as bad as the day she was first taken.

They have not seen one another since. Tracy is entirely dependent on Alexs cooperation and first he delayed because of financial reasons, or being busy  and now there is Covid.

Ada lives in the same village with her father and his new partner, but has her own phone now so Tracy is in constant contact.

I cant call her every day as its too distressing, says Tracy, but we message each other all the time. We send pictures all day, pulling stupid faces. She asks for pictures of my home  Im very girly, I like vintage stuff. She said, Youve made everything magical. She loves music and dancing  we both do.

Ive made friends over the past four years, I have tried dating, there have been times when Ive been happy, which sounds strange, but you really would die otherwise, she says. But I still cry every day for all the things weve missed out on. There are still moments when I feel like I can barely breathe without her. Seeing families shopping together. A child holding a parents hand. Clothes  I love childrens clothes. Hearing pop music and wondering if shed like that song. She had her first period without me  she texted and told me and said she knew what to do. She has breasts now. Whos going to buy her first bra?

Having been furloughed, last month Tracy returned to her pub job  she found teaching too stressful and demanding to juggle with her commitment to raising awareness of whats happened to her and her daughter as a result of the Hague Convention. Nearly five years on, there are moments when I wake in the morning and Ive forgotten what happened, she continues. Theres this inner peace, then a massive wave of sheer horror. Or therell just be a point in the day when you feel you should check on them or this feeling that theres something youve forgotten. Your body is always a mother, this biological instinct is always there.

The thought of how this will impact her daughter is harder still. Im an adult, says Tracy, but shes a child. What happens to us when were small lasts a lifetime  and shes growing up with that wound of separation, just like I did.

Even when the pandemic is finally over and travel restrictions lifted, Tracy cannot be sure that Alex will bring Ada back for a visit. I look at the future with hope and fear, she says. I know my daughter might not get to the UK again for a very long time  but when she does, I do believe that shell want to stay. What happens if I follow my daughters wishes? Will I be jailed?

Sometimes, Ill plan in my head all the things she could do here. But really I dont know what the future will hold. Legally, all I can do is wait until Ada is 18 and can make her own choice about where she lives.

My daughter once said to me, Were surviving, arent we, Mummy? And thats what were doing.

Why international law cant help Tracy

 The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction  better known as the Hague Convention  is a piece of legislation introduced by the United Nations in 1980.

 The idea of the law is to prevent child abduction across international borders and to assist parents in getting children who have been kidnapped and taken abroad returned to them.

 However, Article 4 of the convention states that the law applies to any child who was habitually resident in a Contracting State In Adas case, her place of habitual residence was considered to be the Czech Republic, a signatory to the convention, and the place where Ada had lived the longest.

 The fact that Tracy was Adas primary carer took a back seat to the rule on place of habitual residence.

 Even parents who do have the Hague Convention laws on their side may face legal difficulties in getting a child returned to them. It is down to the signatory countries to enforce the legislation and some do so only sporadically or in line with their own laws and customs.
Two members of a huge criminal network that sold near-worthless carbon credits as investments have been convicted of fraudulent trading after being exposed by The Mail on Sunday's consumer champion Tony Hetherington.

The convictions follow an investigation by police in the City of London and Hampshire which spanned eight years, followed by a three-month trial that included evidence from The Mail on Sunday.

Paul Seakens, 60, from Enfield, North London, and Luke Ryan, 33, from Eastleigh, Hampshire, were found guilty last week.

Southwark Crown Court heard they had used high-pressure sales tactics and false claims to fool victims into trading in voluntary emission credits  certificates said to allow industries to issue carbon into the atmosphere.

Going green: False claims were made to fool victims into trading in voluntary emission credits  certificates said to allow industries to issue carbon into the atmosphere

The certificate prices had been marked up by up to 1,000 per cent and they could not be cashed in.

In March 2013, Hetherington warned in his column that Seakens headed Carbon Neutral Investments Limited, which was at the centre of a network of firms marketing carbon credits. The newspaper report was produced in court as part of the evidence against Seakens. Hetherington was called as a prosecution witness.

Ryan ran one of the carbon credit sales firms, Enviro Associates, with Seakens as co-director. Enviro netted at least 368,428 from victims.

Seakens was also linked to 73 other sales firms and police say well over 30million passed through his bank accounts. He was convicted of fraudulent trading and money laundering.

Detective Inspector Paul Curtis, of the City of London Police, described Seakens and Ryan as 'greedy and malicious individuals'. Detective Inspector Andrew Symes, of Hampshire Constabulary, said 'they caused immeasurable loss', preying upon the most vulnerable.

Carbon Neutral Investments was regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, giving investors a false sense of security. The FCA did not remove their authorisation until four years after Hetherington's alert.

Seakens still appears on the FCA's public register of financial advisers. He and Ryan will be sentenced on May 28.
A property firm is now allowing tenants to pay their rent using cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Lettings management platform Mashroom will allow tenants to pay via cryptocurrency, and then convert it to pounds sterling before it is sent on to their landlord.

Mashroom claims it is 'moving with the times,' and says the crypto payment option will be a 'seamless process' for both renters and landlords.

Tenants will now be able to pay rent using cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, with one letting agent

However, critics in the property industry have described it as a 'marketing gimmick' which could incur extra fees for tenants, as well as leaving them exposed if there is a sudden price fluctuation just before their rent is due.

Under the Mashroom system, renters will be able to pay via their preferred digital currency, which will be processed by a crypto payment service.

The cryptocurrency will then be converted into UK sterling and sent directly to their landlord.

Stepan Dobrovolskiy, chief executive and founder of Mashroom, says: '19 per cent of the homes in England are occupied by private renters, and for an increasing number of them, cryptocurrency is the payment method of choice.

'With such a large demographic, we have to move with the times to avoid alienating anyone, and accepting crypto payments is the natural next step for a business in 2021.'

Previously, few businesses were prepared to start receiving payments in cryptocurrencies.

But as the digital currencies have increased in popularity in recent years, acceptance has been steadily growing.

For example, the online travel agency Expedia, accepts bitcoin via a partnership with Coinbase, whilst the beauty retailer, Lush, accepts digital currencies as a form of payment on its website.

'Moving with the times': Lettings management platform Mashroom is now allowing tenants to pay their rent using their favourite cryptocurrency

In terms of platforms or lettings agents in the UK accepting digital currency, though, Mashroom is one of the first.

Remax, an American property group with offices in London, became the first to accept digital currencies for rental payments from tenants back in 2015.

Then, in February of this year, London and Essex-based estate agent PropertyVine began accepting crypto payment from its landlords and vendors.

Will it catch on?

The consensus among much of the property world is that paying your rent or buying a house using cryptocurrency will not become the norm any time soon.

'Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are things that many people have heard about, but more as a concept than a viable payment option,' says Anton Frost, head of Cambridge residential at Carter Jonas.

'It isn't conventional, but the fact that it is being considered for this purpose perhaps indicates a direction of travel towards its use becoming mainstream in the next ten years.

'Whilst there are obvious examples of organisations using crypto, it is not at all widespread in the estate agency world.'

Whilst many cryptocurrencies have soared in value, the price volatility will lead some to believe that it is too early to be accepting it as form of payment for vital services such as paying rent.

Bitcoin for example fell by 10 per cent over the course of one night this week, after Elon Musk announced via Twitter that Tesla will no longer facilitate vehicle purchases using the digital currency.

'There might be some people with significant crypto portfolios who want to use these to pay their rent, but of course the amount they pay will depend on the value of their chosen crypto in UK sterling, which can be very volatile,' said Tom Selby, senior analyst at investment platform AJ Bell.

'At this stage, most people view cryptos as an investment rather than a payment mechanism, so I suspect demand for this service will likely be low.

'Given most renters and landlords want at least a level of stability in terms of what they pay or receive, I really can't see what useful role crypto can play - not at the moment anyway.'

Virtual currencies are increasing in popularity, with some businesses starting to receive payments in cryptocurrencies - although it is certainly not the norm

There are also concerns that many landlords might be put off by tenants wishing to pay their rent using cryptocurrency.

'Someone opting to pay in cryptocurrency would likely be a red flag to many landlords, including those using the property to support their income,' said Frost.

'There is still concern, and in some cases suspicion, around someone choosing to use an alternative and unregulated payment method.'

There might be an extra fee for paying in crypto

Mashroom says that the payment method will be similar to a typical card purchase, where you input your payment details and the financial exchange is taken care of by a secure third party, before being returned to the landlord.

However, there will likely be a small transaction fee of between two to three per cent for the conversion from crypto to fiat currency.

This has some critics questioning how attractive this offering is in reality.

'This has the strong whiff of a slightly pointless marketing gimmick,' says Selby.

'If the person paying rent has their salary paid in pounds, and the landlord wants rent paid in pounds, then what role exactly is crypto playing in the transaction?

'If there is a two or three per cent charge each month, this means you're incurring substantial transaction charges to achieve precisely nothing.'

Ultimately it will come down to personal preference, but renters would be wise to consider whether they are comfortable risking their home on such volatile currencies.

'My advice to tenants thinking of signing up to such a scheme is seriously think about the downsides, and to bear in mind the volatility of the cryptocurrency markets,' said David Westgate, group chief executive of Andrews Property Group.

'We are talking about a market where it's not uncommon to see the price of particular cryptocurrencies swing 10 to 20 per cent in a day, and even more than that in some cases.

'It's so volatile and unpredictable, that tenants would be holding their breath just before rent day, worried that there might be a sudden price correction.

'A tenant could end up paying more rent one month because an unexpected change in market sentiment has resulted in the digital currency they hold falling.

'Perhaps you're betting on cryptocurrency continuing to rise in value, but paying your rent to keep a roof over your head is not something you should be gambling on.'

Mashroom are adamant, however, it that it is not encouraging tenants to gamble on the property they are renting.

'There wouldnt be any gamble for the tenants, as it isnt their investment. They can pay in whatever currency they wish to,' said Dobrovolskiy.

'For the landlord, they would receive the full amount of rent in fiat currency - unless they opt to receive the crypto payment, so there would not be any gamble on their side either.

'There is a new generation coming who require a new way of transacting, and we aim to offer them that service.

'Cryptocurrency may be a new thing, but it is here to stay and if stagnated industries dont move with the times, they will be left behind.'
Britain's markets watchdog is investigating allegations that Facebook defrauded hundreds of thousands of UK firms who paid for adverts on the social media site.

The Competition and Markets Authority is looking into claims the tech giant provided inaccurate figures on how many consumers an advert on Facebook could reach.

Officials have been put on alert after a lawsuit in the US claiming Facebook inflated its 'potential reach' figures by up to 400 per cent.

Probe: The Competition and Markets Authority is looking into claims the tech giant provided inaccurate figures on how many consumers an advert on Facebook could reach

The CMA's new digital unit will use its research to create new rules forcing tech giants to be accurate and transparent with information given to advertisers

Labour MP Stella Creasy has raised concerns about Facebook's advertising tactics  and has asked the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy if the UK authorities will investigate Facebook's behaviour.

Documents filed in the US case revealed that the UK's Advertising Standards Authority complained to Facebook that its 'potential reach' figure was misleading in December 2016.

In a letter to Business Minister Paul Scully, Creasy said: 'The documents reveal a worrying discussion within Facebook about internal knowledge of inaccuracy of its own data on 'potential reach'  data that is shown to potential buyers that those companies will use to inform spending decisions on their campaigns.

'I am concerned that the matters being raised...might also have affected hundreds of thousands of British businesses, including MPs, buying advertising on Facebook.'

She also asked if the Serious Fraud Office would probe 'apparently widespread fraud issues' in digital advertising.

The US legal action has been spearheaded by legal firm Cohen Milstein which in its claim says: 'Facebook employees acknowledged in internal documents that complaints about the potential reach being misleading have been made since approximately September 2015.'

The lawyers state that US marketing analyst the Video Advertising Bureau published a report on the issue in 2017, alleging the potential reach figure was inflated and even exceeded census numbers.

The legal documents say that Facebook's chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said in 2017: 'I thought we knew about this but we also recognised that when the self-reporting data was so different than the census, we knew we had to address it. I believe we still do.'

Facebook said of the US lawsuit: 'The allegations are without merit. Potential reach is a helpful campaign planning tool that advertisers are never billed on. It's an estimate. We make clear how it's calculated in our ads interface and Help Centre.'
British Airways is working on an extensive blueprint to move upmarket again after the pandemic, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Executives are planning 'exciting changes' from June onwards as part of a 'major evolution' for the airline.

They revealed that over the next 12 months there will be significant upgrades to catering, airport lounges, cabin crew uniforms and check-in and boarding systems.

Highlights include new digital ordering systems for in-flight meals that will reduce the number of trolleys delivering hot meals and duty-free goods on short-haul economy flights to Europe.

Cabin fever: The shift upmarket will include a revamp of business class

Long-haul passengers in premium cabins will be served food from gourmet menus prepared by chefs in new kitchens next to the runways at Heathrow.

Cabin crew will get new uniforms designed by Savile Row tailor Ozwald Boateng. And new flat-bed seats, with a door to the aisle, are being installed in business class.

It marks a huge shift for BA under new boss Sean Doyle, whose predecessor Alex Cruz was accused by investors and passengers of trying to take BA downmarket and compete with budget airlines such as Ryanair. BA said the change in strategy had begun under Cruz but the airline is now able to accelerate its plans.

Doyle told the MoS: 'Over the course of the pandemic, we are innovating and we are doing everything we can to make sure that when the customers come back to us, we are ready and they will have a great experience.'

Tom Stevens, BA's director of brand and customer experience, said: 'From booking until landing, BA needs to feel like a premium experience. Our strategy is to be a premium experience across the board.'

BA has pledged to spend 6.5billion on upgrades in a five-year investment plan launched in 2018.

Stevens, who was promoted to his new role last month, said: 'What you are seeing now is that [investment] coming out. Now we just need to keep building on it. And now we have this momentum to deliver it. Exciting things will start coming from June onwards.'

BA is in talks with a range of potential partners  including interior designers, furniture designers, chefs, drinks-makers and musicians  to upgrade its airport lounges. From this week, First Class passengers flying from Heathrow will be able to recharge before their flights in 'Sleep Pods', which are also being installed at JFK airport in New York.

Meanwhile, under BA's 'Buy Before You Fly' scheme, economy passengers flying to Europe can order food and drink from home up to five days before their flights. They can also order duty free and other online shopping in advance. The changes mean there will be fewer trolleys on short-haul economy flights because the pre-ordering system means the aircraft will carry fewer meals and duty-free goods. Stevens said: 'The idea is that you are not flying around trolley-loads of perfumes and everything else. We are moving away from the traditional image of hostesses with their trolleys.'

He added: 'The main thing for us is you can offer a broader range. People can choose at home and then we are not carrying around lots of weight and burning fuel that we don't need to.'

Critics accused former boss Cruz of damaging the airline's brand through cost-cutting, with customer complaints soaring in 2017 when BA axed free food and drinks on short-haul economy flights. Doyle replaced him as chief executive last October. He has since permanently reinstated free water and snacks for economy European flights and brought chef Tom Kerridge on board to replace M&S as the catering brand for short-haul economy trips.

The menus for BA's premium cabins on its long-haul flights are designed by catering firm Do & Co, which has built a multi-million-pound kitchen near the runway at Heathrow to cook food fresh on site. Doyle said BA is now looking at a range of ways to use technology to make passengers' experience as convenient as possible.

They include virtual queuing to reduce congestion at check-in and boarding gates so that each passenger gets a specific time to arrive at the gate. It has also set up partnership with a company called AirPortr that allows customers to pay 150 to have their bags collected from their home and checked in.

Doyle said: 'We are using digital applications to give customers a lot more convenience  such as order before you fly, order from your seat in the lounge, be ready to fly before you get to the airport.

'All of that is what we are working busily on, making sure that we are doing everything we can to look after our customers.'

BA is upgrading business-class cabins with the new 'Club Suite' seats, which have flat-bed seats and a door to the aisle for privacy. To date, 28 of BA's 250 planes have been upgraded.

BA appointed renowned tailor Boateng to draw up designs for new uniforms for its staff in 2018 but the project was pushed back over the pandemic. Stevens hinted the project could be revived as soon as the summer.

He said: 'Right now, the focus is on restarting travel again, and getting our people back to work. Then we will revisit the uniforms and look at what we can do with that.

'It is still a pretty timeless uniform but if we did move to something else it would be entirely locked in British heritage.' Doyle added: 'For over 100 years we have been connecting Britain with the world  it's our purpose and our vision. We always set high standards and we are very committed to that.'
A consortium led by Rolls-Royce is on the hunt for orders for its 2billion nuclear reactors after a redesign that means each will power 100,000 more homes.

The Mail on Sunday can reveal that the UK Small Modular Reactor (SMR) project has revamped the proposed mini reactors to increase their output. The factory-built reactors will now generate 470 megawatts, enough to provide electricity to a million homes.

The project, launched in 2015, aims to bring ten mini nuclear reactors into use by 2035, with the first due to enter service around 2030.

Redesign: The factory-built reactors will now generate 470 megawatts, enough to provide electricity to a million homes

Tom Samson, chief executive of the UK SMR Consortium, said negotiations had begun with potential investors to fund the creation of the mini reactors  signalling that the project may move more rapidly than previously thought.

He said it was looking for customers, which could include energy, industrial or technology companies, to operate the sites. He added: 'We're ready to take this technology to market. We're going to be pursuing orders. We're hoping to get orders soon.'

The UK's nuclear power industry has had a chequered recent past with the future of some huge plants thrown into doubt. Rolls-Royce hopes to create a nimbler solution to complement big power stations.

Rolls-Royce is the major share holder in the venture, which has been developed through a consortium that includes Atkins, Jacobs and Laing O'Rourke. The Government has so far invested 18million to support its design and 215million has been earmarked for the SMR programme as part of a 'Green Industrial Revolution'.

Samson said a further 300million of private capital is now being sought to develop the reactors, which it hopes will be located both in the UK and overseas.

The initial 'two to three' units are likely to require Government support, but Samson hopes to move to 'traditional debt and equity' to fund following orders. Last week, the Government updated its nuclear policy to open its Generic Design Assessment to new nuclear technologies. UK SMR hopes to be the first to submit a proposal to Government and regulators.

Decision: The switch from an 'armadillo'-shaped building to one with a 'faceted' top allowing the roof to wrap around the inner workings made it more efficient

Samson said 220 engineering decisions had been made in the latest designs. He said the switch from an 'armadillo'-shaped building to one with a 'faceted' top allowing the roof to wrap around the inner workings made it more efficient.

The Prime Minister's former chief adviser Dominic Cummings was a champion of the UK SMR programme, but Samson said No10 remained behind the project and it chimed with current policy.

He added: 'We unashamedly wrap ourselves in the Union Jack. This is a really proud UK innovation that we've developed here at low cost. And that's what consumers need.

'We're contributing to the Government's levelling-up agenda. We're also contributing to its post-Brexit global Britain agenda.'

Samson is running the rule over sites for factories to build the mini reactors, and said they were most likely to be in the North of England and the East Midlands, where Rolls-Royce is based. He is also studying potential locations for the reactors, which could include former nuclear sites in West Cumbria and Anglesey, where Japanese giant Hitachi pulled the plug on plans for a 20billion plant last year.

Samson described renewable energies such as solar and wind power as 'weather dependent', adding: 'We're not intermittent. These plants will run for 60 years. They will operate 24/7.'
Renaissance: Alex Hill sees an uplifting future for venues

It's difficult to imagine an industry hit harder by the pandemic than live events, but the man behind some of the country's biggest venues strikes a surprisingly uplifting note.

Alex Hill, chief executive of the European arm of live music giant AEG  which owns London's O2, Hammersmith's Apollo and the SSE Arena in Wembley  says bookings are flooding in for this year and next.

'It could quite easily be the busiest ever year, in 2022, for venues up and down the country, including the O2,' Hill says, fresh from hosting this week's Brit Awards at the O2.

If his prediction proves correct, it would represent a startling renaissance for the 20,000-seater O2 venue that was born out of the ashes of London's much-criticised Millennium Dome project.

Tomorrow, its 30 bars and restaurants will reopen to indoor customers  and Hill, 48, says customers have largely hung on to tickets to a string of rescheduled concerts now due to take place this year.

The coming boom, he says, is down to a combination of pent-up demand from fans desperate to get back to gigs and pop stars keen to tour new work recorded in lockdown. 'Some of the shows that are going out right now are selling like crazy,' he adds. 'Younger demographics just want to get out there and experience life and have great fun.

Some of us who are a little over the hill might take a bit more convincing to get out there, but I know everyone will [return in time].'

Hill says enquiries are already coming in for 2023 and 2024 as diaries fill up, but before next year's rush the gig scene may have a red, white and blue hue.

'I don't really envisage international tours taking place again until some time in 2022,' he says. 'I think we're lucky in the UK that the music industry is the jewel in the crown of our culture and we have loads of brilliant talent that will play in our venues.

UK artists want to get out there and play in front of their fans so I think that's a great opportunity.'

Hill is speaking to me over Zoom from his house in London's leafy Wandsworth the day after attending the Brit Awards. The annual televised music industry bash was a Government test event for the short-term future of live gigs.

Social distancing and masks were ditched, with the 4,000-strong audience  including 2,500 key workers  instead required to take a Covid test 36 hours before the event. Performers included Dua Lipa, Rag'n'Bone Man and Elton John with Olly Alexander.

Gone were the crammed tables of boozy music industry execs on the arena floor (they were up in the hospitality suites) while some of the artists got changed in a nearby hotel as backstage was 'bio-secure'.

But Hill says that didn't stop the event living up to its reputation for being a glitzy and boozy  night.

'I might be feeling a little bit jaded,' admits Hill, who's still catching up with the TV coverage. 'The frontline workers gave it such a buzz, I'm just super pleased to see fans back. It shows we can have a safe return to live events.'

True Brit: Dua Lipa, in a Union Jack jacket, performing at last week's Brit Awards

All restrictions on venue capacities are set to lift on June 21 and Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove has been tasked with studying Covid passports to smooth the return to more normal live events.

Hill says he broadly supports the use of testing to reopen live events, but as a 'temporary measure'. And he believes other Covid measures used at the O2 last week are likely to stay  including new air purification technology, hand sanitising stations (the Greenwich venue has 256) and paperless tickets.

He reveals: 'Everyone's got digital tickets now, and you can order food and beverages on your phone. I don't think that will go back [to how it was before].'

It's been a brutal year for AEG which owns and operates more than 100 venues worldwide. Hill is coy on the damage to its balance sheet but says revenues across the industry are down more than 90 per cent.

The company is backed by US mogul Philip Anschutz's investment vehicle and its deep pockets leave it in decent shape to bounce back. Hill reckons reliable revenues are unlikely to return in the UK until September, while in mainland Europe where AEG has venues in Germany and Sweden the vaccine rollout has put their live schedule 'a couple of months behind'.

AEG staff are slowly coming off furlough and Hill hopes to have brought all employees back by the start of August.

The company was forced to push back its annual outdoor shows, July's huge British Summer Time gigs in Hyde Park which were due to feature Pearl Jam and Duran Duran, into next year. And Hill argues that Britain's vibrant festival industry is in a perilous position: 'There's no commercial insurance market for dealing with Covid [so] we're looking for some sort of Government-backed insurance scheme.

'I think there will be more festivals that cancel their shows. It's why we've seen the likes of Glastonbury and Boomtown have to cancel because those are very complex bills, huge projects that take months.'

He argues some of the money left in the Government's Culture Recovery Fund could be allocated to backing the festival season.

Like the venues he runs, Hill appears polished and bereft of the chaotic rock'n'roll energy his industry was founded upon. He sits in front of his collection of house plants, and a book on 1001 walks, and lists middle-of-the-road rockers The Killers playing their Hot Fuss album as his dream gig.

A business studies graduate, he spent his early career at consultancy KPMG, before running the numbers for broadcaster Flextech and TV producer Fremantle.

Despite the ravages of Covid, AEG is getting back on the front foot  even splashing out on venue revamps in London, at Olympia and Wolverhampton's historic Civic Hall during the pandemic.

Could there be more deals in the offing? Hill says: 'We're not frightened of investing and I think if we found the right opportunity we would be able to do so.'
Vodafone has hailed an early triumph in the race to supply 5G to businesses after its technology was used in pioneering NHS surgery last week.

Surgeons at Cardiff's Vale hospital in Wales performed an operation to remove colon cancer from a patient using technology that allows surgeons to assist each other remotely - even if they are in different countries.

The so-called augmented reality technology, which was powered by Vodafone's super-fast 5G internet connection, allows the remote surgeon to draw on a live image of the patient on their screen.

Innovation: The so-called augmented reality technology allows the remote surgeon to draw on a live image of the patient on their screen

The surgeon performing the operation can see these guide lines almost in real time on a screen in the operating theatre - enabling the two surgeons to assist each other with complex procedures.

The remote software was developed by British start-up Proximie.

Vodafone head of innovation Danny Kelly told MoS: '5G is a transformative technology in terms of bandwidth, capacity, speed, but it does not deliver transformation into just one industry. We're now looking at every industry.'

Vodafone already has 5G link-ups with blue chip firms including Ford, Lufthansa and Bosch.

The FTSE 100 telecoms giant is targeting healthcare, manufacturing and transport clients as it pushes into offering 5G for businesses - a market forecast to be worth just under 1billion by 2025.

Healthcare is predicted to be the biggest sector, worth 205 million, and is a sector also prized by rival BT.

Vodafone shares remain 9 per cent below their pre-pandemic price after the collapse of travel hit roaming revenues. It is this week expected to post a slight fall in annual underlying profits to 14.4 billion. Analysts expect the dividend to be left unchanged, at 9 euro cents a share.

Telecoms operators began launching 5G services in Britain in 2019 but conspiracy theories claiming it was linked to contracting Covid-19, and lockdowns reducing mobile data usage, have partially overshadowed its rollout.

Kelly said: 'Telecoms companies are migrating to become tech companies. In the past, telcos have been very, very guilty of simply selling products and services into the market, tech companies have to deliver business outcomes.

'[With Proximie] it's the start of our journey and transformation of healthcare in the UK and then we'll look to take this as a model to transform other industries. It's the first area where we're really investing and scaling.'

Vodafone hopes to turn hospitals into 'smart cities' where connected devices communicate with each other.

Earlier this year, car-maker Ford begun a pilot of Vodafone's 5G connectivity at its 'factory of the future' in Essex, using the rapid connectivity to improve the precision and efficiency of its welding.

Kelly said Vodafone had received interest in its 5G services from small firms and local councils as well as blue chip corporates.

He added that its business services would not be reliant on the speed of the rollout of 5G to the public as the connections would be established within a company's premises.

Vodafone shares remain 9 per cent below their pre-pandemic price of 154p after the collapse of travel hit roaming revenues. However, it recently raised 2.3 billion through the float of its Vantage Towers phone masts arm.

The Cardiff trial was backed by a grant from the state-funded UK Research and Innovation body.

Proximie chief executive Dr Nadine Hachach-Haram said: 'Connectivity can make a difference, it can truly save lives. Bringing together a partnership like this means you're transcending geography, time and space and bringing this together for human impact.'

Hachach-Haram said Proximie works in 'low bandwidth' environments  like operations on naval ships  but 5G connections meant detailed images could be reliably relayed.

Hachach-Haram said the pandemic had underscored the effectiveness of remote assisted surgery. 'We were able to bring experts from around the world into an operating room  for example a cardiac case in east London connected to an expert in Washington.

'It was a very stressful time, being in an operating room, isolated, in full PPE, it was difficult being on the front line. Knowing there was the ability to have a colleague who could dial in with you was really important.'

London-based Proximie, founded in 2016, last month raised $38 million from a group of investors including firms in the US and Dubai to aid its expansion in Europe and America.
Steel tycoon Sanjeev Gupta boasted that he had been 'inundated' with refinancing offers just hours before a fraud probe into his ailing metals empire was launched.

The Liberty Steel owner is battling to repair the damage wrought on his GFG Alliance by the collapse of its main lender, Greensill Capital.

On Friday the Serious Fraud Office began an investigation into suspected fraud and money laundering, as well as GFG's dealings with Greensill, which employed David Cameron.

Boast: Sanjeev Gupta is battling to repair the damage wrought on his GFG Alliance by the collapse of its main lender, Greensill Capital

Gupta had told an internal company podcast before the probe: 'We have been inundated by offers to help and to finance because people recognise that markets are good, our businesses are good.'

He said 'working capital has been offered' to aid the UK business.

The SFO probe prompted a proposed lender, White Oak Global Advisers, to pull out of GFG's Australian and UK refinancing.

Gupta had planned to stabilise the business Down Under first before turning to Europe but that strategy has been thrown into doubt by the probe.
A heartbroken wife has penned a letter to her husband who took his final breath almost three years after their four-month-old daughter's death.

David Campbell, a NSW police officer, died on May 8, a day before Mother's Day, leaving behind his wife Michelle, their two daughters Harper and Meadow, and his stepson Cooper.

His death devastated his family who were still grieving of losing four-month-old Aspen in 2018.

David Campbell passed away on May 8, leaving behind his wife Michelle and daughters Harper and Meadow (pictured together)

In an open letter to David, Michelle described him as the 'most gentle, loving and kind daddy' and said she will miss him forever.

'I never would have thought my heart would endure this much heartbreak in one lifetime,' she wrote.

'My heart is so heavy, so broken. I just can't fathom how this is real, how you are no longer here on earth.'

Michelle said she was shocked by his sudden death and wished he could see how loved and missed he was already.

The tragedy comes almost three years after the couple lost their four-month-old daughter Aspen in 2018

'You and the kids are my whole world I don't know how I will go on without you by my side, I know I will, have to for the kids but this is not the way it was suppose to be babe, we still had a lifetime together,' she said.

'I hope you are at peace now, I hope you have found our Aspen girl and are giving her the biggest hug. Cuddle her for me and tell her Mummy loves her.

'I love you endlessly babe, I wish my love and the love of your girls could have kept you here with us.'

'My heart will forever ache for you.'

Stacey Hollands, Michelle's cousin, launched a GoFundMe page to help the family financially as she braces for the future without her husband.

The community rallied to support the family, with the fundraising campaign so far reaching $15,920 of its $100,000 goal.

Mr Jones was a NSW Police officer and the force is currently offering their support this his family

Michelle has penned an open letter to her husband, telling him that he will forever be missed

Tributes have begun pouring in on social media for the father-of-three, who was remembered as a 'beautiful' person.

'My heart is absolutely shattered for you. David was such a beautiful daddy, husband and friend. He will be truly missed. RIP Dave,' one friend wrote on Michelle's Instagram page.

'My heart and soul is broken today. I never ever would have thought one family, one beautiful family could possibly endure so much heartache. I will treasure every single memory of him,' another person wrote.

NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia it is offering support and welfare services to his family.

A report is being prepared for the coroner.
Dani Link, 24, thought she only had a sore throat - but it turned out to be cancer

A young woman who went to the doctor for a sore throat discovered she actually had a deadly cancer that quickly spread from her lymph nodes to her bones, stomach, and ovaries.

Dani Link, who came to Australia from Ontario, Canada, in 2019, was living in Byron Bay with her boyfriend Jack for little more than a year in February when she started getting sick.

Thinking it was the flu or tonsillitis that was going around the coastal NSW town, the 24-year-old went to the GP and took a range of different antibiotics for about a month - before a lump formed in her neck and started to grow.

Following a series of scans and biopsies, Dani received the heartbreaking news last week that her sore throat was caused by Burkitt lymphoma - a fast-moving cancer that usually affects children and people over 60.

The waitress and university graduate told Daily Mail Australia that in the days after her shock diagnosis, she looked at Jack, 26, a few times and said: 'I don't want to die.'

Dani link (pictured) came to Australia in 2019 from Ontario, Canada. She has been living in Byron Bay

Dani Link and her boyfriend Jack (pictured together) met in 2019 when they were staying in the same hostel in Byron Bay. Dani's bunk bed was above his

Dani (pictured in Victoria) lives in Byron Bay with her boyfriend Jack and another friend

'I originally had a gut feeling that everything would be all right - that I things weren't over for me, but I've had to accept that this is life-threatening,' she said.

'It's been a heavy week.'

Dani was admitted to Tweed Heads hospital immediately for her first round of chemotherapy to stop the disease from spreading beyond the four areas already affected, which will end in 11 days.

She has not been given a prognosis or told how advanced the disease is but when she asked doctors if there was any specific reason for her illness, they said it was just bad luck.

Burkitt lymphoma usually impacts people who had an immune-weakening illness caused by the Epstein-Barr virus, which can cause glandular fever.

Pictured: Dani hooked up to machines with her boyfriend Jack, who is from England, outside Tweed Heads Hospital

Dani Link (pictured) was told she had cancer after going to the doctor with a sore throat in February

She said it took a while for her life-threatening diagnosis to sink in, but says she is feeling positive

Dani said she has never had glandular fever, but believes her sore throat in February was a result of the Epstein-Barr virus - which attacked her immune system and turned into cancer.

Despite the long battle ahead, friends and family helped her keep the negative thoughts at bay.

'Jack doesn't want to show his emotions too much in front of me - the news was hard for him to hear - but he's taken it better than I did at the beginning. He's been my rock,' she said.

There were lots of tears over the phone when she told her family in Canada that she had a potentially fatal condition, but despite Covid restrictions, her parents managed to book flights to Australia.

Dani graduated from a university in Canada with a Bachelor of Science, majoring in biochemistry

Despite the long battle ahead, friends and family have helped her keep the negative thoughts at bay. Pictured: Dani link (right) with a friend

Dani has private health insurance in Australia which means about 80 per cent of her treatment should be covered

They will quarantine for two weeks on arrival and stay with her for a few more while she has multiple rounds of chemotherapy.

Dani has private health insurance in Australia so about 80 per cent of her treatment should be covered, but until she can prove she did not have cancer when the policy started six months ago, she has to pay for everything herself.

To help with medical and living expenses while she is in hospital, her friends in Byron Bay set up a Go Fund Me campaign.

'So far I've spent about $9,000, but the room I'm in costs about $900 per night and I have to be here for at least five months,' she said.

Dani (pictured) has a degree in biochemistry and hopes to one day work in the health sector

Pictured: Flowers and 'get well soon' cards delivered to Dani by her family and friends in Canada and Australia

Dani and Jack had planned to get sponsorship from their employers to stay in Australia before Dani's diagnosis - and those plans have not changed.

'Jack is getting sponsorship and hopefully I can once I'm in remission - I really just want to make Australia my permanent home,' she said.

Dani has a degree in biochemistry and hopes to one day work in the health sector.
Family photos that almost didn't happen are among the most treasured possessions of children for whom still being alive is reason enough to celebrate.

One example unearthed from the Australian national archives shows Henrich, his wife and five children, exhausted but grateful to be alive, in Sydney.

Just days earlier, they surviving a fire at sea that sunk Norwegian passenger ship MS Skaubryn in the Indian Ocean on March 31, 1958.

Arguably even luckier were the Tzortzatos family, refugees after the disastrous 1953 Ionian Islands 'Great Kefalonia' earthquake in southern Greece, thought to have killed 800 people.

These photos are just two examples of the timeless documents of Australian migrant heritage that are still lying undiscovered in government archives.

Mr and Mrs Henrich Franks and their five children arrive in Sydney having been rescued in the Indian Ocean after the MS Skaubryn sunk after a fire on board on March 31, 1958. The family moved to Warner's Bay near Newcastle, NSW

Dutch-born Miss New Australia 1956, Lucia Schaepman (pictured third from left) greets the Weverling family from Holland as they arrive in Melbourne on the the ship Johann van Olden-Barneveltin. Also pictured (from left) are: Mr Weverling with baby daughter Annemarie, 5, Mrs Weverling, Mrs Schaepman's mother, Peter Weverling 8 and Rob Weverling, 11

The Franks' traumatic arrival is a huge contrast with the Dutch Weverling family at year earlier when the ship Johann van Olden-Barneveltin docked in Melbourne in 1957.

The Weverlings were all smiles when greeted with flowers and photographers and a warm welcome from Miss New Australia Lucia Schaepman.

The power of old photos is clear from of snap of a tiny and shy Carla Zampatti soon after she and her mother Marianna and brother Arturo migrated to Perth, Western Australia, in 1950 joining father Domenico Zampatti.

They settled in Fremantle, Perth, then moved to Bullfinch in regional WA.

Pictured arriving in Australia are the Tzortzatos family, lucky survivors of the disastrous 1953 Ionian Islands earthquake in southern Greece thought to have killed 800 people

A youthful Carla Zampatti pictured around t he time she opened her first boutique in Sydney (left), then when she first arrived in Australia, age eight (pictured right). Zampatti sadly died in Sydney recently aged 78

Zampatti went on to become a celebrated figure in the Australian fashion industry, only recently dying at age 78 in a tragic fall on Sydney Harbour.

She was given a state funeral.

The popularity of genealogy has spurred the National Archives of Australia to open its doors to help people piece together their family histories.

Documents that families can unearth include recent ASIO files on family members to extraordinary snapshots that sometimes lie undiscovered for decades.

'Thousands of family photos are hidden in the archives,' Ann McLean, the NAA's director of reference services told Daily Mail Australia.

With so many of us from a migrant family in recent generations past, searches of government records related to migration unlock a store of family knowledge and provide a trail for family historians to follow.

Three generations of Albert family, who migrated to Australia from Great Britain, wait for the Queen Mother to arrive at 194 Belar Avenue, Villawood, Sydney in 1958

English migrants pictured at a Queensland state hostel, Brisbane circa 1975-1975

An estimated seven million Australians have arrived from overseas since World War II.

According to the 2016 census, 49 per cent of Australians were either born overseas or have at least one parent born elsewhere.

The NAA will help people search everything from citizenship forms, passenger arrival cards, migrant selection files, army enlistment forms, and even ASIO files.

Recent changes to the archives act allowing people to access ASIO documents from as recently as 20 years ago.

Roy Ritchie was an Irish migrant who composed music for first ballet in the Sydney Opera House; Migrant workers building Westgate Bridge in Melbourne in 1974

Ms McLean said that a change of law phased in after 2011 allows people to see 20-year-old ASIO files.

'They are not available under Freedom of Information Act, but they are under the archives act,' she said.

'There's a chance they will be redacted for national security reasons, but if they exist you can find them here.'

Finding out such things is usually the work of professionals such as police, film-makers, journalists and researchers.

But the National Archives decided to help teach ordinary Australians the tools and tips to unearth their own family histories and photos.

The National Archives has 'thousands of family photos' unclaimed and undiscovered by Australian families. Pictured is British-born corrosion scientist, Colin Pearson, working on relics from sunken ships in an Australian museum. He became known as 'the Father of Conservation' in Australia

Expat British musician John Waters with his children in 1974

Genealogy sites are thought to be the second-most searched web category, behind pornography - but the cost of tracking down family histories through private website can add up to cost thousands once your trial periods expire.

The NAA help is generally free - if the material is viewed in one of its state or territory offices.

There can be nominal costs for the research where additional work is needed - such as digitizing files and photos. They start from $20 a file.

About 10 per cent of the national archives, all government records, are digitised.

Many photos tell great stories though not many details are available with them. Salvadoran immigrant children stand in front of a mural they painted in Australia (left), a girl sits with her mother

The NAA is calling for donations and volunteer help to continue that work, which is considered a race against time as paper records are deteriorating.

If you live in or around Perth the NAA is hosting one-off workshop to help people trace their family's migration story.

But the NAA told Daily Mail Australia it will assist anyone who goes into any state or territory office.
Flamboyant Melbourne real estate high-flyer Zed Nasheet is the human face of Australia's latest, greatest property boom.

The $48,000 Patek Philippe watch, dark suit, mirror-polished shoes, rat-a-tat sales patter.

Every morning as he leaves his $4.6 million bayside mansion and heads to his $6 million office block, he has the choice of driving either the $550,000 Lamborghini or $350,000 gullwing BMW. If he and his sales team sell less 40 properties, it's a slow month.

The unabashed self-promoter and internet personality holds a world record for selling a house in the shortest amount of time, has over 500,000 followers on social media and is currently negotiating with the owners of the hit US shows Million Dollar Listing New York and Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles to co-produce a local version.

Arriving in Australia with his family at the age of 12 after fleeing the Taliban in war-torn Afghanistan, Nasheet (pictured) said he was born in poverty

Flamboyant Melbourne real estate high-flyer Zed Nasheet (pictured, centre) hold the world record for selling a house in the shortest time

If they turn him down, he'll just finance it himself.

That's the way Zed Nasheet operates. Nothing can stop him, because there is another side to this 31-year-old ball of energy and enthusiasm.

One that he says made him who he is and drives him every minute of every day.

When Nasheet was six months old his family fled the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan and crossed into Pakistan. Together with parents, an older brother, grand-parents, uncles, aunts and cousins, they left a comfortable, affluent life for one of poverty and hardship.

'There were 19 of us living in a two-room house for over 10 years,' he says. 'My father had been a successful accountant and financial adviser in Kabul. He had several houses and property. We lost everything.

'I was too young to remember what Afghanistan was like under the Taliban, but my brother does, and he and my parents have told me. The Taliban took away everything. There was no music, no TV. Women weren't allowed outside. It was like being in jail.

Nasheet and his family fled the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan and migrated to Australia and revealed he was bullied for not speaking English

Nasheet (pictured) revealed he's sold million-dollar properties over Instagram that the buyer has never stepped foot inside

'We left Kabul by car and then walked for days to get to the border. When we got to Pakistan we were underprivileged; all of us crowded into this tiny house. I never saw a shower until we came to Australia. Our version of having a bath was pouring a bucket of cold water over our heads.

'It was very hard, but it was the best thing that could have happened to me. It made me appreciate how blessed we are to live in Australia where if you are prepared to work hard you can make your own future'

'Where we came from it was all about class and connections. Here you can be whoever you want to be.'

Zed, his parents and by then three brothers, emigrated Australia when he was 13 years old. For the first few years the land of their dreams seemed closer to a nightmare.

'When I started school I couldn't speak any English. I was teased and bullied every day,' he said.

'They made fun of the way I spoke. They used to ask me, 'what do you use a toothbrush for?' because I couldn't say 'teeth'.'

'The way I said it sounded like 'tits'. I'd say, 'for cleaning my tits' and they'd all laugh and push me around.'

Zed, his parents and by then three brothers, emigrated Australia when he was 13 years old and described the first few years on land were closer to 'a nightmare'

The high flying real estate agent said he offered his first job in real estate while serving a woman in a Telstra store

Zed says he never learnt a great deal from school, gaining far more from observing and absorbing the habits of positive role models, such as his father.

'I've never seen anyone work harder than my father and that is what I have modelled my work ethic on.'

'By the time I was 14 I was selling hotdogs outside nightclubs in Melbourne, three nights a weekend from 9pm to 6am, for $80.'

'I was supposed to sell them for four dollars, but I learnt to negotiate. I'd talk to people when they came out of the clubs. They'd ask how much a hot dog cost and I ask them how much they were willing to pay. We'd talk and joke and sometimes I'd get an extra dollar or two.

'That taught me about soft selling and up selling and building a rapport with your customer.'

Together with his boundless energy and enthusiasm, they were all little pillars of salesmanship that would lead to the biggest break of his life.

'My first real job was selling mobile phones in a Telstra shop when I was 20. One day a lady came in. She was maybe 53 or 54 and she was angry. She wanted to complain about the service she was getting. She said she was leaving Telstra to go to Optus.

The Melbourne real estate agent (pictured) said he loves cars, and owns a Bentley and a Lamborghini

Nasheet's highly successful company Zed Realestate has sold over $1.4 billion worth of property

Despite his now lavish lifestyle, Nasheet revealed he only made $7,000 for his first year as a real estate agent

'I said, 'hold on, let's talk about this. What do you do, what do you need your phone to do?' She told me she worked in real estate. I had no idea what real estate was. She told me that sometimes she had to go to country areas.'

'I told her that she just had the wrong plan, and that Telstra was the only provider that could give her the coverage she needed. I calmed her down and ended up selling her the right product.'

'Then she said, 'I like your energy. I like your hunger. You should work for me. I'm offering you a job.' People might say that was I was lucky, but I say luck is when preparation meets opportunity. I'd been preparing for that opportunity all my life.'

Even so, it didn't come easily. For three years Zed struggled as he learned the real estate game.

'In a boom market like this, anyone can sell a house, but you have to have listings and back then when I was the new kid in the agency no-one was going to give their sale to a 20-year-old who didn't know anything.

'I made $7000 my entire first year. I sold just one house. For three years all I did was listen and learn, then I went to the city and sold high-rise apartments off the plan. I learnt to deal with developers and lawyers and clients and when I went back to selling residential, I was unstoppable.'

In 2017 Zed (pictured) set an industry benchmark by selling almost $40 million worth of real estate in one month.

The real estate high flyer recently bought a $6 million office building in the Melbourne suburb of Hampton as company HQ

Working for leading agencies, Zed had enormous success. He was the top-selling agent for L.J Hooker in Victoria and Tasmania four years running. In 2017 he set an industry benchmark by selling almost $40 million worth of real estate in one month. He applied to the Guinness Book of Records for the title 'World's Fastest Real Estate Agent' when he put a property on the market and sold it in 15 minutes.

'I've done that a lot of times since then,' he says.

Two years ago, he went out on his own, starting Zed Real Estate.

With his three brothers Maseeh, Tee and Qaiss, and a staff of 40 working with him, the agency has since sold (or 'Zold' as Zed likes to call it) $1.4 billion worth of property.

He recently bought a $6 million office building in the Melbourne suburb of Hampton as company HQ. It's two storeys tall, but with typical confidence he has named it 'Zed Tower'.

'I have an application in for two additional floors already and we'll grow from that. We're a one-stop shop. We don't just sell property, we offer finance, we have conveyancers, financial planners, IT, marketing, media, all under the one roof.'

As he talks about his plans, there is so much enthusiasm and positive energy overflowing that the words almost spill over each other as Zed struggles to control the flow of ideas.

The successful agent said the power of the internet sets him apart from others in his field

You wonder how he can possibly hope to achieve it all, but just like in that Telstra shop 11 years ago, he is in the right place at the right time.

Ask him what sets him apart from others in his field and he'll answer with just two words: the internet.

'It has made everything possible for me. These days 99 per cent of my business is online. At first it was about getting attention. I'd do videos dressed up as Superman or Batman. I've done rap-songs and dances. Now as well as getting my name out there, it is about marketing properties.

'I've sold million-dollar properties over Instagram that the buyer has never stepped foot inside. We tell them and show them everything they need to know. It just makes so much sense. I can put an ad online and hope to get a couple of hundred people see it or I can put it on my Facebook page and have 500,000 view it in two days.

'They are not all genuine buyers. Some just log on to be entertained or educated about what the market is doing, but there could be one buyer who sees the right property for them, and it only takes one.

Zed (pictured) revealed his recent sales include 9million and 21million dollar houses in the prestigious suburb of Brighton

'Two weeks ago I sold a property in Caulfield off social media in just one hour. It happens every day.'

When I ask about recent sales, he reels off addresses and sales prices one after another without hesitation, sounding every inch the professional auctioneer he is, '5.5 million, 6 million, 9 million, 21 million at Brighton, house on half-an-acre at Brighton', but one has special significance.

It cost $4.5 million on Beach Road, Black Rock, overlooking Port Phillip Bay. It's the house he bought for himself and his parents, a lifetime away from Pakistan.

You can see it if you drive past. It's hard to miss.

It's the one with the 'Zold By Zed' sign permanently out the front.

Meet Australia's 'celebrity' real estate agents: The high-rollers selling homes worth tens of millions while showing off their luxury lives on Instagram - and their rags to riches stories

By Nic White for Daily Mail Australia

For Lamborghini-driving, designer clothes-wearing real estate playboy Zed Nasheet, multimillion-dollar house aren't just sold - they're 'Zold'.

The 30-year-old has a nameplate declaring 'f**king brilliant' on his desk and a $100 note with his face superimposed over it on the wall behind.

'In Zed we trust' read four other framed posters, reflecting off the polished black marble table in his Melbourne office.

Mr Nasheet is one of a generation of under-40 agents whose property empires are built on relentless self-promotion as much as a good sales pitch.

'Your personal brand is a 24-hour job,' he told Daily Mail Australia while driving his BMW i8 to his favourite coffee shop.

Mr Nasheet, a former Afghan refugee, claimed the version of himself promoted online, and the many luxury cars he's posed with, is a means to an end

He is wearing a hoodie with his company name on it as part of his literally constant indirect marketing attempts.

'The minute you wake up, you have to think about how you can make a difference in someone else's life,' he said.

'Your brand is as big as your network, and your net worth is as big as your network... You gotta protect it and grind on a daily basis to get your name out there.'

Mr Nasheet, a former Afghan refugee, claimed the version of himself promoted online, and the many luxury cars he's posed with, was a means to an end.

'I love the fancy cars but it's not really my fault - the rich don't want to deal with the poor, this is the reality,' he said.

Gavin Rubenstein, famous for his Versace dressing gown, regularly puts together fast-paced 'diary of a real estate agent' videos to enhance his mystique

'People with a $20 million house don't want to work with someone with a $20,000 car. You need to have the same mindset and vision to connect with them.'

'I've dreamed of owning cars since I was a little kid, but if you asked me how many horsepower is has or what the engine is, I don't know anything about it. It's just that the world is materialistic, not me.'

Such is the rock star image of the modern real estate agent that they are in demand for almost everything - brand launches, motivational speaking, and parties galore.

A few, like Mr Nasheet, even dabble in reality TV.

They all wear incredibly slick, thousand-dollar suits and spend almost as much time promoting brands and causes as they do overseeing inspections.

Mr Rubenstein wheels and deals on the phone while overlooking a beach in Sydney's eastern suburbs with from the balcony of a home he's selling

Mr Rubenstein (centre) parties with glamourous friends and plenty of high-grade booze

Instagram profiles boast tens of thousands of followers and are filled with carefully posed photos of themselves, bearing pithy motivational quotes, alongside homes that cost a lifetime's salary.

Gavin Rubenstein, famous for his Versace dressing gown, regularly puts together fast-paced 'diary of a real estate agent' videos to enhance his mystique.

'It's always fun, I love this s**t, man. You have to love it to be in as deep as I am,' he declares in one of them.

He would need to, his day starts with a 5am gym session and an early entry to the office - even after signing a deal at midnight.

'No one works harder than me,' he says in every interview he gives, planning to retire on a giant portfolio after just 20 years in the business.

Mr Rubenstein was Ray White's top seller in NSW for seven years in a row, then started his own franchise in upmarket Woollahra.

'Naturally I wasn't organised and an early riser, it's just gone that way over time because I've found it to be most productive,' he says in another of his videos.

'Everything I do is to build a better and more productive business.'

He's not the only one burning the candle at both ends, it's a theme around many of these glamorous agents.

Michael Coombs, dubbed 'king of the north' for his dominance of Sydney's north shore property market, is also up at 5am every day.

Michael Coombs, dubbed 'king of the north' for his dominance of Sydney's north shore property market, is also up at 5am every day

Mr Coombs (far left) with his wife Mia and a gaggle of friends and family on the balcony of a plush Sydney home

He hits the gym, meditates and 'has a steam' before spending time with his two-year-old son and making it in to the office at 7am.

Mr Coombs brags that the result is him selling fours times as much as his competition through his LJ Hooker Avnu - $350 million ever year.

The 41-year-old shares more of his personal life online than most, with shots of his wife Mia and toddler son almost as numerous as big houses.

Monika Tu, who makes her fortune selling expensive Sydney homes to rich Chinese buyers as well as being a popular speaker, revels in her frantic pace.

'I don't have a life, you know, this is my life. I don't waste time. Everything I do, it's all around my real estate,' she told the Sun-Herald in a profile.

Mr Nasheet, however, thinks this is all 'f**king bulls**t' and starts his day at 9am like a normal office worker - just one who claims to be worth $12-15 million.

Monika Tu, who makes her fortune selling expensive Sydney homes to rich Chinese buyers as well as being a popular speaker, revels in her frantic pace

Ms Tu said she gets three or four invitations to events every night and already works as a promoter for BMW and Sydney's Museum of Modern Art

Like every high-flying entrepreneur, all of them are keen to insist that anyone can make it if they just work hard enough.

Mr Nasheet does come from humble beginnings, arriving in Australia as a 12-year-old refugee from Afghanistan who didn't know a word of English.

He started selling hot dogs aged 14 and was a top-selling Telstra employee before he got his start in real estate.

Last month he spun this origin story into one of his frequent motivational speeches while posing next to his new sports car.

'Dreamt of this car as a little kid and I am now a proud owner of this New Lamborghini Huracan,' he wrote.

'Struggled for three years with not a dollar to my name at the age of 22 and all I got told was to quit what I'm doing on daily basis.

'I received Negative energy everywhere with no support from anyone. The only thing that kept me going was my self belief and being around people that gave me hope.

'I didn't listen to anyone but to my heart, I persisted/hustled and got rejected on a daily basis, my own friends laughed at my videos and people in the industry would bad mouth me without even knowing me.'

Mr Nasheet does come from humble beginnings, arriving in Australia as a 12-year-old refugee from Afghanistan who didn't know a word of English

Mr Coombs shares more of his personal life online than most, with shots of his wife Mia and toddler son almost as numerous as big houses

More of his words of wisdom are espoused in videos he dubs 'Zed Talks' and in cliche-laden posts - including his views on women.

'The perfect woman, you see is a working woman, not an idler, not a fine lady, but one who uses her hands and her head and her heart for the good of others.'

Mr Nasheet is not shy about showing off his newfound affluence with numerous photos of his flash cars, boasting of owning a Bentley at 27.

He claims to have sold houses on Facebook, and once in just 15 minutes.

Ms Tu also immigrated to Australia without much going for her, just one of thousands of international students looking for a better education.

She worked at Paddy's Markets and explained her climb up the property ladder in ABC series Almost Australian earlier this year.

'People look at me now and think 'oh my god, you're a rock star'... you have all the luxury, bling blings, diamonds and stuff, driving the luxury cars. But where I came from was [different],' she said.

Mr Rubenstein was Ray White's top seller in NSW for seven years in a row, then started his own franchise in upmarket Woollahra

Mr Rubinstein (right) counts PR queen Roxy Jacenko among his celebrity friends

Ms Tu immigrated to Australia without much going for her, just one of thousands of international students looking for a better education - now she drapes velvet around her office

Mr Coombs grew up in Australia, but was one of four children to a single mother.

Now he rubs shoulders with celebrities and buys and sells them homes that immediately make the real estate newspaper pages.

His list of celebrity clients includes Karl Stefanovic, Kate Waterhouse, ex-NRL stars Beau Ryan and Benji Marshall, and Olympian Matt Shirvington.

Matthew Pillios is another real estate agent whose image is built on celebrity clients, specifically AFL stars in his case.

You name a top player in Melbourne, chances are he's helped them buy or sell a home - Anthony Koutoufides, Jack Riewoldt, and Josh Gibson to name a few.

He also secretly negotiated the sale of Alex Rance's huge family home in Brighton after his messy split from his wife last year.

Mr Pillios found his niche in his former career as a football commentator, and he still does some UFC broadcasting.

AFL stars like Dane Swan, Alex Rance, Luke Darcy, Josh Bruce, and Scott Cummings have also helped him with charity fundraisers that further boost his profile.

Matthew Pillios is another real estate agent whose image is built on celebrity clients, specifically AFL stars in his case

Mr Pillios (right) counts many AFL stars like Dane Swan (left) among his clients, who also help him with charity fundraisers

Side hustles are a common trend for superstar real estate agents - the speaking circuit and promotional work being the most popular.

Ms Tu said she gets three or four invitations to events every night and already works as a promoter for BMW and Sydney's Museum of Modern Art.

She's well-suited to both roles as a huge art collector, some of which hangs on her office walls, and poses with many high-end cars.

Last year she announced she was embarking on a side career as a keynote speaker as she had 'always believed in the power of words'.

'Its the personal stories we share that can have the most impact, make people think, challenge themselves and evolve,' she said.
The bodies of two men were recovered after a more than 10-hour search through rubble Thursday night following an explosion at a northeastern Oklahoma dam where they were doing maintenance work, officials said.

The blast also left a third worker injured.

Grand River Dam Authority spokesperson Justin Alberty said Kerr Dam, near Locust Grove and about 45 miles east of Tulsa, was not damaged in the explosion about 6pm Thursday.

The men were contractors, GRDA Vice President John Wiscaver said, and the cause of the blast is under investigation.

The contractors were employees of D.A. Smith Drilling Co., which is based out of Colorado.

Two men were killed and a third person was injured in an explosion in a northeastern Oklahoma dam on Thursday night

The workers likely encountered methane gas when the explosion occurred

Wiscaver said their bodies were recovered early Friday around 4:30am. Names of the victims weren't immediately released.

KOCO News 5 reports that the names of the victims are pending release from the drilling company.

'Safety for our GRDA employees, and for those who perform work at our facilities, is our number one priority,' Wiscaver said in a statement. 'We all are greatly saddened by this outcome.'

Tulsa World reports that the two men were trapped following the explosion on Thursday before they were discovered the next day.

The explosion happened at the Kerr Dam, near Locust Grove and about 45 miles east of Tulsa

The dam was not damaged in the explosion and is not at risk for additional damage

They were trapped in an interior inspection shaft that ran 80 feet deep. Rescue workers were unable to make contact with them before the recovery of their bodies.

The explosion occurred as the workers were doing core-sample drilling as part of a normal safety maintenance program, Alberty said.

The workers likely encountered a pocket of methane gas when the explosion occurred.

The GDRA said in a press release that the explosion 'was caused by a pocket of naturally occurring gasses, which is not uncommon in geological formations,' though that conclusion is preliminary.

'During the course of the ongoing maintenance, natural gas was detected and OSU sub-contracted with DA Smith Drilling as experts in the field of core drilling to assess the concrete integrity and bedrock contact at dams,' the GDRA continued.

The injured worker was able to escape after the explosion and was taken to a hospital in undisclosed condition, though the worker's injuries are not considered to be life-threatening.

Before the tragic recovery of the men's bodies, there were attempts to rescue them from the dam.

Rescue workers were unable to make contact with them before the recovery of their bodies

A third worker who was injured was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries

Alberty told News 6 that reaching the men from the top of the dam was not an option due to the explosion.

Instead, rescuers were going to try and reach the men through an inspection galley located on the side of the dam.

It's not clear how the bodies were ultimately able to be recovered. A full investigation into the incident is underway.

The dam, meanwhile, is considered to be stable following the blast and does not appear to be at risk for more damage.

'As far as another explosion or structural problems, we don't feel that there are. We feel that the scene is stable,' Alberty said during the initial rescue attempt.

The GRDA operates dams in northeastern Oklahoma to generate electricity for customers that include cities in Kansas and Oklahoma.
If you're looking for an owl, you could be forgiven for thinking you're barking up the wrong tree...

But look closely and hidden next to the trunk you'll see an owl, looking right back at you.

The incredible picture was taken by amateur photographer 45-year-old James S. Batuigas, 45, from Burnaby in Canada.

The great grey owl can be seen camouflaged against the tree with its two eyes staring right back out.

An owl seamlessly blended into the bark of tree with its feathers camouflaged

The picture taken in Canada shows the Great Grey Owl as the bird momentarily turns his head to break its disguise

James S. Batuigas, 45, from Burnaby, Canada, took the snap while heading to his favorite wildlife spot in British Columbia

In another photo of the bird of prey, with its head turned to one side, is almost impossible to pick out against the bark of the tree it is perched up against.

Batuigas said that he has been taking photographs for 11 years. But it is this latest set which was shared on his Instagram account that has captured the public's imagination having been liked 90,000 times.

Batuigas explained how he travelled by for five hours by car to get to the location in British Columbia where he spotted the owl which he only saw by chance.

'As a photographer, I love going out and enjoying what nature brings to us,' Batuigas said. It's always relaxing and you can always find a moment of peace with nature. I love the challenge in searching for different owl species every time.

When the owl turns its head to the side, it is virtually impossibly to distinguish it from the bark

Only when the owl turned its head and opened its eyes was it finally able to be spotted

'I was planning to look for the great grey owl that day. I was driving on a forest road searching for the great grey owls, scanning every tree hoping to find one during noon time, where they're usually resting. Then suddenly in the corner of my eye I noticed something moving in the tree trunk, that's when I realized it was the owl cunningly blended with the bark of the tree.

'If the owl didn't look at me, I would have missed it,' he said.

'This is why we can't see them,' wrote one person online.

'You can't see it, but it can see you,' added another.

'Wow that is camouflage,' tweeted another user.

'Crazy how well it blends in,' observed one social media user.

'This is why we never see goddamn owls,' said another.

The Great Grey Owl can be found across North America, Europe and Asia.

The birds often camouflage themselves against an almost-identical backdrop, which allows them to scan the scene for prey - including voles, squirrels and without being spotted.

The amateur photographer drove to the place where he found the owl for five hours, but then happened to see the bird
Congresswoman Maxine Waters was accused of abusing her power by allegedly getting two air marshals to accompany her on a flight to Derek Chauvin's trial.

Waters is said to have requested the marshals for a flight to Minnesota on April 17, despite allegedly already having two US Capitol Police and Secret Service members to protect her.

She and other lawmakers accused of requesting the marshals have been accused of potentially putting the US public in danger over claims those guards have been taken off other flights deemed potentially risky.

A complaint submitted about Waters' alleged request said: 'Congresswoman Maxine Waters utilized numerous government resources inappropriately.

'Federal Air Marshals were removed from a "High Risk" flight to cover Ms. Waters flight to Minnesota. The High Risk flight took off with no armed law enforcement on board leaving a gap in National Security.'

Lawmakers have allegedly abused a program started in the aftermath of 9/11 to essentially create a VIP 'concierge service' for members of congress after the deadly January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, Fox News reported.

The Air Marshal National Council, a union which represents some of the nation's roughly 2,000 air marshals, claimed they have been tasked with accompanying congress members to their districts 'and even to vacation spots,' Fox News reported.

Fox did not reveal the names of any other congressmen or women said to have requested protection from air marshals on flights. Waters has not commented on the allegations made against her.

Maxine Waters, pictured in Washington on April 20, allegedly requested two air marshals to accompany her on a flight to Derek Chauvin's trial last month

Waters, pictured on April 20, is said to have made the request despite allegedly already having two US Capitol Police officers and two Secret Service agents accompanying her

Waters is now the subject of an official complaint over her alleged request. Derek Chauvin is pictured in court on April 20 as he was convicted of murdering George Floyd

Union president David Londo said putting air marshals on a flight 'simply because a member of Congress requests it is an egregious misuse of government resources,' in a complaint to the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General on April 20.

'The FAMs are now taking agents off of regularly scheduled 'high risk' flights to put them on flights with members of Congress, that in most cases have their own armed federal security details onboard already,' he said in his complaint.

'It has become akin to a type of extremely expensive concierge service for Congressional members.'

Sonya Hightower LoBasco, the union's executive director, echoed the claim that the Transportation Security Administration has been reassigning agents. The TSA runs the Federal Air Marshal Service.

'Air marshals can only be assigned to high-risk flights. That means flights that have been deemed through our vetted process that have a security risk,' LoBasco said.

'When these processes are violated and they're taken advantage of and they are just tossed to the side now as if they don't matter, we're really looking into creating a major problem for ourselves in the aviation domain.'

Fox News reported that some air marshals are angry that they have to protect lawmakers on their flights and claim that is the job of Capitol police, and sometimes the Secret Service.

Some lawmakers already have their own security so the marshals don't know why they have been tasked with protecting lawmakers on flights.

LoBasco insisted that 'all flights were covered' despite adding air marshals to Waters' flight.

The TSA said in a statement that: 'Following the events of January 6th at the U.S. Capitol, the Transportation Security Administration enhanced security and law enforcement presence throughout the transportation system to include airports and aboard aircraft to protect the traveling public, including Members of Congress.'

According to Fox News, the process for a lawmaker to have air marshals placed on a flight includes calling Capitol Police - which then calls a TSA liaison, who files the request.

Former President George W. Bush gave air marshals the responsibility of protecting the public on commercial flights in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks, which saw four planes hijacked by terrorists, three of which were flown into buildings.

Bush and raised the number of agents from 33 to more than 4,000. The air marshal program covers about 30,000 commercial flights a day.
Worried pet owners are buying spiked body armor for their beloved dogs and cats to try and stop them being seized and eaten by America's booming bald eagle population.

The return of the bald eagle population is cause for celebration for conservationists.

But it has come at a cost for people with small pets, who fear their furry friend could become an eagle's next meal.

Alaskan pet owners who are trying to protect their pups from the state's estimated 30,000 bald eagles are taking precautions and arming their small dogs with spiky armor.

Mark Robokoff, owner of AK Bark pet shop in Anchorage, is selling a protective jacket called the 'CoyoteVest,' which were initially intended to protect small pets form coyotes.

The CayoteVest (pictured) is topped with bright red nylon whiskers that is meant to scare off birds from above

But with booming numbers of the birds in Alaska, Robokoff saw an opportunity to market the vest for pet owners trying to keep their small pups safe, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The vest, covered in bulletproof Kevlar and spikes, is topped with bright red nylon whiskers that Robokoff says scare off the birds from above.

'Eagles are strong enough to carry a 12-pound salmon, so a four-pound dog is nothing,' he told WSJ.

The North American bird, with an up to eight-foot wingspan, has come off the endangered species list after successful conservation efforts.

The Bald eagle (pictured) has come off the endangered species list after successful conservation efforts

Once a rare sight, the bald eagle is now a fixture in small towns across North America.

But the birds have left a less than favorable impression with some residents.

The predatorial bird has taken to hunting geese and chickens, with their skill at doing so alarming owners of similarly-sized cats and dogs.

In British Columbia, Jeanine Pesce, who owns a consulting agency, says she and her five-year-old daughter witnessed the bird preparing its meal.

'One day I watched an eagle drag a Canadian goose back and forth across rocks for hours,' she told WSJ. 'I was told that's how they tenderize their meat.'

Tom Abraham, a British Columbia-based trip planner told WSJ he has had to worry about bald eagles stalking his lambs and his daughter's chickens.

'We lost one (chicken) to an eagle last year,' he told WSJ. 'I string flags overhead to create an obstacle. It gives the chickens more time to take cover.'

The birds are also messy, leaving poo everywhere they go, WSJ reported.

Initially meant to protect small dogs from cayotes, the CayoteVest (pictured) is covered in Kevlar and spikes

Pet owners are attempting to protect their small dogs from the rising bald eagle population in North America with dog armor

Conservation efforts, including the banning of chemicals like DDT, have allowed for America's national bird to be removed from the endangered species list in 2007.

A recent report from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department found that numbers have quadrupled to more than 316,000 in 2019, from 72,000 in 2009, WSJ reported.

But that only reflects the population in the lower 48, Myles Lamont, a biologist with the Hancock Wildlife Foundation, a nonprofit in Surrey, British Columbia, that promotes the conservation of wildlife, particularly the bald eagle, and its habitat, said.

'If you factor in the populations in Alaska and Canada you add at least another 150,000 or more birds,' Lamont told WSJ.
A porcelain breakfast service ordered by a marquess to honour Queen Victoria on her first visit to Scotland will go under the hammer next week.

John Campbell, 2nd Marquess of Breadalbane, had the set of nearly 300 pieces made as part of a massive upgrading at Taymouth Castle in Perthshire ahead of the royal visit from September 7-10 1842.

It is said that the young Queen Victoria was so charmed by what she saw at Taymouth with her consort Prince Albert that it confirmed her love of Scotland.

Another highlight of the sale is a painting of John Campbell, Viscount Glenorchy (1738-1771)

The breakfast service, ordered from the Worcester porcelain factory and consisting of pieces painted with sprigs of heather and the family coronet, is among a sale of 43 lots of property from the Earls of Breadalbane and Holland

The royal couple would go on to lease Balmoral Castle further north in Deeside in 1848 before buying it in 1852.

The breakfast service, ordered from the Worcester porcelain factory and consisting of pieces painted with sprigs of heather and the family coronet, is among a sale of 43 lots of property from the Earls of Breadalbane and Holland which were among the contents of Taymouth Castle.

They will go under the hammer live online at Lyon & Turnbull in Edinburgh on Tuesday May 18.

Katherine Wright, Lyon & Turnbull's European Ceramics specialist, said: 'The 2nd Marquess of Breadalbane, who ordered the breakfast service, was part of an iconic Scottish family.

'They entertained the great and the good of Scotland and no expense was spared for the ultimate honour of hosting Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

'This vast, and beautifully hand-painted set, with sprigs of heather and the Breadalbane coronet of a B below a crown, demonstrates the splendour of the royal couple's visit mingled with a spirit of Highland romance.'

The marquess hired some of the finest craftsmen of the era to complete his renovation plans, determined Queen Victoria would have the full Scottish experience.

She was duly impressed, writing in her journal: 'It seemed as if a great chieftain in olden feudal times was receiving his sovereign.'

Bidding on the Breadalbane heather service is expected to start at 2,0003,000.

The Campbell Earls of Breadalbane and Holland can trace their origins to the early 13th century and the family's power, wealth and influence was at its peak during their tenure at Taymouth Castle, from the early 18th century until they sold up and left in 1922.

Another highlight of the sale is a painting of John Campbell, Viscount Glenorchy (1738-1771), painted in Bath around 1763 by Thomas Gainsborough, widely regarded as the most sought-after portrait artist of his day.

This vast, and beautifully hand-painted set, with sprigs of heather and the Breadalbane coronet of a B below a crown, demonstrates the splendour of the royal couple's visit mingled with a spirit of Highland romance

The painting, which has been in the family for almost 250 years, was thought to have been by the prominent Scottish portrait artist Allan Ramsay and even has the name 'Ramsay' underneath on the frame.

However Lyon & Turnbull paintings specialist Nick Curnow said it was re-attributed in 2019 by Gainsborough expert Hugh Besley.

Mr Curnow said: 'It was a real delight to come across this piece by such an important British artist. The story behind the painting is fascinating too as is the fact it was originally attributed to Allan Ramsay.

'The portrait has never been on the market before and we have the receipt, which is very rare.

'Whoever buys the painting  offers start at 80,000 to 120,000  will take home a real treasure.'

Other items being auctioned include a rare early English Apostle spoon dating from the reign of the War of the Roses-era monarch Edward IV and a rare 16th-century manuscript, known as The Chronicle of Fortigall, penned in three languages  Latin, Gaelic and Middle Scots.
Italy's prime minister Mario Draghi is running the country for free.

The former head of the European Central Bank, 73, has renounced his 100,000 salary, accounts revealed.

A declaration said he would not receive 'any remuneration of any kind' during his term as caretaker leader.

Italy's prime minister Mario Draghi (pictured on May 4), 73, has renounced his 100,000 salary and will not receive 'any remuneration of any kind' during his term as caretaker leader

He took over in February when Italy's squabbling parties agreed to unite behind 'Super Mario'.

His 2020 tax return showed a gross income of 502,478 (583,470 euros) in 2019.

Of this, 428,997 (498,144 euros) came from pensions from previous jobs as treasury director general and Bank of Italy governor, his spokesman said.

He also owns or part-owns around ten houses.

Political communications expert Massimiliano Panarari said the move was probably to show solidarity with Italians hit by recession.

By contrast, his predecessor Giuseppe Conte earned nearly 1million when he became PM in 2018.
With no warning, one of Britains most brilliant young novelists suddenly burst into the room where his wife was chatting to friends.

Then, in a frenzied attack, he began beating her head, face and breasts. For a few moments, it looked as if he might kill her.

At that point, D.H. Lawrence and Frieda Weekley had been married for just two years. The most wonderful woman in all England, hed called her the day after they first met, convinced shed transform his life.

Many years later, Lady Chatterleys Lover, which Lawrence wrote in 1928, would become the subject of an infamous trial in 1960, also for obscenity. (Pictured, still from the 1981 film)

And she certainly did. It was Frieda, with her earthy and emancipated views on sex, who would go on to inspire some of his most enduring novels. Indeed, according to a fascinating new biography, he could never have written either The Rainbow or Women In Love without her influence.

So what exactly, on that Friday in May 1916, triggered his atrocious assault  witnessed with some horror by his friends, the writers Katherine Mansfield and John Middleton Murry?

Merely this: Frieda had remarked earlier in the day that Shelleys To A Skylark was an awful poem. D.H. Lawrence had snapped back, probably with some justification, that she didnt know what she was talking about.

That got Friedas blood up: she angrily ordered him to get out. Now! she yelled. Out of my house, you God almighty you. Ive had enough.

But Lawrence wasnt about to concede. Ill give you a dab on the cheek to quiet you, you dirty hussy, he hissed.

At dinnertime that same day, Frieda announced to his friends: I have finally done with him  its all over for ever. It wasnt the first fight theyd witnessed between the ill-matched couple, so they doubtless thought she meant it.

It was then that Lawrence rushed in and started pummelling his wife. When Frieda finally managed to escape his fists, she dashed into the kitchen, closely followed by her husband who chased her round and round the table until he managed to grab her again.

He was so white, almost green, and he just hit  thumped  the big soft woman, Mansfield later wrote to a friend. Then he fell into a chair and she in another. No one said a word.

The silence wasnt broken until a full 15 minutes later, when Lawrence suddenly looked up and asked Murry a question about French literature. When this subject was exhausted, he and Frieda started to reminisce fondly about a particularly delicious macaroni cheese dish theyd once enjoyed.

It was as though the beating had been just a momentary aberration, a blip in their marriage that merited no further consideration  let alone recriminations.

These days, of course, D.H. Lawrence would probably be locked up or at least served with a restraining order. But back then, no one seemed to blame him much for battering his wife; instead, his friends reserved their disapproval for his victim.

Did they revile Frieda because she was German? It was, after all, the height of World War I  and she had the added handicap of being a cousin of the fighter pilot Baron von Richthofen, known as the Red Baron.

Her nationality, however, is unlikely to have troubled Lawrences literary friends; they simply loathed her company and wondered why he put up with her.

Constance Garnett, a highly respected translator of Russian literature, found Frieda slow-witted and excessively sexual. The literary hostess Ottoline Morrell thought she was egotistical, while the author Aldous Huxley considered her incurably and incredibly stupid  the most maddening woman Ive ever come across.

It was also maliciously noted that Frieda sat with her legs apart, and that while she grew fatter and more matronly her husband  who suffered for much of his adult life from tuberculosis  grew ever thinner.

Wasted by TB, Lawrence (pictured) weighed just six stone and had to be admitted to a sanatorium near Vence, where he died on March 2, 1930

Lawrence had first set eyes on Frieda in 1912. Already a published novelist, hed decided on a whim to find work as a teacher in Germany and approached his former university professor for a recommendation. (Pictured,Frieda Lawrence, second wife of DH Lawrence)

She had no evident talents apart from sex, said her detractors, and seemed happy to bed just about any man with a pulse.

Viewed from the 21st century, of course, such criticism seems wincingly harsh, as if she somehow deserved to be beaten for her ignorance and vulgarity. Yet its striking that even Lawrences latest biographer, Frances Wilson, has difficulty finding anything positive to say about Frieda Lawrence.

Beyond the satisfaction of her carnal desires, writes Wilson, Frieda didnt much believe in anything. Her one achievement (not inconsiderable) was putting up with Lawrence, she concludes.

Lawrence had first set eyes on Frieda in 1912. Already a published novelist, hed decided on a whim to find work as a teacher in Germany and approached his former university professor for a recommendation.

Professor Weekley, who lived near Nottingham with his 31-year-old wife and their three children, invited him for Sunday lunch. But Weekley was finishing something in his study when Lawrence arrived, which meant Mrs Weekley had to entertain him alone for half an hour.

In those crucial 30 minutes, the novelist decided that the professors wife  with her blonde hair, green eyes and large bosom  was his destiny.

What did they talk about? Lawrence told Frieda that after a few sexual misadventures, he was finished with women; she laughed, and was soon chatting merrily about her favourite subject.

As she later encapsulated the philosophy that drove her: Fanatically, I believed that if only sex were free, the world would straightaway turn into a paradise.

Whether Friedas husband shared that view is unlikely. Hed met her on a walking holiday in Germany and married her in 1899. On their return from honeymoon, he told her parents: I am married to an earthquake.

Within a few years, Frieda had her first affair  with a lace-maker whod drive her to Sherwood Forest so she could run naked through the trees. Another lover was a cocaine-addicted schizophrenic. A third was an anarchist railway worker.

And now shed landed an intense 27-year-old novelist who appeared to worship her. They met again  just twice  before agreeing to travel together to Germany.

It hardly mattered that Lawrence had no money, no job and no home. As far as Frieda was concerned, she was having just another affair while she paid a visit to her parents.

But Lawrence was in earnest: he wrote to Professor Weekley to tell him they loved each other.

Mrs Weekley, he declared, is afraid of being stunted and not allowed to grow and so she must live her own life.

From Germany, they travelled on to Italy, where he worked on a novel Frieda named The Rainbow  because rainbows, composed from fire and water, symbolised their union: she was a full-flowing stream and he was a burning flame.

All very elemental and romantic, but Frieda was all too often drawn to other flames. One chance came on their honeymoon when they were walking in the mountains with bisexual novelist David Garnett and his good-looking pal Harold Hobson, a drama critic. Later, Frieda told Lawrence that Hobson had taken her in a hay hut one day. It was the second time shed strayed that summer; back in Germany, shed slept with an officer in Metz. Lawrence shrugged  who was he to stunt her growth?

Yet even her sexual antics couldnt mitigate Friedas genuine distress at being separated from her children, then aged 12, ten and eight. Lawrence, she recalled, hated me for being miserable... In revenge I did not care about his writing.

In fact, he was jealous of her children, wanting all of Friedas attention for himself. Mothers, he told her in all seriousness, must relinquish their spawn, and the sooner the better.

She couldnt agree, but the decision was taken out of her hands: when her marriage ended, Professor Weekley was granted full custody.

The Rainbow was published a year after the Lawrences married, by which time they were living in London. Now widely viewed as a masterpiece, it charted the sexual awakening of three generations of women. The book caused instant outrage. It was condemned as a mass of obscenity by magistrates, who ordered the rest of the first edition to be burned.

Many years later, Lady Chatterleys Lover, which Lawrence wrote in 1928, would become the subject of an infamous trial in 1960, also for obscenity. The publishers of the novel  avidly read by generations of teenagers for its sex scenes  were acquitted, but Lawrence by then was long dead.

In 1915, however, the suppression of The Rainbow came as a crushing blow. Unhinged, Lawrence talked wildly of leaving Britain to establish a free community where people could live without money or rules.

Never lingering anywhere for long, the Lawrences moved to Cornwall, where they were joined by Mansfield and her boyfriend John Middleton Murry. Neither of them could bear Lawrences wife. Murry found her vulgar; Mansfield was convinced that Frieda actually thrived on her husbands beatings.

The son of a Nottinghamshire coal miner, Lawrence had been raised in a violent household and evidently saw nothing abhorrent in hitting his wife. He was also capable of being remarkably vile to friends.

At times he simply raves, roars, beats the table, abuses everybody, said Mansfield, while Murry recalled Lawrence becoming transfigured by the paroxysms of murderous hatred, of his wife, of us, of all mankind.

After a few weeks of this treatment, they decamped, leaving the novelist to complete his latest work: Women In Love.

In 1919, the Lawrences returned to Italy, where they shifted restlessly from one town or city to another. A year later, while his wife was visiting relatives in Germany, Lawrence renewed his acquaintance with an attractive 28-year-old friend, Rosalind Baynes, whod recently split with her husband.

He asked her if she missed sex. When she said she did, he proposed in an offhand way that they should have a sex-time together. Rosalind was enthusiastic, and suggested he spend the night with her.

Lawrence preferred to wait. The next night, when he came for supper, Rosalind had prepared her bedroom for their tryst, but still Lawrence wouldnt stay.

On the third night, his 35th birthday, they finally had sex. The affair  if one can call it that  was an act of will, a conscious decision to affirm his freedom from Frieda, though theres no evidence he ever repeated the experiment.

In 1921, Mabel Dodge, an eccentric American heiress who had become obsessed with him after reading his books, wrote to him out of the blue, offering the Lawrences a house in Taos, New Mexico, where she was then living with her Native American lover.

He accepted  arriving in America with Frieda just as the New York Society For The Suppression Of Vice was trying to ban Women In Love (which did wonders for its sales).

At 43, Mabel was the same age as Frieda, with the same full figure, and convinced that electricity flowed between Lawrence and herself. But there was little love lost between the two women.

At their very first meeting, Mabel wrote later, she realised Frieda was sizing up Mabels taciturn Native American lover and imagining what hed be like in bed. As for Frieda, her hackles rose when Lawrence announced he wanted to write a novel with their benefactor.

On the first day of their collaboration, he walked over to Mabels house and found her sunbathing on her terrace, naked beneath a dressing-gown. It was a scene set for seduction, but he fell into a gloomy silence. I dont know how Friedas going to feel about this, he said eventually.

Nothing happened  just as well, as Mabel was suffering from syphilis. After theyd worked together for an hour, they strolled back to his house and found Frieda hanging out the washing.

Her rage was apparent from a distance of 100 yards and Lawrence started to chuckle, Mabel recalled. Yet it was Frieda who won a decisive victory by insisting she be present when the two of them were working. To scupper the next novel-writing session, she stamped around, sweeping noisily, and singing in loud defiance. The venture was soon abandoned, as were Mabels hopes of an affair.

In all likelihood, Lawrence couldnt have bedded her: despite the clean air of the mountains, he was coughing blood and losing weight. His temper, however, remained ferocious: friends recall him trying to punch his wife in the face because he didnt like the way her cigarette dangled from her lip. When asked why she stayed with him, Frieda said he was angry only because he was ill and she was well. In any case, she added, she had nowhere to go  but she wouldnt leave him anyway.

The pattern of their lives together was set. Back in England, Frieda brazenly propositioned their old friend John Middleton Murry, who turned her down. And Lawrence, by now demented and increasingly ill, went beserk one day when she contradicted him in front of friends.

As he broke all the crockery in sight with a poker, he raved: If you ever talk to me like that again, it will not be the tea things I smash, but your head. Oh, yes, Ill kill you. So beware! Then he smashed the poker down on the teapot.

Two years on, the warring couple were back in Italy, where Frieda slept with a married Italian army officer, Captain Angelino Ravagli. She nevertheless accompanied her husband to France.

Wasted by TB, Lawrence now weighed just six stone and had to be admitted to a sanatorium near Vence, where he died on March 2, 1930.

Within weeks of his death, Frieda had sex with Murry, and the following year she returned to New Mexico with Ravagli.

In 1935, she despatched her Italian lover to France with instructions to dig up and burn Lawrences body, then return with his ashes. Her husbands final resting-place, shed decided, would be a specially built chapel, 8,000ft up a mountain in New Mexico.

But shed reckoned without Mabel Dodge, who thought the new chapel looked like a lavatory. In her final battle of wills with Frieda, Mabel plotted to steal the ashes and scatter them on the mountainside.

Somehow, her rival got wind of this  and there are two versions of what happened next.

In one, Frieda made Ravagli stir the ashes into some wet cement that was being prepared to make the chapels altar stone.

The second account, still doing the rounds in Taos in the 1980s, was that Mabel, Frieda and another Lawrence acolyte sat down for a meal containing at least one unusual ingredient  human ashes. Then, without further ado, they ate the great novelist.

Burning Man: The Ascent Of D.H. Lawrence by Frances Wilson will be published by Bloomsbury on May 27 at 25. To order a copy for 22.25 go to www.mailshop.co.uk/books or call 020 3308 9193. Free UK delivery on orders over 20. Offer valid until 22/05/21.
One of the United States' most notorious unsolved missing persons - the abduction of 20 year-old Angela Hammond in 1991 - may have been a case of mistaken identity.

Police investigating the disappearance of Hammond shared a ransom style note given to them by an unnamed informant, which was posted on April 4, 1991 - the same evening she was taken from a payphone booth in Clinton, Missouri.

The informant's wife and daughter - who was also named Angela - were living in Clinton at the time. Police think his daughter may have been the intended target, given they had the same name. and are said to have looked 'strikingly similar.'

Clinton Police Captain Paul Abbott explained: 'This Angies father had been involved in a case where he was a confidential informant. This was a pretty significant narcotics case that probably disrupted some pretty significant drug business.

'Revisiting the case file again for the third or fourth time we ran across this lead from very early on in the investigation.'

The ransom note said: 'Hello no (redacted). We know you you are no (redacted) people like you deserve what you get.

'We know where your foxy daughter is at (sic) she will see us soon. Tell (redacted) she has our deepest sympathy in our further loss. Good by (sic) (redacted)'

Hammond was abducted from a booth while four months pregnant.

Angela Hammond, 20, was abducted from a pay telephone booth while four months pregnant on April 4, 1991 in the town of Clinton

Her boyfriend Rob Shafer was speaking to her on the phone at the time.

She was perturbed by a filthy bearded man who was hanging around the booth, with Shafer then hearing Hammond's screams as the man entered the phone box and abducted her.

He rushed out to try and save her - and drove past his girlfriend as she was driven off in a green Ford truck.

Shafer broke the transmission of his car while turning around to give chase, and had to watch as Hammond was driven away to her presumed death. No trace of her has ever been found.

The case is one of America's most infamous cold cases and was even featured in an episode of Unsolved Mysteries.

And last month Clinton Police revealed the biggest piece of evidence in decades, which points to Hammond being snatched after she was mistaken for someone else.

The ransom note that points to the mistaken identity theory came from the original police file for the Hammond case.

It had been ignored because police couldn't figure out how to connect it to the 1970s model green Ford truck that Schafer had tried to chase down.

'The letter was postmarked April 4, 1991, the exact date that Angela Hammond was abducted late that evening. The informant's wife and his daughter - also named Angela - were living in Clinton, MO at that time,' cops said.

The ransom note that points to the mistaken identity theory came from the original police file for the Hammond case

Marsha Cook, Angela Hammond's mother, told KCTV she 'was in shock for several days'

Much of the initial investigation focused on a 1970s model green Ford pickup truck

Police told KCTV that investigators have been exploring the new theory for years after originally only revealing the theory to Angela's mother Marsha.

Hammond, known as 'Angie' to her family and friends, was a recent graduate of Montrose High School and 'was well known and popular in the small community of Clinton' before her disappearance - and there has been no signs of her since.

Hammond's fiance Rob Schafer was on the other end and heard her scream after she told him she spotted a creepy car passing her before pulling over near her, KCTV reported. He drove to the payphone and chased the suspected abductor's pickup until his transmission went out.

Marsha Cook, Angela Hammond's mother, told KCTV she 'was in shock for several days' after her daughter's disappearance.

'Took a while to process that could happen in a small town like this. That's not something that would happen in Clinton,' she said.

Angela Hammond may have been mistaken for the daughter of police informant in another case

Schafer provided police with details about the 1970's model Ford pickup truck with a fishing scene in the rear glass, which much of the early investigation centered around. Schafer had an alibi and passed numerous polygraphs, cops noted.

'Hundreds of leads involving vehicles matching that description were followed up on, but never produced any significant evidence,' cops said in the release.

Captain Paul Abbott of the Clinton Police Department called the alleged case of mistaken identity 'pretty incredible.'

When asked if the two women looked alike, he told the outlet: 'There were striking similarities. Very much so.'

Police said in the news release that the case has not been nailed down just yet - there are still several active and open leads being considered.

However, cops noted that investigators have come across information, that was not provided by police, that lends credibility to the mistaken identity theory 'and have so far been unable to refute it.'

Cops said that another break in case might be made if an anonymous tipster who recently reached out would get back into contact with them after providing information about a person cops had previously investigated.
A British haulier has accused migrants in Calais of attacking one of his company's lorries in an alleged desperate attempt to cross the English channel.

Ed Rogers, owner of E.M. Rogers Transport, told the MailOnline that one of his lorries was attacked in France with iron bars and breeze blocks in a road ambush.

The windscreen and door windows of the truck were smashed, and Mr Rogers said the driver was left feeling 'very shaken and upset' by the incident.

A British haulier has accused migrants in Calais of attacking one of their lorries in an alleged desperate attempt to cross the English channel. Ed Rogers, owner of E.M.Rogers Transport, told the MailOnline that one of his lorries was attacked in France with iron bars and breeze blocks in a road ambush

'The Road was blocked with barriers erected by refugees trying to stop our lorry' just outside the Calais port, Mr Rogers told the MailOnline on Saturday.

'Our driver tried to proceed by going around the barrier, at which point he was stopped again, with the lorry attacked with metal bars and rocks.'

Pictures of the lorry, shared by the businessman, showed its smashed windows and broken body work from where he claims it was attacked by the migrants.

'One of our colleagues attacked with iron bars and breeze blocks in Calais last night by illegal immigrants attempting to cross into the UK. Not the first time and probably won't be the last,' the company wrote on Instagram, sharing the photographs.

Two large, circular smashes are seen in the windshield with some holes in the glass, while the door windows appear to have been totally destroyed.

'Fortunately our driver is safe, but he is very shaken and upset.

'In what other industry would someone be exposed to this type of assault whilst going about there daily work?' Mr Rogers questioned.

The windscreen and door windows of the truck were smashed, and Mr Rogers said the driver was left feeling 'very shaken and upset' by the incident. Pictures of the lorry, shared by the businessman, shows its smashed windows and broken body work from where he claims it was attacked by migrants

Mr Rogers, whose company transports rare, valuable and classic cars across Europe on its lorries, called for more action to be taken to protect haulage workers driving in and out of mainland Europe.

'I know the world is in Pandemic mode,' he said, 'but please remember 12 months ago, truck drivers were considered key workers.

The government needs 'to provide safe passage for our truck drivers coming in and out of Europe, while these desperate people trying to get in to our country put them in danger on a daily basis,' he added.

The alleged attack on Mr Roger's company's lorry would not be the first instance of British hauliers being attacked by migrants in Calais.

Pictured: Migrants run across the A 16 motorway in an attempt to climb into the back of lorries bound for Britain while traffic is stopped upon waiting to board shuttles at the entrance to the Channel Tunnel site in Calais, northern France, on December 10, 2020

In December last year, it was reported that a gang of 15 migrants left a British driver bloodied after smashing the window of his cab with a rock as he waited in a queue.

Andy Couper, 57, was left with blood pouring down his face after being attacked by the gang while waiting in his vegetable-filled lorry to board a ferry at the French port.

He told The Telegraph after the incident how some of the migrants tried to get into his lorry before 'someone hit the truck' and the 'whole passenger window' was smashed, leaving him injured.
The sister of one of the two Delphi Bridge murder victims says an alleged pedophile being looked at as a possible suspect is not the right man.

Kelsi German - the sister of Libby German, 14, who was killed alongside her best friend Abby Williams, 13, as the pair went for a walk over an old railroad trestle in February 2017, said she does not believe James Chadwell II is their killer.

Last month, 42-year-old Chadwell was charged with the kidnapping and attempted murder of a nine-year-old girl, in Lafayette, Indiana, about 20 miles from Delphi. He abducted and molested her after inviting her into his home to see his dogs, then locking her in a basement.

Investigators said they are 'looking into' the possibility Chadwell 'might' be connected to the Delphi murders. His lawyers have declined to comment on the claims - but Kelsi German thinks nothing will come of them.

Kelsi German, left, the sister of Libby German, 14, right, who was killed in 2017 in Delphi says a man currently in jail is not the man who killed her sister and best friend

The sister of Libby German, Kelsi, says that investigators meet with her monthly and have assured her that they are making progress but a recent tweet from earlier in the week suggests that she does not believe the police have got their man

Kelsi said: 'Yes, Ive seen his name all over. No new updates. No press release. There is no suspect in custody in this case. LE (law enforcement) is looking into a tip that was sent in that is now being made way bigger than it is. Until LE says he's a suspect, he is no more than another name they are looking at,' Kelsi German wrote on Twitter.

James Chadwell II, 42, is being held on charges of abducting and molesting a nine-year-old

'They won't tell me how, they won't tell me why. They won't tell me what they are looking at. I think he is hiding in plain sight. It could be someone I know or it could be someone who is only in town sometimes,' she said in a separate interview to the Washington Times Herald.

German said police meet with her monthly, and regularly assure her they are making progress. Investigators refuse to tell her any specific details, and she added that when police finally catch their man, she does not want him to be put to death.

'I do not want him to receive the death penalty. When they catch him, I want to see him rot in prison,' she said. 'I have learned that you can't go on without forgiveness, so I have forgiven him for what he did.

The girls' murders have haunted the town of Delphi for years.

Authorities released a grainy photo of a suspect they said was on the trail the same day the eighth-graders disappeared in 2017.

When no arrests were made, video footage was later released, recovered from German's cell phone, along with audio that is believed to be the suspect's voice saying 'down the hill.'

'I do not want him to receive the death penalty. When they catch him, I want to see him rot in prison,' Kelsi German, left said. She is pictured together with her sister, Libby. 'I have learned that you can't go on without forgiveness, so I have forgiven him for what he did

Police investigating the 2017 murders of Libby German (left) and Abby Williams (right) in Delphi, Indiana, have confirmed they are 'looking into' Chadwell

Police said they believe Libby German recorded it because she feared the pair were in danger. Superintendent Doug Carter said at a police press conference that he believed the suspect was 'hiding in plain sight.'

'It is frustrating,' Kelsi German said. 'I know the police are doing their job. I know they are frustrated, but sometimes it just takes patience.'

'Abby and Libby could be any one of us,' said German. 'I think we can all see a little bit of ourselves in those girls. I think that is why it blew up so fast. It's such a small town. You feel safe. You can hang out with your friends and it would be OK, but it turns out it's not. Bad things are happening, even in small towns, that felt very safe.'

'It's so sad,' she continued. 'Most of us want the world to be safe and we want to be able to go out on the trails and enjoy time with our friends. Unfortunately, we are learning we cannot do that anymore. The world is just not as safe as it used to be. Delphi is a safe place. That was our mindset, and now that has changed forever.'

Detectives said they are continuing to look into Chadwell although they have yet to declare him an official suspect.

Sheriff Toby Leazenby and Sgt Kim Riley pictured briefing journalists on the Delphi Bridge murders in 2018. The killings have become one of America's most notorious unsolved mysteries

The girls were reported missing when they failed to show up when a parent came to pick them up from a hike along the Delphi Historic Trails on February 13, 2017. Their bodies were discovered in a secluded wooded area off the main trail the next day

Back in 2017, a search was launched to find the murdered teens. Their bodies were discovered a day after they disappeared in a secluded wooded area off the main trail.

Their cause of death has never been released by authorities.

Investigators believe the girls were approached by an unknown man while they were walking along a disused railway bridge.

The case has long focused on a man captured on Libby's phone walking along the abandoned railroad bridge on the day they went missing. Days after the killings, authorities released two grainy photos of the suspect found on her phone, with the sinister images causing a sensation.

The man was dressed in blue jeans and a blue jacket.

A 2017 police sketch of the man police believed approached the two teenage girls as they were walking on the trail and told them to 'Go down the hill'

Authorities released grainy photos of the suspect, seen wearing a blue jacket and blue jeans

Investigators later released a brief video of the man walking, as well as audio clip from her phone which they believe she recorded 'during possible criminal activity'.

In it, the suspect is heard telling the girls: 'Go down the hill.'

That man has never been identified, with Delphi Police remaining tight-lipped on how the girls died.

They have refused to release other material recorded on Libby's phone during the girls' final moments, amid fears it is too disturbing to share.

Meanwhile, Chadwell remains in prison after being charged over last month's alleged kidnapping.

He allegedly hit the girl he invited into his home multiple times in the head and choked her, according to court documents.

'Chadwell was also choking her with his hands on her neck and also using his arm in a headlock, to the point where she passed out,' prosecutors say.

When the girl came-to, she said most of her clothes were off and Chadwell took her down to the basement where he forced her to perform sexual acts, the documents state.

The girl told police Chadwell had warned her that if she screamed or told anyone what happened he would kill her.

Chadwell, pictured before his arrest, is still being looked at in connection with the 2017 Delphi Bridge murders, although he has not been named a suspect

The girl was reported missing by her mom at around 7pm - around 30 minutes after she said she had last seen her at their home.

When officers were searching the neighborhood for the missing girl, Chadwell allegedly told them she had entered his home earlier but had left, the documents state.

Police said they asked Chadwell if they could search his home and he said yes.

Officers then found the girl 'visibly distraught and crying, with her clothing on the floor beside her' in Chadwell's basement, which was locked with a chain lock, the documents state.

She had suffered multiple injuries and was covered in bruises, strangulation marks and had a dog bite mark on her leg.

In an interview with Inside Edition last week, Chadwell's brother, Ashley, said he was 'absolutely' capable of killing the two girls

Police said she told investigators she thought she was going to die.

Chadwell has been in and out of prison since he was a teenager, his brother, Ashley, told Inside Edition last week, saying he is 'absolutely' capable of committing the heinous murders.

'He's shown numerous times not only to his friends, but his family as well that he has that evil kind of streak to him,' Ashley said, noting that his brother once even tried to drown him.

'He's a monster,' he said of his brother. 'He's an absolute evil person.'

Anyone with information on the Delphi case is asked to contact abbyandlibbytip@cacoshrf.com
A student who said women were born with female genitals and the difference in physical strength between men and women 'was a fact' is facing disciplinary action by her university.

Lisa Keogh, 29, who studies law at Abertay University in Dundee was reported to university chiefs by her classmates after she said that women were not as physically strong as men.

The mature student, who is in her final year, is now facing a formal investigation by the university for the alleged 'offensive' and 'discriminatory' comments.

The mother-of-two said she had been taking part in a video seminar about gender feminism and the law when she raised concerns about trans women taking part in mixed martial arts.

Lisa Keogh (pictured), 29, who studies law at Abertay University in Dundee was reported to university chiefs after she said women were not as physically strong as men

Following the debate, in which Ms Keogh claims she was muted by her lecturer, the mature student was met with a flurry of abuse from her fellow classmates. Pictured, Abertay University in Dundee

After telling her classmates that a women who had testosterone in her body for 32 years would be genetically stronger than the average woman, the mature student was accused of calling women the 'weaker sex'.

She told The Times: 'I thought it was a joke. I thought there was no way that the university would pursue me for utilising my legal right to freedom of speech.'

Following the debate, in which Ms Keogh claims she was muted by her lecturer, the mature student was met with a flurry of abuse from her fellow classmates.

Ms Keogh, who is being supported by Joanna Cherry QC, the SNP MP for Edinburgh South West, continued: 'I didn't intend to be offensive but I did take part in a debate and outlined my sincerely held views.'

She added: 'I wasn't being mean, transphobic or offensive. I was stating a basic biological fact.'

The mother-of-two now fears her ambitions of becoming a lawyer may be jeopardised by the disciplinary action by her university.

An Abertay University spokesperson told MailOnline: 'To be absolutely clear, freedom of speech within the law is not only permitted at Abertay but is strongly encouraged.

'All Universities should be places where controversial, challenging or even upsetting issues can be debated in a constructive and collegial way.

'The University does not comment on student disciplinary cases and is duty bound to investigate any complaints received.'

The incident comes just a year after economics lecturer Dr Eva Poen was accused of transphobia by feminist and LGBT students over a tweet in which she said 'only female people menstruate'.

The mother-of-two (pictured) now fears her ambitions of becoming a lawyer may be jeopardised by the disciplinary action by her university

The mature student was reported to university chiefs by her classmates after she said that women were not as physically strong as men

Furious undergraduates at the University of Exeter condemned the lecturer accusing her of 'openly singling out trans people' in the posts.

The row erupted when Dr Poen responded to a tweet by a Twitter user which read: 'Not everyone who menstruates is female. Not everyone who is female menstruates. Let's shift our language.'

The lecturer, who strongly denied accusations of transphobia, wrote back: 'Only female people menstruate. Only female people go through menopause.'

In 2018, student lecturer Angelos Sofocleous, who was assistant editor at Durham University's philosophy journal 'Critique', was fired in a transphobia row after he tweeted that 'women don't have penises'.

Mr Sofocleous was sacked from his post after just three days for writing a tweet deemed 'transphobic' by fellow students.

The student lecturer re-tweeted an article by The Spectator on his Twitter titled 'Is it a crime to say women don't have penises?', with the comment: 'RT if women don't have penises'.
Secondary school children are likely to face longer terms and shorter holidays after the summer as part of a multi-billion-pound catch-up plan.

A comprehensive programme for educational recovery will be published by the Government next month  which may also see exams made easier.

Whitehall sources said ministers have already agreed that millions of youngsters need more time at school after suffering more than a year of disrupted education.

A debate is going on within government about whether to lengthen the school day by up to an hour, or extend the length of existing terms to add around a fortnight of extra learning.

A comprehensive programme for educational recovery will be published by the Government next month  which may also see exams made easier

The longer day would be used to provide extra lessons and tutoring for children who have fallen behind.

Other pupils would do extracurricular activities such as sport, drama, music or clubs, possibly run by community groups to reduce the pressure on teachers.

But sources said ministers are currently leaning towards extending the length of terms  a move that will put them on collision course with the trade unions.

Primary schools will also receive catch-up help but are unlikely to be asked to work a longer day.

Ministers are also looking ahead to next years GCSE and A-level exams, which will go ahead in pared back form.

Under one proposal, youngsters would be told in advance which topics will feature in their exams.

Ministers are also looking ahead to next years GCSE and A-level exams, which will go ahead in pared back form [File photo]

The idea is designed to recognise the fact that schools have had less time to cover the full syllabus.

The new plans are being drawn up by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson and the Prime Ministers education recovery tsar Sir Kevan Collins.

The Government has already invested 1.7billion in a catch-up project which will see many schools offer summer programmes in the holidays.

But the Education Policy Institute think-tank yesterday warned that at least 13.5billion will be needed over the next three years to reverse the damage to childrens education.

A report by the charity Education Endowment Foundation found that extending time at school could help pupils achieve an extra two months of learning, with disadvantaged pupils gaining the most.

But a survey by the National Education Union found that 98 per cent of teachers were opposed to the idea of longer days or shorter holidays.
The US federal government has admitted that humans are to blame for climate change for the first time in a newly-released report blocked by Donald Trump.

Wednesday's Environmental Protection Agency report summarized the key signs of climate change, as well as their likely causes. It is the first time the EPA has released its once-annual climate indicators report since President Biden came to office.

President Trump barred its publication during his single term in the White House.

'The Earth's climate is changing,' the summary states.

'Temperatures are rising, snow and rainfall patterns are shifting, and more extreme climate events  like heavy rainstorms and record high temperatures  are already happening.

'Many of these observed changes are linked to the rising levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, caused by human activities.'

Joe Biden has prioritized combating climate change, rejoining the Paris Accord on day one. The Environmental Protection Agency has released its first report in four years

The EPA report has for the first time said that humans are to blame for our warming climate

Piles of logs from a protective species forest area are confiscated in Poland on April 29. Activists blocked access to the fields as part of their efforts to oppose climate change

The EPA report stated that climatic changes were 'caused by human activities'

Describing greenhouse gases, the authors conclude that they are man-made, and devastating.

'Greenhouse gases from human activities are the most significant driver of observed climate change since the mid-20th century,' they write.

The experts source their report from a UN body, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and their report, Climate change 2013.

The report presents 'compelling and clear evidence' of a climate crisis, the EPA said in a press release.

'There is no small town, big city, or rural community that's unaffected by the climate crisis,' said Michael Regan, the administrator of the EPA, on Wednesday.

Michael Regan, the EPA Administrator, published the update on Wednesday - the first since 2016

Seas such as this, around Greenland, are warming and the polar ice caps are melting

Plastic debris is seen in the ocean, killing wildlife and harming the environment

The new EPA report concluded that human activity, like drilling for and burning oil, was to blame

Deforestation is hastening climate change: pictured is the Tapajos Forest in Para state in Brazil

The report showed that 2016 was the warmest year on record, 2020 was the second warmest, and 2001-2020 was the warmest decade on record since 1880, when thermometer-based observations began.

Heat waves are occurring more often across the United States, the EPA reported, and have risen from an average of two heat waves per year during the 1960s to six per year during the 2010s.

Some climate measuring points along the Mid-Atlantic and Gulf Coast registered a rise in the sea level between 1960 and 2020 of more than eight inches, and tidal flooding was becoming more frequent.

Fishermen were noticing that their catch was moving north, as the seas warmed.

Farmers were noticing the climatic changes, with a growing season that has on average increased by more than two weeks since the beginning of the 20th century.

Regan, announcing the report, said: 'Combatting climate change - it's not optional. It's essential.'

The publication of the data serves as a reminder of Biden and Trump's stark differences in approach to global warming.

Trump was unconvinced by the scientific consensus, suggesting that climate change could be a hoax engineered by China.

He heavily promoted the use of fossil fuels, and rolled back restrictions on gas and oil exploration.

The president later conceded climate change did exist - but then claimed the Earth's climate would at some stage cool down again by itself.

Biden, by contrast, has said that combating climate change will be a pillar of his presidency.

Within his first 100 days he convened a summit of world leaders including Xi Jinping of China and Vladimir Putin of Russia to regain momentum for the fight against climate change, and rejoined the Paris climate agreement on his first day in office.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian (left) is pictured with embattled MP Gareth Ward (right)

Embattled NSW MP Gareth Ward is now at the centre of two investigations by sex crimes police, as shock new details emerge of a second accuser.

The 39-year-old legally-blind albino families minister stood down from NSW Cabinet on Thursday after it was revealed he was under police investigation over allegations of 'sexual violence' against a man in 2013.

But the Saturday Telegraph has reported another man came forward to police alleging that he was also a victim of Mr Ward, and was sexually assaulted in a hotel room.

Sources said the 2013 allegations took place at Mr Wards Meroo Meadow home in the Illawarra, when the moderate faction heavyweight was highly involved with the Young Liberals.

The alleged victim, who was a young man at the time, made a statement to police alleging that Mr Ward indecently assaulted him.

The second case, in the hotel room, being investigated is thought to be more recent and stems from an accusation made to detectives by an older man.

No charges have been laid and Mr Ward strongly denies the allegations.

NSW Families Minister Gareth Ward has stood aside after confirming he is under investigation by detectives over violent sex offences that allegedly occurred in 2013

Left: Mr Ward on his first day of school. Right: Mr Ward pictured with former Shoalhaven mayor Paul Green

When Mr Ward announced he was stepping aside from his ministerial role on Thursday, the Kiama MP said he was only made aware of the police investigation by a journalist.

'I have not been contacted by police in relation to any allegations. I deny any wrongdoing,' he said.

'Until this matter is resolved, it is appropriate I stand aside from my role as minister. I will also remove myself from the Liberal Party room.

'I will not be making any further comment at this time.'

On Friday, Gladys Berejiklian said she was 'shocked and distressed' to learn of the investigation.

The NSW premier said she spoke to Mr Ward and he denied any wrongdoing.

Mr Ward spray-tanned his whole body for Wollongong radio station Wave-FM on the condition listeners helped the station raise more than $1,000 for Surf Life Saving South Coast

'I have not been contacted by Police in relation to any allegations. I deny any wrongdoing,' Mr Ward (pictured with his mother Margaret Bowcher) said.

Gareth Ward's controversies 2017: Blackmailed in New York after ordering a massage to hotel room 2018: Accused of bullying and backstabbing by federal Liberal MP 2020: Found naked outside King's Cross unit after becoming disorientated following surgery 2021: Stepped down as police investigated rape allegation from 2013 Advertisement

Mr Ward was elected to state parliament the 2011 election following a stint on a local council on the South Coast.

He infamously hit headlines in 2017 when he fell victim to a 'terrifying' blackmail attempt in the US after he rang an escort service in New York to order what he described as a 'normal massage' after a long day sightseeing.

But instead of the masseur he expected, two men showed up and demanded $1,000 in cash.

CCTV footage showed him in the lift with the men moments before he went to a concierge desk for help, prompting them to run away.

Despite the bizarre incident, he went on to become a factional ally of the Premier and was appointed to the ministry in 2019.

As the Minister for Families, Communities and Disability Services, he was responsible for the state's 17,000 children in care until yesterday.

But in 2020, Mr Ward made the news again after being found naked outside King's Cross apartment after becoming disorientated following surgery.
High Court judge ruled in favour of Ms Riley and struck out Mr Sivier's defence

Countdown star Rachel Riley's libel battle against a pro-Jeremy Corbyn blogger who called her a 'serial abuser' and blamed her for the death threats sent to a 16-year-old girl on Twitter could cost her more than 1million, a leading lawyer has said.

Ms Riley, 35, sued Mike Sivier, who published an article on his website Vox Political in January 2019 with the headline: 'Serial abuser Rachel Riley to receive 'extra protection' - on grounds that she is receiving abuse.'

Mr Sivier defended what he had published, arguing that it was 'substantially true', honest opinion, and a matter of public interest.

But a High Court judge ruled in favour of Ms Riley and struck out Mr Sivier's defences in January this year. Mrs Justice Collins Rice concluded that he had 'no prospect' of succeeding at a trial.

However Mr Sivier launched an appeal against the ruling, and today won the latest round in the legal battle, after three Court of Appeal judges ruled that Mr Sivier's public interest defence should be assessed at a trial.

Speaking to MailOnline after the ruling, leading defamation lawyer Mark Stephens said Ms Riley is likely to have spent up to 70,000 in her fight so far.

Mr Stephens, who previously represented Wikileaks founder Jeremy Assange, added that the star could ultimately spend more than 1million on the case and said a full-scale libel trial 'as an absolute floor is 500,000'.

Countdown star Rachel Riley (pictured left) has lost the latest round of a libel battle against Mike Sivier (right) who called her a 'serial abuser' and blamed her for the death threats sent to a 16-year-old girl on Twitter

One appeal judge, Lord Justice Warby, said in a written ruling: 'I would allow the appeal.

'I would set aside the order striking out the defence of publication on matter of public interest.'

He added: 'In my view, the appropriate course is for the public interest defence to be assessed at a trial.'

The two other appeal judges, Lord Justice Henderson and Dame Victoria Sharp, said they agreed.

Mr Stephens said after the ruling: 'I would've thought that she has spent around 60,000, maybe 70,000.

'A libel trial as an absolute floor is 500,000, most of them start at about 1million.'

Mr Stephens confirmed to MailOnline that the latter figure is what Ms Riley could end up spending on the trial.

He added: 'If she wins she will get some costs back but she has lost this round so she will have to pay Mike Sivier's costs and his barrister for the appeal which will be 15,00 - 20,000.'

It comes as Ms Riley waits to hear whether she has won a separate damages fight after suing a former aide to Jeremy Corbyn for libel.

She sued Laura Murray, 32, over a tweet posted two years ago.

Ms Riley (above) also sued Laura Murray, 32, over a tweet posted two years ago. A High Court judge finished overseeing a three-day trial at the High Court in London earlier this week

A High Court judge finished overseeing a three-day trial at the High Court in London earlier this week.

Mr Justice Nicklin is expected to publish a ruling in the near future.

Ms Riley's dispute with Mr Sivier centres on tweets posted as part of an online debate on anti-Semitism in the Labour Party, some of which were exchanged between Ms Riley and a Twitter user who identified herself as a 16-year-old called Rose.

The TV presenter has told how she is Jewish, has a 'hatred of anti-Semitism', speaks out against it and thinks the Corbyn-led Labour Party was 'fostering anti-Semitism'.

Speaking to MailOnline after the ruling, leading defamation lawyer Mark Stephens said Ms Riley is likely to have spent up to 70,000 in her fight so far. Mr Stephens, who prevously represented Wikileaks founder Jeremy Assange, added that the star could ultimately spend more than 1million on the case

Ms Riley, who studied mathematics at Oxford University, had asked Mrs Justice Collins Rice to strike out Mr Sivier's defences before the case went to trial.

Mrs Justice Collins Rice granted her application, and said that, contrary to allegations in Mr Sivier's article, Ms Riley's online discussion with Rose was a 'straightforward, rational and respectful exchange of views'.

The judge also said there was no evidence that the presenter had encouraged any of her 600,000 followers to harass Rose, and she was not responsible for any abuse the teenager received.
China landed a spacecraft on Mars for the first time on Friday.

The feat follows in the US's footsteps, with NASA touching down on the Red Planet three months before.

China's state media reported that the spacecraft landed at what was 7.18pm Eastern time in the United States on Friday.

Plans call for a rover to stay in the lander for a few days of diagnostic tests before rolling down a ramp to explore an icy area of Mars known as Utopia Planitia.

It is the same area once traversed by NASA's 1976 Viking 2 lander.

The Chinese rover - named Zhurong after a god of fire in Chinese folk tales - is about the size of a small car and weighs 530 pounds.

That is about one-fourth the weight of NASA's two currently operating Mars rovers: Curiosity and Perseverance.

China has come a long way in its race to catch up with the United States and Russia, whose astronauts and cosmonauts have decades of experience in space exploration.

Last week a segment of the Chinese Long March 5B rocket disintegrated over the Indian Ocean in an uncontrolled landing back to Earth.

The country was slammed by the US and other nations for a breach of etiquette governing the return of space debris to Earth, with officials saying the remnants had the potential to endanger life and property.

President Xi Jinping sent his "warm congratulations and sincere greetings to all members who have participated in the Mars exploration mission", Xinhua reported.

China has now sent astronauts into space, powered probes to the Moon and landed a rover on Mars - the most prestigious of all prizes in the competition for dominion of space.

Scroll down for video

China landed a spacecraft on Mars for the first time on Saturday, making it the second nation to successfully land on Mars

The Tianwen-1 touched down on the Red Planet three months after NASA's latest rover around what was 7.18pm Eastern time in the United States on Friday

Technicians work at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing during the touchdown operation

A technical person works at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing after the lander carrying China's first Mars rover touched down on the red planet

It is the first time China has landed a probe on a planet other than Earth

Plans call for a rover to stay in the lander for a few days of diagnostic tests before rolling down a ramp to explore an icy area of Mars known as Utopia Planitia

The latest rover Zhurong is expected to be deployed for 90 days to search for evidence of life, and joins NASA's latest rover Perseverance, which touched down in February.

In 1971, the Soviet Union was technically the first country to land on Mars but the mission failed seconds after touching down when the lander stopped communicating. The U.S. has had nine successful landings on Mars since 1976.

Just hours after China made its landing, Dmitry Rogozin - the director general of the Russia's Roscosmos State Corporation tweeted about its own joint mission with Europe to Mars next year.

'Roscosmos welcomes the resumption of exploration of the planets of the solar system by the leading space powers. The successful landing of China's spacecraft on the surface of Mars is a great success of the PRC's fundamental space research program,' Rogozin tweeted.

'Next year, the Russian-European ExoMars mission will be sent to Mars. We reaffirm our commitment to strengthening international cooperation for the joint promotion of research into the Universe.'

Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA's associate administrator for science, congratulated China on its technically challenging feat in a message posted to Twitter.

'Congratulations to CNSA's #Tianwen1 team for the successful landing of China's first Mars exploration rover, #Zhurong! Together with the global science community, I look forward to the important contributions this mission will make to humanity's understanding of the Red Planet,' he tweeted.

Sun Zezhou, the Tianwen-1 designer-in-chief with the CAST, told the Global Times that the mission 'took an extremely accurate operation of a range of technology, including aerodynamic shape design, parachute and engine, to achieve' the landing.

'There is no room for defiance of even one second on any single system,' he said.

Chen Baichao, chief director-designer of the rover system with the China Association for Science and Technology, told the outlet that the agency 'did not have first-hand data on the Mars atmosphere' which made the landing difficult.

China has landed on the moon - but landing on Mars is much more difficult. Spacecraft must use shields for protection from the searing heat of entry into the Red Planet's atmosphere, and deploy both retro-rockets and parachutes to slow enough to prevent a crash landing.

The parachutes and rockets must be deployed at precise times to land at the designated spot.

Only mini-retro rockets are required for a moon landing, and parachutes alone are sufficient for returning to Earth.

Xinhua said the entry capsule entered the Mars atmosphere at an altitude of 125 kilometers, initiating what it called 'the riskiest phase of the whole mission.'

A 200 square meter parachute was deployed and later jettisoned, and then a retro-rocket was fired to slow the speed of the craft to almost zero, Xinhua said.

The craft hovered about 100 meters above the surface to identify obstacles before touching down on four buffer legs.

'Each step had only one chance, and the actions were closely linked. If there had been any flaw, the landing would have failed,' said Geng Yan, an official at the China National Space Administration, according to Xinhua.

This artist's rendering shows a concept design for the Chinese Mars 2020 rover and lander

This artist's rendering shows a concept design for a Mars rover and lander that has since successfully landed on the red planet

Chinese officials plan to use the rover to analyze Martian soil and atmosphere, capture images, chart maps and look for water and signs of ancient life

If entire mission is successful, China will become the first country to carry out an orbiting, landing and roving operation during its first mission to Mars

The whole entry, descent and landing of the spacecraft took around 9 minutes as the vessel reduced its speed from 20,000 kilometers per hour to zero, the Global Times reported.

The Tianwen-1 mission launched from Wenchang Spaceport in South China's Hainan Province on July 23, 2020 via a Long March-5 carrier rocket. It had been orbiting Mars since February.

The United Arab Emirates' Hope Probe also entered orbit around Mars in February but is not intended to land on the red planet.

NASA's five successful Mars rovers... and Russia's crash landings If Zhurong touches down successfully, it will be the first non-US rover to land on Mars. There have been seven rover missions to the Red Planet - but two Soviet missions in the 70s failed: Mars 2 Prop-M Rover (USSR) - Destroyed in crash landing on November 27 1971. Mars 3 Prop-M Rover (USSR)  Lost communication 20 seconds after landing on December 2 1971. Mars Pathfinder Sojourner (NASA)  Rover was the first to successful land on Mars when it touched down July 4, 1997. It travelled just 330 feet, but was active for 85 days before contact was lost on October 7, 1997. Mars Exploration Rover Spirit (NASA)  The twin of the Opportunity rover, below. Landed on January 4, 2004. On May 1, 2009 it got stuck in soft sand. Communication was lost on March 22, 2010. Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity (NASA)  Landed on January 25, 2004 and was active until contact was lost on June 10, 2018 after a dust storm covered its solar panels and it failed to charge its batteries. It travelled 28.06 miles during its mission - the furthest of any Mars rover. Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity (NASA)  Landed on January 25, 2012 and is currently active after more than 3,000 days. Mars 2020 Perseverance (NASA)  Landed on February 18, 2021 and is currently active. Advertisement

The complicated landing process has been called the 'seven minutes of terror' because it happens faster than radio signals can reach Earth from Mars, meaning communications are limited.

Several US, Russian and European attempts to land rovers on Mars have failed in the past, most recently in 2016 with the crash-landing of the Schiaparelli joint Russian-European spacecraft.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, in a congratulatory letter to the mission team, called the landing 'an important step in our countrys interplanetary exploration journey, realizing the leap from Earth-moon to the planetary system and leaving the mark of the Chinese on Mars for the first time.'

'The motherland and people will always remember your outstanding feats!' he said.

China's Mars landing was the top trending topic on Weibo, a leading social media platform, as people expressed both excitement and pride.

China's space program has proceeded in a more cautious manner than the U.S. and the Soviet Union during the height of their space race.

The launch of the main module for its space station in April is the first of 11 planned missions to build and provision the station and send up a three-person crew by the end of next year. While successful, the uncontrolled return to Earth of the launch rocket drew international criticism including from NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.

China has said it wants to land people on the moon and possibly build a scientific base there. No timeline has been released for such projects. A space plane is also reportedly under development.

China's first Mars landing follows its launch last month of the main section of what will be a permanent space station and a mission that brought back rocks from the moon late last year.

'China has left a footprint on Mars for the first time, an important step for our country's space exploration,' the official Xinhua News Agency said in announcing the landing on one of its social media accounts.

A rover and a tiny helicopter from the American landing in February are currently exploring Mars. NASA expects the rover to collect its first sample in July for return to Earth in a decade.

In April, the tiny helicopter was dropped on Martian soil from the Perseverance rover made the first demonstration to test powered flight on another world.

The $85million solar-powered drone, which costs more than the baseline price of $80million for the F-35 fighter jet took off a few feet from the ground and hovered in the air before landing.

Zurbuchen announced that the Martian airfield on which the flight took place has been named Wright Brothers Field, 'in recognition of the ingenuity and innovation that continue to propel exploration.'

A visitor to an exhibition on China's space program looks at a life size model of the Chinese Mars rover Zhurong, named after the Chinese god of fire, at the National Museum in Beijing

China has landed a spacecraft on Mars for the first time in the latest advance for its space program

Visitors to an exhibition on China's space program pose for photos next to a life size model of the Chinese Mars rover Zhurong

China says its Mars probe and accompanying rover are landed on the red planet

A woman walks past an exhibition depicting Mars landscape in Beijing on Friday
Scandal-hit congressman Matt Gaetz snorted cocaine and had sex with an escort who was paid taxpayers money for a separate role that involved no work, a new report claims.

Matt Gaetz's 'wingman' Joel Greenberg will appear in court on Monday to plead guilty to six counts of fraud and sex crimes, it was reported on Friday. He will accuse Gaetz of paying prostitute Megan Zalonka after a cocaine-fueled party at a Trump fundraiser.

Greenberg, a former Florida tax collector, will accuse Gaetz of paying at least 15 young women for sex, The Daily Beast reported.

Among them is Zalonka, an escort and amateur Instagram model, who was Gaetz's date in October 2019 at the Trump Defender Gala in Orlando.

She is said to have been paid up to $15,000 of taxpayers money by Greenberg after he hired her for a social media manager job in Seminole County, Florida, that did not require Zalonka to do any work, a new report claims.

After the gala, an after-party was held in Gaetz's hotel room, The Daily Beast reported.

Zalonka, 28, chopped up lines of cocaine, which she and Gaetz took together, a new report claims.

Two sources told the site that Zalonka and the Florida congressman had an ongoing financial relationship in exchange for sex. However, the Daily Beast could not confirm that Zalonka and Gaetz had sex the night of the gala.

Megan Zalonka (right) is pictured with Gaetz, who is said to have snorted cocaine and had sex with her

'She was just one of the many pieces of arm candy he had,' said one source familiar with the encounters between Gaetz and Zalonka.

The congressman wrote off the stay at the hotel as a campaign expense, with his donors picking up the tab.

Zalonka had, in 2017, used her relationship with Greenberg - who according to reports worked to procure women for Gaetz - to secure a $3,500-a-month social media job at Seminole County in Florida.

She was paid with taxpayer funds, and yet never worked in the office, and did not appear to do any work, it is alleged.

She earnt up to $17,500 from Greenberg, the site reported.

The 'work' began in December 2017, when she liaised with Greenberg while creating her own company, MZ Strategy Group LLC.

The next month, Greenberg awarded her a county contract, agreeing to pay her $3,500 a month for 'management of digital content' and 'production of social media engagements.'

Zalonka's firm received $3,500 installments in Seminole County taxpayer funds in January and April 2018, according to an analysis of Greenberg's government spending obtained via a public records request.

Auditors flagged other $3,500 installments in February, March, and May 2018, in the form of suspicious cash advances directly to Greenberg.

Accountant Daniel J. O'Keefe, who led a forensic audit of Greenberg's alleged self-dealing, said tax collector employees told him the woman behind the company was a mystery.

O'Keefe added that he found no proof Zalonka ever provided the services itemized in her contract with Greenberg.

'I have no idea what they were doing. And employees wouldn't know what they were doing. Totally a no-show job,' O'Keefe said.

'There's no work product, no evidence work was done. It's just unbelievable.'

Zalonka, right, was hired to 'work' for Greenberg, but there is no evidence of anything done

Roger Stone, Matt Gaetz and Joel Greenberg pictured in a selfie together in 2017. Matt Gaetz 's alleged wingman Joel Greenberg has reportedly agreed to plead guilty to six felony counts

Greenberg, who is married, would also transfer large sums of cash to Zalonka via Venmo - one of 40 women the 37-year-old regularly paid, it is alleged.

His Venmo records show that he paid her $500 for 'Stuff,' another $500 for 'Orher stuff' [sic], and $1,000 for 'Pool.'

On a single day in November, he paid her $500 for 'Food' and another $500 for 'Appetizers.'

Gaetz has denied ever paying women for sex.

A public relations firm he has hired, Logan Circle Group, said in a statement: 'Congressman Gaetz won't be commenting on whether he dated or didn't date specific women.

'The privacy of women living private lives should be protected.'

Harlan Hill, the president of the firm, did not address questions about cocaine, the party, or the fundraiser, when asked by The Daily Beast.

Mark J. O'Brien, a criminal defense lawyer, said the allegations about Zalonka were not 'accurate' but said she would not be clarifying.

Zalonka is currently communications director for the American Medical Marijuana Physicians Association - a group founded by Gaetz's friends, and which he has openly supported.

On Friday morning federal prosecutors dropped 27 charges against Greenberg in exchange for his cooperation and testimony.

Greenberg had been facing 33 counts with a maximum of life behind bars but his plea deal reveals he has reached a deal to plead guilty to just six of those charges; sex trafficking a child, using a fake ID, identity theft, wire fraud, stalking and conspiring to commit a crime against the US.

The plea deal doesn't specify what he'll be sentenced to but it does confirm he will cooperate with the ongoing investigation into Gaetz, and testify at court if necessary.

The most severe charge he will plead to is paying a 17-year-old girl for sex, trafficking her across state lines and giving her drugs with other men - which is what might implicate Gaetz.

The sex trafficking charge has a minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison.

The charges that have been dropped include four domestic violence charges, one sex trafficking charge, nine fraud charges, bribing a public official, and a range of lesser identity theft and fraud charges.

Prosecutors say depending on how much he assists them going forward, they'll recommend various levels of leniency when it comes to Greenberg's sentencing.

Greenberg, a disgraced tax collector, also has to forfeit $650,000.

He was arrested last year and immediately started telling the feds about Gaetz and how they 'sex trafficked' together to get himself a deal.

It wasn't clear that it had worked for him until now.

Joel Greenberg's plea deal reveals he will testify against anyone who is charged as part of the ongoing sex trafficking investigation - which could spell trouble for his friend Matt Gaetz

Gaetz (pictured in DC today) is under investigation for allegedly having sex with a 17-year-old girl and trafficking her across state lines. Gaetz has denied the allegations and has not been charged with any crime

In March, it was revealed that Gaetz is under investigation for allegedly having sex with a 17-year-old girl and trafficking her across state lines. Investigators are also looking into allegations he paid women for ecstasy-fueled sex at Florida hotels after being introduced to them by Greenberg.

Gaetz has repeatedly denied having sex with a 17-year-old and said he has never paid for sex. He has not been charged with any crime.

For prosecutors to agree to reduce the charges from a staggering 33 to just six indicates that Greenberg has handed over information that is of significant value, legal experts told Business Insider on Thursday.

Sherine Ebadi, a former FBI agent who worked on the case against the former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, said she expects Gaetz will be 'concerned' about Greenberg's plans.

'What Gaetz would be concerned about is if there's a cooperation agreement in this matter that involves the defendant flipping on him,' she said.

'That gets scary for co-conspirators because they know someone who's either aware of their crimes or someone they co-conspired with is now working with the government.'

Greenberg was first arrested on charges of identity theft and stalking a political opponent last June.

An indictment alleged he mailed fake letters to his opponent's school claiming sexual misconduct.

The federal investigation into him spiraled and was charged with sex trafficking a girl between the ages of 14 and 17.

In March he was further charged with embezzling $400,000 from the Seminole County tax collector's office and fraudulently obtaining COVID-19 relief loans, taking his total charges up to 33 felony counts.

It has since emerged that Greenberg has been cooperating with federal prosecutors since December.

In April, sources said he had been begging prosecutors to cut him a plea deal in exchange for turning over information on Gaetz.

He has reportedly told investigators that both he and Gaetz gave women cash and gifts in exchange for sex.

'I'm sure Matt Gaetz is not feeling very comfortable today,' Greenberg's attorney told reporters last month.

Gaetz has sought legal representation as the investigation into him appears to be ramping up.

This week, sources said DOJ investigators were trying to flip a former Capitol Hill intern who is the ex-girlfriend of Gaetz.

The ex-girlfriend, who is not being named publicly, 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.

It first emerged in March that Gaetz was under investigation by the DOJ for allegedly sex trafficking a minor.

Gaetz and Greenberg pictured together at the White House. To reduce charges from 33 to 6 indicates Greenberg has valuable information for prosecutors, say legal experts

Gaetz with Donald Trump. Greenberg is said to be cooperating with federal investigators for months amid the probe into the congressman

The minor is said to be the same 17-year-old girl at the center of the charges against Greenberg.

Investigators are said to be looking into payments made by Greenberg to young women and the 17-year-old girl through Venmo, and claims that Gaetz also paid women for sex via payment apps.

The probe into the congressman is said to have rise out of the DOJ investigation into Greenberg and the close ties between the two men.

Sources close to the DOJ probe told DailyMail.com last month that Gaetz was expected to be indicted as soon as a matter of weeks after the 17-year-old testified before a Florida grand jury saying she had sex with him before she reached the state's age of consent, which is 18.

Greenberg allegedly confessed in a letter to Donald Trump ally Roger Stone that the pair paid for sex with the 17-year-old girl in a bid to get a pardon from the then-President, the Daily Beast reported.

'On more than one occasion, [the 17-year-old] was involved in sexual activities with several of the other girls, the congressman from Florida's 1st Congressional District and myself,' Greenberg reportedly wrote in the letter.

One message said to have been sent by Greenberg to Stone allegedly said he was pressured to 'flip' and cooperate with prosecutors.

Gaetz's wider actions in congress have also come under close scrutiny in recent weeks, with claims he showed off nude photos of women he said he had slept with to other lawmakers on the House floor and 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 that he 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.'

Gaetz denies all allegations and has insisted he will not resign.

In a bizarre twist in the saga, the lawmaker has instead claimed he is the victim of an elaborate extortion plot by a former Justice Department official seeking to free an American hostage from Iran.

'The first indictment of Joel Greenberg alleges that he falsely accused another man of sex with a minor for his own gain. That man was apparently innocent. So is Congressman Gaetz,' said Harlan Hill, a spokesman for the lawmaker.
Pennsylvania State University has been mocked after axing the words 'freshman,' 'junior' and 'senior' - as well as the phrase 'him or her' over fears they're sexist.

Last month, the University's Senate Committee on Curricular Affairs passed the 'Removal of Gendered & Binary Terms from Course and Program Descriptions' resolution with a majority vote. They said the axed terms were examples of 'male-centric' terminology that needed to be updated with more inclusive words.

Among the concerns raised by the committee were that 'freshmen' were too male-specific, with 'junior' and 'senior' axed for being 'parallel to western male father-son naming conventions.'

The phrase 'upperclassmen' was condemned for being 'both sexist and classist,' while the new rules also lashed Penn's existing documentation for many appearances by he/she pronouns.'

The bill was one of several equity and diversity resolutions to pass at the Senate's April 27 meeting, Penn State News reported.

The changes for gendered terms would apply to all written materials, including both internal and outward-facing documents, Fox News reported.

Pennsylvania State University (pictured) will no longer use labels like 'freshman,' 'junior,' or 'senior,' in an effort to be more inclusive and move away from 'male-centric' terminology

While the resolution has been mocked online, 88.75 percent of students at Penn State University said they approved the change, campusreform.org reported

The senate also recommended replacing freshman/sophomore/junior/senior with 'first-year',' second-year' etc.

Its members suggested replacing gendered pronouns with neutral terms like 'student,' 'faculty member' or staff member.'

Other recommendations included replacing 'underclassmen' and 'upperclassmen' with 'lower division' and 'upper division.'

The senate also called for the term 'super seniors' to be axed. That refers to students who have taken longer than the usual four years to complete their studies, over fears the moniker could make some of them self-conscious.

The proposal provided a suggested edit to a theater course description to read 'them' instead of 'him' or 'her.' (pictured)

But the resolution also conceded that old terms - including male and female pronouns - may be required in courses such as gender studies classes.

'The committee recognizes that there may be places where these terms, especially gender terms, may need to remain intact, for example in the case of courses or degrees that delve into gender studies,' the resolution said. 'In such cases, efforts shall be made to clearly delineate between the 'academic' study of these gendered terms, and the newly established nomenclature as it would apply to faculty, staff, students, and guests.'

Many online commenters ridiculed Penn State's changes, and predicted a drop in applications to the prestigious college

The announcement drew mixed criticism from people online, with some calling the move the schools attempt to be 'woke.'

On Facebook one parent complained about the resolution, commenting: 'Are you really getting rid of terminology such as freshman and sophomore? because I have a child at the main campus and I am at my wits end with this stupidity.'

Another Facebook commenter was even harsher, commenting: 'Your woke agenda is both sad and really pathetic and you represent what's wrong with this generation. Please pack up and leave asap because your agenda proves how worthless these students are who get triggered over real terms like male, senior and junior.'

Reactions on Twitter were not any better, with one person tweeting 'College campuses are quickly becoming complete jokes. Glad I went to college before academics went completely crazy.'

'I guess Penn State grads don't have and Alma Mater any more. I mean, 'nourishing mother' so CIS and ungender neutral. Maybe it should be Alma They?' someone tweeted in reaction to the resolution.

'Great to see we are focusing on important issues like this in the U.S,' one person sarcastically tweeted.

Another person shared a 'Family Guy' meme of Peter Griffin that reads 'Oh my god! who the hell cares!?'

One person simply tweeted 'Its official, these idiots are fully certifiable.'

While reaction to the resolution has been mixed online, students at Penn State do not seem to mind.

88.75 percent of students at the university approved the change, campusreform.org reported.
The first flight of repatriated Australians from virus-ravaged India has been transferred to the Howard Springs quarantine facility after touching down at Darwin airport.

More than 40 people who tested positive pre-flight along with about 30 of their close contacts were barred from returning on QF 112, which had a Covid-safe capacity of 150 seats.

About 80 returnees are understood to have made it onto the eight-and-a-half hour flight, which touched down about 9.25am AEST on Saturday.

The first repatriation flight from India has landed in Darwin on Saturday (pictured)

The Qantas plane had up to 80 Australians on board after 40 were refused because of positive Covid tests

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says testing in India prior to further flights will continue to ensure Australia is protected from the virus.

'We're dealing with a situation where we've seen more than 800,000 new Covid cases a day, there are new variants of the virus,' he told reporters in Melbourne.

'We've got to maintain our health settings because we know how damaging to the livelihoods of Australians an outbreak would be.'

Asked what medical assistance would be given to infected Australians left behind in Delhi, Mr Frydenberg said the High Commission in India was working with them.

More than 9,000 Australians are registered as wanting to return, with about 900 of them said to be desperate or vulnerable.

Buses were waiting at the airport to ferry the passengers to their two weeks of quarantine (pictured)

The next government-facilitated flight is expected into Darwin on May 23, bringing up a total of 40 such flights since March 2020.

Both PCR and rapid antigen tests are a prerequisite for being able to board.

The 26 per cent positive rate among the 150 people considered for Saturday's flight is far higher than the 3.5 per cent rate registered in passengers on flights in March.

National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre executive director Len Notaras says those who were unable to get on the Qantas Dreamliner will have to reapply to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for a seat on another flight.

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese said the situation was heartbreaking and particularly dire for unaccompanied children.

'(Prime Minister) Scott Morrison should have kept his commitment to bring Australians home by Christmas,' he said.

The Australians will be isolated at Howard Springs facility outside Darwin until they are cleared to travel on

The flight which left Darwin to collect the 80 Australians in Delhi on Friday carried 1056 ventilators, 60 oxygen concentrators and other essential supplies, adding to a wealth of medical equipment sent last week.

In the Northern Territory, the number of active cases has fallen from 53 to a handful although two US Marines who arrived as part of the Marine Rotational Force in Darwin on April 9 were added to the list on Saturday.

About 10 per cent of the Australian population has been vaccinated and some 2.98 million vaccine doses have been administered, with 400,000 people given a dose last week.

The rollout is expected to get a massive boost when GPs start administering jabs to all over-50s from Monday.

In WA, restrictions in Perth and Peel will be lifted from Saturday, with masks no longer mandatory except at airports, household gathering limits gone and sporting stadiums returning to full capacity.
Trader Joe's Walmart and Costco say customers who've had their COVID vaccine no longer need to wear a mask while shopping - unless local laws say otherwise.

All three grocery giants made the announcements on Friday.

An announcement on Trader Joe's website said: 'We encourage customers to follow the guidance of health officials, including, as appropriate, CDC guidelines that advise customers who are fully vaccinated are not required to wear masks while shopping.'

Vaccinated shoppers can go maskless immediately, Walmart said. Vaccinated workers can stop wearing them on May 18.

As an incentive, the company said it is offering workers $75 if they prove they have been vaccinated.

A Walmart customer in Derry, New Hampshire in November 2020. The store has announced it was lifting its rule saying customers must wear masks while shopping

A Costco store in Washington DC. The wholesaler has lifted its rule on masks, with vaccinated shoppers allowed to peruse its aisles bare-faced

A Trader Joe's shopper in New York in August 2020. TJ's has also lifted its mask rule - although customers must still cover up in individual states or counties with ongoing mask mandates

John Bechtold puts his face covering on as he passes his storefront sign that lists COVID-19 protective covering required to enter in his retail shop on Friday in Pittsburgh's South Side

A customer exits a corner market while wearing a protective mask in the retail shopping district of the SoHo neighborhood of the Manhattan

In half the states of the country, nothing will change. 14 states had already lifted their mask mandates, and 11 never had them in the first place

Both Costco and Trader Joe's said they would not require proof of vaccination, but employees at the grocery chain will still need to cover their faces.

Workers will need to answer 'yes' to a vaccination question in a daily health assessment in order to go maskless, the company said in a memo to employees posted on its corporate website.

'Integrity is one of our core values, and we trust that associates will respect that principle when answering,' the Walmart memo states. To get the bonus, workers will have to show their original vaccination certificate.

Walmart was one of the first retailers to mandate masks last July. Its move to allow vaccinated shoppers and workers to not wear masks could lead other chains to follow suit.

Tourists, some in face masks while others are not, walk the National Mall in Washington, DC on May 14

A group of young men are see without face masks sitting in Washington Square Park, New York on May 13

Anni Bacchus joins coworkers from Atlanta Eats at a lunch on the Atlanta Beltline on Friday. The group said they were only sitting so close together because the CDC updated their mask guidelines for COVID-19 vaccinated people

People visiting the Santa Monica Pier wearing masks on Friday in Santa Monica

A number of visitors to the Santa Monica Pier were spotted wearing face masks on Friday

But several major chains, including CVS, Home Depot, Macy's and supermarket giant Kroger Co., said they are still requiring masks in stores for the time being, though some said they are reviewing their policies.

More than a dozen states quickly embraced new federal guidelines that say fully vaccinated Americans no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most cases.

But other states and cities and some major businesses hesitated amid doubts about whether the approach is safe or even workable.

As many business owners pointed out, there is no easy way to determine who has been vaccinated and who hasn't.

Industry leaders have warned of the potential for confusion and hard feelings among customers because of the varying rules from place to place. Even in states that have dropped mask mandates, stores and other businesses can still require face coverings if they want.

Plenty of people were still wearing masks along the Santa Monica Pier on May 14

Servers and diners in Santa Monica must still mask up. They're pictured on the famous promenade on May 14

The CDC's recommendations are non-binding, and actual policy is left for the relevant local authorities or employers to decide which means those in Santa Monica, pictured, must still wear masks

New guidelines, issued Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, essentially work on the honor system, leaving it up to people to do the right thing.

The CDC's recommendations are non-binding, and actual policy is left for the relevant local authorities or employers to decide.

It also doesn't apply to planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation, or to medical settings such as hospitals.

The situation has left CEOs and local officials caught in a dilemma -- whether to follow the scientific recommendations right away, or make sure people are comfortable with it.

Labor groups and others warned that employees at stores, restaurants, bars and other businesses could be left exposed to the coronavirus from customers and could be forced into the unwanted role of 'vaccination police.'

The City of Santa Monica has strict requirements for people to wear face coverings along with penalties for those who do not wear them when required

In Malvern, Pennsylvania, owner Sean Weinberg took down the mask signs Friday at Restaurant Alba, which he runs with his wife. He also emailed his employees to let them know they can forgo masks at work if they are fully vaccinated.

'Its just a headache we dont want to have to fight any more,' Weinberg said.

Half the states had mask requirements in place for most indoor spaces when the CDC issued its recommendations amid tumbling cases and rising vaccination rates.

Nearly 47% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, and cases have dropped to their lowest level since last September, at an average of about 35,000 a day.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky noted in making the announcement that the vaccine has proved powerfully effective in preventing serious COVID-19 illness.

Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Ohio, Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Kentucky, Washington, Maine, Vermont, Connecticut, North Carolina, Kansas, Colorado and Rhode Island announced plans to fall in line with the CDC guidance either immediately or in the coming weeks. Some cities, including New Orleans and Anchorage, did the same.

Oregon Governor Kate Brown said the new approach makes clear that vaccines are the fastest way to get back to doing the things 'we all love.'

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear called the guidance a 'game-changer.' And Washington Governor Jay Inslee said the change is 'a heck of a benefit.'

Other states, such as California, Wisconsin, New Jersey, Hawaii and Massachusetts, and cities like Minneapolis and St. Paul kept mask rules in place for the time being.

'We're frankly not there yet,' New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said.

Hawaii Governor David Ige said, 'We are unable to determine who is vaccinated and who is not vaccinated. The best mitigation measure is for everyone to wear a mask.'

Confusion over the guidance extended to the White House, where press secretary Jen Psaki said, 'I think we're still figuring out how to implement it.'

The CDC and the Biden administration had faced pressure to ease restrictions on fully vaccinated people in part to highlight the benefits of the shots and motivate other people to get inoculated.

Although no longer required outside, a sign advises visitors to wear masks at the Denver Zoo in Denver, Colorado, on May 13

Restaurant workers in places where mask mandates remain are finding themselves caught in the middle, said Jot Condie, the president of the California Restaurant Association. He said his phone has been 'blowing up' with reports of increasingly belligerent customers.

'The person who is not wearing a mask will say, @My president just told me that the CDC just issued guidance and Ive been vaccinated and Im not going to wear a mask,"'he said.

Scott Dolch, executive director of the Connecticut Restaurant Association, said owners are concerned about being put in a difficult position.

'Theyre like, OK, now I have to deal with the honor system, hoping that that person that told me theyre totally vaccinated' is telling the truth, Dolch said.

The CDC announcement sent airline stocks soaring, though the guidance still calls for masks in crowded indoor settings such as planes, buses, trains, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters, and says people should obey all local and state regulations.

A hild wears a mask while looking out the window of a beachfront restaurant in Santa Monica, Calif. A number of states immediately embraced new guidelines from the CDC that say fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most situations

Republican Rep. Dusty Johnson, South Dakotas lone congressman, marked the announcement by sharing a video demonstrating how cast-off masks can now be used for things like suit pocket handkerchiefs, bookmarks or beer cozies.

'It seems too wasteful to just throw them away,' he said. 'I think Ill have my mother make them into a quilt.'

Shelby Lofton, a reporter for WKYT-TV in Lexington, Kentucky, tweeted: 'So, I guess Ill start wearing lipstick again. Also need to work on my poker face.'

In Detroit, a fully vaccinated Christoph Cunningham, 28, wore a mask as he rode an electric scooter to a bar for lunch and said he agrees with the relaxed guidelines.

'I have confidence in the science behind it all,' said Cunningham, who runs a catering business. 'Ill eventually take my mask off more and more.'

Some states and some businesses are taking a wait-and-see attitude. Maskless people in Atlanta are pictured

A sign requiring a COVID-19 protective mask is required to enter is in front of Dee's Cafe, in Pittsburgh's South Side neighborhood

The president of the American Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, said the 1.7 million-member union is still trying to sort out what the change means for schools. Many school districts already ditched mask requirements in recent weeks, as had many states and cities, as virus numbers fell.

That meant the CDC announcement didnt mean much in places like the tourist town of Branson, Missouri, which dropped its mandate early last month after several mask supporters were voted out of office.

'I think it just further supports the decision we made to lift the mask mandate,' said the town's new mayor, Larry Milton. 'It was dividing our community. We heard loud and clear from voters that they wanted the mask mandate repealed.'
A teenager from Tennesee has been unwittingly dragged into the aftermath of a Florida teen's murder after online trolls suggested he was involved with her death.

Levi Whitehouse's name is one of a number being circulated by trolls who are continuing to make false claims over the murder of 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey.

The young gamer believes he may have been targeted by as a prank by the online gaming community, of which he is a member.

Florida detectives say her schoolmate 14-year-old Aiden Fucci is the only person suspected in the case and nobody else is believed to be involved.

Whitehouse has been tormented even though Fucci has been charged with Kristyn's murder. He is in custody after Bailey's body was found at a pond just a quarter of a mile from her home.

Nevertheless, it has not stopped Levi becoming the focus of trolls who have threatened the Nashville teen with some even posting death threats towards the boy who has never even visited St. John's Country in northeast Florida.

Aiden Fucci, 14, and Tristyn Bailey, 13, were filmed walking last Sunday at 1.45am but within hours, Bailey was dead

Online trolls have accused Levi Whitehouse, 15, from Nashville of being responsible for the murder. He is pictured, left, alongside his father, Steve, right

Some of the social media accounts, as seen by News4Jax have posted troubling messages and images with some users even claiming to have taken part in the killing.

One account is said to have used a picture of him standing by a friend's tombstone.

Police have also issued a warning to people who had set up fake social media accounts trying to garner notoriety from the case.

'There are a number of accounts however that are using this case to try to gain fame and followers. Please know that these individuals had nothing to do with this incident,' St. John's County Sheriff's Office said.

Some of the fake Instagram accounts flagged up by investigators had #freeaiden hashtags on their posts.

Tristyn Bailey's body was discovered by a pond less than half a mile from her house

The social media pages, which police are now looking at very closely, appear to be run by other teenagers and serve only to make false claims for attention, while taunting Bailey's family and friends.

'I had no clue about the case,' Levi said adding that it felt as though he was being framed for the cheerleader's murder.

'I pray for the family for having to go through all this mess, but I promise we are not involved in this,' Levi's father, Steve Whitehouse said on Friday. 'And if there's anything we can do to get to the bottom of it, I'll do whatever we need to do 155 percent.'

Although Levi has no connection to the Bailey family whatsoever, he is an active gamer and his family believe that his identify may have been lifted as a prank by others in the online gaming community.

Bailey was last seen alive in the early hours of Sunday morning. Hours later, she was found dead by a pong less than half-a-mile from her house

They said they hadn't heard of the case before Levi's friends told him his face was being used. However, Levi is active with online video games, as was Fucci.

'We all are scared for our safety,' Steve Whitehouse said. 'As a matter fact, we're moving on account of all this. I don't know it's going to happen amongst all this mess.'

If the online trolls behind those commenting are caught, it's possible they could be charged with interfering with a police investigation or cyberbullying under Florida law.

Aiden posted this selfie on social media after being taken in for questioning. Sheriffs say the 'egregious' post shows he was proud of what he did

Police are also looking at a social media video featuring Fucci in which he appears without handcuffs in the back of a police cruiser flashing a peace sign with the caption: 'Hey guys has inybody (sic) seen Tristyn lately.'

It was before her body was found in woods.

Now, police say they will use that 'egregious' selfie as evidence against him and that it proves he was 'proud of what he did'.

'I know it looks egregious with him making those statements in that car, but that is now evidence that we gather and use against him. So that just makes our case a better case to present to the State Attorney's office and to present to a jury down the road saying this was his mindset,' St Johns County Sheriff Robert Hardwick.

Investigators have said they will use search warrants and subpoenas to pull information from phones and internet accounts of anyone involved.

Aiden Fucci, 14, has been charged with Tristyn's murder. He is in custody. Tristyn Bailey was stabbed a 'horrific' number of times

Bailey was filmed walking alone to her death with the teenage boy accused of stabbing her a 'horrific' number of times, police say.

Police have not released the surveillance video but It is said to show Aiden and Tristyn walking near the community center in St John's, Florida, at 1.45am last Sunday.

It was the last time she was ever seen alive. Aiden was filmed walking away from the community center alone at 3.27am, nearly two hours later, according to the report.

He had taken his white Nike sneakers off and was carrying them, it is alleged.

When cops went to his house, they found bloody clothes - the same ones he was wearing in the video, their report states.

The teenagers were last seen walking near the Durbin Amenity Center in St John's at 1.45am. It's unclear what she was doing there or if Aiden was with her

Once in custody, Aiden was left alone in an interview room with his mother Crystal Smith. He told her that he'd taken off his shoes because his feet 'hurt'.

It's unclear from the redacted police report whether or not he confessed to the killing but the cops say comments he made, combined with physical evidence, is what led them to arrest him.

The report was released via a records request on Wednesday night.

Prosecutors are still deciding whether to charge Aiden as an adult.

Aiden's father Jason attended his son's first court hearing earlier in the week. He spent time in jail in 2003 for molesting a 15 year-old girl when he was 18.

Aiden's father Jason Fucci (pictured left during his son's Zoom hearing and right during his arrest), 36, spent time in jail after he was charged with lewd or lascivious battery and child abuse in 2003
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Joe Biden was angered by his administration's response to the plight of migrant children and berated his Health and Human Services Secretary in the Oval Office, according to a report.

Biden, who is said to be obsessed with detail and demanding answers of all his staff, on March 30 was angered by the pressing problem of how to deal with migrant children.

Nearly 19,000 unaccompanied minors were stopped at the border in March, according to the Associated Press. In April the number of minors arriving without parents decreased by nine per cent.

Xavier Becerra, the HHS secretary, frustrated his boss by failing to have answers to his questions about the agency's ability to take care of migrant children, according to two people familiar with the exchange, who spoke to The New York Times. No further details of what the two men said to one another were shared.

Joe Biden, pictured on Thursday, reportedly lost his temper with his Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, right, over the ongoing crisis at the US southern border

Unaccompanied children are seen arriving in Texas, having crossed the Rio Grande on Thursday. President Biden is said to demand detail-heavy proposals on a solution from his staffers

A Border Patrol agent is seen near El Paso in Texas on Thursday with migrants awaiting processing

Biden was described as a stickler for detail, who was unimpressed by 'blandishing fast-talk'.

Earlier in March, the paper reported, the president was angered when his top immigration advisers were asked by Biden whether they had been to the border in recent days - and all replied they had not.

Four days later, the advisers, including Alejandro Mayorkas, in charge of Homeland Security and Susan Rice, director of Biden's Domestic Policy Council, arrived at the border to assess the situation.

The report comes amid growing anger among Border Patrol Agents at the White House.

There are currently more than 20,000 migrants in HHS custody, up from just under 12,000 at the end of March.

The Associated Press reported that migrants are being housed at more than 200 sites in multiple states.

Twenty Republican governors this week wrote to Biden earlier this week, blaming his administration for the crisis, and expressed concern about HHS efforts to house an unknown number of children in their states.

Reuters conducted interviews with a dozen current and former agents, who spoke of their growing dissatisfaction over the relaxation of the immigrant restrictions President Donald Trump had enacted.

A group of children from Central America are seen resting, having crossed into Texas on Thursday

Border Patrol agents surround a group of asylum-seeking migrants from Central America after they crossed the Rio Grande into Penitas, Texas, on May 14

Since February after Biden assumed office, border crossings have skyrocketed, overwhelming migrant facilities already strapped for resources and space.

A record 179,000 people crossed the southern border illegally in April, up three per cent on the 172,000 who made the crossing in March.

'We have so many people coming across, and then, we're out there killing ourselves to catch them, rescue them, or whatever it is, and then, they're being released,' said Rosemarie Pepperdine, an agent who said she planned to retire.

'Why even bother?'

Brandon Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council, a union representing three-quarters of the roughly 20,000 border patrol agents, criticized Biden's leadership on the migrant situation.

'I can confidently say that President Biden owns this crisis,' Judd commented.

'It is his fault.'

Border Patrol chief Rodney Scott wrote a memo April 16 detailing his grievances with the ban on immigration phrasing deemed politically incorrect by the administration.

The administration has implemented new policy directives, including a prohibition on terminology such as 'illegal alien,' 'alien,' and 'assimilation' when referring to migrants, aggravating many on-site officers.

'Over the years many outside forces on both extremes of the political spectrum have intentionally, or unintentionally, politicized our agency and our mission,' Scott said in the memo addressed to acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller.

Some agents have reportedly started calling Biden 'Let 'Em Go Joe,' according to a border patrol agent who anonymously spoke with Reuters.

Gil Maza, a former agent who retired in March, sells a redesigned unofficial coin for the U.S. Border Patrol that reads 'U.S. Welcome Patrol.'

Maza told Reuters he had sold 78 coins in a matter of days to past and present agents.

'It sheds a little humor on the situation,' Maza said of his creation.

'And it's something that helps us, I guess, mentally and emotionally cope with the situation because especially right now, the situation is pretty dire out there.'

US border agents encountered fewer minor migrants along the United States border with Mexico in April although overall apprehensions reached a 15-year high last month, according to a report released Tuesday by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Data showed that the border patrol agency encountered 178,622 undocumented immigrants seeking to enter the United States in April, surpassing March's total by 5,274.

Interdictions at the 1,954 mile border in April were more than 10 times that of April 2020, when 17,106 individuals were stopped by border patrol agents.

Meanwhile, border agents encountered 17,171 unaccompanied children, down 9 percent from 18,890 in March when a record number of unaccompanied migrant children entered U.S. custody along the southern border.

However, encounters at the border drastically increased during Trump's final nine months in office and continued to worsen under the administration of his successor.
Tasmanian Opposition Leader Rebecca White will not re-contest the party's leadership following Labor's third consecutive election loss.

Ms White announced her decision to stand down on Saturday, saying it had been an honour to lead for four years but a change in leadership was required to be competitive at the next state election.

She endorsed shadow treasurer David O'Byrne as her successor with a decision likely within the party in coming days.

Tasmanian Opposition Leader Rebecca White will not re-contest the party's leadership following Labor's third consecutive election loss

Ms White had originally indicated she would continue leading the Tasmanian Labor party after the state election, however she said that changed after a week of internal conversations.

'There's no doubt that after the election last week we needed to reflect on what had occurred and I see the change in leadership for the state parliamentary Labor Party as a part of the change that's necessary... so we can become more competitive to win the next election,' she said.

She emphasised her decision to stand down had nothing to do with her current pregnancy.

'I want young girls and women everywhere to know that they can achieve anything and they should walk through doors when they open or they should kick the door down if they have to,' Ms White said.

She emphasised her decision to stand down had nothing to do with her current pregnancy

She commended her party for endorsing her for the leadership four years ago when her first child was just under four months, saying it was a testament to the party's culture that it was not influenced by her age, gender or stage of life.

The outgoing opposition leader will stay on as an MP.

Tasmania's Liberal Party led by Premier Peter Gutwein won the state election for the third straight time - a record consecutive win for that party in Tasmania.
UK troops battled a sandstorm and 50C heat to seize a cache of weapons hidden by suspected ISIS terrorists in Mali.

Around 100 soldiers found AK47 rifles, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, camouflage clothing, radios, mobile phones and hundreds of litres of fuel during the operation, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.

Troops from the Light Dragoons and Royal Anglian Regiment discovered the concealed haul during a mission in a village near the border of Niger.

The mission took place in early May, shortly after suspected fighters of the so-called Islamic State in the Greater Sahel (ISGS) fled by swimming across the River Niger.

The MoD said the operation - which was supported by a specialist Royal Engineers search team - took place during incredibly challenging conditions, including a sandstorm that reduced visibility to 30 metres, over 50C heat and soldiers carrying up to 45kg of equipment.

UK troops (some pictured) battled a sandstorm and 50C heat to seize a cache of weapons (pictured) hidden by suspected ISIS terrorists in Mali

Terrorists had been intimidating locals, extorting money and assaulting people who refused to comply with their demands.

This meant UK forces were able to respond to protect them under the UN's peacekeeping mandate, the MoD said.

The mission was the first 'cordon and search' operation, acting on intelligence proactively gathered, carried out by UN forces in Mali.

Minister for the Armed Forces James Heappey said: 'This was the first operation of its kind by UN forces in Mali, demonstrating how UK personnel have made a significant contribution to the mission during their first six months in the country.

The MoD said the operation - which was supported by a specialist Royal Engineers search team - took place during incredibly challenging conditions, including a sandstorm (pictured) that reduced visibility to 30 metres, over 50C heat and soldiers carrying up to 45kg of equipment

'Removing the weapons and disrupting the terrorist operation will make a real difference to the local community and importantly the intelligence collected will help develop our understanding and help to prevent the threat from armed groups in the future.'

Lieutenant Colonel Tom Robinson, commanding officer of the Light Dragoons, said: 'This operation is a tangible example of how UK soldiers, as part of the UN Force, are making a real difference to protect the people of Mali who are living in one of the most vulnerable regions in the world.

'Using intelligence gathered during our patrols, we focussed on where terrorist groups were intimidating local people and were then able to find and seize the weapons and supplies, disrupting their harmful influence on local communities and gathering more information that will help interrupt further extremist activity.'

Troops from the Light Dragoons and Royal Anglian Regiment discovered the concealed haul (pictured) during a mission in a village near the border of Niger

The weapons and intelligence collected (the clothes and and other items seized, pictured) have been passed to the UN Mine Action Service, UN Police and Malian authorities, who will eventually destroy the materials

The 300-strong UK Task Group deployed to Mali in December 2020 to support the UN mission, which is made up of more than 13,000 peacekeepers from 56 different countries.

The weapons and intelligence collected have been passed to the UN Mine Action Service, UN Police and Malian authorities, who will eventually destroy the materials.

Swedish Colonel Markus Hook, commanding officer of the UN Mission's Mobile Task Force - of which the UK troops are a part - said: 'This Cordon and Search Operation was the first of its kind in a long period.

'It was based on information which suggested that a specific location within a village was being used for weapon storage by non-compliant armed groups which were harassing the local population.

'The operation was a direct and timely response to intelligence, and it serves as a telling example of how we are proactively fulfilling our mandate to protect civilians.'
Australia needs to vaccinate in larger numbers, re-open its borders and even be 'comfortable' with Covid potentially spreading again in communities, a leading health officer has declared.

In a recent speech delivered at the Royal Australian College of Surgeons annual scientific meeting, Dr Nick Coatsworth warned against a 'vocal few' activist doctors using social media to undermine public confidence in vaccines.

'Waiting [to vaccinate] is not a valid option either individually or for public health,' he said.

Dr Coatsworth's comments come after a report that warned Australia could 'lose a decade' and become a 'hermit nation' if the expert advice is largely ignored.

Former deputy chief medical officer Nick Coatsworth (pictured) says Australia needs to prepare for reopening international borders and the reintroduction of Covid in the community

Dr Coatsworth also condemned some doctors who have questioned the effectiveness of certain vaccines in Australia (pictured people lining up to check in for a flight from Sydney Airport)

'Ultimately when we allow Covid-19 back on our shores and it circulates in our community, we [need to be] prepared and comfortable for that to happen.'

The federal government has indicated international borders could be re-opened in the first half of next year - based on projections that most of the population will be fully vaccinated by then.

Dr Coatsworth said 'misinformation' from some doctors has the potential to undermine the vaccination national program.

He pointed to some doctors being 'anti' AstraZeneca and deliberately promoting Pfizer as a 'better' option.

'That is not advocacy, it is not policy debate, it is narcissism thinly cloaked as activism,' he told the Sydney Morning Herald.

'There is a big difference between someone who has a medical degree in a particular sub-specialty to our top vaccination experts.'

Dr Coastworth's series of recommendations comes as close to half of the 150 Australians booked on the first repatriation flight home from India on Friday were not allowed to board the plane.

A total of 42 had tested positive for Covid, forcing them to remain in the Covid-ravaged nation, where the reported number of deaths stands at over 266,000 people - and the figure is rapidly rising.

On Friday, former NSW Premier Mike Baird launched a report, dubbed 'A Roadmap to Reopening' which outlined the importance of Australia opening its borders as soon as possible in 2022.

Authors of the detailed report include the likes of respected Sydney based lawyer Mark Rigotti, University of Sydney school of architecture dean Robyn Dowling, and PricewaterhouseCoopers chief executive Tom Seymour, according to Perth Now.

A report, dubbed 'A Roadmap to Reopening' which outlined the importance of Australia opening its borders as soon as possible in 2022 - was launched by former NSW Premier Mike Baird on Friday (pictured an international traveller)

Failure to re-open the borders as soon as possible in 2022 could see Australia become a 'hermit nation' according to the report

'If Australia is not ready to re-open effectively when the world recovers from the worst of the pandemic, we face enormous dislocation socially and prolonged pain economically,' the report reads.

'We need to move from the anxiety of the last year to a more confident and outward looking future.

'If we do not, it is no exaggeration to say that young people, in particular, face a lost decade.'

The report goes onto suggest a three step approach to re-opening.

Widespread and rapid vaccination is highly recommended, followed by detailed testing of overseas arrivals.

A detailed quarantine system factoring in the needs of different employment industries was also viewed as integral.

'Safe re-engagement requires industry and place-specific strategies anchored in public health principles  by guiding by the objective of reopening our society  not reverting into a hermit nation,' Mr Rigotti said in a statement
A young boy who has been missing throughout the weekend has been identified after hours of searching on Saturday evening.

A member of the public in Hebersham found the boy at midday on Saturday, saying he was in distress and lost after fears the situation would be much worse.

Officers from the Mount Druit Police force launched a desperate search for the boy's parents before they were reunited about 4.30pm.

The boy (pictured) thought to be aged between five and seven was found in western Sydney on Saturday

The boy was found at 12.15pm by a member of the public located the boy in distress and contacted police.

The boy - thought to be aged between five and seven - was riding a bike when he was found.

Officers from nearby Mt Druitt Police Area Command assisted by NSW Ambulance paramedics, who took the boy to hospital for observation.

He was wearing a dark grey hooded jumper with a small white print of a car on the front, light grey tracksuit pants and no shoes.
Britain's ex-GCHQ chief has urged the government to ban ransomware payments to stop criminals profiteering from attacks.

Ciaran Martin, the founding chief executive of GCHQ's Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), spoke after the Irish health service was targeted by international criminals yesterday.

The Taoiseach refused to pay a ransom demand after the Health Service Executive (HSE) was plunged into chaos by the 'most significant cybercrime in the history of the State' which threatened the care of thousands of patients.

And Mr Martin today said making these payments illegal would help stop the funding of organised criminals who forced businesses into helping pay for further attacks.

He told The Times: 'At the moment you can pay to make it quietly go away. There's no legal obligations involved.

Ciaran Martin (pictured), the founding chief executive of GCHQ's Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), spoke after the Irish health service was targeted by international criminals yesterday

'There's no obligation to report to anybody, there's no traceability of payment of cryptocurrency. We have allowed this to spiral in an invisible way.'

Mr Martin pointed out there is legislation against paying ransom to terrorist organisations, but where a criminal gang is protected by a hostile state it is allowed - which he described as 'absurd'.

He said in cases where the hackers threaten human life an exception should be made.

It comes after hospitals were reduced to pen and paper operations Thursday when the ransomware attack  believed to be by a Russian gang  forced the HSE to shut down major IT systems to protect them.

Online appointments were all cancelled as were some cancer and other specialist consultations, and HSE chiefs warned the health service could be in 'a very serious situation' if the temporary shutdown continues into next week.

Such an event could see thousands of appointments and clinics cancelled.

With the Taoiseach and the HSE both insisting that no ransom will be paid to the hackers, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan yesterday said the attack will slow down their ability to organise effective testing and to measure the total number of Covid cases in the country.

Last week, the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, which carries 45 per cent of the fuel to the east coast of the US, threatened energy supplies. Pictured, Colonial Pipeline Houston Station facility in Pasadena, Texas

Online appointments were all cancelled as were some cancer and other specialist consultations, and HSE chiefs warned the health service could be in 'a very serious situation' if the temporary shutdown continues into next week (file image)

The HSE's IT services were cripped after a 'well-known' gang of Russian criminals manged to infiltrate the HSE's computer network and used a ransomware virus to encrypt some of the Health Service Executive's data.

The European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, EUROPOL, has multiple previous dealings with the digital crime gang.

What is a ransomware attack? Ransomware attacks typically involve the infection of computers with malicious software, often downloaded by clicking on seemingly innocuous links in emails or other website pop-ups. Users are left locked out of their systems, with the demand that a ransom be paid to restore computer functions. They differ from a data breach or other types of hacking, which may steal large batches of customer data or other information from companies or individuals. Advertisement

The hackers have demanded payment in Bitcoin, a crypto currency that can be almost impost impossible to trace, in return to unlocked the data they have locked.

The Taoiseach Micheal Martin last night vowed: 'we will not be paying any ransom'.

He acknowledged that there would be a significant impact on healthcare services.

'This is something that has to be dealt with in a methodical way. The system has been shut down. There's an assessment underway, identification of the issues and other processes.

'It will take some days to assess the impact and that is the proper way to do this and we will make those assessments over time. What's important is people co-operate with the HSE, emergency services are open, the vaccination programme continues uninterrupted,' he said.

Several cyber security experts said normally the only solution to situations like this is paying the ransom.

Speaking on RTE Drivetime Barry O'Sullivan, School of Computer Science at University College Cork said it is 'virtually impossible to recover the data without paying the ransom'.

'As much as it pains me to say, a ransom will probably be paid unless the HSE is able to secure this data from very, very recent data most likely disruption will be severe, with cancelled appointments,' he said.

The Government believes the hackers tried unsuccessfully to target and lock them out of their 'back-up' drives. This means they believe they can have full services up and running in 72 hours' time.

Dealing with cybersecurity threats is routine for large public and private organisations. Most are unsuccessful, with existing protections keeping an organisation safe.

In the U.S., the nation's largest fuel pipeline was hit with a ransomware attack a week ago. Pictured: Fuel holding tanks at Colonial Pipeline's station in Washington DC

Vehicles wait in lines at the Costco in Raleigh, North Carolina on Thursday. As the crisis entered its seventh day, fuel headaches continued for motorists in the South even after the Colonial Pipeline restarted operations

Minister of State at the Department of Communications Ossian Smyth said the HSE had suffered 'possibly the most significant cybercrime in the history of the State'.

And last week, the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, which carries 45 per cent of the fuel to the east coast of the US, threatened energy supplies.

In the UK the NCSC have been dealing with a rising number of ransomware attacks, with three times more in 2020 than the year before, and the global cost is thought to be as high as 120billion-a-year.

Mimecast, a cybersecurity firm, found almost half of British businesses targeted in the last year paid a ransom.

And Brett Callow, an expert in ransomware trends at cybersecurity specialist Emsisoft, agreed payments should be banned.

He said it would be short term pain, but ultimately would put a stop to future attacks.

Mr Martin also said insurers were part of the problem because they made it easy for companies to pay criminals to make the issue go away.

Britain's education sector was crippled by dozens of ransomware attacks earlier this year, as schools battled to keep children in lessons despite coronavirus lockdown.

The Harris Federation, which runs 50 academies in London and Essex, was faced with a loss of 37,000 pupils' email access, lesson plans and lunch payment systems.
US Secretary for Israel-Palestinian Affairs, Hady Amr, due to meet Israeli leaders in Jerusalem on Saturday

Harrowing pictures show nurses holding boy, reported to have been found next to mother's body, at hospital

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An Israeli man has been killed by a Hamas rocket in Tel Aviv and a five-month-old baby boy has been pulled alive from rubble following an overnight air strike on a refugee camp in Gaza City.

Several people also received minor injuries after rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, according to the Times of Israel.

The launch came in response to Israel's airstrike on a house killing 10 Palestinians in Gaza City, with harrowing pictures show nurses holding a boy, who was reported to have been found next to the body of his deceased mother, at Al-Shifa Hospital.

A three-storey building in Shati refugee camp collapsed following the airstrike, killing at least 10 members of an extended family - eight children and two women - the highest number of fatalities in a single hit since the battle erupted earlier this week.

Another Israeli airstrike has also demolished Jala Tower, which housed Al Jazeera television and Associated Press, with broadcast footage showing a huge mushroom cloud of dust and debris erupting from the 13-floor building.

A US envoy arrived for talks, with the United Nations (UN) Security Council set to meet on Sunday. US Secretary for Israel-Palestinian Affairs, Hady Amr, was due to meet Israeli leaders in Jerusalem, where the latest outburst of violence began, on Saturday before heading to the occupied West Bank for talks with Palestinian officials.

He wants to encourage a 'sustainable calm', State Department deputy spokeswoman Jalina Porter said.

But despite intensifying diplomatic efforts to ease five days of fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza, Israel's air force struck several sites in the coastal enclave overnight, while rockets again tore towards Israel.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters his wife and five children had gone to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday with relatives. She and three of the children, aged six to 14, were killed, while an 11-year-old is missing. Only his five-month-old son Omar is known to have survived.

Eleven Palestinians died in clashes in the occupied West Bank on Friday and there were fears of worse violence today as Palestinians mark Nakba (Catastrophe) Day, when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.

Washington has been criticised for not doing more to end the intensifying violence after it blocked a UN Security Council meeting scheduled for Friday.

The overall death toll in Gaza since Monday now tops 140, more than 30 of them children. Around 950 people have been wounded.

A nurse holds a baby, Omar, who was pulled alive from underneath rubble while other members of his family perished, at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City on Saturday after an Israeli air strike hit al-Shati Refugee Camp without advance warning overnight

Mohammed al-Hadidi with his baby son who was pulled alive from underneath the rubble while three of his children, aged six to 14, and wife perished in the Israeli airstrike

A nurse holds the baby boy at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. An airstrike on a house in Gaza City killed at least 10 Palestinians, mostly children - the highest number of fatalities in a single hit since the battle erupted earlier this week

The two nurses seen wearing face masks as one holds the baby boy at Al-Shifa Hospital. Ten members of a single family - eight children and two women - were killed when a three-storey building in Shati refugee camp collapsed following an Israel strike

The baby boy is reported to have been found next to the body of his deceased mother. Hamas militants responded by firing more rockets into Israel as their battle entered a fifth consecutive night and a US envoy arrived for talks

US Secretary for Israel-Palestinian Affairs, Hady Amr (pictured left), was due to meet Israeli leaders in Jerusalem on Saturday before heading to the occupied West Bank for talks with Palestinian officials. But Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) gave no indication that Israel was ready to ease its campaign

United Nations Security Council to meet on Sunday over violence The United Nations (UN) said the Security Council would meet on Sunday to address the violence. But Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave no indication that Israel was ready to ease its campaign. 'I said we'd deliver heavy blows to Hamas and other terror groups, and we're doing that,' Netanyahu said. 'They're paying and will continue to pay dearly for that. It's not over yet.' Israel estimates that more than 30 leaders of Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad have been killed. It has hit sites it describes as military targets such as Hamas bomb-making facilities and the homes of senior militant commanders. Advertisement

'There was no warning,' said Jamal Al-Naji, a neighbour living in the same building. 'You filmed people eating and then you bombed them?' he said, addressing Israel.

'Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!'

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the airstrike.

Egypt opened its Rafah border crossing with Gaza on Saturday to allow in 10 ambulances carrying seriously injured Palestinians for treatment in Egyptian hospitals, medical officials said.

Meanwhile, Israel 'destroyed Jala Tower in the Gaza Strip, which contains the Al Jazeera and other international press offices,' Al Jazeera said in a tweet.

The strike on the building housing media offices came in the afternoon, after the building's owner received a call from the Israeli military warning that it would be hit.

Broadcast footage from Al Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatar's government, shows the building collapsing to the ground after the Israeli air strike, sending up a huge mushroom cloud of dust and debris.

Israel, which is also trying to contain an outbreak of internal Jewish-Arab violence, is facing its bloodiest conflict with Palestinian militants in Gaza since a 2014 war.

Its bombardment began on Monday after the territory's Islamist rulers Hamas fired rockets towards Jerusalem in response to a bloody Israeli police action at the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound in annexed east Jerusalem.

More than 2,000 rockets have been fired at Israel since then, killing nine people, including a child and a soldier. Over 560 people have been wounded.

The aftermath following the Israeli strike, which destroyed Jala Tower - a 13-floor building housing Al Jazeera television and Associated Press

Israel 'destroyed Jala Tower in the Gaza Strip, which contains the Al Jazeera and other international press offices,' Al Jazeera said in a tweet. It was reported the army had warned the tower's owner ahead of the strike on Saturday

The bomb seen hurtling towards the building. Jawad Mehdi, the owner of the Jala Tower, said an Israeli intelligence officer warned him he had just one hour to ensure the evacuation of the building

A ball of fire erupts from the Jala Tower as it is destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City. It came hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp in Gaza City killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family

Smoke billows as an air bomb is dropped on the Jala Tower during an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City. Wael al-Dahdouh, Al Jazeera's bureau chief in Gaza, said: 'It's terrible, very sad, to target the Al Jazeera and other press bureaux'

A building housing various international media, including Al Jazeera and The Associated Press, collapses after an Israeli airstrike on Saturday, May 15, in Gaza City

A ball of fire erupts from the Jala Tower as it is destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on Saturday, May 15

A Palestinian firefighter speaks to colleagues following an Israeli strike on Rafah town in the southern Gaza Strip on May 15

Palestinians inspect the damages following Israeli air strikes in Gaza City amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence on May 15

A man gestures as he prepares with others to bury the bodies of Palestinian children and their mother from the Al-Hadidi family, who were killed amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, during their funeral at a cemetery on May 15

Palestinians take part in the funeral of the Abu Hatab family in Gaza City on May 15 - an extended family of 10 who were killed early in an Israeli air strike on the western Gaza Strip

Mourners stand next to the bodies of Palestinians who were killed amid a flare-up of Israel-Palestinian violence, during their funeral at the Beach refugee camp in Gaza City

Building housing Al Jazeera television and Associated Press is destroyed by an Israeli air strike in the Gaza Strip Israel 'destroyed Jala Tower in the Gaza Strip, which contains the Al Jazeera and other international press offices,' Al Jazeera said in a tweet. The strike on the building housing media offices came in the afternoon, after the building's owner received a call from the Israeli military warning that it would be hit. Broadcast footage from Al Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatar's government, shows the building collapsing to the ground after the Israeli air strike, sending up a huge mushroom cloud of dust and debris. 'This channel will not be silenced. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced,' an on-air anchorwoman said, her voice thick with emotion. 'We can guarantee you that right now.' Jawad Mehdi, the owner of the Jala Tower, said an Israeli intelligence officer warned him he had just one hour to ensure the evacuation of the building. AP's staff and others in the building evacuated immediately. Advertisement

Between 7pm Friday and 7am Saturday, some 200 rockets were fired at southern Israel, over 100 of which were intercepted by air defences, the Israeli military said.

Israel's response has seen it hit nearly 800 targets, including a massive assault Friday on a Hamas tunnel network dug under civilian areas.

Tower blocks and other multi-storey buildings have been levelled.

Some 10,000 Palestinians have fled homes near the Israeli border for fear of a ground offensive, the United Nations said.

'They are sheltering in schools, mosques and other places during a global Covid-19 pandemic with limited access to water, food, hygiene and health services, said UN humanitarian coordinator for the occupied territories, Lynn Hastings.

'All the children are afraid and we are afraid for the children,' said Kamal al-Haddad, who fled with his family to a UN-supported school in Gaza City.

Early on Saturday, the Israeli army said it had hit a Hamas 'operation office' near the centre of Gaza City, with additional overnight strikes targeting what the military called 'underground launch sites'.

Gaza's infrastructure, already in widespread disrepair because of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after Hamas seized power in 2007, showed signs of breaking down further, compounding residents' misery. The territory's sole power plant is at risk of running out of fuel in the coming days.

The UN said Gazans are already enduring daily power cuts of 8-12 hours and at least 230,000 have limited access to tap water. The impoverished and densely populated territory is home to 2million Palestinians, most of them the descendants of refugees from what is now Israel.

The conflict has reverberated widely. Israeli cities with mixed Arab and Jewish populations have seen nightly violence, with mobs from each community fighting in the streets and trashing each other's property.

Israeli beachgoers rush towards shelters in the central city of Tel Aviv on May 15 following the launching of rockets from the Gaza Strip controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement towards Israel

Israeli beachgoers take cover in the central city of Tel Aviv on May 15 following the launching of rockets from the Gaza Strip

Israeli beachgoers and a dog are seen rushing towards shelters in the central city of Tel Aviv on May 15 after the launching of rockets

Israeli beachgoers are seen rushing towards shelters in Tel Aviv. Rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement towards Israel

Israeli beachgoers pictured going towards shelters in Tel Aviv. Israel, which is also trying to contain an outbreak of internal Jewish-Arab violence, is facing its bloodiest conflict with Palestinian militants in Gaza since a 2014 war

Israeli beachgoers, including children, are seen on their way to take cover in Tel Aviv following the launching of rockets from the Gaza Strip on May 15

Israeli beachgoers lie in a row by some steps as they take cover following the launching of rockets on May 15

A firefighter walks at a site where a rocket fired from Gaza has landed in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, Israel

A man looks at a burnt-out car where a rocket fired from Gaza has landed in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, Israel, on May 15

Pedestrians look on as barricade tape surrounds an area hit by a rocket fired from Gaza, in Ramat Gan, Tel Aviv District, Israel, on May 15 in an image obtained from social media

Eleven people killed by Israeli fire during fierce clashes in the West Bank The West Bank saw fierce clashes on Friday, with the Palestinian health ministry saying 11 people were killed by Israeli fire. A Palestinian security source said the fighting was the 'most intense' since the second intifada, or uprising, that began in 2000. Violence on Fridays in the West Bank has become a routine part of the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but the latest unrest was fuelled by developments in Jerusalem and Gaza. 'It would be shameful to remain quiet with what's going on in Gaza,' said Oday Hassan, 21, who was protesting in the West Bank town of Al-Birah. At the least one of the Palestinians killed was shot dead after attempting to stab a soldier north of Ramallah, said the Israeli army, which early Saturday reported a new attempted knife attack during 'a violent riot' in Nablus. In annexed east Jerusalem, overnight clashes hit Palestinian neighbourhoods across the city. In Shuafat, masked Palestinian protesters threw stones and petrol bombs at police, who responded with tear gas. Advertisement

Late on Friday, someone threw a firebomb at an Arab family's home in the Ajami neighborhood of Tel Aviv, striking two children. A 12-year-old boy was in moderate condition with burns on his upper body and a 10-year-old girl was treated for a head injury, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service.

In the occupied West Bank, on the outskirts of Ramallah, Nablus and other towns and cities, hundreds of Palestinians protested the Gaza campaign and Israeli actions in Jerusalem. Waving Palestinian flags, they trucked in tires that they set up in burning barricades and hurled stones at Israeli soldiers. At least 10 protesters were shot and killed by soldiers. An 11th Palestinian was killed when he tried to stab a soldier at a military position.

In east Jerusalem, online video showed young Jewish nationalists firing pistols as they traded volleys of stones with Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah, which became a flashpoint for tensions over attempts by settlers to forcibly evict a number of Palestinian families from their homes.

On Israel's northern border, troops opened fire when a group of Lebanese and Palestinian protesters on the other side cut through the border fence and briefly crossed. One Lebanese was killed. Three rockets were fired toward Israel from neighboring Syria without causing any casualties or damage. It was not immediately known who fired them.

The tensions began in east Jerusalem earlier this month, with Palestinian protests against the Sheikh Jarrah evictions and Israeli police measures at Al-Aqsa Mosque, a frequent flashpoint located on a mount in the Old City revered by Muslims and Jews.

Hamas fired rockets toward Jerusalem late Monday, in an apparent attempt to present itself as the champion of the protesters.

Meanwhile, the UN said the Security Council would meet on Sunday to address the violence.

But Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave no indication that Israel was ready to ease its campaign. I said we'd deliver heavy blows to Hamas and other terror groups, and we're doing that,' Netanyahu said.

A Palestinian protester launches flares amid clashes with Israeli soldiers in the city center of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, following a rally for Fateh movement supporters denouncing the Israeli Gaza attacks and supporting Palestinians of Jerusalem, on May 14, 2021

Israeli soldiers take aim during clashes with Palestinian protesters in the city center of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, following a rally for Fateh movement supporters denouncing the Israeli Gaza attacks and supporting Palestinians of Jerusalem, on May 14

Israeli border guards detain a Palestinian youth in Jerusalem on May 14, 2021, during clashes between Israeli far-right extremists and Palestinian

Palestinian protesters set up barricades during clashes with Israeli forces in the Shuafat camp for Palestinian refugees, neighbouring the Israeli settlement of Ramat Shlomo, in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on May 14, 2021

A Palestinian protester lights a molotov cocktail during clashes with Israeli forces in the Shuafat camp for Palestinian refugees, neighbouring the Israeli settlement of Ramat Shlomo, in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on May 14, 2021

Rockets are launched from Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, towards Israel early on May 15, 2021

An Israeli rocket falls over buildings linked to the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza City, amid the escalating flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, May 14, 2021

Smoke rises after airstrikes over Ansar Government Complex building, carried out by Israeli army, on the second day of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Gaza City, Gaza on May 14, 2021

Palestinian mourners carry the body of Nidal Safadi, who was killed in clashes with Israeli forces, during his funeral in the West Bank village of Urif, near Nablus, Friday, May 14, 2021

'They're paying and will continue to pay dearly for that. It's not over yet.'

U.S. President Joe Biden has expressed support for Israel while saying he hopes to bring the violence under control.

Israel estimates that more than 30 leaders of Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad have been killed.

It has hit sites it describes as military targets such as Hamas bomb-making facilities and the homes of senior militant commanders.

Hamas has fired some 2,000 rockets toward Israel since Monday, according to the Israeli military. Most have been intercepted by anti-missile defenses, but they have brought life to a standstill in southern Israeli cities, caused disruptions at airports and have set off air raid sirens in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Israeli soldiers prepare their artillery unit near the border with Gaza Strip on May 14, 2021 in Sderot, Israel

Israeli soldiers prepare their artillery unit near the border with Gaza Strip on May 14, 2021 in Sderot, Israel

Israeli troops are pictured at their position in southern Israel along the border with the Gaza Strip from on May 14, 2021

Israeli soldiers stand guard after firing flares above the northern town of Metula, by the border with Lebanon, following a pro-Palestinian protest across the border in the Lebanese Khiam area, on May 14, 2021

Smoke rises after airstrikes over Ansar Government Complex building, carried out by Israeli army, on the second day of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Gaza City, Gaza on May 14, 2021

A Palestinian woman shouts in the street as those living in Gaza assess the damage after a night of IDF bombardment
rtgage rates might be low, but dual incomes are continuing to go backwards

Buyers beware, especially the growing number of young Australians turning to the 'bank of mum and dad' for help stumping up home loan deposits.

Accounting for $29 billion annually, BoMaD is the nation's ninth-largest mortgage lender and a port of call for almost 4000 'kidults' every month, according to comparison site Finder.

While it's natural for parents and grandparents to offer what they can, housing specialist Martin North is not sure in this case it's always good thing.

His company, Digital Finance Analytics, conducts a rolling national household survey which has tracked the massive spike in BoMaD borrowing.

He says the average loan is a whopping $90,000 but that's not the real concern. It's the fact that adult children who borrow from parents are three-to-five times more likely to default on their mortgage within five years.

The Bank of Mum and Dad is the nation's ninth-largest mortgage lender and a port of call for almost 4000 'kidults' every month, according to comparison site Finder

Owning a home (pictured) remains the great Australian dream - but it is unattainable for many

'I'm not saying it's wrong and I'm not saying we shouldn't do it, but what I am saying is we should do it with open eyes,' Mr North said.

'The trouble is that those who have not had the discipline of saving over many years for a deposit can find that when they are given that seagull payment, they probably buy a bigger property than they should.'

That means taking on a bigger mortgage than they should without having learned the discipline of managing their finances.

For mum and dad or grandma and grandpa, it often also means handing down equity from their own properties on the assumption real estate prices are going to keep climbing as they transition into retirement.

Meanwhile, banks have stopped asking so many questions about where people are getting money for deposits, Mr North said.

'Underwriting standards aren't necessarily highlighting some of these issues' and that's down to regulation, which is determined by government policy.

'It's short-termism and it is going to come back to bite the hand that feeds.'

With the average first-time mortgage 15 per cent larger than a year ago and people more leveraged into property at a time when it's already expensive, the big structural risks are building.

'Mortgage rates might be low but incomes are going backwards in real terms,' Mr North said.

'This is not good policy from a structural perspective, let alone a household or social perspective. The problem is we have no one who is willing to step up and take responsibility.'

Many properties in Australia (pictured) continue to sell well above the reserve price, making owning a house a pipedream for many

Recent data has revealed adult children who borrow from parents are three-to-five times more likely to default on their mortgage within five years (stock image)

Regardless, the market frenzy continues unabated.

There were 2934 capital city homes set to go to auction this week, according to data analyser CoreLogic.

That's down only slightly on last week's 3016 auctions held, which happened to be the second busiest week for auctions of the year.

Melbourne is expecting 1302 properties to go under the hammer, Sydney 1207, with volumes also higher in Perth and Tasmania.

Finder's findings on the extent of mum and dad lending was based on a national survey of 1028 first home buyers.
A health minister today defended the timing of Britain shutting its borders with India, as the Government came under fire for'inexplicable delays' in reacting to the spread of the deadly variant abroad.

Labour has piled pressure on No10 for keeping India off the 'red list' until late April, some two weeks after neighbouring Pakistan and Bangladesh were added.

Critics branded the delay 'reckless, misguided and dangerous' with 122 cases of the rapidly-spreading variant already entering the UK by the time restrictions around travel to and from India were finally enforced.

Some have previously suggested that the Prime Minister was keen to keep relations strong with India, having planned a visit - which subsequently had to be cancelled - as part of efforts to negotiate a post-Brexit trade deal.

The variant has since spread significantly, however, with the latest data showing a rise from 520 to 1,313 this week alone.

Arrivals from red list nations must quarantine in a hotel for two weeks, while travellers from amber list nations can do so at home.

Chair of the Commons home affairs committee Yvette Cooper accused the Government of having 'inexplicably delayed' the move 'after which many thousands of people had returned from India bringing in many hundreds of new variant cases'.

But Edward Argar defended the government's decision, insisting decisions were made 'on the basis of the evidence, based on a number of factors'.

Health minister Edward Argar said decisions about India going on the 'red list' were made 'on the basis of the evidence, based on a number of factors'

The government has been blasted for not adding India to the 'red list' until April 23, by which time 122 cases of the rapidly-spreading variant had already entered the UK. Pictured: A cremation in India. The country is overwhelmed with Covid cases

He told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme that it is ' impossible to completely hermetically seal the borders of the country'.

One case of the highly transmissible variant - which scientists have warned could be 50 per cent more transmissible than the Kent variety - slipping through the net could have spread rapidly causing others, he claimed.

The minister said: 'The decisions made on whether any country moved to the so-called red list were made on the basis of evidence, data and a number of factors reflecting that.

'But what I think is important here is to remember that whether on the red list or the amber list, our restrictions on borders to control any risk of importation of the variant or virus are among the strictest and the toughest in the world.

The LSHTM model suggested hospitals could have another 30,000 inpatients by the end of July - up to around 45,000 - compared to the current 845

Similar but less grim modelling by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine suggested that a 50 per cent increase in transmissibility could trigger a peak of 4,000 admissions per day in July or August, possibly extending to 6,000 per day

'Including the locator form, the test before you travel, the two and eight day test, the quarantine at home if on the amber list and quarantine in a hotel that's managed on the red list.

'These are some of the toughest restrictions in the world. So, I think we took the right decisions at the right time.'

Questioned on why Bangladesh and Pakistan were added to the red list two weeks ahead of India, Mr Argar stressed the decisions were made 'on the basis of the evidence, the data and a number of other factors'.

When pressed on whether the number of cases of the Indian Covid variant could have been reduced had India been added to the list sooner, he said: 'There are two points I would make on that.

'First of all, the advice given to ministers and decisions made by ministers were made on the basis of the evidence, the data and a number of other factors.

'The second point I would make is about the transmissibility of this variant.

'So its not about the numbers of people who came in. We know that this variant is highly transmissible.

A volunteer runs to avoid heat emitting from the burning funeral pyres of Covid-19 victims in Jammu, India

'One person could bring in a variant and that could transmit.

'It is impossible to completely hermetically seal the borders of a country.'

The PM defended his decision to keep India off the red list last night, but warned the variant could 'pose a serious disruption' to plans to ease restrictions and 'could make it more difficult' to end them as hoped in June.

Cases of the B.1.617.2 strain have more than doubled in the past week across the UK, with 1,313 cases detected by May 12, up from the 520 the previous week.

Ministers are pushing on with a major easing of restrictions on Monday despite concerns over the Indian variant.

Mr Johnson is sticking by plans to allow mixing indoors and greater physical contact in England from Monday.

Mr Argar said the Government was acting 'coolly' and 'calmly' in carrying on with step three in the road map to ending lockdown restrictions.

However, the British Medical Association (BMA) said the move is a 'real worry' while many are still awaiting vaccination.

People wait to refill medical oxygen cylinders for Covid-19 patients under home quarantine in New Delhi

The Prime Minister warned on Friday the variant could cause 'serious disruption' to plans to ease the lockdown and may delay the planned ending of all legal restrictions on June 21.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) concluded there is a 'realistic possibility' the strain is 50 per centmore transmissible than the one that emerged in Kent.

If the higher transmissibility is confirmed, the experts said moving to step three could 'lead to a substantial resurgence of hospitalisations' that is 'similar to, or larger than, previous peaks'.

Mr Argar told BBC Breakfast: 'All the evidence so far suggests there is no evidence of increased severity of illness or that it evades the vaccine.

'So, at the moment, on the basis of the evidence we are doing the right thing, coolly, calmly continuing with Monday, but keeping everything under review.'

Monday's easing will allow people to socialise indoors in homes, pubs and restaurants, and will permit physical contact between households for the first time in more than a year.

Mr Argar said people should take personal responsibility when deciding whether or not to hug loved ones, when allowed to do so.

Facing the nation last night he said that Monday's Step 3 easing of restrictions would go ahead as planned. But he told the nation it might face 'hard choices in the weeks ahead' if the variant proved to be far more transmissible than other variants in circulation.

'You have to take all the facts into consideration,' he said. 'It's about personal responsibility, it's about making the right judgment call.'

The BMA's public health medicine committee co-chairman Dr Richard Jarvis urged the public to take a 'cautious approach' to social and physical contact.

'With key segments of the population still not vaccinated and clusters of variants, including the rapidly increasing Indian variant, becoming a growing concern, we must approach this next stage of easing lockdown with the utmost caution,' he said.

'It is a real worry that when further measures lift on May 17, the majority of younger people, who are often highly socially mobile and could therefore be most at risk of a more infectious strain, are not yet vaccinated.'

To combat the variant's spread, people aged over 50 and the clinically vulnerable will have their second doses of a Covid vaccine accelerated.

Soldiers will be deployed on the streets to hand out tests, as was the case during mass testing in Liverpool last year (pictured)

Surge testing is also under way in several places in England including areas of Bolton, Blackburn, Sefton and London.

Public Health England data shows a rise in cases of the Indian variant of concern from 520 to 1,313 this week in the UK.

Labour's shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth accused the Prime Minister of a 'reckless failure to protect our borders'.

And last night the party's deputy leader Angela Rayner tweeted: 'Boris Johnson's decision to yet again refuse to learn from his mistakes and leave the borders open to arrivals from India without hotel quarantine is looking more and more reckless, misguided and dangerous by the hour.'

Layla Moran, the Lib Dem MP who chairs the all-party parliamentary group on coronavirus, added: 'Boris Johnson must take responsibility for the failure to prevent the Indian variant taking root in the UK.

'Once again the Government acted too late, and the country is sadly paying the price.'

Meanwhile, the deputy chair of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) said vaccines are 'almost certainly less effective' at reducing transmission of the Indian variant.

But Professor Anthony Harnden said it is not believed the strain evades the vaccines' effectiveness in preventing severe disease.

He defended the approach of bringing forward second jabs rather than speeding up the rollout to younger people, saying targeting more vulnerable people with full immunity is a 'better strategy'.

'The vaccines may be less effective against transmission and immunity takes a number of weeks to develop, so it's not a very good strategy for preventing transmission, what we want is to prevent disease,' he told Today.

'From a vaccination strategy it just won't help mass-vaccinating a number of young people at the expense of older people who haven't been vaccinated.'
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Rallies have been held in Sydney and Melbourne to protest attacks in Gaza as conflict continues between Israeli forces and Hamas militants.

Thousands gathered in Sydney and hundreds in Melbourne to protest against Israel, mirroring similar protests in other cities around the world.

Protesters outside Sydney's Town Hall carried Palestinian flags and placards demanding 'Free Palestine' and 'block weapons to Israel'.

One man, 20, was arrested after climbing Town Hall to wave a Palestinian flag. He has not been charged.

Protesters hold placards during a demonstration against Israel at the Town Hall in Sydney - they were out in force looking for the conflict on the Gaza Strip

Thousands turned out in Sydney (pictured) and Melbourne to protest the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Territories on the Gaza Strip

One man, 20, was arrested after climbing Town Hall to wave a Palestinian flag. He has not been charged

A young girl attended the rally with her parents holding a sign that said: 'Israel is killing children like me'.

Many people shouted: 'From the river to sea, Palestine will be free'.

Earlier this week, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne urged for an end to the violence in the Gaza Strip as the death toll rises.

Senator Payne said the government was deeply concerned about escalating violence in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank.

Protesters attend a demonstration against Israel at the Town Hall in Sydney

A youngster carrying a sign saying 'Stop Killing Our Kids' at the protest in Melbourne

A child attends a demonstration against Israel at the Town Hall in Sydney on Saturday, May 15

'We've unequivocally called on all leaders to take immediate steps to halt violence, to maintain restraint, and to restore calm,' she said at a press briefing in Washington on Friday.

It follows Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday restating the government's policy of a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine, describing Australia as an agent for peace.

He urged Australians with ties to the conflict to act with tolerance and respect.

Protestors (pictured) in Sydney making their voices heard on Saturday - no arrests were made, with the protests passionate and peaceful

Protesters waving Palestinian flags during a demonstration (pictured) against Israel at the Town Hall in Sydney on May 15

Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday restating the government's policy of a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine, describing Australia as an agent for peace. Pictured: Protesters in Sydney on Saturday

'By all means, people can have concerns and views, and there is a tolerance for that, but at the same time we do not want to import the troubles of other parts of the world into this country,' Mr Morrison said.

There were no reports on Saturday night of arrests or misbehaviour at either of the day's protests.

More than 130 have been killed in Gaza amid the latest conflict which flared on Monday and continued into the weekend.

Passionate protestors (pictured) taking part in a protest rally in Melbourne on May 15, 2021, calling for an end to the escalating violence between Israel and the Palestinian Territories

A series of protesters (pictured) holding a banner during a demonstration march against Israel in Sydney on May 15
Wreaths have been laid at the Cenotaph to mark the centenary of the Royal British Legion today.

The charity marked the exact moment of its formation 100 years ago at 9am on Saturday with the laying of wreaths on Whitehall in London and other towns, cities and villages across the UK.

Representatives of the Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force and Merchant Navy laid wreaths at the Cenotaph to replicate the same actions of that time and day a century ago.

The ceremony was led by retired Lieutenant General James Bashall, who is national president of the RBL.

Wreaths have been laid at the Cenotaph (pictured) to mark the centenary of the Royal British Legion today

The charity marked the exact moment of its formation 100 years ago at 9am on Saturday with the laying of wreaths (pictured) on Whitehall in London and other towns, cities and villages across the UK

The ceremony was led by retired Lieutenant General James Bashall (pictured laying a wreath), who is national president of the RBL

In a video message to celebrate the charity's centenary, the Prince of Wales hailed its 'constant' support of the Armed Forces community.

Prince Charles said: 'There are few organisations which hold a place at the heart of society in the way the Royal British Legion does.

'For one hundred years, the Royal British Legion has been a constant, through the annual Poppy Appeal, leading the nation in remembrance and providing a life-long commitment to every veteran and their families.

Representatives of the Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force and Merchant Navy laid wreaths at the Cenotaph to replicate the same actions of that time and day a century ago. Pictured: Lieutenant General Bashall laying his wreath

A special edition RBL centenary coin will also be used for the coin toss of the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Leicester City at Wembley. Pictured: A wreath being laid today

In a video message to celebrate the charity's centenary, the Prince of Wales (pictured) hailed its 'constant' support of the Armed Forces community

'Therefore, I wanted, above all, to offer my sincere and heartfelt gratitude to all those who have helped build this wonderful organisation we know today, and to all those who will be part of its future.'

Charles's video led a wealth of tributes from service personnel and members of the Armed Forces community, as well as celebrity supporters including Ross Kemp and Stephen Fry.

A special edition RBL centenary coin will also be used for the coin toss of the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Leicester City at Wembley.

Prince Charles (pictured) said: 'There are few organisations which hold a place at the heart of society in the way the Royal British Legion does'

RBL director general Charles Byrne said: 'In this, our centenary year, we are focused firmly on our future.

'Our proud heritage and 100 years of experience supporting the Armed Forces community have built the strong foundations of an organisation fit for the next 100.

'We remain committed to our mission to ensure that those who have given so much for their country get the fair treatment, support and recognition they deserve.'
A smiling Priti Patel today joined millions of Brits who have received a Covid-19 vaccine dose, as Labour claim she breached the Ministerial Code when lobbying for a 20million PPE contract last year.

The Home Secretary, 49, gave out a warm smile from beneath a mask as she was pictured at Guy's Hospital in Southwark this morning.

Ms Patel received her first dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine from Dr Vin Diwakar at the south London hospital.

She joins millions of Brits who have received their jabs as the country is set to unlock further with step three of the Government's road map on Monday.

The news comes amid a brewing storm after Ms Patel wrote to fellow cabinet minister Michael Gove on behalf of a pharmaceutical firm seeking a PPE contract last spring.

Ms Patel has denied any wrongdoing as Labour accused the Home Secretary of a 'glaring and flagrant breach' of the Ministerial Code.

Priti Patel, 49, lets out a smile from behind her mask as she receives her first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine

A newly published American study has said just one dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine cuts the risk of getting sick with Covid-19 by over 80 per cent

Ms Patel, 49, received her first Moderna dose this morning at Guy's Hospital in south London, as she is accused of a 'glaring and flagrant breach' of the Ministerial Code.

Pictures show the Home Secretary speaking with Dr Vin Diwakar as she rolls up her sleeve on her left arm in eager anticipation.

As the needle goes in, she looks towards the camera and lets out a warm smile from beneath her pink mask.

The news comes as she was accused of a 'glaring and flagrant' breach of the Ministerial Code after she lobbied a fellow minister on behalf of a healthcare firm trying to seal a 20million deal for PPE.

A Daily Mail investigation has revealed Ms Patel spoke with cabinet minister Michael Gove over a 20million mask contract for Pharmaceuticals Direct Ltd last April.

She had been approached by her former advisor Samir Jassal, a Tory councillor in Kent, but made no mention of him or his links to PDL in her lobbying to Mr Gove.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock rejected the proposal, saying the masks were 'not suitable for the NHS', but weeks later PDL were awarded a no-competition 102.6m contract to supply a better type of mask.

Labour has demanded an investigation, describing this as potentially 'a glaring and flagrant breach of the Ministerial Code.'

Ms Patel has denied any wrongdoing as the deal is now being challenged at a High Court judicial review.

Her spokesman said: 'The Home Secretary rightly followed up representations made to her about the vital supply of PPE.

'During a time of national crisis failure to do so would have been a dereliction of duty.'

From Monday, May 17, England will be under step three of the Government's roadmap of Covid-19 restrictions as infection figures have plummeted.

As of yesterday afternoon, more than 55 million people have received either their first or both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine in the United Kingdom.

And those receiving the Moderna jab have seen the risk of getting ill with Covid-19 drop by more than 90%, according to an American study.

The Home Secretary speaks with Dr Vin Diwakar as she receives her Moderna vaccine in London this morning

Home Secretary Priti Patel with Samir Jassal, a two-time parliamentary candidate and Tory councillor in Kent, when he stood for Feltham in west London in the 2017 general election

Ms Patel is likely to be buoyed by the good news that just one dose of Moderna's vaccine can cut the risk of getting ill with Covid-19 by more than 80 per cent, according to a study by the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

'This report provided the most compelling information to date that COVID-19 vaccines were performing as expected in the real world,' said CDC Director Dr Rochelle Walensky in a statement accompanying the new study yesterday.

55,434,965 people across the United Kingdom have received either their first of both doses of a coronavirus vaccine as of Friday, May 14.

Daily vaccination figures have tumbled in recent weeks from their high of more than 500,000 per day in the middle of March.

Numbers dipped below 100,000 a day at the start of April, but we are starting to see an incremental rise as the nation heads towards a summer of fewer restrictions.
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Nine police officers were injured and missiles were thrown amid efforts to disperse pro-Palestine protesters outside the Israeli Embassy in London on Saturday.

Thousands of people marched through the capital on Saturday to the gates of the embassy in Kensington, while protests took place in other cities across the UK and Ireland in solidarity with the people of Palestine.

The Metropolitan Police said nine people were arrested on suspicion of violent disorder in London, and a further four were arrested on suspicion of breaching the Health Protection Regulations.

The force said small pockets of disorder had followed a largely peaceful demonstration.

Protesters were seen scaling buildings, climbing on the gates of Kensington palace, setting off fireworks and clambering to the top of traffic lights outside the embassy.

A video showed that some clashed with police, with one officer shown on the ground injured while another man was arrested. A separate video showed people throwing drinks at officers stationed at the palace gates.

Meanwhile, in Paris protesters defied a strict order against large gatherings to express their anger over the treatment of the Palestinian people. Riot police reacted with force, spraying desperate Parisians with water cannons to try to dispel the crowds.

In Birmingham hundreds of demonstrators descended on the city centre today in support of Palestine amid escalating violence between the Arab state and Israel.

Organisers in London say 'immediate action' is needed by the UK Government to help end the 'brutal' violence against the Palestinian people.

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn told the crowds international action provides 'succour, comfort and support' to those suffering in the conflict. Crowds chanted 'oh, Jeremy Corbyn' and threw roses as he took to the stage.

Nine police officers were injured and missiles were thrown amid efforts to disperse pro-Palestine protesters outside the Israeli Embassy in London on Saturday. Pictured: Metropolitan Police arrest a pro-Palestinian demonstrator outside the Israeli Embassy in central London on Saturday, May 15, 2021

Metropolitan Police arrest a pro-Palestinian demonstrator outside the Israeli Embassy in central London on Saturday, May 15, 2021. Thousands of people marched through the capital on Saturday to the gates of the embassy in Kensington, while protests took place in other cities across the UK and Ireland in solidarity with the people of Palestine

Nine people were arrested on suspicion of violent disorder in London, the Metropolitan Police said. Pictured: Metropolitan Police arrest a pro-Palestinian demonstrator outside the Israeli Embassy in central London on Saturday, May 15, 2021

Other speakers outside the Israeli embassy were Labour MP Zarah Sultana and rapper Lowkey. The names and ages of the children killed in the conflict were read out, followed by a minute's silence.

People were told to move further down the road as a matter of crowd safety, and there were cheers as organisers told them the turnout was 'the biggest pro-Palestine demonstration since 2014'.

Organisers said demonstrator numbers were estimated at 150,000. Coloured smoke was set off along Kensington High Street and some demonstrators climbed on to buildings and bus stops.

Among the buildings to be scaled were the offices of the MailOnline, where protesters climbed on scaffolding and set off fireworks.

It comes as thousands of Palestinians have been forced to flee from their homes after a week of sustained conflict.

Since Monday night, Palestinian militant group Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, whose military responded by barraging the Gaza Strip with tank fire and air strikes.

At least 126 people have been killed in Gaza, including 31 children and 20 women. In Israel eight people have been killed, including a six-year-old boy and a soldier.

Free Palestine protesters throw drinks, eggs and flares at the police in Kensington, central London near the Israeli Embassy. Police were injured on Saturday in clashes with pro-Palestine protesters in London, as thousands marched through London's Hyde Park to the Israeli Embassy in solidarity with the people caught in ongoing conflict with Israel

Pictured: The moment a drink is thrown at police officers outside the gates to Kensington Palace by pro-Palestine protesters

Thousands of people demonstrate through central London in a march organised by Stop the War

Protesters scaled scaffolding and held up flags as they took part in demonstrations in London on Saturday

At Kensington Palace demonstrators scaled a wall as they held placards that read 'Free Palestine'

Pictured: Supporters of Palestine attend a demonstration outside the Israeli embassy in London, Britain, 15 May 2021

Pictured: Supporters of Palestine burn the Israeli flag during a demonstration outside the Israeli embassy in London, Britain, 15 May 2021

A large banner reading 'National Demonstration for Free Palestine. Exist! Resist! Return!' was held aloft

Protesters climbed up traffic lights as thousands of people marched through the streets of London

Protesters scaled scaffolding for a better view of the stage as thousands of people descended on the area

Muslims who attended the pro-Palestinian protest take a moment to pray in a street in Kensington

People scaled buildings as they clamoured for the best view of the makeshift stage during the demonstration

Smoke billows after an Israeli airstrike on Gaza City targeted the Ansar compound on Saturday

Mr Corbyn added: 'Think what it's like being a mother or father and seeing a building bombed in front of you, knowing your family is in there, and you can do nothing,' said Mr Corbyn.

'It's our global voices that will give succour, comfort and support in those settlements alongside Gaza and all over the West Bank, East Jerusalem who are suffering at this time.

'End the occupation now. End all the settlements now and withdraw then. End the siege of Gaza now.'

Husam Zumlot, Palestinian ambassador to the UK, told crowds: 'This time is different. This time we will not be denied any more. We are united. We have had enough of oppression. Today we are saying enough, enough with the complicity. Thank you for standing with us.'

The crowd stretched back to Bayswater Road from Kensington High Street.

Former shadow home secretary Diane Abbott told crowds they were part of a 'worldwide movement for justice'.

'We must remember we are part of an international movement,' she said. 'This is a worldwide movement for justice. Palestinian people are having their land seized... and they are now being killed in their homes. All of this is illegal.'

Demonstrators on Broadmead in Bristol during a march in solidarity with the people of Palestine

Demonstrators gathered near Marble Arch before marching through Hyde Park to the Israeli embassy

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators attend a protest in London following a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (pictured) told the crowds international action provides 'succour, comfort and support' to those suffering in the conflict. Crowds chanted 'oh, Jeremy Corbyn' and threw roses as he took to the stage

Crowds brought placards out with them. Signs read 'Freedom for Palestine' and 'Stop bombing Gaza'

Organisers claimed around 150,000 descended on central London for the solidarity march on Saturday

Protesters stood above the entrance to Marble Arch underground station near Hyde Park

Demonstrators waved placards as they marched towards Kensington on Saturday afternoon

Images from Birmingham show protesters waving Palestinian flags and holding Free Palestine banners as they called for an end to airstrikes. It is estimated up to one thousand people filed down crowded streets from Victoria Square to the Bull Ring.

Saturday is the Palestinian Nakba day, which marks the anniversary of the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Arabs from their homes more than 70 years ago.

The Birmingham protests came after an Israeli rocket destroyed a media building in Gaza and an Israeli airstrike hit a Gaza refugee camp, killing ten people, including eight children.

Hamas responded with a barrage of rockets on Israeli cities, killing one person in Tel Aviv.

Violence between the neighbours erupted following the eviction of Arabs from the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in East Jerusalem.

Earlier in the afternoon, demonstrators in London marched from Marble Arch Station to the Israeli embassy, holding banners and chanting.

The Metropolitan Police said: 'Officers are engaging with a group of people who have gathered for a demonstration in central London this afternoon.

'A policing plan is in place to ensure everybody is kept safe and to reduce the spread of Covid-19.'

It comes amid reports an Israeli air strike destroyed a high-rise building that housed the AP, Al-Jazeera and other media in the Gaza Strip.

The AP said the air strike came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building.

Demonstrators walk through Hyde Park as they make their way to the Israeli embassy in London, during a march in solidarity with the people of Palestine amid the ongoing conflict with Israel

Protesters at a rally to express solidarity with Palestine at Marble Arch on May 15 in London after several Israeli cities experienced clashes between Jewish and Arab mobs in recent days

Among those expected to address the crowds are former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Diane Abbott and Zarah Sultana. It comes as thousands of Palestinians have been forced to flee from their homes after a week of sustained conflict

The news agency said there was no immediate explanation as to why the building was targeted.

The demonstration in London was organised by Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Al-Aqsa, Palestinian Forum in Britain, Stop The War Coalition, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and the Muslim Association of Britain.

A spokesperson for the organisers said: 'It is vital that the UK Government takes immediate action. It must stop allowing Israel's brutal violence against and oppression of the Palestinian people to go unpunished.

'The bombardment of Gaza which is killing civilians including children is a war crime. The UK Government is complicit in these acts as long as it continues to offer Israel military, diplomatic and financial support.'

It comes after a week of rising tensions, when Israel on Thursday pressed ahead with a fierce military offensive in the Gaza Strip, killing as many as 11 senior Hamas military figures and toppling a pair of high-rise towers housing Hamas facilities in a series of airstrikes.

The Islamic militant group showed no signs of backing down and fired hundreds of rockets at Israeli cities, including heavily populated Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Palestinian militants have stockpiled enough missiles to continue bombing Israel for the next two months, security experts have warned, as escalating fighting led the UN to warn of 'all-out war'.

PARIS: Marches in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were also held today in a dozen French cities, but the focus was on Paris, where riot police got ready as organizers said they would defy a ban on the protest. Pictured, Protesters face water cannons in Paris on Saturday

PARIS: French riot police run towards a pro-Palestinian rally called against Israel's bombardment of the Palestinian Gaza Strip, in Paris on May 15, 2021

PARIS: Smoke fills the air during a pro-Palestinian rally called against Israel's bombardment of the Palestinian Gaza Strip, in Paris on May 15, 2021

BERLIN: Police officers intervene in demonstrators as people gather to stage a demonstration in support of Palestinians and to protest against Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip, on May 15, 2021 in Berlin

BERLIN: Police officers intervene in demonstrators as people gather to stage a demonstration in support of Palestinians and to protest against Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip, on May 15, 2021 in Berlin

Meanwhile, street clashes continued on Israel's streets across the country, with Jewish and Arab citizens both attacking one-another in numerous incidents, leading to over 370 arrests across the country.

The conflict sparked hundreds of demonstrators across the US Wednesday. In Downtown Chicago, a rally organized by the Chicago Coalition for Justice in Palestine, drew a crowd of nearly 1,000 protestors who said Palestinians were being mistreated. One woman held sign that said: 'Free Palestine!'

In New York, protesters clashed in Times Square, with both sides screaming at each other and separated by barricades. Pro-Israel supporters could be seen draped in flags.

In Cleveland, an Israel supporter asked people not to forget the people suffering in that country, even though he said Palestinians are made out to be the victims.

And in Los Angeles, pro-Israel demonstrators gathered in front of the city's federal building; the prior day in the city there had been skirmishes between the factions, but photos from the scene showed only Israel supporters waving American and Israel flags.

A protester wears a mask with the Palestinian flag painted on it as demonstrators marched through Hyde Park

Flares were set off as the march continued through Hyde Park en route to the Israeli embassy

Protesters held white roses and draped themselves in the Palestinian flag as they marched on Saturday

Hundreds of people joined the protest as demonstrators marched in solidarity with the Palestinian people

Demonstrators started gathering outside Marble Arch Station at midday for the march on Saturday

Marches in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were also held today in a dozen French cities, but the focus was on Paris, where riot police got ready as organizers said they would defy a ban on the protest.

Paris police chief Didier Lallement ordered shops closed around the starting point of the planned march in a working-class neighbourhood in northern Paris after an administrative court confirmed the ban.

Authorities noted a banned July 2014 pro-Palestinian protest against an Israeli offensive in Gaza that degenerated into violence and running battles with police to justify the order against Saturday's march.

Pictured: Israeli boy, five, killed by Hamas rocket shrapnel A five-year-old boy killed in Israel by rocket fire from Gaza has been pictured, after he became one of the country's seven victims of the latest cross-border conflict. Ido Avigal was fatally stuck by shrapnel after the building he was in with his mother was hit by a missile on Wednesday night. In the building, found in the town of Sderot on the border with Gaza, seven people were hurt when it suffered a direct hit from a rocket. Ido Avigal, who was killed in his home in Sderot by a rocket fired from Gaza on May 12, 2021. Avigal was pronounced dead several hours later, becoming the seventh Israeli victim of the cross border conflict that started earlier this week The boy's mother grabbed him and took him into a fortified room when the in-coming rocket sirens sounded, according to local Hebrew media reports cited by the Times of Israel. However, in a rare tragedy, shrapnel from the rocket punctured the shelter's window, critically wounding the boy and also injuring his mother. Avigal was pronounced dead several hours later, becoming the seventh Israeli victim of the cross border conflict that started earlier this week. Advertisement

Organizers said they intend to 'denounce the latest Israeli aggressions' and mark the fleeing of Palestinians after Israel declared independence in 1948.

In Israel heightened tensions led to street brawls in areas populated by Jews and Arabs, with an Arab man dragged from his car and beaten by Jewish ultranationalists in one attack, while in another a Jewish citizen was attacked by sticks and stones by Arab Israeli protesters.

At least 122 people have been killed in Gaza since violence escalated on Monday, according to the enclave's health ministry. Eight people have been killed in Israel, medical officials said.

One of the Israelis - a five-year-old boy named Ido Avigal - was killed by shrapnel on Wednesday night in the Gaza border town of Sderot when rockets struck the building he was living in with his mother.

Britain's Boris Johnson led international leaders in calling for the two sides to step back from the brink, but a UN Security Council meeting failed to agree on a joint statement due to opposition from the United States, Israel's key ally, diplomats said.

Pleas for calm appeared in vain as Israeli and Palestinian leaders traded blood-curdling threats and further rocket strikes, with a rocket setting off alarms in the north of Israel in the early hours of Thursday morning - some 62 miles North of Gaza - sending thousands of Israelis to shelters.

And after a senior Hamas commander was killed Wednesday, the Islamist militant group responded with a barrage of rockets into southern Israel which rescue workers said killed a six-year-old boy.

Israel's defence minister Benny Gantz vowed more attacks on Gaza to bring 'total, long-term quiet' before they would consider truce talks after six days of violence. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his military would only use 'increasing force' in the conflict.

'We eliminated senior Hamas commanders and this is just the beginning,' he said. 'We will inflict blows on them that they couldn't even dream of.' The leader of Hamas Ismail Haniyeh hit back, vowing that 'if Israel wants to escalate, we are ready for it'.

Six high-ranking commanders and a further five key Hamas figures were 'neutralised' on Wednesday, including Brigadier General Bassem Issa and Jamal Zabda, head of the group's rocket unit, according to the Israeli Defence Force (IDF).

On Tuesday, Mr Johnson tweeted a plea for both sides to 'step back from the brink' and 'show restraint'. He added: 'The UK is deeply concerned by the growing violence and civilian casualties and we want to see an urgent de-escalation of tensions.'

His calls were backed up by similar messages from the EU, the US, Russia and Turkey.

The UN's Middle East peace envoy Tor Wennesland warned the latest violence was 'escalating towards a full-scale war'. And UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres said he was 'gravely concerned' by the ongoing troubles.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad fired more than 1,000 missiles in the first 48 hours of the conflict which began on Monday, an average of one every three minutes, and has enough to keep the bombardment going for two months.

Israeli military spokesman Lt Col Jonathan Conricus said: 'According to our estimates we're talking about between 20,000 and 30,000 rockets in Gaza today, rockets and mortars.

'We've seen a constant expansion in terms of range and also in terms of the size of the warheads. They have an advanced arsenal of rockets, I think it's on a par with the fire capabilities of a few small European countries.'

Six high-ranking commanders and a further five key Hamas figures were 'neutralised' on Wednesday, including Brigadier General Bassem Issa and Jamal Zabda, head of the group's rocket unit, according to the Israeli Defence Force (IDF)

While Israel's Iron Dome aerial defence system has intercepted nine out of ten Palestinian rockets, the remainder have killed at least six civilians and injured more than 90. Families in Tel Aviv have taken cover in underground shelters.

Israel's retaliation has included hundreds of air strikes on Gaza, led by F-35 stealth bombers and Apache attack helicopters, which are understood to have killed 32 and wounded more than 300. Israel says most of the dead were terrorists and insists the children killed were victims of stray Palestinian rockets.

The UN security council met Tuesday to discuss the crisis. The heaviest offensive between Israel and Hamas since a 2014 war in the Hamas-ruled enclave has increased international concern that the situation could spiral out of control.

'Israel has gone crazy,' said a man on a Gaza street, where people ran out of their homes as explosions rocked buildings.

Israel's army last week said it had received a rocket warning in the north of the country, the first time the alert has been given there since hostilities soared between Israel and Palestinians earlier this week.

The approximately 1,500 rockets fired from Gaza by Hamas militants since Monday had so far set off warnings in southern and central Israel, but not in the north, the army said.

However in the small hours of the morning of May 6, alarms not only sounded in the economic capital Tel Aviv in the middle of the country - where residents rushed to shelters - but also in Jezreel Valley in the north.

There was no immediate word of a rocket strike or casualties in Nahalal, some 100 km (62 miles) from Gaza.
A student in Connecticut has been arrested after posting a racist Snapchat of a black classmate.

The unidentified male student, who attends Fairfield Warde High School, was charged with breach of peace and racial harassment on Friday - after the incendiary snap surfaced online last week. He has also been suspended for 10 days.

The image, which was taken on campus, shows 16-year-old Jamar Medor sitting at his desk, accompanied by the caption: 'Why is there a n***** in my homeroom? Why is he not in chains?'

Fairfield Warde High School is located in Fairfield County - one of the wealthiest areas of the United States. According to data obtained by Niche, just 3 percent of students at Fairfield Warde are black.

Medor spoke with ABC 7 saying he was left stunned after seeing the social media snap.

'I just had no words when I saw it. I was so confused,' the teenager stated.

A student in Connecticut has been arrested after posting a racist Snapchat of a black classmate. The incendiary photo is seen above

Jamar Medor, 16, was the subject of the racist snap. He says he has never experienced racism at Fairfield Warde High School before, but now does not feel comfortable walking the hallways

Medor told the news network that he has never experienced racism at his high school before, but he is now concerned about further harassment.

'I just don't feel comfortable going to school or walking the halls, so I stayed home today actually,' he said.

Medor's mother, Judith, hopes the student is eventually expelled for his behavior.

'I don't know what he's going to do to my son... I'm worried for his safety,' she stated.

In a separate interview with Patch, she described her son as 'caring and sensitive' and said he had never had any interaction with the student who took the photo.

Medor's mother, Judith, hopes the student is eventually expelled for his behavior

Meanwhile, more than 24,000 have signed an online petition calling for the student to be removed from Fairfield Warde High School.

Head Principal Paul Cavanna has sent out two messages to parents, according to Patch.

He told them that he has made counsellors available and has 'announced an effort to create a long-term plan to foster unity.'

'As a school community, we must take a stand against intolerance and treat each other with respect and dignity,' he wrote in one of the messages.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted that the U.S. had 'communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility'

srael 'destroyed Jala Tower housing Al Jazeera and other international press offices', said Al Jazeera in tweet

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The White House warned Israel that journalists' lives are 'paramount' after the owner of a Gaza tower block housing international news media was given one-hour to evacuate it, before it was destroyed by an IDF air strike.

Israel pounded Gaza with air strikes into the early hours of Sunday, with the destruction of the 12-storey building that housed the U.S. Associated Press and Qatar-based Al Jazeera media operations drawing international rebuke.

The United States told Israel 'that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility,' White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Saturday.

U.S. President Joe Biden later spoke to both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in an effort to restore calm.

The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) - the country's military - said it was a legitimate military target, containing Hamas military offices, and that it had given warnings to civilians to get out of the building before the attack.

But the strike was condemned by Al Jazeera and the AP, which asked the Israelis to put forward evidence.

'AP's bureau has been in this building for 15 years. We have had no indication Hamas was in the building or active in the building,' the news organisation said. 'We would never knowingly put our journalists at risk.'

The IDF defended its actions, writing on Twitter: 'We'll say it again: When Hamas places military assets inside such a building, it becomes a lawful military target. This is clear international law. All the multi-story buildings targeted by the IDF were used for military purposes within each building.'

The hostilities showed no sign of letting up as they entered a seventh day on Sunday, with Palestinians saying at least 145 people have been killed since the conflict began on Monday, including 41 children.

Israel has reported 10 dead, including two children. Missiles fired from Gaza at Israel's second most populated city of Tel Aviv causing beach-goers to run for shelter on Saturday.

Pictured: A ball of fire erupts from the Jala Tower as it is destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City. The 12-storey block in Gaza City brought down by Israeli air strikes housed the U.S. Associated Press and Qatar-based Al Jazeera media operations

Fire erupts from the Andalus Tower as it is destroyed by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, early on May 16, 2021. Israel pummelled the Gaza Strip with air strikes, killing 10 members of an extended family and demolishing a building housing international media outlets

Smoke billows after an Israeli airstrike struck the Andalus Tower in Gaza city, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, on May 15, 2021

Rockets are being fired from Gaza targeting Israeli cities in response to Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, on May 15, 2021

Smoke billows from a fire following Israeli airstrikes on multiple targets in Gaza City, controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement, early on May 16, 2021

Israel's Iron Dome missile defence system (left) intercepts rockets (right) fired by the Hamas movement from Gaza city towards Israel early on May 16, 2021

Pictured: Missiles fired from Gaza and Iron Dome interceptors are seen flying over Tel Aviv

Israeli forces' flares light up the sky in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on May 16, 2021

Palestinian medical personnel carry the body of a Palestinian man who was shot and killed in his vehicle by Israeli soldiers, near the Fawwar refugee camp, south of the West Bank city of Hebron, 15 May 2021

Pictured: Medical personnel from a Palestinian Ambulance carry a Palestinian man who was shot and killed in his vehicle by Israeli soldiers, near the Fawwar refugee camp, south of the West Bank city of Hebron, 15 May 2021

The hostilities showed no sign of letting up as they entered a seventh day on Sunday, with Palestinians saying at least 145 people have been killed since the conflict began on Monday, including 41 children

But both Israel and Hamas insisted they would pursue their campaigns, leaving no end to the hostilities in sight despite a U.N. Security Council meeting scheduled for Sunday to discuss the worse outbreak of Israel-Palestinian violence in years.

'The party that bears the guilt for this confrontation is not us, it's those attacking us,' Netanyahu said in a televised speech.

'We are still in the midst of this operation, it is still not over and this operation will continue as long as necessary.'

Netanyahu said Israel's air and artillery barrage had eliminated dozens of Hamas militants and taken out 'hundreds' of the Islamist militant group's sites including missile launchers and a vast tunnel network.

But world leaders expressed grave concern on Sunday after Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip killed eight children, and as Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli fighter jets struck several sites in the densely populated Gaza Strip, with one strike on a three-storey building in the Shati refugee camp killed 10 members of an extended family - two mothers and their four children each. Israel's army claimed the building was used by senior Hamas officials.

Meanwhile, as Palestinian rocket salvoes hit coastal Tel Aviv, beach-goers in Israel's second most populous city were seen running for shelter, some taking cover by lying down on the floor against walls.

Joe Biden expressed 'strong support' for Israel's strikes in Gaza in retaliation for Hamas missile attacks on its territory, but raised concerns about civilian casualties and the protection of journalists on a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The White House said Biden on Saturday also shared his 'grave concern' about intercommunal violence within Israel and escalating tensions in the West Bank. Biden and Netanyahu also discussed Jerusalem, with Biden saying it should 'be a place of peaceful coexistence for people of all faiths and backgrounds.'

Biden also held his first call since taking office with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss the violence, in which he called for Hamas, the PA's rival, to stop firing rockets into Israel.

The White House says Biden 'expressed his support for steps to enable the Palestinian people to enjoy the dignity, security, freedom, and economic opportunity that they deserve' and highlighted the resumption of U.S. aid to the Palestinians under his administration.

In response to the destruction of the 12-storey tower on Saturday, an international network of journalists and media executives 'vehemently' condemned the Israeli airstrike on a Gaza City building housing the offices of The Associated Press and broadcaster Al-Jazeera.

Barbara Trionfi, the executive director of the International Press Institute, said after Saturday's airstrike that 'the targeting of news organizations is completely unacceptable, even during an armed conflict.'

She added that 'it represents a gross violation of human rights and internationally agreed norms.'

Pictured: Palestinian protesters burn an Israeli flag in the occupied-West Bank town of Bethlehem on May 15,2021, as they commemorate the Nakba, the 'catastrophe' of Israel's creation in 1948

Israeli forces intervene in a rally marking the 73rd anniversary of the Nakba Day (Catastrophe) and protest against Israeli attacks in Gaza Strip in Hebron (Al-Khalil), West Bank on May 15, 2021

Pictured: Palestinians protesters clash with Israeli security forces in the occupied-West Bank town of Bethlehem on May 15,2021, following a demonstration against the Israeli attack on Gaza

Pictured: A Palestinian protester releases fireworks towards Israeli security forces amid clashes in the occupied-West Bank town of Bethlehem on May 15,2021

Firefighters try to extinguish fire after Israeli forces destroyed a 12-storey building where residential flats and offices are in the central are of Gaza City, Gaza Strip on May 15, 2021

Palestinian protesters clash with Israeli soldiers in solidarity with Gaza strip and jerusalem near the Hawara checkpoint south of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus on May 15, 2021

A Palestinian protester takes cover from Israeli security forces amid clashes near the Hawara checkpoint south of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus on May 15, 2021

Palestinian protesters seek cover during clashes with Israeli troops at Huwwara checkpoint near the West Bank City of Nablus, 15 May 2021

Pictured: Palestinian protesters seek cover during clashes with Israeli troops at Huwwara checkpoint near the West Bank City of Nablus, 15 May 2021

Palestinian demonstrator throws back a tear gas canister after Israeli forces intervened in the demonstration with tear gas during a demonstration to protest against Israeli attacks over Jerusalem and Gaza, on May 15, 2021

Palestinian protesters react to tear gas fired by Israeli security forces amid clashes near the Hawara checkpoint south of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus on May 15, 2021

Tel Aviv residents fled amid wailing sirens as Hamas militants fired barrages of rockets. One hit a residential block in the Ramat Gan suburb, killing a 50-year old man, medics said.

The group said the salvoes responded to overnight strikes on Gaza's Beach refugee camp, where a woman and four of her children were killed when her house was hit.

Hamas began its rocket assault on Monday after weeks of tensions over a court case to evict several Palestinian families in East Jerusalem, and in retaliation for Israeli police clashes with Palestinians near the city's Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam's third holiest site, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Speaking to crowds of protesters in the Qatari capital of Doha, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh said on Saturday the fighting was primarily about Jerusalem.

'The Zionists thought ... they could demolish Al-Aqsa mosque. They thought they could displace our people in Sheikh Jarrah,' said Haniyeh.

'I say to Netanyahu: do not play with fire,' he continued, amid cheers from the crowd. 'The title of this battle today, the title of the war, and the title of the intifada, is Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Jerusalem,' using the Arabic word for 'uprising'.

Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other militant groups have fired around 2,300 rockets from Gaza since Monday, the Israeli military said on Saturday. It said about 1,000 were intercepted by missile defences and 380 fell into the Gaza Strip.

Israel has launched more than 1,000 air and artillery strikes into the densely populated coastal strip, saying they were aimed at Hamas and other militant targets.

The bombardments have sent columns of smoke above Gaza City and lit up the enclave's night sky.

Tel Aviv: Israeli beachgoers are seen rushing towards shelters in Tel Aviv. Rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement towards Israel

Tel Aviv residents fled for cover amid wailing sirens as Hamas militants fired barrages of rockets. One hit a residential block in the Ramat Gan suburb, killing a 50-year old man, medics said

Israeli beachgoers take cover in the central city of Tel Aviv on May 15 following the launching of rockets from the Gaza Strip

Israeli beachgoers rush towards shelters in the central city of Tel Aviv on May 15 following the launching of rockets from the Gaza Strip controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement towards Israel

Israeli beachgoers and a dog are seen rushing towards shelters in the central city of Tel Aviv on May 15 after the launching of rockets

Israeli beachgoers pictured going towards shelters in Tel Aviv. Israel, which is also trying to contain an outbreak of internal Jewish-Arab violence, is facing its bloodiest conflict with Palestinian militants in Gaza since a 2014 war

The moment the 13-floor building housing news organisations was destroyed by the Israeli air strike, sending a huge mushroom cloud into the sky, was captured on video.

Broadcast footage from Al Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatar's government, showed the Jala Tower collapsing to the ground after the Israeli air strike, sending up a huge mushroom cloud of dust and debris.

Israel 'destroyed Jala Tower in the Gaza Strip, which contains the Al Jazeera and other international press offices,' Al Jazeera said in a tweet.

'This channel will not be silenced. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced,' an on-air anchorwoman said, her voice thick with emotion. 'We can guarantee you that right now.'

Jawad Mehdi, the owner of the Jala Tower, said an Israeli intelligence officer warned him he had just one hour to ensure the evacuation of the building. AP's staff and others in the building evacuated immediately.

The strike came hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp in Gaza City killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children, in the deadliest single strike of the current conflict.

The aftermath following the Israeli strike, which destroyed Jala Tower - a 13-floor building housing Al Jazeera television and Associated Press

Israel 'destroyed Jala Tower in the Gaza Strip, which contains the Al Jazeera and other international press offices,' Al Jazeera said in a tweet. It was reported the army had warned the tower's owner ahead of the strike on Saturday

Smoke billows as an air bomb is dropped on the Jala Tower during an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City. Wael al-Dahdouh, Al Jazeera's bureau chief in Gaza, said: 'It's terrible, very sad, to target the Al Jazeera and other press bureaux'

A building housing various international media, including Al Jazeera and The Associated Press, collapses after an Israeli airstrike on Saturday, May 15, in Gaza City

A ball of fire erupts from the Jala Tower as it is destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on Saturday, May 15

In a phone call with the officer, he was heard begging for an extra 10 minutes to allow journalists to retrieve their equipment before leaving.

'Give us ten extra minutes,' he urged, but the officer on the other end of the line refused.

Wael al-Dahdouh, Al Jazeera's bureau chief in Gaza, said: 'It's terrible, very sad, to target the Al Jazeera and other press bureaux'.

Israel alleged its 'fighter jets attacked a high-rise building which hosted military assets belonging to the military intelligence of the Hamas terror organisation'.

It said: 'The building also hosted offices of civilian media outlets, which the Hamas terror group hides behind and uses as human shields.'

Both sides have pressed for an advantage as ceasefire efforts gather strength.

The latest outburst of violence began in Jerusalem and has spread across the region, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed cities of Israel.

There were also widespread Palestinian protests on Friday in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people.

This picture taken from the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon shows rockets fired from the Gaza Strip being intercepted by the Israeli Iron Dome missile defence system , on May 15, 2021

This picture taken from the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon shows rockets fired from the Gaza Strip being intercepted by the Israeli Iron Dome missile defence system , on May 15, 2021

A thick column of black smoke rises from the Jala Tower as it is destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on May 15

Families who live in Jala Tower, a high-rise housing AP and other media offices, flee the building before Israeli airstrikes on Saturday, May 15

A ball of fire erupts from the Jala Tower as it is destroyed on May 15. Israeli air strikes pounded the Gaza Strip overnight, killing 10 members of an extended family and demolishing a key media building

Dust settles following the destruction of the Jala Tower in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on Saturday afternoon, May 15

Smoke rises as the 13-floor building collapses after an Israeli airstrike hits Jala Tower, which houses apartments and several media outlets, including the Associated Press and Al Jazeera

Smoke rises from the Jala Tower as it collapses after being bombed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on Saturday, May 15

Debris and smashed windows fall towards the ground after an Israeli airstrike hits the high-rise building on Saturday

A Palestinian policeman looks on at the rubble of the building that house the Associated Press and Al Jazeera's offices in Gaza City after it was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike

Israeli strike destroys Gaza building housing Associated Press An Israeli airstrike on Saturday targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets. Hours later, Israel bombed the home of Khalil al-Hayeh, a top leader of Gaza's ruling militant Hamas group. The Israeli military said Al-Hayeh's home served as part of what it said was the militant group's 'terrorist infrastructure.' Al-Hayeh is a senior figure in the Hamas political leadership in Gaza, and the attack marked a further escalation, signaling that Israel is going after Hamas' top leadership, and not just military commanders. His fate after the strike was not immediately known. Earlier, AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated their office building after the military telephoned a warning that the strike was imminent within an hour. Three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it in a giant cloud of dust. For 15 years, the AP's top-floor office and roof terrace were a prime location for covering Israel's conflicts with Gaza's Hamas rulers, including wars in 2009 and 2014. The news agency's camera offered 24-hour live shots as militants' rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city and its surrounding area this week. 'The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today,' AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said in a statement. 'We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing AP's bureau and other news organizations in Gaza.' 'This is an incredibly disturbing development. We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life,' he said, adding that the AP was seeking information from the Israeli government and was engaged with the U.S. State Department to learn more. The building that was targeted also housed the offices of Qatari-run Al-Jazeera TV, as well as residential apartments. The Israeli military said Hamas was operating inside it, a standard explanation, and it accused the militant group of using journalists as human shields. But it provided no evidence to back up the claims. Reporting by Associated Press Advertisement

An Israeli airstrike in Gaza has been condemned as 'completely unacceptable' by Labour. Shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy said: 'The targeting of media offices in Gaza by Israeli air strikes is completely unacceptable. Press freedom is a fundamental right.

'The devastating escalation of violence - including Hamas rocket attacks on Tel Aviv and air strikes on the Gaza City refugee camp - has cost more civilian lives and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms.

'The UK must join our international partners in calling for an immediate ceasefire, an end to all rocket attacks and air strikes, and work with both Israeli and Palestinian leaders to prevent this dangerous situation deteriorating further.'

The spiralling violence has raised fears of a new Palestinian 'intifada', or uprising, at a time when there have been no peace talks in years.

Palestinians on Saturday were marking Nakba (Catastrophe) Day, when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. That raised the possibility of even more unrest.

US diplomat Hady Amr arrived on Friday as part of Washington's efforts to de-escalate the conflict, and the UN Security Council is set to meet on Sunday.

Israel has turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian official revealed.

Since Monday night, Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which has responded by pounding the Gaza Strip with strikes.

In Gaza, at least 139 people have been killed, including 39 children and 22 women; in Israel, eight people have been killed, including the death on Saturday of a man killed by a rocket that hit in Ramat Gan, a suburb of Tel Aviv.

Earlier on Saturday, an airstrike hit a three-story house in Gaza City's Shati refugee camp, killing eight children and two women from an extended family.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters his wife and five children had gone to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday with relatives.

She and three of the children, aged six to 14, were killed, while an 11-year-old is missing. Only his five-month-old son Omar is known to have survived.

Children's toys and a Monopoly board game could be seen among the rubble, as well as plates of uneaten food from the holiday gathering.

'There was no warning,' said Jamal Al-Naji, a neighbour living in the same building. 'You filmed people eating and then you bombed them?' he said, addressing Israel.

'Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!'

The baby boy is reported to have been found next to the body of his deceased mother. Hamas militants responded by firing more rockets into Israel as their battle entered a fifth consecutive night and a US envoy arrived for talks

The two nurses seen wearing face masks as one holds the baby boy at Al-Shifa Hospital. Ten members of a single family - eight children and two women - were killed when a three-storey building in Shati refugee camp collapsed following an Israel strike

A nurse holds the baby boy at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. An airstrike on a house in Gaza City killed at least 10 Palestinians, mostly children - the highest number of fatalities in a single hit since the battle erupted earlier this week

A man gestures as he prepares with others to bury the bodies of Palestinian children and their mother from the Al-Hadidi family, who were killed amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, during their funeral at a cemetery on May 15

Palestinians take part in the funeral of the Abu Hatab family in Gaza City on May 15 - an extended family of 10 who were killed early in an Israeli air strike on the western Gaza Strip

Hundreds of Lebanese and Palestinians protest along Lebanon-Israel border Hundreds of Lebanese and Palestinians have protested along the Lebanon-Israel border, with some climbing a border wall and triggering Israeli fire that wounded one person. The protest on Saturday evening in the Lebanese border village of Adaisseh saw hundreds marching and waving Palestinian, Lebanese and yellow flags of the militant Hezbollah group. Some protesters climbed a high border wall where they placed Palestinian and Hezbollah flags. Supporters of Hezbollah and the Palestinian revolution faction climb the wall during protest at the Al Odaisseh area opposite the Al-Mutaleh Israeli settlement at the Lebanese border with Israel, 15 May 2021 Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli troops fired warning shots near Adaisseh, wounding one person who was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. Lebanese and Palestinians from around Lebanon have been heading to the border to protest against Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip over the past days. On Friday, Israeli troops opened fire at protesters who crossed a border fence, killing a 21-year-old Hezbollah member. Earlier Saturday, an Israeli military spokesman warned Lebanese authorities not to allow protesters to breach the border. Advertisement

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the air strike.

A furious Israeli barrage early on Friday killed a family of six in their house and sent thousands fleeing to UN-run shelters.

The military said the operation involved 160 warplanes dropping some 80 tonnes of explosives over the course of 40 minutes and succeeded in destroying a vast tunnel network used by Hamas.

Lt Col Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said the military aims to minimise collateral damage in striking military targets. But measures it takes in other strikes, such as warning shots to get civilians to leave, were not 'feasible this time'.

Israeli media said the military believed dozens of militants were killed inside the tunnels.

The Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups have confirmed 20 deaths in their ranks, but the military said the real number is far higher.

Gaza's infrastructure, already in widespread disrepair because of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after Hamas seized power in 2007, showed signs of breaking down further, compounding residents' misery.

The territory's sole power plant is at risk of running out of fuel in the coming days.

The UN said Gazans are experiencing daily power cuts of eight to 12 hours and at least 230,000 have limited access to tap water.

The impoverished and densely populated territory is home to two million Palestinians, most of them the descendants of refugees from what is now Israel.

The conflict has reverberated widely. Israeli cities with mixed Arab and Jewish populations have seen daily violence, with mobs from each community fighting in the streets and destroying each other's property.

The tensions began in east Jerusalem earlier this month, with Palestinian protests against the Sheikh Jarrah evictions and Israeli police measures at Al-Aqsa Mosque, a frequent flashpoint located on a mount in the Old City revered by Muslims and Jews.

Hamas fired rockets toward Jerusalem late Monday, in an apparent attempt to present itself as the champion of the protesters.

During the conflict that spiralled from there, Israel said it wants to inflict as much damage as it can on Hamas' military infrastructure in Gaza.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed that Hamas will 'pay a very heavy price' for its rocket attacks, as Israel masses troops at the frontier.

US president Joe Biden has expressed support for Israel while saying he hopes to bring the violence under control.

Pedestrians look on as barricade tape surrounds an area hit by a rocket fired from Gaza, in Ramat Gan, Tel Aviv District, Israel, on May 15 in an image obtained from social media

A fireball and smoke billow up into the air during an Israeli airstrike on Gaza City targeting the Ansar compound, linked to the Hamas movement, in the Gaza Strip early on May 15

A Palestinian firefighter speaks to colleagues following an Israeli strike on Rafah town in the southern Gaza Strip on May 15

Palestinians inspect the damages following Israeli air strikes in Gaza City amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence on May 15

Israeli man is killed by Hamas rocket in Tel Aviv as five-month-old boy is pulled ALIVE from rubble after air strike on Gaza refugee camp while US envoy arrives to broker talks

An Israeli man has been killed by a Hamas rocket in Tel Aviv and a five-month-old baby boy has been pulled alive from rubble following an overnight air strike on a refugee camp in Gaza City.

Several people also received minor injuries after rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, according to the Times of Israel.

The launch came in response to Israel's airstrike on a house killing 10 Palestinians in Gaza City, with harrowing pictures show nurses holding a boy, who was reported to have been found next to the body of his deceased mother, at Al-Shifa Hospital.

A three-storey building in Shati refugee camp collapsed following the airstrike, killing at least 10 members of an extended family - eight children and two women - the highest number of fatalities in a single hit since the battle erupted earlier this week.

Another Israeli airstrike has also demolished Jala Tower, which housed Al Jazeera television and Associated Press, with broadcast footage showing a huge mushroom cloud of dust and debris erupting from the 13-floor building.

A nurse holds a baby, Omar, who was pulled alive from underneath rubble while other members of his family perished, at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City on Saturday after an Israeli air strike hit al-Shati Refugee Camp without advance warning overnight

Mohammed al-Hadidi with his baby son who was pulled alive from underneath the rubble while three of his children, aged six to 14, and wife perished in the Israeli airstrike

United Nations Security Council to meet on Sunday over violence The United Nations (UN) said the Security Council would meet on Sunday to address the violence. But Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave no indication that Israel was ready to ease its campaign. 'I said we'd deliver heavy blows to Hamas and other terror groups, and we're doing that,' Netanyahu said. 'They're paying and will continue to pay dearly for that. It's not over yet.' Israel estimates that more than 30 leaders of Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad have been killed. It has hit sites it describes as military targets such as Hamas bomb-making facilities and the homes of senior militant commanders. Advertisement

A US envoy arrived for talks, with the United Nations (UN) Security Council set to meet on Sunday. US Secretary for Israel-Palestinian Affairs, Hady Amr, was due to meet Israeli leaders in Jerusalem, where the latest outburst of violence began, on Saturday before heading to the occupied West Bank for talks with Palestinian officials.

He wants to encourage a 'sustainable calm', State Department deputy spokeswoman Jalina Porter said.

But despite intensifying diplomatic efforts to ease five days of fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza, Israel's air force struck several sites in the coastal enclave overnight, while rockets again tore towards Israel.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters his wife and five children had gone to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday with relatives. She and three of the children, aged six to 14, were killed, while an 11-year-old is missing. Only his five-month-old son Omar is known to have survived.

Eleven Palestinians died in clashes in the occupied West Bank on Friday and there were fears of worse violence today as Palestinians mark Nakba (Catastrophe) Day, when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.

Washington has been criticised for not doing more to end the intensifying violence after it blocked a UN Security Council meeting scheduled for Friday.

US Secretary for Israel-Palestinian Affairs, Hady Amr (pictured left), was due to meet Israeli leaders in Jerusalem on Saturday before heading to the occupied West Bank for talks with Palestinian officials. But Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) gave no indication that Israel was ready to ease its campaign

'There was no warning,' said Jamal Al-Naji, a neighbour living in the same building. 'You filmed people eating and then you bombed them?' he said, addressing Israel.

'Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!'

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the airstrike.

Egypt opened its Rafah border crossing with Gaza on Saturday to allow in 10 ambulances carrying seriously injured Palestinians for treatment in Egyptian hospitals, medical officials said.
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Hundreds of partygoers were pictured in Barcelona as the city celebrated its first night out in six months after Covid restrictions were eased.

Delighted groups of revellers were seen partying into the early hours of the morning as curfew restrictions and fears of 500 fines were eased.

Both those partying and the police flocked to the famous tree-lined tourist hotspot 'La Rambla', as well as the Passeig Lluis Companys in the centre and the city's beautiful beach.

Large groups of young people chanted 'Freedom' and sang songs throughout the night with little to no social distancing, as local media compared the celebrations to a New Year's Eve party.

The owners of bars and shops were also delighted with the decision to relax restrictions and give people the chance to 'enjoy a little of the summer'.

'Young people, like everyone else, have been very restricted,' Barcelona shop worker Paula Garcia, 28, told Reuters.

'Now was time to give us a bit of freedom to enjoy a little of the summer.'

A man is pictured dancing in front of police cars on the streets of Barcelona as Covid-19 curfew restrictions were eased for the first time in six months

A couple kiss as they celebrated the end of the state of emergency in Spain on a street in Barcelona last Sunday morning

Local media dubbed the massive street parties that erupted across Spain as a 'New Year's Eve night in May' as national Covid-19 restrictions eased

Maskless revellers drink and party into the early hours of the morning as crowds of people flocked to Barcelona's centre on the first weekend without a curfew in place

V for Victory: Young people laugh and drink as they enjoy the Barcelona nightlife as the national state of emergency was lifted

The city's police force were pictured evicting revellers from the centre of town in the early hours of the morning

Pictures showed the first set of delighted partygoers for six months flocking to Barcelona's city centre and its popular tourist hotspots as Covid-19 restrictions eased in the Catalonian capital.

Local newspapers dubbed the massive street parties that erupted across Spain as a 'New Year's Eve night in May'.

Some wore masks but there was little social distancing as friends hugged, kissed, danced and sang on the streets together for the first time this year.

The city's police force were also pictured breaking up large crowds of people and moving them on in the early hours of the morning.

Across the country, large groups of maskless revellers clashed with police as they celebrated their first night without Covid-19 curfews in half a year.

Young people were pictured, some without masks, drinking and having fun with little to no social distancing on Barcelona's streets

Hundreds of people celebrated after midnight on Saturday in the Passeig Lluis Companys of Barcelona, without observing social distancing, or wearing masks

Friends hugged, kissed, danced and sang together for the first time this year during huge street parties that erupted across Barcelona

Partygoers gathered on a beach in Barcelona in the early hours of Sunday after the state of emergency was lifted at midnight

Police officers stood in line to try and prevent people from gathering in large groups to no avail as few people wore masks and there was limited social distancing in place

'It was time they let us out,' Barcelona store clerk Andreu Pujol, 25, told Reuters.

'Even so, I am still very unhappy with the handling (of the pandemic).

'You can see that in this country all they do is make things up as they go along.'

One of the worst hit European nations, Spain has suffered 78,792 Covid-19 deaths, but infection rates have tumbled recently and vaccinations are continuing to progress.

The bizarre end to a six-month Spanish government-imposed state of alarm which provided the legal framework for restrictions including the night-time curfew, meant millions of Spaniards had to be indoors by 11pm on Saturday but were free to go out at midnight.

Many youngsters in Spain's two largest cities Barcelona and Madrid are said to have carried on partying anyway as they counted down the 60 minutes to the recovery of their freedom of movement.

The end of the state of alarm has given rise to a confusing situation in Spain in which Covid restrictions vary wildly between regions.

A man gesticulates as he speaks with a police officer on the first weekend without curfew in the Catalonian capital

Police officers stand guard and prepare to break up gatherings of people without face masks on, as large groups crowded on the beach in Barcelona (above)

The end of the state of alarm has given rise to a confusing situation in Spain in which Covid restrictions vary wildly between regions

There were reports of clashes between partygoers and police in some parts of Madrid as officers tried to dissolve large gatherings of people without face masks on.

Restrictions on movement around the country have been lifted, meaning the Costa resorts currently deprived of British tourists can welcome back holidaymakers from across the country.

Night-time curfews have been lifted in most parts of Spain including its most populated region Andalucia which covers the Costa del Sol where restaurants can open till midnight and late-night bars and nightclubs until 2am.

A group of maskless men flock to the city centre hotspots. There was little to no social distancing to be seen in Barcelona on its first night of freedom

A group of young women take a moment to rest after a night of wild partying and celebration in Barcelona

Moped-riding police officers prepare their eviction operation as large crowds of maskless young people gathered in Barcelona city centre

The city's police were on hand to monitor events on the first weekend without Covid-19 curfew restrictions and a state of alarm in Catalonia

But the Balearic Islands and the Valencian Community, which includes the Costa Blanca, are maintaining their night-time curfews.

The latest Covid-19 rules in Spain say bars and restaurants can now serve customers on their premises again until 11pm.

Facemasks remain mandatory, and up to four people can sit together at the same table, except for large groups of people from the same household.
Liz Cheney has claimed some Republicans voted against impeaching Donald Trump because they were 'afraid for their lives' as she admitted she regrets voting for him in the 2020 election and warned he poses an 'ongoing danger' to America.

Cheney told CNN's Jake Tapper Friday that several GOP members of Congress told her they feared for their safety in the lead-up to February's vote to impeach Trump for inciting the January 6 Capitol riot.

The Wyoming Representative said she believes some fell in line with the wider party because of these concerns and insisted more lawmakers were in favor of his impeachment 'than are willing to say so'.

Cheney was ousted from her role as House Republican leader this week amid a backlash from staunch Trump allies.

The ex-number three in the party was one of just 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump for his role in the violent insurrection. Since then, she has been a vocal critic of the former president and his efforts to overturn the result of the presidential election.

Liz Cheney told CNN Friday (above) some Republicans voted against impeaching Donald Trump because they were 'afraid for their lives' as she admitted she regrets voting for him in the 2020 election and warned he poses an 'ongoing danger' to America

'I think you have more members who believe in substance and policy and ideals than are willing to say so,' Cheney told CNN.

'If you look at the vote to impeach, for example, there were members who told me that they were afraid for their own security - afraid, in some instances, for their lives.

'And that tells you something about where we are as a country, that members of Congress aren't able to cast votes, or feel that they can't, because of their own security.'

Trump was acquitted in the Senate in a vote of 57-43 with just 10 Republicans crossing party lines and voting to convict.

Trump had pushed false election fraud claims since he lost the election to Joe Biden and, on the morning of the riot, held a 'Stop the Steal' rally where he told his supporters to 'fight.'

Cheney called Trump an 'ongoing danger' to the nation as she said we have to 'get to the bottom of what happened in 2020.'

'I think that people have been lied to,' she said.

'I think that it's really important for all of us to get to the bottom of what happened in 2020, what happened on January 6 and to go forward looking toward truth.'

She said she felt she had an 'obligation' to speak out against Trump's false election fraud claims and warned that 'we've had a collapse of truth in this country.'

'We've seen an evolution of, you know, a general situation where conspiracy theories are rampant, where good people in a lot of instances have been misled and believe things that are not true,' said Cheney.

Cheney speaks to the media after she was removed of her leadership role as Conference Chair Wednesday

'And so, I think that we all have an obligation to make sure we're doing everything we can to convey the truth, to stand for the truth and to stand for the Constitution and our obligations.'

She added: 'There's an ongoing danger and we've got to continue to stand up against it.'

Cheney went on to say that 'we have to save the Republican party' and hit out at people coming to Washington to be 'social media stars.'

Congress didn't used to 'have the vitriol flying back and forth that we certainly have over the last several years,' she said.

'People ought to want to be there and work hard and not be social media stars. That's not the right reason to be there,' she said.

Cheney did not cite any names however her opponent Trump was known to tweet copious amounts every day - until he was banned from Twitter, Facebook and other platforms for spreading misinformation.

Cheney was ousted from her position as the number three leader of the Republican party Wednesday during a closed-door meeting.

The Wyoming Representative said she believes some GOP members didn't impeach Trump as 'they were afraid for their lives'. Cheney was one of just 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump (impeachment trial pictured above)

People shelter in the House gallery as rioters break into the House Chamber at the Capitol on January 6

Rioters storm the Capitol January 6. Trump was acquitted in the Senate in a vote of 57-43 with just 10 Republicans crossing party lines and voting to convict

Republicans had earlier tried to remove her back in February.

Cheney has been one of the few members of the GOP to speak out against Trump and his pursuit to overthrow the election.

Trump continues to claim the election was 'stolen' from him despite dozens of lawsuits, state investigations and even his own Justice Department concluding that there was no evidence of widespread fraud.

Cheney has repeatedly referred to Trump's claims as his 'big lie' and blamed him for the Capitol riot, where a MAGA mob stormed the building in an effort to stop the election being certified for Joe Biden.

The congresswoman told ABC News Friday she regretted voting for Trump in the 2020 election but, as a Republican, 'was never going to' vote for the Democratic party.

'I was never going to support Joe Biden and I do regret the vote,' she said.

'It was a vote based on policy, based on substance and in terms of the kinds of policies he put forward that were good for the country.

'But I think it's fair to say that I regret the vote.'

She compared Trump and his false election fraud claims to the actions of the Chinese Communist Party.

'Frankly, it's the same kinds of things that the Chinese Communist Party says about democracy: that it's a failed system, and America is a failed nation,' Cheney said.

The Republican congresswoman told ABC News Friday she regretted voting for Trump in the 2020 election but 'was never going to vote for Joe Biden'

'I won't be part of that. And I think it's very important for Republicans who won't be part of that to stand up and speak out.'

While she has faced a backlash for speaking out against Trump, Cheney called on House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy - who has not condemned the former president - to testify about the events of January 6 in any commission that arises.

'I think that he very clearly and said publicly that he's got information about the president's state of mind that day,' Cheney said.

Rep. Jamie Herrera Beutler previously revealed he was present when McCarthy spoke to Trump on the phone during the riot.

He said McCarthy begged the president to call off his supporters.

Trump is said to have responded to the House Minority Leader - who was hiding from the violent mob at the time - ''Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election then you are.''

Cheney said she 'wouldn't be surprised if [McCarthy] were subpoenaed' but that she hoped it wouldn't be necessary to get him to testify.

Staunch Trump ally New York Rep. Elise Stefanik was elected Cheney's replacement this week. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Stefanik Friday

New York Rep. Elise Stefanik was elected Friday as Cheney's replacement winning 134 to 46 of the vote.

Stefanik is a staunch Trump ally and opposed the certification of the electoral college votes in favor of Joe Biden back in January.

She has supported Trump's false claims of election fraud as well as conspiracy theories about votes in Arizona. Trump had also backed Stefanik to take on the role.

Cheney hit out at her successor calling it a 'dangerous' move to elect someone who has supported Trump's false claims.

'I think it's dangerous. I think that we have to recognize how quickly things can unravel,' she said.

'We have to recognize what it means for the nation to have a former president who has not conceded and who continues to suggest that our electoral system cannot function, cannot do the will of the people.'
An expecting father couldn't hide his disappointment at his family's gender reveal in a video going viral on TikTok.

The video, which dates back to April 25, was posted by matthb92 and has garnered over 593,000 views so far.

In the video, a group of people are gathered around to watch the popping of a massive balloon, set to reveal the sex of a child.

It appears that the video is based in Australia.

The expecting mother is holding a young girl - possibly her daughter - when it comes time to smash the black balloon, which is covered in question marks.

This is the face of a man disappointed to learn a girl is on the way in a recent TikTok

The gender reveal begins with people gathered around, ready to pop a big black balloon

Finally, the time comes to pop the balloon, which will reveal either pink or blue for the gender

Once the couple pops the balloon, smaller pink balloons are revealed, demonstrating that a girl is on the way.

While everyone cheers and laughs, the father in the black Puma sweatshirt throws the balloon string to the ground and seems to mutter something under his breath.

Everyone continues cheering and laughing as he appears to turn away from the rest, not smiling at the news.

The video drew mixed reactions in the comments section, with many criticizing the father-to-be, but some defending him.

The pop reveals pink balloons, revealing that the couple will be having a girl

After the man processes the pink balloons, his reaction quickly turns to one of disappointment

'Imagine your kids seeing this when she's older,' one user pointed out.

Others, however, noted that the future daughter mind find it hilarious and that many men wish to have a son one day.

If nothing else, the father can take pride in knowing that his reaction, while disappointed, was not destructive.

The same can't be said for a gender reveal party that took place in Kingston, New Hampshire last month.

An explosion took place at Torromeo Industries on a weeknight and it was discovered to be part of a gender reveal.

The father in the black Puma sweatshirt throws the balloon string to the ground and seems to mutter something under his breath

'Imagine your kids seeing this when she's older,' one user on TikTok pointed out

According to WMUR, the explosion was strong enough to shake homes in nearby towns.

Police claimed that 80 pounds of Tannerite, which is typically used as a target in firearm practice, was exploded during the reveal.

'If used improperly or irresponsibly, the consequences could be very serious,' said Sgt. Jeff Dade, who works for the New Hampshire State Police Bomb Squad.

The couple responsible for the explosive has not been publicly revealed, but police were investigating the incident and charges are possible.
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Covid vaccine sites are preparing for floods of patients as health chiefs push to ensure all over-50s are jabbed to tackle the current surge in cases.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) yesterday advised 'every effort is made to promote vaccine uptake' in people who were in the top nine priority groups who have yet to have their first jab  despite all being invited for one a month ago.

Over-50s, health and social care workers and the clinically vulnerable will also have their second doses accelerated from 12 to eight weeks 'where supply will allow'.

The plans to speed up second doses would require another 10million doses are handed out to over-50s in the next few weeks.

The JCVI insists that alongside the new measures to ensure all over-50s are jabbed, the general vaccine drive 'should continue to be rolled out as quickly as possible'. And the Department of Health and NHS England both told MailOnline they are confident every adult will still have had a first inoculation by the end of July.

Ministers are confident they will be able to continue the roll-out at the same pace because most people waiting for second doses in their over-50s will be receiving an AstraZeneca jab while under-40s will receive Moderna or Pfizer vaccines.

But while there may not be an issue on the supply side, vaccine sites will have to be operating at full capacity to dish out the planned jabs to over-40s in the same time period as they boost second jabs to over-50s.

Vaccine sites last night were flooded with people trying to book appointments and Britons seeking to book an appointment to get their jab last night were confronted with a message telling them they were in a queue.

A screenshot shared on social media revealed that the message on the site added: 'Lots of people are trying to book an appointment at the moment.'

Some 204,192 first vaccine doses were given out yesterday, taking the total number of people to have had at least one jab to 36.3million. Second doses came to 379,111, taking the total to 19.7million.

New Covid cases in the UK have remained flat this week, falling slightly week-on-week yesterday by 0.97 per cent to 2,047 today.

But cases of the Indian variant have nearly doubled across Britain, becoming the dominant strain in four areas of the country and prompting fears of a third wave.

England's chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty told a Downing Street press conference last night the variant is expected to become the most dominant in the UK.

The Government's scientists have said they are confident the strain is not more deadly and that vaccines will work well against it. But they warn the death toll could climb significantly by the fact it is able to infect more people than previous strains and there are still 30million unvaccinated Britons.

Surge testing is being deployed in 15 hotspots, mostly in the North West of England, in an effort to contain the strain and pre-empt a deadly third wave.

Covid vaccine sites are preparing for floods of patients as health chiefs push to ensure all over-50s are jabbed to tackle the current surge in cases. Pictured: Large queues for outside a vaccine centre in Elgin, Scotland, on Thursday

An emergency meeting will be held by experts at the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies committee on Thursday after it was found that India's Covid variant is now dominant in five local authorities in England. There are mounting concerns that it is more infectious than the currently dominant Kent strain

SAGE says it's a 'realistic possibility' Indian variant could lead to 1,000 Covid deaths by summer There is a 'realistic possibility' the Indian Covid variant is far more transmissible than the Kent strain and could lead to up to a thousand deaths a day by summer, the Government's scientists warned last night. The SPI-M subgroup said it was confident the mutant B.1.617.2 strain was more infectious than the currently dominant variant, and that it could spread up to 50 per cent more easily. It warned that pressing on with easing all lockdown restrictions on June 21, as is currently the plan for England, could lead to more than 10,000 more people being hospitalised with the disease daily by Autumn. The bleak forecasts were presented to No10 this week after cases of the strain more than doubled in seven days and four people were found to have died from the variant. Scientists advising SAGE this month estimated what a more transmissible strain could do to the country after lockdown is lifted in June and claimed it could trigger up to 20,000 hospital admissions per day in a worst-case scenario. January's peak, which nearly crippled the NHS, was around 3,800 a day in England. A Warwick University modelling team cautioned that if it was 40 per cent more transmissible the next surge could be worse than the second wave, with up to 6,000 daily admissions, and a 50 per cent increase could lead to 10,000 per day. Less grisly numbers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine suggested a 50 per cent rise could lead to 4,000 per day. But there are still glimmers of hope, with experts saying it remains unclear whether the current variant spreads significantly quicker or whether it is a coincidence it sprung up in places that already had high transmission or simply emerged in clusters linked to people flying into the country from abroad. Vaccines are still likely to work against the strain, research suggests, and there are no signs it is more deadly. But faster transmission means more people getting infected and more opportunities for 'vaccine failure' - when people get sick even after having a jab, which may happen to between five and 15 per cent of people. The variant still only makes up a minority of cases nationwide - around 10 per cent - but it is growing quickly and particularly in hotspots such as Bolton, Blackburn, Bedford and Sefton in Merseyside, where it is confirmed to account for more than half of all positive tests. Advertisement

Professor Wei Shen Lim, Covid-19 Chair for JCVI, said: 'Due to the rapid rise in cases of the B1.617.2 variant of concern and notable transmission in parts of the country, the JCVI advises that every effort is made to promote vaccine uptake in those who remain unvaccinated in priority cohorts one to nine  these people remain at highest risk of severe outcomes from Covid-19.

'Where vaccine supply allows, particularly in areas where B1.617.2 is a major threat, the second dose of vaccine should be brought forward from 12 to eight weeks.

'This is only possible because everyone in the Phase One priority groups has already been offered a first dose.

'Alongside these measures, the vaccine programme should continue to be rolled out as quickly as possible.

'The capacity of vaccination centres should be maximised to enable rapid rollout.'

Professor Chris Whitty last night said there was no likelihood the move to fully vaccinate all over-50s as soon as possible will affect the roll-out to under-40s.

Chris Whitty said: 'The prioritisation of second doses will not, we think, delay the situation, the rollout, for people who are in younger ages.'

It comes amid debate around whether Prime Minister Boris Johnson's decision to press ahead with lockdown easing across England on Monday is safe given concerns around the Indian variant.

Professor Graham Medley, chair of the Spi-M subgroup of Sage and professor of infectious disease modelling at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine told MailOnline experts would assess the growth of the Indian variant over the next four days before deciding whether to go ahead with the June 12 date for going 'back to normal'.

He said: 'Decisions in epidemics are about balancing risks and harms.

'The point of scientific advice is to help assess the risks and harms.

'The risks of the epidemic and the harm caused by the virus have been reduced by the vaccines, but they are still there.

'We will learn a lot more about the impact of the B.1.617.2 variant in the coming days and will re-assess the risks.

'Step 4 of the roadmap out of lockdown is going to depend on how the risks look at the time.'

But other experts have argued the next stage of lockdown easing on Monday should have been delayed because of the risks posed by the variant.

Minutes released by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) from their meeting on Thursday said 'it is highly likely that this (Indian) variant is more transmissible than (Kent) and it is a realistic possibility that it is as much as 50 per cent more transmissible'.

The experts warned there will be an even faster increase in cases if restrictions are lifted, suggesting a peak of infection can be expected after Monday's easing, and certainly at step four of the road map in June, when all legal limits on social contact are due to end.

Sage said: 'If this variant were to have a 40-50 per cent transmission advantage nationally compared to (Kent), sensitivity analyses in the modelling of the road map in England indicate that it is likely that progressing with step three alone (with no other local, regional, or national changes to measures) would lead to a substantial resurgence of hospitalisations (similar to, or larger than, previous peaks).

'Progressing with both steps three and four at the earliest dates could lead to a much larger peak.'

Professor Christina Pagel, member of Independent Sage and mathematician at University College London, today told MailOnline the decision to open up on Monday 'is going against scientific advice'.

She said: 'Test 4 for easing the roadmap says: Our assessment of the risks is not fundamentally changed by new Variants of Concern.

'It is crystal clear from Thursdays SAGE meeting minutes that this test has not been met.

'The Prime Minister and Chief Medical Officer both said that this variant could cause a significant new wave of not just infections, but hospitalisations if we move to step 3 of the roadmap.

'Given that, the decision to press ahead is going against scientific advice and the tests.'

A Warwick University model of a more infectious variant after lockdown is completely lifted on June 21 suggests that any more than a 30 per cent increase in transmissibility compared to the Kent variant could lead to an August peak of daily hospital admissions that is higher than either the first or second wave. In a worst-case scenario with a variant 50 per cent more transmissible, hospital admissions could surge to 10,000 per day or even double that (Thick lines indicate the central estimate while the thin lines are possible upper limits known as confidence intervals)

Similar but less grim modelling by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine suggested that a 50 per cent increase in transmissibility could trigger a peak of 4,000 admissions per day in July or August, possibly extending to 6,000 per day

The LSHTM model suggested hospitals could have another 30,000 inpatients by the end of July - up to around 45,000 - compared to the current 845
The great-great granddaughter of Henry Ford has made history after winning election to the automaker's influential board of directors.

Alexandra Ford English, 33, will be the first female member of the Ford family to serve on the 14-person board, and is set to begin immediately.

The auto heiress has only been working in the family business for four years, but insiders hope she will be able to help reverse the fortunes of the struggling automaker.

According to Bloomberg, Ford's shares have fallen 91 percent in the past 22 years, and 'net income has plunged as the company struggles with a global overhaul'.

In 2018, Ford reported a net income of $7.7 billion. The following year they reported net income of just $3.7 billion.

Prior to joining the family business, Ford English worked in merchandising for Tory Burch and Gap.

She holds an MBA from Harvard and an undergraduate degree from Stanford.

Alexandra Ford English, the great-great granddaughter of Henry Ford, has made history after winning election to the automaker's influential board of directors

According to Bloomberg, Ford's shares have fallen 91 percent in the past 22 years, and 'net income has plunged as the company struggles with a global overhaul'

Despite the current challenges to their business, Ford Motor appears interested in keeping members of its founding family in key positions across the company.

Ford English's cousin, Henry Ford III, has also been appointed to the company's board of directors.

The 40-year-old started out teaching high school math and history after graduating from Dartmouth University in the early 2000s.

He has spent the past 15 years working for Ford, and there are high hopes he will also help turn around the company.

'This is what they were destined for when they entered the company,' Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, associate dean at the Yale School of Management, told Bloomberg.

Ford English's cousin, Henry Ford III, 40, has also been appointed to the company's board of directors.

The Ford Motor Co. headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan is pictured

However, not everyone is impressed with the two new appointments, saying that the nepotism presents a risk to investors.

'That's why we don't have kings and queens anymore - it's a roll of the genetic dice,' said Nell Minow, vice chair with shareholder advocacy firm ValueEdge, told Bloomberg.

Ford English's father, Bill Ford Jr., is the current chairman of Ford Motor, a position he has held since 1999.

He has an estimated net worth of $1 billion.
Widespread gasoline shortages along the U.S. East Coast began to ease slightly on Saturday as the nation's biggest fuel pipeline said it was back to delivering 'millions of gallons per hour' following last week's cyberattack, and ships and trucks were deployed to fill up dry storage tanks.

The six-day Colonial Pipeline shutdown was the most disruptive cyberattack on record, triggering widespread panic buying by U.S. motorists that left filling stations across the U.S. Southeast out of gas.

'We have returned the system to normal operations, delivering millions of gallons per hour to the markets we serve,' the company said on Saturday.

Those markets include Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, South and North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Washington D.C., Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Cars line up to wait for gas at a Shell station in Washington DC on Saturday

A man arrives at an Exxon station in Washington DC, only to find the pump out of gas on Saturday

'All of these markets are now receiving product from our pipeline,' the company said, noting how its employees across the pipeline 'worked safely and tirelessly around the clock to get our lines up and running.'

The pipeline had begun its gradual restart on Wednesday.

More than 13,400 gas stations surveyed in the east and south by fuel tracking app GasBuddy were experiencing outages on Saturday, down from 16,200 early on Friday.

On Saturday afternoon, some 80 percent of gas stations in Washington, D.C. were still without fuel, an improvement from 88 percent without fuel late Friday, according to GasBuddy. Shortages also eased in North Carolina and Virginia, while remaining about the same in Georgia.

U.S. gasoline demand, meanwhile, dropped 12.6 percent from the previous week, a decline that was likely due to an easing of 'crazed' panic buying just after the pipeline shut, said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

The nationwide average for a gallon of regular unleaded was $3.04 on Saturday, from $2.96 a week ago, according to AAA.

The pipeline outage accelerated increases in gasoline prices that were 'already rising due to higher crude prices and demand ahead of Memorial Day,' said AAA spokeswoman Ellen Edmonds, referring to the May 31 holiday that traditionally kicks off the U.S. summer driving season.

Places served by the pipeline saw the biggest price jumps this week - 9 cents in D.C. and 21 cents in North Carolina - but they should also see prices decline again as supplies improve, Edmonds said.

A man is able to fill up his car after waiting in a long line at a Shell gas station in Washington DC on Saturday

A handwritten sign tells customers gas won't be found at this Exxon station in the nation's capital on Saturday

Ships deployed under emergency waivers were also moving fuel from U.S. Gulf Coast refiners to the northeast, while 18-wheel tanker trunks were ferrying gasoline from Alabama to Virginia, helping to stem the shortages.

U.S. crude prices could edge higher as refiners process more oil to catch up from gasoline storage that was drawn down while the pipeline was shuttered, said Robert Yawger, analyst at Mizuho Securities. The approach of Memorial Day helps make 'the sense of urgency supersized' for refiners, Yawger said.

In Washington, D.C., Dennis Li was stuck on Friday at a Sunoco gas station that was out of fuel. He had tried to find gas at four stations during the day, with no luck.

'I'm running on empty to the point where I don't want to drive anymore,' said Li, who is from Annapolis, Maryland.

The hacking group blamed for the attack, DarkSide, said it had hacked four other companies including a Toshiba subsidiary in Germany.

Colonial Pipeline has not determined how the initial breach occurred, a spokeswoman said this week. The 5,500-mile (8,900-km) pipeline carries 100 million gallons of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel per day from Texas refineries to East Coast markets.

Colonial has not disclosed how much money the hackers were seeking or whether it paid. Bloomberg News and the New York Times reported that it paid nearly $5 million to hackers.

Fuel tanks at a Colonial Pipeline breakout station in Woodbine, Maryland

Steve Boyd, a senior managing director at fuel delivery firm Sun Coast Resources, estimated that with gasoline moving on the pipeline at half Colonial's normal speed, it could take 12 to 20 days for new deliveries to reach the northern-most point in Linden, New Jersey.

Sun Coast has 75 trucks taking supplies from terminals in Alabama and Georgia to retailers as far away as Virginia.

'If customers need us for another week or three weeks, we'll be there,' said Boyd.
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New Yorks historic Washington Square Park resembled a dirty garbage dump Saturday, after hundreds of maskless revellers descended on the area to celebrate the city's return to near-normality.

Garbage and litter was strewn across the pavements and lawns in the park Saturday morning with the Big Apple's pigeon population seen taking advantage of the remnants of food left behind from the night before.

Empty bottles of booze were scattered along the benches, while cans of beer (and who knows what else) floated in the water of its iconic fountain.

Saturday's scenes show the aftermath of a huge party Friday night where crowds of New Yorkers danced and drank long into the night.

New Yorks historic Washington Square Park resembled a dirty garbage dump Saturday, after hundreds of maskless revelers descended on the area to celebrate the city's return to near-normality

Garbage and litter was strewn across the pavements and lawns in the park Saturday morning with the Big Apple's pigeon population seen taking advantage of the remnants of food left behind from the night before

Saturday's scenes are the aftermath of a huge party Friday night where crowds of New Yorkers danced and drank long into the night (above)

New Yorkers dance the night away in Washington Square Park Friday night as the Big Apple continues to return to normal

Hundreds of people gathered maskless with some entertaining the crowds with live singing on a mic and one man even fire breathing.

Many ditched their masks after the CDC updated its guidance on face coverings this week to say fully vaccinated Americans can go without masks in most circumstances.

New York, however, still has a mask mandate in place with officials yet to lift the requirement.

The park has become a popular party destination in recent months as New Yorkers continue to return to normal life after the pandemic transformed the city last year.

Bars and restaurants faced some of the tightest restrictions over the last year and have still not fully reopened in the Big Apple.

Residents have taken matters into their own hands, bringing the party to Washington Square Park.

But it seems to have taken its toll on Manhattan's famous park, which had seen better days Saturday.

What was once a popular place for families to play and runners to jog resembled a garbage dump with used needles and dirty clothes lying around the area.

Empty bottles of booze and brown paper bags were scattered along the benches and the ground of the park Saturday

The park resembled a garbage dump Saturday morning as the remnants of the party the night before were clear to see

Cans of beer and seltzer (and who knows what else) floated in the water of its iconic fountain along with plastic and glass bottles

The scene Saturday morning after hundreds gathered in the park Friday night for a huge party with dancing and singing

What was once a popular place for families to play and runners to jog resembled a garbage dump with used needles and dirty clothes lying around the area

The party seems to have taken its toll on Manhattan's famous park, which had seen better days Saturday morning

One year ago, New York City was the virus epicenter of the world, healthcare systems were on the brink of collapse and bodies were piling up in morgues and refrigerated trucks in the streets.

The city turned into a ghost town as Governor Andrew Cuomo issued a stay-at-home order in March, shuttering businesses and non-essential retailers and telling people to stay at home to slow the spread of the virus.

The once bustling streets of Manhattan became deserted overnight and rich New Yorkers fled to second homes - with some quitting life in the Big Apple for good.

Homelessness soared with encampments springing up on the streets of the city as millions were thrown into unemployment overnight and crucial addiction services fell by the wayside amid the pandemic.

Hundreds of people gathered maskless in the park Friday night to party the night away as the Big Apple breathes back to life

Many ditched their masks after the CDC updated its guidance on face coverings this week to say fully vaccinated Americans can go without masks in most circumstances

One man was seen fire breathing in the park as people entertained each other with antics, singing and dancing

People dressed up for the occasion with some appearing to be in brightly-colored fancy dress costumes and hats made from cardboard boxes

New York still has a mask mandate in place with officials yet to lift the requirement despite the update in CDC guidance

Friday night's revelry suggests the city is breathing back to life.

Now, 41 percent of all New Yorkers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and more than half have had at least their first dose.

The city is continuing to reopen at an increasing pace, with restrictions easing again this month on hard-hit restaurants and bars.

On May 17, the midnight curfew for outdoor dining areas of bars and restaurants across the state will be lifted, followed by the indoor curfew on May 31.

This comes after customers were finally able to sit at bars in New York City from May 3 and, days earlier, Cuomo's controversial pandemic-era rule that required customers to order food when buying alcohol in bars and restaurants was scrapped.

While the lifting of these rules will likely send people back to the city's iconic bar and restaurant scene, in the meantime partiers have been making use of Washington Square Park.

The park has become a popular party destination in recent months as New Yorkers continue to return to normal life after the pandemic transformed the city last year

It marks a drastic change from one year ago, when New York City was the virus epicenter of the world and the city turned into a ghost town

One person is seen singing into a mic entertaining a crowd of people gathered Friday night in the Manhattan park

Friday night's revelry shows the city is breathing back to life Now, 41 percent of all New Yorkers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and more than half have had at least their first dose

The city is continuing to reopen at an increasing pace, with restrictions easing again this month on hard-hit restaurants and bars
Heading out for supermarket supplies, she could be any unassuming shopper.

But the woman behind the facemask is Janet Leach, the one-time confidante of serial killer Fred West.

As the 65-year-old was spotting out in Gloucester last week, police a few miles away were searching The Clean Plate Cafe for the body of Mary Bastholm  believed to be another of West's victims.

Mary, who was 15, vanished in 1968 and was among up to 20 people that West allegedly confessed to Ms Leach that he killed  in addition to the 12 whose murders he was charged with.

Ms Leach was a trainee social worker when she was assigned as West's 'appropriate adult' during police interviews and visits to his now-infamous home in Cromwell Street.

Janet Leach, 65, (pictured) the confidante of serial killer Fred West, was spotted in Gloucester last week, while police were searching The Clean Plate Cafe for the body of Mary Bastholm

In 1995, she controversially sold her story for a reported 100,000, declaring: 'He trusted me. Maybe even loved me. He wanted to please me.'

Her relationship with West was the subject of an ITV drama called Appropriate Adult in 2011, starring Dominic West and Emily Watson, but Ms Leach has not been photographed for nearly 20 years as she quietly vanished into obscurity.

Located by The Mail on Sunday last week, the mother-of-five declined to comment.

A neighbour in the Gloucester suburb where she lives said: 'She's quite reclusive. She doesn't work any more and lives alone.'

Ms Leach had four sons by ex-husband Barry Leach  as well as a daughter from another relationship  but they divorced before she met West.

She has suffered a series of setbacks since selling her story. Her next partner, a plasterer, died in 1999 and she went on to marry a retired lorry driver. He passed away a decade ago, before they had even celebrated their first anniversary.

Ms Leach was assigned as West's 'appropriate adult', and her relationship with him was subject of ITV drama Appropriate Adult in 2011, starring Dominic West and Emily Watson (pictured)

Her eldest son Paul has been publicly critical of his mother, claiming her relationship with West ruined his life.

Police were this weekend continuing their search of the cafe  called the Pop-In in 1968  which was a known haunt of West and where Mary worked as a waitress.

Forensic archaeologists and detectives are assessing whether to launch major excavation works tomorrow.

Mary was last seen waiting for a bus and there are suspicions that West may have stopped to give her a lift before killing her.

The new investigation was launched after a TV crew took a cadaver dog into the cafe and it picked up a scent in the basement.

West reportedly confessed Mary's murder to Mrs Leach but in official interviews denied any involvement. He was 53 when he took his own life on New Year's Day 1995 while awaiting trial for 12 murders.

His wife, Rose, now 67, was given a life tariff after being found guilty of ten murders.
He is one of twentieth century literatures' most notorious characters, a petty tyrant corrupted by his colonial powers.

Seen as one of author Joseph Conrad's most memorable creations, it had long been assumed that ivory trader Kurtz, a central figure in his 1899 novella Heart of Darkness, had been conjured from his imagination.

Now however a new BBC documentary is set to suggest that Kurtz - later memorably played by Marlon Brando in the 1979 American war film loosely based on the novel, Apocalypse Now - may have been based on captain Paul Voulet, a real-life renegade army captain.

Like the fictional Kurtz, Voulet was stationed in Africa in the late 19th century, where, turning rogue, he oversaw the massacre of thousands of native people.

His story is told in African Apocalypse which, via fascinating archival letters and pictures, traces Voulet's unsettling transformation from promising young French soldier to depraved war criminal.

Until now Conrad's inspiration for Kurtz had remained a literary mystery, for while it was the author's own journey up the Congo that laid the groundwork for his fourth and most infamous book, he met no such character during his time there.

A new BBC documentary is set to suggest Kurtz may have been based on captain Paul Voulet (pictured), a real-life renegade army captain

While researching the film, director Rob Lemkin discovered that shortly before he wrote Heart of Darkness, Conrad had gone to stay at the home of Cora Stewart, the estranged wife of Captain Donald Stewart, then the British representative in West Africa, Captain Donald Stewart.

A direct contemporary of Voulet in Africa, Stewart had made plain his dismay at his French arch-rival's conduct in top secret dispatches to the Prime Minister Lord Salisbury, reporting his repeated breaking of international treaties , including taking women and children as 'prisoners of war' and selling them into slavery to pay his mercenaries.

The captain's reports were classified, but Cora was aware of their content and as Conrad went to stay at the home Cora now shared with his close friend, Novelist Stephen Crane, it is not unlikely that she related Voulet's depraved exploits.

The rogue officer's exploits certainly mirror the plot and details of Conrad's story. Crowned Soldier of the Year in Paris in 1898, Voulet was handpicked to secure the forbidding and hostile lands east of the Niger, tasked with taking control of Lake Chad and unify the French territories in West Africa.

Yet quickly drunk on power, he soon turned into a depraved war criminal, ordering his mercenaries to massacres hundreds of locals and overseeing the raping and pillaging of countless victims.

His soldiers were paid to kill and would chop the hands off their victims as proof of each execution, their names , alongside the payments he had made, kept in a macabre list by Voulet.

Kurtz was memorably played by Marlon Brando (pictured) in the 1979 American war film loosely based on the novel, Apocalypse Now

Many would be decapitated, mirroring the severed heads around the Congo home of Conrad's Kurtz  a manifestation of the character's descent into madness.

Not content with his exploits in West Africa, from there Voulet called on his troops to follow him to the east to create the most powerful empire in Africa, telling them 'I am no longer French, I am a black Emperor, greater than Napoleon'.

But the mercenaries soon decided that their commander had lost his mind.

They murdered him and buried his body in a remote Sahel village where his grave can still be found today.

Two months later Voulet's heavily censored story was told in the same literary magazine, where earlier that year Conrad's unsettling novella had just been published in three parts.

Whether or not stories of Voulet were in his mind at the time of writing cannot be proved  but that the journeys of Kurtz and Captain Paul Voulet to the Heart of Darkness are uncannily similar.
Schoolchildren as young as nine were filmed parading in military uniforms while carrying replica machine guns and chanting war songs in Russia.

The primary school pupils carried 'toy guns' and chanted 'there is no forgiveness to your enemies' as they marched in the industrial city of Elektrostal, which lies 36 miles east of Moscow.

The parade coincided with a call from Vladimir Putin's top security official for a boost to military training for children.

It also comes as tension between Russia and the West is at the highest since the end of the Cold War.

Schoolchildren as young as nine were filmed parading in military uniforms and carrying replica machine guns in the industrial city of Elektrostal, Russia

During the event, the pupils chanted war songs which included the line 'there is no forgiveness to your enemies'

Footage shows the nine-year-old's marching in line and chanting the war song as parents and teachers watch on.

Other scenes showed pupils aged seven to 16 also marching in military attire while singing the war songs.

During their chants the schoolchildren said: 'We are Russians, God is with us! We are Russians, Russians don't sell out.'

The song also included the line: 'There is no forgiveness to your enemies' and 'The last breath is for the Motherland.'

The scenes come after spymaster Nikolai Patrushev, head of the Kremlin's security council, demanded a boost in Russia's youth army, set up in 2015, which already numbers 803,000.

Critics have alleged the Young Army Cadets National Movement, also known as Yunarmia, resembles the Hitler Youth in Nazi Germany, and also alleged rising militarisation in Russia.

However Patrushev - who once headed the FSB security service - has called for 'creating and developing training centres in regions for the military and patriotic upbringing of young people'.

This would help to combat extremism and 'pro-Western liberal values', he said.

A young girl walks towards members of staff while wearing a military-style uniform

Other scenes showed pupils aged seven to 16 also marching in military attire while singing the war songs

The parade came after a call from Vladimir Putin's top security official for a boost to military training for children

While the parade in Elektrostal is not specifically linked to Yunarmia it has been criticised by a psychologist Elena Kuznetsova for glorifying war and death.

Children should not wear military uniform, and that the organisers portrayed war as a holiday, she said.

'For most of our ancestors in the war years, these clothes were a posthumous garment,' she told Takie Dela news outlet.

'The military uniform is a dress for death.

'To suffer an untimely death, to meet it yourself, prematurely.

'Leaving traces of grief wherever such uniform boots step.

'Children need to buy clothes about life, not about death.'

Organisers of the Elektrostal event said: 'It was not a parade, but a school check of marching and songs.'

School deputy head Elena Karpacheva said children aged nine had carried 'toy guns', while others aged seven to 16 had only marched and sung war songs.

Defenders of the youth army and such events with children say it allows children to stay out of trouble while fostering patriotism.
Questions have been raised over Sir Patrick Vallance's absence from last night's Downing Street briefing.

The Chief Scientific Adviser, alongside Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty, is usually part of the line-up for major No10 press conferences held by Boris Johnson.

But his no-show did not go unnoticed, with some speculating on social media whether he did not agree with the messages being communicated.

One wrote: 'Johnson was pretending to know/care about anything other than keeping to his damn roadmap and Whitty looked like he was pretending to agree with him. Valance sensible enough to be absent.'

Another added: 'Where is Vallance? What was his advice?'

However, Sir Patrick's department, the Government Office for Science, told MailOnline the Chief Scientific Adviser 'does not attend every press conference'.

A spokesperson added that 'a range of medical and scientific advisors join the Downing Street Coronavirus press conferences', and that on this occasion, it was just Professor Whitty alongside the Prime Minister.

Indeed at a briefing back in February, Mr Johnson was again joined only by Professor Whitty, rather than Sir Patrick as well.

Chris Whitty and Boris Johnson were not joined by Patrick Vallance last night, with many questioning his absence

The Chief Scientific Adviser is usually part of the line-up for major No10 press conferences

Mr Johnson used the briefing last night to warn that plans to end lockdown restrictions next month are in jeopardy as scientists feared the Indian coronavirus variant could be 50% more transmissible than the Kent strain.

The Prime Minister told a Downing Street press conference that England will face 'hard choices' if the Indian variant of concern turned out to be much more transmissible than others.

Professor Whitty said that would mean 'a really significant surge' in infections, as he predicted the variant could become the most dominant strain across the UK.

Mr Johnson said he will press ahead with plans to lift restrictions on Monday, permitting people to mix indoors as well as allowing physical contact to return between households for the first time in over a year.

In a bid to dampen the effects of the variant, Mr Johnson announced that people aged over 50 and the clinically vulnerable will have their second doses of a Covid vaccine accelerated.

The downbeat briefing took place as it emerged the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergences (Sage) concluded it is 'highly likely' the Indian strain is more transmissible than the one that emerged in Kent.

The minutes of the meeting on Thursday showed they believe there is a 'realistic possibility that it is as much as 50% more transmissible'.

They warned there will be an even faster increase in cases if restrictions are lifted, suggesting a peak of infection can be expected after Monday's easing, and certainly at step four in June when all legal limits on social contact are due to end.

Sage said that if higher levels of transmissibility are confirmed, moving to step three on Monday could 'lead to a substantial resurgence of hospitalisations (similar to, or larger than, previous peaks)'.

The scientists also acknowledged there 'may be some reduction in protection' conferred by vaccines on the Indian variant.

During the Downing Street briefing, the Prime Minister said: 'I do not believe that we need, on the present evidence, to delay our road map and we will proceed with our plan to move to step three in England from Monday.

'But I have to level with you that this new variant could pose a serious disruption to our progress and could make it more difficult to move to step four in June.'
The Archbishop of Canterbury was last night lambasted for refusing to support a chaplain who was reported to an anti-terrorism programme after he questioned his school's new LGBT policies.

Church of England leaders were urged to intervene after this newspaper revealed how independent Trent College near Nottingham secretly reported Reverend Dr Bernard Randall to the Prevent programme, which normally identifies those at risk of being radicalised.

Dr Randall, 48, had delivered a sermon in which he told pupils they were allowed to disagree with the school's new LGBT policies, particularly if they felt they ran contrary to the Church's principles.

The school decided Dr Randall's sermon was 'harmful to LGBT' students and referred him to Prevent, although a police probe ruled the chaplain posed 'no counter-terrorism risk, or risk of radicalisation'.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby (above) was lambasted for not supporting a chaplain who was reported to an anti-terrorism programme for questioning his school's LGBT policies

The Christian Legal Centre, which has taken up Dr Randall's case, appealed for Archbishop Justin Welby, along with the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, and the Bishop of Derby, Libby Lane, to publicly support Dr Randall.

'Will you use your platform to defend Dr Randall and freedom of belief and religion in our schools,' centre chief executive Andrea Williams asked in a letter.

But all three senior figures declined to give Dr Randall their backing.

Asked whether the Most Rev Welby, who is on a three-month sabbatical, believed the school was right to report Dr Randall to Prevent, a spokesman at Lambeth Palace said: 'We don't have any comment.'

The Archbishop's failure to back Dr Randall provoked fierce criticism.

Sir John Hayes, chairman of the Common Sense Group of Tory MPs and peers, said: 'There's nothing in the sermon that I saw published in the paper that anyone would find disturbing.

'When a clergyman is sacked for giving a sermon and the Archbishop doesn't act, you are entitled to ask: at what point would the Archbishop act? What's going to happen for the Archbishop to act? If he's never going to act, what's the point of him?'

Ms Williams added: 'It is incredibly disappointing, but sadly not surprising, that the leadership of the Church of England have failed to speak up in support of Dr Randall. Where is Welby on this issue?'

Meanwhile, George Carey, who was Archbishop of Canterbury between 1991 and 2002, heaped pressure on his successor by saying Dr Randall 'deserves the support of the Church of England'.

Reverend Dr Bernard Randall, 48, (above) delivered a sermon in which he told pupils at Trent College near Nottingham they were allowed to disagree with the school's new LGBT policies

'Freedom of speech is the key issue here,' he said. 'His sermon was respectful of differences and invited discussion and debate.'

It comes as The Mail on Sunday can reveal claims that Church officials supported the school's decision to report its chaplain to Prevent.

It has been claimed that Justine Rimington, the school's 'designated safeguarding lead' who reported Dr Randall to Prevent, spoke to an official at the Diocese of Derby and was assured that her actions had not been 'discriminatory'.

In a letter to parents last week, the school's head Bill Penty defended the chaplain's referral to Prevent, saying: 'Throughout this process we were following established safeguarding practice, as we are required to do.'

Dr Randall was initially sacked for gross misconduct but then reinstated on appeal. He was made redundant last December and he is suing the school for discrimination and unfair dismissal.

Last night, he said the lack of support from the top of the Church of England was 'disappointing', adding: 'They could have said we believe in freedom of religion.'

In her reply to Ms Williams, the Right Rev Lane said: 'Public statements in support of one side in a dispute, prior to the evidence emerging in legal proceedings, is neither in the interests of good legal process nor, indeed, likely to serve Dr Randall's personal interests well.'

The Most Rev Cottrell's office said that it supported the Right Rev Lane's comments.
Reverend Dr Bernard Randall last night said his 'heart sings' after parents and former pupils threw their support behind him.

In a letter to Bill Penty, the head of Trent College, one ex-pupil described the school's former chaplain as 'engaging, extremely clever and the most understanding man I am yet to meet'.

The former pupil, who declined to be named because he feared it would impact his future career, added: 'The sermon that Dr Randall held was merely presenting the idea that it is acceptable and indeed desirable for students to think for themselves, and if they feel the need, to question the school's actions.'

A parent praised Dr Randall for his 'central role of upholding the schools' Christian values and ethos'.

Reverend Dr Bernard Randall last night said his 'heart sings' after parents and former pupils threw their support behind him

They added: 'We must state that this sermon is not outdated, and many parents agree with Father Bernard that it is important to debate and discuss all issues our young people, teachers, staff and families face in a non-judgmental, or biased way.'

Dr Randall has also received a flood of messages of support from members of the public since The Mail on Sunday revealed his story last week.

A retired archdeacon wrote: 'You have been treated in a manner that is utterly contemptible. I thought your chapel address was gracious, thoughtful and entirely appropriate.' Meanwhile, a Christian teacher in a London secondary school said he shared Dr Randall's concerns.

Christian ethos: Trent College (pictured above) near Nottingham, which claimed that Dr Randall's 2019 school sermon was 'harmful to LGBT pupils' and flagged him to Prevent

He said: 'I find it deeply concerning how little we and the students are allowed to question the changes that are happening, and how much some of the changes undermine Christian values.'

Dr Randall said the messages of support had been 'wonderful'. He added: 'It makes my heart sing.'

'I believe that in many respects Trent is still an excellent school and I deeply miss excellent former colleagues who are outstanding teachers and I really feel for how conflicted they must be feeling at the whole situation.'
New York City's youngsters flocked to vaccination sites just as soon as they were allowed this week.

Almost 2,500 New York City adolescents were vaccinated against COVID-19 the first day after the shot was approved for 12- to 15-year-olds, according to a new report.

And there are already 6,000 more appointments booked for that age group, Maybe Bill de Blasio said on WNYC radio Friday morning.

'We're going to see a lot of young people vaccinated for sure. And we're really excited about that,' the mayor said.

The Centers for Disease Control approved the Pfizer vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds on Wednesday.

The city has approximately 500,000 residents ages 12 to 15, according to The New York Post.

There are 6,000 appointments booked for the age group, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio said on WNYC

About 2,500 New York City adolescents were vaccinated, according to the New York Post

The Pfizer shot was approved for the 12- to 15-year-old age group on Wednesday

Adolescents being observed after receiving their COVID-19 vaccine

Children as young as 12 were approved to get COVID-19 vaccines

In total, 47 per cent of New Yorkers have at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 38 per cent of New Yorkers are fully vaccinated, according to the latest numbers from the COVID-19 vaccine tracker.

On Thursday, the federal health agency said fully vaccinated Americans do not have to wear masks outdoors and in most indoor settings, aside from crowded places such as buses and planes.

But the relaxed guidelines are just that; unenforceable suggestions.

Currently, 13 states say they are lifting their mask mandates in accordance with the new CDC guidance but at least 12 states have no plans to do so

IN THE GREEN: CDC's updated infographics shows that fully vaccinated Americans can safely do just about anything without wearing a mask

New York City is still requiring people - even those fully vaccinated - to keep their masks on, as per state mandate.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is one of 12 governors - including those in California, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia - who are mandating residents to keep their masks on.

Governors in 13 other states - Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia - said that in accordance with the new CDC guidelines, they will be dropping mask-wearing orders.
Vancouver police have apologized after five officers wrongly handcuffed and detained a retired black judge while he was out on his morning walk.

Selwyn Romilly - who made history as the first black judge appointed to British Columbia's Supreme Court back in 1995 - was strolling along the Stanley Park foreshore on Friday morning when cops pounced.

They claimed Romilly matched the appearance of a dark-skinned assault suspect aged between 40 and 50 who was lurking in the area. Romilly is 81 years old.

The retired judge told CBC he was placed in handcuffs for about a minute and that he was left 'embarrassed' by the incident as the park was packed with people.

'They said they got a report and I fit the description of a person. Without much ado, they told me to turn around and put my hands behind my back and put me in handcuffs,' he told the publication.

In a separate interview with The Vancouver Sun, he stated: 'I told them I was a retired Supreme Court judge. I don't know whether that made them have second thoughts.'

Vancouver police have apologized after five officers wrongly detained and handcuffed retired black judge Selwyn Romilly while he was out on his morning walk on Friday

Romilly was strolling along the Stanley Park foreshore on Friday morning (pictured) when cops pounced

Vancouver police have not released a public statement regarding the incident, but Romilly said two senior members of the force have reached out to apologize.

He says he will not be making a formal complaint.

'I hate to say that this is a case where I was targeted because I was walking while black, but you kind of wonder why those handcuffs were placed on me at such an early stage,' he told CBC.

He says he hopes the police force becomes more 'vigilant' when training officers about how to deal with minorities.

Romilly made history as the first black judge appointed to British Columbia's Supreme Court back in 1995

Romilly is one of Canada's most distinguished lawyers.

He was born in Trinidad before moving to the country for college in the 1960s.

When he entered law school at the University of British Columbia in 1963, he was only the fourth black student to be admitted.

The father-of-two - who met his wife in law school - subsequently began a lengthy legal career.

He joined the Provincial Court of British Columbia in 1974 before his appointment to the Supreme Court in 1995.

While serving on the court, Romilly was noted for his 'kindness and sincerity' and became a mentor to law students, 'encouraging their fledgling legal careers'.

Vancouver officials honored Justice Romily with an event at City Hall upon his retirement in 2015.
An Imam who is demanding the sacking of a teacher who showed pupils an image of the Prophet Muhammad may have broken hate crime laws, a former senior police officer believes.

Muhammad Adil Shahzad travelled to join protests outside Batley Grammar School in West Yorkshire in March after the cartoons were used during a lesson about blasphemy.

He has since made a string of incendiary social media posts, including some that a former Detective Chief Inspector believes fall foul of the law.

Mr Shahzad says he and his followers are 'fighting an academic war' against the enemies of Islam, has said people should not be 'brainwashed by freedom of speech' and warned that riots could erupt if similar incidents were repeated.

Muhammad Adil Shahzad (pictured), who is demanding teacher who showed pupils an image of Prophet Muhammad be sacked, may have broken hate crime laws, an ex-police officer says

He also used the derogatory term 'coconut' to describe 18 Muslim MPs, including the former Home Secretary Sajid Javid, who backed the teacher.

The slur, suggesting someone is 'brown on the outside but white on the inside', has been found in court to amount to racially aggravated harassment.

The Mail on Sunday asked former DCI Paul Maleary, who used to adjudicate on hate crime charging decisions, to assess Mr Shahzad's recent posts.

He said he would have referred several of them to the Crown Prosecution Service on the grounds that they may have incited racial or religious hatred.

'Describing MPs as 'coconut individuals' is a racially derogatory term and could be considered incitement to racial hatred,' he said.

'There is a precedent in law with regards to using the word 'coconuts' about people from ethnic minorities. There are also comments which could be described as sectarian in nature, attacking other religious groups including other Muslims which could be deemed to be inciting religious hatred.'

In media interviews, Mr Shahzad has cut a moderate figure.

'All we ask for is a bit of respect,' he said on one occasion. 'If one teacher can do it, another teacher can do it five years down the line, and we do not want this to be the case.'

But he not only signed a letter in which the Batley teacher  who is understood to still be under police protection  was named, but also condemned MPs who expressed concern about the protests.

Mr Shahzad travelled to join protests outside Batley Grammar School in West Yorkshire (pictured) in March after the cartoons were used during a lesson about blasphemy

Mr Shahzad has since used the derogatory term 'coconut' to describe 18 Muslim MPs, including the former Home Secretary Sajid Javid (pictured), who backed the teacher

He wrote: 'I think there are 18 Muslim MPs, Sajid Javid, only Muslim MPs by name, coconut individuals. If you saw the tweet he put out yesterday, you call yourself a Muslim? We will not accept anything less than a sacking... Don't be fooled by freedom of speech, no freedom of speech!'

In a sermon posted at the beginning of April, he again referred to the teacher's use of the cartoons and said: 'If that incident was to happen here in Bradford, there would be riots on the streets.'

In another sermon, the imam, who founded the Al-Hikam Institute mosque in Bradford, said: 'We are fighting an academic war and a war of intelligence against the enemies of Islam.'

He added: 'Words are not enough. Actions speak louder than words...Do not be brainwashed by this freedom of speech.'

Last night, Mr Shahzad clarified that he wanted any actions to be 'peaceful and democratic' and apologised for the use of the term 'coconut', saying he was unaware that it was racially offensive.

In 2010, a black councillor in Bristol was found guilty of racial harassment for using the term against an Asian political opponent.

Meanwhile, a trainee teacher who was dragged before a disciplinary hearing for asking whether his university would back him if he showed pupils a cartoon of the Prophet says he fears for the erosion of the freedom of speech.

The Manchester Metropolitan University student, a member of the Free Speech Union, said of the Batley incident: 'I am concerned about the cowardly response from the unions and other bodies connected to teaching.'

The university insisted it 'always championed freedom of speech', adding: 'The discussion with the student was positive and constructive.' No decision has yet been made following the hearing.
The lecturer is being investigated after being branded racist and 'problematic'

He said the planned Higher Education Freedom of Speech Bill was a positive step

He said the planned Higher Education Freedom of Speech Bill was a positive step

An academic at the centre of a freedom of speech row has welcomed plans for a new law to protect it on university campuses.

Dr Neil Thin, 60, a senior lecturer in social anthropology who has become the latest target for woke students, is being investigated after being branded racist and 'problematic' for criticising the University of Edinburgh's move to rename a tower honouring philosopher David Hume over his links to slavery.

Two years ago, he accused an anti-racism event called Resisting Whiteness of segregation because it had an area only for ethnic minorities.

Social anthropology lecturer Dr Neil Thin (pictured), who is at the centre of a freedom of speech row, has welcomed plans for a new law to protect it on university campuses

Last night, he said the planned Higher Education (Freedom of Speech Bill), which was announced in the Queen's Speech and would see universities in England face fines for failing to protect free speech, was a positive step.

It is intended to combat so-called 'no-platforming' on campuses, prevent staff from being penalised for expressing controversial opinions and allow visiting speakers, academics or students to seek compensation if they suffer loss from a breach of free-speech obligations.

'We need to protect people's right to air diverse, reasonable viewpoints and protect people from malicious attacks,' said Dr Thin, whose case prompted claims that the university was 'acting like Communist dictator Chairman Mao'.

He said the most important challenge was 'to persuade our student bodies and academic staff that open-minded discussion, moral curiosity and airing of diverse political viewpoints are crucially important to academic life and if we lose those values we lose the value of universities'.

Dr Thin, 60, is being investigated after being branded racist for criticising the move to rename a University of Edinburgh tower honouring David Hume (pictured) over his links to slavery

Now, he said the planned Higher Education (Freedom of Speech Bill), which was announced in the Queen's Speech, was a positive step. Pictured: The University of Edinburgh

In an open letter to colleagues, Dr Thin said he had been called racist, a transphobe, bigot and misogynist, adding: 'What has changed, dramatically, is the tendency for students with certain kinds of political views to seek to impose them on everyone else, and to try to censor anyone who questions them by claiming they are vulnerable and easily 'triggered', and need to be shielded from viewpoint diversity in 'safe spaces'.'

He said the university 'should not have launched an investigation. It should have been obvious that I had said nothing reprehensible'.

The father-of-three said the effect of the investigation had been 'catastrophic on me and my family', but he had been 'heartened by hundreds of emails offering overwhelming moral support' from academics, students and the public.

A university spokesperson said: 'We have a responsibility to take all complaints seriously and investigate them. We will not prejudge the outcome of this investigation.'
Schools are increasingly sanctioning the use of male names for girls as young as 13 without the consent of their parents.

An investigation by The Mail on Sunday has found three mothers discovered schools had allowed their daughters to be called by boys' names without first being consulted.

Campaigners say some in the education sector are misinterpreting  or even misusing  equality regulations.

The mothers, who each spoke on condition of anonymity to protect their children, say that their daughters, who are all under the age of 16, were given boys' names by teachers after saying that they identified as male.

The 'new' names were used in the classroom, and on pupil registers and official communications from school authorities.

An investigation by The Mail on Sunday found three mothers discovered schools had allowed their daughters to be called by boys' names without first being consulted (stock image)

One claims to have been told by her daughter's secondary school when she objected that she had 'no say' in the 13-year-old's decision because it was the 'child's right' to decide their gender.

Describing the experience two years ago, the woman, who is in her 50s and from Scotland, said: 'The school only phoned us to tell us it was happening and we had no say. They just said it's the child's right and you have to follow that.'

She said the school changed her daughter's name and pronouns on the school's internal IT records as well as using her new gender identity in letters sent home.

She says that her requests to reinstate the original name on school documents were initially 'ignored', adding: 'It took me a year and three months to get the school to change her records back to her legal name, although they were still calling her by her preferred name.'

Another mother, who is in her 40s and from the South of England, received a call from her daughter's teacher last October.

'Just to let you know I've had your daughter contact their tutor and they've identified as being male,' the teacher told her. 'So they've asked for a new name and pronouns and I just thought I'd let you know that's going ahead.'

The woman said her 13-year-old daughter had told her: 'I'll get bullied for being a girl but I won't get bullied for being trans.'

The woman requested a meeting with the school to get the name change reversed but even after doing so, she says two teachers insisted on treating her daughter as a boy. It continued until the mother called them personally to object.

A third mother, aged 42, from London, learned that her daughter was being referred to by a male name when a letter addressed to the pupil arrived at her home last spring.

The 'new' names had been used in the classroom, and on pupil registers and official communications from school authorities (stock image)

'We started receiving correspondence from the school about this other person who was being referred to as our son,' she recalled. 'On the request of someone who had just turned 14, they did this.'

Amanda Jones, a barrister specialising in gender law, said: 'Schools behaving in this way are acting outside their powers. Parental responsibility can be over-ruled, but by court order, not school diktat.'

Stephanie Davies-Arai, who runs Transgender Trend, a campaign group alarmed by the sharp rise in the number of young people presenting as the opposite sex, said: 'We've definitely seen an increase in parents reporting these stories. The schools are simply going along with what the child wants and not telling the parents.

'It's partly because they are being advised by transgender school toolkits. They are also scared of accusations of transphobia.'

One popular 'trans schoolkit', published by Brighton and Hove Council with the LGBT youth charity Allsorts, says: 'Care should be taken to ensure the wishes of the individual pupil or student are taken into account with a view to supporting them during potential transition.

'Confidential information must not be shared even with the parents without the child or young person's permission unless there are safeguarding reasons for doing so.'

Cllr Hannah Clare, Children, Young People & Skills Committee Chair at Brighton and Hove City Council, said: 'The Toolkit is a guide for teachers and other staff, not a policy.'

The number of girls identifying as boys has soared in recent years. Critics say they are being influenced by social media and popular transgender YouTube stars such as Alex Bertie and Ash Hardell.

Last night, a Department for Education spokeswoman said: 'Schools should work with parents, pupils and public services to decide what is best for individual children as these are complex and sensitive matters to navigate.'
Britain's new equalities chief has vowed to fight for women's right to challenge transgender activism.

In her first interview since taking office, Baroness Falkner of Margravine also called for a crackdown on the online abuse that puts people in fear of exercising their right to freedom of speech.

The 66-year-old peer said women in particular must have the right to question transgender identity without being abused, stigmatised or risk losing their job and that it was not unreasonable to say men who identify as women are not biological females.

Baroness Falkner of Margravine, 66, (pictured) said women in particular must have the right to question transgender identity without being abused, stigmatised or risk losing their job

'Someone can believe that people who self-identify as a different sex are not the different sex that they self-identify,' she said.

'A lot of people would find this an entirely reasonable belief.'

Her comments will be welcomed by feminist campaigners such as JK Rowling who say they have been 'slurred as bigots' for having raised concerns about such issues.

Baroness Falkner said she was concerned about anonymous social media abuse and her Equalities and Human Rights Commission will investigate what further steps tech giants could and should take to identify trolls.

'These companies cannot get by under the wing of free speech,' she told The Times.

'It's not a free speech defence to be anonymous. We really want to change that at the commission.'

She rounded on critics of a recent Government-commissioned report on race and ethnic disparities and its authors, adding: 'The way that they have been attacked for doing a serious job is unconscionable.'

She urged people to look at the progress on equality made in Britain compared with other countries.

'I've lived and worked in France, I've lived and worked in the US. I see Europe, very close up,' she said, 'and ... compared to all of these countries we are in a pretty good place.'
At St. John's University professor lost her job, allegedly after students were upset after she quoted the N-word aloud while reading from a Mark Twain novel to her class.

The school denied that the quote was the reason she was fired from her job, though.

Hannah Berliner Fischthal, an adjunct professor at the school for two decades, was fired from her position on April 29.

She allegedly lost her job after an incident two months earlier during a remote class with her students on February 10.

In Fischthal's 'Literature of Satire' class, she was reading an excerpt from Pudd'nhead Wilson, Twain's anti-slavery novel from 1894.

Hannah Berliner Fischthal, an adjunct professor at the school for two decades, was fired from her position on April 29

She read from a novel named Pudd'nhead Wilson, a Mark Twain novel seen as a send-up of racism and slavery, written in a satirical tone

Twain uses the N-word in the novel, which Fischthal contextualized to her class before saying it, according to the New York Post.

'His use of the 'N-word' is used only in dialogues as it could have actually been spoken in the south before the civil war, when the story takes place,' Fischthal said.

Despite her attempts to contextualize the quote before reading it, at least one student claimed to leave the class after she said the word.

The student wrote in an email at the time, 'It was unnecessary and very painful to hear.'

Fischthal responded by apologizing and starting a private conversation with her students, where she wrote, 'I apologize if I made anyone uncomfortable in the class by using a slur when quoting from and discussing the text.'

Two students defended Fischthal while four rejected her use of the word in class, a discussion that continued during the following class.

Nevertheless, she was called into an HR meeting on March 3 to discuss the incident and response, as well as an alleged comment Fischthal made about the hair of a black student, which she the professor claimed had nothing to do with her hair.

Two days later, Fischthal was suspended, accused of violating the school's bias policy.

Attorneys for the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education have written the president of the university to have Fischthal reinstated.

'Quoting [Mark Twains] work in a class on satire falls squarely within the protection afforded by academic freedom, which gives faculty members the breathing room to determine whether  and how  to discuss material students might find offensive,' the letter read.

The school (pictured) declined to say that the quote she read from a Mark Twain novel in class was the reason she was fired from her job

A spokesman for the school, however, pushed back against the assertion that Fischthal was fired because of the quote.

'If your assertion is that she was fired for reading aloud from a Mark Twain novel, that is incorrect,' Brian Browne, a spokesman for St. John's, told the Post.

Pudd'nhead Wilson is about a light-skinned slave who switches her baby with her master's baby to give her son a life of privilege he otherwise wouldn't receive.

The book is largely about the debate between nature and nurture, as well as a satirical look at racism and slavery.

'The point of this novel was that there is no inherent difference between Blacks and Whites. Clothes and education are what distinguishes people,' Fischthal said.

'Both the boys in the story look exactly the same, even though one is by law a slave, and the other one is a privileged white boy,' she added.

Fischthal had taught as an adjunct professor at the school (pictured) for two decades

Fischthal also referenced another recent incident at St. John's that allegedly resulted in the dismissal of a professor.

Former police officer Richard Taylor, 46, was an adjunct history professor at the college, where he taught a class about the Columbian Exchange, which included the movement of plants, animals, technology, disease and more between the Old World, West Africa, and the Americas in the 15th and 16th centuries.

Towards the end of the class on the Columbian Exchange in September, Taylor allegedly asked students to justify slavery, leading to at least one complaint against him.

Taylor disagreed with the characterization that his prompt at the end of the class was racist.

'I was asking them about the overall pros and cons of the Old World and the New World coming together,' Taylor told the NY Post. 'Slavery was a small part of the overall discussion.'

After the complaint, he was taken out of the classroom and later fired from his $15,000 adjunct professor position, which he has held since 2015.

Another recent incident at St. John's that allegedly resulted in the dismissal of a professor has that professor suing the school, claiming he was terminated for an unjust complaint

Taylor and his lawyers say they haven't been presented with evidence to justify his firing, nor have they been able to appeal the dismissal.

He is suing the school, claiming he was terminated for an unjust complaint against him.

Fischthal said she was 'horrified' by that incident. The daughter of Holocaust survivors, she also believes she's the last person who should be accused of being racist.

'I know where it leads and I know where it ends,' Fischthal said. 'In every class I teach the evils of stereotyping.'

Fischthal concluded that she'll miss her students and miss teaching.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex face questions over their partnership with an American cosmetics firm that makes tens of millions of pounds a year selling 'racist' skin-whitening creams.

Meghan and Harry last week announced their Archewell Foundation had signed a 'global partnership' with US multi-national Procter & Gamble (P&G) to 'build more compassionate communities'.

But the deal has thrown a spotlight on P&G's hugely controversial sale in Asia and Africa of skin-lightening creams, which reduce the concentration or production of melanin  the natural pigment that gives human skin its colour.

Campaigners have demanded that P&G and other major firms stop selling such creams.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex face questions over their partnership with an American cosmetics firm

They say the products fuel a 'toxic belief' that 'a person's worth is measured by the colour of their skin' and that light skin is better than dark.

An investigation by The Mail on Sunday has found that Olay  a major P&G skincare brand  sells White Radiance moisturiser in India, Malaysia and Singapore.

In India, the product is said to lighten skin tone and deliver 'radiant and brighter skin'.

In the Philippines, P&G sells Olay White Radiance Light Perfecting Essence, which 'inhibits melanin formation in the deepest layer of skin'. In Lagos, Nigeria, an MoS reporter last week bought Olay Natural White cream, which promises 'pinkish fairness'.

Alex Malouf, a former P&G executive, said Meghan and Harry will come under pressure to say whether they support the sale of such products.

'Meghan has talked a lot about the issue of race and racism, so this does stick out like a sore thumb,' Mr Malouf said.

It comes as:

Harry and Meghan faced calls to scrap their deal with P&G because one of its biggest suppliers of palm oil  FGV Holdings  has been accused of exploiting and abusing workers in Malaysia;

P&G was also lambasted for its role in the destruction of large swathes of virgin forest in Canada to make loo roll. It is claimed the company buys an estimated 490,000 tons of wood pulp a year from Canada's boreal forest;

A study by a major US environmental organisation found that suppliers of wood pulp from the forest were cutting down the habitat of the woodland caribou, an 'at-risk' species of reindeer.

Prince Harry has been outspoken on environmental and wildlife issues. Worth an estimated 6 billion a year, the skin-lightening industry is booming thanks to growing demand in Asia and Africa.

But cosmetic firms have faced mounting pressure amid the growth of the Black Lives Matter movement and claims that the use of such products is deeply rooted in colonial history.

Last year, following an investigation by the website Buzzfeed, Johnson & Johnson said it was dropping its Fine Fairness line, which was available in Asia and the Middle East.

The L'Oreal Group announced plans to remove 'white/whitening', 'fair/fairness' and 'light/lightening' from the names of its products, while Unilever announced plans to rename Fair & Lovely  a popular brand in India.

But P&G has continued to sell the popular White Radiance and Natural White products via its Olay brand. Olay has defended such products by comparing them to tanners or make-up.

One woman who runs a beauty shop in Lagos, sold the reporter two jars of Olay Natural White on Friday afternoon. The packaging said the product had been made in Thailand and it promised 'an extraordinary pinkish fairness'.

An investigation found that Olay  a major P&G skincare brand  sells White Radiance moisturiser in India, Malaysia and Singapore. Pictured: Two of the whitening products sold by Procter and Gamble

'This cream protects you against the sun, lightens your skin,' she said. 'It will reduce spots and give you a lovely skin tone.' In India, P&G sells Olay Natural White 7 in one glowing fairness cream.

Olay's website says the cream brightens skin tone and contains niacinamide, a skin lightening compound.

Nina Davuluri, 32, the first Indian-American to win Miss America, said skin-whitening products sell a 'racist' ideology 'that you need white skin to be beautiful, you need white skin to be successful'.

She has been fighting so-called 'colourism'  discrimination based on skin colour  since she saw a headline in an Indian newspaper which asked, 'Is Miss America too dark to be Miss India' after she won the title in 2014.

Miss Davuluri last year launched an online petition urging P&G, Unilever, L'Oreal and Johnson & Johnson to stop selling whitening creams.

The petition states: 'They are sending the message that people are 'less than' because they are dark. That they are not enough because of the colour of their skin. That they are not seen, valued, or heard. This is racism.'

She said last night she was shocked that P&G had not done more to address the issue.

Campaigner Kavitha Emmanuel said she founded India's Dark Is Beautiful campaign in 2009 to 'address the toxic belief that a person's worth is measured by the colour of their skin'.

She added: 'That is the toxic belief that these brands, through their advertisements seem to be propagating.'

Joanne Rondilla, a professor at San Jose State University who has researched skin-lightening in the Philippines, said Harry and Meghan had a 'responsibility' to voice concerns about these products with P&G.

'Like everyone else around the world, I saw that interview with Oprah that Meghan did,' she added. 'It was important for her to bring up these issues of colourism. I don't think this partnership advances that conversation.'

Robin Averbeck, of the Rainforest Action Network, a US environment organisation, called on the Duke and Duchess to end their relationship with P&G because of the firm's links with FGV Holdings.

'The fact that P&G has continued to be complicit in human rights abuses, in environmental devastation, is reason enough why this partnership shouldn't be formed or shouldn't continue. It showed that full due diligence on the company was not done.'

The Archewell Foundation has said its partnership with P&G will focus on 'gender equality, more inclusive online spaces, and resilience and impact through sport'.

P&G did not respond to questions about its skin-whitening creams, the US ban on imports from FGV Holdings or its use of wood pulp from Canada.

But in a statement, it said: 'At P&G, we are committed to doing the right thing across all aspects of our business  without exception. Doing more and doing better is important for us all  for our company, in our communities and for our planet.'
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Ministers are cautiously optimistic that targeted vaccinations can arrest a surge of the Indian variant and stop it from derailing Boris Johnson's roadmap out of lockdown.

Door-to-door Covid 'hit squads' are heading to Bolton and Blackburn, where the strain is at its most virulent, to focus on areas with the greatest 'vaccine hesitancy'.

Entire multi-generational households will be offered inoculations.

A Government source said: 'In jabs we trust.'

Mr Johnson will proceed as planned with tomorrow's reopening of pubs and restaurants for indoor dining, but has warned that the Indian variant poses 'a real risk of disruption' to the end of social distancing on June 21.

Door-to-door Covid 'hit squads' are heading to Bolton and Blackburn, where the strain is at its most virulent, to focus on areas with the greatest 'vaccine hesitancy'. Pictured: A queue for the jabs at the pop up centre in Bolton

Boris Johnson (pictured) will proceed as planned with tomorrow's reopening of pubs and restaurants for indoor dining, but has warned that the Indian variant poses 'a real risk of disruption' to the end of social distancing on June 21

Ministers are planning to blitz areas where the Indian variant has taken hold by vaccinating entire households to stop Covid spreading 'like wildfire'. Pictured: A man gets his Covid vaccination in Bolton

Figures released yesterday showed hospital admissions down 1.2 per cent in a week to 103, with deaths down 8.9 per cent to seven.

Positive tests were fractionally down on last Saturday's figure, at just over 2,000.

A total of 36,320,867 first doses of the vaccine have now been administered  69 per cent of all adults in Britain  while second doses have reached 19,698,121.

Offers of a vaccine will be extended to all over-35s within days.

The Government source added that there was 'no evidence' that vaccines were not effective against the Indian variant.

Ministers are planning to blitz areas where the Indian variant has taken hold by vaccinating entire households to stop Covid spreading 'like wildfire'.

Figures show that in the two worst hotspots, Bolton and Blackburn, the virus is spreading three times faster in areas where the jab take-up is below 80 per cent.

More than 4,000 people were vaccinated by a Covid 'jab bus' (pictured) which drove into Bolton yesterday

Meanwhile, SAGE suggested the R rate for England had risen slightly to somewhere between 0.8 and 1.1, from a possible high of 1.0 last week. If the number is above one it will mean the outbreak is growing. The R rate - the number of people infected by each Covid case - is now almost redundant, however, because it is guaranteed to rise above one as lockdown is lifted and is particularly unreliable when case numbers are low

With Boris Johnson warning that the Indian variant posed a threat to his roadmap out of lockdown, Ministers are now sending in the Army to help with a drive to target entire multi-generational households in the worst affected areas.

More than 4,000 people were vaccinated by a Covid 'jab bus' which drove into Bolton yesterday.

It comes as the NHS prepares to send invites to all over-35s by the end of the week to take up their vaccination.

And it was reported last night that at least 20,000 passengers were allowed to enter Britain while Mr Johnson delayed imposing a travel ban from India.

The PM only added India to the travel red list on April 23, three weeks after announcing a ban on flights from neighbouring Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Analysis of Civil Aviation Authority data indicates an average of 900 people were arriving daily from India during the three-week period from April 2-23.

A Government spokesman pointed out that the most dominant of three strains from India was only identified as a concern six days after the country was put on the red list.

Ministers increasingly fear that a low take-up of the vaccine by ethnic minority communities is helping to spread the Indian variant.

According to NHS England data, 93.5 per cent of white people aged over 50 have had a Covid jab. This falls to 83.5 per cent for South Asians, and 67 per cent among black people in the same age bracket.

As of yesterday, Bolton's infection rate is the highest in the country at 192 cases per 100,000 people. Pictured: A seven-day cases rate by age in Bolton

A Warwick University model of a more infectious variant after lockdown is completely lifted on June 21 suggests that any more than a 30 per cent increase in transmissibility compared to the Kent variant could lead to an August peak of daily hospital admissions that is higher than either the first or second wave. In a worst-case scenario with a variant 50 per cent more transmissible, hospital admissions could surge to 10,000 per day or even double that (Thick lines indicate the central estimate while the thin lines are possible upper limits known as confidence intervals)

In areas of Blackburn and Bolton with the lowest vaccine take-up, the current weekly Covid rate is 261 cases per 100,000.

Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi yesterday urged everyone in communities affected by the Indian strain to get the jab.

He warned: 'If there are communities unprotected, the virus will find them and go through them like wildfire.'

Government sources confirmed that special door-to-door jab services may now be offered in Bolton and other affected areas to combat low vaccine take-up in ethnic-minority households.

The move would mean those in their 20s with no underlying health conditions getting the jab.

Ex-Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq urged those in hotspots who were still hesitant about getting the jab to think of others.

She said: 'You would never go outside with a gun and start shooting people because you can see the destruction. But those without the jab don't see the impact of passing the virus on.'

Similar but less grim modelling by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine suggested that a 50 per cent increase in transmissibility could trigger a peak of 4,000 admissions per day in July or August, possibly extending to 6,000 per day

The LSHTM model suggested hospitals could have another 30,000 inpatients by the end of July - up to around 45,000 - compared to the current 845

The LSHTM team suggested that there will be 1,000 deaths per day in August if the variant is 50 per cent more transmissible - which would be less than the 1,900 seen at the peak this January

Labour health spokesman Jonathan Ashworth added: 'We have to be flexible and carry out a vaccine blitz in those areas most affected by the new Indian variant.'

There were huge queues for a 'jab bus' in Bolton yesterday after everyone in the town was invited to get vaccinated before 5pm.

Thousands waited in the pouring rain for injections as council officials went door-to-door urging residents to go to a bus parked in Great Lever  an area where vaccine take-up had been below average.

Bolton's infection rate is the highest in the country at 192 cases per 100,000 people. The Indian variant now makes up the majority of its new cases.

Nearly 20 million Britons have now had two doses. Yesterday, a further 2,027 cases were recorded. Seven people died.

Bolton: Jab teams in Covid hotspots defy advice and roll out crisis vaccine for young

By Jacinta Taylor in Bolton

Northerners are made of stern stuff but even they need a good reason to go out and be buffeted by driving rain and howling winds.

For the citizens of Bolton, that reason is the Indian variant of coronavirus.

'I'm here because I couldn't get an appointment with my GP,' explained mother-of-four Mel Flanagan as she waited patiently in a line stretching back across the car park of Essa Academy in the Lancashire town.

'I've been trying to get through for ages but just gave up in the end. The queue and the rain didn't put me off.'

During a day of confusion and mounting anxiety in the former mill town, it was wrongly announced that national guidelines on eligibility for a vaccine had been ditched and that adults of any age should could come forward for their jab.

Bolton has the unenviable title of capital of the Indian variant outbreak. Cases in the town are running at about 200 per 100,000  with Erewash in Derbyshire next highest on 163. Pictured: People queue to receive jab in Bolton

Forty-two staff inside the 'vaccination bus' did their best to inject as many doses as they could. Pictured: people wear face masks and carry umbrellas as they wait to have their coronavirus injections in Bolton on Saturday

Tory councillor Andy Morgan shared a tweet inviting locals to 'visit the vaccine bus', adding: 'The team will find a reason to vaccinate you. Closes at 5pm. The 4,000 vaccines must be used today.'

By the time the NHS had angrily denied his claim, demand at Essa Academy was so high that people were being turned away and asked to return again today.

Bolton has the unenviable title of capital of the Indian variant outbreak. Cases in the town are running at about 200 per 100,000  with Erewash in Derbyshire next highest on 163.

Forty-two staff inside the 'vaccination bus' did their best to inject as many doses as they could and the local authority put more boots on the ground as well as offering door-to-door testing.

There is a genuine sense of urgency. Infection rates in Bolton have soared by more than 250 per cent in the past week, with the vast majority of cases in the under-30s.

There has also been a slight uptick in hospitalisations, including patients in their 50s and 60s who are not vaccinated but would have been eligible.

Local officials are desperate that neither cases nor admissions accelerate and are relying on a sense of community spirit to beat the surge. Rashad, 32, was also in the queue in Bolton yesterday.

'I'm not looking forward to this at all but it will be worth it to keep myself and my community safe,' he said. In the line beside him, another man said: 'The community leaders have been urging people at prayers to come and get their vaccine. We all have our part to play.'

Bolton Council leader David Greenhalgh said the majority of cases of coronavirus in the town involved people in their teens, 20s and 30s who are not yet eligible for a vaccination.

'Bolton craves normality as this town has been disproportionately affected by local lockdowns,' he said. 'I visited the vaccination site today and there were still queues long after closing time, with vaccinators working extra time to help everyone.

'Clearly the surge in Covid cases in Bolton is linked to international travel, there's no doubt about that.'

Boris Johnson announced on Friday that second jabs for those over 50 would be brought forward, but Mr Greenhalgh wants the Government to supply more doses to allow the town to vaccinate everyone.

Uptake across the town is higher than 90 per cent but there are clusters in deprived areas such as Deane, Rumworth and Great Lever where it is far lower.

Uptake for the Covid jab across the town is higher than 90 per cent but there are clusters in deprived areas such as Deane, Rumworth and Great Lever where it is far lower. Pictured: Hundreds of people queue on the streets of Bolton this afternoon as part of efforts to speed up Britain's vaccine race

Despite fears over the Indian variant, the Government is pressing ahead with the latest stage of its roadmap tomorrow. Bolton is more cautious, advising care homes not to proceed with the planned easing of restrictions yet

Dr Helen Wall, the clinician in charge of Bolton's vaccination drive, said: 'I don't think there is hesitancy as such, I think it's more about the barriers to vaccination.

'There are some really deprived areas where people don't all have cars, they might not have money for the bus, they might not want to get on the bus because they catch Covid. Maybe they've got several children they are looking after, elderly relatives, there's all sorts of reasons.'

Despite fears over the Indian variant, the Government is pressing ahead with the latest stage of its roadmap tomorrow. Bolton is more cautious, advising care homes not to proceed with the planned easing of restrictions yet.

Few people not in search of a vaccine ventured into Bolton town centre, but Jayne Cadman had braved the rain. 'The virus is a worry for people and the town isn't as busy as it usually is,' she said.

Shaking his head, Peter Worsley, 75, who was hospitalised for two weeks with Covid-19 over Christmas, said: 'I think Bolton's infection rate is down to the fact that the Government was very slow in closing our borders to international travel. If we had taken action sooner then perhaps we wouldn't be in this situation now.'

Bedford: Town where people aged 11 to 22 are at centre of virus surge

By Matt Aitchison in Bedford

In the market town of Bedford, locals are concerned they could be plunged into another local lockdown amid a surge in Covid cases caused by the more infectious Indian variant.

The B.1.617.2 strain now accounts for almost three-quarters of cases in the town and is spreading fastest among people aged 11 to 22, according to the latest Bedford Borough snapshot.

Georgie Lawson, 66, said her biggest fear was the removal of freedoms as the rest of the UK prepares to open up. She added: 'I am worried about another lockdown. You do feel like a prisoner in your own home.'

Louise Jackson, Bedford council's lead on health and wellbeing, said: 'Local lockdowns don't work.

Our local economy can't sustain it, and people will just move elsewhere, they'll take the virus to Luton or London. And why wouldn't they? They've had a whole year of this.'

Meanwhile, SAGE suggested the R rate for England had risen slightly to somewhere between 0.8 and 1.1, from a possible high of 1.0 last week. If the number is above one it will mean the outbreak is growing. The R rate - the number of people infected by each Covid case - is now almost redundant, however, because it is guaranteed to rise above one as lockdown is lifted and is particularly unreliable when case numbers are low

In the town, there is growing concern about the number of cases, which have more than doubled in the last week to 105 per 100,000 people. Bill Gill, a 60-year-old retail manager who lives two miles from the town centre, said that despite having had both shots of the vaccine, he was concerned about the Indian variant. 'A lot of people are quite anxious to have a rise in cases just as things are opening up,' he said.

John Hillyard, 85, who has run a vegetable market stall in Bedford since 1960, said: 'We're all worried about it but we'll just have to do as we're told.'

On Friday, officials started vaccinating younger people  despite official guidance still restricting jabs to those aged 38 and over.

Teachers and parents with children at Bedford Academy were invited to use spare doses in a bid to quash the alarming spread.

Bedford Mayor Dave Hodgson told The Mail on Sunday: 'It wasn't easy within the current rules but we managed to get it done in partnership with our local hospital and the local clinical commissioning group who had a limited number of spare Pfizer vaccines going.

'The school is in an area with higher deprivation and increased levels of vaccine hesitancy so we think it was the right thing to do to help reduce transmission.'

As part of tomorrow's relaxing of guidelines, masks in schools can be ditched but Mr Hodgson said he had sent 'very strong guidance' to schools recommending that pupils should keep wearing them and remain in their bubbles.

His views were yesterday backed by Gurch Randhawa, professor in diversity and public health from Bedfordshire University, who said he thought the town was at a 'tipping point'.

'The Government has got to be really careful that they don't choose the wrong path,' he said. 'These populistic gestures of allowing children not to wear masks and permitting hugs are a bit premature, especially in light of the Indian variant being in circulation.'
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, convenes a symposium on advancing the high-quality follow-up development of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, in Nanyang, central China's Henan Province, May 14, 2021. (Xinhua/Ju Peng)

NANYANG, Henan, May 14 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping on Friday convened a symposium on advancing the high-quality follow-up development of China's mega water diversion project.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, stressed the need to analyze the new situation and tasks facing the South-to-North Water Diversion Project and push for the scientific planning and construction of the project to promote the effective and economical use of water resources.

The symposium was held in the city of Nanyang, central China's Henan Province.

Speaking at the symposium, Xi said strong support of water resources is needed in the country's efforts to shape a nationwide unified market, boost smooth domestic circulation, and promote the coordinated development of the southern and northern regions.

Noting the extremely unbalanced distribution of water resources in China, Xi said the South-to-North Water Diversion Project is a backbone project for the allocation of the resources across different river basins and regions.

The project has transferred over 40 billion cubic meters of water, directly benefiting about 120 million people and playing important roles in economic and social development and environmental protection.

Xi highlighted the valuable experience drawn for constructing major water diversion projects: coordinating resources across the nation, concentrating all efforts to get big things done, respecting objective laws, as well as good planning, water conservation, pollution control, and precision in diverting water.

Xi said water diversion must continue in a scientific manner and attention must be given to strengthening water conservation to better manage supply and demand.

He stressed the importance of strengthening eco-environment protection, particularly pollution prevention and control in areas along the water transmission routes and in water-receiving regions.

He also stressed accelerating the construction of a national water network, urging efforts to enhance connectivity, thus speeding up the building of the network's main structure.

Xi called for attention to the water problems such as the sharp decrease of sediment inflows in northern China's main rivers, especially the Yellow River, and the over-extraction of groundwater.

He called for planning and design programs that can stand the test of time.

Vice Premier Han Zheng, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, attended the symposium and called for implementing Xi's speech and instructions.

Before the symposium, Xi visited the county of Xichuan on Thursday afternoon to inspect the construction, management and operation of the middle route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, as well as the resettlement of people relocated because of the project.

At the Taocha Canal Head, he stressed the ecological conservation of the water-source region, while at the village of Zouzhuang, he pledged to continue to support the relocated people.

Noting that the Party's 100-year history is one of dedication to people's well-being, Xi asked local Party organizations and members to unite and lead the people in striving towards common prosperity.

During the inspection, Xi stopped by a wheat field to check on crop growth and called for efforts to achieve breakthroughs in cultivating high-quality seeds.

"We should rely on Chinese seeds to ensure China's food security," Xi said.

On Wednesday, Xi visited a memorial facility dedicated to Zhang Zhongjing, a famous Chinese pharmacologist and physician of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220).

Noting that traditional Chinese medicine is a great creation of the Chinese nation, Xi urged efforts to ensure its preservation and development.

Xi then went to a park exhibiting the Rosa Chinensis -- or the Chinese rose -- and a local company producing mugwort products.

Stressing that local specialty industries have vast potential, Xi called for creating more jobs for the farmers and sharing with them the benefits.
These vials are being brought from Visakhapatnam in cool packs and are being sold to those who want to administer it. (Representational Photo: AFP)

Vijayawada: Covid-19 vaccine is finding its way to black market given huge demand for it especially among people aged between 18 and 44 years in several parts of Andhra Pradesh.

According to reliable sources, a 10-dose vial of Covishield is being sold at about Rs 20,000 and Covaxin at nearly Rs 25,000. These vials are being brought from Visakhapatnam in cool packs and are being sold to those who want to administer it. After receiving the vial, it is being secured in a household refrigerator. The one who manages to get a vial of the vaccine, mobilises 10 persons to share the dose of 0.5 ml each and also its total cost. They engage a private health worker to administer the jab for all of the 10 persons at a common place and pay for the service and for disposable needles and syringes.

Some people in Rajamahendravaram in East Godavari district recently got Covishield vaccine from Visakhapatnam through some middlemen and took the jab. The cost of the jab varies from time to time given the risk involved in bringing it to the black market. However, the cost of Covishield is relatively less in black market when compared to Covaxin, as it is available aplenty. The Andhra Pradesh government is getting good quantities of the vaccine on a regular basis. The middlemen are ready to get even Covaxin vials but for a good price.

So is the case in several districts where the vaccine is getting diverted to black market.

The modus operandi of the middlemen is to lure health workers with a good offer for getting vials of vaccine. Health workers draw more vials at Covid vaccination centre claiming that more people are waiting for the jab. As per the rule, the vial should be discarded after breaking its seal within four hours irrespective of the number of doses administered, but the health workers set aside some full dose vials and use the existing ones to administer the jab.

With no complete vigil on usage of vials, the entries in the registers get manipulated and the required number of vials reach the middlemen for a good price. The middlemen in turn transport the vials in cool packs to the place of demand and sell them.

The main reason for increasing demand for Covid-19 vaccine in black market is attributed to the state governments decision to complete administration of the second dose of vaccine to people aged above 45 years on priority basis before starting the first dose of vaccine for people aged between 18 and 44 years. However, given the surge in the number of Coronavirus infections and the resultant deaths, young people are increasingly becoming panicked. As the majority of them are either studying or at work, they prefer to get the jab by any means and at any cost, assuming that they will be safe from infection.

On the other hand, Covid-19 vaccine is also getting misused as health officials are succumbing to the pressure from local politicians and other influential persons to allow administration of the jab to youngsters despite states clear direction to optimise the available doses of the vaccine by giving to the people aged above 45 years as a second dose only. Some people in the guise of healthcare workers and frontline workers also got the jab with no bar on their age a few days ago.

Director of health Dr Geetha Prasadini said, Diversion of Covid-19 vaccine illegally in some parts of the state has come to our notice and we have entrusted the task to vigilance and enforcement wing to keep check on such practice as they are already dealing with diversion of Remdesivir injections at present. Moreover, if the cold chain fails to be maintained, the utility of the jab is doubtful and at times, it may cause Coronavirus infection also. I have also instructed district immunisation officers to keep vigil on such illegal practice and also misuse of vaccines and cautioned them. We are facing a lot of pressure from influential persons for specific types of vaccine and we are handling it properly without succumbing to pressure.
Police have launched a murder investigation after a toddler was found dead in the middle of a suburban street in Dallas on Saturday morning.

The young boy was discovered by a local laying on a roadway in the Mountain Creek neighborhood with 'multiple wounds' to his body.

Police have not disclosed how the toddler died, but say it appears he was 'violently' struck with 'an edged weapon'.

'The incident is being investigated as a murder and the investigation is active and ongoing,' Dallas Police Department said in a release hours after the victim was found.

The identity of the deceased has not been released, but police believe he lived in the area.

The FBI has already joined the case, and local police were seen canvassing homes in and around Mountain Creek on Saturday afternoon.

Police have launched a murder investigation after a toddler was found dead in the middle of a suburban street in Dallas on Saturday morning. An aerial view of the middle-class Mountain Creek neighborhood is pictured

The incident is said to have shaken homeowners in the quiet middle-class neighborhood.

'That's someone's baby,' one neighbor told Dallas News.

'That could've been my little cousin or brother or something. It's just terrifying.'

However, Executive Assistant Chief Albert Martinez has told members of the public to stay calm.

'Unfortunately a small child was lost today in our city through a violent act and we will pursue justice to find whoever did this and bring some sort of closure, not only to family but to the community,' he stated.

'We are shocked, we are very angry about what has happened to this small child.'
A 31-year-old woman has been charged with murder after a man was found dead, police said.

Hayley Keating will appear in court on Monday accused of murdering 45-year-old Matthew Wormleighton.

Mr Wormleighton died in hospital following an alleged incident at a property in Forts Orchard in Chilthorne Domer, near Yeovil.

Hayley Keating. 31, will appear in court on Monday accused of murdering 45-year-old Matthew Wormleighton, who died in hospital following an alleged incident in Forts Orchard in Chilthorne Domer, near Yeovil (pictured, google maps)

Avon and Somerset Police said a post-mortem examination found Mr Wormleighton died from a single stab wound.

Avon and Somerset Police confirmed on Friday that the man's family had been informed of his death, and were being supported by officers.

The local community was also told by officers it should 'expect an increased police presence in the area' over the coming days while an investigation is conducted.

Police are also appearing for any information regarding the incident.

Keating, of Forts Orchard, Chilthorne Domer, has been remanded in custody pending an appearance before South Somerset Magistrates' Court in Yeovil on May 17.

'If anyone has information about what happened and hasn't yet spoken to the police, please call us on 101 and give the call-handler reference number 5221105035,' police said in a statement.
Sir Keir Starmer's Labour Party is out of touch with public opinion on woke issues, a Mail on Sunday poll has found.

The survey revealed that the party was overwhelmingly associated with support for politically correct issues  such as pulling down statues of historical figures  that are not backed by voters.

The figures will add to concerns among Labour strategists that the party's metropolitan image is alienating its working-class base, particularly among its former supporters in the North.

Sir Keir's position is under pressure following a poor set of local election results along its former heartland of Red Wall seats this month and the loss of the Hartlepool by-election to the Conservatives for the first time since 1974.

The poll, conducted by JL Partners for the Campaign For Common Sense, found that 56 per cent of people think Labour is most likely to agree with pulling down statues  despite Sir Keir saying it was 'completely wrong' for protesters to take down a statue of slaver Edward Colston last year.

A survey (pictured) showed the Labour party was associated with support for politically correct issues, such as pulling down statues of historical figures, that aren't backed by voters

Only 18 per cent of people support pulling statues down, while 59 per cent oppose it.

Labour is also perceived to support the issue of men being allowed to redefine themselves as women and access female-only facilities, with 43 per cent associating the party with support for it and just nine per cent regarding it as a Tory issue.

Only 19 per cent of people support the measure, while 48 per cent oppose it.

Likewise, 31 per cent think Labour would support the idea of breastfeeding being renamed 'chestfeeding', but only five per cent of voters back it; and 36 per cent think Labour would support children being given puberty blockers as part of hormone therapy to change gender, with 61 per cent of people opposing it.

The poll also finds that 52 per cent of people ascribe 'negative attitudes towards the Royal Family' to Labour  attitudes which 51 per cent of people object to; and 47 per cent think Labour wants shorter sentences for criminals, which are opposed by 65 per cent of people.

The gulf between the parties is also revealed by analysis of the voting records of the respondents.

Sixty per cent of those who support statues being taken down voted Labour in 2019, compared with 11 per cent of Conservatives, and 58 per cent of those who support children being allowed to take puberty blockers voted Labour, but only one in ten Tories.

Just over half of those who support shorter sentences for criminals voted Labour, but only 16 per cent of Conservatives.

The poll found 56% of people think Labour is likely to agree with pulling down statues  despite Sir Keir saying it was 'wrong' for protesters to take down a statue of Edward Colston last year

The Campaign for Common Sense says it champions 'free speech and tolerance' and questions issues such as whether the police are 'prioritising language on social media over fighting street crime' and whether children 'can consent to changing their gender'.

This newspaper reported recently how research by the group found that out of 364 comedy slots broadcast by the BBC in a month, just four featured comedians with explicitly Tory or pro-Brexit views.

Commenting on the survey, Mark Lehain, director for the Campaign for Common Sense, said: 'The results of this poll show the vast majority of British public are tolerant, fair-minded and moderate people who are not interested in divisive identity politics.

'It shows that those who want to import the kind of extreme ideas that have proved so polarising in America will have to contend with the common-sense majority of the British people. Britain does not have to accept this path.

'Labour has a huge problem  its values and its priorities appear to be out of step with the public. Culture is to Labour what the NHS was to the Conservatives for so long.'

JL Partners interviewed 2,026 people between May 12 and 14.
Kate Winslet likes to say she is plain old 'Kate from Reading', the opposite of Hollywood royalty.

Known for her self-deprecating humour, the Oscar-winning actress recently said she is happy to 'look a bit crap' in her latest role as a detective in Sky Atlantic's Mare Of Easttown, and has previously discussed everything from menstruation to her husband's choice of underwear.

So it seems all the more surprising that the Titanic star, 45, has been accused of trying to intimidate and silence a respected author who wanted to write her biography.

According to Garry O'Connor, author of a celebrated life of actor Sir Ian McKellen, the actress and her lawyers have destroyed any chance of publication with a 'tyrannical' letter warning of legal action before a word has been written  and by demanding that Mr O'Connor present the warning letter to any potential publisher. One publishing deal has already collapsed, he said.

Kate Winslet (pictured in 2017) destroyed any chance of getting a biography published with a 'tyrannical' letter warning of legal action, author Garry O'Connor has claimed

His agent, Peter Cox, condemned the letter  marked 'Not for publication'  as an attack on free speech and is calling on the organisers of this month's Hay Literary Festival, which Ms Winslet is due to attend, to remove her from the list of star guests.

'It's one of the most extraordinary letters I've ever seen,' Mr Cox told The Mail on Sunday.

'By ordering Mr O'Connor to send it to any publisher who might show an interest in his book, it is clearly calculated to bring the project to a halt. It is disgraceful. The irony is that Mr O'Connor has always been a great fan of Kate Winslet. We have always thought she was one of the most progressive liberals around.

'But by doing this, she's putting herself in the same camp as the tyrants of the world, the people who always insist on controlling what others say about them.'

Mr O'Connor, 83, has been writing biographies for more than 40 years, and has works on Laurence Olivier and Ralph Richardson to his name.

Although his books have sold more than a million copies worldwide, they have attracted little controversy.

According to Mr O'Connor (pictured), said the actress and her lawyers demanded he present the warning letter to potential publishers. One publishing deal has already collapsed, he said

The author wrote to Ms Winslet in March explaining that he was researching a book about her life and asking if she might consider helping him.

He included copies of his previous biographies and told her about the friendships he had forged with his subjects.

The reply came not from the actress, but from her firm of solicitors, Schillings, who specialise in media law. Schillings claimed that Mr O'Connor's plan to write about the much-quoted actress had caused 'distress'.

And they demanded the author promise to include no 'private information' about the star  without defining what private information might be. Mr O'Connor was even ordered to show the letter to any publishing houses he might approach.

'I was shocked and indignant,' said the author. 'In 40 years, no one has tried to stop me from writing.

'I don't think it's the way to behave towards a well-intended and extremely open approach.

'Also, Kate's a public figure. That's how she makes her money. How do you define what private information is? It's impossible for any writer to do their job without going into that grey area which may include things you or I would conclude are public, but she might not.

'It sets a dangerous precedent. Kate's adaptability and ability to get inside parts reveals to me an extraordinary human being who I was hoping to celebrate. I'm not the judging kind of biographer. Prying into personal family matters was far from my intention.

'From what I've read of Kate, she seems very open and speaks freely. This response seems very untypical and out of the character I have so far researched.'

Mr Cox said he thought publishers would run a mile from the project once they saw the legal letter.

Mr O'Connor's agent, Peter Cox, said the letter was an attack on free speech and is calling on the Hay Literary Festival, which Ms Winslet (pictured in 2018) is due to attend, to remove her

'Who wants that kind of legal hassle? Publishers are justifiably nervous about any threat of legal action and the enormous costs involved,' he added.

'Schillings are effectively killing off any commercial prospects for a book about her that she doesn't want. It's not just a free speech issue  it's an attempt at restraint of trade.

'What sort of society will we be living in if renowned authors like Garry can't write about public personalities without receiving chilling letters like this?

'Frankly, I think Kate Winslet should be ashamed of herself.'

On Ms Winslet's planned appearance at the Hay Festival, Mr Cox said: 'It smacks of hypocrisy to invite her to a festival of writing and writers, at the same time as her lawyers are suppressing an author of Garry's magnitude.'

In previous interviews, Ms Winslet has openly discussed the 'mess' of her first marriage to director Jim Threapleton, which crumbled when their daughter, Mia, was six months old.

More recently she revealed her third husband, Ned Smith (who recently changed his name back from 'Ned Rocknroll'), likes wearing Spanx shapewear.

Schillings said its letter to Mr O'Connor had been 'polite and respectful' and confirmed that a proposed biography was a cause of 'distress' to Ms Winslet, 'who is protective of the privacy of her family'.

It also said that 'no demand or attempt was ever made to prevent or stop publication' and that its demand that Mr O'Connor show the letter to prospective publishers was 'appropriate'.
Five people were brutally stabbed and left with extensive injuries in separate incidents in western Sydney on Saturday night.

All the victims were rushed to hospital, with the youngest just 15, in a busy night for police and ambulance crews in the area.

At Northmead, emergency services attended a home on Hammers Road, at 11.15pm after reports a man had been injured.

Upon arrival, officers found a 19-year-old man with a stab wound to the abdomen.

He was treated by paramedics before being taken to Westmead Hospital in a stable condition.

In a wild night in western Sydney, five men were stabbed across the area in separate incidents

In Whalan, police found a 25-year-old man suffering multiple stab wounds to his torso after being called to Waikanda Crescent at 12.45am on Sunday morning.

Police have been told the man was involved in an altercation with a number of people following a party at a nearby home.

A broken glass bottle was located at the scene and seized for forensic examination.

He was treated by paramedics and taken to Westmead Hospital in a critical but stable condition.

In a separate incident at Whalan, officers from Mt Druitt Police Area Command responded to a home on Moresby Crescent just after 2am, after reports another man had been stabbed.

Upon arrival, officers found a 20-year-old man with a stab wound to his forearm.

Police have been told the man was reportedly stabbed during an altercation nearby before returning home.

He was treated by paramedics and taken to Westmead Hospital to undergo surgery.

Detectives have commenced an investigation into both incidents, and it is yet to be determined if they are linked.

At Doonside, emergency services attended the intersection of Kildare Road and Myall Street, about 1.15am, after reports a teenager had been injured.

Police found a 15-year-old boy suffering stab wounds to his abdomen and arm.

Many of the victims were taken to Westmead Hospital (pictured) after a night of violence in western Sydney

Officers have been told the teen was injured after a row with a boy, known to him, who allegedly produced a knife.

The injured teen was treated by paramedics and taken to the Childrens Hospital at Westmead in a stable condition.

A knife was recovered from a nearby drain and an 18-year-old was arrested nearby and taken to Blacktown Police Station.

He was charged with wound person with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and refused bail to appear at Parramatta Local Court today (Sunday 16 May 2021).

At Cabramatta, a man suffering multiple stab wounds to his arm attended Cabramatta Police Station about 2.40am.

Police have been told the 49-year-old man was injured during a home invasion at a unit on John Street.

He was treated by paramedics and taken to Liverpool Hospital in a stable condition.

As inquiries continue, police are appealing for anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
A leading liberal commentator has shocked the chattering classes by calling for a blanket ban on gipsies, claiming Travellers have no place in modern Britain.

Newspaper columnist Matthew Parris, an ex-Tory MP who has carved out a career as a critic of his former Conservative colleagues, delivered his broadside after a group set up camp in the Derbyshire town Matlock, near his cottage in the Peak District.

'There is simply no place for the true nomad in modern Britain,' he writes in his latest Times column.

'It isn't their fault, it isn't our fault,' he writes. 'But life here involves having an address, being contactable, keeping children in school, paying tax on your property, accepting responsibility for a defined patch of real estate as proprietor or tenant.

Travellers' vehicles parked in the large car park yesterday  they say they have nowhere else to go and are fighting an eviction notice

'The way we live in this country is cruel to the British Traveller.'

He concludes: 'I would have to tell him that his way of life is finished. It cannot be otherwise.'

Mr Parris, who was Tory MP for West Derbyshire from 1979 to 1986, shares his home with partner Julian Glover and a herd of alpacas.

His columns frequently focus on his domestic life  he also has a home in Spain  and the joys of rural living until now.

He writes: 'We should stop forcing local authorities to create Traveller sites, phase out the 'ethnic minority' rights of people who are not a race but a doomed mindset.'

Calling for social housing to be provided for Traveller families, he adds that if any refuse, there should be 'a gradual squeeze on anyone who tries without permission to park their home on public property or the property of others'.

Newspaper columnist Matthew Parris, an ex-Tory MP who has carved out a career as a critic of his former Conservative colleagues, delivered his broadside after a group set up camp in the Derbyshire town Matlock, near his cottage in the Peak District

He adds: 'This should be done with as much humanity as is consistent with telling a group of people honestly that their lifestyle offers them and their children no future, but their country wants to help them change it. There is a place for them but no longer for their way of living. Is there a party, is there a politician in Britain, with the courage to say so?'

Homeowners and businesses in Matlock are demanding answers about the Travellers from Derbyshire Dales Council, which is going through the courts in an effort to evict the visitors and around 20 mobile homes and vans.

One trader, who declined to be named, said the town could lose out on vital tourism because of the presence of Travellers in the scenic town's main car park.

'We have five million visitor days and the car park where the Travellers are now parking is on the main road into town,' he said.

'If people can't park on there and don't know the town, then they are just going to drive on to Bakewell rather than stop.'

One trader, who declined to be named, said the town could lose out on vital tourism because of the presence of Travellers in the scenic town's main car park. The town centre is pictured above

Matlock's mayor, Liberal Democrat Councillor Steve Wain, said: 'We are reviewing the alternatives for the one family with temporary permission and are currently going through the court process to evict those who shouldn't be there.

'It's not ideal but we are at the mercy of the courts right now.'

A restaurant owner said: 'It could be months before the court takes action because there's probably a backlog of this kind of stuff after Covid. It's the last thing the town needs really.'

One of the Travellers said last night: 'We're not doing any harm  we're only here because we've got nowhere else to go so we definitely don't want to be evicted.

'If one family can get temporary permission to be here, then the rest of us should get it as well.'
At least a dozen Greek islands popular with British holidaymakers  including Hydra, Skyros and Mamma Mia film location Skopelos  will be fully vaccinated within the next fortnight.

In a bid to lure back travellers, the Greek government has launched 'Operation Blue Freedom' to inoculate everyone on its 200-plus occupied islands by the end of June.

Greek political leaders have promised that tourist favourites such as Rhodes, Kos and Santorini will be prioritised for vaccines, heaping pressure on Transport Secretary Grant Shapps to move the islands from the 'amber' travel list.

Last week, Germans were given the go-ahead to book beach holidays in the country without having to quarantine on return. But Brits still face restrictions when travelling there, despite coronavirus rates on some islands dropping to zero.

Warm welcome: Kastellorizo is one of 32 Greek islands that have been fully vaccinated

Greek political leaders have promised that tourist favourites such as Rhodes, Kos and Santorini will be prioritised for vaccines, heaping pressure on Transport Secretary Grant Shapps (pictured) to move the islands from the 'amber' travel list

Thirty-two of the islands are fully vaccinated, and destinations such as Corfu  which 500,000 Britons flock to each year  are calling up people in their early 40s for their jabs. Another 36 islands will reach full inoculation by the end of this month, including Spetses, Poros and Milos  which recorded a single Covid covid infection yesterday.

Greek tourism minister Harry Theoharis last week hailed the vaccine programme as 'a model for pandemic management' and said he expected the country to be on the UK's green list  allowing travel with fewer restrictions  by June.

Steve Heapy, chief executive of budget airline Jet2, said he believed the British Government would ditch its 'blanket' approach to travel advice this summer and opt for a 'targeted approach'.

Meanwhile, Ryanair was yesterday offering May flights from Manchester to Porto, Portugal, for 9.99  with the return costing the same. The country is on the Government's green list for travel.
Farming leaders fear that International Trade Secretary Liz Truss is on the brink of signing a free trade deal with Australia which could see cheap beef flooding the UK market.

Minette Batters, president of the National Farmers Union, says her members fear that Ms Truss's negotiators have agreed to tariff-free access to the UK market in their haste to secure a deal before next month's G7 summit in Cornwall.

But Ms Truss's allies have dismissed the concerns, saying that British farmers 'have nothing to fear' from an Australian deal.

Farming leaders fear that International Trade Secretary Liz Truss is on the brink of signing a free trade deal with Australia which could see cheap beef flooding the UK market

It is understood that Australian negotiators have requested a five-year transition period, after which the current restrictions and tariffs on their goods would be lifted  potentially exposing British farmers to cheaper rival products.

However, Government sources indicated that tariffs were unlikely to be lifted for at least a decade.

In an article for The Mail on Sunday, below, Ms Batters says she is 'increasingly concerned' about the direction of trade talks with Australia, as well as negotiations with New Zealand and the US.

Minette Batters (above), president of the National Farmers Union, says her members fear that Ms Truss's negotiators have agreed to tariff-free access to the UK market in their haste to secure a deal before next month's G7 summit in Cornwall

'It's clear that negotiators from Australia and New Zealand are sticking firm to their hardline demands for the complete removal of tariffs on all their exports to the UK,' writes Ms Batters.

She says this would make it 'all but impossible' for British family farms 'to compete with vast volumes of imports from the southern hemisphere produced in a very different manner'.

Ms Batters adds: 'Surely no one can want our land to become like the Australian Outback or the American dust bowl.'

But a source at the Department for International Trade played down NFU fears, saying 'Any agreement we do sign will have a whole host of protections. We are only talking about low volume, high quality meat coming in from Australia.

'And Aussie beef accounts for just one per cent of our current beef imports... compared to the EU which accounts for more than 90 per cent.'

The source added: 'The Australia deal is a gateway to the Asia-Pacific free trade area. If the UK joins, it will open up new opportunities for British farmers.'
The boss of British Airways has called on the Government to reunite Britons with their families overseas by urgently opening up air travel to low-risk countries.

In a rallying cry to Ministers, Sean Doyle said data on vaccination and infection rates for countries including the US, Spain and Greece made a 'compelling case' for putting them on the green list for quarantine-free travel from early next month.

The BA chief executive said the six million British expatriates around the world were desperate to see their loved ones after 'a very tough 14 months'.

He revealed that he had received letters from BA customers sharing what he called the 'tragic human circumstances' of being unable to fly abroad.

In a rallying cry to Ministers, Sean Doyle said data on vaccination and infection rates for countries including the US, Spain and Greece made a 'compelling case' for putting them on the green list for quarantine-free travel from early next month

Many were missing out on key family milestones such as the birth of a first grandchild or a parent's funeral, he said.

Mr Doyle told The Mail on Sunday: 'You've got people who have got elderly or frail parents they have been unable to see.

'You've also got people who have suffered bereavements who haven't been able to come back and grieve.

'These are massively emotional situations people are finding themselves in, and I think as people get vaccinated, as infections fall, one of the things people want to do first is to get out and reconnect with loved ones.

'When travel can be safely opened up, that's something we would be very keen to enable.'

Many were missing out on key family milestones such as the birth of a first grandchild or a parent's funeral, he said (file photo)

TROLLEYS BEING DITCHED AS AIR PASSENGERS PRE-ORDER MEALS The sight of air stewards wheeling trolleys laden with in-flight meals and duty-free products down the aisle is a familiar part of summer holidays. But the days of passengers being asked 'chicken or beef' are over on British Airways' economy flights to Europe. Travellers returning to the skies this summer will see fewer trolleys because BA customers are being asked to choose their food and duty-free goods online ahead of their flights. The new pre-ordering system means fewer trolleys will needed on each plane for short BA flights to Europe, as they won't need to carry as many meal options or perfumes as they did before the pandemic. British Airways said the move will reduce the weight of aircraft, so they burn less fuel, and also cut food waste. Tom Stevens, BA's director of brand and customer experience, said: 'The idea is that you are not flying around trolley-loads of perfumes and drinks. We are moving away from the traditional image of hostesses with their trolleys.' Advertisement

Paul and Cathy Clarke are holding out for a travel corridor to the US so they can finally meet their first grandchild, Winnie.

The couple, from North Walsham in Norfolk, planned to spend a month in Philadelphia with daughter Aimee and husband Donald, both 32, when Winnie was born last July. But they had to cancel the trip and then a second attempt to fly to the States at the end of this month. They are now hoping restrictions will be lifted in time for their granddaughter's first birthday on July 21.

Mrs Clarke, 64, said: 'We saw Winnie take her first steps on Facetime. It was really upsetting.'

Mr Doyle said that on a personal level he was keen to see travel restrictions lifted to Ireland so he can visit his parents in Cork for the first time since October.

He is also calling for the UK to set up a travel corridor with the US through a bilateral agreement by the next travel review in the week leading up to June 7. Almost 60 per cent of US adults have received at least one jab, and 46 per cent have had both doses.

Mr Doyle said: 'The green list is very straightforward.

'If we simply look at the data then the US would be on there. We encourage the US and the UK Governments to get round the table and make that happen because the case is very compelling.'

On Friday, Boris Johnson dampened travel hopes by warning that the threat of the Indian Covid variant meant the quarantine-free green list would not be expanded 'very rapidly'.

The Prime Minister advised Britons to recognise the extra risk and to show a 'spirit of caution' about travelling abroad.

But Mr Doyle said the data on infections and vaccination rates shows that the Caribbean and some of the major European holiday markets could be added to the green list safely next month.

Germany, Spain and Greece were among those countries 'trending very favourably', he said.

'The pace of vaccination in Europe has been picking up dramatically over the last couple of weeks and that should push a number of countries on to the green list as we get into June,' he said.

'For the economy to open up fully, we do need to enable travel to countries that are tracking in the same way as the UK.'
You've booked your holiday to a green-list country and sorted travel insurance, but where to start with testing?

The options appear to be endless, and the paperwork infinite. A growing number of websites, clinics, pharmacies and even hotels are offering them  but what kind should you have? When do you need to take one? And how do the rules differ between countries?

With a bit of preparation and patience, youll be jetting off on holiday soon and all will be long forgotten. Thats the plan, at least. So, to help you along the way, here we unpick the testing minefield.

Once you know the requirements for your destination, its important you calculate when to order and take your tests

GOLD STANDARD OR EASE & SPEED

PCR: Seen as the gold standard and used by the NHS, samples are taken via swab from the tonsils and inside of the nose then sent to a laboratory for analysis. Results can take several days. Generally these tests cost from 50 to 150.

LATERAL FLOW: Also known as antigen tests, these are relatively inexpensive, do not require laboratory analysis, and provide results within 15 to 30 minutes. A swab is inserted into the nose and throat, then submerged in a tiny tube of liquid. This is dripped on to a paper pad which has a test strip that changes colour in the presence of Covid-19 proteins (antigens).

EVER-CHANGING PROTOCOL

Of course, its not just a case of getting to grips with the UKs requirements; its essential you adhere to your holiday destinations rules, too. These can be checked at gov.uk or on the countrys tourist board website.

In Portugal, for example, tourists must present a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of their departure (visitportugal.com), while in amber-listed Italy, visitors need to show proof of a negative lateral flow test taken no more than 48 hours before travel (italia.it).

Many countries require further testing after arrival.

CONSIDER CHILDREN

Under-11s are exempt from pre-departure testing for returns to the UK. However, those over the age of five will be required to take a PCR test when back home.

Each country has different entry rules for children. Spain, for example, does not require children under six to show proof of a negative test (spain.info), while those under two are exempt from Portugals testing requirements (visitportugal.com).

BOOK A PACKAGE DEAL

A number of holiday providers are now offering testing packages to green-list countries. Tui is subsidising the cost of testing for its customers, offering packages for between 20 and 90, until August 31.

TIMING IS CRUCIAL

Once you know the requirements for your destination, its important you calculate when to order and take your tests. Qured, a Government-approved provider, has a helpful tool on its website which advises on timings so you get results in good time before your flights (qured.com).

In Portugal tourists must present a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of their departure

THE REQUIREMENTS The below rules apply whether or not you have been vaccinated. GREEN LIST: You must take a lateral flow test within 72 hours of your return flight, followed by a PCR test on or before the second day of your return. No need to self-isolate. AMBER LIST: Take a lateral flow test before return flight, then quarantine at home for ten days and take a PCR test on days two and eight  or use the Test to Release scheme, paying for a private test on day five to end quarantine early (youll still need to take a test on day eight). RED LIST: Quarantine in government-approved hotel for ten days at a cost of 1,750. Advertisement

ARE YOU FIT TO FLY?

All tests for travel must be carried out by a Government-approved provider. These can be found in a number of places (check the full list at gov.uk):

HIGH STREET: You can book a Fit to Fly test at Superdrug (119, superdrug.com) and Boots (99, boots.com).

CLINICS: Health centres offering Fit to Fly tests have sprung up across the country, including Express Test (from 50 at 17 locations, expresstest.co.uk), Corona Test Centre (129 at eight sites, coronatestcentre.com) and Wren Healthcare (from 139 at ten clinics, wrenhealthcare.co.uk).

AT HOME: Eurofins offers at-home PCR tests from 44.90 (eurofins.co.uk). They are delivered and returned via Royal Mail and results are guaranteed within 24 hours of receiving the sample. Randox Health (randoxhealth.com) offers tests from 60.

AIRPORT HOTELS: Hilton London Gatwick Airport (129, hilton.com) and Sofitel London Gatwick (179, accor.com) are among hotels running Test & Rest packages, where you take a test the night before a flight and wake up to the result and a certificate.

PRINT THE PAPERWORK

Youll need a Fit to Fly certificate to show your negative result, so make sure the testing facility can provide this. Print it out and keep in your hand luggage; you may be asked to show it at any point.

In the future, potentially by June 21, test results will be available to show on the NHS app, which will go live on Monday for travellers to show their vaccination status.

PACK FOR THE RETURN LEG

Arrivals from green-list countries must present a negative lateral flow test taken no more than three days prior.

No one wants to spend the last few days of their holiday searching for a test centre, so its best to pack a testing kit in your luggage. You can order them online from companies such as Qured (39). After a video consultation with a nurse, results are available in 15 minutes and a GP-signed travel certificate is delivered by email.

ONE MORE FOR THE ROAD

Similar to the Fit to Fly tests, these return PCR tests can be taken at clinics, on the High Street or at home on or before day two of your arrival back into England.

Youll need the tests booking reference number and provider name in advance so you can enter it on your passenger locator form prior to your flight home.

Day zero is your arrival day  so if this is a Wednesday, you can choose to take the test on the Wednesday, Thursday or Friday.

Another option is to do it at the airport. Many of the UKs largest airports, including Heathrow and Manchester, have launched in-terminal testing centres for arrivals, which should be booked ahead of your holiday.

Express Test is launching day-two testing for green arrivals at Gatwick and Heathrow next week, from 69 (expresstest.co.uk).
Thousands of weddings were scheduled for May and June, there were no muhurtams from 2020 December to April 30, 2021.  Representational image

Kadapa: As the Coronavirus is rearing its ugly head again in the second wave, it is casting a pall of gloom of a new kind. Thousands of weddings are being postponed due to the widespread fear caused by the rampaging Coronavirus both among invitees as well as organisers.

Not only that, crippling travel disruptions are also caused by the Covid-19, with several countries barring travel.

A veteran journalist from Visakhapatnam who had decided to celebrate his son's wedding on May 14 put it off as the groom was not able to arrive from the US in time for the wedding. The US has suspended flights to India due to the second wave.

In another instance, the son of an employee from Kadapa is working in Singapore. It was decided to get him married on June 4 in Visakhapatnam. Arrangements were being made for the big event from December. With the cancellation of international flights, the marriage has had to be postponed under unavoidable circumstances.

Thousands of weddings were scheduled for May and June, there were no muhurtams from 2020 December to April 30, 2021. Besides, the state government is also discouraging the gathering of crowds and is allowing only around 20 people to attend marriages. With most of marriages getting postponed as a result, life has become miserable for many dependent on conduct of marriages.

There are more than 15 wedding muhurtams lined up in May 2021. May 2, 4, 13, 14, 19, 21, 22, 24 and 26 to 31 are auspicious times to perform weddings. There are up to 10 more muhurtams in June. There will also be weddings on June 3, 4, 5, 16 to 20, 23, 24, 26, 27. Many elders are strongly determined to have weddings for their children on these dates but are being forced to defer due to the raging pandemic and lockdown restrictions. Exactly a year ago, it was a similar situation with wedding festivities being put off for six months from March 20. However, a few marriages did take place on a smaller scale.

Since the third week of January 2021, with the onset of Venus, good muhurtams ceased up to April 30. The corona epidemic has been hampering weddings and other festivities since May 2 this year.

Workers employed in the function halls, catering staff, photographers, video studios, hall decoration workers, etc. are much worried as their livelihoods are at stake. The owner of a wedding hall in Kadapa said five people who had booked their convention hall in May put off the weddings.
Henry Golding was featured in several photos from the set of Snake Eyes that were released on Friday.

The 34-year-old actor, as well as several other performers from the upcoming G.I Joe spinoff, was shown performing various stunts that will be included in the forthcoming action film.

Snake Eyes is set to be released on July 23rd, and the movie's star is set to reprise his role as the titular character in a future feature.

Inside look: Henry Golding was featured in a set of newly-released photos that were taken on the set of the upcoming action film Snake Eyes

In several of the photos and the movie's poster, Golding was pictured wearing a jet black ninja-esque outfit while carrying a katana.

His costar, Haruka Abe, was also pictured wearing a similar all-black costume while training with a matching staff.

In another set of shots, the Crazy Rich Asians actor was dressed in a long-sleeve gray t-shirt that was paired with black cargo pants.

Andrew Koji, who will portray the character's rival Storm Shadow, was seen costumed for a rain-drenched scene in a white jacket with two matching swords at his waist in a separate photo.

Future release: The upcoming G.I Joe spinoff film serves as an origin story for the titular character and will make its debut on July 23rd

A better look: Several of Golding's costars, including Haruka Abe and Samara Weaving, were featured in the photoset

Samara Weaving was seen in character as Scarlett and was costumed in a black tactical suit that featured several pads of body armor.

A shot of Ursula Corbero portraying Baroness was also included in the photoset, and she wore a leather outfit that was paired with a large green neckband and a set of interestingly-shaped glasses.

Snake Eyes first entered development in 2018 when The Hollywood Reporter noted that the character was going to be given his own film.

Although the ninja was previously played by Ray Park, he was replaced by Golding by the project's producers.

Long time coming: Snake Eyes first entered development in 2018, and the news about the project was first broken by The Hollywood Reporter

Switching out: Although the ninja was originally played by Ray Park, he was replaced by Golding prior to the start of production

Other performers who will appear in the upcoming film include Iko Uwais and Peter Mensah, who are set to portray Hard Master and Blind Master, respectively.

The film will serve as an origin story for its titular character, who is welcomed into a clan of ninjas who train him as he confronts the demons of his past.

Principal photography on the project began in October of 2019, with Vancouver serving as a primary shooting location.

The forthcoming feature's crew later moved to Japan the following January to get various exterior shots.

Stacked cast: Other performers who will appear in the feature include Samara Weaving, Ursula Corbero and Iko Uwais

Working hard: Production on the feature began in Vancouver in October of 2019 and later moved to Japan

Production on Snake Eyes eventually wrapped in February of 2020, with Golding making an announcement about the end of filming on his Instagram account.

The upcoming action feature is set to be released in theaters on July 23rd, and a teaser trailer will make its debut during the 2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards.

Snake Eyes' producers are currently in the process of developing a future film in the G.I Joe film series that will expand on the universe of the Hasbro toy line.

Golding is expected to reprise his role in the forthcoming in-the-works project.

New footage: A teaser trailer for Snake Eyes will make its debut during the upcoming 2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards
Tammy Hembrow's romance with ironman Matt Poole is going from strength to strength.

And on Friday, the 27-year-old revealed she and her beau want to have a baby together.

Tammy shared on Instagram a screenshot of a message exchange between the pair that discussed their family plans.

Feeling clucky? On Friday, Tammy Hembrow revealed she and ironman boyfriend Matt Poole want to have a baby

In the messages, the pair got onto the topic of babies after discussing how they wanted oysters for dinner.

Matt asked her how many people would be coming over, to gauge how many dozens of the oysters were needed.

'Just you and me baby baby... Should I buy some?' Tammy wrote.

'Also should we make one?' she then cheekily asked, referring to a 'baby'.

Sweet: Tammy shared a screenshot of a message exchange between the pair that discussed their family plans

Watch this space! The Gold Coast businesswoman shared the exchange on her Instagram Story and excitedly wrote in the caption: 'Told you he wants one guys'

He wrote back: 'Haha love both... oysters and a baby.'

The Gold Coast businesswoman shared the exchange on her Instagram Story and wrote in the caption: 'Told you he wants one guys.'

Earlier this year, Tammy shared a sweet throwback photo of her son Wolf, who she shares with ex-fiance Reece Hawkins.

The blonde bombshell, who runs Tammy Fit app and Saski Collection, admitted in the caption: 'Okay I want another one,' along with crying emojis.

Reminiscing: Earlier this year, Tammy shared a sweet throwback photo of her son Wolf, who she shares with ex-fiance Reece Hawkins. The blonde bombshell, who runs Tammy Fit app and Saski Collection, admitted in the caption: 'Okay I want another one,' along with crying emojis

Hint, hint! She followed that with a cheeky video of her unassuming beau, who was clearly unaware of her post, as she giggled at him. 'Looking at you buddy,' the Instagram sensation wrote

She then followed that with a cheeky video of her unassuming beau Matt, who was clearly unaware of her post, as she giggled at him.

'Looking at you buddy,' the Instagram sensation wrote in the caption.

Tammy is already a proud mother to two children - son Wolf, five, and daughter Saskia, four - who she shares with ex-fiance, Reece Hawkins.

Motherhood: Tammy is already a proud mother to two children - son Wolf, five, and daughter Saskia, four - who she shares with ex-fiance, Reece Hawkins

The former couple split acrimoniously in 2018, but have since moved forward as co-parents.

After the split, Reece moved on with his Instagram model wife, London Goheen, welcomed their son, named Stone, on March 7.

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'.

Moving on: Tammy and Reece split acrimoniously in 2018, but have since moved forward as co-parents. After the split, Reece moved on with his Instagram model wife, London Goheen (right), welcomed their son, named Stone, on March 7

'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.

Matt also seems to be getting on wonderfully with Tammy's two children, Wolf and Saskia.

Aside from being an ironman, he also runs a popular restaurant on the Gold Coast called Maman Bar and Kitchen.
Australian actress Angourie Rice is currently starring in the critically acclaimed HBO crime drama, Mare of Easttown.

And in a new interview with the TV Reload podcast, the 20-year-old has opened up about her experience working alongside the show's leading lady Kate Winslet.

'I think I really learned to bring dedication and energy, that's what she brings,' the 20-year-old said of Kate.

Good company: Australian actress Angourie Rice has discussed her experience working with Kate Winslet on the crime drama Mare of Easttown

'Every day to set she would bring, always energy, and a laugh or a joke or something, and also just commitment,' she continued.

'I think you see that in the show, that's how she pulls off this incredibly intricate character because she's 100 percent committed to it.'

Angourie was also questioned about the possibility of a second season for the limited series, but she admitted that she had no idea if it would happen or not.

'I think I really learned to bring dedication and energy, that's what she brings,' the 20-year-old said of Kate

The young actress said that it was up to the show's writer and creator Brad Ingelsby whether or not another season would be made.

'Brad wrote this series as a limited series and he wrote it as a complete story,' she said.

'When I read it, it felt like an extended movie,' she added.

Character: Angourie plays Kate's daughter Siobhan in the gritty HBO drama

Mare of Easttown is currently airing in the U.S. on HBO and on the streaming app Binge in Australia.

The series follows Mare, played by Winslet, a small town detective in Pennsylvania who is investigating a series of murders.

She also has to deal with unresolved trauma from her past and a dysfunctional family life.
Chris Hemsworth has been busy in recent months filming the fourth instalment of the Thor franchise in Sydney.

And on Saturday, the Australian actor shared a cheeky selfie from the makeup chair on set, alongside his friend and Thor: Love and Thunder director Taika Waititi.

In the photo, Chris, 37, pulled a serious expression while posing in a Thor branded cap and a long blond wig.

'They really squeezed the budget for the official poster': On Saturday, Chris Hemsworth posted a selfie wearing a long blond wig and a Marvel cap on set of Thor: Love and Thunder with director Taika Waititi

Next to him was 45-year-old Kiwi director Taika, who wore a pair of trendy sunglasses for the photo.

Chris joked in the caption: 'They really squeezed the budget for the official Thor Love & Thunder poster but the message is clear, plenty of love and plenty of thunder.'

'Album drops soon...again...,' he quipped, tagging Taika and Marvel Studios.

This comes after Chris recently reflected upon how far his career has come over the past decade.

New film: Chris and Taika have been busy filming the fourth instalment of the Thor films, Thor: Love and Thunder, in Sydney for the past several months. Pictured with Chris and Taika is actor Matt Damon, who will also star in the movie

Earlier this week, he posted an throwback photo of himself and co-star Tom Hiddleston on Instagram, showing them reading their scripts for the first Thor film, which was released in 2011.

'This year marks the 10th anniversary of Thor when two unknown lads were given the keys to the kingdom,' Chris wrote in the caption.

'It's been a hell of a ride and we clearly haven't aged a day,' he joked, making sure to tag Tom's account.

'It's been a hell of a ride': Chris recently reflected on how far his career has come over the past decade. He posted an throwback photo of himself and co-star Tom Hiddleston on Instagram, showing them reading their scripts for the first Thor film, which was released in 2011

The former Home And Away star also shared a Vulture article written in 2009 that referred to himself Tom as 'no name actors'.

These 'virtual unknowns' would go on to become two of Hollywood's most highly-paid actors.

Thor: Love and Thunder is currently scheduled for release on May 6, 2022.
Angelina Jolie has starred in a wide range of films throughout her long and esteemed acting career.

And on Saturday, the 45-year-old Hollywood star told Weekend Sunrise about her new film, Those Who Wish Me Dead, and the 'challenges' of playing her latest character.

In the film, Angelina plays Hannah, a smokejumper - a wildland firefighter - suffering from PTSD, who finds herself tangled up in a deadly situation when she helps a young boy after he witnessed his father's murder.

'I realised how I don't often play American': Angelina Jolie told Weekend Sunrise on Saturday that it was 'challenging' to play a 'regular American woman' in her new film Those Who Wish Me Dead

The actress explained to the Australian breakfast show: 'What was weird is, I am American, but I realised how I don't often play American.'

'So doing this very regular, American woman suddenly felt more challenging than even a crazy Maleficent.'

Some of her most memorable action films include Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, Salt, The Tourist and Alexander.

'What was weird is, I am American, but I realised how I don't often play American,' Angelina said. She's pictured in her new film

Action queen: Some of her most memorable action roles include Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (pictured), Salt, The Tourist and Alexander

She continued: 'I think people can relate to her more, can relate to feeling broken, messed up, imperfect,' referring her role as Hannah.

'She's maybe closer to me than some of the other characters,' the Hollywood star added of her character.

Earlier in the week, Angelina spoke to Channel Ten's The Sunday Project about working alongside her 14-year-old Australian co-star, Finn Little, and filming in New Mexico.

'Neither one of us live there. Finn's family or my family,' she explained, adding that they all played with airsoft rifles during their time off.

Wide ranging roles: The Hollywood actress also starred in the 2014 Disney film Maleficent as the titular villainess

Co-stars: Earlier in the week, Angelina spoke to The Sunday Project about working alongside her Australian co-star, Finn Little, 14, (pictured), and making the action film in New Mexico. She said: 'We were there together and were able to air soft on the weekends, or swim and hang'

'We were there together and were able to air soft on the weekends, or swim and hang,' Angelina said.

'I've been missing hanging out with his mum,' she added, referring to Finn's mother.

The Tomb Raider actress shares Maddox, 19, Pax, 17, Zahara, 16, Shiloh, 14, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 12, with her ex Brad Pitt, 57.

Angelina and Brad have been in the midst of a custody battle since their separation in 2016.
She gave birth to her first child just two months ago.

And Emily Ratajkowski looked beyond sublime on Instagram on Friday, when she appeared in a slew of wildly revealing and sexy getups on the official Inamorata Instagram page.

The model, 29, also uploaded a slideshow of images to her own Instagram account that showed her in a sultry black halter dress.

Bikini babe: Emily Ratajkowski looked beyond sublime on Instagram on Friday, when she appeared in two wildly revealing and sexy getups in black and white

For her own Instagram shot, Emilys luxe black dress was backless, with two straps running across the small of her back.

The halter allowed for ample amounts of Emrat's sideboob to show through.

The garment hung to just above her ankles, featuring a slit along one calf.

Inamorata, which Ratajkowski launched to create 'easy, body-conscious essentials' for women, showed their founder modeling string bikinis in striking shades or pink, blue, and white.

Switch up: Switching up the looks, Emily wore her hair in an updo and down for some of the sultry shots

The author accessorized with a yellow JW Pei purse and hoop earrings.

Her straight brown hair was in a casual bun, and she perched for the selfies in towering red strappy stiletto heels.

She added a simple twinkle emoji by way of a caption.

Sultry: The model, 29, uploaded a slideshow of images to her own Instagram account in a sultry black halter dress that showcased her curves beautifully

In motion: The garment hung to just above her ankles, featuring a slit along one calf

Meanwhile, on her clothing brand Inamorata Woman's Instagram account, Ratajkowski turned up the heat in a skimpy white two-piece.

The post featured one still image in which Emily stared vacantly off in the distance, wearing the strappy string bikini known as the Las Olas in satin.

The bathing suit featured triangular panels at her breasts and in the thong, accentuated with extra string wrapped around her rib cage and upper abdomen.

The second element in the social media post was a brief selfie video, showing the entrepreneur on a New York City rooftop.

Head turner: Emilys dress was backless, with two straps running across the small of her back

Side eye: The author accessorized with a yellow JW Pei purse and hoop earrings

With her classic unsmiling gaze, she shrugged her shoulders while enjoying the sunshine in her bodacious swimsuit.

Emily also wore a necklace that had three charms on it, spelling the word Sly.

Sly is the nickname of her two-month-old son Sylvester Apollo.

The beauty shares her son with filmmaker husband Sebastian Bear-McClard, to whom she has been married since 2018.

Meanwhile: On her clothing brand Inamorata Woman's Instagram account, Ratajkowski turned up the heat in a skimpy white two-piece

She also wore a necklace that had three charms on it, spelling the word Sly: Sly is the nickname of her two-month-old son Sylvester Apollo
For weeks, Australian actress Pia Miller has had fans speculating she's secretly married her multimillionaire fiance Patrick Whitesell.

And on Saturday, the former Home and Away star was beaming and looked positively radiant as she made her way to a Sydney hair salon.

Perhaps on the phone to her Hollywood agent partner, the stunning model couldn't help but flash a cheeky smile while talking into her apple headphones.

Stepping out: On Saturday, Pia Miller visited a hair salon in Sydney amid rumours she secretly married her millionaire Hollywood agent fiance Patrick Whitesell

The actress looked chic in a casual ensemble, showing off her slender figure in a pair of blue jeans, a white linen shirt and some Birkenstock sandals.

She accessorised with a grey Fendi bag, brown designer sunglasses and her whopping diamond engagement ring and matching band, thought to be a wedding ring.

As she exited her black Range Rover, the former Home and Away star appeared to be in good spirits.

Happy days! As she exited her black Range Rover, the former Home and Away star appeared to be in good spirits

Mask on! Once she made her way into the hair dresser Pia popped on a mask as she adhered to the coronavirus restrictions in New South Wales

Once she was in the hair salon though, Pia popped on a mask as she adhered to the coronavirus restrictions in New South Wales.

In recent weeks, the brunette has convinced some fans she's already secretly married to Patrick, to whom she became engaged in November.

Earlier this month, she posted a picture in which her 56-year-old fiance appeared to be wearing a wedding ring.

Husband or fiance? Earlier this month, she posted a picture in which her 56-year-old fiance appeared to be wearing a wedding ring

Eagle-eyed fans were quick to notice the accessory, with one commenting: 'Hello Mr and Mrs P' with a love-heart emoji.

The actress recently shared a black-and-white photo to Instagram in which she embraced her Hollywood agent beau.

She captioned the snap with the initials 'PW', which could stand for Patrick Whitesell - or be a subtle clue to her new married name.
Billionaire heiress Francesca Packer took a romantic trip to Hamilton Island with her boyfriend Adam Cooper last month.

While Francesca, 26, deleted her Instagram page in March, Adam shared some photos to his page during their jaunt.

Pilates instructor and personal trainer Adam proved he wasn't shy by posting a nude picture of himself relaxing in an infinity pool.

Getaway: Billionaire heiress Francesca Packer took a romantic trip to Hamilton Island with her boyfriend Adam Cooper last month

In another image, the couple cuddled at dusk. Adam captioned it: 'Sunsets are better at dusk. P.S. I love you.'

The Sydney socialite confirmed she and Adam were a couple in an interview with The Daily Telegraph in December.

'Adam is a really great guy. We've been dating for a while,' she told the paper.

Confident: Pilates instructor and personal trainer Adam proved he wasn't shy by posting a nude picture of himself relaxing in an infinity pool

Adam is Head of Training at Performance Vive Active, which has studios in Double Bay and Brookvale.

He is also a Pilates reformer trainer and personal trainer, as well as a member of the North Bondi Surf Life Saving Club.

Francesca herself lives in Darlinghurst, and laid out $16million for her five-bedroom, five-bathroom Horizon apartment.

Fitness: Adam is Head of Training at Performance Vive Active, which has studios in Double Bay and Brookvale

In March, she abruptly deleted all of her social media accounts without warning.

While Francesca has made efforts to remain private, Adam has continued to post about their relationship on Instagram.

He also often shares photos of himself shirtless, working out, and going to the beach.
He's been keeping up his impressive fitness routines even after wrapping production on his upcoming Marvel film The Eternals.

And Kumail Nanjiani showed off the fruits of his labors on Friday when he flashed his shredded biceps in Los Angeles.

The 43-year-old standup comedianturnedaction star was spotted getting out of his car to visit a friend's house in the city.

Tickets to the gun show: Kumail Nanjiani, 43, showed off the fruits of his many workout sessions in recent months while visiting a friend's house in LA on Friday

Kumail looked as if he was dressed for another workout in a plain gray tank top that emphasized his chiseled physique.

He also had on textured black sweatpants with gray-and-red Adidas trainers.

He sported a shaggy pandemic hairdo and brought along his trusty water bottle to stay hydrated.

Kumail arrived in a gray zip-up hoodie as well, though he tossed it in the car once he got out into the heat and away from the air conditioning.

Workout style: Kumail looked as if he was dressed for another workout in a plain gray tank top that emphasized his chiseled physique

Too hot to handle: Kumail arrived in a gray zip-up hoodie as well, though he tossed it in the car once he got out into the heat and away from the air conditioning

Kumail has had to be particularly vigilant with masking and social distancing throughout the ongoing pandemic as his wife Emily V. Gordon is immunocompromised due to having Still's disease, a rare auto-inflammatory disease.

However, he seemed to take a cue from new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and went mask-free as he met up with a friend.

According to the CDC, fully vaccinated people can now go mask-free in all situations, though they'll still need to wear them on public transportation and in health care settings, and they'll also need to follow local rules that are more strict.

People that are unvaccinated or only have one dose of the two-dose vaccines should still be wearing masks in most situations aside from when they're outdoors and able to socially distance effectively.

In April, Kumail filmed a humorous video with school children in which he shared some basic facts about how the coronavirus is spread and infects people, while also urging viewers to get vaccinated as soon as they're able.

Science homework: In April, Kumail filmed a humorous video with school children in which he shared some basic facts about how the coronavirus is spread and infects people

Do the right thing: He also urged viewers to get vaccinated as soon as they're able to

Kumail and his wife Emily cowrote the 2017 dramedy The Big Sick, which dramatized the early months of their relationships and Gordon's illness.

Kumail starred as a version of himself, while Emily was portrayed by Zoe Kazan.

While they were still a new couple, she became seriously ill and had to be put into a medically induced coma before doctors were able to properly diagnose her and treat the illness.

The lovebirds married only three months after she recovered.

Safety first: Kumail skipped a mask on Friday, but he's been vigilant throughout the pandemic as his screenwriter wife is immunocompromised due to having Still's disease; seen in 2017

True to life: They dramatized the early months of their relationship, when she was put into a medically induced coma due to the disease, with the 2017 film The Big Sick, with Kumail starring opposite Zoe Kazan as his future wife

Following his 2020 Netflix comedy The Lovebirds, Kumail will return to the big screen in early November to appear in the Marvel superhero film Eternals, which also stars Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden, Kit Harington, Gemma Chan, Brian Tyree Henry and Salma Hayek, among others.

The film follows a group of immortal aliens living in disguise among humans on Earth who have secretly protected them throughout the ages, though they're forced to return to the job when another alien species threatens humanity.

The film is directed by Chloe Zhao, best known for her deliberately paced art film The Rider and her critical hit Nomadland, which is nominated for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress for Frances McDormand.

Although plenty of fans have been wowed by Kumail's intense physical transformation for his role in Eternals, others have critiqued Marvel Studios and its parent company Disney for requiring their male actors to achieve Olympian looks that can't be achieved without intense training sessions and various supplements.

Mixed reviews: Some fans have ripped Marvel Studios and parent company Disney for requiring Kumail and other male stars to achieve unnatural levels of musculature for their superhero films

In a March interview with Men's Health, Kumail explain that when he was approached by the producers of The Eternals about taking a role in the movie, he told them that he was only interested in a leading role.

'I was like, "I dont want to be just part of a Marvel movie; I want to be a Marvel superhero."'

Since he wanted to completely change his physique for the film, he had to change his thinking about working out in order to cope with the intensity of his new fitness sessions.

'I had to change my relationship to pain. Youre so designed to avoid it, but in that situation you really have to be okay with it. You have to want it. Its almost trying to rewire your brain,' he said.

The film also stars Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden and Gemma Chan, among others.

Coming soon: In an interview with Men's Health, Kumail explain that when he was approached by the producers of The Eternals about taking a role in the movie, he told them that he was only interested in a leading role

Although Eternals is already in post-production, he may be keeping up the workout routine to star in his next Disney project, the Star War Obi-Wan Kenobi miniseries.

The limited show will be released on the company's streamer, Disney+, and features an all-star cast that brings back Ewan McGregor as the wise Jedi knight, along with Hayden Christensen, who will presumably be playing some version of Darth Vader after playing Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels.

Joel Edgerton will also reprise his role as Luke Skywalker's Uncle Owen, while newcomers include The Queen's Gambit star Moses Ingram, Indira Varma, Rupert Friend, O'Shea Jackson Jr. and Benny Safdie, best known as half of the directing team responsible for Good Time and Uncut Gems.

So far, Kumail's role hasn't been revealed.
Russell Crowe has lined up his next big Hollywood gig.

The Oscar winner, 57, is teaming up with director Gary Fleder for the thriller film Poker Face.

According to Deadline, Crowe plays the character of Jake, 'a tech billionaire who gathers his childhood friends to his Miami estate for what turns into a high stakes game of poker.

Booked and busy! Russell Crowe is teaming up with director Gary Fleder for the thriller film Poker Face

'Those friends have a love hate relationship with the host, a master game-player/planner, and he has concocted an elaborate scheme designed to bring a certain justice to all of them.

'However, Jake finds himself re-thinking his strategy when his Miami mansion is overtaken by a dangerous home invader whose previous jobs have all ended in murder and arson.'

Director Gary Fleder previously worked on Sylvester Stallone's Homefront and the comedy series The Bold Type.

Role: According to Deadline, Crowe plays the character of Jake, 'a tech billionaire who gathers his childhood friends to his Miami estate for what turns into a high stakes game of poker

Crowe just wrapped up filming as 'Zeus' for the upcoming Marvel blockbuster Thor: Love and Thunder.

On Tuesday, the actor celebrated by shaving off his lengthy beard and returning to a more clean-cut look, sharing his transformation with fans on Twitter.

In the photo, which is now his profile picture, he gazed at the camera while wearing glasses with his short facial hair on full display.

Going, going, gone! On Tuesday, Russell celebrated finish filming on Thor: Love and Thunder by shaving off his lengthy beard and returning to a more clean-cut look

He then jokingly shared and a picture of a plastic bag filled with the shaved-off greying locks, captioned: 'What price the beard of Zeus?'

Fans were clearly a fan of the new look, with one writing: 'Congrats - you just cut 10 years of your age, Russell dearest!'

'I'm so glad my "old Russell" is back!' another gushed, while a third added: 'Wow what a difference, your blue eyes stand out very well now, it looks very good my friend!'
Rough sea weather conditions due to formation of Cyclone Tauktae in the Arabian Sea, in Thiruvananthapuram, Saturday, May 15, 2021. As per IMD, cyclonic storm 'Tauktae' is very likely to intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm by Saturday night. (PTI Photo)

Mumbai/Ahmedabad: Cyclonic storm Tauktae has intensified and is expected to reach Gujarat coast by May 18 and bring heavy rain to some areas, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Saturday evening.

The cyclone is likely to cause heavy rainfall in the coastal districts of Gujarat, including extremely heavy falls in Junagadh and Gir Somnath and heavy to very heavy rain at a few places in the districts of Saurashtra, Kutch and Diu, namely Gir Somnath, Diu, Junagadh, Porbandar, Devbhoomi Dwarka, Amreli, Rajkot, Jamnagar, the IMD said.

The Western Railway said it has cancelled 56 trains either originating or terminating in Gujarat's Saurashtra region as a precaution.

"Cyclone Tauktae is very likely to intensify further into a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm during next 12 hours and intensify further.

"It is very likely to move north-northwestwards and reach Gujarat coast in the morning of 18th & cross Gujarat coast between Porbandar & Naliya around 18th May Afternoon/evening," the IMD said in its latest update.

Heavy rains were reported in Maharashtra's coastal Ratnagiri district on Saturday, said K S Hosalikar, head SID, Climate Research and Services, IMD, Pune.

Mumbai can expect showers from Sunday afternoon, said Shubhani Bhute, senior director (weather) IMD, Mumbai.

The IMD has issued an `orange alert' which means heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely over entire Konkan and hilly areas of western Maharashtra, mainly Kolhapur and Satara on Sunday and Monday, she said.

In Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the preparedness of states, central ministries and agencies concerned to deal with the situation arising out of cyclone Tauktae and asked them to take every possible measure to ensure that people are safely evacuated.

He also called for ensuring maintenance of all essential services such as power, telecommunications, health and drinking and their immediate restoration in the event of damages caused to them, a statement said.

At the high-level meeting which was attended by Home Minister Amit Shah and top officials concerned, Modi directed them to ensure special preparedness on COVID management in hospitals, vaccine cold chain and other medical facilities on power back up and storage of essential medicines and to plan for unhindered movement of oxygen tankers, the PMO said.

Teams of the National Disaster Response Force are being stationed at Gir Somnath, Amreli, Porbandar, Dwarka, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Kutch, Morbi, Surat, Gandhinagar, Valsad, Bhavnagar, Navsari, Bharuch and Junagarh districts of Gujarat, an NDRF spokesperson said.

The Indian Air Force said it has kept 16 transport aircraft and 18 helicopters in readiness to deal with the situation that could arise out of cyclone Tauktae.

"The state government has made full preparations and a control room has been set up. Administrations of the districts in Saurashtra and south Gujarat regions, which are likely to be affected by the cyclone, have been alerted. Teams of the NDRF are reaching the state," Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani told reporters in Banaskantha district earlier.

The Union Home Ministry in an advisory to the Gujarat government said the "very severe cyclonic storm" is likely to cause damage to thatched houses, roads, power and communication lines especially in the districts of Saurashtra region such as Devbhoomi Dwarka, Kutch, Porbandar, Junagadh, Gir Somnath, Jamnagar, Amreli, Rajkot and Morbi.

"Sea condition is likely to be very rough to high over the northwest Arabian sea along and off south Gujarat coast from May 17 morning, and very high to phenomenal from May 18 morning.

"Tidal wave of about 2-3 metres above astronomical tide is likely to inundate coastal areas of Morbi, Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka and Jamnagar district, and 1-2 metres along Porbandar, Junagadh, Gir Somnath, Amreli, Bhavnagar, and 0.5-1 metre over the remaining coastal districts of Gujarat," the advisory said.

The Home Ministry advised total suspension of fishing operations over the northwest Arabian sea and along and off the Gujarat coast on May 17 and 18.

In Maharashtra, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray directed the authorities in coastal districts to remain alert.

Collectors of Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg districts have been asked to take all necessary precautions, Thackeray said at a meeting of the Disaster Management Authority.
Charlotte McKinney put her toned physique on display on Friday as she lapped up the sunshine on Miami Beach.

The actress, 27, looked sensational in a white bikini, slipping into a skimpy string bikini top alongside a matching pair of tiny beach shorts.

Charlotte wore her blonde hair loose and chatted to a friend on a sun lounger before strolling across the sand with a red and white striped towel.

Fun in the sun: Charlotte McKinney, 27, put her toned physique on full display on Friday, when she lapped up the sunshine wearing a white bikini on Miami Beach

Charlotte kept the sun at bay with a pair of trendy black sunglasses and toted a miniature brown handbag over her right shoulder.

The screen star accessorised with a delicate bracelet worn on her right wrist and a small pair of gold hoop earrings.

She sipped on a cocktail served from a carved out coconut as she rang in the weekend in style.

It comes after Charlotte returned from the Bahamas where she reunited with family at the Four Seasons Ocean Club and didn't wash her hair for 'days' at a time.

Wow: The blonde beauty looked sensational in the two-piece, slipping into a skimpy string bikini top alongside a matching pair of tiny beach shorts

'This is the longest I've gone without seeing them,' she told Miami Living Magazine back in March.

'In 2020, I learned to focus on my mental health and happiness. My goal for this year is to maintain prioritizing happiness and continue working on my craft of acting and modeling.'

Earlier in May, Charlotte shared an extremely rare snap of her boyfriend Nathan Kostechko.

All in the details: The screen star accessories with a delicate bracelet worn on her right wrist and a small pair of gold hoop earrings

Charlotte and the 36-year-old tattoo artist have never gone 'Instagram official' despite having dated since late 2017.

The Guest House actress is said to have previously romanced Scott Eastwood in 2016, Stephen Dorff in 2015, and Trevor Engelson in 2014.

Charlotte's last gig was guest judging the April 1 episode of truTV 10-episode reality competition, Fast Foodies.

Tasty: She sipped on a cocktail served from a carved out coconut as she rang in the weekend in style
Indian-Australian beauty Maria Thattil will represent Australia at the 69th Miss Universe competition in Florida, in the United States on Monday.

In an impassioned column for The Daily Telegraph's Stellar magazine this weekend, the daughter of immigrants, who was born and raised in Melbourne, addressed her critics who say she isn't 'Australian enough' to represent.

With her cultural identity having 'always been a point of contention', the 28-year-old hopes her presence in the arena on Monday will 'shatter glass ceilings'.

'My cultural identity has always been a point of contention': Miss Universe Australia Maria Thattil (pictured) has addressed her critics who say she isn't 'Australian enough' to represent at the pageant on Monday, in an impassioned column for The Daily Telegraph's Stellar magazine

'Like many "third culture" kids, I used to feel like an awkward in-betweener - never feeling Indian enough to be Indian, or Australian enough to be Australian,' she said.

Maria revealed how she was often subjected to cruel jokes and racial stereotypes growing up, and admitted to trying to hide her ethnicity in her teens and early 20s.

'I wore foundation three shades too light and green contacts to appear more Caucasian, and I laughed along to racist jokes,' she said.

Candid: The daughter of immigrants, who was born and raised in Melbourne, said that growing up she never felt 'Indian enough to be Indian, or Australian enough to be Australian'

Fitting in: Maria, 28, revealed how she was often subjected to cruel jokes and racial stereotypes growing up, and admitted to trying to hide her ethnicity in her teens and early 20s

Now set to represent Australia at the Miss Universe competition on Monday, Maria is determined to use her platform to combat injustice.

'My voice will amplify those who haven't been heard and I hope my presence in this arena will shatter glass ceilings,' she penned.

Maria previously told Beauty Crew that she was inspired to apply for the Miss Universe Australia pageant because of the 2019 winner, Priya Serraeo.

Determined: Now set to represent Australia at the Miss Universe competition on Monday, Maria is determined to use her platform to combat injustice. Pictured at the preliminary competition in Florida, in the United States this month

'Seeing her do it, that's when I realised there is no mould,' she said.

Maria went on to say: 'My message is all about inclusivity, and inclusivity means equality.

'I'm championing a world where people can be themselves, irrespective of markers of their social identity that they have been told is a deficit, whether it's sexuality, faith, their job, their socioeconomic status, their gender.'

The 69th Miss Universe competition will take place in the U.S. on Monday
Margot Robbie headed out for a date night with her husband Tom Ackerley on Friday.

The Australian actress, 30, donned a face mask as she walked hand-hand-hand with her 31-year-old partner in Studio City, Los Angeles.

She rugged up in a beige wool jumper worn over the top of a white, oversized dress shirt.

Date night: Margot Robbie headed out for a date night with her husband Tom Ackerley on Friday. The Australian actress, 30, donned a face mask as she walked hand-hand-hand with her 31-year-old partner. Both pictured

The Wolf Of Wall Street actress wore a checked skirt and black pantyhose, as well as chunky black shoes.

She appeared to go makeup-free and wore her blonde hair down and straight around her shoulders.

Tom meanwhile was casually cool in jeans and a sweatshirt, his hair pulled back in a bun.

Cool: She rugged up in a beige wool jumper worn over the top of a white, oversized dress shirt. Tom meanwhile was casually cool in jeans and a sweatshirt, his hair pulled back in a bun

Looking good: She appeared to go makeup-free and wore her blonde hair down and straight around her shoulders

Margot and Tom have been married since 2016, after first meeting in 2013 on set of World War II drama Suite Francaise in France.

The pair went on to become roommates, with a group of other friends, as they lived together in a property in London.

In an interview with Elle in 2018, blonde beauty Margot admitted that she and Tom had initially decided to keep their romantic relationship to themselves.

Wed: Margot and Tom have been married since 2016, after first meeting in 2013 on set of World War II drama Suite Francaise in France. Pictured in 2018

She said: 'We kept it a secret. Because we weren't really taking it seriously. "Oh, whatever, we're just mates, we're just mates." And then everyone found out.'

'It was dramatic,' she recalled of the moment her friends found out. 'I'm not going into the details, but s**t hit the fan.

'Our house turned into The Jerry Springer Show for a moment there. But then the dust settled, and it was all good.'
Emily Atack effortlessly showcased her style credentials on Friday night as she stepped out with a male companion.

The Celebrity Juice star, 31, wore a thigh-skimming floral dress teamed with tights and a leather jacket and headed to London's newest Soho House.

Also arriving at the celeb hotspot was producer Jimmy Iovine and his wife Liberty Ross as well as Little Britain's Matt Lucas.

Stylish: Emily Atack, 31, showcased her style credentials on Friday when she stepped out with a male companion wearing a thigh-skimming floral dress teamed with a leather jacket

With her glossy blonde hair swept off her face, Emily added height to her frame in a pair of black boots and toted her belongings in a padded handbag.

Walking by Emily's side was a male companion dressed in a trendy khaki jacket, jeans and a pair of crisp white trainers.

Emily has been single since January after splitting from boyfriend Charlie Edwards after Covid restrictions put pressure on their romance.

Just a friend? Walking by Emily's side was a male companion dressed in a trendy khaki jacket, jeans and a pair of crisp white trainers

MailOnline has contacted Emily's representatives for comment.

Also at the event was producer Jimmy, 68, and his model wife Liberty, 42, as well as Little Britain's Matt, who turned heads in a moustache face mask.

It comes after Matt displayed a svelte new frame when he appeared on ITV's Lorraine on Friday morning, after admitting to piling on the pounds during lockdown.

Double take: Little Britain's Matt Lucas also stepped out on Friday and turned heads in a moustache face mask, after showing off his weight loss on Lorraine earlier in the day

The Great British Bake Off host, 47, confessed to impressed host Lorraine Kelly, 61, that he's 'still got a bit of a tum' after deciding it was time to shed weight.

As Lorraine remarked on his physique, Matt said: 'I lost some weight, I needed to take the edge of, because I put on a lot of weight in lockdown. I've still got a bit of a tum.'

Vogue editor Edward Enninful also made an appearance, looking typically stylish in a pair of navy trousers and a black jacket teamed with slip-on clogs.

Night out: Also at the event was producer Jimmy Iovine and his wife Liberty Ross who wrapped up in a padded jacket

On point: Vogue editor Edward Enninful also made an appearance, looking typically stylish in a pair of navy trousers and a black jacket teamed with slip-on clogs

Emily's night on the town comes after she admitted she thinks people thought she would be the 'shower girl' when she took part on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! in 2019.

The series often features shots of the stars showing off their figures in the outdoor shower but Emily insisted she was there to play and got 'stuck in' right away and was never going to be the 'glamour girl'.

Appearing on Lorraine earlier in May, Emily, who finished as runner-up to Harry Redknapp, told how she still keeps in touch with her fellow campmates.

She said: 'I think everyone thought I was going to be the shower girl - which I absolutely was not. I just got stuck in.

'The WhatsApp is live and kicking. They are friends for life, we share something so amazing.'

Emily's stint on I'm A Celebrity catapulted her to further success, leading her to present the spin-off show the following year with Adam Thomas and Joel Dommett.

Jungle: The series often features shots of the stars showing off their figures in the outdoor shower but Emily insisted she was there to play and got 'stuck in' right away

The TV star got her start portraying Charlotte Hinchcliffe on The Inbetweeners and said she was determined to prove she was 'more than that'.

She said: 'The intro you did, I pinch myself because it doesn't seem like you're talking about my life. People think where did you come from?

'But I've been grafting for 13 years. Coming away from the Inbetweeners character, I wanted to prove I'm more than that.'
Miss Universe Australia 2021 Maria Thattil has taken to the stage for the preliminary competition, ahead of the official pageant on Monday.

The 28-year-old Australian of Indian heritage stunned in a tiny red bikini that showed off her toned curves, at the event in Florida, in the United States on Friday.

Maria boosted her height with silver stiletto heels and accessorised with a sheer pale blue cape, left undone, and delicate hoop earrings.

In her element! Miss Universe Australia 2021 Maria Thattil stunned in a tiny red bikini and silver stiletto heels as she took to the stage for the preliminary round in Florida, in the United States on Friday

Her long brunette locks cascaded past her shoulders in structured waves, and her makeup was ultra glamorous, consisting of false lashes, eyeliner and a glossy lip.

The Melbourne-born beauty also took to the stage in a beaded off-white frock with a daring thigh split, and glitzy silver platform heels.

Proud to be representing her country, Maria couldn't wipe the smile off her face as she strutted across the stage while wearing a sash with Australia emblazoned on it.

Ultra glamorous: The Melbourne-born beauty of Indian heritage also took to the stage in a beaded off-white frock with a daring thigh split, and glitzy silver platform heels

Heartfelt: Maria, 28, shared the pictures to her official Instagram page, and told fans exactly why she chose to apply for the pageant. 'Why did I compete? Because barriers are made to be broken, and ceilings were meant to be shattered,' she wrote

Maria shared the pictures to her official Instagram page, and told fans exactly why she chose to apply for the pageant.

'Why did I compete? Because barriers are made to be broken, and ceilings were meant to be shattered. Preliminaries finished with heart and soul,' she wrote.

Meanwhile in a column for The Daily Telegraph's Stellar magazine this weekend, Maria addressed her critics who say she isn't 'Australian enough' to represent.

Impassioned: Meanwhile in a column for The Daily Telegraph's Stellar magazine this weekend, Maria addressed her critics who say she isn't 'Australian enough' to represent

Helping to create change: With her cultural identity having 'always been a point of contention', she said she hopes her presence in the arena on Monday will signify change

With her cultural identity having 'always been a point of contention', she said she hopes her presence in the arena on Monday will signify change.

'My voice will amplify those who haven't been heard and I hope my presence in this arena will shatter glass ceilings,' she penned.

The 69th Miss Universe competition will take place in the U.S. on Monday
Weekend Today host Lauren Phillips is said to be the hot favourite to replace Polly 'PJ' Harding on KIIS FM's 101.1 Melbourne breakfast show Jase & PJ.

According to the Herald Sun on Saturday, Lauren is 'expected to join Jase Hawkins as co-host next month'.

Lauren has had experience on the airwaves, having presented Jase & PJ's summer fill-in show with Ryan Jon.

Set to join? Weekend Today host Lauren Phillips (pictured) 'is tipped to replace' Polly 'PJ' Harding on KIIS FM Melbourne's breakfast show Jase & PJ

An ARN spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia in a statement on Saturday: 'We are looking forward to making an announcement soon as to who will be joining Jase Hawkins on the KIIS 101.1 Breakfast show, but at this stage PJ 'Polly' Harding's replacement is yet to be signed.'

In March, a well-placed source told Daily Mail Australia that Lauren was offered the radio gig.

KIIS FM executives had a wish list of candidates to replace PJ, all of whom are known radio talents.

Not long: According to the Herald Sun on Saturday, Lauren is 'expected to join Jase Hawkins as co-host next month'. Pictured: Polly 'PJ' Harding

They considered Kate Langbroek, who hosts the 3pm Pick-Up, and Yvie Jones, who hosted a Hit Network summer show with Grant Denyer in 2019.

Should Lauren take on the role, it's understood she would juggle her commitments between KIIS FM and as a weather presenter on Weekend Today.

In March, PJ broke down in tears on air as she told listeners that resigning was 'one of the hardest decisions' she'd ever made.

Top of the list: In March, a well-placed source told Daily Mail Australia that Lauren was offered the radio gig. KIIS FM executives had a wish list of candidates to replace PJ, all of whom are known radio talents

She is returning to her native New Zealand after a 'challenging' year which saw her 'priorities change' after getting engaged.

PJ will be finishing up in June. Jase is not leaving the program.

She explained that being separated from her family and fiance in New Zealand during the Covid-19 pandemic last year had taken a toll.

Announcement: In March, PJ broke down in tears on air as she told listeners that resigning was 'one of the hardest decisions' she'd ever made

PJ got engaged in December to her long-term partner, known only as 'Beej', but hasn't been living with him because she works in Melbourne.

In addition to the pressure of a long-distance relationship, she lost her father in 2019.

'It's not been an easy decision to make but I know for me it's the right one and will kickstart a brand new chapter,' she said.

'I will miss Jase and the whole team so much, but rest assured we will definitely stay in contact as Jase is adamant to be my head bridesmaid.'

Challenges: She explained that being separated from her family and fiance in New Zealand during the Covid-19 pandemic last year had taken a toll

Staying: PJ's co-host for the past six years, Jason 'Jase' Hawkins (pictured), is not leaving the show

Jase revealed it had been distressing watching PJ struggle behind the scenes over the last 12 months, saying she would often be in tears during ad breaks.

'There were mornings where we'd be in an ad break and you're in tears and you looked at me like, "I'm only staying here at the moment for you",' he said.

PJ agreed she was reluctant to resign because she felt like she'd be letting Jase down, but ultimately she had to focus on her own happiness.
Em Rusciano has revealed that she has never clearly identified with being a single gender.

Speaking to Stellar, the former radio star, 42, says she may have called herself 'gender-fluid' as a teenager.

'I'm equal parts masculine and feminine. I've never really felt comfortable being one or the other,' she told the publication.

Fluid: Em Rusciano (pictured) has revealed that she has never clearly identified with being a single gender. Speaking to Stellar, the former radio star, 42, says she may have called herself 'gender-fluid' as a teenager

'I think if 'gender fluid' was around in high school, I might have opted for that until I figured out I was female identifying.'

A person who is gender-fluid does not identify themselves as having a fixed gender, and may consider themselves neither male, nor female.

She added that she works against enforcing gender stereotypes in her family, life, too, and allows her son to wear Frozen-themed dresses.

Comfort levels: 'I'm equal parts masculine and feminine. I've never really felt comfortable being one or the other,' she told the publication

'The one rule in the house is there's no gender stereotyping. That's something I was really strong on with all my kids. You dress however you want to dress and I will staunchly fight beside you,' Em added.

The former Australian Idol contestant welcomed a son, Elio Arthur, in 2019. She also has two daughters, Marchella, 17, and Odette, 12, with husband Scott Barrow.

Em revealed she has been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) earlier this month.

She added: 'I think if 'gender fluid' was around in high school, I might have opted for that until I figured out I was female identifying'

Earlier this month, the former Australian Idol star revealed the symptoms she'd experienced over the years.

'Here are 10 things that I always thought made me a bit sh*t and weird, but turns out are actually ADHD symptoms,' she wrote on Facebook.

Em went on to list the symptoms she's experienced, including struggling to follow recipes, maps and instructions.
Lily Collins looked typically stylish on Saturday when she arrived at the Emily In Paris set for a day of filming in the French capital.

Wearing a camel coat teamed with luxury brown jogging bottoms and white trainers, the actress, 32, looked chic with her hair swept into a ponytail before disappearing into her trailer to prepare for a day of filming.

Lily later emerged from her trailer after sitting for hair and make-up wearing a large padded jacket and with her hair perfectly styled.

On set: Lily Collins, 32, looked typically stylish on Saturday when she arrived at the Emily In Paris set for a day of filming in the French capital wearing a camel coat

The brunette beauty appeared focused as she carefully descended her trailer's steps wearing a pair of comfy Ugg boots.

She also protected her nose and mouth with a white face mask in keeping with pandemic protocol and carried a coffee cup in her left hand.

Lily's character's colourful floral frock poked out of her coat.

The show spent the past few weeks filming on the French Riviera before moving back to the country's capital.

Stylish: Donning luxury brown jogging bottoms and trainers, the actress looked chic with her hair swept into a ponytail before disappearing into her trailer to prepare for a day of filming

Ready to go: The brunette beauty appeared focused as she carefully descended her trailer's steps wearing a pair of comfy Ugg boots

Lily stars as the titular character in Emily In Paris, a Chicago native who moves to Paris for work.

Once there, she tries to establish herself professional and create new friendships while struggling with the culture clash.

Although several critics found the show charming, many criticised it for being slight and narrow-minded in its comparison of Midwestern American values to French values.

Fresh-faced: Lily looked typically radiant as she made her way to the hair and make-up trailer

Mask on: The brunette beauty arrived on set wearing a white face mask in keeping with pandemic protocol

It did however enjoy an enormous following, with 58 million households streaming the show during its first month on air.

The series was the subject of controversy earlier this year when it was nominated for Best Television Series in the musical or comedy division at the Golden Globes and Lily was nominated for Best Actress in the same division, while much more critically acclaimed shows were snubbed.

In February, the Los Angeles Times reported that 30 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the organization that awards the Golden Globes, had been flown out to France for a two-night stay at a $1400-per-night hotel and treated with a visit to an esteemed private museum.

Where to? Lily was pointed in the right direction by a member of the show's crew after getting her hair and make-up done

When the Golden Globes nominations were announced, several critics lambasted the organization for passing over acclaimed shows including Michaela Coel's I May Destroy You in favor of Emily In Paris.

Back in October Lily revealed to Glamour that she used to severely pluck her eyebrows up through high school, before her mother Jill Tavelman told her to lay off.

Now, she does all the upkeep herself in order to prevent anyone else from thinning out her recognizable feature.

'I do it all myself  I simply look in a magnifying mirror, get the tweezers and follow the line. I don't let anyone touch them,' she explained.

'I really think less is more and I like to mess them up. But to be honest, I do maintenance every night.'
Prince Christian of Denmark was pictured arriving at his confirmation at Fredensborg Palace Church, in Fredensborg, Denmark on Saturday.

The 15-year-old and eldest child of Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary, looked sharp in a crisp white shirt, a tailored blue suit, a coordinating vest and tie.

Flanked by security and passersby, the royals made their way to the entrance of the church where they happily posed for photos with Queen Margrethe.

A royal affair! Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik (far left) and Princess Mary (far right) posed for photos with Queen Margrethe (centre) at son Prince Christian's confirmation at Fredensborg Palace Church, in Fredensborg, Denmark on Saturday

Crown Prince Frederik, 52, cut a polished figure in a white shirt, a deep blue suit jacket, trousers and matching vest, with a patterned tie and black dress shoes.

He beamed for photos while standing next to Prince Christian, who waved to fans.

Queen Margrethe, 81, looked elegant in a coral coat dress, a matching fascinator, pearl jewellery and court shoes.

Polished: Prince Christian (pictured next to Crown Prince Frederik), 15, looked sharp in a crisp white shirt, a tailored blue suit, a coordinating vest and tie

Family: Keeping a close eye on her youngest children, Prince Vincent (centre), 10, and Princesses Isabella, (next to Prince Vincent), 14, and Josephine, 10, was Crown Princess Mary, 49

Elegant: Crown Princess Mary donned a blue patterned frock with billowing sleeves and pointy-toe nude heels. Pictured also is Princess Josephine

Keeping a close eye on her youngest children, Prince Vincent, 10, and Princesses Isabella, 14, and Josephine, 10, was Crown Princess Mary, 49.

She donned a blue patterned frock with billowing sleeves and elegant nude heels.

The confirmation was a private ceremony with only 25 guests, and was presided by the Royal Confessor, Bishop Henrik Wigh-Poulsen.

Crown Prince Frederik was confirmed at the same church 40 years ago.

Beautiful: Crown Princess Mary swept her brunette locks into a chic ponytail, accessorising with a delicate fascinator

Sophisticated: Queen Margrethe (pictured above), 81, looked elegant in a coral coat dress, a matching fascinator, pearl jewellery and court shoes

Ceremony: The confirmation was a private ceremony with only 25 guests, and was presided by the Royal Confessor, Bishop Henrik Wigh-Poulsen

Proud parents: Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary were doting parents

Prince Christian's confirmation was scheduled to occur last year, but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The palace announced in March that the confirmation would take place in May.

'His Royal Highness Prince Christian will be confirmed in Fredensborg Castle Church. The confirmation will take place at 3pm by the Royal Confessor, Bishop Henrik Wigh-Poulsen,' the statement read.

'The confirmation will subsequently be celebrated privately with respect to the applicable restrictions.'

Postponed: Prince Christian's confirmation was scheduled to occur last year, but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic
Dr Alex George has been appointed one of ITV's mental health advisors in the wake of three suicides linked to its flagship show Love Island.

The medic, 30, who starred on the ITV2 show's fourth season in 2018 before returning to his doctor job at Lewisham hospital, will help the channel in promoting better wellbeing not only for contestants, but for those watching at home.

His role comes after he was appointed as a Youth Mental Health Ambassador by Boris Johnson after speaking out following his brother Llyr's death last year.

Congratulations: Dr Alex George has been appointed one of ITV's mental health advisors in the wake of three suicides linked to its flagship show Love Island

In addition to appointing mental health tzars such as Alex, ITV have been making steps to help promote better mental health among its staff.

The station recently launched a series of self-care classes which include paint-pouring sessions, origami lessons and 'racial fluency' lessons.

While they have also set up a range of networking groups which welcomes women, minority ethnic staff, gay workers and those with disabilities.

The moves comes after the broadcaster was heavily criticised for the quality of care provided to former Love Island contestants as well as guest who had appeared on The Jeremy Kyle Show.

Brilliant: The medic, 30, who starred on the ITV2 show's fourth season in 2018 before returning to his doctor job at Lewisham hospital, will help the channel in promoting better wellbeing not only for contestants, but for those watching at home

Sophie Graydon and Mike Thalassitis both took their own lives after appearing on the reality dating programme, while host Caroline Flack took her life in February last year the day after hearing she would be prosecuted for allegedly attacking her boyfriend Lewis Burton, 27.

While Jeremy Kyle's show was axed in May of last year after Steven Dymond, 63, killed himself less than a week after failing a lie detector test while filming an episode of the show.

MailOnline have contacted ITV representatives for comment.

Speaking about his new position, Alex told Susannah Constantine on her podcast My Wardrobe Malfunction: 'I actually sit on the board now the mental health board advisory board for ITV.

Tragic: His role comes after he was appointed as a Youth Mental Health Ambassador by Boris Johnson after speaking out following his brother Llyr's death last year (pictured together)

'A lot of the thoughts now moving forward are around how can we promote better mental wellbeing not just on the show but for people watching it.

'What can we do to support movements around mental health like Britain Get Talking (ITVs Mental Wellness Campaign) which has been incredibly successful, partnerships with Mind and Calm.'

He continued: 'You know, I think that's important: TV, reality TV, all these shows, can actually have an impact on people's mental health, but it can do it in a positive way as well, if we think about it and we consider that when you're making the shows.

'It's considering who you're putting on there. Are they prepared for that? What messages are we giving to people? Are we representing the body image, the diversity that we have in the UK on screen, you know, those kind of things.

So sad: The moves comes after the broadcaster was heavily criticised for the quality of care provided to former Love Island contestants. Sophie Graydon (left) and Mike Thalassitis (right) both took their own lives after appearing on the reality dating programme

A great help: 'A lot of the thoughts now moving forward are around how can we promote better mental wellbeing not just on the show but for people watching it'

Important: 'You know, I think that's important: TV, reality TV, all these shows, can actually have an impact on people's mental health, but it can do it in a positive way as well, if we think about it and we consider that when you're making the shows' (pictured on Love Island in 2018)

'I will be interested to see what the cast is like this year on Love Island. But I suspect we might see a better diversity I hope in all sorts of ways on the show this year. But let's see.'

During the podcast, the medic also discussed his experience following his foray into reality TV and praised ITV for checking in on him when he returned to his profession.

He explained: 'I think we all have different experiences don't we? he said. I think it helped me a lot that I had my career and it was always my intention to go back.

Aftercare: During the podcast, the medic also discussed his experience following his foray into reality TV and praised ITV for checking in on him when he returned to his profession

'I guess the first six months was a huge roller coaster. I know, it sounds very cliched saying that, but it was very strange to go from someone who has no experience in the public eye, no media experience at all, to being the centre of a lot of focus and attention.

'That was a huge shock and a massive thing to get used to. But I got there, I think...I actually think that the show was pretty good to me as well - they check in quite a lot, see how I'm doing, even now. And I think that's very important.'

Alex's appointment comes three months after Boris Johnson made him Youth Mental Health Ambassador in the wake of him openly speaking about the tragic passing of his younger brother.

Downing Street: It comes three months after Dr Alex was appointed as a Youth Mental Health Ambassador by Boris Johnson after speaking out following his brother's death last year

The Love Island star has been passionately campaigning for better mental health provision as he struggled with the loss of his brother Llyr, who took his life at the age of 19 in July.

The A&E doctor met with the Prime Minister in No. 10 Downing Street as he was appointed into the unpaid role.

His role as Youth Mental Health Ambassador will be to advise government, help shape policy on improving support for young people and raise the profile of mental health education and wellbeing in schools.

Mental Health advocate: The A&E doctor met with the Prime Minister in No. 10 Downing Street as he was appointed into the unpaid role

Dr. Alex has been a passionate online campaigner for children's mental health since he tragically lost his younger brother to suicide last year.

Speaking about his brother on Susannah's podcast, he added: 'It's an ongoing tough time. You never get over it, do you? How can you?

'But you know, I've learned to live with it, in some ways. Its still very early. But I do feel like I'm at a place now where I'm able to kind of see that, you know, I can have a life after this.'

On New Year's Day, he wrote on his Instagram that his number one goal this year was to 'help bring meaningful change to mental health education at schools across the UK' and he has been calling for a meeting with the PM.

Success! Dr. Alex announced the news on his Instagram along with a picture of him meeting with the Prime Minister in Downing Street

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was 'delighted' to appoint Dr. Alex as a Youth Mental Health Ambassador, saying: 'Children and young people have heroically adapted to save lives and protect our NHS.

'This has understandably had a huge impact on their mental health, so I want to shine a spotlight on this vital issue ahead of their return to school.

'I'm delighted that Dr. Alex George will be working with us as we do everything in our power to improve people's mental wellbeing.'

Dr. Alex said: 'The last year has been unimaginably difficult for all of us, but particularly for young people who have sacrificed so much.

Busy man: Downing Street confirmed at the time that Dr. Alex would start his role immediately, and will work within the Department for Education, although he will remain independent of government

'I am honoured to be appointed for this role where I'll be working closely with government to make mental health an absolute priority and hope to have a positive impact on the lives of young people and their education for good.

'Right now young people need a voice in government, and I hope that through this role I can advocate for meaningful change in this area.'

Downing Street confirmed at the time that Dr. Alex would start his role immediately, and will work within the Department for Education, although he will remain independent of government.

He will sit on the new Mental Health in Education Action Group, chaired by Children's Minister Vicky Ford and Universities Minister Michelle Donelan  which will look specifically at how we support young people with their wellbeing as they return to school and university after this difficult year.
J&K Police is keeping a very close watch on elements who are attempting to leverage the unfortunate situation in Palestine to disturb public peace and order in the Kashmir Valley.  PTI file photo

SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir police have detained, at least, twenty people including a graffiti artist following protests held in capital Srinagar and some other party of the predominantly Muslim Kashmir Valley against Israel in the backdrop of its airstrikes and surface offensive in Gaza Strip.

As many people have over the past few days used social media platforms to vent their anger against Israel and show solidarity with the Palestinians, the J&K police on Saturday warned irresponsible social media comments that may result in actual violence on streets over the happenings in Palestine would invite action under law.

Inspector General of Police (Kashmir range), Vijay Kumar, said, J&K Police is keeping a very close watch on elements who are attempting to leverage the unfortunate situation in Palestine to disturb public peace and order in the Kashmir Valley. He added, All irresponsible social media comments that result in actual violence and breaking of law including Covid protocol will attract legal action.

Mudasir Gul, the 32-year-old artist, who is among the detainees had on Friday climbed onto a steel platform close to an overhead water tank in Srinagars Padshahi Bagh area to paint the face of a sobbing woman wearing Palestines flag as the headscarf. He also wrote on the graffiti We are Palestine amid chanting of anti-Israel slogans by an impromptu crowd. Some Angry youth put several Palestine flags atop the platform crisscrossing a passageway, the witnesses said.

Local sources said that it was a group of youth of Padshahi Bagh who feeling disturbed and highly passionate over the mayhem caused by the Israeli forces in Gaza Strip had persuaded Gul to draw the graffiti. Later in the evening, the police visited Guls home and, according to his elder brother Badr-ul-Islami forced him to deface the graffiti by spreading patches of black paint over it and then took him along. The police overnight also raided several homes in Padshahi Bagh and arrested several local youth who had reportedly participated in the anti-Israel protest.

The police early Saturday also detained a Muslim cleric Sarjan Barkati from southern Shopian district, two days after he while speaking at a local mosque had reportedly criticized Israeli's military aggression against Palestinians and, as per local sources, prayed for the safety of Palestinian women and children.

However, the local police officials said that Barkati was not arrested for his anti-Israel outburst but for making provocative statement during his speech to the worshippers on the Eid day. Shopians SSP Amrit Pal Singh said that the cleric has been taken into preventive custody.

In Srinagar, the police officials maintained that Burkati had been detained at Shopians Zaipura police station for he had violated the COVID protocol and SOPs by encouraging the local people to hold the Eid congregation at the local mosque.

Barkati came to the limelight during the unrest triggered by the killing of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander Burhan Muzaffar Wani in July 2016 for the fiery speeches he would make at anti-India rallies in south Kashmir. He was soon arrested by the police and booked under J&Ks stringent Public Safety Act (PSA). The firebrand cleric was released in the last week of October 2020 after spending four years in jail.

Over the past week, posters have appeared on walls in some parts of the Valley asking people to boycott all Israeli products to show solidarity with hapless Palestinians. Various political parties and leaders and religious and social groups have issued statements condemning the Israeli aggression in Gaza Strip and occupied Palestinian areas.

In a joint statement issued days before Id, former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah and other senior leaders of National Conference had while condemning the Israeli attacks against Palestinians in east Jerusalem said, Even in the holy month of Ramadan, Israel has unleashed an unjust and despicable war in east Jerusalem, Al Aqsa Mosque, Sheikh Jarrah and Bab Al Amud resulting in killing scores of innocent Palestinians. Even women and children are not being spared.

Amid the increasing anger, J&K police on Saturday issued a statement saying they are keeping a very close watch on elements who are attempting to leverage the unfortunate situation in Palestine to disturb public peace and order in the Kashmir Valley. The statement also reads, Were a professional force and are sensitive to public anguish. But J&K police have a legal responsibility to ensure law and order as well. It, however, wouldnt allow cynical encashment of the public anger to trigger violence, lawlessness and disorder on Kashmir streets.

It adds,

Expressing opinion is a freedom but engineering and inciting violence on streets is unlawful. All irresponsible social media comments that result in actual violence and breaking of law including Covid protocol will attract legal action. IGP Kashmir urges cooperation of all citizens..
Skye Wheatley has revealed her 'saggy' skin after giving birth to her second son.

In a post shared to Instagram on Saturday, the former Big Brother star, 27, posed for a photo taken just over two weeks after welcoming son Bear.

Alongside it, she shared an image in which she was 40 weeks pregnant, showing off her bump in blue activewear.

New look: Skye Wheatley (pictured) has revealed her 'saggy' skin after giving birth to her second son. In a post shared to Instagram on Saturday, the Big Brother star, 27, posed for a photo taken just over two weeks after welcoming son Bear, and one where she was pregnant

In the recent image, Skye wears a black bra and underwear set, her tummy on display, and told her fans that her skin hadn't bounced back from her pregnancy.

'Female body though. Who wants a real tummy update, my skin was majorly stretched this time around and the saggy skin is real!' she wrote.

'I've been keeping a strict skincare routine to help the skin recover' Skye added.

Looking good: 'Female body though. Who wants a real tummy update, my skin was majorly stretched this time around and the saggy skin is real!' she wrote. 'I've been keeping a strict skincare routine to help the skin recover'

The former reality stat gave birth to her second child with partner Lachlan Waugh, a baby boy named Bear, on April 23.

In a YouTube video, which also featured footage of her labour, Skye announced her child's name: Bear West Waugh.

She revealed that rather than copying the Kardashians, the middle name West was actually inspired by an ex-boyfriend.

Baby love: The former reality stat gave birth to her second child with partner Lachlan Waugh (right), a baby boy named Bear, on April 23

'I really like the name West and was going to use it as a first name, not because of the Kardashians or Kanye West,' she explained.

'My first boyfriend I dated in high school, his last name was West also. That's how I grew to love the name actually.'

Skye added that she and Lachlan 'fell in love' with the name Bear.

Skye rose to fame on Big Brother Australia in 2014 and began dating Lachlan in 2017. They also share two-year-old son Forest.
Tiger King's Joe Exotic has revealed he has prostate cancer.

The former zoo owner took to Twitter on Friday to share his cancer diagnosis, and once again pleaded for a pardon from President Joe Biden in the wake of his illness.

Exotic, 58, was convicted on 17 federal charges of animal abuse and two counts of attempted murder for hire in his plot to kill nemesis and Big Cat Rescue owner, Carole Baskin in 2019 - and sentenced to 22 years in prison.

Health concerns: Tiger King's Joe Exotic revealed he has prostate cancer via Twitter on Friday and pleaded for a pardon AGAIN in the wake of the diagnosis

In his social media post, Exotic wrote: 'John Phillips [Joe's lawyer] has received my medical records from FMC Fort Worth and my PSA count came back very high for prostate cancer.

'The prison has approved testing to verify what stage it is in. My body is tired, I have lost a tremendous amount of weight, the mouth sores are out of control, I throw up more than I eat.'

He added that he didn't 'want anyone's pity' but was instead keen for a pardon from 'President Biden, VP Harris and the Attorney General', and he accused the police and the Department of Justice of corruption.

Diagnosis: In his social media post, Exotic wrote: 'My PSA count came back very high for prostate cancer. The prison has approved testing to verify what stage it is in'

Plea: Exotic added that he didn't 'want anyone's pity' but was instead keen for a pardon from 'President Biden, VP Harris and the Attorney General'

Exotic went on: 'Make this right and sign that pardon that Trump left behind so I can go home and get proper medical care and proper food.

'Thank you for all the love and support from all over the world. I love you all. Wish me luck#JusticeForJoeExotic #TigerKing #JoeExotic @JohnPhillips.'

The Kansas native requested a pardon from one-term President Donald Trump back in September, sending him a handwritten letter, later suing the Justice Department in December as a last-ditch effort - but this failed.

He most recently hired a new legal team, as they plan to use unaired Tiger King footage to push for a new trial.

Jailed: Exotic was convicted on 17 federal charges of animal abuse and two counts of attempted murder for hire in his plot to kill nemesis and Big Cat Rescue owner, Carole Baskin in 2019 - and sentenced to 22 years in prison

Attorney John Phillips of Phillips & Hunt, who previously represented the family of Baskin's missing husband Don Lewis, made the announcement in a video on Joe's Twitter.

He said: 'We are honored to announce that Joe has retained our firm. We're going to seek a new trial, and justice in the criminal and civil courts.'

Joe has also promised some juicy secrets in Tiger King: The Official Tell-All Memoir, which is set to set to be published in November.

He told E! News of the book: 'It's going to be a truth-tell book... Everybody that's ever done anything good, it's going to be in there and anybody that's got bones in your closet, you better look out.'

His nemesis: Carole Baskin is pictured with husband Howard at Big Cat Rescue

In April, Exotic claimed he has been 'kidnapped for a political agenda' in a furious audio recording as he continues to push for a presidential pardon.

In an audio recording for the Social Media Superstar Awards and obtained by The Sun, the former zoo owner said his conviction cast 'a black cloud over our entire justice system in America' and claimed he had 'compassion for zoo animals and humanity.

He said: 'What has been done to me puts a black cloud over our entire justice system in America and our leaders of this great country should be ashamed that our own Department of Justice can take part in kidnapping me for a political agenda to only end big cats in America.

'The real guy who has compassion and love for zoo animals, for the homeless, and for the sick, but most of all for humanity as a whole.

'I intend to use my new platform to speak for justice and prison reform and speak for the thousands of men and women in this country who have been wrongfully convicted or over sentenced in this country for simply no reason other than for profit.'

Exotic said his conviction was a 'conspiracy' and an 'obstruction of justice' - as he continues to push for a presidential pardon, this time from President Biden.

He continued: 'To all of the people in the streets of America trying to end racism; slavery is very much alive in America, folks. It is camouflaged by prison walls.

'Please ask President Biden to make history and sign every pardon on his desk and every compassionate release at the beginning of his term, not at the end.'

Presidential pardon: The Kansas native requested a pardon from one-term President Donald Trump back in September, sending him a handwritten letter, later suing the Justice Department in December as a last-ditch effort (pictured in August, 2013)
Victoria Beckham shared a sweet family snap alongside her eldest son Brooklyn via Instagram on Saturday.

The fashion mogul, 47, wrapped her arms around the aspiring photographer, 22, in a picture taken by his fiancee Nicola Peltz and admitted she missed him.

Putting on a stylish display, Victoria slipped into a black-and-gold brocade dress, while she appeared to be midway through her beauty regime as she had celestial black diamond eye masks on, courtesy of 111Skin.

'We miss you!' Victoria Beckham cuddled shirtless son Brooklyn in sweet snap taken by his fiancee Nicola Peltz, which she shared via Instagram on Saturday

Seemingly on holiday together, Brooklyn showed off his tattoos by going shirtless, and he wore a towel wrapped around his waist.

Lamenting how her son has been living in the US with Nicola during the pandemic, Victoria wrote in the caption: 'We miss you @brooklynbeckham and @nicolapeltz! (on photography duty!) kisses xx'

On Friday, Victoria put on a leggy display when she shared a stylish picture on social media of her modelling a dark blue skirt.

The outfit highlighted her slender legs thanks to the skirt's front-slip that had a white lace trim, and she boosted her figure in a pair of white heels.

Stunning: On Friday, Victoria put on a leggy display when she shared a stylish picture on social media of her modelling a dark blue skirt

Also on Saturday, Brooklyn was spotted out in Los Angeles. He cut a casual figure in a blue hoodie and tracksuit bottoms as he returned to his vehicle.

He rounded off the look with Air Force 1 sneakers and swept his tresses behind a hairband.

On Mother's Day, Victoria shared a heartwarming Mother's Day with all four kids Brooklyn, Romeo, 18, Cruz, 16, and Harper, nine, who she shares with husband David Beckham.

The former Spice Girl gushed: 'Mum's are so special we get celebrated twice! Happy Mother's Day to all of you celebrating today.'

Work up a sweat: Also on Saturday, Brooklyn was spotted out in Los Angeles

Low-key look: He cut a casual figure in a blue hoodie and tracksuit bottoms as he returned to his vehicle

Family: On Mother's Day Victoria shared a heartwarming throwback with her four children (L-R) Romeo, Cruz, Harper and Brooklyn as she marked the US holiday

It comes after Victoria revealed the Spice Girls influenced Beyonce to become the iconic artist she is today.

She revealed the band's message of Girl Power really resonated with Beyonce, 39, who told her about the impact they'd had.

Victoria said: 'I met Beyonce a few years ago, and she actually said to me, "It was the Spice Girls that inspired me and made me want to do what I do and made me proud to be a girl and proud to be who I am"'.

She added on Dear Medias Breaking Beauty podcast: 'And when someone like Beyonce, who is so iconic and was such a strong woman, says that she was inspired by the Spice Girls, I think thats quite something.'

The Spice Girls shot to fame in 1996, they split up in 2000 after Geri (Ginger Spice) decided to leave in 1998, but they have briefly reunited over the years. Victoria decided to not join the foursome for their most recent tour Spice World in 2019.

'Special gift': Victoria's husband David also took to Instagram on Saturday to reveal he'd been sent a Mambacita sweatshirt by Vanessa Bryant in honour of her daughter Gigi

Marking the occasion: The football star also enjoyed a glass of his own Haig Club whiskey

Victoria recently insisted that she doesn't cringe over her past make-up looks during the Spice Girls as it was all a 'journey' and she 'didn't care' at the time.

Talking about her time in the girl band, the fashion designer even joked that her four children often comment on how 'cool' she used to be - to which she quipped: 'Oh, wow. Does that mean I'm not now?'

Talking on Dear Media's Breaking Beauty podcast alongside Sarah Creal, co-founder of Victoria Beckham Beauty, Victoria reflected: 'You know, I've been so lucky to work with the best makeup artists in the industry, which has just been so, so great.

Iconic: It comes after Victoria (pictured left in 1997) has revealed the Spice Girls influenced Beyonce to become the iconic artist she is today

'And I look back at pictures and people always say, "Oh, do you cringe at any of the pictures?" You know. Do I cringe at that heavy lip liner? No, it was, it was a journey.

'Do I cringe at those skinny eyebrows? No, it was a journey and way too much blush, you know, we were working so hard and we were so exhausted.

'There was a time where we were in a different country every few days. And the more and more tired that we got, the more and more blusher that we put on.'
Charlie Brooks has detailed how she became 'obsessed' with weight loss after shedding a whopping 2st in just two months.

The former EastEnders star, 40, filmed her fitness DVD, Charlie Brooks Before & After Workout, in 2005 and has now revealed how the process effected her confidence.

Speaking with The Sun's Fabulous Magazine, Charlie explained that she's always had a 'complicated relationship' with her body and the DVD made that 'extreme'.

'I went all in': Charlie Brooks has detailed how she became 'obsessed' with weight loss after shedding a whopping 2st in just two months (pictured in September 2020)

Charlie said: 'I don't regret it, because it gave me an awareness of my body, but on the other hand, I crossed over into that kind of slightly obsessive weight loss thing.

'You know, always wanting to get back to "that".

'I've definitely had quite a complicated relationship with my body, never feeling pretty enough or healthy enough, and with the DVD it was extreme. I went all in.'

Charlie added that she still struggles at times with accepting her figure and can feel 'disgusting', but is now about '70 per cent' of the way to body acceptance.

Transformation: The actress, 40, filmed her hit fitness DVD, Charlie Brooks Before & After Workout, in 2005 (pictured in 2002)

Villain: Charlie also teased that 'she's always thinking' about an EastEnders comeback after it was reported her character Janine would make an explosive return to Albert Square (pictured pushing Barry Evans, played by Shaun Williamson)

She revealed that going teetotal 12 months ago has also helped her find clarity and a new purpose in life.

Charlie said that alcohol simply wasn't 'serving' her anymore and giving it up was one of the best decisions she's ever made.

The actress admitted her journey to sobriety has been a 'wobbly' one as she loves to drink and be sociable, but confirmed ditching booze has boosted her confidence.

The mum-of-one also teased her EastEnders return saying she 'always thinks' about going back to the soap and to 'never say never'.

Candid: The star said she 'doesn't regret' doing her exercise DVD but 'crossed over into that kind of slightly obsessive weight loss thing' after filming the fitness video

Honest: 'I've definitely had quite a complicated relationship with my body, never feeling pretty enough or healthy enough, and with the DVD it was extreme. I went all in,' Charlie added

Charlie continued that because her character Janine is 'very layered', it means the storyline could go in any direction.

Last month, it was reported that Charlie would resurrect her role as the murderous Janine on EastEnders, seven years after she departed Albert Square.

It was claimed that Charlie would make an explosive return to Albert Square, leaving fans swarming social media to state she would 'save the soap'.

The murderous character is said to be part of a 'huge' storyline planned by BBC bosses, according to The Sun.

Charlie explained why she is excited to reclaim the role of Janine on the podcast.

She added: 'She's good fun, I love Janine. I always wonder what she's been up to. I think it's really important to sympathise with your characters and for me, she became so layered.

'I honestly believe she's completely misunderstood in so many ways, although she does get more and more difficult to defend. But that is where all the juicy stuff is.'

Charlie is reportedly set to reinstate her role as a full-cast member on the soap, with filming set to begin in the next few weeks.

Plot details are not yet known, but Janine has been involved in her fair share of drama during her time on the soap, which first began in 1999.

Most notably, Janine married Barry Evans  played by Shaun Williamson  for his money before pushing him off a cliff.

Making a comeback? Charlie's murderous character is said to be part of a 'huge' storyline planned by BBC bosses, according to The Sun

She went on to marry a rich elderly Jewish businessman called David, who died of a heart attack at the ceremony, before tying the knot with Ryan Malloy (Neil McDermott), whom she also tried to kill.

Although she was unsuccessful in her murder plot against Ryan, she framed arch-rival Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) for the attempted crime.

Janine married a fourth time to Michael Moon (Steve John Shepherd) and had her daughter Scarlett with him, before she eventually set out to kill him too.

The evil killer was successful in ending Michael's life, but was found not guilty in court - leading to her being shunned by locals which made her eventually leave Walford.

She was last seen at St Pancras as she boarded a train to go to Paris - where she joined daughter Scarlett and sister Diane.
Lottie Moss showed off her new candyfloss pink hair on Instagram on Friday as she shared two sizzling snaps of herself in a strapless white corset.

Posing up a storm in the photos, Lottie, 23, told fans: 'Pink to make the boys wink.'

The model teamed her tight cream-coloured top with a pair of light-wash denim jeans.

Wow: Lottie Moss, 23, showed off her new candyfloss pink hair on Friday, sharing two sizzling snaps of herself in a strapless white corset

Lottie made her plump pout pop with swipes of lip gloss and wore lashings of eyeliner for her sultry post.

She accessorised with a gorgeous pearl choker necklace.

In a snap shared on Instagram Stories, Lottie hilariously revealed she'd later slipped into a pink hoodie, shorts and a fluffy pink animal hat.

Lottie first debuted her new colourful locks in April.

Stunning: Lottie made her plump pout pop with swipes of lip gloss and wore lashing of eyeliner for her sultry post

Lottie - who is the younger sister of supermodel Kate Moss - recently returned to the UK following a fun-filled break in the United States.

Earlier this month, Lottie revealed that she decided to fly back home after a date with a man in New York turned sour.

She said online: 'Flew to New York [from Los Angeles] to see a guy and he ended up being just a bit of an a**ehole, to be honest.

'I have really bad taste in guys. I keep going for guys who couldn't care less. I've been single for five years now.'

Fun: In a snap shared on Instagram Stories, Lottie hilariously revealed she'd later slipped into a pink hoodie, shorts and a fluffy pink animal hat

The model was previously linked to Made In Chelsea's Alex Mytton and presenter Roman Kemp.

Lottie posted a series of sizzling lingerie and bikini snaps to her Instagram during her trip to the US.

The social media sensation raised eyebrows in March after joining Glow, an X-rated subscription website.

Members can boost their income by selling provocative images and videos of themselves to fans.
Sam Faiers' partner Paul Knightley launched his children's clothing range on Friday, but angered fans over the price of the items.

The dad-of-two, 32, took to Instagram to announce the launch of My Little Darlin by sharing a picture of son Paul, five, and daughter Rosie, three, modelling the attire.

Gushing about the venture, he wrote: 'We are live! @mylittledarlin after months of hard work and many obstacles along the way, we are finally here! I hope you guys love my designs.'

'I can't afford that!' Sam Faiers' partner Paul Knightley was slammed on Saturday for his 'overpriced' children's clothing line by fans (with one pair of pyjamas costing 30!)

Sam shared her support for her other half, as she gushed: 'So proud of you x x x'

However, many fans were left aghast by how expensive the items were, with one pair of pyjamas costing 30, while a singly babygro is going for 26.

Some fans shared their displeasure directly with Paul, writing in the comments section how the clothing was not affordable.

Outfits: The dad-of-two, 32, took to Instagram to announce the launch of My Little Darlin by sharing a picture of son Paul, five, and daughter Rosie, three, modelling the attire

Sweet: Gushing about the venture, he wrote: 'after months of hard work and many obstacles along the way, we are finally here!' and Sam said she was 'so proud' of him

One person admitted: 'Beautiful designs. Unfortunately I can't afford that for just one pair of PJ's.'

While another said: 'Gorgeous but the price is absolutely ridiculous! 30 for one set of pyjamas? What if you have 2-3 children thats 90 for pyjamas.'

Another person slammed Paul by writing: 'Stupid prices! 26 for a baby grow.... il be sticking with Billies range at asda thanks.'

Taking a more diplomatic approach one fan wrote they were 'gorgeous designs but wow, far to expensive', while another said: 'Was excited for this but overpriced for one pair 30 pounds out grow them in a few weeks and I like to spend but not worth it lovely designs though x'

Criticism: Some fans shared their displeasure directly with Paul, writing in the comments section how the clothing was not affordable

Other fans defended Sam and the price of his clothing, with one claiming the cost of production justifies the how expensive the items were.

In a lengthy comment, they wrote: 'I think people are forgetting that these are probably U.K. based designs and made. This makes it more expensive. A lot of products are from another country.

'When getting and buying from U.K. is actually more expensive. There is a baby grow from a lovely lady I follow and she makes everything with such soft material. Its around the same price.

'Sadly craft work isnt cheap. People moan about prices because its not what they pay, its what money it costs and the labour behind it unfortunately.

Support: Other fans defended Sam and the price of his clothing, with one claiming the cost of production justifies the how expensive the items were

'They are beautiful designs. I work in craft and people say my stuff is too expensive. But takes days of work.'

Another person gushed: 'These look great! Can't wait to see my little ones in them! Haters can shop at Primark.'

A few people also shared how much they enjoyed the designs, with one saying they 'Love the prints' and another claiming 'Love the new designs'.

MailOnline has contacted Sam and Paul's representative for further comment.

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.

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 Knightley's Adventures will launch with a range of 10 products.

Her children's range was released in every Tesco store in the UK earlier this month, and it is understood to be the largest deal the retailer has signed with a celebrity pre-launch.
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Lily James appeared a bit heated on the set of the new Hulu series Pam & Tommy  a raunchy show about the life of Pamela Anderson and Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee.

And over the last few days the British-born starlet, 32, has continued to look a dead ringer for the blonde bombshell as she slipped into the siren's famed red Baywatch swimsuit.

On Friday James was seen wearing hair curlers and a blue terry cloth robe as she looked to film a scene in which Pam exchanges words with the Baywatch director between takes.

Baywatch babe: Lily James, 32, continues to slip into Pamela Anderson's iconic red Baywatch swimsuit while having a heated conversation on the set of the raunchy Hulu series Pam & Tommy

Anderson notoriously played sexy lifeguard C.J. Parker on the hit series from 1992 to 1997.

In order to look as close to the 14-time Playboy covergirl as possible, the Rebecca actress has been spotted wearing a fake bust to achieve Pam's 34DD bust.

The eight episode Hulu series has been filming in Los Angeles for the last few weeks and Lily and the crew have been posting up at the beach in Malibu while documenting this chapter of Pam's life.

Lily's platinum locks were styled with hot pink rollers to achieve the sexy siren's signature hair and wore the famed high cut red swimsuit which showed off her incredible figure.

Voicing opinions: James was seen wearing hair curlers and a blue terry cloth robe as she looked to film a scene in which Pam exchanges words with the Baywatch director between takes

Ample assets: In order to look as close to the 14-time Playboy covergirl as possible, the Rebecca actress has been spotted wearing a fake bust to achieve Pam's 34DD bust

Iconic swimsuit: Pam had shared on The View that she thinks the world's enduring love affair with the red one piece has to do with the way that its cut. 'It's 'cut properly to show long legs,' she said

Pam had shared on The View that she thinks the world's enduring love affair with the red one piece has to do with the way that its cut. 'It's 'cut properly to show long legs,' she said, adding that she still has it to this day.

And in the scene she strolled on the beach in a pair of chestnut Ugg boots while holding a fake Baywatch script before appearing to lash out at the show's director.

The upcoming series  which is said to be very raunchy  also stars Sebastian Stan, 38, as Tommy and others including Seth Rogen, Nick Offerman, Taylor Schilling and Andrew Dice Clay.

Pam and the Motley Crue drummer enjoyed a whirlwind romance filled with PDA and a sex tape scandal, getting married in Mexico just 96 hours after knowing each other in 1995.

Speaking out: And in the scene she strolled on the beach in a pair of chestnut Ugg boots while holding a fake Baywatch script before appearing to lash out at the show's director

Full production: Over the last few days the cast and crew has been posted up on the beach in Malibu to document the Baywatch chapter of Pam's life

CJ: Pam notoriously played C.J. the sexy lifeguard on TV from 1992 to 1997; pictured 1996 on set

The pair divorced three years later at which point he was sentenced to six months in jail for spousal battery against Anderson (to which he pled 'no contest') but the tumultuous pair rekindled following his exit from jail.

And though the show aims to breathe new life into the iconic nineties couple, an insider told The Sun that Pamela has 'no intention' of watching the 'cheap knockoff,' show.

'Pamela has no intention of watching this God awful show, absolutely not. Never. She's never heard of the actors playing her or Tommy, and doesn't care to know them. She and her family think the show is a cheap knockoff. The whole thing is a joke to them,' it was said.

The insider also continued to allege that Pam isn't impressed with Lily being tapped to play her. 'Pamela finds it amusing that this girl is getting so much attention for playing her. Lily isn't a match for Pamela, doesn't even come close, nor does Sebastian Stan do justice to Tommy.'
Roxy Horner has candidly revealed that she's feeling 'angry, frightened and sad' as she adjusts to her 'new way of life'.

The girlfriend of Jack Whitehall, 32, revealed she had been rushed to hospital on Sunday where she battled an autoimmune disease.

And taking to Instagram on Friday, the model, 29, gave her fans further insight into how she's holding up, adding that she's 'so proud of herself for trying so hard'.

Candid: Roxy Horner has revealed that she's feeling 'angry, frightened and sad' as she adjusts to her 'new way of life'

Sharing a glam snap of herself rocking fold eyeshadow and dewy makeup, Roxy penned: 'Tonight is my first night alone living with my new way of life.

'I can't stop researching my auto immune disease, every bit of pain or sickness I feel, I worry.

'I feel like I can't quite get the hang go it, I'm angry, I'm frightened and I'm sad but I'm also so proud of myself for trying so hard.

'Covid please go away so I can be with my family.'

Health scare: The model girlfriend of Jack Whitehall, 32, revealed she had been rushed to hospital on Sunday where she battled an autoimmune disease

Roxy was rushed to hospital on Sunday, admitting at the time that she didn't know whether to 'laugh or cry every five minutes'.

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 I'm going to choose to try and laugh because life is too damn short.'

Roxy has not disclosed what type of autoimmune disease she was battling, and MailOnline have contacted her representatives for further comment.

Update: Roxy, 29, detailed her feelings as she took to Instagram late on Friday night and added that she's 'so proud of herself for trying so hard'

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

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.

Roxy was then discharged from hospital on Monday and gave 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.'

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.'

Grateful: During her hospital stay, the blonde beauty thanked her beau for all his support

The beauty also put on a brave face on Tuesday night to support her beau at the BRIT Awards, where he was presenting.

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.'

Worrying: Roxy was rushed to hospital on Sunday and shared several updates on social media

Candid: The model admitted she didn't know whether to 'laugh or cry every five minutes'

Quirky fashion: Roxy managed to put on a brave face at The Brit Awards 2021 on Tuesday to support her boyfriend Jack Whitehall, who was hosting, following her hospital stay

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.'
She's known for playing Katy Armstrong in Coronation Street.

And Georgia May Foote revealed on Saturday that she is fully qualified to work as a nail technician after completing her training during lockdown.

The star, 30, who left the soap in 2015, penned a lengthy Instagram explaining the new job to her followers, insisting she hasn't quit acting but just decided to learn something new to help with her anxiety during the Covid pandemic.

New skill: Georgia May Foote has revealed that she is now qualified as a nail technician after training for her qualification during lockdown

She wrote: 'Ok so this is a very different post for me but please.... hear me out. I have been an actress for 22 years of my 30 year life and i wouldn't change it for the world. And I never will.

'I recently qualified as a nail technician and I am super proud of myself for the reason i am about to explain,

'I have had people asking if i am quitting acting, if my work has dried up, if i am skint. The answer to all of the above is HELL NO.'

Best of both worlds: The star, who left the soap in 2015, penned a lengthy Instagram explaining the new job to her followers

She continued: 'I have just filmed the job of my dreams as Falista on The Outpost, how could i ever ever turn my back on the thing i love more than life?

'I will NEVER give up acting but let me tell you why i am now doing nails in my downtime from acting....

'I have struggled with anxiety for many years. As an actress we receive a lot of rejection, followed by massive celebrations. Then ran off our feet, to long periods of nothing.

'I have learnt this 'nothing' is when my self esteem drops the most. I lose confidence and i get bloody sad.

'My self esteem drops': Georgia revealed in the lengthy post that she's acquired the new skill so she can stave off her anxiety while waiting for more acting work to come through

Explanation: Georiga insisted she hasn't quit acting but just decided to learn something new to help with her anxiety during the Covid pandemic

'As a creative person who loves having her nails done, i thought 'why not fill my days making other people feel good, pushing my artistic side and feeling productive?'

'I have no shame to put pride aside to put my mental health first. And neither should anyone else or even feel judged for doing so.

'So yes. I am Georgia May Foote the actress still chasing her dreams. But I am also Georgia May Foote who does bloody amazing nails and has big plans on the side.

'And most importantly i am Georgia May Foote who is proud of her achievements and proud of helping herself when she needs it the most.

'Ps. On the funny side, that is not a massive camel toe on this pic, i crossed my legs and the baggy pants have folded in a very unfortunate way,' she signed off humorously.

'Why not fill my days making other people feel good?': The former soap star said she will continue to act alongside her new skill

It comes after the Bury native slammed the TV industry last year for not using Northern actors in the relevant roles roles.

She said: 'Why are northern actors not asked to play northern parts? The accent is really difficult if youre not from here.

'A neutral accent is something northerners have always had to do to get work. Now our accent is more popular, why are we not getting the jobs when it is required?'

North of the border: It comes after the Bury native slammed the TV industry last year for not using Northern actors in the relevant roles roles

She was agonising over choosing something to watch on TV when she made the remarks on social media - with some believing she was specifically criticising new Netflix series White Lines, starring non-northern actors Laura Haddock and Laurence Fox, who both perform on the series with accents.

'Trying to watch what should be a good series, but completely put off with an accent. I see and hear this so much!' she added.

Georgia has also opened up about her mental health struggles in the past and said how anxiety medication 'saved her life'.

The soap star has been taking Citalopram - an antidepressant which is used to treat depression and panic attacks.

The 29-year-old Bury native said: 'Why are northern actors not asked to play northern parts? The accent is really difficult if youre not from here!' [pictured filming The Outpost]

She said: 'I have been on it for over two years now and it probably saved my life.

'I am grateful there is medication that can help when you struggle so much to motivate yourself to help yourself. Now I understand what helps I am slowly coming off it.'

While the former soap star admitted that she found the side effects 'awful at first' she thinks it was worth it because of how much it changed her life.

Candid: Georgia has also spoke about her mental health struggles in the past and said how anxiety medication 'saved her life'

The common side effects of Citalopram during the beginning stages of taking it are: dry mouth, sweating, being unable to sleep, feeling sleepy and feeling tired or weak.

Georgia explained that while Citalopram cures the symptoms of some mental health problems it doesn't cure the root causes.

She said: 'It doesn't cure anxiety, it doesn't cure depression. It's something that helps you think a little bit clearer so I found it was really useful alongside therapy because I could think a little bit clearer.

'I could sleep at night. It gets rid of that fuzzy feeling.

'But I do still have them days, very badly at times like I don't get how Chris puts up with me to be honest because I can't put up with myself half the time.

'It's really difficult and I'm coming off them so I do feel like sometimes I'm having more of those days more often but yeah it definitely helped me, it helped me alongside therapy so I would advice it if you can.'

For information or support with mental health issues visit mind.org.uk or call 0300 123 3393
Elizabeth Banks, Kate Mara, and Sigourney Weaver were glimpsed for the first time together on the set of Call Jane  a film about a 1960s housewife who who finds herself pregnant unexpectedly, before discovering an underground abortion movement.

The trio of actresses were seen walking in full sixties clothing in Hartford, Connecticut as production ramped up on the indie drama this week.

All three ladies looked eye-catching in their vintage duds, as they prepared to shoot scenes at a few locations in the quiet suburb which was lined with vintage cars.

Power duo: Elizabeth Banks, 47, and Sigourney Weaver, 71, are seen in sixties garb as they are glimpsed on the set of Call Jane together

Groovy: Kate Mara, 38, modeled a very psychedelic jumpsuit that hugged her petite frame as she geared up to shoot scenes

Banks, 47, was tapped to play pregnant housewife Joy and Weaver stars as Virginia, the leader of the underground abortion movement.

Prior to the Roe V. Wade decision in 1973, the legality of abortion was determined by the state, and in the mid-sixties (the period in which Call Jane is set) 44 states had outlawed abortion unless the situation threatened the life or health of the mother which prompted millions of illegal abortions.

The blonde Zack and Miri Make A Porno star was seen sans-baby bump as she strolled to set in a retro patterned jumpsuit with pink sneakers and a fleece for warmth.

She and Sigourney were seen masked up in the suburb  which was transformed by way of vintage cars and other details of the time.

Weaver, 71, debuted a blowout with soft curls as she slipped into a pair of khaki pants with an embroidered periwinkle sweater and browned heeled boots.

Action! She and Sigourney were seen following production personnel in the suburb  which was transformed by way of a series of vintage cars lining the streets

With the times: The House of Cards star's red hair was styled in an up-do with a black head scarf for a very classic sixties look

Mara, 38, was seen rocking a very psychedelic jumpsuit that featured black and white horizontal stripes with retro yellow flowers lining the silhouette.

She draped a jean jacket over the plunging number and opted for comfort in white converse before slipping into black wooden platforms.

And unlike her other co-stars her red hair was styled in an up-do with a black head scarf for a very classic sixties look.

Later, Elizabeth was seen making a quick outfit change as she modeled a beige pencil skirt with a matching high neck shirt tucked into it.

And the veteran Alien actress was not far behind, as Weaver strolled beside a very helpful production assistant who held an umbrella to shield her from any unexpected rain.

Ramping it up: Production recently began on the film which is using Connecticut as its backdrop

Wardrobe change: Later Elizabeth was seen making a quick outfit change as she modeled a beige pencil skirt with a matching high neck shirt tucked into it

At your service: The Alien actress made her way with a very helpful production assistant who held an umbrella to shield her from any unexpected rain

Other actors in the film who have yet to be glimpsed are Homeland's Rupert Friend and Loki star Wunmi Mosaku.

The indie drama is being directed by Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who said in a statement that she felt the film had a 'timely' narrative, given the climate surrounding women's rights.

'Call Jane was made for these times  and I have never felt more passionately that our culture is ready to embrace its call for decency, for community, for good will and humor in all things  and above all, its call for necessary change,' she said.

'I feel like the time is now and the moment essential to bring a film like Call Jane into the world. With such cultural uncertainty and when so many of our rights as women are under siege, I know that telling this important story couldn't be more timely or necessary.'
Lady Leshurr cut a casual figure as she arrived for work at her BBC Radio1Xtra show on Saturday afternoon.

The rapper and presenter, 32, donned a comfy wine-coloured tracksuit as she beamed at onlookers before heading into the studio.

Dressed head to toe in burgundy, Leshurr accessorised with a pair of suede hightop trainers and an effortlessly cool cap.

Laidback look: Lady Leshurr, 32, cut a casual figure as she arrived for work at her BBC Radio1Xtra show on Saturday afternoon

Seemingly in high spirits before starting work, she threw out peace signs and pouted in front of the BBC building.

The outing comes after it was announced by BBC Radio 1Xtra and Asian Network on Friday that Leshurr would act as an ambassador for their Words First 2021 competition.

The spoken word contest will work alongside poetry organisations to mentor shortlisted candidates through workshops and one-on-one training sessions.

Keeping it casual: The rapper and presenter donned a comfy wine-coloured tracksuit as she beamed at onlookers before heading into the studio

Happy: Seemingly in high spirits before starting work, Lady threw out peace signs and pouted in front of the BBC building.

Lady said of the initiative: 'I cant wait to hear and see the talent we find through this years Words First project.

'Whether its spoken word, rap or poetry - it will be amazing and I am honoured to be this years ambassador.'

Lady has previously opened up about the discrimination she has faced based on the colour of her skin.

The former Dancing On Ice contestant said that she 'didn't even know she was black,' until she grew up and noticed that people were treating her differently.

She also said she has to 'work ten-times harder' as a black woman but declared: 'Whenever I have a no, I turn that into a yes.'

Relaxed: She kept her make-up minimal and had styled her raven tresses into a sleek poker-straight style under her hat

Back in February, she spoke of how she was allegedly manhandled and called a derogatory slur by an airport security guard.

Speaking of her shocking airport incident, which took place in Spain in 2016, she said to The Mirror: 'I was going back home from a show, I went into the Duty Free shops and I asked where the perfumes were.

'I heard the security guard say, ''perra negra''  black b****. I asked, ''Did you just call me...?''

'He got defensive. Then he reached for his handcuffs, and that's when I was resisting because I was like, ''What are you doing?'' There were people all around, filming, a lot were English, it was very embarrassing and aggressive.'

According to the rapper, the airport security attempted to remove her handcuffs but when they didn't open, the guard proceeded to hit her arms, leaving cuts on her skin.

She was then taken to a separate room where she was interrogated by other staff members and treated like 'a criminal.'

Amid accusations from security about her behaviour, she insisted that they watch CCTV footage to prove her innocence.

However, when they witnessed the video, they failed to apologise or even look at her, instead pointing to the door.
Although she stands at a towering 6ft 3in  a good 3in taller than her Crown co-star  she went unrecognised by most passers-by during her 90-minute stroll

She is the latest beauty to be linked to Dominic West in a relationship doomed by extramarital liaisons.

But thankfully Elizabeth Debickis interactions with the infamously wayward actor are entirely professional, as she has been cast as Princess Diana in The Crown, opposite Wests Prince Charles.

The 30-year-old was pictured on a walk in London last week wearing a T-shirt bearing the slogan: The future is female.

And although she stands at a towering 6ft 3in  a good 3in taller than her Crown co-star  she went unrecognised by most passers-by during her 90-minute stroll.

She is really tall and amazing-looking but she has the ability to pass under the radar, said one onlooker.

No one bothered her and she seemed totally engrossed in the phone conversation she was having during her walk. She looked like she just wanted to stretch her legs.

Ms Debicki, who is best-known for her steamy scenes with Tom Hiddleston in the 2016 BBC thriller The Night Manager, will play Diana in the next two series of the Netflix drama, covering the bitter collapse of the Royal marriage. It will include a re-creation of Dianas infamous 1995 Panorama interview in which the Princess said: There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.

When she joined the cast of The Crown, Ms Debicki, said: Princess Dianas spirit, her words and her actions live in the hearts of so many. It is my true privilege and honour to be joining this masterful series.

Mr West, 51, is currently on screen in the BBC drama The Pursuit Of Love alongside Lily James, 32, whom he was photographed kissing during a trip to Rome around the time of filming.

Afterwards, the actor and his 49-year-old wife Catherine FitzGerald made an awkward appearance outside their Wiltshire home to insist that all was well with their marriage.

Stroll: The 30-year-old was pictured on a walk in London last week wearing a T-shirt bearing the slogan: The future is female'

There she is: The star was seen chatting to a friend on her phone in the park

Checking up: Elizabeth bundled up in a padded coat as she checked her phone
It is one of the BBC's biggest shows, attracting more than eight million viewers each week.

Now the success of Call The Midwife has attracted the attention of Netflix executives who want to poach the period drama for their subscribers, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Bosses at the streaming service hope that their big budgets, and willingness to commission more than the eight episodes per series that the BBC offers, will tempt creator Heidi Thomas to switch allegiances.

The success of Call The Midwife has attracted the attention of Netflix executives who want to poach the period drama for their subscribers, The Mail on Sunday can reveal

Losing the show, which follows a team of nurses working in the East End of London in the 1950s and 1960s, would be a blow for the Corporation, where it has been a ratings hit since it launched in 2012.

Ms Thomas last week confirmed that numerous bids had been made to snatch her away from the BBC, but she had so far resisted.

A TV insider said: 'The hour-long format of the programme and its huge viewing figures make it an irresistible prospect for Netflix. They would also be able to make more than the current eight episodes per series  and it would be watched globally.'

The show, made by Neal Street Productions, has already been sold around the world and airs on PBS in America. But a major streaming giant could secure an even bigger audience.

Heidi Thomas last week confirmed that numerous bids had been made to snatch her away from the BBC, but she had so far resisted

However, Ms Thomas, who is married to Call The Midwife star Stephen McGann, has so far remained loyal to the BBC, which has just commissioned two more series that will keep the show on terrestrial television until 2024.

Nor does the prospect of writing more episodes necessarily appeal to her. Speaking of how she has been approached by many ambitious producers, she said: 'I do get offered a lot of stuff.

'A lot of film producers were setting up to produce television and they would approach me with an idea and say, 'I think we can do 30 episodes.' But I thought, 'In your wildest dreams! You don't know anything about television.' They just wanted to sell more of it. I found that quite dispiriting.'

Ms Thomas has, however, also expressed envy at the budgets lavished on Netflix shows.

'I do remember watching a very early episode of The Crown where an aeroplane takes off on a runway in Africa and emus run underneath it,' she said.

'I was like, 'Urgh. They have got emus.' On Call The Midwife, if we need a dog show, people bring their own pets. I felt like a poor relation at that moment.'

Despite its success in the ratings, Call The Midwife, whose stars include Helen George and Jenny Agutter, has attracted comparatively few accolades from award judges.

McGann, who plays Dr Patrick Turner in the series, recently shared his disappointment on behalf of his wife, saying: 'Since it started, she's never been shortlisted for a major television screenwriting prize  but Call The Midwife is one of the cleverest things a TV writer has done in the past 20 years.'

A Netflix source said: 'We are committed to working with public service broadcasters and the very best writers but not at the expense of exclusivity.'
Molly-Mae Hague has taken to Instagram to plead for help from her fans after spotting a large lump on her finger.

The former Love Island star asked her 5.4 million followers for help to diagnose the 'rock hard' lump on Friday evening, months after having a cancerous mole removed from her leg.

Molly posted a picture of the lump on her finger saying she has 'no idea what it is' and despite insisting it doesn't hurt, admitted she was baffled by what it could be.

Lump: Molly-Mae Hague has taken to Instagram to plead for help from her fans after spotting a large lump on her finger

The influencer captioned the image: ' Also I have a very weird/ big lump on my finger and I have for ages now.'

'No idea what it is! Bone? Nodule? It doesn't hurt it is just rock hard! Doesn't even look big here but it really sticks out!'

In November last year, Molly-Mae was given the devastating diagnosis that a mole of her leg was a malignant melanoma - a type of skin cancer.

Scary: The former Love Island star asked her 5.4 million followers for help to diagnose the 'rock hard' lump on Friday evening, months after having a cancerous mole removed from her leg

Worrying: In November last year, Molly-Mae was given the devastating diagnosis that a mole of her leg was a malignant melanoma - a type of skin cancer

The influencer filmed herself being given the diagnosis for her YouTube channel.

In the video, she opened up about what she's been going through following her 'shock' diagnosis, telling her fans: 'I was walking around with skin cancer on my leg.'

Molly-Mae revealed that she learned her mole was a malignant melanoma during a work trip to Italy, when a doctor phoned her to deliver the diagnosis following a recent biopsy.

The social media star initially got the mole on her leg checked out by two dermatologists but was told it was nothing to worry about.

Horrible news: Molly-Mae revealed that she learned her mole was a malignant melanoma during a work trip to Italy, when a doctor phoned her to deliver the diagnosis following a recent biopsy

Shock: The social media star initially got the mole on her leg checked out by two dermatologists but was told it was nothing to worry about

Molly-Mae eventually sought third professional opinion during a routine check-up because she 'felt something wasn't quite right'.

Speaking on her YouTube video, after the phone call from her doctor played out, she told fans: 'I got the call today and he's told me it is malignant melanoma - which is skin cancer basically.

'It's obviously petrifying, shocking and scary. I don't even know what to think or say. I cannot believe I was told by others doctors it was OK. I am so upset and angry.

'I just briefly asked this doctor when I was walking out. I was walking around with skin cancer on my leg!

MELANOMA IS THE MOST DANGEROUS FORM OF SKIN CANCER Melanoma is the most dangerous form of skin cancer. It happens after the DNA in skin cells is damaged (typically due to harmful UV rays) and then not repaired so it triggers mutations that can form malignant tumors. Around 15,900 new cases occur every year in the UK, with 2,285 Britons dying from the disease in 2016, according to Cancer Research UK statistics. Causes Sun exposure: UV and UVB rays from the sun and tanning beds are harmful to the skin

Moles: The more moles you have, the greater the risk for getting melanoma

Skin type: Fairer skin has a higher risk for getting melanoma

Hair color: Red heads are more at risk than others

Personal history: If you've had melanoma once, then you are more likely to get it again

Family history: If previous relatives have been diagnosed, then that increases your risk Treatment Removal of the melanoma: This can be done by removing the entire section of the tumor or by the surgeon removing the skin layer by layer. When a surgeon removes it layer by layer, this helps them figure out exactly where the cancer stops so they don't have to remove more skin than is necessary. Skin grafting: The patient can decide to use a skin graft if the surgery has left behind discoloration or an indent. Immunotherapy, radiation treatment or chemotherapy: This is needed if the cancer reaches stage III or IV. That means that the cancerous cells have spread to the lymph nodes or other organs in the body. Prevention Use sunscreen and do not burn

Avoid tanning outside and in beds

Apply sunscreen 30 minutes before going outside

Keep newborns out of the sun

Examine your skin every month

See your physician every year for a skin exam Source: Skin Cancer Foundation and American Cancer Society Advertisement

'If I hadn't have asked, I'd still have that mole on my leg now and I'd be none the wiser. It could be spreading through my body, you just never know.'

Molly-Mae continued, explaining how she was trying to be strong, despite breaking down, so that her loved ones didn't freak out.

She said: 'I've already shed tears about it. I've already cried down the phone to every family member.'

Molly-Mae concluded the video by urging her fans to have their moles checked out.
Tamil Nadu government has informed AP that it will be unable to supply it medical oxygen for the next 56 days because of trouble at its Chennai oxygen plant.  PTI

VIJAYAWADA: Andhra Pradesh government will take up a door-to-door survey for fever from Saturday as part of its efforts to check spread of Coronavirus in the state.

Principal secretary (Health) told media persons on Friday that medical officials, ANMs and Asha workers of all districts will take up door-to-door surveys for identifying people suffering with fever. Those found feverish will be given Corona medicine kits and informed how they can treat themselves at home. The health official said the move is aimed at controlling the spread of virus in addition to bringing down pressure on hospitals from patients who would otherwise throng hospitals though they are not in a serious condition.

He underlined that health personnel are administering the second dose of vaccination all over the state. There is no rush of people at Covid vaccination centres. He pointed out that the state government has by itself purchased Covaxin doses for administering the second dose to people without waiting for supply of vaccine from the centre.

The principal secretary asserted that the number of patients discharged from hospitals after treatment of Coronavirus is going up. This has brought down the pressure on hospitals. In the last 24 hours, 4,306 patients have been discharged from the state, while 5,523 patients are currently undergoing treatment in various hospitals. He disclosed that gap between admissions and discharges at hospitals is coming down. He hoped more number of patients are going to be discharged from hospitals in the state during the next two to three days.

The official said that Andhra Pradesh has received 590 metric tonnes of medical oxygen in the last 24 hours. Tamil Nadu government has informed AP that it will be unable to supply it medical oxygen for the next 56 days because of trouble at its Chennai oxygen plant. Following this, state officials have spoken to the centre, Kerala and Karnataka and made alternative arrangements, he added.
Hyderabad: A troop of mounted police patrolled the lanes and bylanes of the Old City of Hyderabad on Saturday, to make sure that the lockdown norms are followed strictly, apparently causing curiosity among children who watched the rare sight through half-opened windows of their houses.

The purpose of the mounted patrol is to evoke a sense of confidence among people and let them know we are with them, come what may. And it was good to see smiles on the faces of children, Anjani Kumar, Hyderabad police commissioner, who led the mounted patrol, said.

It is hard in certain pockets of the city to send our patrols in cars and vans. This is where our mounted police units come in handy and we can go around even narrow by-lanes. Every major city in the world, be it New York, London, Paris, or New Delhi, has mounted police units, Anjani Kumar told this newspaper.

The city police have around 40 horses, of which about 10 to 15 are used for patrolling in a particular shift. Anjani Kumar said mounted patrols were typically carried out in Central, East, and West zones of the city, and in parts of the Rachakonda and Cyberabad police commissionerate areas. We do these three times a day. The mounted patrols work late nights too but these do not get noticed as much as the ones during the day, he said.

On how the city police have been working since the announcement of night curfew, followed by the 20-hour-a-day lockdown, Anjani Kumar said they had been toiling from day one to curb the spread of Coronavirus.

Citys top cop is as busy as anyone in the constabulary. I reach home at around midnight. Every day, I visit one zone in the city and meet about 50-100 officers. Then there are video conferences with the staff, organisation of movement of essential services in the city, meeting with our staff on the field and keeping up their morale, helping doctors and other frontline workers and coordinating with other departments. I also keep a tab on good practices from other cities to follow and implement them in Hyderabad.

Overall, the lockdown this year is being followed much better than last year, he said.

On lockdown violations, Anjani Kumar said there were bound to be some violations in a 650 sq km city with a population of about one crore, and 12,000 policemen to keep an eye on this vast area and people. On an average, the police, every day, are booking about 4,000 to 4,500 cases of lockdown and curfew violations. The public need to know that it is a fight against Covid and they have to cooperate to curb its spread, he added.
Tributes have been paid to a former teacher at a Derry school.

John Flood, a former teacher and vice-principal at Rosemount Primary School, passed away on Wednesday.

Mr Flood worked at the local school from 1963 to 2002.

Current principal of Rosemount Primary School, Paul Bradley, said it was with 'great sadness' that everyone associated with the school had learned of Mr Flood's death.

"John was a very popular member of the Rosemount teaching staff (1963 - 2002) and indeed his association with the school has continued long after his retirement with grandchildren now attending.

"As principal, I had the great pleasure of meeting John during his many visits to the school, as he arrived early to pick up the grandchildren and visit the office for a bit of banter with staff.

"His wit, good humour and good nature shone out during those years and it was easy to see how pupils would have enjoyed his relaxed manner while always being aware of the high standards he expected and worked hard to achieve, from all those who were privileged enough to be in his class.

"John was very proud of his association with our school.

"As a school community, we express our heartfelt sadness to his wife Anne, his sons Mark and John, his daughters Shona and Ciara, his grandchildren, great grandchild and extended family circle."

Mr Flood will be buried today following a service at 11.30am at St Eugene's Cathedral.
Merry Christmas: Katrina Kaif- Vijay Sethupathi Starrer To Go On Floors In June If Everything Goes Well, Says Producer Ramesh Taurani

It has been a while since we have seen Katrina Kaif on the screens. She has some big projects lined up, but the shoot is stalled due to the pandemic. Amongst her upcoming projects is Merry Christmas, that will co-star Vijay Sethupathi. The film was to go on floors this month, but was delayed due to the pandemic. Now, producer Ramesh Taurani has shared an update about it.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Katrina Kaif (@katrinakaif)

Talking to Pinkvilla, Ramesh Taurani said, We are looking at June. Now the planning will happen, only after the lockdown is over. We dont have a date as yet because everything right now is shut. We cant even shoot anywhere else as 90 percent of India is in a state of lockdown. But in the near future, maybe in a week or two we will decide on the future plan of action.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Vijay Sethupathi (@actorvijaysethupathi)

The film is expected to kickstart in Mumbai and will also be shot in Pune and Goa. It will be directed by none other than Sriram Raghavan, who previously helmed films like Badlapur and Andhadhun. Vijay Sethupathi had been shooting for Raj and DK's web series alongside Shahid Kapoor and Raashi Khanna whereas Katrina was filming Tiger 3 alongside Salman Khan before she was forced to take a break after contracting Covid.
Money Heist's Season 5 Comes To A Wrap, Netflix Shares Update

The insanely popular Netflix series 'Money Heist' (La Casa de Papel) has completed shooting its fifth season. The upcoming season of the Spanish crime drama, which had been under production for several months, officially wrapped up the shoot on Friday. Netflix shared a heartwarming click on its social media handles, which features the entire cast, in their iconic red jumpsuits, sharing a candid moment.

The caption alongside the picture read, "What started as a heist, ended as a family. It's a wrap on Part 5 of La Casa de Papel/Money Heist. Thank you to all the fans for being part of La Resistencia (the resistance)! We can't wait to show you how this story ends."

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Netflix India (@netflix_in)

While there is a lot of speculation about who will survive and who will be taken down by the cops in the fifth season, the photo is only making the viewers more curious. One can see nearly all the actors, including Alvaro Morte, Ursula Corbero, Itziar Ituno, Pedro Alonso, Miguel Herran, Jaime Lorente, Esther Acebo, Rodrigo de la Serna, Darko Peric Hovik Keuchkerian, among others. The series' actors have been posting about their final days on set on social media in recent weeks. These actors include Alvaro Morte (The Professor), Itziar Ituno (Lisbon) and Pedro Alonso (Berlin).

'Money Heist' is Netflix's most successful Spanish series to date, and was its top non-English-language foray until the French series 'Lupin' debuted in December, reported Variety. The series focuses on a group of misfit con artists and robbers who convene under the guidance of "the Professor" to rob major banks in Spain. The series originated on Spanish network Antena 3 to lukewarm ratings before Netflix breathed new life into the program, transforming it into the biggest show to ever emerge from the Spanish market. The streamer had in July last year given the go-ahead to the upcoming season of 'Money Heist'. The fifth season will mark the end of the gang's ongoing robbery at the Bank of Spain.

"We've spent almost a year thinking about how to break up the band," said creator and showrunner Alex Pina at the time. Pina added, "How to put the Professor on the ropes. How to get into situations that are irreversible for many characters. The result is the fifth part of 'La Casa de Papel.' The war reaches its most extreme and savage levels, but it is also the most epic and exciting season."

Created by Alex Pina and produced by Vancouver Media, the Spanish series became an instant hit on Netflix when it released. Pina is the executive producer and showrunner with Jesus Colmenar and Cristina Lopez Ferraz also set as executive producers. Javier Gomez Santander (head writer), Migue Amodeo (Director of Photography) and Esther Martinez-Lobato are also co-producing with Colmenar, Koldo Serra, and Alex Rodrigo directing. Netflix had recently revealed that 'Money Heist' season five will likely premiere in the last quarter of 2021.
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The new Vivaro-e, Opels first fully electric light commercial vehicle, has arrived in Ireland.

Crowned International Van of the Year 2021, the award-winning van from the German carmaker will play a key role in Opels rapidly growing electric range, arriving on the market in time to meet the growing need for emission-free delivery of goods and services.

Available in two trims, two lengths and with two battery sizes to choose from, boasting a WLTP range of up to 330km on a single charge, the Vivaro-e retails in Ireland from 36,895 (29,834 ex-VAT) plus delivery related charges, exclusive of applicable business grants of up to 3,800.

Fergal Marron, Head of Fleet at Leeson Motors, Opel Importer in Ireland, said:

The new Opel Vivaro-e sets the standard for ease of use, dependability and professionalism. In electric guise, it is as versatile and flexible as its diesel counterparts and simply offers no compromise; customers can still expect outstanding practicality and durability, synonymous with diesel variants.

With a payload of up to 1,226kg and maximum gross vehicle weight of 3,100kg, the Vivaro-e furthermore has a towing capacity of up to 1 tonne.

With a choice of both a 50kWh and 75kWh battery to ensure customers have a choice based on their business needs, the 75kWh battery boasts a range of up to 330 kilometres, or for less intense usage needs, the 50kWh battery has a range of up to 230km (WLTP).

A sophisticated regenerative braking system, which recovers the energy produced under braking or deceleration, further increases efficiency. The lithium ion battery is cleverly positioned under the load cabin, so as not to compromise essential load-space. The batterys positioning furthermore lowers the vehicles centre of gravity, delivering enhanced cornering and wind stability, even when fully loaded with cargo.

The Vivaro-es powerful motor generates 136hp and 260Nm of torque. Whilst an electronically controlled maximum speed of 130km/h preserves the electric range, the Vivaro-e is perfectly suited for inner-city driving, unleashing ample performance for motorway driving.

Using a 100 kW DC public charging station, the 50kWh battery charges to 80% in only 30 minutes, whilst the 75kW battery takes 45 minutes. The battery is covered by an eight year / 160,000km guarantee for up to 70% retention, certifiable by the Opel Dealer Network.

The Vivaro-e is available in two lengths, L1 and L2. At 1.9m tall, the Vivaro-e easily accesses shopping centre or basement parking lots.

Two trims are on offer. The Edition trim offers a comprehensive list of standard comfort and safety equipment to include 6-way adjustable driver seat with armrest, passenger bench seat with storage, laminated windscreen, bulkhead, 2 side sliding doors, ESP, hill assist, Bluetooth, USB connectivity, 180 opening solid rear doors, cruise control and speed limiter, a spare wheel, daytime running lamps and DAB radio.

The Sportive trim, retailing from 38,895 plus delivery, exclusive of applicable grants, adds an Appearance Pack (body coloured front bumper / mirrors / door handles / side protection moulding, front fog lamps, LED daytime running lights, chrome grille and electric folding mirrors), air conditioning, automatic windscreen wipers, automatic lights, 7 touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and rear parking sensors.

The Vivaro-e continues Opels electrification offensive, taking its place beside the new electric Corsa-e, the Grandland X PHEV range and the all-new Opel Mokka-e. The next electric Opel LCV, the compact Combo Cargo-e will arrive in late 2021, followed by the large Opel Movano-e. Opel will offer an electrified version of every passenger car and LCV model by 2024.
ENMU DPS: No Portales campus students hurt in incident

PORTALES  The Eastern New Mexico Universitys Department of Public Safety investigated a report of shots fired near the San Juan Village Apartments Wednesday evening, and confirmed a juvenile was injured in the incident.

A release from the ENMU DPS said no students of the Portales campus were injured as a result of the incident, and the juvenile who left the scene before DPS arrived was treated for injuries that were not life threatening.

The department is investigating the incident and had on Friday night identified a person or persons of interest, but did not release any information on potential motives.
SANTA FE  The New Mexico Department of Health announced on Friday, in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Preventions updated guidance, that vaccinated individuals will no longer be required to wear masks in indoor or outdoor settings.

Individuals who are not yet fully vaccinated are still required under public health orders to wear masks in public settings. Individuals are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after either their second dose of either Pfizer or Moderna or their lone dose of Johnson & Johnson.

It wasn't immediately clear how, or if, state officials might try to confirm who's been vaccinated.

Getting vaccinated is the ticket to a safe and healthy COVID-free future, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said in a release. We are close and getting closer. But that all depends on New Mexicans continuing to protect themselves and their community by getting vaccinated  please find vaccines near you at vaccineNM.org and get your shot.

New Mexicans are encouraged to continue adhering to COVID-safe practices, the release stated. All individuals, including those who are fully vaccinated, should continue to wear well-fitted masks where required by localities, tribal entities, and individual businesses. The state fully supports businesses and workplaces that may continue to require masks for employees and/or customers on the premises, regardless of vaccination status.

CDC guidance still requires masks for all individuals at healthcare settings, correctional facilities, homeless shelters and public transportation.

As the majority of students remain unvaccinated, the CDCs guidance for school settings remains unchanged. Pending additional guidance from the CDC, masks continue to be required in schools for all students and school staff regardless of vaccination status.

Mass gathering limits and the statewide framework remain in place. As previously announced by the governor and state officials, New Mexico will graduate from the color-coded county risk system and remove most pandemic-related restrictions on commercial activities when 60% of eligible New Mexicans have been fully vaccinated. As of Thursday, 51% of eligible New Mexicans have been fully vaccinated.

All New Mexicans age 16+ are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine and may schedule their vaccine appointment at vaccineNM.org or by calling 1-855-600-3453. Parents of New Mexicans age 12-15 may register their child for the approved Pfizer vaccine at vaccineNM.org.
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Kevin Guthrie received a damaging charge after he assaulted a woman in 2017.

In a report posted by BBC, the news outlet revealed that Guthrie received a charge for sexually assaulting a woman in Glasgow.

Sheriff Tom Hughes' case report detailed that the incident happened at Scott Reid's flat. The woman was scheduled to meet both actors at a local bar, but Reid received a call from a taxi driver who asked him to fetch the woman.

The Glasgow Sheriff Court also heard how both men indeed helped the woman to lie on Reid's bed at his flat. When Reid left his room to call for medical assistance, the 33-year-old started to perform lascivious acts and only stopped when his co-actor re-entered the room.

Guthrie tried to clear his name by insisting that he only "helped" a woman years ago. He debunked the sexual assault charge and continuously said that he only needed to help the victim.

However, the court discovered that the actor's DNA was detected inside the woman's underwear.

After the four-day trial, Guthrie was found guilty and immediately convicted as a sex offender. His name was also included on the register already.

Kevin Guthrie Charged: What The Actor Will Face

Sheriff Hughes then told Guthrie that this case showed equality among citizens. He also pledged the court to always assure that women can also be protected from such domestic sexual offense.

"The offense you have been convicted of caused distress and consequences to the young woman involved in this case," the sheriff said. "She was unwell and thought her drink had been spiked elsewhere that night."

The jury then became more convinced that the actor truly committed the crime, and the appropriate sentence has already been given to Guthrie.

READ ALSO: Sam Ehlinger Gets Alarming Warning After Jake Ehlinger's Death: 'See a Doctor'

Apart from spending his three years inside the prison, the actor also suffered from massive career embarrassment.

Since the announcement of his charges, BBC Scotland removed him from the "Inside Central Station" series. All episodes where he appeared were also eliminated from BBC iPlayer.

Meanwhile, Warner Bros. has not commented as to whether or not they will allow Guthrie to join the franchise again upon his release. The actor has been playing the role of wizard Abernathy in the "Fantastic Beasts" films.

READ MORE: Ellen DeGeneres Downfall: Internet Thanks Dakota Johnson For 'Beginning the End' Of Talk Show

See Now: Famous Actors Who Turned Down Iconic Movie Roles
Just a few days after the hit TV singing competition "American Idol" was under controversy, another scandal has yet to surface after former contestant was arrested on domestic violence charges.

According to TMZ, last season's fan favorite Doug Kiker, popularly known as the "singing garbageman", is in police custody in Alabama after being charged with misdemeanor domestic violence (harassment). The former contestant is now in jail on $1,000 bond.

The incident came after an adult woman, who's relationship with Kiker is unclear, called 911 which the police responded to.

There are no further details released to the public by the Mobile County Sheriff's Department.



The "singing garbage man" rose to fame with his viral audition of Rascal Flatt's "Bless The Broken Road" on the premiere of Season 18 which garnered a whopping 200 million views in all platforms.

READ MORE: Judge Judy Net Worth 2021: How Much Was Her Salary Compared to Ellen DeGeneres?

The former contestant didn't know what "range" or "warm up" meant during his audition but he managed to receive a golden ticket, his gateway to be in Hollywood, after Katy Perry was left sobbing because of the his positivity and heartwarming backstory. Kiker mentioned that he's auditioning for his pregnant wife and two-year-old daughter

Kiker unfortunately didn't make it through the first day of Hollywood Week and the top 20 after singing "Ain't No Mountain High" in the wrong key.

Despite the former-contestant's short run in the show, he made a long lasting impression to the judges as well as to viewers at home and managed to return on the program's "This Is Me" special saying "The sky's the limit, man! Y'all got me feeling that way. ... I finally believe in myself enough to actually sing in front of people."

He also appeared on Season 18's virtual finale where he performed with Rascal Flatts.

After the finale, Kiker launched his "From Garbage to Greateness" Indiegogo campaign to help him fund his debut album but he only managed to raise $5,581.

Besides the Kiker's domestic violence charges, former American Idol contestants also has a fair share of controversies: Top 5 finalist Caleb Kennedy was under fire a few days ago after an old video of him resurfaced making him leave the show, and Top 24 contestant Cecil Ray was arrested for burglary with intent to commit assault.

READ ALSO: Meghan Markle Receives Praises For Approaching Royal Life Differently Unlike Princess Diana

See Now: Famous Actors Who Turned Down Iconic Movie Roles
Saturday, May 15, 2021

Definition

Google "groupthink" definition: the practice of thinking or making decisions as a group in a way that discourages creativity or individual responsibility. Google "iconoclast" definition: characterized by attack on cherished beliefs or institutions. I consider myself an iconoclast because I question everything in the light of my unique empirical findings about the diseconomy of military spending. That informs the nature and evolution of empire. And how the immense energy transfer of differential evaporation rates over the planet's land versus ocean creates a 54-year cycle of global warming temperatures that profoundly influences humankind's economics, politics, wars, and the timing and location of natural disasters. This latter natural influence continues unabated and independent from the ongoing greenhouse effect crisis. The groupthink denial of this newly researched approach is to refuse to recognize that global temperature projections are dramatically improved with this new tool.

Mailman Incident

Our family has been harassed all year long by a rookie year mailman who routinely insisted on autocratic "control freak" tactics against me and my partner. More info: https://bobreuschlein.wordpress.com/2015/03/14/control-freak-societies/. He has been protected in his abuse of authority by his supervisors who refused to meet with me or even give a written reply to our formal three-page complaint 1-7-21. In his first week he pulled weeks' worth of mail out of our mailbox without leaving the postal service required 10-day notice before that mail would be returned to sender. Three times I met with him on his route in our neighborhood one year ago (May 2020) this month. He eagerly sought to keep me from talking to his supervisor that first time so that he could dominate the communication against my interest. Communication is essential for reasonable mediation of an incident but the rookie on probation must have been terrified I would tell the truth about his hostile and abusive behavior. Secrecy is the enemy of democracy. The civil resolution of the first incident in May 2020 ended after several incorrect statements told to me about the process of getting my mail back, a red flag I unfortunately ignored. When I asked him whether he had reported the incident to his supervisor, he answered yes in a low voice, another red flag I ignored at the time. As a business executive I learned the best way to solve problems was to talk them out in person, but the mailman and his supervisor preferred to keep me ignorant rather than informed; this yearlong attitude allowed the mailman to abuse me and my partner. FedEx and UPS would never treat customers this way, and the postal bill of customer rights applies only to the front counter staff at post offices. So when the November 10th incident happened, the front staff were horrified that no ten-day notice was left after the new inappropriate taking of our mail. But the West Madison manager refused to acknowledge the required ten-day notice to protect his immature mailman to my disadvantage. This same manager later lied to me promising a written reply to my postal complaint and instead turned the complaint over to the wayward mailman instead stabbing me in the back. This happened after I settled the fraudulent disorderly conduct charge with a $187 payment to the City of Madison, exactly as I had explained in my last call to the Westside station manager. Instead two weeks later the Marine brat mailman weaponized the process for a second time calling police when I tried to defend myself and my partner, falsely claiming stalking charges as we researched our counterclaim against the Marine brat. Justice blocked for a second time with two policepersons. The first time November 10th my constitutional right to petition my government over grievances was blocked as I was waiting to talk to the and the second time (April 30, 2021) my right to defend myself against the seven perjury (lying in police report) mailman was blocked by immature young police. In both cases the Marine brat used lies and distortions to create a police response. But they cannot block my defamation lawsuit if a use an attorney. Expense and time drains favor the paid institutions of the postal service, police, and city attorney over a citizen only seeking to be treated fairly. The mailman was bullying my partner to keep the mailbox empty each day and when two days of mail was left in the mailbox, the mailman took it November 10th claiming that a 93% empty mailbox was "completely full" as it had to be for the mailman to legally remove mail. Bullied by a criminal postman and one-sided police. Police seem to be biased in favor of large organizations and against individuals, clear case of groupthink.

Crapitalism

Capitalism is based on the products becoming popular and more of the product is made and sold. Life experience is that once you find a great new product, it is soon discontinued, rather than more product produced to meet the need. This is what my partner calls "crapitalism". Kind of like planned obsolescence in automobiles, products are forced down the consumers throat, rather than producing more of what people want.

Research

Economic history shows that individuals, small inventors, are more productive in research than large organizations. Hence the relatively slower progress of the empire society due to the lack of economic productivity of military spending. Military spending does have, however, high political power productivity. Power can reap economic benefits, but these are usually very limited in scope and benefits. Military research is arcane and often too military specific or shrouded in secrecy to help the general economy.

Feudalism

Large organizations, businesses, governments, often have a feudalistic fiefdom nature in the militaristic society, where groupthink limits their potential. Small business is the engine of ingenuity and job growth. More info:

https://bobreuschlein.wordpress.com/2015/02/21/modern-feudalism-two-cases/

Future Trends

Large organizations and governments often slip into major wars under the circumstances where the last major war has become a distant memory. Common sense in these things depend on forgetfulness of the terror of war. Also governments are full of themselves with recent growth and capital accumulation. Just as railroads led the way in the gilded age before the first World War, today the internet giants dominate the new gilded age where the rich have become enormously rich and powerful again. Cycle theory (54-year) fits well for wars, civil rights changes, and pandemics, all of which peaked about a century ago (108-year cycle). The Spanish Flu of 103 years ago compares to Covid 19 today, The World War of 1914 (1917 for USA) compares to rising tensions with China today and 2025 would be 108 years from America's entry into the World War. Women's right to vote and Black Lives Matter George Floyd are 100 years apart and the voting rights act was 56 years ago. But nuclear weapons deterred the Sino-Soviet border clashes of 1969 from developing into war and the nature of conflict is changing. Have we already had our war with the virus killing 600,000 Americans? Not clear. Cyber war seems to be the new nature of war today. Cross border wars have become rarer and rarer, with 90% soldier death in the first World War and 90% civilian deaths today. Clearly the nature of war has changed and may be about to change again.

Groupthink Story by an Ancient Philosopher:

https://www.academia.edu/9979093/JESUS_and_Empire_12_4_05_4_p_2005

Please cite this work as follows: Reuschlein, Robert. (2021, May 15), "Groupthink Dangers All Over" Madison, WI, Real Economy Institute. Retrieved from: https://www.expertclick.com/NewsRelease/Groupthink-Dangers-All-Over,2021256152.aspx

Dr. Peace, Professor Robert Reuschlein, Real Economy Institute, Nobel Peace Prize nominee 2016-2021 with accelerating interest from the deciding Norwegians. A consistently growing pattern shows intense interest in my work on my expertclick.com website; daily "hard looks" per year have gone from 2 to 3 to 48 to 128 to 200 to double last year's pace (187/101) so far, these 218 days since the last Peace award.

Contact: bobreuschlein@gmail.com Info: www.realeconomy.com
Saturday, May 15, 2021

After spending several weeks trying to get a well-sourced article published about Bill Gates, the second richest man in the world, I have come to conclude that conservatives and liberals in the media treat him with kid gloveseven while whispering about him behind his back. I am beginning to think they are afraid of offending a globalist on a mission.

The renowned software developer has carved out a role for himself as a humanitarians humanitarian, financing projects and people with a magnitude that astonishes people. After all, he does have a big reach for a Harvard University dropout People will tell you privately he worries them. I have never met Bill Gates, but he strikes me as a secular humanist on a superhero mission. Gates seems to believe that his vision, wealth, and power can save the world from imminent destruction.

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Bill Gates has been engaged in everything from education reform to pandemic predictions to vaccine investments, to the acquisition of millions of acres of farmland, and his latest plan to replace beef with lab-grown meat. All of these ventures tie back to his primary plan to protect the environment. Gates has indicated in the past he believes the world needs fewer people consuming its resources. He is a man on a mission to stop global warming using whatever it takes.

Climate change and global warming have been on Gates mind for decades. He is determined to get to zero greenhouse gas emissions. A couple of months ago, he released a 272-page book titled How to Avoid a Climate Disaster. Reminiscent of Sir Arthur Conan Doyles dog that didnt bark, he made no reference to population reduction and only a passing mention of population growth (p. 40). He does devote significant attention to reducing carbon emissions that came about during the coronavirus shutdowns, even while admitting that the disease and lockdowns have been costly in terms of human lives and livelihoods.

Despite his newfound silence on the issue, Gates has expressed an interest in population reduction in the past. He has proposed it previously as a means of reducing carbon emissions to zero by 2050. In a 2010 TED Talk, Gates presented an equation that focused on humans, the services we use, and their energy requirements as the main factors for CO2 output. He told the audience that the top scientists agreed that CO2 would need to reach zero to avoid catastrophe. The unspoken conclusion there would appear to have something to do with reducing the population since the other factors all relate to the number of people on Earth.

First, weve got population. The world today has 6.8 billion people. Thats headed up to about nine billion. If we do a really great job on new vaccines, health care, reproductive health services, we could lower that by perhaps 10 or 15 percent. But there, we see an increase of about 1.3.

Because Gates never says depopulation in his speeches outright, the fact-checkers have ridiculed and dismissed his critics as conspiracy theorists. On numerous occasions, Gates has alluded to population reductionas evidenced by his own words in the 2010 Ted Talk. He has had a long-term interest in pandemics; he has noted that they can kill as many as 10 million people. In 2015, he predicted that we would likely experience a similar death toll from an influenza virus in the next twenty years. Gatess prediction came true, five years later, in the form of COVID-19.

How much guesswork was in that prediction, really? In October 2019, Gates participated in and helped fund Event 201, a pandemic preparedness exercise with Johns Hopkins University. The official response from USA Today fact-checkers is that Gatess October 2019 Pandemic Simulation had NOTHING to do with COVID-19. Yet, it was Gates peersthe Bloomberg Philanthropies and Stavros Niarchos Foundationthat financed the famous Johns Hopkins Tracker that has kept us abreast of the spread of COVID-19. The tracker was up and ready to go just in time for the crisis.

These werent novel partnerships, either. They have history. The Gates Foundation and Bloomberg Philanthropies have worked together to achieve their collective goals. On top of that, Gates has given millions to Johns Hopkins University. In 2003, his foundation gave $40 million to the Bill and Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health.

Gates has shadowed the coronavirus outbreak in other ways. Recently, he was listed as the second major donor to the World Health Organization (WHO). And it was WHO that failed to warn the world about what had happened in Wuhan, China, during the initial outbreak of the virus. What many experts saw as a derelict of duties led President Trump to pull support from the organization.

Protecting us from global warmings ill effects is another big concern for Gates. One of his more bizarre ventures is his investment in a project that hopes to reduce the suns power. He is funding Harvard University research called the Stratospheric Controlled Perturbation Experiment, or SCoPEx, which would spray a chalk compound into the atmosphere to reflect some of the suns rays away. The SCoPEx team claimed that the project wouldnt pose any significant hazard to people or the environment.

However, scientists immediately voiced concerns that this experiment could result in extreme weather changes, such as worsening climate warming trends. Gates has had little to say to skeptics who warn that tampering with the sun could have dire consequences. The backlash didnt go unheeded, however. Just last week, SCoPEx researchers announced that they were suspending the experiment indefinitely. They didnt admit that it was because of public concern about the dangers posed by SCoPEx. Instead, their advisory committee claimed that they wanted to wait to obtain input from indigenous populations.

Although Bill Gates tentacles reach across the globe, they have their roots closer to home. He exerts enormous influence on governmental agencies who depend on private philanthropy with the power to enrich individual scientists.

Gatess interests in reproduction and vaccines have been reflected in millions of dollars donated to the CDC, NIH, NIAID, and a litany of major research universities, think tanks, pharmaceutical, and drug testing companies. Gates is dangerous because people and agencies can be bought, especially if they have a secular worldview that believes the ends justify the means. The progressive left is willing to follow Gatess lead because they are convinced that the planet will be destroyed unless they act now, and that will be the end of humanity. Christians and orthodox Jews believe we should be good stewards of this world, but we reject the view that the planets survival lies in human hands alone.

Gates latest interest in forcing wealthier nations to eat lab-grown beef to reduce carbon emissions from cows is the latest manifestation of his efforts to save the earth. As with the atmospheric screen, there are serious problems posed by that ambition. The safety of the growth hormones and toxicity levels from plastic exposure  not to mention the nutritional composition quality  is doubtful.

And yet, despite those dangers, Gates only pushes his agenda harder while the rest of us either ignore him or we make excuses for his behavior. Presently, there seems to be a huge public relations campaign to debunk criticisms of him. I would not be surprised to see him run for president someday. Bill and Melinda Gates may present a neat picture of good intentions for the world, but we know the road to hell is paved with such. My concern is we have not held him accountable for his investments and the charitable contributions he makes to organizations where he is already a major investor. Nor has the Gates Foundation been held accountable for the reported harms done to human subjects by pharmaceutical trials his organization funded in poor nations such as India and Sub Saharan Africa.

These are a few of the alarming patterns of Bill Gates. They serve as a grave portent of what we may face as we allow these agendas to forge on, unchecked. To me, however, the most alarming thing about all of this does not have to do with Gates himselfits the people who are too afraid to even doubt him.
Concerned residents and community leaders didnt let the weather stop them from turning out Saturday to call for healing and a stop to gun violence.

Todays rally is about bringing unity, awareness, and love, said Rosa L. Wilson, bishop of the East Side church where the STOP-in-the-Name-of-Love Rally was held. I want a transformation of the mind and the heart, thats what this movement is all about.

Organizers scheduled the rally in the wake of the shooting death of 6-year-old Saryah Perez last Sunday on the West Side. It took place outside of Greater Faith Institutional Church, where a 6-year-old boy was struck in the shoulder by gunfire on Feb. 7, Super Bowl Sunday.

A steady rain fell as more than 60 people gathered under tents and umbrellas outside the church on Martin Luther King Drive to listen to the speakers taking part in the rally, hosted by Bexar County Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and the church.

Wilson said the February gang-related shooting took away the innocence of the children who were at church that day.

STOP stands for Stop Terrorizing/Traumatizing Our People.

District 2 Councilwoman Jada Andrews-Sullivan and San Antonio Police Chief William McManus were among those who spoke out against gun violence.

Sullivan said through the ups and downs that have taken place in District 2, the community always come together.

We know every time we march along this street, we march in love and unity, she said. Greater Faith holds worship services for marchers on the MLK March route.

Now is the time that we are becoming the change that we want to see, and it starts with this unified effort.

McManus stood beside a trio who patrol the East Side, San Antonio Fear Free Environment (SAFFE) officers Michael Fischer, Justin Ramirez and Meredith Rodriguez.

He said unofficial numbers show that violent crime had dropped in the first quarter of the year. However, he said, in many cases people are too quick to reach for a gun.

It seems that theres no fear of consequence, McManus said, or theres no caring about what the consequence is.

An audience member shouted, Amen!

When McManus asked how many people need to be arrested to stop the violence, Rodney Brown, a lead organizer with the Texas Organizing Project yelled, You cant arrest yourself out of a problem.

Browns colleague, Chelsie Alvarado, said she came to talk from the communitys perspective about minor arrests. She said after meeting with community members about the issue, TOP members had come up with a possible solution  instituting a cite and release program.

Alvarado said that under the plan, when an officer pulls a resident over for a low-level offense, a citation would be given in lieu of being arrested. She said the action would give an opportunity for community service or taking courses rather than having an arrest record.

Cori Ferraro, a volunteer with Moms Demand Action, said that after hearing about the February shooting, the group reached out to Wilson to offer their help.

She also thanked the bishop for hosting Sundays rally against gun violence.

Gun violence continues to plague our city and our families every single day, Ferraro said. Its so important that we join together and come up with best solutions to prevent gun violence and make San Antonio a safer place for everybody.

vtdavis@express-news.net
The San Antonio River Authority hopes to begin construction this summer on a hybrid design for a community plaza at an archaeological site whose discovery last year caused an 18-month delay in work on the San Pedro Creek Culture Park.

The public has indicated an overwhelming desire to have the plaza and to be able to interpret the site actively with art and events and storytelling, said Steve Graham, assistant general manager at the river authority.

The archaeology and architecture, while its important  whats most important about the site is the history that occurred, Graham said. The best way to do that is to tell the story.

On ExpressNews.com: Discovery adds intrigue, challenge to creek project

A cluster of building foundations from the 1800s, including that of an 1870s church that was home to one of the first Black congregations in Texas, was discovered in February 2020. That discovery threw construction off course as project leaders debated how to accomplish their goals and preserve the sites history.

After considering several options, Graham said the agency would hold a daylong workshop in June with historians, archaeologists and interested community groups to develop a final hybrid design that provides flood control and contains a community plaza that tells the history of the church and adjacent factories of the 1800s.

The next month will be really critical. Its up to us to stand at this design workshop, get the stakeholders involved on that and work on a design that will be acceptable to the entire community, as best we can, he said.

We feel very positive here with recent developments, Graham said. We have a pathway forward, we believe, to a successful conclusion to this and getting the project back underway.

From Houston Street to Nueva Street, the three-block extension of the Culture Park appears to be fueling revitalization on both sides of the historic creek, despite the stunning archaeological discovery that generated frustrating delays. If all goes as planned, construction crews will begin work at that location in August and finish in October 2022, shortly before the creeks third segment is completed, Graham said.

So we would still have an opening that would be logical and sequential, he said. We would still be able to recover and open the project in an orderly way.

As COVID-19 vaccinations spread, the river authority is reactivating the site, resuming in-person yoga classes and other small gatherings in and near the Culture Park this summer.

Even under construction, the second segment of the Bexar County flood control and beautification project on the west end of downtown is transforming an unsightly concrete drainage ditch into a catalyst for investment in office and residential development, a university campus expansion and a new federal courthouse.

Restoration of the 1949 Alameda Theater is underway, and Texas Public Radio moved into a new studio-office complex behind it. Recent demolition of the old 1960s Bexar County Jail cleared the way for prep work and construction on an expanded University of Texas at San Antonio downtown campus. A new federal courthouse is being built on Nueva Street, on the creeks west bank.

Its really neat to see everything kind of developing along the creek and see the progress of our project and partners, said Christine Clayton, project manager with the river authority.

On ExpressNews.com: Local AME pastor sees joy in the find

The design dilemma posed by the St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church site has been the key obstacle holding back progress in the Culture Parks second segment in one of the most historic areas downtown. The Army Corps of Engineers determined the church foundation and the site of Klemcke/Menger Soapworks, which operated from 1847 to 1859, are eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places.

Preservationists hailed the discovery of the rectangular church foundation and cornerstone, along with industrial sites of a brewery, ice factory and soapworks of the 1800s, as one of the most significant archaeological finds in recent years and another opportunity to connect the creek project to local heritage. The vision for the project is an engaging, attractive waterway that tells the story of the community, with deepened, widened channels aimed at removing 30 acres from a 100-year floodplain.

The six-section, 2.2-mile project through downtown, financed by the county and federal funds, is estimated to cost about $298 million when complete.

Working with the corps and its archaeological and design teams, the river authority sought public input on eight plaza redesign options, ranging in cost from $890,000 to $3.8 million. Graham said the highest support, based on 57 comments received through the project website or emails to the corps, was to preserve a portion of the church footprint.

The Conservation Society endorsed an option that would delineate the church building walls with stone pavers and reduce seating and shade while protecting the area from flooding.

For us, what was really important was the feeling, the plat of the church outline, said Vince Michael, the societys executive director.

Graham noted that all but one redesign option would leave the church foundation buried, following best practices to preserve archaeological assets. One option would remove about 85 percent of historic stone walls and display the church site under structural glass. But experts warned water could infiltrate the outdoor display and damage the foundation.

On ExpressNews.com: Public meeting set on San Pedro Creek historic site

The corps must issue a permit before work can begin at the archaeological site. As a part of the permit process, the corps has announced it will hold a second 30-day comment period through June 14 after learning a technical error prevented emailed comments from reaching the agencys Fort Worth office earlier this year.

Although the additional opportunity for public input added to a delay, the river authority reached an agreement with the corps to begin utility work next week around the archaeological site, located on the creeks east bank, just south of Houston Street, across the creek from the Alameda Theater.

Before, our understanding was we couldnt do any work in that block. The corps has clarified their position, and theyve said, You can move forward with work that is not within the buffer around the historically eligible foundation, Graham said. Theres definitely work that we can proceed with, that we were basically at a total stop on before.

While the discovery has tacked on at least 18 months and $500,000 in construction, design and archaeological costs to the project, it has added value to the Culture Park, he said.

The delay and cost isnt a happy thing. But the find  everybody had forgotten about this site, Graham said. This site became known because of the project.

For more information, visit the Culture Park website, spcculturepark.com.

shuddleston@express-new.net
In his first 100 days, President Joe Biden set out to rebuild vital economic and political relationships with our allies around the world. Mexico, a crucial ally and one of our leading trade partners, has been at the top of the list.

As the Biden administration continues to engage south of the border, so-called ally-shoring offers an approach that would strengthen bilateral cooperation and support economic recovery.

On April 26, Vice President Kamala Harris met virtually with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador about immigration. A key topic between the countries is Marchs uptick in border apprehensions of single Mexican males who left home due to the lack of jobs. This increase in crossings shows the urgent need to work together on short- and long-term economic issues.

To boost this bilateral collaboration, ally-shoring offers the Biden administration a strategy to rebuild our economy with neighboring countries that share our values through further integration of our supply chains, sourcing and production. The goal is to protect our collective economic and national security. A recent report from the U.S.-Mexico Foundation offers an insightful road map.

The first step would be for the U.S. to work with Mexico and Canada to build on efforts to coordinate during the pandemic on critical supplies, research and development, and vaccination trials to ramp up regional capacity. Second, the U.S. could provide incentives for private industries to reroute supply chains and identify opportunities for co-production and sourcing with Mexicos exports and emerging sectors.

Third, the U.S. could work with Mexico to develop modern and efficient border infrastructure to facilitate trade by creating more effective logistics, risk management and security mechanisms. Finally, to enhance rule of law, bilateral collaboration could focus on adopting additional measures that ensure transparency and carve out clear rules for institutions.

The U.S. and Mexico would build on an already robust foundation of supply chain integration and strong relationships. The new United States-Mexico-Canada agreement lays out additional groundwork for strengthening commercial ties and synchronizing regulations.

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed weaknesses in critical U.S. supply chains  notably an over-reliance on China  that led to disruptions and layoffs. In February, Biden called for a review of supply chains to mitigate future risks. To build greater supply chain resilience, the administration could enhance cross-border production, trade and innovation with Mexico.

Ally-shoring could also further boost economic recovery. The U.S. economy is already on the upswing, driving economic expansion in Mexico. Remittances to Mexico reached a record high in 2020, and U.S. demand for goods has led to a spike in Mexican exports.

However, ally-shoring faces obstacles in Mexicos political climate.

It may be challenging to get Mexicos buy-in. Lopez Obrador is known for his inward-looking, nationalistic leadership approach. He has been hesitant to collaborate with the U.S. At the moment, Mexico does not appear to be positioning itself as the ideal U.S. counterpart to mitigate supply chain risks. Since his election in 2018, Lopez Obradors uneven stance on private contracts has hampered investor confidence.

On the energy sector, Lopez Obrador has pushed Congress to enact regulatory changes that give preference to state-owned oil companies over private renewable plants. This approach has not only led to legal disputes with investors but may also be at odds with Mexicos USMCA obligations.

Institution-building could present an even greater challenge. In the past few months, security cooperation reached an all-time low. Amid rising tensions, Mexicos Congress recently passed a law to limit U.S. enforcement operations. The current distrust will make it difficult to collaborate on measures to confront corruption and Mexicos weak rule of law.

Lopez Obrador continues to pursue an agenda widely characterized as anti-business ahead of Junes crucial midterm elections. Despite criticism that his administration mismanaged the pandemic and the economy, no real opposition has emerged, and his coalition remains ahead in the polls.

Lopez Obradors ongoing quest for vaccines creates a diplomatic opportunity. The Biden administration sent 2.7 million AstraZeneca doses to Mexico in March but could offer a bigger supply to garner additional goodwill and lay the basis for broader partnership.

While ally-shoring faces hurdles in the short run, it offers a clear path forward for long-term U.S.-Mexico bilateral collaboration that would make both countries safer and more prosperous. Biden must continue to look for ways to incentivize Mexico to work more closely together on pandemic coordination, supply chains, sourcing and institution-building.

Antonio Garza is counsel to the law firm White and Case in Mexico City and a former U.S. ambassador to Mexico.
China's Anhui reports new coronavirus infections

Xinhua) 10:26, May 15, 2021

HEFEI, May 14 (Xinhua) -- East China's Anhui Province on Friday reported two confirmed case and seven asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 in the city of Lu'an.

Since Thursday, the province has reported a total of five confirmed cases of COVID-19, including two in the provincial capital of Hefei and three in Lu'an, and seven asymptomatic cases in Lu'an.

One newly confirmed case is a resident of the city's Yu'an District and has been identified as a colleague of a previously confirmed case, said the emergency epidemic prevention and control headquarters of the province.

The other confirmed case, a 37-year-old man, is also from Yu'an District and had visited a community where a previously confirmed case had stayed.

By 2 a.m. Friday, the province had tracked 2,958 people including close contacts of the cases. More than 83,000 people in cities of Hefei and Lu'an had been sampled.

Dong Mingpei, deputy director with the provincial health commission, said the previously reported four confirmed cases have not been vaccinated against COVID-19.

Since Friday morning, residents in Hefei have queued up at vaccination sites to receive COVID-19 vaccines. Some sites have prolonged their service time or even run around the clock.

As of Thursday, a total of 8.85 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the province, with about 2 million people receiving both doses.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Bianji)
As a person of apparent integrity, Liz Cheney is a lonely woman.

She is an outlier in Congress, one of the few Republicans whose allegiance to the truth is stronger than her devotion to the ex-president.

Since losing the presidency to Joe Biden in November, Donald Trump has maintained the lie that the election was rigged, the product of fraud and graft.

This lie has been refuted again and again  in courts, through recounts, by experts and elections officials in many states. Lies, however, are stubborn things, sometimes more durable than the truth, persisting despite courtrooms full of evidence to the contrary.

Republicans have responded to the lie of voter fraud with voter integrity laws, including here in Texas, that will limit access to voting. The erosion of our democracy extends far beyond Jan. 6.

Enter Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo.

She dismisses the fraud allegations for what they are  the half-baked conspiracy theories of a man unable to deal with losing an election fair and square. Cheney also blamed the president  and his incendiary language  for sparking the horrific siege of the Capitol on Jan. 6.

For these unpardonable acts, Cheney has lost her leadership role in the Republican Party, a vote that took less than 20 minutes Wednesday.

If you want leaders who will enable and spread his destructive lies, Im not your person, she told her colleagues before the vote.

Those colleagues booed her.

Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye Liz Cheney, Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-N.C., tweeted.

The push against Cheney got real during a hot mic moment on May 4, when House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy was overheard before an interview with Fox TV.

I think shes got real problems, he said. Ive had it with  Ive had it with her. You know, Ive lost confidence.  Well, someone has to bring a motion, but I assume that will take place.

For a party that condemns cancel culture, this was an irony the most loyal Republican could hardly fail to recognize. The party canceled a woman for the unpardonable offense of telling the truth. This is what it has come to in the GOP  liars get rewarded, truth tellers punished. All should be troubled.

McCarthy should delve deeper into the problem afflicting his party. It is not Cheney; it is his own mendacity. What makes the duplicity especially egregious is that McCarthy himself condemned the ex-president before surrendering to his ambition.

The president bears responsibility for Wednesdays attack on the Congress by mob rioters, he said one day after the siege. He should have immediately denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolding. These facts require immediate action of President Trump.

Cheney has her defenders, men and women trying to uphold the truth  think of Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill  but they are part of what looks like an impotent minority.

Ironies abound; Cheney, hailed as a champion of truth, was not always so devoted to facts. She and her father, then-Vice President Dick Cheney, propagated the lie that Saddam Hussein was concealing weapons of mass destruction. The falsehood helped spark support for the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Never softening her hawkishness, she and her father co-authored a book doubling down on that view in 2015  Exceptional: Why the World Needs a Powerful America. If she is being hailed as a martyr, it indicates how desperate Democrats are to find allies.

In yet another irony, Trump and his minions are crying voter fraud when their very allegations represent that fraud. They are trying, through their rants, to disenfranchise millions of voters. And they are doing it again, through legislation aimed at restricting the voting process.

In Texas, Georgia and Florida, lawmakers have crafted bills to suppress voting, including limiting voting hours. These are legal efforts to create the very problems they condemn.

As the Cheney saga plays out, its impact transcends one person  and one issue. Our future well-being, the health of our democracy, depends on our fidelity to the truth. How much of the country has lost sight of this? What does it portend for our future?


Croatian start-up ETF Airways is set to take delivery of its first aircraft, a 189-seat Boeing 737-800, this coming Wednesday with a second jet of the same type to follow up soon. The carrier recently received the EZZ designator code from the International Civil Aviation Organisation, while its callsign will be Enterprize. ETF intends on eventually operating up to five aircraft, although, it initially plans to have one based in Dubrovnik for charter flights, while the other to be wet-leased to other airlines, if circumstances permit. The company is yet to sign deals with tour operators but has said there is interest. Croatian start-up ETF Airways is set to take delivery of its first aircraft, a 189-seat Boeing 737-800, this coming Wednesday with a second jet of the same type to follow up soon. The carrier recently received the EZZ designator code from the International Civil Aviation Organisation, while its callsign will be Enterprize. ETF intends on eventually operating up to five aircraft, although, it initially plans to have one based in Dubrovnik for charter flights, while the other to be wet-leased to other airlines, if circumstances permit. The company is yet to sign deals with tour operators but has said there is interest.





ETF is now looking for partners, companies and brokers for ACMI and charter business opportunities in order to be able to station an aircraft on the Croatian coast. The airline argues that the countrys tourism industry would benefit from a charter carrier. Thinking that we are world famous in tourism and that everyone will come to us is counterproductive. Antalya has thirty million passengers per year. All of Croatias coastal airports combined have less passengers than Ibiza. What we have is peanuts. We are talking about basing one aircraft in Dubrovnik. By brining a guest to Dubrovnik everyone will be able to profit from it - hotels, the city, tourist attractions, the companys CEO, Stjepan Bedic, said.







Private investors and Croatia-based investment funds are supporting the new airline which has stable financing. Commenting on its operations, economic analyst Velimir Sonje, who is one of the airlines investors and members of the Supervisory Board, said recently, ETF does not aim to become a big scheduled carrier. Our main goal is to utilise the opportunities which we expect in the coming years through charters and similar arrangements, primarily on the EU market, through flexible and reliable service. Mr Sonje added that the post-Covid world will open a number of opportunities in particular markets niches. Private investors and Croatia-based investment funds are supporting the new airline which has stable financing. Commenting on its operations, economic analyst Velimir Sonje, who is one of the airlines investors and members of the Supervisory Board, said recently, ETF does not aim to become a big scheduled carrier. Our main goal is to utilise the opportunities which we expect in the coming years through charters and similar arrangements, primarily on the EU market, through flexible and reliable service. Mr Sonje added that the post-Covid world will open a number of opportunities in particular markets niches.




MYSTIC, Conn. (AP)  Three Beluga whales arrived Friday night at their new home in a Connecticut aquarium after a legal battle to import them and two others from Canada.

The whales were flown from Ontario to Connecticut on Friday, secured in special stretchers inside individual tanks and accompanied by a veterinarian and other marine-life experts.

Accompanied by a police escort, they arrived in Mystic on three tractor-trailers at about 7:40 p.m., where they were lifted on their stretchers by cranes into their new habitat. The transfer from truck to habitat took about a half hour to complete.

The remaining two Belugas are set to arrive at Mystic Aquarium early Saturday from Marineland in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Government officials from Fisheries and Oceans Canada last month approved the export of the whales, seven months after U.S. officials approved the move.

Connecticut-based Friends of Animals and other activists sought to block the transport in a lawsuit last fall against the U.S. Commerce secretary and National Marine Fisheries Service, which had approved the research permit. A federal judge in March declined to issue an injunction.

The whales, which range in age from 7 to 12, were born in captivity and officials said they cannot safely be released into the ocean.

Mystic officials said the five whales left an overcrowded habitat with about 50 other Belugas in Canada to join three other Belugas at the center of important research designed to benefit the species in the wild.

The animals will be trained to voluntarily give blood, saliva, blowhole air and other samples in exchange for rewards.

Having eight animals certainly helps when trying to draw conclusions with the research, said Tracy Romano, Mystic's vice president of research and chief scientist. It's priceless to be able to work with trained animals and be able to get biological samples on a regular basis and all of this will help us interpret what we're seeing in the wild and help with the management and conservation of the species.
FAIRFIELD  In the span of just a few days, Joe Sauvageau fielded questions about why Mars is dusty and if fire comes out of a rocket and opined on the future roadmap of NASA and the commercialization of space.

The former questions were from a preschool class at Harbor Light in Fairfield and the latter from a talk at Fairfield University, his alma mater.

Sauvageau, who is a system manager at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said talking to both types of audiences is important in inspiring future scientists, though the Fairfield talk also included alumni.

I like to encourage the next generation, he said.

Sauvageau graduated from Fairfield in 1979 where he majored in physics and mathematics. He went on to earn his masters and doctorate in physics engineering at Stony Brook University in New York, but really credits his time at Fairfield and the professors there for his career.

It was such an inspiring place to go, he said.

Its that appreciation that led to the talk a couple of weeks ago. He had connected with the universitys president and alumni coordinator at an alumni event in California a few years ago and in turn was inspired to reach back out to the engineering school.

I really feel compelled to give back to Fairfield any way that I can, Sauvageau said.

The Fairfield University talk focused on Mars and the Perseverance and Ingenuity missions.

Sauvageau and School of Engineering Dean Andres Carrano decided to focus on Mars because the topic is of great interest to both the public and Sauvageau.

More than 300 people registered for the virtual talk with attendance remaining above 200 the whole time, Carrano said. It was open to faculty, current and admitted students, as well as their friends and family who might have an interest in the Mars missions.

Carrano said the university just got the clearance from NASA to release the video, which should be available for more people to view in the coming week.

While not directly on the Mars team, Sauvageau said he has friends on it and closely follows the work there. The autonomous helicopter is also a key part in the state-of-the-art technology coming from JPL, where he does a lot with research and development.

Carrano said these kinds of talks are important because they show real world applications.

One of the aspects that we highlight the most is the exciting career opportunities that a Fairfield engineering education can facilitate, he said. We also aim at providing educational programming which is both interesting and relevant on various topics of engineering and technology.

Then there was the preschool class talk. Where the adults were interested in Mars, the Harbor Light one took a more general look at space and aeronautics, including why a balloon floats.

The connection between both talks rests with one of the professors who left a mark on Sauvageaus own flight path: Robert Bolger. It was through Bolger that he got to know Bolgers daughter, Mary Garbe, the preschool teacher who set up the talk with her students.

When he was a student himself, Sauvageau would stay with the family, discussing mathematics and physics with Bolger. That, in turn, developed into a friendship with the whole family, he said.

Garbe and her co-teacher at Harbor Light, Anthony Chabla, had been working on a space unit with their 16-member class this spring  a long held interest among their 4- and 5-year-olds.

Since the beginning of the school year in September, we could tell the kids were interested in space, she said.

Garbe told Sauvageau about the students fascination and he suggested doing a virtual call with them so he could answer their questions.

It was amazing, Garbe said.

The Harbor Light talk was driven by the students. Garbe sent the 15 or so questions ahead of time and Sauvageau gathered videos and pictures so he and the preschoolers could work through the answers together.

I was trying to stir their imagination, he said. You never know.

He said he was about their age when he first became interested in rockets and science and now works at NASA JPL.

Both Garbe and Sauvageau said they were impressed by the students curiosity, which looked at a variety of topics, including how the Mars rover and rockets work, as well as the types of animals who have been to space.

The questions were adorable, Garbe said.

Sauvageau stressed the importance of continuing to ask questions and to keep exploring.

Garbe said space exploration and the Persevance program is great for all children because it teaches them about teamwork and to not give up. She added theres also a chance the talk planted a seed for at least one child about a future career around outer space.

It would certainly be awesome if one of them grew up to be a rocket scientist, she said.
A sheep farming group has said it is 'unsurprised' with Natural England's decision to grant a licence for the release of 60 sea eagles in Norfolk, despite farmers' concerns.

White-tailed eagles, the UK's largest bird of prey, will be released over a 10-year period on the Ken Hill estate, 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.

But the National Sheep Association (NSA) has said that it came as 'no surprise' that a licence had been issued despite concerns raised by farming organisations.

NSA chief executive Phil Stocker said: Natural England reportedly examined data from elsewhere in Europe ahead of this decision, but it is not clear that it took into consideration reports closer to home, i.e. Scotland."

In Scotland, there have been repeated calls for an action plan to control the birds that have come to see lambs as a food source.

Farmers there have highlighted frustration 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.

Mr Stocker added that Natural England had also 'ignored' requests to focus on and monitor the Isle of Wight population, which were released in 2019 and 2020.

"NSA would have thought it sensible and reasonable to understand the outcomes before going ahead with another release," he said.

"It does seem as though Natural England has gone beyond wanting to test to see if this can work and has made a decision that they want this species established in England.

White-tailed sea eagles do not usually breed until they are five years of age, and so it will take some time for the population to become established.

However, some of the Isle of Wight birds have now ranged as far as Denmark, as well as to Norfolk, northern England and even into Scotland, according to the NSA.

Farmers' experience in Scotland showed that the birds' releases 'can go seriously wrong', suggesting there was 'not enough wildlife to satisfy the eagles food requirements'.

The group has called for an 'exit plan' that specified what actions should take place if concerns became a reality, as had been reported in Scotland.

There was a 'real risk' with apex predator releases that in years to come farmers may be forced to protect their livestock more, the NSA warned, such as housing them and managing them less extensively.

Mr Stocker said: "If this is the case surely this will conflict with a host of other government and public objectives to improve stock health and welfare, reduce antibiotic use, and use resources more efficiently."
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A Bhatt favourite who has appeared in numerous films under their banner, Vishesh Films, Emraan Hashmi has said that he is not aware of the reason behind the split between brothers Mahesh and Mukesh Bhatt but is disappointed about their professional split. "I just wish we all come back together to do a film. All good things come to an end. Equations change. Nothing is permanent. And I am saying this without knowing the details of what has played out between them. As far as I am concerned, I still talk to both of them. Mukeshji wished me before Mumbai Saga. I am in touch with Mahesh Bhatt, the actor told a leading daily.

"But I don't really know where it's coming from. We have been quite busy with our own lives during the lockdown but yet kept in touch. We are family. I spoke to Bhatt saab (Mahesh Bhatt) through the lockdown; he is not only just a filmmaker for me but a wise man who has given me guidance. Things were getting confused during the lockdown and I needed his inputs on it, Hashmi added.











Earlier this year, Mukesh Bhatt had said that Vishesh Films was always his company and that Mahesh Bhatt had only served as a consultant. He had further added that his children, Sakshi and Vishesh, would run Vishesh Films from now on. Hashmi was last seen in Mumbai Saga opposite actor John Abraham and his next project is Chehre which also stars Amitabh Bachchan.




While fans cannot get enough of Salman Khan and Randeep Hooda in Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai, many are also mighty impressed by Hoodas main henchman in the movie, Sangay Tsheltrim. We now know that Tsheltrim happens to be a former Bhutanese army officer. In an interview, Sangay has said that he grew up watching Salman Khans movies and that he landed into this field (of acting) all of a sudden. Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai released yesterday on Eid and was given a cross-platform release. "Even in my Bollywood debut, nothing was planned. It was my destiny and Salman sir's kindness that I got the offer," Sangay told a leading daily. He also said that he became a fan of Khan after he saw him dancing shirtless to Oh Oh Jane Jaana.







"And from now onwards, if I get major offers for roles that interest me, my job is to give 110% once I commit. I am very keen to play an army officer on screen. Because I am an army officer, I miss my uniform and it gives me extra adrenaline to act as an army officer. And it will also be very convenient to enact an army officers role on-screen I think. Apart from that, I would love to play an action hero, the actor said. Internationally, Radhe has made about aA4.4 crores on its opening day of release due to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Actor Rashmika Mandanna made her debut in 2016 with Kirik Party and in a short span of around five years, she has established herself as one of the most bankable faces in Kannada cinema. In fact, the actress is now also starring opposite Allu Arjun in his pan-Indian film, Pushpa and she will also be seen opposite actor Sidharth Malhotra in a Bollywood movie. That's not all - Mandanna will also be seen opposite veteran star Amitabh Bachchan in Goodbye. Sometime back, there were talks that Kirik Party might get a Bollywood remake with actors Kartik Aaryan and Jacqueline Fernandes headlining the cast. However, nothing has happened with that project since. Now, Mandanna has opened up about whether she'd like to revisit her character from the 2016 film.













Actually, no, I would not do the remake of Kirik Party. I believe that once I have done the character and felt its emotions, I wont have anything new to offer to it while revisiting it. Why should I experience the same set of emotions when I can become a part of a new story and experience newer things? Once I have played a character, I move on. I want to tell new stories and play new parts. I want to figure out my roles from the ground below all the way to the surface. I have lived my characters once and thoroughly in the first flush. I dont want to revisit any of them in a remake, Mandanna told a leading daily.


NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 14, 2021 / Language barrier is always a big problem for people of different languages. There are many translation apps to try to solve this problem, such as Google Translate. However, the obstacles to people's remote communication have not been well resolved. For example, when people want to make a phone call to a friend with different language has not yet came up with a good solution.

This app named iTourTranslator has done a lot of innovative work, which provides various functions such as phone call translation, video call translation, conference translation, etc., which can help people solve the language barrier of remote communication.

When people use iTourTranslator to make a phone call, you only need to know the phone number of the other party. The phone of the recipient can be a mobile phone or a landline phone. The receiver doesn't need to download the app, and just pick up the phone and answer it. When the caller speaks Spanish, the receiver will hear them speaking in English voice. and when the receiver speaks English, English will be translate to Spanish to the caller. Of course, the app supports dozens of other languages include English, Spanish, German, French, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Arabic, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Portuguese, Catalan and Thai. Click the link below to watch the demo video.

https://youtu.be/dyj9cQA3nQ0

People can also use iTourTranslator to make video calls. His or her friend does not need to download iTourTranslator. The Caller sends a link to his or her friend on social platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Line, Telegram or Wechat. When his or her friend opens the received link, the video call can be made, and the video call will be translated in real time. The recipient does not need to download iTourTranslator, nor need to register it, which is very convenient.

People can also use iTourTranslator to have a meeting, and the language in the meeting will be translated in real time. The function of the meeting in iTourTranslator is similar to that of Zoom. The biggest difference is that when using iTourTranslator, the speech of the speakers in the meeting will be translated into bilingual subtitles. Considering that many users like to use Zoom or Teams for meetings, iTourTranslator has developed a real-time translation function. When users use software such as Zoom or Teams during a meeting, by turning on the real-time translation function in iTourTranslator app, the speech in the meeting will be translated into bilingual subtitles in real time.

In general, iTourTranslator is a very powerful translation software. It not only provides common translation functions such as text translation, photo translation, and dialogue translation, but also many innovative functions, such as listening translation, phone translation, conference translation, and video call translation.

CONTACT:

iTourTranslator Corp.

Contact Person: George Wang

Email: iTourTranslator@gmail.com

Country: United States of America

Website: www.iTourTranslator.com

SOURCE: iTourTranslator Corp

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/647601/iTourTranslator-Can-Translate-Phone-Call-Automatically
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 14, 2021) - Bluesky Digital Assets Corp., (CSE: BTC) (CSE: BTC.PR.A) (OTCQB: BTCWF), ("Bluesky" or the "Corporation"), is providing an update with respect to its previously announced management cease trade order (the "MCTO") issued by the Ontario Securities Commission on May 3, 2021. The MCTO was issued in connection with the delay by the Corporation in filing its annual financial statements, management's discussion and analysis and related officer certifications for the financial year ended December 31, 2020 (collectively, the "Required Filings") before the prescribed deadline of April 30, 2021.

The MCTO was granted pursuant to Bluesky's application made under National Policy 12-203 - Management Cease Trade Orders ("NP 12-203"). The Corporation requested and received an extension relating to the Required Filings due to delays caused by the required review of certain new internal control procedures that have been implemented by the Corporation and due to other issues associated with the current COVID-19 restrictions in the Province of Ontario.

The Corporation's staff and accounting firm is working diligently with its auditors and the Corporation now expects to have the audit of the Required Filings completed, and the Required Filings filed, no later than May 21, 2021.

The Corporation is providing this status update in accordance with NP 12-203. The Corporation reports that: (i) there are no changes to the information contained in its default announcement on May 3, 2021, that would reasonably be expected to be material to an investor; (ii) the Corporation is satisfying and confirms that it intends to continue to satisfy the provisions of the alternative information guidelines set out under NP 12-203 and issue bi-weekly default status reports for so long as the delay in filing the Required Filings is continuing, which will be issued in the form of a news release; (iii) there has not been any other specified default by the Corporation under NP 12-203 and no such other default is anticipated; and (iv) there is no material information concerning the affairs of the Corporation that has not been generally disclosed.

The MCTO does not affect the ability of shareholders who are not insiders of the Corporation to trade their securities. However, the applicable Canadian securities regulatory authorities could determine, in their discretion, that it would be appropriate to issue a general cease trade order against the Corporation affecting all of the securities of the Corporation.

About Bluesky Digital Assets Corp.

Bluesky Digital Assets Corp, is building a high value digital currency enterprise. Bluesky mines digital currencies, such as Bitcoin and Ether, and is developing value-added technology services for the digital currency market, such as digital mining proprietary software. Offering a complete ecosystem of value-creation, Bluesky is targeting reinvesting appropriate portions of its digital currency mining profits back into its operations. A percentage of the profit will be invested in the development of a proprietary Artificial Intelligence ("AI") based technology. Overall, Bluesky takes an approach that enables the Corporation to scale, and respond to changing conditions, within the still-emerging digital currency industry. The Corporation is poised to capture value in successive phases as this industry continues to scale.

For more information please visit Bluesky at: https://www.blueskydigitalassets.com.

For further information please contact:

Mr. Frank Kordy

Secretary & Director

Bluesky Digital Assets Corp.

T: (647) 466-4037

E: frank.kordy@blueskydigitalassets.com

Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. The forward- looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made as of the date of this document and 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 expressly required by applicable securities legislation. Although management believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such. Neither CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. We seek safe harbor.

- 30 -

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/84186
HONG KONG, May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- On 13 May 2021, China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co., Ltd. (the "CPIC", the "Company" or the "Group"; Stock code: 2601.HK, 601601.SH, CPIC.LSE) marks its 30th Anniversary.

Since its establishment in 1991 in Shanghai, CPIC has always been practicing the belief of "long-termism" and adhering to high-quality development. By sticking to the right development direction, the Group pressed on with its business transformation, thus delivering a stable growth in its performance. CPIC has been listed on Fortune Global 500 for 10 consecutive years, ranking 5th among the World's 100 Most Valuable Insurance Brands. In 2020, CPIC completed the issuance of Global Depositary Receipts (GDR) and got listed in the London Stock Exchange, which made it the first insurance company listed in three capital markets of Shanghai, Hong Kong and London, and also the first insurance company that issued GDR on LSE.

While dedicating to the stable development of its diversified business, CPIC also integrates the ESG philosophies into its business operations. An ESG summit was jointly held by CPIC and Swiss Re in March this year. In this summit, CPIC announced to integrate the ESG concepts into its daily operations. In April, CPIC once again co-hosted an ESG-themed summit with Shanghai United Assets and Equity Exchange (SUAEE) and UBS to make efforts to build a new model of insurance industry that supports green and low-carbon development. In order to improve the efficiency of ESG management, the top-level design of ESG field was successfully completed at the Board Meeting of CPIC in March earlier, setting a formal goal to carbon neutrality. CPIC will actively promote green investment on the asset end, while continuously strengthening the development and innovation of sustainable insurance products on the liability end.

CPIC innovated the mode of responsible investment with insurance characteristics, and provided financial support for economic transformation through diversified projects such as environmental protection, renewable energy, energy conservation, resettlement of shanty town, and new infrastructure. In addition to direct participation in the investment and construction of green projects, the company made indirect investments, especially via green bond, thereby injecting impetus into the development of green finance. As of the end of 2020, CPIC invested RMB39.751 billion in renewable energy, RMB13.7 billion in water conservation and RMB864 million in environment protection.

In the future, CPIC will continue to promote the diversified and stable development by focusing on three major areas. Firstly, the Group will continue to deepen its efforts in the health-related business development. Through the establishment of the medical big data platform, the Group will be able to accelerate the construction of a comprehensive and full-coverage insurance service value chain that integrates health services with its core insurance business. Moreover, the regional development will be one of the development focuses. The Group strives to improve customer experience standard in the Yangtze River Delta, while strengthening innovation and leadership in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and activating the coordinated development for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region, Chengdu-Chongqing Zone, and Yangtze River Economic Belt. In addition, with the technological empowerment strategy, the Group will achieve three major breakthroughs in scientific and technological efficiency, data services and innovation mechanisms, focusing on the implement of five technological capabilities including governance and control, research and development, data services, platform collaboration, and innovation and transformation, to achieve high-quality development.

Mr. KONG Qingwei, Chairman of CPIC, said at the Group's 30-year Work Summary and Development Conference: "This year marks the 30th anniversary of CPIC, and the spirit of youth will never end. Stepping into its 30s, CPIC takes green development as its goal, and reform and innovation as its driving force. Looking ahead, CPIC will continue to focus on rural revitalization, low-carbon economy, pension services, health management, thereby giving a full play of the advantages of its insurance funds. By taking an active part in the construction of the country's great cause development and people's livelihood, CPIC will stimulate its own new momentum to move towards the next wonderful thirty years."





About China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co., Ltd

China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co. Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "CPIC", or the "Company"; Stock Code: 2601.HK, 601601.SH, CPIC.LSE) is an insurance holding company incorporated on the basis of China Pacific Insurance Company, which was established on May 13, 1991. It is a leading insurance group headquartered in Shanghai, which is the first insurance group simultaneously listed on Shanghai, Hong Kong and London Stock Exchanges. CPIC is a leading comprehensive insurance group; the Company provides a broad range of risk solutions, financial planning and asset management services to over 100 million customers via its nationwide network of distribution and diversified services platforms.

Media Contact: Sun Zhishan, (852)3641-1313
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 15, 2021 / Victory Resources Corporation (CSE:VR)(FRA:VR61)(OTC PINK:VRCFF) ("Victory" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has completed a non-brokered private placement (the "Financing"). The Company raised proceeds of $1,233,722 through the sale of 17,624,593 units at $0.070 per unit. The Company paid finders fees to qualified finders of $67,649.33 and issued 966,419 broker warrants, which are on the same terms as the warrants forming part of the units. Securities issued as a result of closing of the Financing will be subject to a statutory hold period until September 14, 2021.

Each unit consists of one common share in the equity of the Company and one common share purchase warrant (a "Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one additional common share of the Company at a price of $0.10 per share until May 14, 2023, subject to the option of the Company to accelerate the expiry date in the event that its shares trade at $0.25 or more for 10 consecutive days.

The Corporation intends to use the proceeds for general working capital, acquisitions and work programs on the Company's existing exploration properties in Nevada, British Columbia and Quebec, and any additional properties the Company may acquire.

For further information, please contact:

Mark Ireton, President

Telephone: +1 (236) 317 2822 or TOLL FREE 1 (855) 665-GOLD (4653)

E-mail: IR@victoryresourcescorp.com

About Victory Resources Corporation

VICTORY RESOURCES CORPORATION (CSE:VR) is a publicly traded diversified investment corporation with mineral interests in North America. The company is also currently seeking other exploration opportunities, preferably in Canada.

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 Statements

Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding future financial position, business strategy, use of proceeds, corporate vision, proposed acquisitions, partnerships, joint-ventures and strategic alliances and co-operations, budgets, cost and plans and objectives of or involving the Company. Such forward-looking information reflects management's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to management. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "predicts", "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. A number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors may cause the actual results or performance to materially differ from any future results or performance expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of the Company including, but not limited to, the impact of general economic conditions, industry conditions and dependence upon regulatory approvals. 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. The Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by securities laws.

SOURCE: Victory Resources Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/647606/Victory-Resources-Announces-Closing-of-Financing
Art de Parfum Le Joker: Pepper Timur and a bit of Imagination

Raw Materials

I got acquainted with Art de Parfum perfumes at one perfume exhibition and was greatly impressed. Soon the brand appeared in Moscow stores, but somehow quietly and casually, which is not fair, because iodine-marine Sea Foam and refreshing summery Gin and Tonic Cologne are, in my opinion, some of the best fragrances on the given subjects.

In July of 2020, precisely on 07.07, the brand introduced its seventh perfume, Le Joker. Unfortunately, I have seen not one Batman movie, neither am I acquainted with tarot cards, but you can read about the fragrance from that point of view in Raluca Kirschner's review and watch the official fragrance commercial (the music for it was written by Paul Humphreys, the co-founder of the legendary British electronic band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark aka OMD, and the husband of Ruta Degutyte, the founder of Art de Parfum).

At some point, you might think that Le Joker is moving along a beaten path, replicating the main iodine mineral note of Sea Foam' marine theme in combination with yet another quotation, Excentrique Moi's spicy-camphor accord.

However, the true marvel and the center of the fragrance is pepper Timur (Timut), a unique material that has reached perfumers' palettes relatively recently.

Timur pepper aka timut, timit, timbar, and timber is closely related to more known Sichuan pepper. Timur pepper is grown and harvested in Nepal, where it is one of the most common spices and medicinal plants. Firmenich produces an amazing SFE (extracted by Supercritical CO2 Extraction) of timur pepper. Charabot, which has now become a part of Robertet has its own timur pepper material.

Timur pepper has quickly become very popular among perfumers. For example, you can smell it in Tom Ford Noir Anthracite, in which it plays an important role.

Perfume materials extracted from timur pepper are produced by Mane and Symrise, but only for in-company use by their perfumers. Timur is a new material, but I am sure we will smell more of it in the future. Timur pepper was used in Frederic Malle Rose & Cuir, Atelier Materi Poivre Pomelo, L'Orchestre Parfum Bouquet Encore, Lolita Lempicka Oh Ma Biche, Histoires de Parfums 7753 Unexpected Mona and even Avon Patchouli Indulgence.

In fact, Timur and Sichuan pepper are peppers only by their look, they are actually fruits of the plant Zanthoxylum from the Rutaceae family, to which also citruses belong. You can picture them as tiny dried oranges of some sort. Although closely related, Sichuan and Timur pepper have significantly different odor profiles.



on the left  Sichuan pepper (Zanthoxylum bungeanum),

on the right  unripe Japanese or Korean pepper (Zanthoxylum piperitum),

in the center  Timur pepper (Zanthoxylum armatum) from Nepal.

The complexity of the olfactive profile of Timur pepper is truly impressive. It's so nuanced that it alone comprises a full-fledged perfume composition. Citrus notes can be clearly picked up: first of all, grapefruit, then, bitterish Italian citrus chinotto (Citrus myrtifolia) more known after the carbonated drink made with its fruits, and spicy-sweet ginger. An aldehyde complex loudly declares itself as well: octanal (soapy, orange peel), methylheptanal (fresh, green, juicy), and citronellal (lemongrass, dry, herbaceous). There is an expressed aromatic herbal aspect in timur pepper - you can distinctly smell the freshness of mint and the sweet tartness of basil.

Terpenes compose a significant part of the timur pepper essential oil SFE: limonene, myrcene, phellandrene, pinene  the latter adds a coniferous nuance to its general "turpentine" terpene tone.

The methyl ester of cinnamic acid, methyl cinnamate, is also an important component in its odor profile. You actually smell this material in very small quantities almost everywhere, especially in fruits, for example, plums, and flowers, such as narcissus, champaca, jasmine, but the amount of it measured in dozen percent is almost never found in a single perfume material. Except for timur pepper. Methyl cinnamate gives timur pepper its balsamic-fruity character and is responsible for the nuances of cherry, strawberry, pomegranate, and the light spicy aspect of cinnamon. There is a floral facet in timur that resembles rose.

A presence of a micro amount of sulphuric compounds is also found in the scent of timur pepper. Grapefruit mercaptan makes the citrus note recognizably bitter, and 4mercapto4methylpenthanon2, 3-mercaptohexanol, and 3mercaptohexyl acetate add a tropical fruit nuance (lychee) and black currant nuance.

Such a kaleidoscopic complexity of fragrant nuances found in one natural material would have been enough to comprise an entire perfume composition, but the creators of Le Joker added to it at least seven other natural materials.

Right after spraying the perfume, we are pinched by inevitable fresh spicy-woody pink pepper, nicely accentuated by elemi. The aromatic sweet minty and basil-like facet of timur is supported by sweet-spicy star anise, which also balances the mineral accord based on salicylates, which, in turn, stretches to the base by ambroxan.

Le Joker has a woody base made of smoky cypriol (nagarmotha), Atlas cedar, and earthy patchouli. The fresh aquatic accord wonderfully compensates the heavy animalic cedar and moldy patchouli.

The main idea of the perfume is expressed in the quote from Aristotle: "No great genius has ever existed without some touch of madness." Indeed, everything remarkable has to go off the common rails offering a new viewpoint or a new experience. Le Joker is made with this extraordinary approach in mind  it certainly doesn't intend to instantly please you. However, no matter how impulsive and spontaneous love-me-as-i-am the perfume might seem, the perfume was made with great attention to the overall balance and detail. This is undoubtedly a very beautiful and graceful perfume, created to delight its owner without shocking others around.

Le Joker is simply packed with polarizing details. There are aquatic and mineral accords, camphor, anis, patchouli, honey (let's call it that), Atlas cedar, and smoky cypriol. And even if you have already declared your definite "no way on earth" to this fragrance, I warmly suggest you smell it. There is a big chance you will change your mind.
The Habit Burger Grill Continues International Expansion with Fourth Store Opening In Cambodia

The Habit Burger Grill Opens in Olympic, Cambodia on May 14

IRVINE, Calif., May 13, 2021 // PRNewswire // - Over 50 years ago, a coastal burger bungalow opened in Santa Barbara, California, and now the award-winning taste of The Habit Burger Grill is coming to Olympic, Cambodia! The California-based restaurant company renowned for its Charburgers grilled over an open flame, signature sandwiches, fresh-cut salads and more will open a fourth restaurant in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on May 14 in partnership with Kampuchea Tela Company, LTD.

The Habit Burger Grill is California's best-kept secret, as it's been awarded various food-focused awards in the United States. At the center of The Habit's menu is the signature Charburger, made with a fresh, 100% ground beef patty, chargrilled over an open flame for unique smoky flavor, and topped with melted cheese, caramelized onions, hand-cut tomato slices, crisp lettuce, pickles and mayo served on a toasted bun. The Habit has served their famous Charburgers exactly this way since 1969.

"It is an honor to open our fourth Habit restaurant location in Cambodia in partnership with Kampuchea Tela Company, LTD. We look forward to serving the Phnom Penh community handcrafted, chargrilled food with California-fresh flavor, delivered with best-in-class hospitality," said Iwona Alter, Chief Brand Officer at The Habit Burger Grill.

With its cooked-to-order mantra and creative culinary culture, The Habit Burger Grill's open flame sears a distinctive smoky flavor into their Charburgers, fresh marinated chicken, sushi-grade Ahi tuna and USDA Choice tri-tip steaks. The Habit also has an incredible selection of sides to choose from as well as delicious hand-spun frozen treats. Guests at The Habit Burger Grill can always count on freshly-made, handcrafted quality food served up with genuine hospitality.

SOURCE The Habit Burger Grill

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Students and faculty members of Hyocheon Elementary School in Gwangju's Nam District take a COVID-19 test in the school playground, May 14, after one of the students was tested positive for the disease the previous day. Yonhap





Daily new COVID-19 figures fell below 700 for Friday as the authorities expressed concerns about yet another uptick in cases amid a growing number of people traveling nationwide that could lead to more sporadic infection clusters.







The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 681 more coronavirus cases, including 661 local ones, raising the total caseload to 131,061.







The country saw more than 700 daily infections Wednesday and Thursday as sporadic outbreaks lingered across the nation.







There were three additional deaths, raising the total to 1,896.







The government started its vaccination program Feb. 26, but the inoculation drive has made little progress amid a tight supply of vaccines.







The administration earlier announced a bold plan to vaccinate 13 million people by June and achieve herd immunity by November. South Korea is currently making efforts to keep the daily figure below 1,000 through the end of June while speeding up inoculations of senior citizens.






If you're looking for something cool to do tonight or next weekend make sure you...




Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Saturday that South Korea will aim to fully normalize in-person classes at local schools later this year amid government efforts to speed up its inoculation program.







The administration has been operating a mixture of offline and online classes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.







"Due to the prolonged pandemic, I am concerned about the academic gap among students and their lack of social and emotional connection," Kim wrote in a message on Facebook marking Teachers' Day.







"If we focused on preventing the spread of the virus through online classes and disinfection efforts last year, we will now spare no effort to have students fully return to school in the new semester," he added.







Kim said the government will try its hardest to fully vaccinate all teachers from kindergarten to high school by the end of August.







South Korea, which launched its vaccination program in late February, has been focusing on providing shots to medical staff and senior citizens.







Amid apparent supply shortages, however, only 7.3 percent of the country's 52 million population has received at least one dose of the two-dose COVID-19 vaccines from AstraZeneca and Pfizer as of Saturday.







The country earlier announced a bold plan to vaccinate 13 million people by June and achieve herd immunity by November.







The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency reported 681 more COVID-19 cases for Friday, including 661 local infections, raising the total caseload to 131,061. (Yonhap)


Israeli Minister of Economy Amir Peretz, left, and Korean Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Yoo Myung-hee, pose for a photo after signing a free trade agreement between the two countries at Lotte Hotel Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy



By Kwon Mee-yoo



Israeli Minister of Economy Amir Peretz visited Korea to sign a free trade agreement (FTA), opening a new chapter in the bilateral economic relations between the two countries.



Israel is the first Middle Eastern country to sign an FTA with Korea and Korea is the first Asian country to ink one with Israel, signaling the significance of the agreement.



"Israel and South Korea have a lot in common. We both have ancient history and for many years, we both fought for independence, eventually achieving at a similar time," Peretz said during the signing ceremony at Lotte Hotel Seoul, Wednesday. "The free trade agreement will significantly lower tariffs and eliminate duties in so many areas from cars to mobile phones, plastic, chemical, machinery and many more."



The FTA exempts Israeli products imported to Korea as well as Korean products exported to Israel from tariffs. Over 95 percent of each country's export to the counterpart would become tariff-free, increasing competitiveness and improving trade in other areas such as services and investment.



Major beneficiaries in Korea are cars and car parts as 7 percent and 6-12 percent tariffs, respectively, will be lifted immediately. Cars and car parts are Korea's largest exports to Israel, taking up to 46.9 percent of its exports there in 2020.



Tariffs on semiconductor manufacturing equipment, Korea's top import item from Israel, will be eliminated immediately and those on applied electronics devices, the second-largest import from Israel, will be abolished within three years.



Peretz noted the importance of economic cooperation despite rising Israeli-Palestinian tensions.



Korea's Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee emphasized how the FTA will build foundations for both countries' economic growth by speeding up cooperation in advanced industries, not just lowering tariffs.



"This activity is designed to serve as a robust platform for bilateral cooperation in innovation, especially in advanced technology. ... Stronger collaboration between our two countries enables us to stand as the global innovation powerhouses. Specifically, it creates very active promotion and cooperation in aerospace, renewable energy, IT, technology in AI, which serve as our future growth engine," Yoo said.



After the two countries struck the FTA deal in 2019, detailed negotiations were done amid the pandemic and Peretz tried to look for the silver lining.



"The pandemic has forced us to think in new ways. The world is divided by politics and nationality, but COVID-19 is not distinguished between religion, gender, countries or nation. I hope COVID-19 will make a global change in which innovation efforts will be channeled into areas such as environment, education and health," he said.



Meanwhile, the two countries amended the Korea-Israel Technological Cooperation Treaty on the same day as well.



The amendment will double the amount invested to the Korea-Israel Industrial R&D Foundation (KORIL-RDF) from $2 million to $4 million from each country. The revision also invites more research institutes and universities to benefit from the R&D programs.



The two governments have raised some $65 million research fund in the past 20 years, supporting 181 joint research projects.



Gabi Ashkenazi, Israel's minister of foreign affairs, visited Korea with Peretz, but returned to his home country early as violence between Israelis and Palestinians escalated quickly.






More than six out of 10 South Koreans support the idea of pardoning Lee Jae-yong, the jailed de facto leader of Samsung Group, a poll showed Saturday.







According to the joint survey conducted on 1,003 people age 18 or over nationwide from Monday through Wednesday, 64 percent of respondents said they support granting Lee a pardon.







Only 27 percent opposed the idea, while the remaining 9 percent said they were undecided.







Those who support giving clemency to Lee outnumbered those who objected in all age and regional groups, according to the poll.







Among supporters of the liberal ruling Democratic Party of Korea, however, the support rate of 47 percent only slightly outweighed the objection rate of 44 percent.







With support of 92 percent, sympathizers of the main opposition People Power Party overwhelmingly opted for a pardon.







The survey jointly conducted by four Seoul-based pollsters  Embrain Public, KSTAT Research, Korea Research International and Hankook Research  has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.







The results came amid growing calls from business and religious leaders as well as politicians to pardon the jailed tycoon.







The Samsung Electronics vice chairman was imprisoned in January over a high-profile corruption scandal that led to the ousting of former President Park Geun-hee. He was sentenced to 2 and a 1/2 years in prison in an appeal hearing at the Seoul High Court for bribing Park and her longtime friend, Choi Soon-sil, to win government support for a smooth father-to-son transfer of managerial power at the conglomerate.







Given the prison time he has already served in the course of the judicial process, Lee will be a free man in July 2022, unless he is granted a pardon or commutation. He did not appeal the high court ruling.







During a press conference marking the fourth anniversary of his inauguration Monday, President Moon Jae-in said he would make a decision on a pardon after listening to public opinion. (Yonhap)


Scientists and engineers of the Beijing Aerospace Control Center celebrate after China's Tianwen-1 probe successfully landed on Mars, May 15, in this photo released by Xinhua News Agency. AP



An unmanned Chinese spacecraft successfully landed on the surface of Mars, Saturday, according to state news agency Xinhua, making China the second space-faring country after the United States to land on the "Red Planet."



The Tianwen-1 spacecraft landed at a site on a vast plain known as Utopia Planitia, "leaving a Chinese footprint on Mars for the first time," Xinhua reported.



Chinese President Xi Jinping issued a message of congratulations to all the people involved in the mission.



"You were brave enough for the challenge, pursued excellence and placed our country in the advanced ranks of planetary exploration," he said. "Your outstanding achievement will forever be etched in the memories of the motherland and the people."



The craft left its parked orbit at about 1 a.m. (local time - Beijing), and three hours later the landing module separated from the orbiter and entered the Martian atmosphere, the official China Space News said.



It said the landing process consisted of "nine minutes of terror" as the module decelerates and then slowly descends.



The official landing time was 7:18 a.m. (local time), Xinhua said, citing the China National Space Administration. The craft took more than 17 minutes to unfold its solar panels and antenna and send signals to ground controllers more than 320 million kilometers away.



A deployed rover, named Zhurong, will now survey the landing site before departing from its platform to conduct inspections. Named after a mythical Chinese god of fire, Zhurong has six scientific instruments including a high-resolution topography camera.





Visitors pass by an exhibition depicting rovers on Mars in Beijing, May 14. AP-Yonhap
It had been rumored for a while but the Turkish Grand Prix will not take place as originally scheduled following a rise in coronavirus cases. There is still a possibility that the race will take place later this year, but that chance seems small. With the addition of an extra race in Austria the Formula 1 calendar is back to 23 races.

Disappointed reactions after cancellation of GP Turkey

Understandably there are many disappointed reactions to the news that the race in Turkey has been postponed. But not only were there people were looking forward to the race; the circuit is generally loved by both drivers and viewers.

However, this is not the only thing that is being talked about; several people call it unnecessary to replace the race with another one given there are so many races already on the calendar.

Below some of the reactions to the news:

# F1 - Breaking: #TurkishGP has been called off, possibly to be held later in the year. French GP date moved, forming the first weekend of a triple header with a back to back in Austria. More to follow .. pic.twitter.com/zxwqrkV3pC - Thomas Maher (@ thomasmaheronf1) May 14, 2021

Your updated F1 calendar, now with two races in Austria and a slightly earlier race in France # F1 pic.twitter.com/KmFYDnCL4b - Formula 1 (@ F1) May 14, 2021

NEWS: Sadly we won't be racing in Turkey as planned in June, but we've got another double-header in Austria to look forward to instead:



20th June #FrenchGP

27th June #StyrianGP

4th July #AustrianGP



To all our fans in Turkey, we hope to see you again really soon. pic.twitter.com/AnFvbrMYOn - Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team (@ AstonMartinF1) May 14, 2021

Is it really necessary to fill the gap left by the cancelled #TurkishGP? 22/23 is simply too many grands prix anyway. This obsession with event saturation is getting way out of hand.#F1  Simon Strang (@StrangRacing) May 14, 2021

F1 in 2018: 'We would never schedule another triple header, it is just too taxing on staff and crews.'



F1 in 2021: '3 Triple Headers'.#F1PP  F1 Paddock Pass (Wears A Mask) (@F1PaddockPass) May 14, 2021

Read more Domenicali delighted with Austria double-header despite Turkey cancellation
Lauren Lee, a barista at Coal Train Coffee, offers an iced latte to a customer Wednesday morning. The coffee shop is the latest in a number of new businesses opening in downtown Green River.

The scent of coffee hangs heavy in the air as barista Lauren Lee fills an order for an iced latte at Coal Train Coffee Wednesday morning. Light coming in from a window facing Castle Rock illuminates the inside of the coffee shop, showcasing the stainless steel appliances. Everything looks new.

Located in the Tomahawk Hotel, in the corner space facing Flaming Gorge Way, the coffee shop's owner, Denise Webster thinks is the perfect spot for her business. Originally, her aim was to establish Coal Train Coffee in the Green River Depot, continuing the theme she started when she opened the Rock Springs branch of Coal Train Coffee at the Rock Springs Depot. The ongoing and slow-moving renovation work at the Green River Depot meant she would have to wait several years to do that.

It was a conversation Webster had with Councilwoman Sherry Bushman that put her in touch with Marty Carollo, one of the partners in GRoWYO, LLC, a group that purchased the Tomahawk Hotel building. After conversations with Carollo, she decided to establish her coffee shop in the Tomahawk.

So far, Webster says the community has been very welcoming, as have local business owners and employees at nearby shops and employees at the nearby Sweetwater County Courthouse.

Webster, a resident of Farson, has enjoyed learning the history of the building and hearing personal stories from customers about shopping at the stores that used to be in the building.

"It's just neat to learn about a new community," Webster said.

For someone who wanted to facilitate meetings and gatherings and originally intended to name her coffee shop Gathering Grounds, opening in Green River has already proven to be a great decision for Webster.

A number of store spaces that were vacant have recently been filled with local businesses establishing themselves to serve Green River's residents. Among the new businesses are Green River Bullion and Coins, which specializes in coins and precious metals and Serenity One Sanctuary, a previously existing business which had grown and moved to its current location on E. Flaming Gorge Way. Another coffee shop, Grace House, opened its location on W. Flaming Gorge Way last week as well.

Jennie Melvin, administrator for the city's Urban Renewal Agency and Main Street organization, said it's hard for Main Street and the URA to receive full credit for the number of businesses that have moved into the area, but said the programs and events they host does being foot traffic to the downtown area.

The biggest contributor she sees is the success of the Red White Buffalo, an artisan shop specializing in Wyoming-sourced goods that moved into the Tomahawk Hotel last year. Melvin said the business has achieved something that has benefitted the downtown area as it attracts customers from Rock Springs. She does say a 2019 artist showcase Main Street hosted at the Tomahawk Hotel did plant the seed for Red White Buffalo moving into the building.

The Red White Buffalo, owned by Barry and Bonnie Tippy, has become a prominent downtown business since opening.

The Red White Buffalo, owned by Barry and Bonnie Tippy, has become a prominent downtown business since opening last year.

The Green River Chamber of Commerce recently named it its 2021 Outstanding Business, citing its growth, its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the local events hosted by the business when it announced the award.

Barry said the number of people interested in selling their wares through Red White Buffalo continues to grow, with products from 84 different people and companies available at the Green River store and 75 at their second shop in Lander.

More recently, the business has grown to include the Tomahawk Tavern, a small bar within Red White Buffalo selling Wyoming-sourced spirits, wines and beer.

Tony Niemic, a partner with the Tippys in establishing the Tomahawk Tavern, said the response has been great so far.

"It's a good niche market," he said. "We've always got on order coming in."

Niemic said they plan to expand their offerings with additional products and focus on some of the higher-end products Wyoming distilleries and wineries are making.

Both Bonnie and Barry believe the success of their businesses has inspired others to follow through and open a business downtown.

"It's showing other people that you can take that chance and provide something for Green River," Barry said. "I think people would rather spend their money locally."

For Webster, the commitment Carollo has shown in helping her start her coffee shop in Green River. A significant amount of renovations were needed before the coffee shop could open.

"Hats off to Marty Carollo, he just wants businesses to succeed," she said. "We're all in this together.
With talk of infrastructure funding in the news, staff at the City of Green River Public Works Department are optimistic that the Flaming Gorge Way Corridor Study may elevate the status of a project they have been trying to promote for years.

Public Works Director Mark Westenskow says The Flaming Gorge Way Corridor Study project was started in January 2020 through a cooperative agreement between the City of Green River and the Wyoming Department of Transportation. He says this projects purpose has been to develop an integrated land use, transportation, and urban design vision and plan for Flaming Gorge Way in Downtown Green River.

The project team examined accessibility/walkability, road surface and ride quality, the age and condition of water mains for fire protection, the existing storm drain system, current and proposed land uses, and factors contributing to traffic related to increased downtown business and possible closure of I-80 on either side of the tunnels where Flaming Gorge Way would handle the by-pass traffic, and parking congestion.

Westenskow says the study provides recommendations and solutions to address access for pedestrians, residents, visitors, and emergency responders, improve safety, mitigate congestion, and position Flaming Gorge Way for reinvestment and redevelopment. Recommendations include specific street improvements to enhance safety and functionality for all users, alongside being appropriate for the scale, character, and land uses in the corridor.

The project team conducted several community outreach events during the development of the study, including stakeholder meetings in early 2020, and a design charrette and outreach at the farmers market last summer.

The study will provide a sufficient level of detail to pose clear choices, identify infrastructure and operational needs, and recommend an implementation plan, including cost estimates. The recommendations will inform a future full design project.
GILLETTE  A Campbell County High School graduate and U.S. Army veteran is running for Wyomings lone U.S. House of Representatives seat in 2022.

Denton Knapp, a 1983 CCHS grad who served for 30 years in the U.S. Army, has announced that he will challenge Republican Rep. Liz Cheney.

Knapp, who now lives in California but is moving back to Gillette, said hes wanted to go into public service since high school and that now is a good time to do it.

Knapp joins other Republicans in state Sen. Anthony Bouchard, state Rep. Chuck Gray, Bryan Keller, Marissa Selvig and Darin Smith in an ever-growing group of people running against Cheney in 2022.

Since Cheney voted to impeach then-president Donald Trump following the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, shes been under fire for voting outside party lines, especially since she represents Wyoming, which voted overwhelmingly for Trump in both 2016 and 2020.

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.

Knapp said hes seen Cheney, as well as her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, serve Wyoming well for many years, so it was a surprise to me when she voted the way she did.

He also was disappointed with Cheney maintaining that there was no election fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Knapp said he believes theres evidence supporting both sides, but he does not like that Cheney has taken a hard stance on the issue.

On the federal level, the government isnt doing a good job of taking care of veterans, coal miners and their families, Knapp said.

The country has big challenges ahead of it under President Joe Bidens administration, he said.

Were going through a new administration focused on radically changing our way of life, not only in Wyoming but the (whole country), he said.

Knapp said he voted for Trump twice because he thought Trump was the best candidate, and that if the former president runs again, Ill be there to support him.

If you look at our economy, the support of national defense, status with overseas partners and adversaries, we got respect (during Trumps presidency). He definitely was America first, Knapp said.

After graduating from CCHS, Knapp attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, graduating in 1987. He spent the next 30 years in the Army, retiring in 2017 as a colonel. Knapp served three combat tours: two in Iraq and one in Afghanistan.

After retirement, Knapp and his wife, Heather, moved to California to spend time with his son. While there, he was promoted to Brigadier General in the California State Guard as Deputy Commanding General, 40th Infantry Division. He also worked as the director of the Tierney Center for Veteran Services, Goodwill Industries of Orange County, leading efforts to provide services for the countys 130,000 veterans through nonprofit organizations and local, state and federal governments.
CHEYENNE  With Wyoming facing an annual funding shortfall worth roughly $300 million for its K-12 education system, lawmakers on the Joint Revenue Committee spent much of their meeting Monday reviewing how the state pays for its services, as well as how its economic lynchpins have changed over the past decade.

Wyoming, which has long relied on coal, oil and natural gas industries to pay the lions share of taxes in the state, has seen a substantial decline in revenues over the last decade.

From the 2013-14 biennium to the 2017-18 biennium, the states total operating revenues declined by 20%. Revenues have continued to dip since then, by about 25% from the 2017-18 biennium to the current 2021-22 biennium. Meanwhile, Wyoming has the second-lowest tax burden for a family of four.

Of course, the topic is not a new one. More than 20 years ago, the Legislature formed the Tax Reform 2000 Committee, composed of lawmakers and other stakeholders, to examine problems and potential solutions within Wyomings tax code. Dan Noble, director of the states Department of Revenue, ran through some of the main takeaways during the lawmakers meeting Monday in Riverton.

Probably, the biggest issue was our tax structure is unstable, Noble said. We base, in some instances, more than half of our economy on the price of a commodity, and that creates some issues when youre talking about volatile pricing of things like oil, gas and coal, particularly oil and gas  very, very volatile.

Noble said another issue identified by the committee was the regressive nature of Wyomings sales tax, at an average rate of 5.33% across the state, with a base level of 4%. The report found lower-wage families pay a larger share of their incomes on sales tax than higher-end earners, who often spend a great portion of their money on items not subject to sales taxes.

The largest share of Wyomings revenues comes from property taxes, of which mineral industries pay a substantial portion. However, the mineral industries make up far less of the total property valuation in the state now than they did a decade ago, dropping from 70% of the total valuation in 2009 to 50% in 2019.

Committee co-chairman Rep. Steve Harshman, R-Casper, said that decline was largely due to severe downturns in coal production over the past decade. While Wyoming, like other states, uses property tax revenue to fund K-12 education, he said the source of its property values sets it apart from many of its neighbors.

The difference in Wyoming is minerals pay half our property taxes ... Were always going to have schools, but its based on a really volatile revenue stream, Harshman said.

Seeking ways to stabilize the states structure, the Tax Reform 2000 Committee outlined several recommendations for elected officials, and the one that topped the list and didnt go much further than the list, Noble said, was to implement a corporate and individual income tax. In its final report in 1999, the committee said such taxes would address the instability Noble mentioned Monday.

A Wyoming State Constitution provision allows credit for sales, use and property taxes paid during the same tax year from any state income tax due. An income tax that includes this provision makes the Wyoming tax structure more balanced and equitable, states the report. Higher incomes would pay a greater portion of the tax, but when all taxes households pay are considered, each level of income would pay approximately the same percentage in state taxes.

There has been little appetite to pursue either type of income tax in the Legislature, however. Most recently, a proposal to impose an income tax on high-end earners failed in a legislative committee meeting last fall, and a bill from Rep. Mike Yin, D-Jackson, to impose a 4% income tax never received a hearing during the general session this spring.

While there has been next-to-zero interest in an individual income tax in Wyoming, a recent study has found that the states residents could take on a higher tax burden in some form, whether through income, property or sales taxes.

Conducted by the Wyoming Center for Business and Economic Analysis at Laramie County Community College, that study built upon a legislative staff report that compared Wyomings tax structure to neighboring states, using the median rates from that group as a capacity threshold. When factoring in local costs of living, hourly wages and average income levels, those comparisons, as well as ones with other states without income taxes, suggest Wyoming residents could be paying slightly more.

Average annual wages and median hourly wages for all occupations in Wyoming are higher than the median and mean of surrounding states, reads the report.

Although the numbers have slight differences, when comparing Wyoming to all states without personal income taxes, but including those that have corporate income taxes, the overall trend stays consistent, the report later continues. Wyoming has higher household income and annual wages than the median values of the comparison group, but slightly lower values for the average. Wyomings hourly wages are also higher in both variables, and the cost of living is substantially lower.

Wyoming Center for Business and Economic Development Director Nick Colsch, who presented the report to the committee Monday, noted the state could bring in substantial revenue by reaching or approaching the tax rates of states that, like Wyoming, lack income taxes. If Wyoming were to reach the median rates of sales, property and fuel taxes in the states without any sort of income tax, it would raise roughly $2.35 billion in the 2023-24 biennium, according to the analysis.

In our view, there is capacity for Wyoming citizens to bear a higher tax burden, Colsch said Monday.

There was some pushback to the reports methodology during the committee meeting. Rep. Chuck Gray, R-Casper, argued the analysis was comparing apples and oranges by comparing Wyoming with states that lack the same level of mineral commodities.

But committee co-chairman Sen. Cale Case, R-Lander, said the analysis was a useful effort to provide some direction to lawmakers in the long run.

Were well on this trip, (been) well on this trip the last 10 years, Case said. Weve been very much on this trip for the last five years (in which) were losing that mineral base. With global warming, concerns about CO2, its not going to come back. So, wed better figure out where were going and how were going to get there, and I think thats why this analysis is a good analysis.

Wyoming Education Association Executive Director Ron Sniffin agreed that the state is at a crossroads, with a structural deficit to fund its school system and infrastructure. At the end of Mondays meeting, which was the first half of a two-day committee meeting, he urged lawmakers to consider new revenue opportunities in order to provide essential services to the states students and citizens.

The Wyoming education system simply cannot continue to do more with less, Sniffin said. Insufficient streams of stable revenue to fund education all but guarantee that without action, the students of 2024 will not be afforded the same educational opportunities as students today. Wyoming students need your help.
Smoke rises following Israeli airstrikes on a building in Gaza City, May 13. AP





Israeli fighter jets hit targets in central Gaza overnight, the country's military said Saturday, after a day of deadly violence rocked the West Bank and unprecedented unrest persisted inside Israel.







Despite intensifying diplomatic efforts to ease five days of fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza, Israel's Air Force struck several sites in the strip overnight, while rockets again tore towards the Jewish state.







Overall Palestinian fatalities from strikes on Gaza have reached 126  including 31 children  with 950 injured.







Israel, which is also trying to contain an outbreak of internal Jewish-Arab violence, is facing a conflict in the Palestinian territories unlike any in its recent history.







Its bombardment of Gaza began Monday in response to rocket-fire towards Jerusalem from Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups in the enclave.







More than 2,000 rockets have been fired at the Jewish state since Monday, killing nine people, including a child and a soldier, with more than 560 people injured.







Israel's response has seen it hit nearly 800 targets, including a massive assault Friday on a Hamas tunnel network dug under civilian areas.







Towers and homes were levelled, forcing Gaza families to seek shelter in schools and mosques, ahead of another possible bombardment.







"All the children are afraid and we are afraid for the children," said Kamal al-Haddad, who fled with his family to a UN-supported school in Gaza City.







Early Saturday, the Israeli army said it had hit a Hamas "operations office" near the center of Gaza City, with additional overnight strikes targeting what the military called "underground launch sites."







Air raid warnings continued to wail in southern Israel early Saturday.







The fighting in blockaded Gaza, the worst since a 2014 war, exploded following hostilities in east Jerusalem, the Israeli-annexed part of the city Palestinians claim as their capital.







Fresh overnight tensions hit the east Jerusalem area of Shuafat, where young, masked Palestinian protesters set debris on fire as Israeli police responded with tear gas.







People take part in a rally in solidarity with Palestinians, in Santiago, Chile, May 14. EPA-Yonhap









The West Bank saw fierce fighting Friday, with the Palestinian Health Ministry saying 11 people were killed by Israeli fire.





A Palestinian security source said the fighting was the "most intense" since the second intifada, or uprising, that began in 2000.







Violence on Fridays in the West Bank is a traditional facet of the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but the latest clashes are closely linked to the events in Jerusalem and Gaza.







From Ramallah to Hebron and across the territory occupied by Israel since 1967, Palestinians hurled stones, Molotov cocktails and other projectiles.







Israeli forces hit back with rubber bullets and, in some instances, live rounds.






Three Sweetwater County high school graduates are Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County scholarship recipients.

Rikki Cozad, Delaney Gardea, and Abby Hautala all received scholarships.

Two of the scholarships were awarded by the MHSC General Medical staff. Cozad, a Rock Springs High School student, and Gardea, a Green River High School student, each received a scholarship for $3,000. The hospital contributes $1,500 and the medical staff contributes $1,500 to each scholarship.

Hautala received a $1,500 scholarship from Sweetwater Memorial. The hospital, through its Marketing Department and a committee of four hospital department directors, awards the scholarship annually to an RSHS Health Academy student on behalf of the entire MHSC staff.

Delaney Gardea plans to attend Western Wyoming Community College in the fall and pursue a nursing career. Gardea, 17, is the daughter of Hope Gardea and Jeff Gardea, both of Green River. She ranks 29th in her class of 169.

Being a healthcare worker takes someone special, she said in her scholarship application essay. I am a caring person who loves to help people. Being a healthcare worker, I feel is an awesome option for me.

Her grandfather inspired her to pursue a career in nursing.

His health for the past three years has declined greatly, Gardea said. Watching how the nurses interact with my grandfathers care has impacted me greatly. They are very caring and kind superheroes.

I feel that I would be a great fit for an RN, she said. Nursing is a hard and underrated job, but I believe that I can do it. I have a huge passion for caring for people, as well as a passion for human anatomy and physiology.
GREENWICH  The first baptism at St. Paul Roman Catholic Church on Sherwood Avenue was a joyous  if not particularly comfortable  occasion.

It didnt even have pews! It was still under construction, said Joe DeMarkey, 83, whose youngest child, Peter, was christened that day. But we didnt want to wait. We were going to hold it in the church.

The DeMarkey Family  and thousands of like-minded faithful  have marked many a milestone at the Glenville parish. And, in 2021, the congregation is marking two of its own: the 50th anniversary of the consecration of the current church building and the 120th anniversary of the churchs founding.

The celebrations couldnt come at a better time, said the Rev. Leszek Szymaszek, referring to the gradual reopening of the country from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Theres a hunger for community, he said as parishioners begin returning in larger numbers to join the celebration of Mass in person.

The same was true back in 1854, when church records show the first Catholic resident in Sherwood Bridge, now Glenville, attended Mass in the Greenwich area. English settlers were first drawn to the area for the water power along the Byram River and, by the 1880s, Irish and Polish immigrants arrived in the area, with many working for the American Felt Companys woolen mills in the area.

Glenville was originally a mission of a parish in East Port Chester, N.Y. It was that parishs priest, the Rev. Thomas Finn, who first recognized the need for a separate parish in Glenville, according to the churchs history.

The church bought land from the felt company and, in 1901, a charter was filed for the new parish. On June 1, 1902, the cornerstone was blessed for the new church on Glenville Street.

By the 1950s and 1960s, the church had purchased some land in the area, said Szymaszek, a Polish immigrant himself. It turned out to be fortuitous, as the old wooden church suffered severe damage in a 1967 fire.

The parish thought it was beyond repair and they had the vision to move to a new location, he said.

The parish school, which opened its doors only a few years earlier, held its first and only graduation on June 21, 1970, and attention turned to the new church building.

Some longtime parishioners remember the in-between years when the church celebrated liturgies and the sacraments in the school, sometimes in the auditorium. Current parishioners Joseph and Eleanor Filanowski were among the last couples to be married in the old church.

Theyre a wonderful, wonderful couple, Szymaszek said.

The parish considered many design options for the new church planned for the corner of King Street and Sherwood Avenue. Then-Bishop of Bridgeport Walter Curtis selected the distinctive in-the-round circular shape for the building, which was designed shortly after the sweeping church reforms of Vatican II.

The Second Vatican Council encouraged engagement among the parishioners and the design helped ensure everyone inside the church would be focused on the altar, Szymaszek said.

While much of the old St. Paul building was not salvageable, he said the church was able to preserve the perpetual light holder that hangs next to the tabernacle, where the consecrated host is kept.

St. Pauls 1,800 parishioners  about 1,200 of whom are active in the churchs weekly services, pasta suppers, youth group, mens group, womens guild and other activities  marked the churchs 50th birthday in April. A celebration marking the 50th and the 120th anniversary is planned for June 27 and other festivities may take place in the fall, when more members are comfortable gathering together.

Its a parish that is looked at as somewhat quiet, said Parish Council member Frank Marino, but there is so much going on.

DeMarkey, who joined the church in the 1960s, attends daily Mass, a ritual he shared with his wife, Linda, until her death in 2015. A longtime lector, the father of three and grandfather of eight said he loves his time at St. Paul.

Its more like a family, he said. It brings you closer to the Lord.

For more information on St. Paul Church, visit www.stpaulgreenwich.org.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A year before her election to Congress, Marjorie Taylor Greene searched for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at her Capitol office, taunting the New York Democrat to get rid of your diaper and talk to the American citizens, as shown in video unearthed by CNN.

I am an American citizen. I pay your salary through the taxes that you collect from me through the IRS, Greene says through the mail slot of a locked door. I am a woman. I am a female business owner and I'm proud to be an American woman. And I do not support your socialist policies.

The Georgia Republican continued: If you want to be a big girl, you need to get rid of your diaper and come out and be able to talk to the American citizens." Two men appear along with her in the video, also mocking Ocasio-Cortez and her staff through the mail slot.

The release of the since-deleted video, which was initially broadcast in February 2019 on Facebook Live, came the same week that Greene followed Ocasio-Cortez off the House floor, shouting that the Democrat supported terrorists and doesnt care about the American people, as first reported by The Washington Post. She has been challenging Ocasio-Cortez to a debate on Twitter, entreaties that Ocasio-Cortez had been ignoring.

Asked Friday about the context of the 2019 video, Greene told reporters, Walking around and talking to members of Congress who serve the taxpayers that, now weve got taxpayers arent even allowed to come talk to us, thats the context."

The incidents add to a portrait of the activist-turned-lawmaker who has shown little interest in governing, but has instead used her platform to float conspiracy theories, push Donald Trump's false claims about a stolen 2020 election and further her own notoriety. Her combativeness toward colleagues has only grown after an unprecedented rebuke where the House stripped her of committee assignments, effectively ending her ability to shape legislation.

Another confrontation Friday involved a member of her staff.

Rep. Eric Swalwell said a staffer for Greene yelled at him to take his mask off after stepping off the House floor, an unusual of breach of decorum. Though the CDC has relaxed mask-wearing guidelines for those who have been vaccinated, many lawmakers continue to wear them, and they are still required on the House floor.

"I had a mask on as I stepped off the Floor. An aide with @mtgreenee yelled at me to take my mask off. No one should be bullied for wearing a mask,"' Swalwell tweeted. So I told the bully what I thought of his order."

On Twitter Friday, Greene said she had witnessed the confrontation and claimed, No one yelled.

Greene's behavior has alarmed some members of Congress, where feelings remain raw after the deadly Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters intent on overturning the outcome of the 2020 election.

This is a woman thats deeply unwell and clearly needs some help," Ocasio-Cortez told reporters Friday. Her kind of fixation has lasted for several years now and the depth of that unwellness has raised concerns for other members, as well.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Greenes behavior was beyond the pale and raised the possibility of an ethics investigation.

This is beneath the dignity of a person serving in the Congress of the United States and is a cause for trauma, and fear among members, especially on the heels of an insurrection, Pelosi said Thursday..

Yet so far, Republicans have shown little appetite for punishing Greene. They rallied around her in February after some of her past comments came to light, including her endorsement of calls to assassinate leading Democrats. That left it to Democrats, who were joined by 11 Republicans, in voting to strip her of her committee assignments.

As a congressional candidate, Greene posted a photo in 2020 of herself with a gun next to images of Ocasio-Cortez and fellow Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.

Before her election, she also supported Facebook posts that advocated violence against Democrats and the FBI. One suggested shooting Pelosi in the head. In response to a post raising the prospect of hanging former President Barack Obama, Greene responded that the stage is being set.

In one 2018 Facebook posts, she speculated that lasers or blue beams of light controlled by a left-wing cabal tied to a powerful Jewish family could have been responsible for sparking California wildfires.

And in February 2019, Greene appeared in an another online video filmed at the U.S. Capitol, arguing that Omar and Tlaib werent really official members of Congress because they didnt take the oath of office on the Bible. Both women are Muslim.
WELCH, W.Va. (AP)  A World War II veteran who passed away recently has proven that its possible to keep helping others by giving the gift of life and becoming the oldest recorded organ donor in United States history.

Cecil F. Lockhart of Welch was 95 years old when he passed away May 4 after a short illness. He served his country during World War II and contributed to his community by mining coal for more than 50 years, and his desire to serve others continued when his donated liver aided a 62-year-old woman.

The Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE) announced Monday that Lockharts decision to help others after death made him the oldest recorded organ donor in United States history. This distinction was confirmed by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS).

Lockharts family said he was moved to become an organ donor following the death of his son, Stanley, in 2010, after which Stanley healed the lives of 75 people through tissue donation and restored sight to two others through cornea donation. Cecil Lockhart is survived by Helen Cline Lockhart, his wife of 75 years, his daughter, Sharon White, and his son, Brian Lockhart, as well as three grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

Bill Davis, who is Sharon Whites husband, said that Lockhart served in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II, and was on the ground during the fighting in the Philippines.

Davis told the Bluefield Daily Telegraph that his father-in-law would be ecstatic to know that his decision to become an organ donor has helped a person already.

Cecil was a very caring and giving man, Davis recalled.

Basically, Lockhart thought that since he would not need his body after passing away, his organs could go on to help people in need. Davis said that hes an organ donor, too, and its something the family is urging other people to consider. Davis brought up the subject during Lockharts funeral.

I asked people to think about becoming an organ donor in his honor and his memory, Davis stated. One of the things is you can do good things with your life even after your life is completed.

Lockharts daughter also spoke about her fathers desire to help others.

He was a generous person when he was alive, and we are filled with pride and hope knowing that, even after a long, happy life, he is able to continue that legacy of generosity, Sharon White said. When my brother was a donor after he passed away a few years ago, it helped my dad to heal. And today, knowing his life is continuing through others really is helping us through our grief, too.

Davis said that Lockhart was the oldest organ donor on record in the United States and as far as the family knew, the oldest internal organ donor in the world. Besides his liver, patches of his skin will be used to help burn victims and repair cleft palates in children. Even if internal organs are not acceptable, people can still donate skin, body fluid, the corneas of their eyes and other organs, he added.

The liver can last for a long time and Cecil was in good health at 95, Davis stated. He didnt drink and he didnt smoke, and he ate the things he should eat and his liver was in very good condition from what the surgeons told me.

One surgeon told Davis that the 62-year-old woman could live to become 95, too.

Were talking about a functioning adult human being, and thats just amazing to me, he said.

Both CORE representatives and Lockharts family pointed out there is no age limit for becoming an organ donor.

Theres no reason not to be an organ donor, and he proved that no matter how old you are, you can still be a donor, Davis stated.

More than 30 percent of all deceased organ donors in the United States since 1988 have been age 50 or older, according to UNOS data. And its a trend thats rising.

So far in 2021, 39 percent of all U.S. deceased organ donors have been age 50 or older, according to UNOS. That is up more than 8 percent from just 20 years ago. Seven percent of deceased organ donors since 1988 have been age 65 or older. In the last 20 years, 17 people over age 90 have died and become organ donors in the United States, with the first instance occurring in 2001.

Its really not something that just for the young, said Katelynn Metz, a CORE media representative.

Donations like the one Lockhart made go on help thousands of people.

CORE is incredibly proud to have been able to make this historic organ donation possible, said Susan Stuart, CORE president and CEO. This landmark in the field of transplantation is just another example of COREs pioneering legacy and commitment to innovation, which, over the last 40 years, has given 6,000 people in the United States the opportunity to save more than 15,000 others as organ donors.

The record-breaking donation in West Virginia took place during Older Americans Month, which is observed in the United States every May to acknowledge the contributions of past and current older persons to the country. UNOS Chief Medical Officer David Klassen said that Cecil Lockharts contribution is indeed significant  and one that each and every American has the power to achieve as well by registering as a donor.

Too often, people mistakenly believe there is an age limit associated with being an organ donor, said Klassen. The truth is, no one is ever too old or too young to give the gift of life. Every potential donor is evaluated on a case-by-case basis at the time of their death to determine which organs and tissue are suitable for donation. Cecils generous and historic gift is a perfect example of that.

Lockhart served his country during World War II and continued to serve it by mining the coal needed for Americas industry and power generation, Davis said. He kept helping other people after he passed away, and now his family is urging other people to follow his example.

I look at it this way, he added. Jesus told us What you do for the least of these, you do for Me and if I give an organ  a piece of skin, an eye cornea  for another human being, Im doing what He told us to do.

There is a reason that group of people was called The Greatest Generation, Davis concluded. Because he gave and he gave and he gave, and now its our turn.
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, left, and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, right, have a meeting in Moscow, Russia, May 14, 2021. EPA-Yonhap





Russia formally designated the United States and the Czech Republic as "unfriendly states," Friday, amid the biggest crisis in ties between Moscow and Washington in years.







The government there released a decree signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, accompanied by a list of "unfriendly states" that "have carried out unfriendly actions" against Russia, Russian nationals or Russian entities.







The Czech Embassy will not be allowed to employ more than 19 Russian nationals, while the U.S. embassy cannot hire any, Moscow said.







Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow remained ready for dialogue, state news agency TASS reported, stressing the fact that Russia had now only two nations on its "unfriendly states" list.







Prague said the step would only "escalate relations" between Moscow and the Czech Republic, the EU and its allies.







"We are sorry that Russia has embarked on the confrontation road to its own detriment," the Czech foreign ministry said in a statement.







"This measure will also indirectly affect the potential development of relations between ordinary citizens, tourism, and the development of business relations," it added.







EU chief Charles Michel tweeted the bloc's "full solidarity" with Prague as he insisted the move "undermines diplomatic relations."







"Efforts to divide the EU are in vain," Michel wrote.











In recent months tensions have spiraled between Russia and the West over a litany of issues, including Russia's troop build-up on Ukraine's border, interference in the U.S. elections and other perceived hostile activities.







Russia-U.S. relations have rapidly deteriorated after President Joe Biden increased pressure on the Kremlin since being inaugurated in January.







In April, Washington announced sanctions and the expulsion of 10 Russian diplomats in retaliation for what it says was interference by the Kremlin in the elections, a massive cyberattack and other hostile activity.







Russia, in response, expelled 10 U.S. diplomats, banned top American officials from entering the country and prohibited the U.S. Embassy from employing foreign nationals.







After Biden likened Russian President Vladimir Putin to a "killer," Russia temporarily recalled its ambassador to the United States and later said the U.S. envoy to Moscow should also head to Washington for consultations.







The U.S. Embassy was forced to suspend most consular services to its nationals and stopped issuing visas due to a drastic reduction in staff following the tit-for-tat sanctions.







But on Friday it said it would temporarily resume consular services for its citizens "through July 16."







Tensions have also spiraled with the Czech Republic after Prague accused Russian military intelligence of being behind a deadly explosion at an ammunition depot in the eastern part of the country in 2014.







Moscow said last month it would cap the number of the Czech Embassy staff in a tit-for-tat move after the EU country announced it was expelling dozens of Russian diplomats. (AFP)






Haiti - FLASH : President Moise renews the mandate of the Prime Minister for 30 days





Friday, May 14 in the official journal Le Moniteur Special #26, President Moise published an Order appointing the citizen Claude Joseph, Prime Minister a.i., for a period of thirty (30) days.



"he mandate of PM a.i Claude Joseph is coming to an end today [Friday]. I am renewing him for the same duration. The time has come to find a favorable outcome to this crisis which has lasted for 35 years. Together, we can do it," wrote President Jovenel Moise on Friday evening on his Twitter account.



Recall that according to Frantz Exantus, the Secretary of State for Communication had declared earlier this week that five personalities were currently assessed to assume the post of Prime Minister https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33701-haiti-politic-5-candidates-in-evaluation-for-the-post-of-prime-minister.html "If all goes well, we should soon have a new Prime Minister".



But apart from this choice, the cause of this extension beyond the 30 days granted by the Constitution is the impossibility to find so far a political agreement to form a Government of national unity. However, President Moise remains confident to reach an agreement next week to form a new government.



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33701-haiti-politic-5-candidates-in-evaluation-for-the-post-of-prime-minister.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33475-haiti-flash-resignation-of-pm-joseph-jouthe-claude-joseph-is-appointed-pm-ai.html



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Honduras : 12 Haitians and 3 coyotes arrested





Police authorities arrested three Honduran "coyotes" in Choluteca region of southern Honduras who were illegally transporting 16 illegal migrants to the United States, including 12 Haitians, 3 Cubans and 1 Peruvian.



The migrants were transported on a Mitsubishi brand microbus driven by one of the traffickers, while his 2 accomplices each on a motorbike served as scouts to avoid police checks.



In addition to the arrests of the 3 traffickers, the transport vehicle, 2 motorcycles, 3 mobile phones and nearly 1,000 US dollars were seized.



Illegal migrants were referred to the National Institute for Migration of Choluteca (INM) for analysis of their situation.



The 3 "coyotes" were placed under the orders of the Choluteca Public Prosecutor's Office for legal proceedings, accused among other things of illegal human trafficking.



SL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Quebec : Prospects for bilateral cooperation conducive to sustainable development





Thursday May 13, 2021, the Consul General of Haiti in Montreal, Fritz Dorvilier had a fruitful meeting by videoconference with in particular the Minister of Higher Education of Quebec, Ms. Danielle McCann.



Minister McCann testified to Quebec's united openness to bilateral cooperation for sustainable development with Haiti.



Consul General Dorvillier, a connoisseur of the Haitian education system, took the opportunity to make proposals to her in terms of the joint establishment of distance university study programs (in co-diploma) and student exchanges between Quebec and Haiti like the Erasmus program. He also pleaded for the expansion of the field of academic cooperation between the Cegeps of Quebec and the Technical and Vocational Training Centers of Haiti.



The Consul General awaits offers of academic and technical cooperation from the Minister, in order to examine them and transmit them, for follow-up, to the competent Haitian authorities.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















By Panos Kotzathanasis | Published on 2021/05/14

The "inheritance from America" seems to have been a world-wide trend during the 60s, with people all around the world fantasizing about a rich distant relative or someone from the past sending them a large sum of money from the "land of opportunity". Kim Soo-yong uses the concept as his base for a situational comedy drama, which also functions as a critique on how money can change people.

Maeng Soon-jin is an ordinary salaryman, if perhaps somewhat naive (as his name literally signifies), who barely makes ends meet with the meager salary he receives from the company he works for. The fact is presented quite eloquently in the beginning of the film, where Soon-jin is portrayed having various women (one of which is mentioned as a loan-shark) take almost all of his money, including his landlady's daughter, In-sook. Despite his general situation though, both the aforementioned and his boss's daughter, Gwang-hee, seem to like him, occasionally even competing for his not particularly evident virtues. Furthermore, his landlady treats him like a nuisance, with the same applying to his director, Manager Yang. Everything changes, however, when he is visited by an American woman (in her blond-hair glory) who informs him that she is the widow of U.S. Colonel Bacon, whose life he saved during the Korean War. Recently deceased, the veteran has included Soon-jin in his will, leaving him $20 million, an astronomical amount for the era.

Expectedly and immediately, all the people around him change their attitude towards him, essentially trying to get money from him in any way they can, while a bit later, President Kwon, Gwang-hee's father, decides to invest in a Hong Kong company with his help. Furthermore, when the press takes wind of the deed, all types of people start visiting the newly rich man, in the room he lodges. With the help of his friend In-soo, Soon-jin tries to spend as much money as possible, but eventually, a shock comes to everyone who placed their hopes on his inheritance.

Evidently, the main comment here revolves around how money can change people, and particularly those around the people who have them. The radical change of behaviour from everyone that surrounded Soon-jin is rather evident of this message, since those who mistreated him now start to idolize him, with his landlady and the people in his company being the most obvious "samples". At the same time, the way women start swarming towards him in order to marry the millionaire and the people from all aspects of society try to con or force him out of his money, extends this comment to a much broader part of society.

At the same time, this aspect is one of the main sources of comedy here, but also the main element of a subtle, yet pointy critique towards capitalism. That his "suitors" include people who want him to invest overseas, producers who want him to invest in cinema, religious figures who ask him to give money to save the people of Africa, even one who pretends to be his brother, all seem to represent different aspects of the blights of capitalism.

At the same time, the way Soon-jin decides to spend his money, by causing "accidents" to small merchants (spilling the bags of a man who is selling goldfish or trampling the bench of a fruit itinerant for example) and then throwing money to them and laughing along with In-soo, also shows how money have changed him for the worst.

Lastly, a comment about finding out which are the people who really care and which are in just for the money, also emerges through the story.

Apart from the narrative, the movie also highlights Kim Soo-yong's directorial abilities and knack for experimentation, along with the high level of production values. In that regard, the scenes that differ from the general style of the narrative are the ones that stand out. The scene that starts as a frame in a newspaper article before it opens up fully, the war scene and the jokes on bacon, the club scene with the dancing act on "Tequila", and the fantasy about rural life close to the end are the ones that truly stand out technically, also because they differ significantly from the general aesthetics. Choi Gyeong-ok's cinematography, which focuses on realism on the rest of the movie, finds its apogee here, as much as Yu Jae-won's editing, particularly for the way he implemented these sequences in the narrative. Some trimming in the duration and episodes would help though, since at almost two hours, the title somewhat overextends its welcome.

Koo Bong-seo as Maeng Soon-jin is the undisputed star of the movie, and for good reason, since his charisma fills the screen, frequently with laughter, every time he appears. His naivete, his cheerful attitude, his struggle with his newfound fortune and many other aspects of his character are portrayed in the best fashion.

"An Upstart" is a very entertaining, light movie, that benefits the most from its star's persona and from some very interesting cinematic ideas by its director. The result is definitely easy to the eye, to say the least.

Review by Panos Kotzathanasis

___________



"An Upstart" is directed by Kim Soo-yong, and features Koo Bong-seo, Do Kum-bong, Jeon Gye-hyeon, Yang Hun, Flyboy, Nam Mi-ri. Release date in Korea: 1961/07/13.
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Korean Movie | 2001

 Comedy

Directed by Park Cheol-kwan ()

Written by Park Gyoo-tae ()

95min | Release date in South Korea: 2001/11/09

Also known as "Let's Play, Dharma"

Synopsis

After losing a bloody battle with a rival gang, Jae-gyu and his men become fugitives on the run and hide in a secluded mountain temple. They plan to lay low until their rival gang and the cops stop searching for them. At the temple, they find a group of disciplined monks who live a peaceful and orderly life. Jae-gyu and his gang see this as a great opportunity and ask the monks to let them stay. Refusing at first, later the monks permit them to stay, but only for one week. The week passes, but Jae-gyu and his men dont budge. So a new war between the gangsters and the monks begins. The rules are simple. If you win 3 games out of 5, the group who wins has the final say. From a 3,000-bow Buddhist ritual to a diving match and a game of Korean poker, its a gruesome war of wit and perseverance. Finally, Jae-gyus gang manages to win the long and difficult struggle. The temples Head Monk accepts them and allows them to stay longer. But the new rule is tough. If you want to stay, then you must obey the rule the rule of Buddha! Now the doctrine No work, no food is strictly applied to the gangsters, too



International Film Festivals

2002 Moscow International Film Festival , National Hits

2002 Udine Far East Film Festival

2002 Seattle International Film Festival

2002 Black Nights Film Festival

Source
Taiwan reports record-high daily local COVID-19 cases

Xinhua) 10:56, May 15, 2021

TAIPEI, May 14 (Xinhua) -- Taiwan on Friday confirmed 29 new local cases of COVID-19, the most locally-transmitted infections in a day since the outbreak, the local disease monitoring agency said.

Sixteen of the new local cases were linked to a cluster involving teahouses in Taipei's Wanhua District, while five others were associated with a cluster in Luzhou, New Taipei City. Another case was linked to an arcade in Yilan County.

The sources of the remaining seven cases have not yet been determined, the agency said.

Amid the surge in COVID-19 cases, there was panic-buying of foodstuff and anti-epidemic supplies at supermarkets, while the flow of people in public places such as restaurants has decreased significantly.

On Friday, Taipei set up four testing sites for the virus and called on those with symptoms to get tested as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Taiwan on Friday confirmed five new imported COVID-19 cases, which originated in Indonesia, Paraguay and Albania.

The total number of confirmed cases on the island has risen to 1,290, including 12 deaths, the agency said.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Bianji)
An Israeli artillery unit fires toward targets in Gaza Strip, at the Israeli Gaza border, Saturday, May 15, 2021. AP





A senior U.S. diplomat arrived in Tel Aviv, Friday, to meet with Israeli and Palestinian officials as Washington tries to urgently de-escalate the deadly conflict that erupted this week.







The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem said Hady Amr, the deputy assistant secretary of state for Israel and Palestinian affairs, will "reinforce the need to work toward a sustainable calm, recognizing Israel's right to self-defense."







"Israelis and Palestinians deserve equal measures of freedom, security, dignity and prosperity," the embassy tweeted.






Cooper lifts mask mandate, stadium limits

Gov. Roy Cooper on Friday lifted the indoor mask mandate in most settings and eased mass gathering restrictions and social distancing requirements.

We can take this step today because the science shows our focus on getting people vaccinated is working, Cooper said. But to keep moving forward  and to make sure that we keep saving lives  more people need to get vaccinated.

The ability to lift restrictions sooner than anticipated following the CDCs guidance shows the importance of vaccinating all North Carolinians, the governors office said in a news release. As of this week, even more people can get vaccinated. Younger teens between 12 and 15 can now get the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine. Young people are vulnerable to the Covid-19 virus, just like everyone else, and the percent of Covid-19 cases in North Carolina children 17 and under has been increasing.

North Carolina continues to focus on distributing vaccines quickly and equitably. To date, the state has administered more than 7.7 million doses. Fifty-one percent of those 18 and up are at least partially vaccinated, and 46 percent of those 18 and up have been fully vaccinated.

I am so proud of the incredible progress we have made in beating back this pandemic, N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy K. Cohen said. Vaccines continue to be incredibly effective at protecting individuals from this terrible virus. And as more and more people get vaccinated, the results show in our stable metrics with lower cases, lower hospitalizations, and lower deaths.

In accordance with the new CDC guidance, there are still settings where masks and other safety measures will be required. Masks will still be required in child care, schools and camps as most children are either not yet vaccinated or are not yet eligible to be vaccinated. Everyone, including people who are fully vaccinated will still be required to wear a mask in certain settings such as public transportation, health care settings like hospitals, doctors offices and long-term care settings like nursing homes, and certain congregate settings like correctional facilities and homeless shelters.

NCDHHS will continue to have strong public health recommendations for individuals to continue to protect one another until more people are vaccinated. People who are not vaccinated should wear a mask and maintain distance in all indoor public settings and in outdoor settings when they can't maintain six feet of distance.

Masks are strongly recommended for everyone at large crowded indoor events like sporting events and live performances.

NCDHHS recommends public facing businesses post signage reminding guests to social distance and wear a face covering if they are not fully vaccinated; remind employees to self-monitor for symptoms of Covid-19; have a plan to immediately isolate and remove sick workers; and clean high-touch surfaces once a day. Businesses may choose to continue to require that their customers wear masks. The Department of Health and Human Services will also continue to expand strategies to reach people who have not yet gotten vaccinated, the governor's office said.
Landscapers step up to mow Shepherd Memorial Park for free

Sam Byrnside and Aaron Owensby pose at Binion's Roadhouse, where they took their crew for lunch on Friday, the day after the mowed the overgrown Shepherd Memorial Park cemetery.

Henderson County residents who have family members buried at Shepherd Memorial Park had become increasingly distressed at the condition of the cemetery.

Children and grandchildren who visited the graveyard on Mothers Day to pay respects were greeted by knee-high weeds and grass that nearly obscured headstones. Word spread on social media and WLOS-TV reported on the aggrieved families who wondered who is taking care of the memorial park. (State regulators last November suspended the license of Thos. Shepherd & Son Funeral Service, the cemetery owner, as a result of a complaint that still awaits a final resolution.)

Enter Sam Byrnside and Aaron Owensby, owners of L&S Landscaping and A to Z Landscaping respectively. Both Henderson County natives, Byrnside and Owensy dropped a day of paid work and brought a crew of six to mow and weedwhack every blade of grass.

"Well, Henderson County gave us so much support by calling us with landscaping needs," Byrnside said. "As small business owners, we wanted to show our support to our community. We felt the need to step up (and show) that we're here for everyone."

Byrnside, 31, said as far as he knows he has no family members at the cemetery; most of his are at a family plot on Old Union Church Road in the Edneyville community.

"There was a lot" of land to cover, he said. "We had three mowers up and running and we had three weedeaters at the same time."

"We've been gone about 30 minutes," he said at 6:30 Thursday evening.

A few people who saw the crew working stopped by to thank the workers and the gratitude from families was spreading as fast as the grievances had.

"We thank them for all the kind words," Byrnside said. "It really means a lot to us."

Owensby, a 23-year-old East Henderson High School graduate, had a similar explanation for the act of paying back.

"We were just try to give back to the community that's given us everything we had," he said. "We felt like it was right to give back and try to do some good in a world that's so negative right now." Among the challenges is the gas shortage. Owensby said he was lucky to get gas early Thursday. "We burnt through 10 gallons."

"l felt like it was right to give back to the community," he said. "I felt like I gain more not really by losing money but helping people out more than anything."

Byrnside and Owensby say they don't if they can continue to mow the cemetery but they're trying to figure out how they might.

"We're actually sitting down and eating some lunch tomorrow to see what we can come with," Owensby said. "It would be hard for us to let go of a day every week to do it. We're going to sit down tomorrow and try to get a game plan."

Like Byrnside, Owensby he's not aware of any kin at Shepherd Memorial Park. His family goes back generations in Henderson County.

"Actually my great-grandpa was the one that built the stairs at Chimney Rock," he said.

With so many yard services in the county, maybe each could take a week?

"That's definitely a very good idea if we could all come together and do that," he said.




A boy cries during the funeral of Palestinian Malik Hamdan, who was killed during clashes with Israeli troops, during his funeral in the West Bank village of Salem near Nablus, May 15, 2021. EPA



An Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp in Gaza City killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children, early Saturday in the deadliest single strike of the current battle with Gaza's Hamas rulers. Both sides pressed for an advantage as cease-fire efforts gathered strength.



The latest outburst of violence began in Jerusalem and has spread across the region, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed cities of Israel. There were also widespread Palestinian protests Friday in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people.



The spiraling violence has raised fears of a new Palestinian ''intifada,'' or uprising at a time when there have been no peace talks in years. Palestinians on Saturday were marking Nakba (Catastrophe) Day, when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what was now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. That raised the possibility of even more unrest.



U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived Friday as part of Washington's efforts to de-escalate the conflict, and the U.N. Security Council was set to meet Sunday. But Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.



Since Monday night, Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which has pounded the Gaza Strip with strikes. In Gaza, at least 139 people have been killed, including 39 children and 22 women; in Israel, seven people have been killed, including a 5-year-old boy and a soldier.



Early Saturday, an airstrike hit a three-story house in Gaza City's Shati refugee camp, killing eight children and two women from an extended family.



Mohammed Hadidi told reporters his wife and five children had gone to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday with relatives. She and three of the children, aged 6 to 14, were killed, while an 11-year-old is missing. Only his 5-month-old son Omar is known to have survived.





Palestinian mourners cry during the funeral of Husam Asayra, 20, in the West Bank village of Asira al-Qibliya, near Nablus, Saturday, May 15, 2021. AP-Yonhap



Children's toys and a Monopoly board game could be seen among the rubble, as well as plates of uneaten food from the holiday gathering.



''There was no warning,'' said Jamal Al-Naji, a neighbor living in the same building. ''You filmed people eating and then you bombed them?'' he said, addressing Israel. ''Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!''



The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the airstrike.



Later on Saturday, the military notified the building owner that it was about to strike the high-rise in Gaza City where The Associated Press and other media outlets, including Al Jazeera, have their offices. Residents of the building, including AP staff, evacuated. The army told the AP that staff should evacuate immediately.









A furious Israeli barrage early Friday killed a family of six in their house and sent thousands fleeing to U.N.-run shelters. The military said the operation involved 160 warplanes dropping some 80 tons of explosives over the course of 40 minutes and succeeded in destroying a vast tunnel network used by Hamas.



Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said the military aims to minimize collateral damage in striking military targets. But measures it takes in other strikes, such as warning shots to get civilians to leave, were not ''feasible this time.''



Israeli media said the military believed dozens of militants were killed inside the tunnels. The Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups have confirmed 20 deaths in their ranks, but the military said the real number is far higher.





Smoke rises during an Israeli air strike, amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, in Gaza City May 15, 2021. REUTERS-Yonhap



Gaza's infrastructure, already in widespread disrepair because of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after Hamas seized power in 2007, showed signs of breaking down further, compounding residents' misery. The territory's sole power plant is at risk of running out of fuel in the coming days.



The U.N. said Gazans are already enduring daily power cuts of 8-12 hours and at least 230,000 have limited access to tap water. The impoverished and densely populated territory is home to 2 million Palestinians, most of them the descendants of refugees from what is now Israel.



The conflict has reverberated widely. Israeli cities with mixed Arab and Jewish populations have seen nightly violence, with mobs from each community fighting in the streets and trashing each other's property.



Late on Friday, someone threw a firebomb at an Arab family's home in the Ajami neighborhood of Tel Aviv, striking two children. A 12-year-old boy was in moderate condition with burns on his upper body and a 10-year-old girl was treated for a head injury, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service.



In the occupied West Bank, on the outskirts of Ramallah, Nablus and other towns and cities, hundreds of Palestinians protested the Gaza campaign and Israeli actions in Jerusalem. Waving Palestinian flags, they trucked in tires that they set up in burning barricades and hurled stones at Israeli soldiers. At least 10 protesters were shot and killed by soldiers. An 11th Palestinian was killed when he tried to stab a soldier at a military position.





Mourners carry the bodies of Palestinians, including members of Abu Hatab family, who were killed amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, during their funeral near the remains of a building destroyed in Israeli air strikes, at the Beach refugee camp, in Gaza City May 15, 2021. REUTERS-Yonhap
Huntington, WV (25701)

Today

Rain showers in the evening with thunderstorms developing overnight. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%..

Tonight

Rain showers in the evening with thunderstorms developing overnight. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 90%.
On Saturday, May 15, the Korean Brand Research Institute released their brand reputation rankings for male idols. Want to know who are the most popular male idols in South Korea right now? Then keep on reading!

What are the Brand Reputation Rankings?

The brand reputation ranking is an index formed with big data brand analysis. The rankings are used to discover the consumers' online habits and uncover what affects brand consumption.

The brand reputation rankings also measure the positive and negative influence of an individual idol, the media's interest in the idol, the consumers' interest in the idol, and the celebrity's communication volume.

From Apr. 15 to May 15, The Korean Brand Research Institute analyzed 126,052,609 pieces of big data to determine a male idol's participation index, media index, communication index, and community index.

Compared to the 124,482,396 pieces of big data in Apr. 2021, the number decreased by 1.26%.

BTS's Jimin is the Most Popular Male Idol for May 2021

Taking the throne this month is BTS member Jimin with a brand reputation index of 4,727,034.

Jimin has a participation index of 1,148,663, a media index of 1,281,966, a community index of 1,041,169, and a communication index of 1,255,236.

Compared to his brand reputation index of 5,291,477 in Apr. 2021, his index fell 10.67%.

ASTRO's Cha Eun Woo is the Second Most Popular Male Idol for May 2021

Coming in second place is ASTRO member Cha Eun Woo with a brand reputation index of 4,680,395.

Cha Eun Woo has a participation index of 1,957,773, a media index of 1,218,614, a community index of 755,783, and a communication index of 748,226.

Compared to his brand reputation index of 4,822,998 in Apr. 2021, his index fell by 2.96%.

BTS's V is the Third Most Popular Male Idol for May 2021

Third place goes to BTS member V with a brand reputation index of 4,630,934.

V has a participation index of 873,685, a media index of 1,130,461, a community index of 1,254,621, and a communication index of 1,372,166. Compared to his brand reputation index of 4,695,396 in Apr. 2021, his index fell by 1.39%.

BTS's Jungkook is the Fourth Most Popular Male Idol For May 2021

BTS member Jungkook ranked in fifth place with a brand reputation index of 3,586,745.

Jungkook has a participation index of 552,949, a media index of 1,027,030, a community index of 966,258, and a communication index of 1,040,508. Compared to his brand reputation index of 4,364,840, his index fell by 17.38%.

BTS's Jin is the Fifth Most Popular Male Idol for May 2021

Jin took home fifth place with a brand reputation index of 3,119,864.

Jin has a participation index of 627,787, a media index of 777,272, a community index of 892,243, and a communication index of 822,563. Compared to his brand reputation index of 4,613,815, his index fell by 32.38%.

These are the TOP 50 Most Popular Male Idols for the Month of May 2021

1. BTS's Jimin

2. ASTRO's Cha Eun Woo

3. BTS's V

4. BTS's Jungkook

5. BTS's Jin

6. HIGHLIGHT's Yoon Doojoon

7. HIGHLIGHT's Yang Yoseob

8. BTS's Suga

9. HIGHLIGHT's Lee Gikwang

10. BTS's RM

11. HIGHLIGHT's Son Dongwoon

12. BTS's J-Hope

13. NU'EST's Minhyun

14. AB6IX's Lee Daehwi

15. ONF's Hyojin

16. NU'EST's Baekho

17. NU'EST's JR

18. AB6IX's Park Woojin

19. NU'EST's Ren

20. SHINee's Taemin

21. ONF's U

22. AB6IX's Kim Donghyun

23. NCT's Mark

24. AB6IX's Jeon Woong

25. NCT's Jeno

26. ONF's E-Tion

27. NCT's Renjun

28. ONF's MK

29. ONF's J-US

30. THE BOYZ's Juyeon

31. ONF's Wyatt

32. ENHYPEN's Jungwon

33. NCT's Haechan

34. ENHYPEN's Sunoo

35. EXO's Kai

36. THE BOYZ's Hyunjae

37. ENHYPEN's Jay

38. ENHYPEN's Sunghoon

39. ENHYPEN's Heeseung

40. ASTRO's Moonbin

41. NCT's Jisung

42. ENHYPEN's Ni-ki

43. ENHYPEN's Jake

44. NCT's Jaemin

45. NCT's Doyoung

46. WINNER"s Kang Seungyoon

47. EXO's Xiumin

48. BLITZER's Wooju

49. BLITZER's Jinhwa

50. SHINee's Minho

Did your favorite male idol make the top 50? Tell us in the comments below!

For more K-Pop news and updates, always keep your tabs open here on KpopStarz.

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Written by Alexa Lewis
On May 14, Hanteo Chart revealed the top 10 albums with the most sales in the first week of May. Albums by ITZY, Super Junior Yesung, and Highlight are among the releases that made it to the top 10. Keep on reading to know the other artists and the album sales amount they gained.

ITZY's "GUESS WHO" had the Highest Sales on the Hanteo Chart in the First Week of May 2021

ITZY's comeback album "GUESS WHO" took first place on the weekly album chart of Hanteo Chart for the first week of May 2021. From May 3 to 9, a total of 126,959 copies were sold. This amount includes a portion of the first-week album sales record of the quintet.

Previously, it was announced that ITZY's "GUESS WHO" has sold more than 200,000 copies in the first week after release (April 30 to May 6). This is the first time that the girl group reached the said sales amount in the first seven days; thus, "GUESS WHO" is the bestselling album for ITZY to date.

ITZY's "GUESS WHO" even topped Hanteo Chart's daily album chart on the day of its release, April 30. A total of 64,119 copies were sold on that day, the highest sales record among their albums since debut.

The album also ranked first on the daily album chart for May 1, May 3, May 4, and May 6.

Super Junior Yesung's "Beautiful Night" had the Second-Highest Album Sales for the 1st Week of May 2021

Super Junior Yesung, who recently made his solo comeback after nearly two years, took the No. 2 spot on Hanteo Chart's weekly album chart for the first week of May. This means his comeback album "Beautiful Night" gained the second-highest sales within that week.

According to Hanteo Chart, Yesung's "Beautiful Night" sold a total of 85,316 copies from May 3 to May 6. The first-day album sales were the highest in his first-week record - 69,009 copies were sold upon the release of the album.

"Beautiful Night" now holds the highest first-week sales among Yesung's solo albums, surpassing his previous release "Pink Magic," which only sold 47,503 copies in the first seven days. As of May 13, Super Junior Yesung's comeback album has recorded 86,637 copies.

Highlight's "The Blowing" Attained the Third-Highest Album Sales for the First Week of May 2021

Highlight, formerly known as BEAST, made their first comeback as a four-member group with their third extended play titled "The Blowing." This is the band's first release in roughly three years since their second EP "Celebrate" in October 2017.

Based on Hanteo Chart's weekly album chart for the first week of May 2021, Highlight's "The Blowing" ranked third. A total of 73,025 copies were sold during that period.

Highlight's comeback album even topped the daily album chart on May 5 with 1,641 copies sold.

These are the Top 10 K-pop Albums with the Most Sales in 1st Week of May:

ITZY "GUESS WHO" - 126,959 Super Junior Yesung "Beautiful Night" - 85,316 Highlight "The Blowing" - 73,025 ONF "City of ONF" - 23,761 ENHYPEN "BORDER: CARNIVAL" - 18,094 Red Velvet Wendy "LIKE WATER" - 10,980 IU "LILAC" - 9,317 WayV "Kick Back" - 7,495 BLACKPINK Rose "R" - 7,086 EXO Baekhyun "Bambi" - 6,804

For more news updates about other K-Pop news, always keep your tabs open here at Kpopstarz.

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Written by Mhaliya Scott
Russian President Vladimir Putin has branded the United States an "unfriendly" country. His administration set forth a new legal stamp on the strain with Washington in advance of meetings with President Joe Biden's government. Russian officials also included the Czech Republic on the list along with the U.S. This pairing alludes to April's contention over an alleged spy scandal as the root of the designation.

Russia Labels U.S., Czech Republic 'Unfriendly'

The brand was according to a document published on Friday on Russia's official legal information portal. The document indicated, "To approve the attached list of foreign states committing unfriendly actions against Russia, citizens of Russia or Russian legal entities, against which countermeasures established by the decree of Russian President Vladimir Putin dated April 23, 2021, No 243... shall be applied," reported ANI.

However, regarding the Czech Republic, Russia stopped short of the complete ban on hiring local staff that the designation envisages. The document was published on Friday on the official website. The Czech mission could employ a maximum of 19 local staff.

The country made the declaration amid growing tensions with the West and the wake of blacklistings of its diplomats by the United States, Czech Republic, and their allies. Per the new rules, nations designated as having implemented "unfriendly actions" against Russia are imposed bans on their embassies hiring local staff.

The decree was signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, indicating the "unfriendly states" that have executed "unfriendly actions" against Russia, Russian entities, or Russian nationals. According to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Friday, Moscow remained ready for dialogue. Russia now had two nations on its "unfriendly states" list, reported The Times of India.

Read Also: Is Russia Set On a Large-Scale Invasion of Ukraine?

According to the Czech Foreign Ministry, "We consider this action by the Russian Federation as a further step to escalation of relations not only with the Czech Republic but also the European Union as such and its allies." It is a move to further escalation of relations, reported National Post.

Czech Foreign Minister Jakub Kulhanek commanded Moscow to draw out dozens of officials from the Prague Russian Embassy. It is a crackdown that could prompt Russia to gash its spy presence at an embassy largely regarded as a regional center for Russian intelligence operations. According to a Czech official, that is their twisted interpretation of reality.

Last month, the Russian president signed a decree on countermoves against "unfriendly" moves of foreign states amid an amplified diplomatic row with the U.S. and many European nations. The countries included in the list will either be prohibited entirely from employing Russian staff at their diplomatic missions or receive a cap on the number of locally hired employees.

Russian media had reported the administration was looking to add more European countries to the unfriendly brand. For now, the official list indicated merely two. The list is open to amendments.

Related Article: Putin, Russian President, Signs Law Allowing Him to Remain in Power Through 2036

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States countrywide changed their mask-wearing policies, allowing fully vaccinated Americans to discard masks outside and, in some instances, indoors, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued new guidelines on mask restrictions.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, head of the CDC, has released new recommendations that mark a significant milestone toward normalcy for a country ravaged and, at times, divided by a pandemic that has lasted more than a year.

States implements new CDC mask restrictions

"Anyone who has been fully vaccinated will be involved in any indoor or outdoor activity, big or small, without wearing a mask or physically separating themselves. If you are fully vaccinated, you will resume activities that you had put on hold due to the pandemic," Walensky said, USA Today reported.

Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, Nevada, Michigan, Maryland, Minnesota, Maine, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Vermont, have all announced intentions to follow the CDC's recommendations in the coming weeks. However, New Jersey and Hawaii joined a small group of states that said they would not loosen residency regulations just yet. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said on Friday that implementing the CDC's new recommendations could take weeks.

On Friday, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declared that the state's mask mandate would be lifted in certain areas. It is up to each company to decide whether or not to retain their mask requirement. State health authorities, according to Cooper, will continue to allow unvaccinated individuals to wear masks. However, companies now have no means of knowing who has been vaccinated and who has not, as per WRAL.

Read Also: CDC Lifts COVID-19 Mask and Social Distancing Restrictions for Fully Vaccinated Americans

Walmart, Trader Joe's, and Costco say vaccinated customers don't have to wear masks

According to separate statements made Friday by the firms, fully vaccinated customers can shop without masks in some Walmart, Sam's Club, Costco stores, and Trader Joe's, according to separate statements made Friday by the firms. The announcement comes on the heels of recent guidelines stating that completely vaccinated people do not need to wear masks in certain conditions.

The CDC declared that fully vaccinated individuals are no longer required to wear masks or exercise social distancing indoors or outside, except in hospital settings, public transportation, or other places where governments need masks. According to the CDC, people would also need to meet office and local business mask guidelines.

Walmart management sent a letter urging workers to get vaccinated to Walmart and Sam's Club locations, as well as supply chain centers, on Friday afternoon. As of Friday, "vaccinated consumers and members are welcome to buy without a mask," according to the letter, while unvaccinated customers are asked to continue wearing masks in stores.

Employees that have been fully vaccinated may be allowed to operate without masks beginning May 18, said the letter. Still, some employees will need to wear masks for health or sanitation purposes. "Masks will still continue to be mandated by certain city and state ordinances, and we will comply with those standards," the letter continued, per CNN.

Customers will not be required to show proof of vaccination at Costco. "We call for members' responsible and respectful compliance with this revised policy," the message said. Customers will also be required to wear face coverings in Costco's pharmacy, and other healthcare facilities, said the firm.

They will also be required to wear them while they are in stores where masks are needed. Trader Joe's said on its website Friday that "we urge shoppers to follow the recommendations of health authorities, including, where necessary, CDC guidelines that advise fully vaccinated customers who are not required to wear masks when shopping."

According to the company's statement, Trader Joe's keeps all of its pandemic measures in place, such as wellness checks for staff and spacing customers out within its stores. Trader Joe's representative Kenya Friend-Daniel told CNN Business in an email that the grocery chain did not ask for or require proof of vaccination from its shoppers. Employees are still required to wear masks, she noted.

Related Article: Georgia Among First US States To Provide COVID-19 Vaccine to Children Ages Below 16

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Four people were attacked on Friday in the span of one hour in separate incidents in the New York City (NYC) subway. The police arrested four suspects ranging from 17 to 19 years old. They were accused of slashing, stabbing, or punching the victims.

Slashing Spree at NYC Subway

According to the NYPD, the spree commenced at 4:25 AM. On a southbound four train at the 14th Street Union Square station, a 44-year-old man was slashed in the face. The man was confined at the Bellevue Hospital and is now in a stable state.

On his way to work, the first victim was sitting on a southbound four train. He was approached by at least two strangers. One of them attempted to stab him many stops later at 23rd Street, stated the police. The victim fought his suspect, only to be attacked again when he was slashed in the face, reported New York Post.

According to Commissioner Dermot Shea and top NYPD officials, the group of men would pair off in groups of three, four, or five during the alleged assaults based on witnesses' reports. These suggest a fifth suspect's possible involvement. Transit officers witnessed the group of men matching surveillance photos acquired early in the morning and disseminated across the department, reported NBC New York.

Authorities confirmed on Friday afternoon that the suspects were in police custody. They have not released the identities of the assailants. A police official at a news conference stated they are confident that they have the right people in custody, reported PIX 11.

Read Also: NY Governor Cuomo Sorry Not Sorry, Says Making Someone 'Feel Uncomfortable' Is Not Harassment

The most recent assaults have subway riders dubious about their safety. One of the incidents transpired at Columbus Circle. According to the police, one victim was stabbed in the eye.

Cops said four of the victims were targeted by razor-wielding men riding the southbound No. 4 train in a devastating 12-minute stretch. Police think the suspects possibly paired off at times amid the pre-dawn riot. Initial reports indicate an accomplice of the East Side slasher, urging the man to slice his victims. A third suspect served as a lookout riding the subway between the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall and Union Square stations.

All of the victims were admitted to local hospitals. The incidents arrive as the subways are slated to return to 24/7 service on Monday.

According to Chief Jason Wilcox, officers armed with surveillance footage and descriptions of the assailants seized them as they exited a northbound No. 1 train at the 79th Street station in Manhattan. The men, whose identities have not been made public, were arrested without incident.

The series of attacks underscored what city transportation officials are touting about the need for more uniformed police officers in train stations. This is despite how Mayor Bill de Blasio has set forth the idea that the spreading of crime will diminish with the increased presence of riders as COVID-19 pandemic restrictions start to lift.

None of the victims had life-threatening wounds. Police remarked the alleged attackers remained on board the train as each victim fleed.

Related Article: COVID-19 Vaccine Pop-up Sites Will Open in New York City Subway Stations to Increase Youth Vaccinations

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Close

(Photo : When to File for Bankruptcy)

A debt that feels unmanageable can give you sleepless nights and leave you unsure about your next move. Filing for bankruptcy is distressing and is usually the last option for people unable to pay their debts. But, despite its many cons, it can help you retrace your steps back to financial stability.

Sometimes the language barrier may pose a challenge when you are Latino and want to file for bankruptcy in Orlando, Florida. Avoid limiting your chances for a successful petition by booking a free consultation with bilingual bankruptcy lawyer Walter Benenati.

When you file for bankruptcy, be prepared to have a lower credit rating and higher insurance premiums. This implies that you will be locked out of taking more loans, buying property or buying a car.

Reasons to File for bankruptcy

It takes a lot of courage to file for bankruptcy and if you are wondering whether your case qualifies, here are a few pointers that you need to contact your bankruptcy lawyer and chart the way forward:

Your debt is too enormous to clear in your lifetime.

Creditors are constantly calling you

Suits filed against you are beyond your ability to help

You have lost your source of income and are unable to clear your debts

You can barely put food on the table

Types of Bankruptcy

If you decide to go ahead with your bankruptcy claim, it is essential to know the type of bankruptcy that would provide you with the most significant relief. There are two types of bankruptcy:

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Under this code, debtors have their unsecured debts relieved. However, you might end up selling a significant number of your possessions to settle creditor accounts. Such include jewelry, cars and your pension that can undergo liquidation.

If you have a high income, you might not be eligible for this chapter. However, for mortgage owners with up-to-date payments, this chapter can halt foreclosure. Before you commence with your petition, you must enroll in a credit counseling certificate.

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy

Under this code, debtors can pay some, all, or none of their debts. This chapter helps debtors reorganize their debt. You remain liable to pay all your debts under this provision. Your liabilities are consolidated into one and a trustee assigned to you.

With the pooling of debts, you are in a better position to negotiate for a lower monthly payment. This will be based on your monthly earnings, expenses and assets. Your trustee receives your monthly payment and makes the necessary disbursements to each of your creditors.

If you petitioned for discharge of part of your debts in Chapter 7 with success and you want to try your luck with Chapter 13, you must observe a four-year waiting period. However, if your petition did not sail through, you can proceed to chapter 13 before four years lapse.

Undischargable Debts

Unfortunately, not all debts are dischargeable through filing for bankruptcy. There are three main categories under these debts:

Undischargeable Debts

These include taxes, personal injury debts (from intoxicated driving), child support, alimony and penalties or fines from state agencies.

Undischargeable by Creditor Objection

Such debts include debts on purchases made within 90 days of the petition, fraud-related debts and embezzlement.

Debts Dischargeable Through Legal Exception

Student loans are generally non-dischargeable through bankruptcy unless there is a demonstration of undue hardship verifiable through court tests.

Lawyer Fees

Bankruptcy claims are filed in the United States Bankruptcy Court. Filling a bankruptcy application may be cheaper when you file individually. However, working with a reliable bankruptcy lawyer improves your chances of reprieve and will cost you $1500-$4000, depending on the complexity of your case.

While making a bankruptcy claim might leave you feeling distraught and lost, it can be all you need to get your finances back on track.

 2015 Latinos Post. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler stated she was expecting her first child years ago when she ran from a House office building to Capitol Hills to vote. While Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., during her pregnancy in 2009, said she had gestational diabetes. It is a pregnancy complication that 2-10 percent of women develop, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Both women belong to only ten women in history to have served as a United States lawmaker while expecting a child. Such developments could have made them susceptible to risk and their babies if they had been working a different kind of job that is more physically demanding.

Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

The House of Representatives passed the bill on Friday that seeks to protect pregnant workers from workplace undermining. The act was approved by 351 votes against 101 votes.

Although the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 (PDA) proffers several protections, pregnancy discrimination remains too common. Even following the 2015 Supreme Court Decision in Young v. United Parcel Service, which enabled pregnant workers to file a lawsuit under the PDA for being undermined against for asking for adequate accommodations, pregnant workers are usually denied such accommodations, reported MS.

According to AFSCME President Lee Saunders, in a statement, the bill would offer women on-the-job rights and protections and "address longstanding health and economic injustices that disproportionately hurt women well into parenthood. Saunders added that no individual should have to choose between their safety and their children's lives and financial security, reported AFSCME.

Read Also: Joy-Anna Duggar, Austin Forsyth Welcome Rainbow Baby Following Still Birth, 'Counting On' Exit

Women are the prime and sole or co-breadwinners in over half of American households. An increasing number of pregnant women must work later into their pregnancies to sustain their family's financial stability. Minority women are particularly susceptible to health issues in the workplace. Numerous women work in low-wage, physically demanding work.

Sanchez worked as a waitress before she went to college. Capitol Hill has sometimes lacked accommodations for women. One example was the first lactation space that was not installed until almost 2010. According to Sanchez, "Being a member, I had a certain degree of flexibility that I think most women, and most, in most workforces in the country do not," reported USA Today.

The act also prohibits employers from denying employment to pregnant women because they need reasonable accommodations because of pregnancy or childbirth. U.S. Rep. John Katko was among the initial co-sponsors of the bill.

The act also draws inspiration from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). It ensures pregnant workers cannot be demoted, subject to take leave, or otherwise retaliated against for requesting suitable accommodations. It also balances employer's interests by expounding that employers are not necessitated to grant concessions that impose problems on the business.

According to Saunders, they applaud the House of Representatives for passing the crucial legislation to protect pregnant workers' safety and physical well-being. They prompt the Senate to follow accordingly.

Related Article: Natural Ways to Boost Your Fertility

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On Friday morning, Miss Universe 2021 contestants combined fashion and politics during the 69th annual beauty competition's national costume round. Although the national costume contest is different from the overall pageant ratings, it is one of the most anticipated and glamorous runaway affairs.

Per Hola via MSN, designers and contestants from 74 countries perform on a world scale in original and lavish outfits to celebrate the spirit of their homeland and traditions. This year, designers of the gowns drew inspiration from national flowers, traditional food, temples, national symbols, flora and fauna, and even natural landscapes to make elaborate and glitzy costumes that highlighted the most unique and charming elements of each of their countries.

Miss Universe contestants made fashion and political statements

The official representative for Uruguay, Lola de Los Santos Bicc, appeared onstage at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Florida, dressed in a multi-colored outfit with a strong message that read: "No more hate, violence, rejection, discrimination."

Miss Myanmar, Thuzar Wint Lwin, was among those calling for their message to be heard, holding up a sign urging prayers for her country. The Asian country has been in turmoil since the military staged a coup on February 1, disputing the outcome of an election in which a pro-democracy group won power. People across Myanmar have been rising against the governing junta, launching large rallies met with military repression and resulting in hundreds of deaths.

Miss Singapore Bernadette Belle Ong, who wore thigh-high red boots, chose to incorporate her strong message into her costume, Daily Mail reported. In a sequined bodysuit with a hashtag on a floating cape, the beauty contestant brought attention to the #StopAsianHate campaign.

Miss Philippines Rabiya Mateo, who stood out in a pair of red and blue wings and three stars that reflected the colors and symbols of her country's flag, was another unforgettable performer. The three stars in the Philippine flag reflect Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, the country's three major island groups. Rabiya finished her eye-catching look with mismatched but color-coordinated shoes, wearing her black hair loose and wavy.

Read Also: Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck Reconciliation Rumors: Alex Rodriguez Reportedly Shocked and Upset Over Reunion

Miss Universe Myanmar fails to wear original national costume

Miss Universe Myanmar Thuzar Wint Lwin was told her suitcase containing her competition costumes had been lost by the airline when she landed in Florida on May 7. The majority of the contestants had already arrived and were rehearsing, recording, and doing photo shoots.

Since her bag had not arrived by the end of the week, the pageant organizers assisted her with a gown. Other contestants were lending her costumes as well. Her national costume was among the things that had gone missing. People from Myanmar living in the United States presented her with a beautiful ethnic Chin replacement. On Thursday, she wore it to the joy of the audience.

She waited anxiously before flying to the United States to see if her name had been added to the military's wanted list. She had heard about well-known people being arrested when they attempted to flee the country, so she opted to hide at the Yangon airport by wearing a hoodie and glasses.

In an interview from Florida, she said, "I had to walk through immigration and I was so scared." Thuzar is currently unsure where she will go after the competition. She was informed she could not return to Myanmar because she used the 69th Miss Universe Competition to protest the military coup in her country, New York Times reported.

Related Article: Tom Cruise Speaks About Infamous Leaked COVID-19 Rant on 'Mission: Impossible 7' Set, Returns Golden Globe Awards

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Our Day Services program provides individuals the opportunity to participate in a variety of group activities throughout the day. Locations in Albany, East Greenbush, Halfmoon and Schenectady. We want you if you can:  Care for people with a developmental disability while at a site or out in the community  Interact with our individuals in a positive encouraging way  Demonstrate a professional demeanor, patience, and empathy Who we are looking for: We are looking for caring, compassionate and engaging individuals to help promote independence, self-esteem and social integration in a Community environment. Wildwood Programs is a proud provider of educational, residential, employment, and other community-based supports to people with disabilities and we are looking for someone dedicated to making a difference in peoples lives. Our Day Services program provides individuals the opportunity to participate in a variety of group activities throughout the day. Through these various activities individuals develop independence, self-esteem and social integration as active members in their own communities. By adapting our Day Services activities to each individual's goals, we are able to focus on unique individual outcomes. Our staff members take an active role in helping individuals access community activities that inspire growth through experiential opportunities. Successful candidates will exhibit the ability to interact with our individuals in a positive encouraging way, demonstrate a professional demeanor, patience, empathy and possess a strong desire to help others. This Full-Time position is benefits eligible and pay rates start at $13.90 per hour with a schedule of Monday-Friday What are the job duties: Primary duties of a DSP are to assist with 7 areas of personal development and care: Put People First: Support individual potential and get to know the people we support, be engaged!

Promote advocacy, individual rights and responsibilities

Facilitate personal development, supports and services Build and Maintain Positive Relationships: Create meaningful communication to establish collaborative relationships, trust and empathy Be A Professional: Develop professional relationships with respect to diversity and inclusion

Demonstrate professional behavior and qualities of professional demeanor, punctuality, attendance, reliability and pleasantness

Create meaningful documentation by maintaining accurate, descriptive and timely reporting

Participate in education, training, self-development and growth

Exhibit ethical behavior, possess characteristics of integrity, honesty and trustworthiness Health: Promote positive behavior and support holistic health and wellness

Prevent, recognize and report abuse

Understand individuals medical, physical and psychological needs Safety: Support crisis prevention, intervention and resolution

Ensure safety at all times and during environmental emergencies Home Life: Engage in leisure and social activities, hobbies and interests Get into The Community: Support community participation, employment, educational and career goals of the individual Qualifications Why you should join us: We offer competitive salary and benefits, including health insurance, dental and vision plans, life insurance, flex sending, a comprehensive wellness program, paid time off, paid training, education tuition assistance, scholarships, employee discounts and a 403(b)-retirement plan. Thats just a few, check out our Benefits & Perks at https://www.wildwoodprograms.org/index.php/jobs We are passionate about helping individuals lead independent, productive and fulfilling lives. By joining our team, you will be provided a variety of opportunities in a rewarding career where it is possible to make a difference and significant impact in the lives of others. It is our goal to improve the lives of all members of the Wildwood Family. How we make a difference: We envision a world that embraces a fundamental respect for ALL individual, their strengths, their uniqueness, their creativity and the infinite diversity that we each represent. Our employees make this possible through their dedication and enthusiasm. We are on a Mission to empower and enable both children and adults with neurologically-based learning disabilities, autism, and other developmental disorders to lead independent, productive and fulfilling lives, while integrating our values of Respect, Integrity, Creativity and Holism to get it done! Other Expectations: Promote Physical and Emotional Well-Being: Commit to promote the emotional, physical, and personal well-being of the individual supported. Encourage growth and recognize the autonomy of those receiving support while being attentive and energetic in reducing the risk of harm

Commit to promote the emotional, physical, and personal well-being of the individual supported. Encourage growth and recognize the autonomy of those receiving support while being attentive and energetic in reducing the risk of harm Integrity and Responsibility: Support the mission and vitality of the profession to assist individual in leading self-directed lives and to foster a spirit of partnership with the individuals, other professionals, and the community

Support the mission and vitality of the profession to assist individual in leading self-directed lives and to foster a spirit of partnership with the individuals, other professionals, and the community Confidentiality: Safeguard and respect the confidentiality and privacy of individuals

Safeguard and respect the confidentiality and privacy of individuals Justice, Fairness and Equity: Affirm the human rights as well as the civil rights and responsibilities of individuals. Promote and practice justice, fairness, and equity for all

Affirm the human rights as well as the civil rights and responsibilities of individuals. Promote and practice justice, fairness, and equity for all Respect: Respect the human dignity and uniqueness of individuals. Recognize each individual as valuable and promote their value, interests and needs

Respect the human dignity and uniqueness of individuals. Recognize each individual as valuable and promote their value, interests and needs Relationships: Assist individuals to develop and maintain positive relationships

Assist individuals to develop and maintain positive relationships Self-Determination: Assist individuals to direct the course of their own lives

Assist individuals to direct the course of their own lives Advocacy: Advocate with individuals for justice, inclusion, and full community participation Requirements: A valid NYS license and clean driving record are required as you will be responsible to drive individuals to appointments and activities

Reliable transportation, attendance and willingness to learn

Commitment to schedule, assigned job duties and performance expectations

Clean, appropriate and presentable appearance while on duty

Subject to NYS OPWDD mandated criminal background check, finger printing and a driving record verification

High school diploma or general education degree (GED) View more and apply at: https://wildwood.edu/careers

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After celebrating 80 years in Houston on May 8, Cleburne Cafeteria was honored by city officials. Mayor Sylvester Turner officially declared that date Cleburne Cafeteria Day in the City of Houston.

Spicing it up: Alex Bregmans offensive surge - and new salsa - receive high marks from Astros

Nick Mickelis and his wife Pat bought Cleburne Cafeteria in 1952  11 years after it opened  and moved the eatery from its original location on Cleburne Street to its current location on Bissonet by Edloe Street in 1969.

Over the decades, Cleburne Cafeteria has become a Houston institution with its trademark cafeteria line and selection of comfort food.

My mother (Pat Mickelis) is 97 years old and was extremely delighted to hear of the proclamation and the recognition that her and her late husband, my father Nick, received for their many years of hard work, said George Mickelis, who currently owns and operates Cleburne Cafeteria.

The cafeteria had to be rebuilt after being completely destroyed in two fires, one in 1990 and one in 2016, and has continued to serve its customers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, all facts that were mentioned in the official proclamation.

The story of Cleburne Cafeteria is such an American story  coming here with nothing to build a life for your family, said Houston City Council Member Sallie Alcorn, one of the city council members who presented Mickelis and Cleburne with a copy of the official proclamation on May 11. Its also a Houston story  continuing to rebuild after disaster. Im so glad we were able to recognize their impact on the community by declaring May 8, 2021, as Cleburne Cafeteria Day in the City of Houston.

Alcorn was there with fellow council member Abbie Kamin.

Some of Kamins fondest childhood memories are of going to Cleburne with her grandparents, and she continues to go with her father.

Cleburne Cafeteria has remained a Houston treasure, serving generations of loyal customers for over eight decades, read part of the City of Houston proclamation.

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Mickelis mentioned his hope that his four children: Athena Nickolas, Anthony and Matthew will continue to carry on Cleburnes family tradition for many years to come.

We are truly a family-owned business here in Houston with my entire family and an extremely dedicated staff that have been with the family for years have been working side-by-side to serve our customers, he said. We are extremely grateful for the incredible support and outpouring of love we have received from our customers for these many years. We thank everyone for this great honor.

elliott.lapin@hearst.com
Christa Spears will not be chasing tornadoes or leading her class as hurricane hunters this fall. She plans on keeping her distance as much as she can, but that may not be possible in Houston.

I have a lot of respect for Mother Nature, smiled the associate professor of geology.

The Jersey girl who earned her Ph.D. in earth sciences from Boston University and grew up on the East Coast has already endured a healthy dose of wicked weather. Her curiosity will now be satisfied side by side with her students at the University Park campus of Lone Star College with a first of its kind in the system meteorology class.

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With a recently installed weather station on campus and a stream gauge in their local gully, students can experience weather forecasting first-hand.

Now, our students will be able to see it scientifically thanks to the new weather station and the knowledge they will gain in the Meteorology class, said Lone Star College-University Park President Shah Ardalan.

Our faculty are known for bringing innovation and new learning opportunities to the classroom for our students, he added. We are providing place-based learning by localizing the subject of meteorology for our students who live, work and learn in our community. This is another example of how we are the communitys college.

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Spears expertise is in earth sciencesclimate, oceans, and the atmosphere.

She came to Houston to work in oil and gas and spent seven years at ExxonMobil.

After having children, she transitioned into academia in 2015 and enjoys the community college brand working with non-majors and bridging them between high school and four-year institutions.

Geology is one of those required courses for an associate degree.

I was never really interested in rocks and minerals, she said. What I found fascinating was earth systemsnatural hazards, and hurricanes.

Before Harvey hit, she was engaged with watching the USGS stream gauges during the Tax Day and Memorial Day floods predicting what would happen.

I live in a flood plain, so during Harvey I got out a flow meter and measured the velocity of the water, she said. My husband is a geologist as well and he was yelling out to me to collect more data. Collect more data! she laughed.

Spears and her department chair pushed for and received acceptance into the core curriculum meaning for non-majors going for an associate degree, meteorology is now a transferable course into a major university. University Park is the only campus in the system with the course offering.

We dont really have a lot of rocks here in Houston, but we do have the big natural disasters like hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes, she said. Its important for our community be aware of these and be able to prepare for them.

The class studies look at the atmosphere and understand the chemistry and physics of why weather does what it does, forecasting, analyze the elements in the air, pollution, and climate change.

Its understanding the complexities of weather forecasting, she said. Students can put their hands on the data collection. Instead of just looking at this data or that data, the students get the opportunity to get their own data and understand the complexities of the data, then understand how to read the graphs, perform mathematical equations, and model coming weather. They will be their own meteorologist for that semester, she said.

The equipment was installed in March and has been calibrated and is currently delivering data that is also available to the public.

When students take the course and they learn how to download the data, manipulate it, and graph it, they can actually come back and use more of the data after the class has ended, she said.

Stream gauges are part of their physical geology and oceanography courses.

Wed like to eventually partner with Harris County Flood Control District and have our data feed into their larger network, she said.

Our students are learning about the weather, where the data is coming from, why flooding is such a hazard, and what we can do to mitigate the hazard, she said.

Spears said a light bulb comes on for students as they see how large volumes of rising water becomes powerful enough to reshape the landscape.

The velocity of the water can be so strong that it could literally move a house, the professor said.

While they dont have access to the physical USGS rain gauges, having their own on campus allows students to put their hands on the tool itself and view the data collection process.

We look at the hydrographs in class and compare them to the rainfall. We look at the lag time and determine the drainage basin and how the stream systems work in relation to the rainfall events, she said.

The installation of the weather station just before the advent of the hurricane season will allow Spears to give information to her students on the reasons for why the Gulf of Mexico is a breeding ground for hurricanes, understanding their tracks, and what fuels them.

She has a vision on how to expand the program as classes grow.

At a community college, were restricted to what classes we can offer to our students, but in terms of growth, I want to expand our program to a partnership with the Harris County Flood Control District, the media meteorologists in town, and expanding that place-based network and showing our students the job opportunities available to them, she said.

Those careers, she said, are available right here in the city and suburbs and she wants to see those opportunities expand for her students.

Were wanting to develop those experiences for our students at local broadcast stations, NASA, the National Weather Service, and the private sector, she said to let them see with their own eyes what its like to be a scientist.

Spears said the weather station and stream gauge collect weather-related information such as stream depth and temperature, barometric pressure, wind speed and direction, dew point, humidity, rainfall amounts, and temperature.

Those interested in learning more about the new stream gauge, weather station and meteorology class should contact Christa Spears at Christa.Spears@LoneStar.edu. More information is also available at www.lonestar.edu/geology-dept-universitypark.

dtaylor@hcnonline.com
At Fridays Community Assistance Center 2021 Legacy Awards Luncheon keynote speaker Liz Murray asked those gathered if they really knew in their heart the difference they were making to others and to their community.

To her, people who cared and were willing to help, made all the difference in her life.

Her story of going from a homeless teen in New York City to going to Harvard has been the focus of many interviews and was the subject of the 2003 movie The Liz Murray Story: From Homeless to Harvard.

She is now an author, inspirational speaker and founder of The Arthur Project which helps at-risk youth.

Murray shared her story at Fridays celebrate in an effort to help the CAC volunteers and community leaders know that their support does matter and even small acts of kindness can lead to big things in the life of the person theyre helping.

Community Assistance Center is a nonprofit, social service agency providing resources to meet basic needs and improve quality of life for our neighbors in Montgomery County.

CAC provides case management and assistance services such as food, clothing, emergency shelter, rental and mortgage assistance, utilities, and education to promote self-sufficiency. During its last fiscal year, CAC provided services to over 39,300 residents of Montgomery County through its various programs and services.

The organization began as Montgomery County Emergency Assistance in 1981 seeking to help those in crisis in the county.

Since 1981, we have served our neighbors in need and will continue to meet the growing needs of Montgomery County. I am excited to play a small part in this organizations history, said Jennifer Landers, CEO of Community Assistance Center.

The role of CAC has been especially important in recent years as the community has weathered Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and the pandemic and winter storm in the past year.

Our world has looked very different during the COVID-19 pandemic, said luncheon emcee Nelda Luce Blair. Many families and individuals were already in need and the pandemic exacerbated that. Businesses closed and many were furloughed or lost their jobs. So we did what Texans do and we banded together to bring financial, in kind and volunteer support for the CAC program.

On Friday the CAC recognized those who have played a significant role in both the short term and long term goals of CAC.

Buckalew Chevrolet and Woodforest National Bank were recognized with Corporate Partner Awards for their support of the program and in the community.

The Montgomery County Food Bank, which served 11 million meals in the past year, recieved the Community Partner Award.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints received the Faith Partner Award.

Blair said the partnership between CAC and volunteers from LDS goes back to the early years of the organization and includes support for all areas of CAC.

In 2017, LDS volunteers provided clean up kits following Hurricane Harvey and helped to muck and gut flooded homes.

This year, LDS volunteers answered the call when nearly 20,000 pounds of food came through the LDS Charities Humanitarian Aid of Salt Lake City, Utah.

The food was delivered by Godfrey Trucking with Scott Godfrey, the companys owner, making the nearly 1,000-mile drive to bring the donation himself. Approximately 30 missionaries and volunteers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints donated their time to volunteer to assist with unloading the truck and lining the hallways of CAC with donations that exceeded what could fit in the pantry.

CAC Board Member Paula Odom was recognized with a Distinguished Service Award for being a driving force for Entergys Power to Care program and for her support of the United Ways Under Cover Project, Earth Day Green Up and Sam Houston Elementarys Junior Achievement Program.

Bev and Mac Schard were also recognized with a Distinguished Service Award. The couple celebrated their 65th anniversary last June and has supported CAC in a number of ways in addition to serving with April Sound Church and volunteering at the Conroe hospital.

Former Precinct 1 Commissioner Mike Meador was recognized with the CAC Legacy Award.

Meador is Montgomery Countys longest-serving commissioner being elected in 1993. He stepped down in December 2020 but has supported the community in a variety of ways and through a variety of organizations.

Murray then told those gathered her story in order to show those gathered that just one person or just one action can have an impact.

Murray was born in the Bronx to loving-but-drug-addicted parents.

She described how her family had 12 holidays. Each one was the first of the month when their check from the government came. Most of the check was used to buy drugs and about $35 was used for food that was supposed to last the family of four the whole month.

When she and her sister, Lisa, got hungry, theyd knock on neighbors doors hoping their neighbors could spare a meal. School and education wasnt a priority when they didnt know where their next meal would come from.

The family unraveled when Murray was 13. Her parents developed HIV and her mother spent most of her time in a hospital, her father was in a shelter and her sister went to a family member. Murray went to a group home but became homeless at the age of 15.

At 16, her mother died and it became a turning point in her life. She had a desire to return to school and heard no over and over before English and drama teacher Perry at the Humanities Preparatory Academy in New York City finally told her yes. She finished high school in two years doing four years worth of work.

She never told anyone she was homeless.

She was awarded a New York Times scholarship for needy students and was accepted into Harvard University. The paper did a story on her and she began to receive support from her Bronx community and from around the country. Suddenly she didnt feel alone in her situation.

One day, about two months before her high school graduation, a woman named Terri approached Murray and asked if she could help Murrays laundry.

Shed then take her once a week to do her laundry.

She told me I might not be able to do much, but at least I can do this, Murray said.

She left those gathered with that challenge that they might not be able to do much, but to do what they can for others.

For more information on the Community Assistance Center, visit https://cac-mctx.org/.

shernandez@hcnonline.com
In a Houston Chronicle story in 2016 by reporter Todd Ackerman, a doctor was quoted as saying, Right now, in trauma care, where you live determines if you live.

On April 12, 2021, Levi while on his way home from work late Monday afternoon Levi Harris was in a single vehicle accident when the steering box and brakes on his truck failed and he struck a tree going 70 mph. Harris was cognizant enough to get himself out of the truck before collapsing on the lawn of the home where he struck the tree. He suffered major life-threatening injuries including a broken sternum in three places, a collapsed lung, a painful burn on his cheek and ear from the air bag, and a serious tear in one of the main arteries to his heart. His life was in the balance as he was transported to HCA Houston Healthcare Conroe Hospitals Level II trauma center where he was immediately rushed into surgery. He survived the surgery and spent three days in the intensive care unit.

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Five days after being wheeled into the ER, the former Magnolia West High School student returned to his home in Huntsville and is glad to be alive. He knows he escaped the cemetery on this one.

His girlfriends mom posted on Facebook, He is lucky to be alive and according to his trauma surgeon, Levi is his career miracle.

The quick work of the Walker County EMS to get him to Conroe and the surgical staff able to administer Level II trauma care saved his life.

Its for that reason and hundreds more that HCA Houston Healthcare is adding to their stable of Level 2 Trauma Center hospitalsto save lives.

The Harris County region currently is underserved with only two Level 1 hospitalsMemorial Hermann and Ben Taub, both in the center of Houston and far away from the help that was needed by Harris following his accident. He might not have survived a flight into downtown.

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There are three Level 2 hospitals in the county with HCA Houston Healthcare Clear Lake, HCA Houston Healthcare Conroe, and Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Center. In comparison to other major cities, Chicago has six Level 1 trauma centers, New York six, Los Angeles five, Philadelphia seven, and Boston six.

Its time to elevate and were in the midst of that process now, said Evan Ray, executive vice president and chief administrator officer for HCA Houston Gulf Coast region.

There are four levels of trauma with Level 1 having the highest acuity plus residency and training and Level Four being the entry point into trauma care.

Level 1 and Level 2 on a clinical basis are equivalent, Ray said. What bumps you up to Level 1 is when you add research capabilities and physician residency training, he said.

With that in mind, HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest should elevate to Level 2 with surveys from the American College of Surgeons, the accrediting body for trauma designations, in October of this year. Kingwood will survey in December.

We also have a Corpus Christi hospital that will be elevating to Level 2. By the end of the year, we will have five Level 2 trauma centers in our Gulf Coast region, four in Houston and one in Corpus Christi, he said.

The move by HCA provides much needed additional choice.

It adds a more robust infrastructure for the trauma patient, more physician coverage, greater 24/7 subspecialty coverage, Ray said and that includes more choices for EMS who must make life-saving decisions within minutes.

Ray also said its important to be in the communities where people live.

Thats where vehicle accidents happen, the falls, and other unfortunate events. They live in those densely populated areas.

At each level, clinical capabilities are increased.

In their Northwest hospital, they should have already been elevated to Level 2 but like many other things, it was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

HCA Houston Healthcare is also adding additional free-standing emergency rooms and by the end of the year, Ray said they should have more than 100 sites of care across the Gulf Coast region.

While the Kingwood campus is on a path to Level 2, they also boast the most robust training within the division.

They have surgical residents that will rotate through the residency program and the trauma program at Kingwood. That will position us to go to Level 1 if we make that decision based on a strategic and business perspective, Ray said.

In Levels 1 and 2, the board-certified surgeons are onsite 24/7 while Level 3 requires they be able to respond within 30 minutes. Sometimes patients dont have that luxury of waiting.

Were excited about the trauma program and the expansion, Ray said. By the end of the year, the HCA Houston Healthcare Gulf Coast region will have 14 trauma centers of different levels, nine of those in the Houston market alone.

In the past, critical stroke care could only be found in downtown hospitals but thats changing.

Kingwood, Northwest, and Clear Lake campuses have excellent stroke care programs, Ray said.

Well be elevating a number of our hospitals in late 2021, early 2022 into comprehensive stroke centers. We have hospitals strategically positioned in dense areas where they occur and live. Well be able to save more lives and that brain tissue. Its all about timing with strokes, he said.

The executive vice president said as they expand their Level 2 footprint, they will consider obtaining Level 1 status.

Well assess our Level 2s and see if whether or not training or research programs are aligned with those programs in the future, he said.

They are already in the midst of residency programs working on achieving their cap.

We have some of those residency programs with our partnership with the University of Houston in internal medicine, obstetrics, and well be starting general surgery and anesthesia in the near future, he said.

In the years ahead, they plan on hosting 440 to 450 residents across a number of sites.

Were new into the residency programs in Houston but well quickly become a significant player as we reach that 440 to 450 residency level, he said by late 2022 and early 2023.

Every residency program has a cap of how many residency students they can have. HCA is still in their cap-building process and maturing to their top number.

I think youll see us continue with Sam Houston State with our Conroe hospital, but the large majority will be mainly with the University of Houston since were geographically aligned with Houston, he said.

As the largest health care provider in the nation with 186 hospitals, 46,000 active and affiliated physicians and 98,000 registered nurses worldwide, Ray said they have the support to make these moves.

For Levi Harris, returning to normal life has been daunting especially with his medical bills and his friends are helping him with a GoFundMe account that can be found at https://gofund.me/2dda3622 or by typing in Levi Harris in the search box at www.gofundme.com.

His doctors say his youth is playing a large part in his recovery and he should be back to normal in a few months.

dtaylor@hcnonline.com
OnSceneTV

A driver was injured early Saturday when their car fell from a freeway overpass in north Houston, police said.

Police are investigating the crash that happened shortly before 5 a.m. when the car fell from the Interstate 45 overpass down to Stokes Street, according to OnScene TV. It was unclear how the crash happened.
Michael Rodgers arrived at the bustling Turkey Leg Hut on Friday expecting to get a decadent shrimp-stuffed turkey leg and some fries.

He left with an extra side: a shot of COVID vaccine.

I just came to experience the Turkey Leg, but since it was right here and I was going to do it anyway, might as well just take it, said Rodgers, a 35-year-old Memphis resident in town visiting family. The line was so long, so why not?

In their latest attempt to vaccinate the masses, Houston Health Department officials plan to offer COVID shots at restaurants, clubs and other high-traffic areas across the city in the coming weeks, hoping to catch idle bodies at a moment when time isnt of the essence.

City leaders said visits to those locations mark a new phase of their strategy to deliver COVID vaccines, as they target younger adults that have been more hesitant to roll up their sleeves.

We set up all the big locations, like at NRG (Stadium) and the Bayou Center, but the people have not been coming in the numbers we need them to come, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said. Were kind of reconfiguring things, and now the approach is to go to where people are, to go to the venues people are attending and patronizing.

State officials estimate about 67 percent of Harris County residents age 65 and older are fully vaccinated, compared to about 40 percent of all residents age 16 and older. The disparity is partially attributable to older adults, who are more vulnerable to severe health complications from COVID, gaining earlier access to shots.

Mark Mulligan, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

City officials descended on the Museum District restaurant Friday evening with an unexpected offer to customers: if youll get a shot, well hold your spot in line and give a 10 percent discount on your meal.

While the restaurants queue stretched more than 100 people throughout the early evening, a modest 20 customers accepted the offer through the units first two hours on site. The willing participants included Bea Mariz, who overcame her fear of needles with support from her dining partner, anesthesiologist Brenda Banks, and some friendly prodding from the second-term mayor.

I was not going to drive myself to any vaccination center, Mariz said. Im still shaking. I was so scared.

Houston Health Department Director Stephen Williams said he wants vaccination rates among younger adults to be a lot higher than it is.

By traveling to busy locations like the Turkey Leg Hut, health officials can dispel vaccine myths in-person, help reduce needle anxiety and rely on hesitant peoples friends to gently push toward vaccination. Williams said future stops might include different incentives, such as a tangible handout.

I think what were seeing now is that for each age group, the strategies have to be different, Williams said.

City officials said they plan to visit similar sites in the coming weeks, though no final plans have been made beyond returning to the Turkey Leg Hut on Saturday. However, the 66-year-old mayor did foreshadow a late-night stop at one of the citys hopping clubs.

If you cant hang, you dont want to be with the mayor, Turner said with a wry smile. Were going to where the people are. And then Im going to be in church on Sunday morning.

jacob.carpenter@chron.com

jacob.carpenter@chron.com






Position Objective: Contributes to the provision of high-quality, cost-effective healthcare as a provider of direct and indirect patient care and by effective of the health care team. Functions as a competent member of the health care team. Essential Job Duties: Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 1. Clinical Decision Making/Judgment Demonstrates clinical nursing knowledge and skill in the specialization of the unit.

Demonstrates the ability to apply the nursing process effectively in the care of culturally diverse patients and families. Demonstrates the ability to utilize all applicable laws, policies, standards, guidelines and evidence-based practice in the provision of patient/family care.

Organizes and reprioritizes patient care activities based on subtle and overt and/or environmental changes.

Consistently and thoroughly assesses patients to collect data and identify learning needs according to established standards and policies.

Utilizes a systematic, continuous and complete analysis of assessment data to develop individualized problem lists for assigned patients.

Develops and individualizes a plan of care for each patient in accordance with established standards, appropriate prioritization of problems/needs, and mutually agreed upon goals.

Efficiently implements the patient's plan of care in accordance with applicable standards, policies, procedures and guidelines.

Demonstrates proficiency in medication administration, pain management and other unit or initiative specific skills.

Continuously evaluates the effectiveness of the plan(s) of care, making revisions and recommendations based on analysis of patient responses to interventions. 2. Nurse-Patient Family Relationships Demonstrates the ability to assess the patient's/family's learning needs, readiness to learn, learning style, and presence of barriers to learning.

Demonstrates the ability to develop, implement and evaluate teaching plans for patient populations in unit specialty in accordance with applicable standards.

Demonstrates the ability to apply knowledge of growth and development across the life span to the care of patients.

Provides direct patient care to patients and families in a culturally, developmentally and ethically appropriate manner.

Plans of care address the physical, psychosocial, spiritual and learning needs of the patient/family. 3. Clinical Scholarship Participates in QI, CPI and risk management activities at the unit, department or organizational level.

Demonstrates the ability to effectively perform and improve all processes in order to achieve excellence with regard to AAMC's quality standards and benchmarks.

Supports the use of evidence based guidelines and organizational policies and procedures to promote safe patient care and a safe practice environment. 4. Clinical Leadership Participates in unit shared governance according to departmental standards.

Participates in the education and orientation of new staff.

Delegates patient care activities as appropriate; evaluates delegated activities for expected patient care outcomes.

Employs real time computer documentation when completing patient record. Educational/Experience Requirements: Graduate of an accredited school of nursing

Adherence to the credentialing requirements of AAMC as stated in the nursing bylaws. Required License/Certifications: Current licensure as a registered nurse by the Maryland Board of Nursing.

BLS - American Heart Association Healthcare Provider certification Working Conditions, Equipment, Physical Demands: There is a reasonable expectation that employees in this position will be exposed to blood-borne pathogens. Physical Demands - Medium work. Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 30 pounds of force frequently, and/or up to 10 pounds of force constantly to move objects. The physical demands and work environment that have been described are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The above job description is an overview of the functions and requirements for this position. This document is not intended to be an exhaustive list encompassing every duty and requirement of this position; your supervisor may assign other duties as deemed necessary.


Baby skunks are cute but shouldn't be handled.

Vermont Wildlife Offers Tips on Dealing With Wild Babies

MONTPELIER, Vt.  Watching wildlife is enjoyable, especially when young animals appear in the spring. But it is best to keep your distance. Picking up young wildlife can do more harm than good, according to the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, and it is also against the law.

When people see young animals alone, they often mistakenly assume these animals are helpless or lost, in trouble or needing to be rescued. Bringing young wildlife into a human environment often results in permanent separation from their mothers and a sad ending for the animal.

Handling wildlife could also pose a threat to the people involved. Wild animals can transmit disease and angry wildlife mothers can pose significant dangers.

Department scientists encourage wildlife watchers to respect the behavior of animals in the spring and early summer, and to resist the urge to assist wildlife in ways that may be harmful. Here are some helpful tips:

 Deer and moose nurse their young at different times during the day, and often leave young alone for long periods of time. These animals are not lost. Their mother knows where they are and will return.

 Young birds on the ground may have left their nest, but their parents will still feed them.

 Young animals such as fox and raccoon will often follow their mother. The mother of a wildlife youngster is usually nearby but just out of sight to a person happening upon it.

 Animals that act sick can carry rabies, parasites or other harmful diseases. Do not handle them. Even though they do not show symptoms, healthy-looking raccoons, foxes, skunks, and bats may also be carriers of the deadly rabies virus.

 Many wildlife species will not feed or care for their young when people are close by. Obey signs that restrict access to wildlife nesting areas, including hiking trails that may be temporarily closed.

 Keep domestic pets indoors, leashed or fenced in. Dogs and cats kill many baby animals each year.

 Avoid projects that remove trees, shrubs and dead snags that contain nests during the spring and summer.

For information about rabies and wildlife conflicts, or truly orphaned wildlife (i.e. the adult has been hit by a car) call the Vermont Rabies Hotline at 1-800-4RABIES (1-800-472-2437) or, in Massachusetts, call your animal inspector or animal control officer.

For the safety of all wildlife, taking a wild animal into captivity is illegal, even one you suspect is sick, injured or has been abandoned.


Williamstown Fire Chief Craig Pedercini, left, talks strategy with North Adams Fire Chief Brent Lefebvre and Lanesborough Fire Chief Charlie Durfee, right. WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.  Fire personnel from seven towns plus North Adams battled a forest fire Friday on East Mountain.

About three dozen personnel from the fire departments of Williamstown, Clarksburg, Hancock, Lanesborough, New Ashford, North Adams and Pownal, Vt., plus the Adams Forest Wardens responded to the blaze that first was reported at 5:44 p.m.

The fire was located more than a mile from the nearest paved road, forcing firefighters to take to four-wheelers to get to the site. Initial reports indicated the fire was at least partially on property owned by the East Mountain Sportsman's Club.

By 8:25, as darkness enveloped the mountainside, the first responders were making their way down the mountain to one of two command centers that were set up to coordinate the operation.

"I don't want to get anybody hurt," Williamstown Fire Chief Craig Pedercini said, explaining the order to withdraw from the woods.

"Working in the woods at night with fires, that alone is dangerous. You can trip, you can fall, a tree can fall on you. There are so many different things that can happen up there, and you're not going to be able to see well enough to coordinate what you want to do.

"We get to a certain point at night, and we pull out. Depending on the weather, it could slow down on us a little at night, and then in the morning, it will pick up when it starts getting warmer."

Pedercini was coordinating operations from the main command center with North Adams Fire Chief Brent Lefebvre and Lanesborough Fire Chief Charlie Durfee. Williamstown Forest Warden Rick Daniels was in the woods with the crews fighting the blaze.

The effort was aided by images from drone flights provided by the Williamstown Police Department and North Adams Fire Department photographer Nick Mantello.

When the firefighters returned to base camp after dark, they were greeted by pizzas donated by The Log by Ramunto's in Williamstown.

Pedercini said firefighters will return to the woods on Saturday, likely with help from other area departments.
Firefighters are spending a second day battling a forest fire on East Mountain. Firefighters use leave blowers to clear out a fire line that will stop the spread of the flames. Small pockets of flames could be seen throughout the woods on East Mountain on Saturday morning. Shovels and rakes  not hoses  were essential tools in bringing the brush fire under control. Wayne McLain of the East Mountain Sportsman's Club spent Saturday morning bringing firefighters and supplies up the side of the mountain on his all-terrain vehicle. Firefighters from Williamstown, New Ashford, Windsor, Hancock, Florida, Clarksburg and Pownal, Vt., joined the action on Saturday. Some of the food and drinks donated to help firefighters battling the blaze. Williamstown Fire Warden Rick Daniels, right, surveys the scene. Williamstown Fire Chief Craig Pedercini, center, addresses firefighters before they head into the woods early Saturday morning. PreviousNext

UPDATE: Williamstown Forest Fire Fight to Continue into Sunday

UPDATE:

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- Fire officials pulled crews off East Mountain mid-afternoon on Saturday when it became clear that shifting winds were creating hazardous conditions and the battle against a brush fire deep in the woods would go into at least a third day.

"The wind was picking up up there very much," Williamstown Fire Chief Craig Pedercini said. "There were beyond manageable wind conditions, and that just intensified the fire.

"Unfortunately, in unsafe conditions, we pull people out. It's not worth getting hurt for this."

The brush fires, which appear to be contained to the forest floor and are more than a mile into the woods from any buildings, first cropped up on Friday evening. Forty firefighters from departments throughout the region were on site early Saturday morning to continue the attack that started the night before.

Pedercini said late Saturday afternoon it is unknown where the firefighters will stage their base on Sunday morning. Although the fire appeared to advance further to the east, toward Clarksburg State Forest, on Saturday morning, reports late Saturday indicated it might be changing directions again.

"The way that's traveling right now in an easterly direction, we are thinking about establishing ourselves in, potentially, Stamford [Vt.]," Pedercini said. "I think some of us are going to get up there this evening and try to do some recon and seewhat it looks like.

"We very well, because of the way the wind's turning, it could turn this around. There have been some reports it may be turning this way, but we could have both. Right now, we're going to play this by ear."

Pedericini said that he and other fire chiefs and forest wardens from throughout the area will decide on their plan of attack on Sunday morning. He also said the fire could drag into a fourth day on Monday.

According to the website Weather.com, no precipitation is forecast for Williamstown until at least Monday, when there is a chance for "isolated thunderstorms" in the afternoon.

Sunday could see some artificial precipitation. Pedercini said he is hoping to get an aerial water drop on the third day of the fire. Either the State Police or the National Guard could provide that support, he said.

Pedercini said that besides the wind, the terrain itself presents logistical challenges for getting firefighters to hot spots.

"Just because you can hike it from the bottom of Pine Cobble or all these other trails, doesn't always mean that that's where the fire is," he said. "And even if it were to start near by a trail, that doesn't mean that's where you're going to find it. It can be a mile or two away by that time."

Original story posted at 1 p.m. Saturday:

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.  At midday Saturday, it was unclear whether the fight against a brush fire deep in the woods on East Mountain would continue into a third day.

Just after 10 a.m. on Saturday, a State Police helicopter alerted fire officials on the ground to another front in the blaze which broke out on Friday evening.

Fire personnel from Williamstown, New Ashford, Windsor, Hancock, Florida, Clarksburg and Pownal, Vt., were on site Saturday morning.

Williamstown Fire Chief Craig Pedercini reported that 40 firefighters from the various departments were fighting the fire on at least two fronts mid-morning.

The crews arrived at 6 a.m. for a briefing and were dispatched into the woods by 6:50, according to Williamstown Forest Warden Rick Daniels.

Most of the fire is on the property of the East Mountain Sportsman's Club, though unconfirmed reports indicated it may have started farther to the north and west.

Wayne McLain, 65, is the club's vice president and grew up on a farm near the club's property. He said he could not remember another fire on the club's land.

By 9:30 Saturday morning, McClain was making his fourth trip of more than a mile from the firefighters' basecamp, uphill over rocky terrain in his all-terrain vehicle.


Multi-Media Reporter Pamplin Media Group The Pamplin Media Group is looking for three full-time multi-media reporters to join its team in Oregon. These reporters will work in partnership with the staff of our community newsrooms in the Portland metropolitan area. Reporters will contribute to our weekly print and daily digital/ social media products and collaborate on special sections and web-based projects. Beats will include education and local governments as well as features and breaking news. The Pamplin Media Group is a local, family-owned media company that includes more than 20 weekly newspapers/websites, the Portland Tribune and several specialty publications and websites. It reaches a combined print and digital audience of more than 1.2 million readers each week. The ideal candidates will have a bachelors degree in journalism and at least two years of professional reporting experience. They will demonstrate excellent time management skills and an ability to write engaging, accurate stories on deadline. Although they may work with a professional photographer, reporters should be able to shoot photos for their own stories when needed and contribute to video projects as well as podcasts. Bilingual English/Spanish skills are a plus and could lead to additional opportunities. Reporters use social media to share their work and engage our audiences across multiple platforms, work well on deadlines and demonstrate an ability to manage a flexible work schedule that may include evenings and weekends. We are a digital-first operation, and reporters are expected to post daily content independent of weekly publication schedules. Reporters are valuable members of our newsroom teams whose input contributes to healthy communities in Oregon. They also develop and practice leadership skills in our newsrooms and communities that can help them achieve their career goals. Please email cover letter, resume, references and at least three samples of published work, including photos and one written news and/or feature story. Send to John Schrag, executive editor. Put PMG Reporter 2021 in the subject line.

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ASUS Philippines officially announces the return of the Zenfone series, with the all-new Zenfone 8 series  the most powerful generation to date. Starting May 14, 2021 fans of this beloved mobile brand will be able to reserve one for their own.

A smartphone for every need, with the compact Zenfone 8 and the photo-powerhouse Zenfone 8 Flip, Filipinos will surely enjoy the latest era of mobile photography and performance the all-new Zenfone Series offers.

The super-compact 5.9-inch Zenfone 8 and the photography-focused 6.67-inch Zenfone 8 Flip are designed to meet the needs of every type of user.

The new series is powered by the latest flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G Mobile Platform, featuring the fastest possible 5G speeds. High-capacity batteries  4000 mAh in Zenfone 8 and 5000 mAh in Zenfone 8 Flip  deliver outstanding battery life for non-stop lifestyles.

Both Zenfone 8 and Zenfone 8 Flip feature gorgeous Samsung AMOLED displays with Delta-E <1 color accuracy, offering a superbly immersive visual experience with ultravivid colors. Additionally, Zenfone 8's display has an ultrafast up to 120 Hz refresh rate. The displays also include in-display fingerprint sensors for convenient security.

Flagship Sony camera sensors add superb photo and video capabilities to both phones. Zenfone 8 has a fixed rear dual-camera system, while Zenfone 8 Flip features the innovative triple-camera Flip Camera, a motorized flip-up module that enables the same high-resolution photos and videos at both front and rear.

Zenfone 8 has a sleek all-new design, with dimensions specifically chosen to allow easy pocketability and effortless one-handed operation. A 3D-curved back with a new frosted glass finish for a more secure grip. Zenfone 8 is additionally the recipient of a 2021 Red Dot Product Design Award, awarded by an international jury in recognition of its outstanding design.

FLAGSHIP PERFORMANCE

Zenfone 8 and Zenfone 8 Flip use the latest flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G Mobile Platform, built using a 5-nanometer process technology. This processor offers up to 25% faster CPU performance and up to 35% faster graphics rendering compared to the previous generation.

Outstanding battery life for non-stop lifestyles is ensured by high-capacity batteries  4000 mAh in Zenfone 8 and 5000 mAh in Zenfone 8 Flip. Advanced battery-care systems maximize battery lifespan, and the new System Mode in the ZenUI 8 operating system has a variety of automatic power-management modes that users can easily switch between depending on their needs, ranging from maximum performance to maximum battery life. Advanced manual configuration of power-saving parameters is also possible.

EXPERIENCE VISUAL PERFECTION

Both Zenfone 8 and Zenfone 8 Flip are equipped with bright, ultra-responsive Samsung AMOLED displays. Tuned in collaboration with industry-leading visual processing company Pixelworks, the superb visual experience is enhanced with Delta-E <1 color accuracy and DC Dimming technology . The displays are also HDR10+ certified to bring out the detail in even the darkest scenes. In-display fingerprint sensors make unlocking the phones simple and intuitive.

Zenfone 8 has a 120 Hz Samsung AMOLED display with a 1 ms response time for silky-smooth scrolling and blur-free visuals. The cinema-grade 112% DCI-P3 color gamut brings videos and images to life, and the 1000-nits brightness allows easy outdoor readability. And to keep it looking great for longer, the display's protected by the latest and toughest-ever Corning Gorilla Glass Victus.

Zenfone 8 Flip has an all-screen, 100% notch-free 90 Hz Samsung AMOLED NanoEdge display with vivid colors and smooth responsiveness.

PRO-GRADE PHOTOGRAPHY

Photographers of any level are amply catered for by the advanced professional-grade camera systems in the Zenfone 8 series, which feature all-Sony sensors.

The rear dual-camera system on Zenfone 8 captures every precious moment with superb-quality photos under any conditions. The 64 MP Sony IMX686 main camera delivers unprecedented resolution, dual-pixel autofocus, optical image stabilization and a high level of light sensitivity, for perfect photos day and night. The ultrawide 12 MP Sony IMX363 camera allows even more freedom for composition and it can also take incredible macro shots with close-up details. At the front, a 12 MP Sony IMX663 punch-hole camera with dual-pixel autofocus delivers crystal-clear selfie shots and videos.

FIRST ZENFONE FLIP IN PHILIPPINES

The renowned Zenfone Flip will be making its way to the Philippines through the 8th generation of Zenfones. The Zenfone 8 Flip features the groundbreaking Flip Camera that is a motorized flip-up module with an evolved triple-camera system, which offers the same high-resolution photo and video capabilities whether the module is front-facing or rear-facing. The main camera is a Sony IMX686 64 MP high-resolution wide-angle camera with dual-pixel phase-detection autofocus for maintaining an ultrasharp focus on subjects. There is also the Quad Bayer technology and enhanced light sensitivity for stunning photos  day or night. A secondary ultrawide-angle camera is powered by a Sony IMX363 sensor, and this camera supports up to 4 cm macro photography for incredibly detailed close-up shots. The third camera is a telephoto camera, which enables 3X optical zoom, up to 12X total zoom, and seamless transitions between cameras while recording.

The Zenfone 8 Flip camera also features additional shooting modes utilizing the unique motorized flip mechanism  Motion Tracking which automatically tracks a subject using the motorized camera, Free Angle Shooting which allows you to set the camera in unique perspectives and angles and Auto Panorama which allows you to capture incredible vistas automatically with the flipping motion.

IRRESISTIBLE DESIGN

Zenfone 8 redefines portable design to deliver the ultimate performance, with none of the weight or bulk. It is designed to be easy to use and easy to carry, everywhere, and built to impress with its irresistible looks and premium feel. A key design goal was to make Zenfone 8 exceptionally easy to use, even with just one hand. The all-new One-handed Mode gives users full and comfortable control using just their thumb. The 3D-curved back perfectly fits the palm, and the brand-new frosted glass coating gives Zenfone 8 a clean and sleek look, all the time, while making it even easier to grip.

Zenfone 8 Flip has been redesigned to allow a better grip while still packing a large battery. The 3D curved back has been carefully reshaped for optimum grip.

AVAILABILITY & PRICING

ASUS Zenfone 8 series will be available for pre-orders starting May 14, 2021 at official ASUS Concept Stores, accredited online and offline shops. Successful pre-order registrants will receive a free Rhinoshield Solidsuit Hardcase and a JBL Go 3 alongside the model of choice, to complete the Zenfone experience.

For further details on the mechanics and the participating shops, visit bit.ly/Zenfone8Series.
Imperial Valley News Center

University of Miami to Pay $22 Million to Settle Claims Involving Medically Unnecessary Laboratory Tests and Fraudulent Billing Practices

Miami, Florida - The University of Miami (UM) has agreed to pay $22 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by ordering medically unnecessary laboratory tests, and submitting false claims through its laboratory and off campus hospital based facilities (Hospital Facilities).

According to court documents, the United States alleged that UM engaged in three practices that violated the False Claims Act. First, the government alleged that UM knowingly engaged in improper billing relating to its Hospital Facilities. Medicare regulations allow medical systems to convert physician offices into Hospital Facilities provided they satisfy certain requirements. Billing as a Hospital Facility results in higher costs to the Medicare program and beneficiaries. Hospital Facilities are required to give notice to Medicare beneficiaries that explains the financial ramifications of receiving services at Hospital Facilities as opposed to physician offices. Here, the government alleged that UM converted multiple physician offices to Hospital Facilities, and then sought payment at higher rates without providing beneficiaries the required notice, even after being advised by a Medicare Administrative Contractor that its notice practices were deficient.

Second, the government alleged that UM billed federal health care programs for medically unnecessary laboratory tests for patients who received kidney transplants at the Miami Transplant Institute (MTI)  a transplant program operated by UM and Jackson Memorial Hospital (JMH). Each time a patient checked into the MTI, UMs electronic ordering system triggered a pre-set protocol of tests to be run for the patient at UMs laboratory. The government alleged that several tests on the protocol for all kidney transplant patients were medically unnecessary and dictated by financial considerations rather than patient care.

Third, the government alleged that UM caused JMH to submit inflated claims for reimbursement for pre-transplant laboratory testing conducted at the MTI in violation of related party regulations, which limit the reimbursement a provider can obtain for tests performed by a related entity to that entitys actual costs. The government alleged that UM did so by controlling JMHs decision to purchase pre-transplant laboratory tests from UM at inflated rates in exchange for UMs surgeons and Department of Surgery continuing to perform surgeries at JMH. In a separate agreement, the United States has reached a $1.1 million settlement with JMH relating to this conduct.

Health care providers who charge for medically unnecessary services and knowingly violate billing rules contribute to the soaring cost of health care, said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton for the Justice Departments Civil Division. The department will investigate and hold accountable those who seek to profit at the expense of federal health care programs and their beneficiaries.

Medical providers who submit fraudulent claims to our taxpayer-funded health care programs not only violate the publics trust, they compromise the very integrity of these programs, said Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida. Our office will aggressively pursue investigations against all providers who knowingly violate these billing rules no matter their size.

Bilking the Medicare program and patients by charging for medically unnecessary services will always draw the attention of my office, said Special Agent in Charge Omar Perez Aybar of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). Working with our law enforcement partners, our agents are committed to investigating alleged billing scams that result in tremendous costs to federal health care programs and its beneficiaries.

Contemporaneous with the civil settlement, UM has also agreed to enter into a corporate integrity agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services.

The civil settlement resolves allegations made in three lawsuits filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. The relator share of the recovery in this case has not yet been determined.

The case was handled jointly by the Civil Divisions Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Florida with assistance from HHS-OIG, the U.S. Defense Health Agency Office of the Inspector General, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management Office of the Inspector General, and the Florida Attorney Generals Offices Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.

The cases are captioned United States ex rel. Jonathan Lord, M.D. v. University of Miami, Civ. No. 13-22500 (S.D. Fla.); United States ex rel. Philip Chen, M.D. and Joshua Yelen v. University of Miami and Miami-Dade Public Health Trust, Civ. No. 13-24320 (S.D. Fla.); and United States ex rel. Mitchell Wallace v. University of Miami and Miami-Dade Public Health Trust, Civ. No. 14-21206 (S.D. Fla.).

The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.<
Imperial Valley News Center

Study Coordinator Charged in Scheme to Falsify Clinical Trial Data

Miami, Florida - A federal grand jury in Miami, Florida, returned an indictment Tuesday charging a Florida woman with conspiring to falsify clinical trial data regarding an asthma medication.

According to court documents, Jessica Palacio, 34, of Miami, worked as a study coordinator at a clinical trial firm in Miami called Unlimited Medical Research. Unlimited Medical Research was one of many companies hired to conduct a clinical trial designed to investigate the safety and efficacy of an asthma medication in children. The indictment alleges that Palacio participated in a scheme to falsify medical records to make it appear as though pediatric subjects made scheduled visits to Unlimited Medical Research, received physical exams from a clinical investigator, and took study drugs as required, when in fact these things had not occurred. The indictment also alleges that when Palacio was confronted by a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory investigator about her conduct, she made a false statement to that investigator.

Falsifying clinical trial data risks the health and safety of those who might later rely upon the drugs being tested, said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Arun G. Rao of the Justice Departments Civil Division. The Department of Justice will continue to work with its partners at the Food and Drug Administration to investigate and prosecute anyone who endangers the public for financial gain.

When the efficacy of a new pharmaceutical drug is tested, public health and safety must always take precedence over profit, said Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida. Medical researchers who manipulate clinical data and falsify records needlessly endanger the public and will be prosecuted.

Reliable and accurate data from clinical trials is the cornerstone of FDAs evaluation of a new drug, said Special Agent in Charge Justin C. Fielder of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, Miami Field Office. Compromised clinical trial data could impact the agencys decisions about the safety and effectiveness of the drug under review. We will continue to monitor, investigate and bring to justice those whose actions may subvert the FDA approval process and endanger the public health.

Palacio is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and making a false statement. The defendant is expected to make her initial court appearance later this week in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and five years in prison for making a false statement. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FDAs Office of Criminal Investigations is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Joshua D. Rothman and Kara M. Traster of the Civil Divisions Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case, and the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Florida provided critical assistance.

An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Imperial Valley News Center

Two Individuals Charged for their Roles in Massive Cattle Ponzi Scheme

Denver, Colorado - A federal grand jury in Colorado returned an indictment that was unsealed Tuesday charging an Illinois woman and a Georgia man with running a Ponzi scheme that raised approximately $650 million from investors across the country.

According to court documents, Reva Joyce Stachniw, 69, of Galesburg, Illinois, and Ron Throgmartin, 57, of Buford, Georgia, were charged with running a Ponzi scheme, along with a third co-conspirator, Mark Ray, from late 2017 until early 2019. Ray was previously charged by criminal information for his role in the Ponzi scheme in the Central District of Illinois in February 2020.

According to the indictment, Stachniw, Throgmartin, and other co-conspirators solicited hundreds of millions of dollars from victim-investors throughout the United States. Most often, the conspirators fraudulently represented to victim-investors that their investments were backed by short-term investments in cattle. They also used false and fraudulent pretenses to solicit money from victim-investors for the conspirators Colorado-based marijuana business, Universal Herbs LLC. Other victim-investors gave the conspirators money based on false promises that investment money would be used for legitimate business activity related to cattle or marijuana, without having the investment money linked to specific investment opportunities.

In all three variations of the conspirators investment fraud scheme, victim-investors were promised returns of approximately 10% to 20% over periods as short as several weeks. At no point did Stachniw, Throgmartin, or Ray tell victim-investors that they were primarily using their money to repay other investors in a Ponzi-style investment scheme, or to enrich themselves. Stachniw and Throgmartin allegedly received millions of dollars from the scheme, despite putting little to none of their own money into it.

Stachniw and Throgmartin are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, five counts of wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy to engage in money transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity. Stachniw and Throgmartin made their initial court appearance Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge N. Reid Neureiter of the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. If convicted, Stachniw and Throgmartin face a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for wire fraud, and 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for conspiracy to engage in money transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Departments Criminal Division; Special Agent in Charge John Crawford of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG) Chicago Regional Office; and Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs of the FBIs San Antonio Field Office made the announcement.

The FDIC-OIG and the FBI are investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Michael P. McCarthy of the Justice Departments Fraud Section is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Imperial Valley News Center

Two Indicted for $2 Million Scheme that Defrauded Over 20 Investors

Washington, DC - An indictment charging a District of Columbia man and Connecticut woman with perpetrating an advance fee and investment fraud scheme that defrauded more than 20 victims of more than $2 million was unsealed today in the District of Columbia.

According to court documents, Paul Maucha, 56, of Washington, D.C., and Melisa Shapiro, 63, of Bridgeport, Connecticut, conspired to engage in a scheme through a shell company they controlled, American Eagle Services Group (AESG), to make numerous misrepresentations about AESG, its assets and its access to money and capital.

As alleged in the indictment, Maucha and Shapiro enriched themselves by falsely promising to provide victims with financing, surety bonds and investing opportunities through AESG and AESG related entities in exchange for advance fees. Maucha and Shapiro falsely claimed that AESG could make multimillion-dollar loans to victims and would convince the victims to pay a refundable commitment fee or due diligence deposit before the loans would be made. Because Maucha and Shapiro themselves spent the fees paid by the victims, they did not have the funds to issue refunds when they failed to fund the promised loans.

In addition, Maucha and Shapiro induced victims to give AESG money for placement in a high-yield investment program and then misappropriated large portions of the victims investments. Maucha and Shapiro also borrowed funds from at least one victim based on false representations about how the funds would be used and AESGs ability to repay. Maucha and Shapiro concealed their scheme by lulling victims with false assurances about their promised financial services, AESGs access to capital, and AESGs ability to provide refunds.

Maucha and Shapiro are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, three counts of wire fraud and two counts of engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property. If convicted, Maucha and Shapiro each face a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in prison for the conspiracy and wire fraud counts and up to 10 years for each count of engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Departments Criminal Division; Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia; and Special Agent in Charge J. Chris Hacker of the FBIs Atlanta Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI is investigating the case.

Assistant Chief William E. Johnston and Trial Attorney Kyle W. Maurer of the Criminal Divisions Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Rothstein for the District of Columbia are prosecuting the case.
Imperial Valley News Center

Prison Official Pleads Guilty to Accepting Bribes to Smuggle Contraband to Inmates

Charlotte, North Carolina - A North Carolina man pleaded guilty Wednesday to a bribery and smuggling scheme in which he abused his position as a prison official to funnel drugs and other contraband into Caledonia Correctional Institution.

According to court documents, Ollie Rose III, 62, of Pleasant Hill, worked as a case manager at Caledonia Correctional Institution, a state prison in Halifax County. Rose admitted to agreeing to use his position, from at least November 2018 through October 2020, to smuggle contraband  including oxycodone, marijuana and synthetic cannabinoids  into the prison for inmates. Rose further admitted that he did so in exchange for payments ranging from $500 to $1,200 and received more than $40,000 in total in bribes. He was paid both in cash and via a mobile application, and he sometimes also accepted a portion of the drugs he smuggled into the prison as payment.

Rose pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to use a facility in interstate commerce in furtherance of unlawful activity and one count of extortion under color of official right. A sentencing date has been scheduled for the Sept. 7 term of court. Rose faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Departments Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Robert R. Wells of the FBIs Charlotte Field Office made the announcement.

The case was investigated by the FBI, with significant assistance from the North Carolina Department of Public Safety.

Trial Attorneys Rebecca M.


GIS Analyst I/II City of Watsonville $36.69-$54.63/hour. Examples of Duties EXAMPLES OF ESSENTIAL DUTIES  Duties may include, but are not limited to, the following: Analyze a variety of GIS data and prepare associated reports for use by assigned department; analyze, review, and ensure accuracy of mapping and related data prepared by lower level personnel or consultants for inclusion in various reports.

Design and/or modify GIS programming as necessary to accommodate the needs of a variety of users; verify accuracy of digitized data to ensure accuracy and quality of automated information.

Develop and design databases related to GIS database mapping functions and mapping layers.

Coordinate GIS functions and uses with other departments, other agencies/jurisdictions, engineers, developers, and the general public; provide support to departments, agencies, and the public regarding GIS and identify and resolve related concerns.

Develop and document procedures for use of GIS functionalities; prepare related protocols; provide related training to a variety of GIS users.

Participate in emergency preparedness planning and implementation activities to facilitate the work of City departments, other public and social service agencies; provide information and training regarding GIS functions related to emergency situations.

Update a variety of maps, including utility, zoning, reference, topographic, political boundary, parcel and address maps.

Read and interpret civil plans and specifications for extraction of data to GIS Utility system and data layers; use GIS to analyze data for engineering/planning purposes.

Prepare maps, line drawings, color graphics, charts, graphs, architectural renderings and other documents or materials for use in brochures, reports and presentations to the City Council, boards and commissions, and other public agencies.

Participate, as assigned, in City committees and groups to provide input to GIS planning and implementation strategies and work plans; provide technical assistance as needed.

Determine and evaluate the positional accuracy, attribute accuracy, logical consistency, and completeness of data.

Perform data exploration, geostatistics, and data mining; identify spatial relationships and patterns and then display those using maps, graphics, or tabular data.

Build and analyze business cases; design and facilitate productive meetings with stakeholders to elicit requirements and use cases; create visual representations of business processes.

Develops and customizes GIS desktop and web applications using a variety of programming and scripting languages.

Creates internet mapping services.

Assist in development of policies and procedures; oversee implementation and enforcement of policies and procedures.

Build and maintain positive working relationships with co-workers, other City employees and the public using principles of good customer service.

Perform related duties as assigned. Typical Qualifications MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS Geographic Information System Analyst I Knowledge of: Principles and practices of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and computer operating systems.

Algebra, geometry and trigonometry, especially as related to computation of distances, angles and areas.

Use of ESRI-based ArcGIS suite of software and related applications.

Methods and techniques used in the installation, troubleshooting and maintenance of software applications.

Basic database administration principals, methods and techniques including ArcSDE administration.

Python scripting language, HTML and CSS.

Records storage and handling techniques.

Customer service principles. Ability to: Perform professional level GIS work.

On a continuous basis, know and understand all aspects of the job. Intermittently analyze work papers, reports and special projects; identify and interpret technical and numerical information; observe and problem solve operational and technical policy and procedures.

On a continuous basis, sit at desk for long periods of time and periodically go into the field to perform collection duties. Intermittently twist to reach equipment surrounding desk; perform simple grasping and fine manipulation; use telephone, and write or use a keyboard to communicate through written means; and lift or carry weight of 25 pounds or less.

Design and develop sequential processing of tasks and perform spatial analysis.

Analyze, diagnose, and troubleshoot GIS database application problems.

Train or instruct GIS users in access to and use of the database system.

Research sources of geographic data; collect, interpret and integrate data from various sources to prepare map manuscripts and reports.

Prepare a variety of reports and maintain accurate records and files. Work weekends or evenings, as required.

Communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing.

Establish and maintain effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of work. TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE : Any combination of training and experience that would provide the required knowledge and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the required knowledge and abilities would be Two years of responsible experience performing duties similar to that of a Geographic Information System Technician II with the City of Watsonville

Equivalent to a Bachelors degree from an accredited college or university in geographic information systems, computer science, information systems, engineering or a related field. LICENSE AND CERTIFICATE May need to possess an appropriate, valid California drivers license as required by the position. Geographic Information System Analyst II In addition to the qualifications for the Geographic Information System Analyst I: K no w ledge o f : Principles and practices of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) including analytical methods applied in spatial problem solving, design of analyses, techniques for graphical representation, and geodatabase design

Methods of advanced research, analysis, and management related to GIS system applications and databases. Ability to: Independently perform professional level GIS work.

Prepare written protocols for difficult and complex GIS system and database usage. Experience and Education Any combination of experience and training that would provide the required knowledge and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the required knowledge and abilities would be: Two years of responsible experience performing duties similar to that of a Geographic Information System Analyst I with the City of Watsonville

Equivalent to a Bachelors degree from an accredited college or university in geographic information systems, computer science, information systems, engineering or a related field. Filing deadline: Thursday, June 10, 2021 at 5 pm. Equal Opportunity Employer.

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Imperial Valley News Center

Owner of Oil Chem Inc. Sentenced for Clean Water Act Violation

Flint, Michigan - The president and owner of Oil Chem Inc. was sentenced yesterday to 12 months in prison for violating the Clean Water Act stemming from illegal discharges of landfill leachate  totaling more than 47 million gallons  into the city of Flint sanitary sewer system over an eight and a half year period.

Robert J. Massey, 70, of Brighton, Michigan, pleaded guilty on Jan. 14, to a criminal charge of violating the Clean Water Act. According to court records, Oil Chem, located in Flint, Michigan, processed and discharged industrial wastewaters to Flints sewer system. The company held a Clean Water Act permit issued by the city of Flint, which allowed it to discharge certain industrial wastes within permit limitations. The citys sanitary sewers flow to its municipal wastewater treatment plant, where treatment takes place before the wastewater is discharged to the Flint River. The treatment plants discharge point for the treated wastewater was downstream of the location where drinking water was taken from the Flint River in 2014 to 2015.

According to the plea agreement filed in federal court, Oil Chems permit prohibited the discharge of landfill leachate waste. Landfill leachate is formed when water filters downward through a landfill, picking up dissolved materials from decomposing trash. Massey signed and certified Oil Chems 2008 permit application and did not disclose that his company had been and planned to continue to receive landfill leachate, which it discharged to the sewers untreated. Nor did Massey disclose to the city when Oil Chem started to discharge this new waste stream, which the permit also required. Massey directed employees of Oil Chem to begin discharging the leachate at the close of business each day, which allowed the waste to flow from a storage tank to the sanitary sewer overnight.

From January 2007 through October 2015, Massey arranged for Oil Chem to receive 47,824,293 gallons of landfill leachate from eight different landfills located in Michigan. One of the landfills was found to have polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in its leachate. PCBs are known to be hazardous to human health and the environment.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Jean E. Williams of the Justice Departments Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) and Acting U.S. Attorney Saima Mohsin of the Eastern District of Michigan thanked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division as well as the Michigan Department of Natural Resources-Law Enforcement Division-Environmental Investigations Section and Coast Guard Investigative Service for their work in this investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ann Nee and Jules DePorre of the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Michigan and ENRD Senior Counsel Kris Dighe.
Imperial Valley News Center

Chico Resident Pleads Guilty to Filing False Clam for FEMA Assistance in Connection with the Paradise Camp Fire

Sacramento, California - A Chico man pleaded guilty today to fraud in connection with a major disaster or emergency benefits, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Following the 2018 Camp Fire, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster assistance funds were available to qualified individuals who had emergency needs for housing, food, and other necessities due to losses incurred by the fire. To qualify for assistance based on home ownership, an applicant must have resided in the damaged home as their primary residence at the time of the fire.

Evan Palmer, 32, pleaded guilty to making a false statement in a claim for FEMA disaster assistance in connection with the Camp Fire. According to court documents, on Dec. 17, 2018, Palmer filed a false claim with FEMA seeking disaster assistance funds for a travel trailer in Paradise that he claimed was his primary residence at the time of the Camp Fire. Palmer owned the travel trailer, however, it was not his primary residence at the time of the fire. Rather, Palmer was living in a home that he leased in Chico. As a result of Palmers false statement, he received $26,490 in FEMA disaster benefits, which was to be used to repair or replace Palmers primary residence and to assist with two months of temporary rental housing.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shelley Weger and Roger Yang are prosecuting the case.

Palmer is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez on Aug. 17. Palmer faces a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Imperial Valley News Center

Federal Jury Finds Man Guilty of Possessing Molotov Cocktails at La Mesa Protest

San Diego, California - After a two-day jury trial, Zachary Alexander Karas of San Diego was found guilty of possessing incendiary devices known as Molotov cocktails at a protest that began on May 30, 2020 in La Mesa. After the jury returned a guilty verdict, Chief District Judge Dana M. Sabraw remanded Karas into custody. Sentencing is set for August 13, 2021, at 9 a.m. before Chief Judge Sabraw.

No one should bring a Molotov cocktail to disrupt a protest, said Acting U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. This was a serious crime that had potential to cause significant damage. Grossman commended prosecutors Matthew Brehm and Joseph Orabona, agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the FBI, and investigators from the San Diego County Sheriffs Department for their excellent work on this case.

Todays verdict sends a message to those who utilize lawful, peaceful protests to disguise their criminal acts, said FBI Special Agent in Charge Suzanne Turner. Zachary Karas was in possession of a functioning incendiary device which, thankfully, was not used. Regardless, citizens have the right to peacefully assemble without threat of disruption, criminal activity, or violence. The FBI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to protect those who are exercising their constitutional rights as well as protecting the safety of the community.

ATF is the Federal agency primarily responsible for administering and enforcing the federal laws pertaining to destructive devices, explosives, and arson, said ATF Special Agent in Charge Monique Villegas. ATF will use all its resources to ensure destructive devices (Molotov cocktails) are not being used in our communities. We are glad the jury delivered the guilty verdict sending a message to those who consider creating their own devices for criminal use.

According to evidence presented at trial, on May 31, 2020, at 2:00 a.m., hours after police had declared an unlawful assembly and given numerous dispersal orders, Karas was standing in the middle of the road at the intersection of Allison Avenue and Spring Street, blocking traffic as part of the protest in La Mesa.

At the time of the protest in La Mesa, several fires had been set, and those fires damaged buildings and property. In fact, Karas was standing in the street in front of the Chase and Union banks that had been set ablaze. In the early morning hours of May 31, 2020, at approximately 2:00 a.m., officers gave orders to the crowd, including Karas, to disperse for an unlawful assembly. However, Karas and others refused, and Karas was arrested for refusing to leave his position in the middle of the street. After his arrest, officers discovered that Karas possessed two glass bottles with wicks that contained gasoline and two smoke bombs.

In video-recorded statements, after being read his Miranda rights, Karas stated that he made the Molotov cocktails and brought them to the La Mesa protest because he intended to use them to set fires, but claimed he ultimately did not cause any fires. Karas explained in the statement, And I heard of the fires. So I came back out with the, yes, intention to start a fire, but I did not have a part in the fire. Karas said he got the bottles from a Rite Aid parking lot and used 87 octane gasoline as the fuel. He claimed that he had acted alone.

A chemist with the ATF laboratory in Atlanta, Georgia, tested the liquid found inside Karas Molotov cocktails and confirmed it was gasoline. An explosives enforcement officer with the ATF received the chemists analysis, inspected the physical evidence, and found that the Molotov cocktails were functioning destructive devices.

A special agent with the ATF inspected the Molotov cocktails and found them to be functioning incendiary devices.

DEFENDANT Case Number 20CR1842-DMS

Zachary Alexander Karas Age: 29 San Diego, CA

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Possession of an Unregistered Destructive Device  Title 26, U.S.C., Section 5861

Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison and $250,000 fine

AGENCIES

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

Federal Bureau of Investigation

San Diego County Sheriffs Department
Imperial Valley News Center

Rollin 30s Crips Gang Members Arrested on Complaint Alleging Armed Robbery and Shooting at Beverly Hills Restaurant

Los Angeles, California - Three members of the Rollin 30s Crips street gang have been arrested on a federal criminal complaint alleging they committed an armed robbery at a Beverly Hills restaurants crowded outdoor dining area on March 4 in which one restaurant patron was held at gunpoint and another was shot and wounded.

The complaint, which was unsealed on Tuesday, charges the following three men  all South Los Angeles residents and documented members of the Rollin 30s Crips  with one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery:

Malik Lamont Powell, 20;

Khai McGhee, a.k.a. Cameron Smith, 18; and

Marquise Anthony Gardon, 30.

The defendants were arrested on Tuesday and are expected to make their initial appearances this afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.

According to an affidavit filed with the complaint, during the afternoon of March 4, an armed robbery occurred at Il Pastaio restaurant in Beverly Hills. During the robbery, a restaurant patron was held at gunpoint while he was robbed by three men for his Richard Mille wristwatch, worth approximately $500,000. A struggle for the gun ensued, during which approximately two rounds were discharged from the firearm, striking another restaurant patron in the leg. Ultimately, the handgun was dropped to the ground during the struggle with the victim. The robbers fled the scene with the victims watch.

Based on a review of video surveillance footage and witness statements, a total of five individuals are believed to be involved in the robbery crew that committed this robbery, the affidavit states. Law enforcement has identified Powell and McGhee as two of the three robbers, and Gardon has been identified as a driver of the robbery crews getaway car, according to the affidavit.

Powells car  a black BMW  allegedly was used to transport the robbery crew to and from the robbery, and his cell phone allegedly was present near Il Pastaio at the time of the robbery. Powells social media accounts allegedly contained images of various guns and high-value wristwatches.

McGhees DNA was found on the robbery victims clothing following the struggle for the gun, the affidavit states. Surveillance camera footage allegedly shows Gardon getting out of the rear passenger seat and into the drivers seat of the getaway car just before the robbery at Il Pastaio, and his cell phone was present near the restaurant at the time of the robbery.

Surveillance camera footage allegedly shows the robbers scouting the area prior to the robbery.

If convicted, the defendants would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

A complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The FBI and the Beverly Hills Police Department investigated this matter with the Santa Monica Police Department providing assistance.

Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph D. Axelrad and Jeffrey M. Chemerinsky of the Violent and Organized Crime Section are prosecuting this case.
The UK is still planning to host the upcoming global climate summit, known as Cop26, in person in November  amid rising concerns about how a conference typically involving 30,000 people will be able to go ahead safely in just six months time.

In a speech made from the host city Glasgow on Friday morning, Cop26 president-designate Alok Sharma said it was vital that the event take place face-to-face to ensure that countries are able to properly negotiate the best way to get rapidly rising temperatures under control.

Speaking on the site of an onshore wind farm, Mr Sharma said: I have always championed the need for a physical Cop.

The desire for one is what I have been hearing loud and clear from governments and communities around the world. So we are planning for a physical summit... where ensuring the safety of delegates and the local community will be paramount.

UN climate summits are typically held every year and involve 30,000 people from across the world. Cop26  a key moment in the worlds battle to tackle the climate crisis  was originally scheduled for 2020 but postponed as a result of the pandemic.

The UK is facing increasing pressure to set out plans for how the conference can be held safely this year  and to confirm whether all delegates will be able to attend.

Campaigners have raised concerns that the uneven rollout of vaccines around the world may prevent developing countries from being able to take part in the talks. In April, the young climate activist Greta Thunberg called for the event to be postponed again to ensure that all countries could take part.

Cop26 president-designate Alok Sharma said it was vital countries meet face-to-face for the conference (AFP via Getty Images)

In response to these concerns, it has been suggested that the UK is considering the possibility of a special vaccination programme to ensure delegates from across the world can attend in person.

However, in a press briefing held on Friday, Mr Sharma refused to confirm whether all delegates would be offered vaccines and instead said that they would make up a wider part of Covid-19 safety measures.

He told reporters: We are planning a physical event and working our way through, right now, what that means in terms of all the Covid-secure measures that have to be put in place. One of the considerations is around vaccines.

I cant at this stage offer you any further detail because, frankly, were still working our way through this.

In response to a question from The Independent, the governments Cop26 team also refused to say how many of the expected 30,000 delegates would be able to attend the event.

Any decision to scale down the number of attendees would need to be approved by the Bureau of the Cop, a UN body made up of 11 different countries. This group is due to gather for a three-week meeting next month.
One of Dogecoins co-creators labelled Elon Musk a self-absorbed grifter after Tesla stopped taking bitcoin for its electric cars.

Jackson Palmer hit out at the billionaire entrepreneur, who has nicknamed himself The Dogefather, in a now deleted string of tweets.

Reminder: Elon Musk is and always will be a self-absorbed grifter, tweeted Mr Palmer, an Australian who created Dogecoin in 2013 with American Billy Markus.

He followed up his shot at Mr Musk with a tweet that reportedly read removing this in 1 min as thats all I have to say and I enjoy the quiet life.

He then took a swipe at Mr Musks hosting of Saturday Night Live in a third tweet that read, ps. SNL episode was cringe, bro.

The value of Dogecoin plummeted sharply after Mr Musk talked about it on the late-night comedy show and called it a hustle in one sketch.

He helped Dogecoin recover some of tis value when he tweeted earlier this week, Working with Doge devs to improve system transaction efficiency. Potentially promising.

The Tesla boss went on to crash the whole cryptocurrency market earlier this week when he said the company would no longer accept Bitcoin, because of environmental concerns about the way it is mined.

Mr Palmer said in 2018 that creating Dogecoin was a p*** take to make fun of the alt-coins that were being released onto the cryptocurrency market.

And he gave all his Dogecoin away to charity when he left it.

Back in the day, I had a few million Dogecoin, which was nothing. It was like five or ten grands worth. And I gave it all away to charities that we were supporting early on, he previously said.

I thought  how long can it last? I was about a month into it and I thought dogecoin can last maybe a couple of months; people arent going to remember it anymore in a year, why would I hold onto it? So, sadly, I have no dogecoin.

Unlike most people who have created cryptocurrencies, Im not some baller getting around in a Ferrari.

The joke is on me, firmly. That being said I feel like Id be a bit of a hypocrite if I was like some rich crypto guy off the back of a joke that was me poking fun at crypto.
Boris Johnson is facing demands to explain whether he delayed the addition of India to the governments travel red list in April because he was hoping his high-profile visit to the country could go ahead.

Travellers from India have been blamed for bringing the highly infectious B1.617.2 strain of Covid-19 to the UK, sparking the current surge in cases in towns such as Bolton, Blackburn and Bedford.

India was placed on the red list  requiring arrivals to quarantine in airport hotels  on 19 April. But the control did not come into effect until 23 April, triggering a rush by thousands of passengers to get in before the deadline. And questions were asked today about why the country did not join the list announced on 2 April along with neighbours Pakistan and Bangladesh, where infection rates were lower.

On 2 April, recorded infections in India were running at about 90,000 a day  or one in every 15,000 of the population  compared to 4,700 in Pakistan (about one in 45,000) and 6,800 in Bangladesh (around one in 24,000).

Health minister Edward Argar said it was impossible to know how many travellers from India in April were infected with the mutant strain, and admitted it was possible that some of them had used public transport to travel from airports in order to undertake the 10-day home quarantine required when the country was on the amber list.

By the time India was placed on the red list, the country was approaching 300,000 cases a day as the worlds worst coronavirus hotspot.

But it was not until 19 April that Mr Johnson cancelled a trip, scheduled for the following weekend, to meet PM Narendra Modi in New Delhi, one of the cities worst hit by the virus.

The visit, already postponed once earlier in the year, was to be Mr Johnsons first major bilateral overseas visit since becoming prime minister, and a crucial part of his post-Brexit global Britain drive to establish new trade links with other parts of the world.

Labours shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds demanded to know whether Mr Johnson put off imposing tighter controls on travel from India because he was hoping, even as the situation in the country deteriorated, that his own trip could go ahead.

Time and again the UK government have put the safety of the British people at risk by doing too little too late during the Covid pandemic, Mr Thomas-Symonds told The Independent.

The PM has serious questions to answer about suggestions that he delayed adding India to the red list until he decided to cancel a scheduled trade visit to India, and that he did not put the safety of the British people first.

Moving so slowly to add India to the red list has meant that dangerous variants have reached us as a result. The Conservative government must accept the responsibility for this.

Other countries have acted swiftly to protect their borders against Covid and emerging strains. Thats why Labour has long called for the introduction of a comprehensive hotel quarantine system.

When health secretary Matt Hancock first announced India was going on the red list, he was challenged over the delay in the House of Commons by home affairs committee chair Yvette Cooper, who told him: This week, Hong Kong identified 47 covid cases on a single Delhi flight. Before Friday, we still had 16 direct flights from India and many more indirect ones.

Evidence from Public Health England shows that between 2 and 23 April, cases of the Indian variant were detected in people who had travelled to the UK from variant hotspots Delhi and Mumbai, with the sharpest rises after 19 April, as demand for India-UK flights went through the roof. The first cases of domestic transmission of the strain were also detected during this time.

The chair of the all-party parliamentary group on coronavirus, Layla Moran, said: Boris Johnson must take responsibility for the failure to prevent the Indian variant taking root in the UK. Once again the government acted too late, and the country is sadly paying the price.

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

The Liberal Democrat MP told The Independent: If theyre going to announce that an area with variants of concern is going on the red list, it needs to be immediate. And they shouldnt be waiting a number of weeks after a variant of concern is found to put that country on the red list at all.

The blame for the surge in the Indian variant lies at the door of Boris Johnson.

And Ms Cooper said: The Government was warned about the India variant  cases had been rapidly rising there since February  but inexplicably delayed putting India on the red list until 23 April, after many thousands of people had returned from India bringing in many hundreds of new-variant cases.

When they did finally add India to the red list  two weeks after theyd added Pakistan on 9 April  they gave travellers four days notice to rush back. Why didnt they introduce additional testing for those travellers before they were able to get on public transport home?

Mr Argar said the decision not to place India on the red list at the start of April was made on the basis of the evidence.

Factors taken into consideration included not only infection rates and the emergence of new variants, but also the countrys capacity to carry out genomic sequencing, which is one of Indias strengths.

On the basis of the advice at the time, the decision was taken to place Pakistan and Bangladesh on the red list at a particular point, and India on that list subsequently, he told BBC Radio 4s Today programme.

Mr Argar insisted the UKs border restrictions are among the strictest and the toughest in the world.

Evidence suggests that the overwhelming majority of arrivals from amber list countries comply with home quarantine requirements, he said.

There was no hard and fast answer on how many people arriving from India during April were infected with the variant, said Mr Argar.

One person could bring in a variant, and that could transmit quickly, he said. It is impossible to completely hermetically seal the borders of a country.

I do think weve got the right border controls in place to do everything we can to minimise  you can never totally eliminate it  but to minimise the risks.

A government spokesperson said: We have some of the toughest border measures in the world.

We took precautionary action to ban travel from India on 23 April, six days before this variant was put under investigation and two weeks before it was labelled as of concern. We have since sped up our vaccination programme and put in enhanced local support to curb transmission.

Prior to India being placed on the red list in April, anyone coming to the UK had to test negative and quarantine for 10 days.
The end of the lockdown next month has been plunged into jeopardy after Boris Johnson warned the surge of the Indian Covid-19 variant had created the risk of disruption and delay.

In a sharp U-turn  four days after telling the public the end is in sight  the prime minister served notice that he will slam on the brakes if the strain proves to be far more infectious, as feared.

Mr Johnson announced step 3 of his roadmap will go ahead as planned on Monday, allowing pubs and restaurants to serve customers indoors and families to hug.

He also slashed the wait-time for second doses for over-50s from 12 weeks to 8 weeks  defying local leaders in hotspot areas in Lancashire who are demanding the freedom to jab all over-18s.

But, on the final step planned for 21 June, the prime minister warned: There is now the risk of disruption and delay  delay to that ambition and we have to be utterly realistic about that.

He also appeared to dash hopes that many more countries will be added to the quarantine-free green list for overseas travel in the coming weeks.

I dont expect that we will be adding to it very rapidly, Mr Johnson said. We will be maintaining a very, very tough border regime for the foreseeable future.

Minutes after the comments, the Sage advisory group revealed the realistic possibility that the Indian variant could be as much as 50 per cent more transmissible than the Kent strain.

They also sparked fierce criticism of the failure to lockdown the UKs airports to arrivals from India until many weeks after the first alarms about the new variant.

Tonights news brings into sharp focus Boris Johnsons reckless failure to protect our borders in this crisis, said Jonathan Ashworth, Labours shadow health secretary.

And Layla Moran, chair of the all-party parliamentary group on coronavirus, said: Boris Johnson must take responsibility for the failure to prevent the Indian variant taking root in the UK.

Once again the government acted too late, and the country is sadly paying the price.

Scientists do not know for certain if the Indian variant has significantly increased transmissibility  or to what degree it eludes the immunity to the virus provided by vaccines.

Mr Johnson said the next few weeks will be vital, as he told the public: This doesnt mean that its impossible that well be able to go ahead with step 4.

He denied he had fatally dragged his heels on closing the border to flights from India, insisting: At that stage, India was not identified as having a variant of concern.

Mr Johnson stressed there was no evidence to suggest that our vaccines will be less effective in protecting people against severe illness and hospitalisation.

Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer, warned the Indian variant was poised to replace the Kent variant  which caused the devastating Covid surge after Christmas  as the most common strain.

We expect that, over time, this variant will overtake and come to dominate in the UK, he said.

He defended the decision not to bend the rules to vaccinate younger adults in hotspots  as demanded by officials in Lancashire and by Andy Burnham, the Greater Manchester mayor.

This would lead to a net disadvantage, he argued, because people who have just reached adulthood are at far less risk of serious illness or death.

The sensible thing to do is to prioritise the vaccines to the people most at risk, Professor Whitty said.

The vaccine rollout will be accelerated in the hotspots of Blackburn and Bolton, including longer opening hours at vaccination centres.

The army will also be deployed on the streets giving out tests to accelerate the surge testing drive.
Bringing forward the wait for a second vaccination from 12 to eight weeks will reduce their long-term protection against coronavirus, a senior government adviser has said.

Boris Johnson announced the acceleration of second jabs for over-50s on Friday in response to a surge in cases of the Indian variant of Covid-19 in areas like Bolton, Blackburn and Bedford.

The deputy chair of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, Professor Anthony Harnden said that this was a better strategy than giving first jabs to younger people, as some local leaders have demanded.

But he confirmed that earlier doses for over-50s will make the vaccine less effective for these individuals over the long term.

Leaving the second dose for a longer period of up to 12 weeks does give you better and longer term protection, Prof Harnden told BBC Radio 4s Today programme. Theres data on that now.

This is a bit of a trade-off, and that we think that actually protecting vulnerable people with their second dose earlier might not give them better longer-term protection but it will give them better short-term protection, in this rather urgent situation with a highly transmissible virus.

Prof Harnden said that the B1.617.2 strain of coronavirus was clearly more transmissible than variants previously present in the UK and may reduce the effectiveness of vaccines in preventing mild disease and stemming transmission of the virus.

But he said it appeared the vaccines remain equally effective in preventing severe illness from the new variant.

With the mutant strain likely to spread quickly, the priority was to protect unvaccinated members of vulnerable groups, like the elderly and those with underlying health conditions, with their first jab or by bringing forward the second dose, he said.

It was possible to cope with higher levels of infection causing mild illness in the community, so long as hospitals do not become overwhelmed, he said.

We believe that vaccinating those in at-risk groups who are currently unvaccinated and bringing forward that second dose for the over-50s by four weeks is a better strategy, said Prof Harnden.

If we immunise 18-29 year-olds, for instance, in these areas, well be taking vaccines from somebody else in the country. The vaccines may be less effective against transmission as immunity takes a number of weeks to develops. Its not a very good strategy for preventing transmission.

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. City will finally pick up the trophy after they won the league on 11 May Getty UK news in pictures 22 May 2021 Gary Kenny lifts the Buildbase FA Vase Trophy after Warrington Rylands won the FA Vase Final against Binfield at Wembley Stadium Getty UK news in pictures 21 May 2021 A family buffeted by the wind whilst crossing the the Millennium Bridge in London, with wind and rain forecast to ravage the UK on the first Friday that people have been allowed to meet in large groups outside in England PA UK news in pictures 20 May 2021 Devon And Cornwall Police Demonstrate Their Skills For Policing The G7 Summit Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 May 2021 An employee stands before a costume for the Queen of Hearts by Bob Crowley on display at the Alice: Curiouser and Curiouser exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London PA UK news in pictures 17 May 2021 Passengers prepare to board an easyJet flight to Faro, Portugal, at Gatwick Airport after the ban on international leisure travel for people in England was lifted following the further easing of lockdown restrictions in England PA UK news in pictures 16 May 2021 Emergency workers at the scene of a suspected gas explosion, in which a young child was killed and two people were seriously injured, on Mallowdale Ave Heysham which caused 2 houses to collapse and badly damaged another PA UK news in pictures 15 May 2021 Pro-Palestinian activists and supporters let off smoke flares, wave flags and carry placards during a demonstration in support of the Palestinian cause as violence escalates in the ongoing conflict with Israel, in central London AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 14 May 2021 Member of staffs tighten screws and paint a Marlin skeleton, before it goes on display at the Natural History Museum in London, as the museum prepares to reopen to the public on 17 May, following the further easing of lockdown restrictions in England PA UK news in pictures 13 May 2021 A worshipper at the Baitul Futuh Mosque in Mordon, south London, ahead of Eid al-Fitr. The celebration marks the end of the Muslim month of fasting, called Ramadan. PA UK news in pictures 12 May 2021 A couple have wedding photos taken in Westminster, London Getty UK news in pictures 11 May 2021 The sun rises on Coquet Island, off Amble on the Northumberland coast, where as many as 35000 seabirds cram onto this tiny island to breed PA UK news in pictures 10 May 2021 Newly elected for a second term Mayor of London Sadiq Khan during his signing in ceremony at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre on Londons Southbank PA UK news in pictures 9 May 2021 People mill around St. Michael's tower on top of Glastonbury Tor as it is seen through blooming yellow rapeseed on a day of mixed weather in Glastonbury, Somerset PA UK news in pictures 8 May 2021 Wales First Minister Mark Drakeford elbow bumps newly elected MS Labour candidates Elizabeth Buffy Williams, Rhondda, left, and Sarah Murphy, Bridgend & Porthcawl Labour, right, as they meet in Porthcawl, Wales PA UK news in pictures 6 May 2021 A group of five Sisters from Carmelite Monastery in Dysart cast their vote in the Scottish Parliamentary election at Dysart Community Hall, West Port, Dysart PA UK news in pictures 5 May 2021 Leader of the Labour Party Sir Keir Starmer (centre) with West Midlands Metro Mayor candidate Liam Byrne (far right) and Labour Deputy Leader, Angela Rayner (far left) during a visit to Birmingham, whilst on the election campaign trail PA UK news in pictures 4 May 2021 Artists Heather Ackroyd and Dan Harvey stand within 100 oak saplings which form part of a living art installation entitled Beuys' Acorns by the UK-based artist duo, outside the Tate Modern in London PA UK news in pictures 3 May 2021 Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie feeds the Gentoo penguins during a visit to Edinburgh Zoo on the campaign trail for the forthcoming Scottish Parliamentary Election on May 6 PA UK news in pictures 2 May 2021 Chelsea players celebrate their fourth goal during the Womens Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich, at Kingsmeadow Stadium in south west London. 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

From a vaccination strategy, it just wont help mass-vaccinating a number of young people at the expense of older people who havent been vaccinated.

One dose of vaccine gives good protection against coronavirus, but not as good as two doses, said Prof Harnden.

There is a trade-off here, he said. But we feel that thats a much better strategy. Theres lots of unvaccinated people still in these at-risk groups in some of these areas. What we want to do is prevent hospitalisations and people dying, because we can cope with infection rates in the community providing the hospitals dont get overwhelmed.
A South Carolina woman set herself on fire after a crash and a Hummer exploded with four gas canisters in the back as drivers hoard fuel in the aftermath of the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline.

The vehicle burst into flames after the driver crashed as a deputy tried to stop her for driving with a stolen licence plate, the Pickens County Sheriffs Office said.

The department said in a statement on Thursday that the woman, driving a 2007 Pontiac G6, sped up after the deputy turned on his lights in an attempt to elude law enforcement earlier that evening.

The officer turned on his siren, after which the woman lost control of the vehicle leaving the roadway and completely flipping the vehicle.

The vehicle immediately caught fire and multiple explosions were heard inside the vehicle, the statement added.

The driver, later identified as Jessica Gale Patterson, 28, was reportedly on fire when she got out of the car. The deputy pushed her to the ground, trying to put out the fire. She was subsequently taken to hospital by emergency personnel.

But before she left the crash site, police say she told law enforcement that she was transporting several containers of fuel that she was hoarding in the trunk of the vehicle.

Police said the gas containers were the catalyst of the explosions.

People have been panic-buying gasoline after hackers accessed some of the networks of the Colonial Pipeline, prompting it to temporarily shut down.

The largest deliverer of fuel in the US said in a statement on Thursday afternoon that the entire pipeline had restarted operations and fuel delivery had once again begun.

Following this restart, it will take several days for the product delivery supply chain to return to normal, they said.

Some markets served by Colonial Pipeline may experience, or continue to experience, intermittent service interruptions during this start-up period. Colonial will move as much gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel as is safely possible and will continue to do so until markets return to normal, the statement read.

The Pontiac in South Carolina turned into a burning wreck shortly after a Hummer, with several large gas canisters in the back, burst into flames in Florida.

Fire crews were called to the scene shortly before 11am on Wednesday. When they arrived, they found the 2004 Hummer H2 on fire.

A spokesperson for Citrus County Fire Rescue said the driver had just filled up four five-gallon canisters (19L each), which were later found in the back of the vehicle by firefighters.

A Hummer carrying four cans of gas burst into flames just after filling up north of Tampa, Florida on 12 May, 2021. (Citrus County Fire Rescue)

WFLA reported that one person was injured but rejected transport for treatment, going against medical guidance.

The Florida State Fire Marshals Office is investigating what caused the fire.

Since the pipeline caused gas hysteria, people have been rushing to buy extra fuel. Videos and images have circulated online of long gas lines and some consumers even filling up plastic bags and bottles.

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission tweeted on 12 May: We know this sounds simple, but when people get desperate they stop thinking clearly. They take risks that can have deadly consequences. If you know someone who is thinking about bringing a container not meant for fuel to get gas, please let them know its dangerous.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg issued a warning on Wednesday at the White House, advising Americans not to fill plastic bags with gasoline.

I will say that this is a time to be sensible and to be safe, of course we understand the concern in areas where people are encountering temporary supply disruptions, but hoarding does not make things better, he said.

And under no circumstances should gasoline ever be put into anything but a vehicle directly or an approved container, and that of course remains true no matter what else is going on.

The Hummer caught fire after filling up at a gas station in Homosassa north of Tampa, Florida. American Automobile Association officials urged Tampa residents concerned over fuel shortages not to panic-buy gasoline.

Its likely that motorists are seeing reports about supply issues in other states due to the pipeline, and are racing out to top off their tanks, AAA spokesperson Mark Jenkins told WFLA.

The problem is, that surge in demand is what actually creates the supply issue, since gas stations can only hold so much fuel at a given time, he added.

Florida isnt relying on the Colonial Pipeline to the same extent as some other states. According to AAA, 90 per cent of Floridas gas is delivered on cargo ships to the states ports.

Florida is said to have access to plenty of gasoline. Its now just a matter of getting the fuel where its needed, primarily those gas stations that are being tapped out due to panic buying, Mr Jenkins said.


Principal Provincetown International Baccalaureate School Provincetown Schools seek a dynamic, hard-working, hands-on, child-focused Principal for our small and close-knit International Baccalaureate School. Emerging from the pandemic, our emphasis will be on Social Emotional Wellness for students, families, and staff. We are deeply committed to being an anti-racist school that celebrates our rich diversity and is a model for inclusion. Knowledge of the MA curriculum is essential as we firmly root the state frameworks into IB units of study. Math will be an area of significant focus. Strengthening engagement with families is also a high priority. Beautiful and diverse Provincetown is situated at the very end of Cape Cod and is a world-famed resort destination. Please know that housing is extremely challenging so only serious applicants are urged to apply. The salary range is $112,000 - $125,000. Compensation and Benefits Package commensurate with experience IB experience/knowledge is strongly preferred. MA Certification Required.

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The CEO of Kroger, Americas largest grocery store chain, has been criticised for receiving a record $22.4million in compensation after slashing key workers $2-an-hour, Covid-19 hazard pay last year, according to reports.

At the start of the pandemic, Kroger chief executive Rodney McMullen announced a Hero Bonus for staff who were applauded for being key workers and keeping shelves stocked during the outbreak.

Kroger, which employs around 465,000 staff across 2,640 stores, saw profits rise last year from $122.29billion in 2019 to $132.5bn as widespread Covid lockdowns prevented people from eating out.

In May 2020 Kroger announced that hazard pay was being cut for employees in warehouses and stores where states allowed them to do so. In states where hazard pay is still required, Kroger have opted to close stores.

But according to a Bloomberg report this week on a Kroger regulatory filing, Mr McMullen was awarded $22.4m in compensation in 2020 by the company, a 6 per cent jump on the previous year.

Last year median pay for Krogers workers fell 8 per cent to an annual $24,600. Full-time workers were awarded a bonus of $300.

The Independent has contacted Kroger for comment.

Following news of the Kroger CEOs bumper payout, Democratic congresswoman, Pramila Jayapal, tweeted: How interesting. Kroger claimed they needed to close 2 Seattle stores because they couldnt afford hazard pay for essential workersbut they could give their CEO his largest salary ever? Pay your workers. We know you can.

Maria Hernandez worked for Kroger in Los Angeles before her store was shut down following a dispute over hazard pay rules in California.

She told The Guardian: Why are they punishing us? If it werent for us they couldnt run the stores. As a person we have value. As workers we have value. They dont seem to care about you as a human being. They dont care.

John Grant, president of labor union, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 770 in LA, said the action punished workers.

They are, as best we can tell, the only grocery chain that is acting punitively and trying to punish workers in the community, he said.

Dan Price, CEO of Seattle-based online credit card processing company, Gravity Payments, who famously cut his own pay by millions so all employees could make a minimum of $70,000, tweeted a list of criticisms of Kroger.

He wrote on Friday: Pandemic profits grew 70% to $2.8 billion... Doubled buybacks and dividends to $1.9 billion... Closed stores and laid off 250 workers where cities required $4/hour hazard pay... Cut median worker pay 8%, to $24,000... Gave CEO 6% raise, to $22.4 million.

A Kroger spokesperson told Bloomberg that workers will receive $100 for getting vaccinated against Covid, and added: Kroger continues to reward and recognize our associates for their incredible work during this historic time.

According to the Wall Street Journal, billionaires increased their wealth by 54 per cent during the pandemic.

Median pay for CEOs at more than 300 of the nations largest public companies rocketed from $12.8m to $13.7m.
New footage has revealed the actions taken by sheriff deputies in the hours before a 31-year-old Black man died in custody in South Carolina.

On the tape, two deputies can be seen repeatedly using a Taser on inmate Jamal Sutherland as they forcibly attempt to remove him from his cell at the Sheriff Al Cannon Detention Center in North Charleston.

Mr Sutherland was arrested on 4 January, 2021 after a large-scale fight broke out at a psychiatric facility where he was receiving mental health treatment. He died a day later while in the custody of Charleston County Sheriffs Office.

The footage shows deputies asking for Mr Sutherland to approach his cell door on the morning of 5 January. When he appeared to refuse, a deputy then used a Taser on the man, causing him to fall to the ground.

What is the meaning of this? Mr Sutherland was heard asking.

Deputies attempted to handcuff the man while he lay on the ground while using a Taser on him multiple times. Reports also indicate that pepper spray was used during the altercation.

At one point the 31-year-old was heard saying I cant breathe before he became unresponsive.

Mr Sutherland was pronounced dead an hour later after medical staff made attempts to revive him, the sheriffs office said in a statement at the time.

The coroners report declared cause of death as excited state with adverse pharmacotherapeutic effect during subdual process, according to local news channel WBCD.

The exact manner of his death has yet to be determined as the investigation into the death of Mr. Sutherland remains open and is still active, the coroners office said.

The new footage was made public on Thursday at the request of Mr Sutherlands family. At a press conference, the young mans mother, Amy Sutherland, called for no violence after the release of the tape.

I want us to view this tape and I want us to learn what we dont want to have happen again. I ask no violence. We have black men being killed every day, she said.

Ms Sutherland added: Mental illness does not give anybody the right to put their hands on my child.

The tape has raised questions about law enforcements use of force and how officials should respond to someone who suffers from a mental illness.

The Sutherlands attorney, Mark A. Peper, said: People with mental health issues are entitled to the same exact civil rights as you and me and every other healthy, wealthy person in this world.

Mr Sutherland suffered from bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, his family said on Friday, which was why he was at a psychiatric facility.

Charleston County Sheriff Kristin Graziano described Mr Sutherlands death as a horrible tragedy.

Our officers removed Mr. Sutherland from his cell that morning in order to ensure that he received a timely bond hearing, as required by law, the sheriff said in a statement.

Their efforts were complicated by the increasing effects that Mr. Sutherland was suffering as a result of mental illness. This unfortunate tragedy has revealed an opportunity to review existing policies.

The two deputies involved in the incident were initially suspended for 30 days and were now on desk duty. They have not been formally named.

Charleston County Sheriffs Office policy had stated that deputies must take detainees to bond hearings but that has since been changed. There is now an option for those being held in custody to attend court hearings via a video link using a computer tablet from their cell.

Since this tragedy occurred, we have assessed our resources and are evaluating options for global improvement, including a focus on mental health awareness, Sheriff Graziano added.

Charleston County Solicitor Scarlett Wilson said her office was reviewing the case and would decide if criminal charges will be brought before the end of June.
The US has withdrawn approximately 120 military and civilian personnel from Israel, who were in the country to plan upcoming exercises, according to a report.

Citing a Department of Defence official, CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr says that the group left on a C-17 aircraft to return to a base in Germany.

The continuing violence and lack of commercial air travel options were given as reasons to leave early on military transport.

On Thursday morning, the C-17 was recorded landing in Tel Aviv from Ramstein US Air Force Base in southwestern Germany.

Due to the escalation of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, many flights have been redirected from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv to Ramon Airport, which is near the Red Sea resort Eilat.

The airport says it is operating after a brief halt when Hamas fired a rocket that missed the airfield but landed in the area.

United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and American Airlines have cancelled flights between the United States and Tel Aviv, according to data by flight tracker FlightAware.

As airstrikes continue on Gaza, and dozens of rockets are fired by Hamas militants back into Israel, the death toll is mounting, with seven dead in Israel and 87 killed in Gaza, including 18 children.

The Israeli military is reportedly set to approve plans for a possible ground invasion of Gaza, with additional troops, including infantry and armoured brigades, already in position on the border of the Palestinian territory.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez described Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and suggested GOP leadership should expel her after the Georgia congresswoman accosted the New York Democrat in the halls of Congress this week.

The latest comments from Ms Ocasio-Cortez follows on from footage that emerged earlier from a social media livestream that Ms Greene herself filmed in 2019 before she took up public office that was shared by a CNN journalist Andrew Kaczynski.

She is seen standing outside Ms Ocasio-Cortezs office with a group of associates and demanding to be let into the office, despite clearly being denied access.

We are here peacefully, she tells a security guard standing next to a table with a guestbook laid out by the representative from New York. She and her fellow activists are seen adding their own messages, alluding to key policies of former president Donald Trump, such as the wall he proposed building along the US border with Mexico that he insisted Mexico would pay for.

One of them writes Trump is your president, which Ms Greene is heard supporting.

Excuse me, Im an American citizen, I pay my taxes, Ms Greene says when she is denied entry into the office after the door is locked. Id like to speak to someone in Congress.

The release of this video caps off a week of clashes between the two members of Congress. Ms Ocasio-Cortez said that the representative for the 9th District in Georgia reminded her of the people who used to patron the bars she worked in.

I used to work as a bartender. These are the kinds of people I threw out of bars all the time, she told reporters.

This came after Ms Greene yelled at Ms Ocasio-Cortez in a Capitol hallway and other instances of harassment, which prompted the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to call for the incident to be looked at by the House Ethics Committee.

Its so beyond the pale of anything that is in keeping with bringing honour to the House, nor bringing dishonour to the House, Ms Pelosi said.

To remove Ms Greene from the Republican party would follow her being removed from her duties serving on House Committees for her controversial past statements and behaviour, such as harassing survivor of the Parkland mass shooting David Hogg in the street, her associated with conspiracy theory Qanon, comments about 9/11 among other things.
Joe Biden choked on his words when he was asked how he thought his late son Beau, would judge the first 100 days of his presidency.

In an interview in which the president was asked about everything from his administrations response to the pandemic to Liz Cheneys dispute with the Republican leadership, the last question was about his late son, who died in 2015 from a brain tumour.

If he were able to call Mr Biden, how would he think his son would judge the first 100 days of his presidency, the president was asked.

Hed say Dad, look at me, remember: home base. Home base. Be who you are, he said, his eyes filling with tears and his throat catching.

The one thing that I hope he would say is Dad, your home base, youre sticking to it.

 Joe Biden says he will speak to Putin about Russian ransomware attack

MSNBC interviewer Lawrence ODonnell said Mr Biden was 113 days into his presidency, and was in many ways the best prepared president in recent history. What he no longer had, he pointed out, was the advice of his late eldest son.

Im just wondering what you would say if Beau called you today and said, hey, Pop, hows it going, said Mr ODonnell.

After saying he believed his son would say he was sticking to the plan he had set out to accomplish, his words began to run into one another. He added, his son might say: Some things are worth losing over, old buddy.

Mr ODonnell then thanked Mr Biden for the interview.

Biden says he will trust Kevin McCarthy and GOP on infrastructure if he looks me in the eyes and gives me his word

Biden threatens to pass huge infrastructure bill without Republicans if needed after high stakes White House meeting

Thank you. You always catch me off guard with Beau. God love him. He should be sitting in this chair, Mr Biden said.

Anyway, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
The US Department of Homeland Security has renewed a terrorism advisory bulletin following the increasingly complex and volatile threats facing the US, including from individuals and groups engaged in grievance-based violence exploited across social media and exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.

Following the Capitol insurrection on 6 January and Joe Bidens inauguration on 20 January, the agency issued a bulletin warning that anti-government ideologically motivated violent extremists motivated by perceived grievances fueled by false narratives could continue to mobilize to incite or commit violence domestically.

That advisory expired at the end of April.

The new advisory  which expires on 13 August  maintains that those threats continue to spread online with the intent to incite violence against elected officials, government facilities, law enforcement and perceived ideologically opposed individuals.

It also points to their use of social media as a platform to discuss a race war by exploiting unrest.

DHS also admits that the use of encrypted messaging by lone offenders and small violent extremist cells has made it more difficult to identify operational indicators that provide specific warning of a pending act of violence.

The bulletin also says that violent extremists may exploit the easing of Covid-19 restrictions as states begin to open up.

National Terrorism Advisory System bulletins describe current developments or general trends in the state of terror threats but are not considered elevated or imminent warnings.

Todays terrorism-related threat landscape is more complex, more dynamic, and more diversified than it was several years ago, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.

We are advising the public to be vigilant about ongoing threats to the United States, including those posed by domestic terrorism, grievance-based violence, and those inspired or influenced by foreign terrorists and other malign foreign influences, he said. In this evolving threat environment, DHS is redoubling our efforts to detect and disrupt all forms of foreign and domestic terrorism and targeted violence, while safeguarding privacy protections, civil rights, and civil liberties.

The updated bulletin arrives as federal law enforcement agencies begin to shift their focus on terrorism domestically, and inwardly, as DHS launches an internal review to address the state of domestic violent extremism within its own ranks.

DHS has also established a dedicated domestic terror unit within its intelligence office.

Joe Biden has sought to place combatting domestic violence and racism at the centre of his homeland security agenda.

A recently unclassified joint intelligence report  ordered within the presidents first days in office  determined that racially and ethnically motivated violence as well as violent militia groups present the most lethal threats in the US.

Perpetrators of racist violence are most likely to conduct mass-casualty attacks against Americans, according to a report from Homeland Security, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the US Department of Justice.

Domestic violence extremists motivated by a range of ideologies and galvanised by recent political and societal events pose an elevated threat to the US in 2021, according to the report.

False narratives about the 2020 presidential election, the Capitol insurrection, and conspiracy theories and conditions related to the coronavirus pandemic will almost certainly fuel more violence in 2021, the agencies reported.
Wyoming Representative Liz Cheney called out Fox News in an on-air interview with the cable news channel in which she argued that they have a responsibility to say that the 2020 election wasnt stolen.

Ms Cheney was ousted from her position as House Republican Conference Chair on 12 May after her relentless criticism of former President Donald Trump and his lies about the 2020 election being stolen from him.

New York Rep and Trump loyalist Elise Stefanik was elected as her replacement on Friday.

Speaking to Fox News host Bret Baier in a tense exchange on Thursday night, Ms Cheney said: We all have an obligation, and I would say Fox News especially ... has a particular obligation to make sure people know the election wasnt stolen.

After being interrupted by Mr Baier who argued that his programme had stated that the election wasnt fraudulent several times, Ms Cheney added: We need to make sure that the American people recognise and understand that the election wasnt stolen, that we shouldnt perpetuate the big lie and that theres real danger.

Fox News is overwhelmingly sympathetic and indulging of Mr Trump. The morning show Fox & Friends is one of the former presidents favourite programmes and he has a close relationship with primetime anchor Sean Hannity.

In the Thursday night edition of Mr Baiers Special Report, Ms Cheney yet again blasted Mr Trump and his enablers in the Republican Party, arguing that Mr Trumps actions are dangerous because hes perpetuating lies as he continues to say that the 2020 election was stolen from him without any evidence to back up his startling claims.

Mr Baier asked Ms Cheney if she would have been able to stay in her job as the top messenger in the House Republican Conference considering what you were saying and doing? Only 10 House Republicans voted to impeach Mr Trump after the Capitol riot on 6 January and most of the caucus remain loyal to him.

I think the question is what kind of a party are we going to be going forward, Bret, Ms Cheney replied. I think its very important for us to be a party based on truth. I think its important for us to understand the threat that the claims the former president is making.

The threat is ongoing, she added.

There is clearly an attempt to unravel the democracy, if you will, by focusing on challenging the legitimacy of the election  abandoning the rule of law, Ms Cheney told the Fox News host. I think for us as Republicans, we have a huge set of issues we have got to be able to defeat the Democrats over.

We have to get people to vote for us. And we cant do that if we are a party thats based on a foundation of lies. I think what the former president is doing is dangerous, she added.

Pushing back, Mr Baier noted that other Republicans have criticised Ms Cheney by arguing that her constant reprimands of Mr Trump take away the focus from their goal of taking down the Biden administration.

We have had a real focus on making sure people understand that the Biden policies are dangerous, she responded. If you look at the impact for the people of Wyoming  banning oil and gas leases on public lands is really dangerous and really heartless. We have been very clear about that. Whats happening at the border is very dangerous.

The issue isnt whether or not we stand against the Biden policy, the issue is are we going to be a party that sits by silently while the former president continues to perpetuate lies about the election, she added.
The first bottles of a so-called artisanal spirit made out of apples grown near to Chernobyl have been seized by Ukrainian authorities.

According to the Chernobyl Spirit Company, 1,500 bottles of their Atomik spirit were confiscated on 19 March.

These bottles were then taken to the Kyiv Prosecutors office where they are now undergoing investigation.

The spirit is apparently the first consumer product to have been made in Chernobyl since the nuclear disaster struck there in 1986.

The company that makes the spirit is run by scientists who work and carry out studies in the 4,000 square kilometre Chernobyl exclusion zone. These studies have included growing crops there to see whether or not food grown there could be safe for consumption.

In producing the spirit, researchers hoped to show how land could be put back to productive use, with the idea that eventually communities there could grow and sell produce. This is something which is currently illegal on the officially contaminated land.

The shipment was apparently taken from a truck at a distillery in the Carpathians and it is thought that Ukrainian authorities seized the batch over some confusion around excise stamps.

Prof Jim Smith, a scientist who has studied the exclusion zone for many years and set up the Chernobyl Spirit Company with Ukrainian colleagues explained how this would not make sense especially since the bottles are for the UK market and are clearly labelled with valid UK excise stamps, reported the BBC.

Prof Smith explained that the spirit was no more radioactive than any other vodka. Since it was first produced in 2019, the professor and his colleagues have adjusted their recipe to make an apple-based spirit with fruit grown in the Narodichi district, an area just beyond the exclusion zone where agriculture and development is currently still very restricted.

The company says they intend to use some of the profits made from sale of the spirit to help communities in Ukraine - including in Narodichi - that continue to be affected by the economic impact of the nuclear explosion.

The news comes as scientists monitoring Chernobyl have discovered fission reactions erupting within an inaccessible chamber in the ruins of the power plant. This has raised concerns a further explosion at the site could possibly occur.
A Russian prison has built replica red British phone boxes and a mural of Big Ben, so inmates can stay in touch with their friends and their families.

The Russian prison service Gufsin shared images of red phone boxes which were made by Siberian prisoners and are in fact real. This means that inmates can stay in touch with the outside world as if they were in London.

The phone boxes even have phones with video links, making them somewhat more advanced than their British cousins, which have been left obsolete since the arrival of the smartphone.

Russians seem fond of English-style homes, lawns, pubs and shopping in London but the trend has now spread to penal colony No 8 in the Novosibirsk region.

Meanwhile the mural of Westminster was put up to convey to the maximum the atmosphere of London, said Gufsin online.

A spokesperson for Gufsin, Oleg Ogulya, told local website ngs.ru that inmates from the penal colony have a particular reputation for being artistic.

In the past, they have created a selection of items including small fountains and models of planes, rockets and industrial robots. These are all on display next to public buildings.

One Russian Twitter user commented jokingly on the project saying: Mum, wheres my Dad? ... In London, son.
Xi Focus: World's largest water diversion project sows lasting rewards

Xinhua) 11:21, May 15, 2021

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, on Thursday inspected the South-to-North Water Diversion Project in the city of Nanyang in central China's Henan Province. On Friday, he convened a symposium on advancing the high-quality follow-up development of the project.

The project is the largest of its kind worldwide. It transfers water from the Yangtze River to dry areas in north China through eastern, middle, and western routes.

In Xi's words, it will benefit generations beyond. For over six years since it started supplying water, the project has helped moisten the arid north, but its significance extends well beyond water supply.

ECONOMIC LIFELINE

The distribution of water resources is uneven in China. The north is relatively dry, and the south, blessed with the Yangtze River, is better off regarding water supply.

The project is a significant strategic infrastructure to optimize water resources, boost sustainable economic and social development, and improve people's livelihoods, Xi said in 2014.

Official data showed that by March, the project had transferred over 40.8 billion cubic meters of water to China's northern areas for more than six years. It directly benefits more than 130 million people.

More than 40 big and medium-sized cities received water from the project, and in Beijing, around 70 percent of tap water is pumped in through the middle route.

The project has also helped the ecological restoration of rivers and lakes along its eastern and middle routes. It supplied over 5.2 billion cubic meters of water, according to the Ministry of Water Resources.

In droughts and related emergencies, the project provided life-saving water. The eastern route, for instance, helped ensure a rice harvest in 16 million mu (about 1 million hectares) of farmland in north Jiangsu Province last April.

After years of operation, the mega project has served as a significant lifeline to secure the prosperity and coordinated development of the north and the south.

CONSERVATION FIRST

Although the spatial distribution of water resources in China has improved with water diversion, China still faces water shortages, with per capita water resources being only one-fourth of the global average.

That explains why the country has been prioritizing saving water while ensuring the safety of water resources.

Xi has long attached great prominence to water conservation. During an inspection tour in east China's Jiangsu Province last November, Xi stressed guiding the development of cities and industries based on water capacities and making more efforts in water conservation.

"More south-to-north water supply should not happen in tandem with willful water wastage," Xi said.

Official data shows that the country has made solid progress in water conservation and enhancing water-saving consciousness.

Industrial firms have adhered to government guidelines and action plans on green development and saving water. It has helped reduce water consumption per 10,000 yuan (about 1,556 U.S. dollars) worth of industrial output by 27.5 percent from 2015 to 2019.

Rural areas are transforming farm layout, perfecting a tiered water-pricing mechanism, and increasing irrigation efficiency.

As a result, China's water consumption per 10,000 yuan of GDP is down 23.8 percent from 2015 to 2019, official data showed.

With the advancement of the massive project, the country hopes to see more institutional improvements driven by reforms to boost eco-friendly business and economic development.

For instance, involved parties have been encouraged to explore a sound water pricing mechanism that can promote water conservation and generate reasonable returns so that more businesses will participate in the construction and operation of water conservancy projects. Fiscal support is also expected to be innovatively delivered to facilitate safe drinking water projects in impoverished areas in the central and western regions.

The country has vowed to keep annual water consumption under 670 billion cubic meters by 2022, when saving water becomes a norm, and under 700 billion cubic meters by 2035, when the country realizes world-leading water conservation and reuse.

LASTING BENEFITS

"Ecological and environmental investment is not a futile or ineffective investment, but a basic and strategic investment that concerns the high-quality and sustainable development of the economy and society," Xi said during his inspection tour in Jiangsu.

As one of China's most significant environmental undertakings, the South-to-North Water Diversion Project will continue to help drive the country's medium to long-term growth.

The western route is now in the pre-construction stage and could add around 40 billion cubic meters of water. Experts say it will balance growth potential among different regions.

By 2035, provincial regions like Shanxi, Beijing, Tianjin, and Shandong will each face 1 to 3 billion cubic meters of water shortages, which can be expectedly relieved by the western route, said Wang Guangqian, an academician with the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Also, the diverted water will likely help treat large expanses of desertified lands along the middle to upper reaches of the Yellow River. This water could even turn them into fertile farmlands covering around 100 million mu.

The prospective economic yield from the future farmlands is greater than the cost of the western route project itself, according to Wang.

From an energy perspective, this route could stimulate clean energy generation by adding hydropower to west China energy hubs like Shanxi and Qinghai provinces, thus contributing to the pursuit of achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Bianji)
A COVID-19 infected woman gave birth to a healthy baby girl at a hospital here, officials said on Saturday. Sarladevi, 30, a resident of the Tilhar area, was admitted to the ICU unit of the Medical College in the city, after she complained of labour pain.

UNSPLASH

Subsequently, she gave birth to the baby, Public Relations Officer of Medical College Dr Pooja Tripathi said, adding it was a normal delivery. Two other babies, whose mothers were coronavirus positive, were born at the ICU of the hospital. However, one of the babies died, she said.

According to medical experts, pregnant women who are infected with COVID-19 during their third trimester appear unlikely to pass the infection to their fetuses.

This study was conducted between April and June 2020 among women who came to one of three Boston area hospitals either for treatment of COVID-19 or for delivery.

None of the newborns of the 127 pregnant women, including 64 who had varying levels of illness from the virus, tested positive for the coronavirus.

However, there is a high chance of the baby getting infected during childbirth.
The deadly second COVID wave has caught the entire country off guard and states across India are bearing the brunt. Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka are among the few states witnessing a steep rise in cases. The coastal state of Goa is another state that is witnessing a surge in COVID cases. The situation is turning precarious for Goa as bodies are continuing to line up for last rites at their crematoriums.

Agencies

One of the oldest crematoriums in Goa located in Margao city had to construct four additional platforms and dedicate three of its existing ones to cater to people who died of COVID-19.

Bodies piling up at crematoriums

The century-old crematorium, managed by Mathagramasth Hindu Sabha, opened its doors to deceased COVID-19 patients after it was found that they were not being entertained by other facilities.

"We opened our doors to cremate people who died due to COVID-19, as we realised that they were not being taken in by others. This was in June last year when the first death was reported," the president of the facility, Bhai Naik told PTI.

Agencies

The institution is open to cremating deceased COVID- 19 patients from all religions, he said.

Last rites of deceased patients are performed between 5 pm to 6 pm every day, Naik said.

"Scene is grim"

"You will see people queuing up with bodies for final rites. The scene is grim," he said.

Considering the rush, the civic-run crematorium at St Inez in Panaji has roped in additional resources.

An official in charge of this facility said the burden has increased manifold, but there is no other option.

Agencies

"We can't send the bodies back. We conduct the final rites after observing all the necessary standard operating procedures," he said.

The Corporation of City of Panaji (CCP) on Friday announced that it will waive of additional charges on providing hearse van services to relatives of patients who died of COVID-19 at the Goa Medical College and Hospital.

CCP Mayor Rohit Monserratte said Rs 100 would be charged for providing No Objection Certificates and Rs 500 for ferrying bodies by hearse vans.

The facility will be available only for residents of Panaji, he added.

As on Friday, the COVID-19 caseload in Goa was at 1,32,585 and the toll reached 1,998.
Coronavirus pandemic has been wreaking havoc across the world for more than a year now. However, the second wave is deadlier than before as countries like India are witnessing a deadly surge. India remains hugely concerning, with several states continuing to see a worrying number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said. Read more.

Agency

Here are the other top stories of the day:

Body Of Kerala Woman Soumya, Killed In Hamas Rocket Attack In Israel Brought Back To India

Twitter

The mortal remains of Soumya Santhosh, an Indian caregiver who was killed in a rocket attack in the Israeli city of Ashkelon earlier this week, was brought back to the country. The remains were sent to India on Friday evening on a special jet carrying that left from Ben-Gurion airport at around 7 PM local time. Read more.

2 Bodies Found Near Ganga Bank After Dogs Maul Them, More Corpses Wash Ashore In UP's Ghazipur

AFP

On Saturday, people living near the banks of the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh's Ghazipur once again witnessed the ghastly sight of dead bodies washing up on the ghats of the river. According to reports, more bodies washed up on the shore on Saturday, the same place where the corpses were found earlier this week. Read more.

Fearing COVID, Housing Society In Goa Asks Doctors, Nurses Living There To Vacate Immediately

Agencies

Doctors, nurses are frontline workers who have been tirelessly helping us survive this COVID catastrophe. They have been staying away from their families to ensure all others are safe. All we can do is thank these frontline healthcare workers for their noble deed but a Goa's housing society's notice is doing rounds in social media for the wrong reasons as they're asking their doctors, nurses to vacate until the pandemic gets over. Kanchanganga Co Op HSG Society LTD located in Margao, Goa has issued a notice to their resident doctors, nurses asking them to vacate their own homes in the society. Read more.

Odisha Newborn Girl Beats COVID-19 After 10 Days On Ventilator

UNSPLASH

In some good news, an infant who had tested positive just days after she was born has made a full recovery from the infection. The girl, the daughter of Ankit Agarwal and Preeti Agarwal of M Rampur in Kalahandi district of Odisha had tested positive for COVID-19 when she was just 15 days old. Read more.
Today, while scrolling through Twitter, I stumbled across a post that truly blew my mind.

A science department that mistook Heisenberg of uncertainty principle for Heisenberg of Breaking Bad. (2019, AP) pic.twitter.com/aEmacYEv5V  Rahul M (@twrahul) May 12, 2021

This was an image of a college in Andhra Pradesh (captured by Rahul M) that had framed photographs of four legendary men of science like Max Planck, S. Cannizaro, Werner Heisenberg and Friedrich Wohler. The image was reshared a few days ago with the original post being all the way back in 2019.

However, while other scientists looked just alright, Heisenberg looked nothing like his original images, and more like Bryan Cranston.

To people who still havent got whats wrong with this image, the institution has put the American actors character played in popular drama series Breaking Bad where his alias was called Heisenberg.

For reference, this is the actual image of Werner Heisenberg of the famous Uncertainty Principle.

Getty Images

While this might seem like a funny, innocent mistake that should make every science professor furious, I dont blame the admin staff that probably printed and framed these images in the first place.



Also Read: After Covid-19 Vaccine Rollout, Google Search Will Show Vaccination-Related Info

Googling Heisenberg

Anyone who doesnt know who Heisenberg or Werner Heisenberg really is would search his name on Google. And when I tried to do the same, I was surprised with the result Google had for me.

Google Search

Even though the search result shows Werner Heisenberg and the first image surely is his own, the third image thats shown is of Bryan Cranston from the show.

However, the moment I clicked on image search results, most images that were shown were of Bryan Cranstons character.

Google Search

Also Read: Google Search Lets You Solve Math Problems Step-By-Step With Explanation

While it is also crucial to note that Heisenberg is definitely one of the coolest characters in any drama series, period, it's surprising Google Search would club this result with the German theoretical physicist who is regarded as one of the key pioneers of quantum mechanics.

How can one deal with such 'misinformation'?

It goes without saying that this is an innocent mistake that could have happened to anyone. However, for people who rely on Google for finding out about things that they dont know, it is important that they be a little more attentive about what they pick from their search results. Some more research and reading, as well as looking up multiple sites to be extremely sure could have saved this sad conundrum.

Also Read: Sundar Pichai Explains Why Trump's Photo Comes Up When You Google 'Idiot', And It's Hilarious

This is primarily because search engines, even though they work really well, are still far from perfect when it comes to gauging intent of the search. Moreover, they aren't immune from getting abused -- intentionally or otherwise.

Remember, a few years ago, whenever someone would search for idiot the image that surfaced was that of Donald Trump. Pichai in a congressional hearing explained that Google Search results are all based on Google search indexes web pages, including pictures, and ranks them based on popular keywords -- all this happens with absolutely no human intervention.

While it is true that some responsibility also falls on search engines like Google to make sure that they offer factually accurate information in its search results, we also need to understand that ultimately the onus lies on us for being extra careful while looking up information and facts online.
Indian Army is known for its pluralist ethos where every officer and soldier serves the country with pride irrespective of religion, caste, creed or gender.

It's one family as those serving in the forces will tell you. Time and again, the Indian Army has displayed that there indeed is unity in diversity. Those protecting the country offer a perfect example of India's traditional social cohesion that makes the nation great.

Indian Army continues to lead by example and this latest incident proves just that. Colonel Razaque, commanding officer of his unit, performed hawan for his colleague who succumbed to COVID-19.

Also read: In Pics: How The Indian Armed Forces Are Working Tirelessly To Save Lives From COVID

Twitter/@InsightGL

In order to boost the morale of his somber unit, he took the onus to perform the ritual for the Junior Commissioned Officer who lost his life to the deadly virus.



In fact, Col. Razaque skipped Eid namaz just so he could perform the havan. That's is exactly what makes Indian Army so special.

The incident came to light after user who goes by the name, InsightGL, took to Twitter to share a picture of the same.

Also read: Indian Army and Pakistani Army Exchange Sweets At LoC On The Occasion Of Eid-ul-Fitr

#IndianArmy #IndianNavy #indianairforce

-That's Col Razaque CO of Unit

-After a Unit JCO passed away due to #Corona he performed Hawan to boost the morale of Unit

-He left Eid namaaz being offered by family & relatives to be with Unit

-That is the ethos of #Indian #ArmedForces pic.twitter.com/WXKAor7nfp  Insightful Geopolitics (@InsightGL) May 15, 2021

Col. Razaque's gesture has earned him plenty of praise online with people hailing him for his selfless service.

How many people leave #Eid Namaaz to perform a Havan ?



That's a typical #IndianArmy Commanding Officer for you.



Nation First.

Your Men Next.

You Last.



Always and Everytime.



We are truly privileged to have this Armed Forces which epitomises all that this Nation aspires for. https://t.co/nyoa51p3en  Lt Col Sundeep Parija (Retd) (@sundeepparija) May 15, 2021





A lot to learn from such ETHOS.

A model whole INDIA could IMBIBE. https://t.co/RkF7mm75iT  Snow Peace (@SnowPeace4) May 15, 2021

This is why our country is different ...a lot to learn from the ethos of our armed forces which has still preserved and enriched it with time...#SPIRITUAL.#EidAlFitr https://t.co/oihEo64vlp  Lalit Kirola (@kirolaLalit) May 15, 2021

The real fauji who understood and respected "India's culture" and respected sentiments of his team and unit.. proud of you Col Razaque !! https://t.co/3tMDy2w5ps  Chitralekha Vaidya (@lekha_energy) May 15, 2021

The ethos of the armed forces  https://t.co/fVbXcvnhcZ  Snehesh Alex Philip (@sneheshphilip) May 15, 2021

For decades, the Indian Army has not only upheld the countrys valour but has also showcased an astute sense of refined discipline and secularism which remains an integral part of the country's culture.

Col. Razaque has just given us an example of what the Indian Army really is and what this country stands for.

Also read: This Is How Indian Navy, Air Force And Army Are Helping Fight The COVID-19 Crisis
A journalist has been hailed a hero after nabbing a suspected dog thief as the cameras were rolling. Juliana Mazza of WHDH-TV, was covering a story of a dog theft when she spotted the very dog that had been stolen.

While out with her photographer, Juliana noticed a man walking a dog in the vicinity, Boston.com reported. When they struck up a conversation with him, they recognised the dog as none other than the subject of their news story.

Twitter/@julianamazzatv

"We stopped him to ask a few questions, and all of a sudden we realizedthat's the dog that was taken," Mazza said.



Also read: Watch: Dog Steals Reporter's Microphone During Live Weather Broadcast In Russia

WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!

My photog John & I were covering a stolen dog story in Cambridge when all of a sudden we spot THE DOG!!! We were able to convince the suspect to give us the pup & kept him engaged until @CambridgePolice arrived shortly after. We are SO HAPPY Titus is safe!  https://t.co/FPg2Pfsqc2 pic.twitter.com/s1ESKLiqIb  Juliana Mazza (@julianamazzatv) May 8, 2021

Juliana called the police and managed to keep the man engaged until officers arrived, according to one of her tweets. In the meantime, she was even able to cunningly manoeuvre him into confessing to running off with the dog on camera.

A day before on May 7, the police had said that a burglar broke into a parked vehicle on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The burglar stole a 13-month-old white German shorthaired pointer from the vehicle and walked the dog over the Boston University bridge into Boston.

Also read: Reporter Maintains His Composure As Police Shootout Breaks Out Behind Him On Live TV

As luck would have it, Juliana was reporting on the story the very next day when she managed to not only do her job, but also performed the rescue act of sorts.

Kyle Gariepy, the alleged suspected was subsequently charged with larceny of more than $1,200 and breaking and entering into a vehicle to commit a felony, according to Boston.com. However, he insisted that he was innocent.

Not sure anyone will buy that argument. But kudos to the reporter for solving the case.

Also read: Shocking Moment TV Reporter And Crew Are Robbed At Gunpoint While Preparing For Broadcast
An Indian volunteer dressed as Yamraj, the Hindu lord of death and justice, roams around the streets creating awareness to follow the Covid-19 coronavirus safety protocols while also distributing face-masks and hand sanitizers to people in Siliguri on May 14, 2021. (Diptendu Dutta/AFP via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden is coming to Philadelphia on Friday to mark the 50th anniversary of Amtraks founding, according to three Democrats familiar with his plans.

The White House confirmed the trip, saying Biden will visit 30th Street Station in the city.

The visit, which would be Bidens third to Pennsylvania since mid-March, will follow his first address to a joint session of Congress Wednesday during the week that marks his first 100 days in office. It also comes as he presses his case for his sweeping infrastructure and jobs plan, which calls for an $80 billion investment in rail.

 READ MORE: Biden unveils his multitrillion-dollar infrastructure plan in Pittsburgh: We can get it done

Amtrak has long been a central piece of Bidens political identity. He spent years traveling the rail line back and forth from Delaware to Washington during his decades as a senator, earning the nickname Amtrak Joe. In 2017, he estimated he had taken more than 8,200 round trips covering more than two million miles. He rode the train again on the day he launched his presidential campaign in 2019.

Biden also has deep ties to Pennsylvania. He was born in Scranton, based his campaign in Philadelphia, and held major rallies there and in Pittsburgh. The state proved crucial to his victory in 2020. Its also close enough to Washington to make it convenient for presidential travel.

Biden visited Delaware County last month to promote his first major legislation, a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, and went to Pittsburgh at the end of March to launch his American Jobs Plan.
The weekend began with yet another quadruple shooting in Philadelphia amid a spike in shootings of four or more victims.

The most recent, at 9:30 p.m. Friday, took place inside a convenience store in the 5600 block of Market Street in West Philadelphia, police said.

There, two men, 34 and 29, were each shot once in a foot, a 37-year-old woman was shot once in the left shoulder, and a 17-year-old male was shot once in the chest and once in a leg, according to police.

They were all in stable condition at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center on Saturday, police said.

As of Thursday, there had been eight shootings in which four or more people were struck by bullets, with a total of 42 victims, The Inquirer reported after analyzing city data. At the same time last year, there had been two shootings with a total of nine victims, according to the data.

 READ MORE: Shootings of multiple victims are becoming commonplace in gun-plagued Philadelphia

By this time last year, the city had recorded just one death in shootings of four or more people. The total this year was seven, as of Thursday, The Inquirer reported. And with just over 190 homicides, the city is on track to exceed last years total of 499 slayings and the all-time high of 500 in 1990.

In other shootings this weekend, two male teens were hit by gunfire around 6 p.m. Friday in the citys Harrowgate section, on the 1900 block of East Wensley Street, police said.

An 18-year-old who was shot several times in the head and torso was in extremely critical condition at Temple University Hospital. A 17-year-old shot in the left leg was at Temple in stable condition, police said.

Shootings Saturday morning injured three more people.

Around 12:10 a.m., a 57-year-old man was shot once in the left hip on the 2700 block of Germantown Avenue in North Philadelphia. He was in critical condition at Temple, police said.

At 1:45 a.m., a man 40 to 50 years old was shot once in the neck inside Bar 50 on the 1300 block of North 50th Street in the citys Parkside section, police said. He was in critical condition at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center.

And at 8:46 a.m., a 33-year-old woman was shot twice in the buttocks on the 8600 block of Gillespie Street near Holmesburg. Her condition at Jefferson Torresdale Hospital was not known, police said.

Later Saturday the gun violence continued with a double shooting shortly after 2 p.m. on the 600 block of West Diamond Street in North Philadelphia. Police said a 27-year-old man was shot in the right hip and in the left buttock, and a 25-year-old man was shot in the right leg. Both were in stable condition at Temple.

No arrests were reported in any of the shootings.

Police also reported three stabbings Saturday:

At 12:26 a.m., a 67-year-old man was found on the 500 block of West Erie Avenue in Hunting Park with stab wounds to the chest, right shoulder, and abdomen, along with multiple cuts to the head. He was in stable condition at Temple.

At 1:20 a.m., a 32-year-old man was stabbed in the chest on the 1200 block of North 55th Street in West Philadelphia. He was in critical condition at Penn Presbyterian. An arrest was made, but police provided no additional details.

At 6:13 p.m., a 21-year-old woman was stabbed under the right breast on the 6000 block of Osage Avenue in West Philadelphia. Police said she was in stable condition at Penn Presbyterian.

Staff writer Robert Moran contributed to this article.
A week before the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot, top leaders of the Proud Boys convened a video chat to discuss the organizations plans for Washington that day. And Zach Rehl, president of the groups Philadelphia chapter, took a leading role in guiding that conversation, federal prosecutors now say.

Hoping to avoid mistakes from past rallies that had devolved into open street brawls with far-left activists, the group decided this time they would maintain a lower profile. Theyd leave their traditional black-and-gold polo shirts at home, equip themselves with encrypted radios, and focus their attentions on riling up normies  or unaffiliated supporters of President Donald Trump  they could hide behind.

Were doing a completely different operation, Rehl allegedly told the others. Theres gonna be a lot of contingencies and plans that are laid out. Theres gonna be teams that are gonna be put together.

Details of that Dec. 30 video conversation emerged late Thursday in a government court filing that revealed for the first time just how central prosecutors believe Rehl was in directing the Proud Boys actions during the deadly insurrection.

While the 35-year-old former Marine was arrested in March and charged in a federal conspiracy case along with three other top leaders of the organization, authorities had  up until Thursday  released few details putting him at the center of the Proud Boys planning.

Instead, prosecutors primarily directed their fire at two of Rehls codefendants: Joseph Biggs, a Proud Boys organizer from Florida, and Ethan Nordean, of Auburn, Wash., whom authorities have described as the organizations de facto leader on Jan. 6.

Nordean has recently accused the government of withholding records of conversations the men had on private messaging apps that would minimize their role in fomenting violence. Prosecutors responded to that claim with their new filing Thursday, quoting excerpts from thousands of pages of the groups communications, in some cases more damning than any that had been released so far.

The excerpts paint Rehl as not only standing beside Biggs and Nordean as they stormed the Capitol building but also as one of a small inner circle selected weeks in advance to help lead the charge.

According to the filing, the groups national president, Enrique Tarrio, chose Rehl, Nordean, Biggs, and two other Proud Boys leaders prosecutors did not name to form a six-man upper-tier leadership team to organize for the riot.

One member of that group said on the Dec. 30 video call that Rehl spoke with the same authority as Tarrio himself.

Tarrio is not going to tell you something different than Zach is going to tell you, the unnamed leader said. Its all one operation plan.

Lawyers for Rehl, Nordean, and Biggs maintain that the plan their clients were discussing was simply to rally in Washington in support of Trump. None of the men, they argue, arrived with the intention of committing violence or breaching the Capitol perimeter.

The communications quoted in the governments filing Thursday tell a different story.

Drag them out by the fing hair, if they steal it, one of the unnamed members of the inner circle wrote two days before the riot.

Hours before the Capitols perimeter was breached, another Proud Boys leader messaged the group saying he wanted to see thousands of normies burn that city to ash.

Its going to happen, one of his colleagues responded. These normiecons have no adrenaline control.  They are like a pack of wild dogs.

Photos and videos that have circulated widely on social media show what happened next.

Rehl, Nordean, Biggs, and Rehl  wearing a camouflage Make America Great Again cap and carrying a Temple Owls backpack  led a crowd of roughly 100 Proud Boys members from the Washington Monument toward the Capitol security lines.

They threw themselves into the fray as a mob of Trump supporters attacked police and smashed their way into the building. A photo would later surface showing Rehl inside the Capitol, smoking a cigarette amid a mob of rioters carousing in the office of Sen. Jeff Merkley (D., Ore.).

If there was any doubt as to the Proud Boys intentions from the start, prosecutors wrote Thursday, it was put to rest by the leadership teams communications in the hours after the Capitol was cleared.

Im proud ... [of] what we accomplished, Rehl wrote, according to the filing.

Another member of the group shared video of a clash between rioters and police outside the Capitol after the Proud Boys had entered. This could have been us, the man complained.

Tarrio defended their choice to hang back and let others commit the violence. Make no mistake, he wrote, according to the filing. We did this.

And when Congress reconvened later that evening to resume certifying President Joe Bidens victory, one member of the six-man leadership team messaged the others: We failed. The House is meeting again.

That sense of disillusionment only grew in the weeks that followed.

Many members of the Proud Boys inner circle had expected they would be hailed as heroes on the right for their actions, their internal communications suggest. But as even some Republicans began condemning the riot as sedition, a sense of betrayal spread.

Within weeks, the FBI began arresting people, including Biggs, who was taken into custody Jan. 20 in Florida  a development that prompted Rehl to message the others to describe the case against their colleague as a steaming pile of dog excrement.

Rehl, Nordean, and a third Proud Boys member, Charles Donohoe, of North Carolina, would soon join Biggs as defendants in a case that now threatens to send them to prison for decades. All four remain in custody pending trial. Tarrio, who was arrested on unrelated charges two days before the riot, has not been charged with participating in the planning.

But as the dragnet closed around them, Nordean apparently had a change of heart.

In one of the last communications quoted by prosecutors in their filing, Nordean cursed the president they had headed to Washington to support, writing: Ive followed this guy for 4 years and given everything and lost it all. ... He led us to believe some great justice was upon us  and it never happened.

F you, Trump, he added. You left us on the battlefield bloody and alone.
A couple of years ago, I dragged my wife to Pennsylvanias Loyalsock State Forest to check out a stream called Rock Run, which flows through dense second-growth woodlands stretching across northern Appalachia. I was living in nearby Williamsport at the time, and she had come to visit from New York City, where she was born and raised. The allure of Rock Run was that we could drive up an old logging road and hop out of the car at the prettiest spots. We wouldnt have to walk more than the equivalent of a few city blocks, yet in that span we could drink in the splendor of the wild, and experience solitude.

I remember the day clearly. It was spring, as it is now. As the forest enveloped my dumpy old sedan, we rejoiced at newly sprouted leaves of hardwood trees glowing in the dappled sunlight. We left the car on the side of the gravel road and ambled down an embankment toward the stream. The transparent creek water, which rushed by us as it plunged down the densely wooded and glacier-carved gorge, allowed a clear view of the rock bed. After a tour through two waterfalls, one that dumped out into a swimming hole beloved by locals, my wife vowed to come back in summer. Rock Run won over the city slicker.

One reason I was so determined to take my wife to this special place is because this piece of public land had been targeted for gas drilling, a.k.a. fracking. Two petroleum companies acquired the mineral rights to 25,000 acres surrounding Rock Run. One of them, Anadarko, planned to build as many as 26 parking-lot-size well pads (each of which would host multiple gas wells), along with a network of roads to access the pads and pipelines to ferry the fracked gas out of the area. The same factor  ease of access  that made Rock Run such an appealing recreation destination made it an attractive place to drill for methane.

I expected that drilling would destroy the wild character of Rock Run, because Id seen the same thing happen in the Tiadaghton State Forest, where I was doing volunteer trail maintenance. What has happened to the Tiadaghton is a microcosm of what is happening to public lands across America  and what will keep happening if we dont take action now.

Tranquil dirt roads in the forest were widened and paved to make way for caravans of big rigs and tanker trucks. Popular vistas were closed to the public, hiking trails rerouted. Four-acre gravel well pads and 12-acre water impoundment ponds, surrounded by cyclone fencing and DANGER: RESTRICTED AREA signs, were carved out of once-rugged wilderness. Drilling rigs poked through the canopy. Pads that were being drilled or fracked teemed with dozens of white pickup trucks and big rigs. Helicopters buzzed low overhead, delivering supplies.

It wasnt just the loss of the areas wild character that I found so unsettling. It was the loss of freedom. Just to access a vista overlooking Pine Creek, I had to check in with three different security guards, as if I were visiting the airport. Two guards wrote down my license-plate number. Security cameras recorded my coming and going in places so remote they lacked phone reception and didnt appear on my map.

One guard blocked my access to a road that ended in a vista (plus a well pad), demanding that I show him my drivers license. I insisted I had the right to pass, but he relented only when I gave him the card of the forest manager and said the district forester had assured me visitors could travel freely on the mountain. After parking at the vista, I got shooed away by the foreman and was flagged by a guard on my way back. When I relayed all of this to the forest manager, he insisted that the road was still public and should be accessible to all.

 READ MORE: Fracking ban in Delaware River Basin is a historic win, but its time to look downstream | Editorial

Portions of the Tiadaghton, and tens of thousands of acres of public forest across Pennsylvania, have, in the words of an irate forester I befriended, been successfully privatized. A security apparatus has sprung up to police land that is legally part of the commons  a place where generations of people have enjoyed the liberty to wander the woods free from encumbrances and scrutiny.

For the moment, a moratorium prevents the leasing of additional acreage in state forests and game lands in Pennsylvania. Nationally, President Joe Biden recently paused the sale of new oil and gas leases on federally controlled land and water. These are important first steps, but our commons deserve stronger, more durable protections. Its time to follow the lead of the interstate Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), which recently voted to replace a moratorium on gas drilling in the watershed of the Delaware River  about 100 miles East of Rock Run  with a ban. The commissioners cited the need to protect a source of drinking water for more than 13 million residents across four states. New Jerseys acting commissioner of environmental protection, Shawn LaTourette, also called the fracking ban vital for preserving the regions recreational and ecological character.

The DRCB decision is one example of how the tide is turning against fracking. Bipartisan support for the industry has crumbled in the wake of widespread, grassroots climate activism. Most forms of renewable energy, like solar and wind, can now compete on cost with fossil fuels  a recent study found that America could produce 90% of its electricity from carbon-free sources by 2035 without increasing wholesale power costs.

Unfortunately, even if Biden and Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf turn their federal and state moratoriums on new oil and gas leases on public lands into permanent bans, drilling could still move forward in pristine areas that have already been leased. More than a quarter of Pennsylvanias 2.2 million acres of public forest is potentially exposed to natural gas development. So long as our leaders lack the political will to nullify existing leases on public lands, we have to mobilize locally.

 READ MORE: Natural gas should be a part of Pennsylvanias energy future | Opinion

We can draw inspiration from Rock Run. In 2013, fracking was imminent. Anadarko had placed stakes in the ground where the well pads would go. But an alliance of environmental advocacy groups, the Save Pennsylvanias Forests Coalition, organized a massive public awareness and grassroots pressure campaign, including a petition that collected more than 12,000 signatures, public hearings with sympathetic lawmakers from across the state that attracted hundreds of supporters, and a lawsuit. Eight years later, the area remains untouched. However, the natural gas giant EQT just bought all Pennsylvania assets formerly held by Anadarko (before they sold to Alta Resources). The fight to save Rock Run continues.

An employee for the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, which manages Pennsylvanias state forests, confided to me that he didnt understand why locals were so up in arms about fracking in the area. There are a hundred Rock Runs, he said. But to me, this fact only clarified why we need to save every Rock Run. I imagined 100 other reluctant Americans to whom, like my wife, these spots introduced them to the joys and feeling of absolute freedom only nature can provide. That freedom should be available to every American  including the future generations stuck with the consequences of our choices today.

Colin Jerolmack is the author of the new book Up to Heaven and Down to Hell: Fracking, Freedom, and Community in an American Town and a professor of environmental studies and sociology at New York University. @jerolmack
Burma Myanmar Junta Extorting Cash From Wealthy Parents of Detained Protesters

An anti-regime protest in Yangon in February. / The Irrawaddy

Security officials of the Myanmar military regime are soliciting bribes from the parents of some of the nearly 700 detained children from wealthy families who have been arrested for anti-regime activism, after giving them false hope of their childrens release.

Some families have been asked for 5,000,000 kyats (about US$3,200) or more by officials from the security forces in exchange for promiseswhich later turn out to be falseto free their children, most of whom are teenagers, according to a parent in Yangon.

However, they havent been released. The bribe-taking officials merely check whether the children are OK behind bars and pass the information back to the worried parents, or take them food on the parents behalf.

The young people took part in anti-coup protests and some have provided strong support, including financial or other aid, to striking civil servants participating in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), a campaign in which many government workers are refusing to work for the regime. The impact of the CDM has been so strong that the junta is still struggling to keep the country running properly, more than three months after the coup.

The rich children were arrested during the regimes crackdowns on street protests and night raids and have been detained at Yangons Insein Prison since the second week of April, according to an immediate family member of one of the detainees. Among those detained are some celebrities like Paing Takhon, who is also popular in Thailand and has appeared in commercial endorsements and soap operas there.

As of Friday, 3,971 people nationwide are in detention in relation to anti-coup activities, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP), which has been tracking arrests by regime forces and the death toll from the juntas crackdowns.

Following the arrests, the parents, some of whom are well known elites in Yangon society, approached some officials to get their children released. They were likely motivated by reports from some provincial towns that arrested protesters had been released after their parents agreed to pay an amount demanded by local security officials.

According to sources close to security officials, the regime and military intelligence suspect that many well-off businessmen in Yangon and elsewhere have provided funds to the CDM movement, and some children of wealthy families have been found to be actively involved in the campaign. They said it was impossible that the children would be released despite their parents back-channel approach with loads of cash, because the regime officials want to punish the parents for their support for the movement. Any bribes paid by the parents were accepted under false pretenses, they said.

This is kidnapping. They are not going to be released, one of the sources said.
Burma Myanmar Juntas Troops Use Civilians as Human Shields in Assault on Mindat

Myanmar junta troops are seen in Mindat town, Chin State in early May.

Myanmar junta forces reportedly used local civilians in Mindat as human shields during a raid on the mountainous town in Chin State, northwestern Myanmar, on Saturday.

The raid came after several days of firefights between civilian resistance forces and the juntas troops.

Civilian fighters resisted again Saturday, with shootouts lasting from about 6:30 a.m. to about 8:30 a.m. At that point, the civilian fighters retreated, said a member of the civilian force.

Following the early Saturday morning shootouts, junta forces raided houses and arrested any man they encountered in the town.

The civilian defense force member said the junta forces arrested at least 18 people and used them as shields when they entered the town.

We could not fight back while our people were being arrested and used as human shields. We cant hurt our people in town. Therefore we slowly retreated and most of the healthy men in town ran away, he said. But they fired with artillery and continued to attack us.

At least three civilians were injured and some houses and religious buildings were damaged as junta forces fired about 20 artillery rounds from Battalion 274, which stationed in the town on Saturday morning, according to local residents.

In the meantime, junta forces used aircraft to bring in hundreds of reinforcements and weapons to the militarys Battalion 274 from Kyaukhtu, Magwe Region.

Three civilians were injured and one of the junta forces was wounded, according to residents.

The sounds of gunfire and artillery could still be heard on Saturday afternoon, even though the military had taken control of the town by then, said a resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The resident said everyone is afraid and hiding behind their doors while junta troops are patrolling the downtown. Continuous gunfire can be heard from both the east and west sides of the town and from the mountains.

Local residents are worried about the arrests, tortures and other atrocities against the civilians, especially women, young children and the elders, because many of them were unable to flee from their homes when the troops raided Mindat.

The regime declared martial law for Mindat, which is home to some 20,000 people, on Thursday night after bombarding the town with artillery in response to the residents weeklong resistance. However, intensive shootouts continued on Friday and Saturday morning.

The juntas assault on the town was followed by civilian resistance fighters seizing about six military vehicles that were approaching Mindat from Kyaukhtu on Friday.

Mindats Civilian Defense Force, the civilian resistance fighters who took up their traditional homemade percussion lock firearms to resist the juntas troops, said in its statement on Friday that the military has used reinforced troops, heavy explosives, artillery, rocket propelled grenades and automatic machine guns in the shootouts.

Armed resistance against the junta began in Sagaing Regions towns in late March and was later joined by Chin States towns. Those towns resisting the junta troops are located in northwestern Myanmar.

Armed resistance by Mindat residents started on April 26 with an attack on the police station after junta forces broke promises to release seven young anti-regime protesters.

On April 26 and 27, the newly-formed Mindat Defense Force attacked military reinforcements approaching the town using homemade percussion lock firearms, leaving at least 20 junta troops dead.

Local resistance fighters and junta forces have been fighting for four days in Mindat since the late April ceasefire collapsed on May 12. At least ten junta troops and four local residents have died in the shootouts.

The Chin Human Rights Organization expressed concern about possible war crimes against the people of Mindat as the junta troops prepared for an all-out assault on the town on Saturday.

A statement by the civilian National Unity Government (NUG) issued on Saturday afternoon said the military has been sending more troops to Mindat, where the local residents are exercising the right to self-defense to protect town residents. The military helicopters are hovering above the town, while they fire into the town.

The NUG statement said that besides junta forces killing five civilians and injuring ten people recently, Many more are potentially under the threat of fatalities and serious injuries while the town is at risk of becoming a battleground and thousands of people are potentially facing the danger of being displaced.

The NUG urged the international community to take immediate actions to end all forms of violence by the military and protect the defenseless people of Mindat.
Burma Myanmars Long History of Revolutionary Poets

K Za Win, Kyi Lin Aye, Khet Thi

Poet Khet Thi was arrested by some 100 junta troops on the evening of May 8. The following day, he was dead. His wife reportedly had to ask the authorities for permission to collect his body, whose internal organs had been removed for autopsy, from Monywa Hospital.

The 45-year-old poet was arrested for alleged possession of explosives, but no evidence was found at his home. He was the third poet to be killed by junta forces in Sagaing Regions Monywa in just two months. Poets K Za Win, 39, and Kyi Lin Aye, 36, were shot dead in crackdowns in March.

Poet U Yee Mon, the poet-turned-defense-minister in the National Unity Government (NUG) formed to rival the military regime, wrote on his Facebook page: Khet Thi and K Za Win, two Monywa poets have fallen. I am sad. I am committed to fight until we win.

More than a dozen poets who have shown solidarity with the people against the military regime have also been detained in Yangon, Ayeyawadys Pathein and Taninthayis Myeik.

In Myanmars long history of revolution, poets have fought injustice with the power of art.

After Myanmars last monarch King Thibaw was dethroned and sent into exile, renowned poets from the royal capital Mandalay, including Saya Pe, Sebunni Sayadaw, U Kyawt and Maunghtaung U Kyaw Hla, wrote poems intended to promote nationalism and patriotism. Saya Pe was not content fighting with the pen and went to Shan State to take up the sword. He died there. Maunghtaung U Kyaw Hla was also the first poet to be arrested under colonial rule for his anti-colonialist poems.

The most famous poet laureate in the colonial period was Thakhin Kodaw Hmaing, also known as Maung Lun, who said he would fight with poems for the independence of the country.

His pen proved to be mighty in instilling nationalism and patriotism in Myanmars people.

In 1941, his reputation as an anti-colonial nationalist and patron of Doh Bamar Asiayon (the We Burmans Association) earned him a place on the British authorities Burma List, making him an enemy of the state. The association played an important part in Myanmars independence struggle, bringing together nationalist elements and fresh political ideals while raising political consciousness.

In the time of the Anti-Fascist Peoples Freedom League government after independence, poets Daung Nwe Swe, Ne Thway Ni, Maung Yin Mon and others were known for their works supporting the movements of students, workers and farmers as well as anti-war poems and satirical works critical of bureaucrats.

However, draconian censorship was imposed after General Ne Win seized power in 1962. Poet Min Yu Wai was sacked as the chief editor of military-run Myawady Magazine after he wrote a poem deemed to be critical of the dictator.

Poet Win Latt and editor Win Khet of Perspective Journal were sentenced to two years in prison for publishing a satirical poem about Ne Win and his wife Khin May Than.

Many poets were put behind bars under the rule of Burma Socialist Program Party (BSPP) as they took part in every movement against the repressive regime.

In 1970s, poet Lay Maung from Mandalay, who was serving his time as a political prisoner in Coco Islands, staged a hunger strike together with other prisoners. They called for abolishing the island prison, which was dubbed as a Burmese Devils Island. He died in prison after staging a hunger strike for more than 50 days. Thanks to the sacrifices of the poet and seven others, BSPP transferred all the prisoners to Yangons Insein Prison, marking a significant event in the history of Myanmars correctional system.

Poets were united with the people in the pro-democracy uprising in 1988 that toppled the single-party dictatorship of Ne Win. U Min Ko Naing, one of the prominent student leaders in 1988, is also a poet.

Student leader Shwe Phone Lu, who would later become a best-selling author-cum-poet under the pen name Taryar Min Wai, wrote a poem asking the students to boycott education as the military regime re-opened universities and schools after the uprising. He was jailed for five years for that poem.

Famous writer-cum-poet Min Lu was also arrested in 1989 for his satirical poem What has happened? criticizing coup leader General Saw Maung and Myanmars military. Both he and the publisher were given five years in prison as the poem became a phenomenon.

Poet Min Thu Wun, father of the 9th president of Myanmar and the first president of the National League for Democracy (NLD) government, U Htin Kyaw, had also had his poems banned by the military regime after the NLD won the 1990 general elections because he took an active part in the partys campaigns.

Poet Tin Moe, a prominent figure of the NLD, was also jailed for five years because he wrote poems and gave talks across the country for the cause of democracy. He was forced into exile after his release and died abroad in 2007.

In 2008, poet Saw Wai was arrested for his Valentines Day poem with a coded message, ridiculing the then-dictator Senior General Than Shwe. The first words of each line of the poem read, power-crazed Snr-Gen Than Shwe.

Over past 136 years since King Thibaw was dethroned in 1885 to military chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaings seizure of power on Feb. 1, 2021, poets have shown solidarity with the ordinary people and have been at the frontline in every revolution in Myanmar. Khet This following poem is a testimony to that.

In heads, they shoot

Never do they know

Revolution lies in hearts.
After years of playing it safe--if not apparently abandoning any strategy whatsoever in its Pixel smartphone line--Google has now shaken things up in the handset world based from leaked photos of the upcoming Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro.

Images from top leakers Jon Prosser and Max Weinbach that were rendered from their leaked source practically confirmed previous rumors of an all-display design and signature camera, Input Magazine reported.

Similar to the new iPhone 12 and the rumorediPhone 13, the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro will have distinctively large camera bump, but it will be uniquely different as it will reportedly carry a bold horizontal design. The cameras, Prosser's YouTube video showed, had single-hole punch selfie cameras on the front, two cameras on the Pixel 6, and three cameras on the Pixel 6 Pro.

Google Pixel 6 Leaks: Camera Features

The Pixel 6 is apparently smaller with that massive, distinctive "island" at the back that had the two cameras. Observers expect that one of those cameras would have a normal wide sensor and ultrawide on the other, as GSM Arena reported. The Pixel 6 Pro, meanwhile, has an even bigger "island" at the back with three sensors, with the third seemingly a telephoto lens and not a periscope-type lens.

Read Also: Google Pixel 6 vs Pixel 5: What Are the Changes? Design, Specs, and More- An Advanced Review

While the leaked photos showed quite an orangy eye-catching shade and retro-ish design, Weinbach cautioned everyone that while the design renders appear to accurate, the colors aren't. Even so, the leaked renders showed that Google has definitely stepped up its game, design-wise, and not just simply re-use its old, obsolescent look.

Google Pixel 6 Specs: Running on First-Ever Googe Chip GS101 "Whitechapel"

In his video, Prosser claimed that the Pixel 6 will run on Google's first microprocessor, the GS101 "Whitechapel." Google is reportedly partnering with Samsung in building the Pixel 6 Whitechapel chip, and this makes the design remarkably reminiscent of "Galaxys" past, Ars Technica noted.

Google Pixel 6 now has a sharper display corners, unlike its predecessor's shallow ones, making it quite a deadringer for the Galaxy Note. And that hole punch cut seen on the left side of the Pixel 5? Well, it's now at the center, just like any Samsung phone with the bezels almost gone. An in-screen fingerprint reader is also included, with Google ditching the Pixel's rear capacitive reader. Prosser confirmed the "glass curves on the edges" that really makes it quite similar to a Samsung phone, unlike the Pixel 5 had flat ones.

Prosser has been nailing his predictions lately, with his accurate leaks of the multi-colored M1 iMacs, the AirPods Pro, and the AirTags months before Apple announced them. However, for Google leaks, Prosser might have missed his mark several times. Prosser had claimed last month that Google will "cancel" the Pixel 5a, which was denied by Google.

But this particular leak about the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro designs could be accurate, given that another famous leaker in Weinhach supported it, except for the colors.

Google Pixel 6 Release Date

Unfortunately, no other specs are available from these leaks. But such details would most certainly emerge as the release date draws near.

Rumors claim that Google's flagship phone is expected to have its release date by this fall.

Related Article: Strange Google Pixel 'Something Went Wrong' Camera Issue: Here are Possible Fixes
A CIA-backed threat intelligence firm claims the operator of the DarkSide ransomware gang has lost control of its infrastructure after the malware was used to attack the Colonial Pipeline Company in the US which runs the country's biggest petrol pipeline.

The claims were published by The Record, a website launched by the firm, Recorded Future recently. It cited a post spotted by one of its analysts, Dmitry Smilyanets, from the alleged operator of the malware.

Darkside is "shutting down and getting out of ransomware" the same way that Capitol rioters truly believe the election wasn't stolen...  Jake Williams (@MalwareJake) May 14, 2021

A few hours ago, we lost access to the public part of our infrastructure, namely: Blog. Payment server. CDN servers, Smilyanets said in a tweet attributed to one Darksupp who is claimed to be the person behind the malware operation.

Now these servers are unavailable via SSH, and the hosting panels are blocked."

Meanwhile, a blockchain analytic firm known as Ellipticthat it had discovered a payment of 75 bitcoin made to the DarkSide account on 8 May. Bloomberg had made

It said the wallet in question had been active since 4 March and had received 57 different payments.

President Biden promised a US response to DarkSide yesterday and right now something very bad appears to be happening to DarkSide, which hacked the Colonial Pipeline.  Eamon Javers (@EamonJavers) May 14, 2021

Bloomberg had claimed a ransom of US$5 million was paid by Colonial while other news services like Reuters had said the company was refusing to pay up.

The US had vowed to exact revenge on the DarkSide operators as the Colonial incident affected petrol supply within the country and led to a rise in prices.

FLASH



Exploit just baned #RaaS



"We are glad to see penetrate testers, specialists, coders, but we are not happy with lockers"



All topics related to lockers will be deleted. pic.twitter.com/iHtdhwVeP1  Yelisey Boguslavskiy (@y_advintel) May 14, 2021

In a related development, the operators of the biggest dark web cyber crime forum have decided to ban ransomware advertisements.

In a statement issued in Russian and translated by security writer Yelisey Boguslavskiy, the XSS forum said: ""We are glad to see penetrate testers, specialists, coders, but we are not happy with lockers.

"All topics related to lockers will be deleted."

In a blog post, the security firm Intel471 said the DarkSide operators had decided to shut down their ransomware-as-a-service on 13 May.

"Operators said they would issue decryptors to all their affiliates for the targets they attacked, and promised to compensate all outstanding financial obligations by May 23, 2021," the post said.

"The group... also passed an announcement to its affiliates claiming a public portion of the group's infrastructure was disrupted by an unspecified law enforcement agency.

"The groups name-and-shame blog, ransom collection website, and breach data content delivery network were all allegedly seized, while funds from their cryptocurrency wallets allegedly were exfiltrated."

Contacted for comment, Brett Callow, a seasoned ransomware researcher with the New Zealand-headquartered infosec firm Emsisoft, said: "All of DarkSide's sites are down expect for their payment portal. The question is whether the sites were seized by law enforcement or whether DarkSide has simply done a runner, taking their partners in crimes' cash with them. I suspect they've legged it.

"This isn't a particularly sophisticated group and their post-attack comments clearly indicated they were uncomfortable with what had happened - or, more accurately, the potential consequences.

"Sadly, though, while this may mark the end of the DarkSide operation, the individuals behind it will likely not cease to be a pain in our collective arses. They'll most likely just rebrand or go back to being affiliates for other gangs."
This Week in Review

A weekly review of the best and most popular stories published in the Imperial Valley Press. Also, featured upcoming events, new movies at local theaters, the week in photos and much more.
FILE - In this Wednesday, March 17, 2021, file photo, charter buses arrive at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, escorted by Federal Protective Service Police. Reports of unaccompanied migrant children being forced to stay overnight in parked buses at the Dallas convention center are completely unacceptable if true, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said Friday, May 14, 2021. It's unclear how many children were kept on buses overnight at the convention center.
Doreen Tome plans to continue developing her canoeing prowess through out the summer.
BRAVO attacked Kameron Westcott of Dallas Real Housewives Of Dallas for her racist comments about co-star Tiffany Moon.

The network said it stood with celebrities and the Asian community after 38-year-old Cameron, her husband Kurt Westcott and brother-in-law Chart tweeted about racial insensitivity.

? Follow all our latest news and stories Real housewife.

11 After co-starring racist remarks, fans united in support of Tiffany Moon (Tiffany Moon) Credit: Super Agent

11 Kameron and Court Wescott came under fire for their racist comments on Tiffany Moon Credit: Bravo

11 Bravo issued a statement agreeing with Wescotts remarks and standing on the same line as Tiffany Moon. Credit: Twitter/@Bravotv

This Nemesis on the screen Its been difficult to get along all season, but on Thursday, fans claimed that Kameron made a series of controversial comments and therefore crossed the line.

As Cheers The audience demanded the firing of the blonde TV star RHOD, The network issued a statement on the same line as Tiffany (Tiffany).

The company stated: Bravo strongly supports the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.

In fact, anti-racism is not a form of racism. Dr. Tiffany Moon and his anti-racism and violence network support the network.

Earlier this week, a fan of the show mocked Cameron in a tweet about the recent reunion show.

11 Kameron accused Tiffany of using white face in deleted tweets Credit: Twitter

11 Tiffany criticized Kameron for comparing her to Thai sex workers Credit: Twitter

as a response, TiffanyThe 35-year-old clown used the emoji-Cameron later accused him of white face.

Then this is a white face because I am white? Or is it because I am a clown?

Wow I thought we were going to move on in February. Obviously not, she said harshly.

Dr. Moon Another tweet was sent to her friend, which included a comment on Watch What Happens Live earlier this year, in which Kameron linked Tiffany with Thai sex workers.

You attacked me and ignited me. Never compare me with Thai sex workers, and dont call me bossy.

11 Camerons husband declared that anti-racism is racism Credit: Twitter

11 The reality TV husband deleted his entire Twitter account after commenting on uneducated Image Credit: Instagram / Kameron Westcott

I dont accept your half-assMy employees do this apology. Learn to take some responsibility or pay the bills, Tiffany wrote.

When the fans gathered to participate in Tiffanys defense, Camerons family intervened and seemed to make things even more tense.

In a deleted tweet (her husband closed all his accounts yesterday), the court claimed that Tiffanys attempt to anti-racism was actually racism.

He wrote: Anti-racism is racism. It is distinguished by the color of the skin. They tried it once in Germany, but it didnt work well.

I dont know how many of your patients would be satisfied with your publicly vicious racism [sic]. 

11 Many fans urge talented doctors to abandon RHOD and marry medicine Image Credit: Twitter / @TiffanyMoonMD

11 Tiffany Moon joined Real Housewives of Dallas this year Credit: Getty

Camerons brother-in-law talked about the doctor in another tweet: Ive talked to her twice, once when she was drunk at my house but needed to go home for early work.

Want to know if she had a hangover while working for the patient?

The morning after the Westcotts made their comments, Tiffany claimed that she will not back down and continued to defend her correct position.

Tiffanys lawyer Andrew Brettler told species Friday: Wescotts allusions in these tweets are rure, slanderous and appalling.

11 On and off the screen, Tiffany had an argument with Cameron Credit: Bravo

11 Cameroon was criticized for riding Tiffanys traditional Chinese food choices at dinner Credit: Bravo

SAD FRIDAY When Jenny and Lee announced the last episode of news, Gogglebox fans were disappointed Give you All the information about friends gathering-from celebrities and guests to whom to go out? So cruel The fans on Coronation Street are disgusted because Abi Franklin blames Nina for Cybers death exclusive Holly Holly Willoughby told ITV that she was going to withdraw from the money circle this morning Cute flashing The eldest brothers legend Helen Adams became unrecognizable when he worked in a hair salon exclusive I lost everything Emmerdale star Alicya Eyo recovers from alcoholism after washing soap

Dr. Moon is a professional in all aspects and deserves the outstanding reputation he has earned as a doctor and a hardworking mother.

These attacks on her character are intolerable. Its best to advise Westcotts not to mention Dr. Moon in social media.

It is not clear whether Tiffany will take further legal action against Cameron and his family.
The solar-powered rover named Zhuo Rong will now survey the landing site before leaving the platform for inspection.

The state news agency Xinhua reported that on Saturday, an unopened Chinese spacecraft successfully landed on the surface of Mars, making China the second spaceflight country after the United States landed on the red planet.

Xinhua News Agency said that the Tianjin 1 spacecraft landed on a vast plain called Utopia Planet. This is the first time that China has left a footprint on Mars.

The spacecraft left its parked orbit at 17:00 GMT on Friday GMT (1AM Beijing time on Saturday).

The official China Space News stated that the landing module separated from the orbiter three hours later and entered the Martian atmosphere.

It said that the landing process includes deceleration for nine minutes, which is the process by which the module decelerates and then slowly descends.

Now, a solar-powered rover named Zhuo Rong will survey the landing site before it leaves the platform for inspection. Zhu Rong is named after the mythical Chinese god of fire and possesses six scientific instruments, including a high-resolution terrain camera.

Wanderers will study the surface soil and atmosphere of the planet. Zhu Rong will also use ground penetrating radar to look for signs of ancient life, including any groundwater and ice.

Tianwen-1 (Tianwen-1), named after a Chinese poem written two thousand years ago, is Chinas first independent flight to Mars. The probe launched jointly with Russia in 2011 failed to leave the earths orbit.

In July last year, the 5-ton spacecraft was launched from Hainan Island in southern China and was launched by a powerful Long March May 5 rocket.

After more than six months of transportation, Tianwen-1 reached Mars in February and has been in orbit since.

In July last year, the 5-ton spacecraft was launched from Hainan Island in southern China and was launched by a powerful Long March May 5 rocket. [File: China Daily via Reuters]

If Zhurong is successfully deployed, China will be the first country to fly to Mars, land and release rovers.

Astro One was one-third of its arrival on Mars in February. The perseverance of the American rover successfully landed in a depression called Jezero Crater on February 18, more than 2,000 kilometers from the utopia Planitia.

Hope-the third spacecraft to reach Mars in February this year-was not designed for landing. It was launched by the United Arab Emirates and is currently operating over Mars to collect data about its weather and atmosphere.

The first successful landing was completed by NASA Viking 1 in July 1976 and then Viking 2 in September of that year. The Mars probe launched by the former Soviet Union landed in December 1971, but lost communication within seconds after landing.

China is pursuing an ambitious space program. It is testing reusable spacecraft and plans to build a manned lunar research station.

Xinhua News Agency said in a comment published on Saturday that China is not competing for space leadership but is committed to uncovering the secrets of the universe and contributing to the peaceful use of space by mankind.
The Alberta Department of Health Services has obtained a restraining order against Calgary mayor candidate Kevin J. Johnston, who threatened to arm himself and go to the homes of health workers.

Johnston has a history of racism, hatred and suspected acts of violence, and is known for organizing, leading and speaking in the extreme right protests held in various provinces against the government-imposed restrictions on the COVID-19 pandemic.

He has been trying to release the private information of the employees of the Alberta Health Service and has registered as a candidate for mayor of Calgary, which makes him worry that this move will allow him to enter the community including every Calgary who is eligible to participate in the event. List of names, addresses and phone numbers to vote.

Johnston is currently facing a charge of assault in British Columbia and a hate crime charge in Ontario.

The Alberta Department of Health issued a press release on Friday that the Queens Court announced an order to prevent Johnston from obstructing or interfering with AHS and its employees, including public health officials.

The order also prohibits Johnston from threatening such behavior or urging others to engage in similar behavior.

He is also prohibited from contacting, recording or photographing AHS employees, visiting AHS sites for non-medical purposes, or participating in activities at home or AHS officials or employees.

Watch | Calgary mayor candidate vowed to hunt down AHS workers in an online video:

Kevin J. Johnston said he has a home address and is determined to make life uncomfortable for some Alberta health care workers. 0:35

The press release also stated that Johnston is prohibited from within 100 meters of any AHS public health official, or to post any threats or hate speech against these individuals.

He is also not allowed to ask for names, addresses, telephone numbers or other information from employees or managers.

Johnston said to AHS employees: Im here for all of you

On his social media channels, Johnston made it clear that he was a mask, vaccine and rejection person, and most of his anger was directed at AHS employees, the current mayor of Calgary Naheed Nenshi and the citys police.

In particular, an AHS inspector became the target of Johnstons anger, and the mayoral candidate asked his followers to track her address. He also posted pictures of the woman, her husband and children online for thousands of followers. Johnston said that he covered the faces of the children.

After his friends Artur and Dawid Pawlowski were arrested by Calgary police last Saturday, Johnston told AHS employees in a video: You will all be put on. Handcuffs.

The Pawlowski brothers ignored public health restrictions during the pandemic and have been organizing illegal church services.

He said to the AHS staff: I want to serve everyone. If the special police do not come, it is very simple. I will arm myself and I will walk to your door immediately.

This is a screenshot of one of Kevin J Johnstons attempts to track the personal information of Alberta Health Services employees. (Kevin J Johnston/Facebook)

In response to CBC Newss comment, Johnston said he did not issue threats.

Johnston said: Thats absolutely inaccurate. All I did was make a promise.

Earlier this week, CBC News reported that the City of Calgary said Weigh their legal options Regarding the list of voters that will be provided to candidates for mayor.

The Calgary Police Department expressed deep concern that the personal information of its members and other members of the community will be distributed to candidates.

there are more.
Using the power of securities laws to target a listed company for the first time may have an impact on investor sentiment in the city.

The Hong Kong authorities have frozen the assets of the jailed media tycoon Li Meimei, including all shares in his company Next Digital. This is the first time that a listed company has been attacked by the National Security Law of the Financial Center.

In a government statement, Hong Kong Security Service Director John Lee said that among the target assets are the local bank accounts of three Lais companies.

The statement was released after the market closed on Friday, stating that Mr. Li had issued a notice, frozen in writing all shares of Next Digital Limited held by (Jimmy) Li Zhiying and the ownership of the property in three local bank accounts By him.

Lai was sentenced to 14 months in prison for participating in an unauthorized assembly in a democratic protest in 2019.

Under a comprehensive new national security law promulgated by Beijing, he faces three charges, including collusion with foreign countries.

Actions were also taken against his property under the Security Law, which criminalized subversion, sedition, collusion with foreign forces and secession of the country, and possible life imprisonment.

The authorities decision to use the power of the law for the first time against Hong Kong listed companies may have an impact on investor sentiment.

According to government agencies, bankers and lawyers, since the law was promulgated last June, capital has fled to foreign countries including Canada.

Clamp

Beijing said it had imposed laws on the former British colonies to restore order after months of pro-democracy and anti-China protests in 2019.

However, critics say that the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party have used the law to suppress freedom and democracy activists, many of whom have been arrested and imprisoned and fled into exile.

Next Digital CEO Cheung Kim-hung told Apple Daily that Lais frozen assets have nothing to do with Next Digitals bank account, and its operations and finances will not be affected.

The companys employees pledged to continue to fulfil their duties and maintain reports in a statement posted on the Facebook page of the Next Digital union.

Next Digital CEO Cheung Kim-hung told Apple Daily that Lais frozen assets have nothing to do with Next Digitals bank account, and its operations and finances will not be affected. [File: Isaac Lawrence/AFP]

According to documents from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Lai is a major shareholder of Next Digital. Based on Fridays closing price, Lai holds 71.26% of the shares, valued at approximately HK$350 million (US$45 million).

The value of other property assets frozen by the authorities is unclear.

Next Digital runs the Apple Daily, the most influential democratic newspaper in Hong Kong, which has long troubled the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities.

Senior Hong Kong officials recently warned Apple Daily about its reports and talked about the possibility of introducing a fake news law. Critics say that this is all the content of the citys continued repression of the media.

The Taiwan branch of Apple Daily said on Friday that it would stop issuing print editions, blaming the decline in advertising revenue and the more difficult business environment in Hong Kong related to politics.
After the Israeli police clashed with Palestinian demonstrators in Jerusalem, Gaza militants fired rockets at Israel, leading to the most intense battle in the area since the war between Israel and the armed group Hamas that controls Gaza in 2014 A series of air strikes.

Subsequent conflicts between Arabs and Jews in other mixed-race cities in Israel, as well as the violent confrontation in the West Bank, added to the conflict, which has not been seen in more than two decades, especially in the Israeli town of Lod (Lod ), even if additional security forces were deployed, they experienced several nights of confrontation.

Here is a look back at the history of ongoing conflicts and confrontations between Israeli and Palestinian radicals.

What caused the recent conflict?

The current outbreak of violence began in Jerusalem a month ago. The focal point of the conflict was the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. On the top of a hill revered by Jews and Muslims, Israeli police and Palestinian protesters had a dispute over a legal case involving eight Palestinian families facing their occupation. The situation of the loss of East Jerusalem houses to Jewish settlers.

On Monday, after a weekend of sporadic violence, hundreds of Palestinians were injured in clashes between the Al-Aqsa compound, the third holiest site in Islam, and Israeli security forces. After asking Israel to withdraw its security forces from the compound, Hamas fired a rocket into Gaza. Israel launched air strikes on Gaza.

Israel uses the entire Jerusalem as its capital, while the Palestinians hope that East Jerusalem, including the holy land of Jews, Christians and Muslims, will be the capital of the future nation.

Watch | From the ground in Gaza and Israel:

Amit Sherman and Hala Shoman live in Israel and the Gaza Strip respectively, 38 kilometers apart. They share what it feels like to see where they are in the escalating violence. 6:01

How does Gaza affect the current situation?

In the war created around Israel in 1948, a large number of Palestinians who fled or were forced to flee what is now Israel eventually fled to Gaza. In that war, Gaza came under Egyptian control.

Israel occupied Gaza as well as the West Bank and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. The Palestinians hope that these three territories will form a future nation.

In 1987, the same year that Hamas was founded, the first Palestinian uprising or uprising broke out in Gaza, which later spread to other occupied territories. The Oslo peace process in the 1990s established the Palestinian Authority and allowed it to enjoy limited autonomy in Gaza and parts of the Occupied West Bank.

After the second and more violent uprising, Israel withdrew its troops and Jewish settlements from Gaza in 2005.

Who currently controls Gaza?

The militant group Hamas won a majority in the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections. This triggered a power struggle with Palestinian President Abbas Fatah party, which eventually led to a week of conflict in 2007, which gave Hamas control of Gaza.

After Hamas took over, Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade. Israel, which controls Gazas airspace, territorial waters, population registries and commercial border crossings, said it needs to take blockade measures to prevent Hamas and other militant groups from importing weapons. Human rights organizations say the blockade is a form of collective punishment.

The blockade, combined with years of erroneous rule and long-term disputes between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, has destroyed Gazas economy. The unemployment rate is hovering around 50%, power outages are frequent, and tap water is seriously polluted.

Palestinians face strict restrictions on movement, which makes it difficult for them to go abroad for work, study or visit their families.

How did the past conflicts between Israel and Hamas proceed?

The ongoing conflict is the fourth major confrontation between Israel and Hamas since 2008, although there have been sporadic outbreaks. Islamic Jihad armed groups are also involved in this current conflict.

So far, the most serious conflict between Israel and Hamas, the 2014 war, was a conflict that was regarded as a terrorist organization by many countries, including Canada. According to the United Nations, Hamas kidnapped and killed three Israeli teenagers, leading to a seven-week war that resulted in the killing of as many as 2,200 Palestinians, more than half of which are considered civilians. On the Israeli side, 73 people were killed, of which 67 were soldiers.

Israel has been internationally criticized for civilian casualties in the previous three Gaza wars, where there are more than 2 million Palestinians. It said that Hamas is responsible for endangering civilians by placing military infrastructure in civilian areas and firing rockets at them.

After Israeli air strikes overnight, Palestinians in the town of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza inspected the destroyed houses on Friday. Israel says Hamas has the responsibility to endanger civilians by placing military infrastructure in civilian areas and firing rockets at them. (Khalil Hamra/Associated Press)

Israels air strikes and invasion of the Gaza Strip have caused extensive damage, entire communities have been reduced to rubble, and thousands of people have been forced to hide in United Nations schools and other facilities. Israel said it did everything it could to avoid civilian casualties and accused Hamas of using people in the Gaza Strip as human shields.

As of Friday, the Israeli military stated that since the beginning of the current conflict, more than 2,000 rockets have been launched from Gaza to Israel. It said that about half of them were intercepted by Israels missile defense system, and 350 people crashed in Gaza-the military says this caused some deaths in Gaza.

In recent years, the range of these rockets has steadily increased, some of which extend to major cities such as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Although most people were intercepted by Israels missile defense system or landed in open areas, they sowed widespread fear and could lead to a deadlock in their lives.

Earlier this year, the International Criminal Court conducted an investigation into possible war crimes in the Palestinian territories. The actions of Israeli and Palestinian militants in the 2014 war are expected to be reviewed in detail.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the move as a dark day of truth and justice. Israel is not a member of the court and does not recognize its jurisdiction, but the Palestinians have been recognized as a member state and requested an investigation.

How did the previous conflicts end?

Under the diplomatic intervention of Egypt and the United States, the previous conflict came to a halt. In recent years, Hamas has observed instability with Israel, an informal ceasefire, hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to ease the blockade and Qatar (provided regularly through Israels Erez border), and transactions have been quiet.

Any larger solution to conflict seems to be out of reach than ever before. In recent years, no substantial peace negotiations have been conducted. Israels plan to expand settlements and eventually annex parts of the West Bank has aroused serious criticism from human rights organizations.
According to reports, MATT Gaetz was found in a fundraiser after a rally two years ago that an escort was smoking cocaine and the escort had worked in an unshown government.

According to reports, the illegal fan sucking took place in October 2019, when the Florida lawmaker returned to Orlandos Westgate Lake resort to engage with other women after serving as the number one person at the Trump Defenders Gala. Party. Daily Beast.

6 Matt Gaetz is currently under investigation by the Department of Justice for alleged sexual misconduct Credit: Reuters

6 The amateur model on Instagram and the Marijuana Association spokeswoman Megan Zalonka (Megan Zalonka) legalized, allegedly she and Rep. Matt Gaetz (Matt Gaetz) and his friend Joel Greenberg ( Joel Greenberg) had sex and got cash, while still holding a hidden job on the payroll Credit: Facebook

Two witnesses told Daily Beast that when she took out cocaine from her cosmetic bag and cocaine spread on the countertop, the Instagram model and Megan Zalongka (Megan, the spokeswoman for legalized marijuana) Zalonka) together in the bathroom of the hotel room.

According to the Daily Beast report, according to reports, Gates deducted the depreciation of this hotel as campaign expenses, in fact let his donors pay.

According to two witnesses who spoke to Daily Beast, there is allegedly an ongoing relationship between Gates and Zalonka, which involved offering her money in exchange for sex, although the news media could not independently verify Gates and Zalonka. Stuck in a sexual relationship that night with so-called cocaine. event.

A person who claims to be familiar with the relationship between Gates and Zalonkas report told the publication: She is just one of the many arm candies he has.

6 That night, Gaetz was the keynote speaker of the Trump Defenders Gala

6 Gates said he was a wanted in the deep state in the sex investigation Credit: Reuters

6 According to reports, the former tax collector in Florida hired Zalonka and is expected to plead guilty to six criminal charges and is cooperating with investigators Credit: AP

According to reports, Gaetz is being investigated by the Ministry of Justice for alleged sexual misconduct and claimed that he violated the sex trade law.

he is Strongly deny any allegations that he paid for sex It also dismissed previous reports, saying that he had sex with his former political party borderer and tax collector Joel Greenberg in Seminole County with a woman who was reportedly 17 years old at the time.

Gates also insisted that he would not resign and serve in Congress.

It is alleged that Zaronka is also associated with Greenberg, who provided Greenberg with what the Daily Beast claimed was a not shown position funded by taxpayers, where she Earned 7,000 to 17,500 US dollars.

According to the Daily Beast report, these claims were supported by a review of corresponding government records.

Four people were unwilling to reach an agreement with Zalonka. The woman told the media that the woman had never worked in Greenbergs office and was still vague about the types of services she provided.

I dont know what they are doing. Employees dont know what they are doing. Daniel OKeefe took the lead in conducting a forensic audit of Greenbergs so-called self-enrichment plan, and he reviewed The Daily Beast. Say.

There is no work product, no proof that the work has been completed. Its incredible.

6 Gates friend Joel Greenberg (Joel Greenberg) and Roger Stone (Roger Stone) photo Image Credit: Matt Gaetz / Facebook

The publication found that during the first year of Greenbergs tenure in 2017, Zarenka received US$4,000 in installments from Greenbergs Venmo, most of which were US$500 in installments.

The memo field for these particular Venmo payments includes $500 marked as Stuff.

Another $500 transfer is Orhers stuff [sic]According to the publication, the price of the swimming pool is $1,000.

According to the Daily Beast report, the former civil servant allegedly paid two US$500 for food and appetizers in November of that year.

Gates did not respond to the Coke and escort allegations made in the report.

According to reports, Harlan Hill, the president of the Logan Circle Group, a public relations company reserved by members of Congress, will not study the reports claims in depth and will further require the public and the news media to respect his personal life.

Congressman Gaetz will not comment on whether he has dated or has not dated a particular woman. The privacy of women living in private lives should be protected. The Logan Circle Group told the publication in a statement.

According to the Daily Beast, the attempt to reach Zalonka failed a few weeks later.

When receiving allegations from the party and allegations that she was suspected of not holding government positions and her relationship with Gates and Greenberg, Zaronkas lawyers said that the publications allegations in the report were not accurate, and Added that his client didnt speak. Any media. 

The wall may be closing because Greenberg is reportedly already cooperating with the FBI.

Court documents show that Greenberg is scheduled to appear in federal court in Orlando, Florida on Monday in exchange for a plea.

According to reports, Greenberg has resolved six federal crimes, including sex trafficking minors, presenting false identification documents, aggravating identity theft, wire fraud and tracking. New York Times.

The prosecutor claimed that he and unidentified others had paid for sex for a 17-year-old boy and provided her with drugs.

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Allegedly, in the documents obtained by The Times, Greenberg admitted that he introduced minors to other adult men engaged in commercial sex.

According to reports, Greenberg also agreed to cooperate with the Department of Justice investigation.

According to a report by USA Today, the last time a current member of Congress resigned due to a cocaine-related incident was in 2014, when Congressman Trey Radel pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor of possession of cocaine.
Ontario is investigating two long-term care homes in Toronto. According to the Canadian military, the hospital died of negligence in the outbreak last year, not COVID-19.

Long-term care minister Merrilee Fullerton said that multiple inspectors are working with the coroners office at the Downsview Long-Term Care Center and Hawthorne Regional Care Center to interview staff and medical directors to verify that the residents died from dehydration. And reports of malnutrition.

The ministry said that the inspectors visited the houses on Monday.

Fullerton said on Friday that the Coroners Office will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to call the police.

Toronto police said they have not received any information about the death of Hawthorne Square or Downsview from the Coroners Office.

Ontario police told CBC News last week that they are not aware of any COVID-19-related nursing home death investigations, but are reviewing the Long-Term Care Commission report issued in April.

The Canadian Armed Forces submitted a report on the two homes to the independent long-term care COVID-19 committee, whose task is to study the impact of the pandemic on residents of nursing homes in Ontario.

Fullerton told reporters: We are trying to summarize what actually happened and verify the information. We are reviewing the source of this information. What is the basis? What is the source?

There is no doubt that there are deaths. We are looking for the cause.

According to the province, so far, 3778 residents have died of COVID-19 in long-term care. However, it did not track how many residents died due to other reasons during the pandemic.

Vivian Stamatopoulos, a proponent of long-term care of residents families, said the military report released this month spurred calls for criminal charges against houses for failing to provide necessities.

Stamatopoulos, a professor at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, said: I think we have never encountered such obvious signs that widespread negligence has led to death, but no action has been taken yet.

I think we have enough evidence to prosecute. Why not hand over the existing very disgusting information to the local police department?

Housing denies allegations

As the system was overwhelmed by the COVID-19 case last spring, the military provided medical and humanitarian assistance in Downsview, Hawthorne and five other houses.

The military reported to the committee in June 2020 that 65 residents of the Downsview home had died of COVID-19 and 26 residents had died of dehydration because there were not enough people to take care of them before the troops arrived.

The report said: When all they needed was water and a rag, they died.

The military said that for-profit houses lacked management and there did not appear to be any obvious plan when the troops were withdrawn.

GEM Health Care Group, the company that owns Downsview, denied the allegations in a statement to CBC News.

Chief Operating Officer James Balcom said the report contained unconfirmed second-hand comments.

Based on the experience of our employees at Downsview, our own facility records, and our cooperation with the Chief Coroners Office, it is wrong and misleading for anyone to claim that 26 deaths at the Downsview Long-Term Care Center were due to dehydration. 

Balcom said he is confident that the province will reach the same conclusion in their investigation.

Protesters against for-profit healthcare will gather outside the Hawthorne Regional Care Center in 2020. (Frank Gunn/Canada Press)

The military reported that in Hawthorne Square, which is also a for-profit house, when the militiamen arrived, feces and vomit were on the floor and walls, and residents were killed due to dehydration and malnutrition. 51 residents died of COVID-19.

The military reported that two residents had dried their feces with their nails for a long time. The civilian staff said, There is no management.

Hawthorne Plaza told CBC News that the Canadian Armed Forces had never raised these issues with them in an extensive meeting last year.

Spokesperson Nicola Major said in a statement: There will never be problems related to mold, fungus, dehydration, malnutrition, or problems related to the future management or success of the house. All the concerns raised were resolved immediately.

She said the management is at home and working with medical institutions to find people to fill the 100 Hawthorne employees who were unable to work due to COVID-19.

Major said: Throughout the outbreak, the management supervised and worked with our care support team to provide guidance and outline agreements, and make changes when infection control instructions were received.

We need justice

Neil Shukla died in Hawthorne Place on April 27, 2020. His 90-year-old grandfather, Nemai Mallick, asked for answers.

Before the pandemic, Shukla and his family had been worried about Maliks care. Shukla said that a few years ago, a family member noticed that Malik was dirty and his fingernails were broken by dry feces. In another visit, they spent an hour begging the staff to resolve the harsh noise from the equipment on the Mallick wheelchair.

Shukla told CBC News: No one seems to be interested in solving this problem. All I get is the transfer of blame, complete disconnection and lack of care.

Neil Shuklas grandfather, Nemai Mallick (90 years old), died of natural causes in Hawthorne Place in April 2020. In the military charges, after the long-term care home was ignored, his family wanted an answer. (Susan Goodspeed/CBC News)

Shukla said that when Hawthorne Place went into lockdown last spring, the whole family tried to conduct a Skype test with Malik (Skype), who tested negative for COVID-19 but found that he was unresponsive. Later, they were told that Malik had regained consciousness.

Malik died two days later. Shukla said his death was listed as a natural cause.

Shukla said: We got a very vague description of his death. It was very confusing and sudden, and we wanted to know what happened. They couldnt give us a clear answer.

The family requested an autopsy, but according to Shukla, this never happened. Now, the military report makes the whole family wonder whether Maliks death was caused by negligence.

Shukla said: He may have died because he didnt drink water. We need an explanation, we need justice.

Hawthorne Plaza spokesperson Major said that every death certificate in Ontario that lists the cause of death was signed by the attending doctor, and no one in the family mentioned neglect, dehydration or malnutrition.

In order to protect the privacy of residents, she said that she cannot comment on specific cases, but the coroners decision is made by the coroner based on their knowledge and professional knowledge of the case. The coroner will discuss any concerns about the cause of death with the family.

Major said: Our residents and their families are at the forefront of everything we do, and the deaths of all residents have received the deepest respect.

Suspected of military abuse a year ago

A year ago, the military charged Elder abuse In five homes, including Hawthorne Place, there was widespread outrage. At the time, the military said that the residents of Hawthorne Square were forcibly given food and water, causing audible noises and had not taken a bath for several weeks.

According to the report, staff did not disinfect the equipment between residents who tested positive for COVID-19 and residents who tested negative for COVID-19. Although this practice has increased the spread of the virus, fans are still blowing in the corridors. Ants and cockroaches appear in large numbers in the house.

The major said that the Long-Term Care Department inspected these allegations but failed to confirm many of them.
The mothers daughter was kidnapped by her father in Tenerife. Mom wrote a letter on her birthday present, saying that she was afraid of the influence of her ex-husband.

Beatriz Zimmerman (Beatriz Zimmerman) issued a heartbreaking letter for her two angels, six-year-old Olivia and one-year-old Anna, because she vowed Never stop Find them.

8 Olivia, 6 years old, has been missing for more than two weeks Image source: Instagram

8 Anna, one year old with her sister Image source: Instagram

Its been more than two weeks since then Two girls and their father are missing Tomas Antonio Gimeno, 37 years old.

Now, Zimmerman has posted new photos of her two daughters, asking for them to be posted, just in case someone recognizes them. 20 minutes.

The letter read by the family lawyer wrote: Due to the influence of my father, I am worried about what to say and what to write.

But what should I do? All these uncertainties are difficult to resolve, which is why I ask all of you from the bottom of my heart to help me find them.

I will never stop because my life will be meaningless.

Terminal illness or accident must be terrible, in many cases insurmountable, but missing, its uncertainty is not knowing their state, their thoughts, knowing that they want to call me and steal protection from mother There, it is unbearable.

Hope it can be in our hands, and we will have a happy ending.

I thank everyone for your participation and your love-we will not stop until we find them.

8 Tomas Gimeno is accused of kidnapping his daughter Image source: Newsflash

8 The girls mother wrote a letter to her two angels. Image source: Gaurdiacivi

8 After Gimeno picked them up from the school two weeks ago, the three disappeared Image source: Instagram

8 Gimeno transferred a large sum of money into his bank account before disappearing

We will prove that this world can become a safer world in which such injustice is not allowed.

Olivia and Anna, I love you my lovely girl, I will be strong for you, because you need me.

Before mom Shared a video of two girls playing, Looking for them eagerly.

Gimeno, accused of kidnapping two young daughters, left his mother a goodbye note before fleeing to Tenerife by boat.

It is said that the daughters father has sent a WhatsApp message to their mother. He separated from his mother not long ago and said that he intends to take him away without consent.

According to the police report, Gimeno told Zimmerman in the last phone conversation: He is going to be far away and she wont see the girl again.

According to reports, Gimeno may have taken his daughter to the Caribbean or South America, where he interacted with people, reported C7.

8 Zimmerman previously shared videos of her two daughters Credit: Solarpix

8 Before escaping from the ship, he left Zimmerman with a goodbye note.

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Dad said Transfer 55,000 euros to his bank account Only after picking up his daughter from school disappeared.

It is believed that the ship he went to sea with the children was not boarded on Puerto de Guimar, 10 miles south of Santa Cruz.

He last appeared at the local pier on April 27, where he was found carrying a suitcase and suitcase from the car to the boat.
Official and official media reported on Saturday that two tornadoes killed at least seven people in central and eastern China and injured more than 200 others.

The Wuhan city government said that after the tornado on Friday night, 6 people were killed and 218 others were injured.

Chinas official Xinhua News Agency reported that the tornado hit Wuhan at around 8.40pm local time. Xinhua News Agency quoted the local government as saying that it demolished sheds on construction sites and cut down several trees.

Official media said that about 90 minutes ago, another tornado in Jiangsu Province killed one person and injured 21 others. It overturned the factory buildings and damaged electrical facilities in Shengze Town.
Consumers with colds and fevers

Attacked by pollen bombs triggered by storms and downpours, the British suffered millions of hay fever this week.

The circulation of tree pollen is high throughout the country, especially in the south.

In the next few days, Britain will be hit by heavy rains, and the Metropolitan Office reminds people today that it is not just warm temperatures that cause pollen levels to soar.

Experts say that pollen levels may be high even after rain.

Any rainfall will significantly reduce the concentration of pollen in the air, but the time and amount of rain during the day are very important.

In the early days, heavy rains and prolonged rains are likely to keep the rainfall low throughout the day, while the rain in the afternoon has less impact.
After a one-day trial, 30 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) were sentenced to death for their role in the anti-police violence that marked the end of Ramadan in the capital.

On Thursday, a policeman in Kinshasa was killed. At the time, rival Muslim groups were vying for the right to commemorate the end of Ramadan in a major stadium.

The head of the lawyer Tshipamba said that 30 people were sentenced to death in the trial that began on Friday the day after the violence occurred. The court record confirmed the verdict.

Since the moratorium on the death penalty in 2003, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has not executed the death penalty. Since then, the death penalty has been reduced to life imprisonment.

Dozens of people were injured

The local government said that in the fighting outside the Martyrs Stadium, in addition to police officers were killed, several people were injured and a police car was burned.

Kinshasa police chief Sylvano Kasongo (Sylvano Kasongo) said that about 40 people were injured and 35 people were arrested.

For many years, two rival factions have been questioning the leadership of the Islamic Federation of Muslims in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The two sides remained at odds and were hit occasionally.

Approximately 10% of the population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is Muslim, mainly in the eastern part of the country.

However, on the Congo River in the western part of the large African country, Kinshasa has traditionally seen large-scale celebrations of the end of Ramadan in public squares and main roads.
Airlines and logistics organizations are scrambling to buy sniffer dogs to screen cargo on cargo flights in compliance with the new regulations, which are part of the stricter rules against terrorism.

As operators strive to find animals and X-ray inspection equipment in time by the July deadline, concerns about delivery delays have increased the demand for K9s or police dogs capable of sniffing explosives.

This is the latest threat to the supply chain, which has been under pressure due to the coronavirus crisis and the surge in online shopping that have increased the demand for international shipping.

When many passenger planes that usually carry half of the cargo are grounded, air cargo has been stretched due to the sharp rise in demand for cargo.

These rules mean that all cargo on international cargo flights must be inspected. These rules have been proposed by the International Civil Aviation Organization.

The deadline has caused particular problems in the United States, because these groups are still a long way from realizing the ICAO rules, and the responsibility for screening cargo is uncertain.

It expanded existing requirements to inspect cargo in the belly of passenger planes in response to the 2010 printer cartridge bomb explosion that targeted two cargo planes flying from Yemen to the United States.

Eric Hare, CEO of the Global K9 Conservation Organization, said: This will double the size of the canine company. He expects that by the end of July, his airborne dog handling team will increase from 125 Expanded to about 225.

Rival company Cargo Screening K9 Alliance said that compared with 2020, the number of requests for quotations from air cargo carriers, ground crews and logistics organizations received in the first five months of this year has doubled.

Industry insiders say that strong demand may now exceed supply.

The question is whether there are enough dogs and a well-trained team to prepare for the deadline? said Brandon Fried, chief executive of the Airforwarders Association, a trade agency.

Although dog suppliers insist that there are sufficient numbers of suitable animals, the sudden surge in interest means that it can be difficult to prepare them in time.

It takes about six to eight weeks to train and deploy a dog with its handler, and a cost of one hundred thousand dollars. Hare said: There are enough dogs to complete this job, but there is not enough time to complete it.

Express companies like UPS say they are fully prepared before the July deadline, but smaller air cargo companies and ground handling agents are more likely to struggle than some of their larger competitors.

The lack of a dog or X-ray machine before the deadline can cause serious delays because the goods stacked on the pallet must be taken apart for human inspection.

Exporters and importers face price increases to cover inspection costs.

Glyn Hughes, chief executive of the International Air Cargo Association, said the ability of sniffer dogs to detect dangerous goods is unparalleled. He said: The dog detection system is so precise.

Although the deadline is too tight to deliver the automated screening system in time, as operators seek long-term solutions, stricter security rules will trigger a large amount of demand for security scanner manufacturers.

Smiths Detections aviation industry director Richard Thompson estimates that due to the increasing requirements of industry regulations, its 50 million pounds air cargo business will achieve double-digit growth. The companys X-ray machines are used for airport security.
CRYPTO stocks plummeted by 17 percent this week, shaving $6.1billion in value from Bitcoin after Elon Musk banned its use to buy Tesla.

Musk on Wednesday released a statement saying Tesla would no longer be accepting Bitcoin for purchasing vehicles.

According to CoinMarketCap, his tweet also triggered a fall in other currencies such as Dogecoin, which has also been promoted by the Billionaire tech entrepreneur.

Posting to his personal Twitter account, he wrote:  Tesla has suspended vehicle purchases using Bitcoin. We are concern about rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and transactions, especially coal, which ash the worst emissions of any fuel.

Within minutes Bitcoin started plummeting, as much of the recent growth of the cryptocurrency was based on speculation of its future as a legitimate currency based off Teslas decision to accept payments.

However, Musk insisted he still strongly believes in crypto, adding: To be clear, I strongly believe in crypto, but it cant drive a massive increase in fossil fuel use, especially coal, he wrote in a Twitter post.

However Dogecoin made something of a comeback, climbing up 23 per cent over the 24 hours into Friday afternoon.

Read our cryptocurrency live blog below for the very latest updates
Team news

It was a glorious day at Wembley. After a long absence due to the coronavirus pandemic, a total of 21,000 supporters returned to the stands to engage in this major conflict between the blues and the fox.

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel will have a chance to win his first silverware in West London after turning around at Stanford Bridge five months ago, when he succeeded Frank Lampard. (Frank Lampard).

But Tuchel is facing the prospect of missing midfielder NGolo Kanter, who was in trouble due to Achilles suffering, which prevented him from being defeated by Arsenal on Wednesday.

Andreas Christensen is also questioning his tendon problems, as well after Mateo Kovacic recently suffered a hamstring injury.

On the other hand, Leicesters agent Brendan Rodgers will not have long-term absence Harvey Barnes and James Justin, both of whom have suffered knee injuries. Out.

At the same time, Jonny Evans hopes to recover in time from the recent foot injury, and star midfielder James Maddison is expected to return to the starting lineup after overcoming hip problems.
The Election Commission said the opening of polling stations and the postponement of voter registration delayed polling day.

After some opposition parties stated that they would not participate in the election, Ethiopia once again postponed the election. As the conflict in the countrys Tigri region meant no voting was held there, this further intensified Prime Minister Abiy Ahmeds efforts to concentrate power.

Birtukan Mideksa, chairman of the National Election Commission of Ethiopia (NEBE), said that the opening of polling stations and delays in voter registration promoted the polling day, the state news agency Fana reported on Saturday.

Mideksa told Reuters that the election will not be held on June 5.

We will let everyone [know] She added that it will take weeks or days to complete the delayed taskno more than three weeks.

Mideksa cited numerous logistical delays, such as completing voter registration, training electoral staff, printing and distributing ballots.

She said: In fact, it is impossible to deliver all these products on the original date.

The election is only a few weeks away, and there are few signs of campaign activities. Some opposition parties plan to boycott the vote, calling it a farce.

Ethiopians fleeing the ongoing fighting in the Tigray area carry property with them after crossing the Setit River at the Sudan-Ethiopian border [File: Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/Reuters]

The vote was originally scheduled to take place in August last year, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, the vote was postponed for the first time.

The Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), which ruled the northern region at the time, refused to postpone the elections and held regional elections in September.

This is the cause of the conflict between the TPLF and the Central Government of Addis Ababa, which has been ongoing since the beginning of November.

The fighting in Tigray has killed thousands of people and led the United States to allege that it is carrying out ethnic cleansing of the western part of the region, where approximately 6 million people live.

After taking office in 2018, the prime minister undertook extensive political reforms and won the Nobel Peace Prize the following year. He has repeatedly promised that this election will be free and fair.

If his Welfare Party wins a majority of seats in the National Assembly, Abiy will continue to serve.
Since the Gaza War in 2014, Israel and Palestine have had the worst violent conflict. Protesters have marched all over the world to support the Palestinians.

At least 140 Palestinians, including 39 children, were killed after Israels airstrike on Gaza earlier this week.

On Saturday, Israel targeted a refugee camp in Gaza, where at least 10 Palestinians were killed.

Protests were held in major cities around the world, including Doha, London, Paris and Madrid.

Iraq

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in cities across Iraq to support the Palestinians.

Convened by the influential priest Muqtada al-Sadr, the demonstrators waved Palestinian flags and banners in five provinces. Demonstrators gathered in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, and Babylon in the south, Dhi Qar, Diwanieh and Basra provinces to show their support.

During the outbreak of violent Israeli-Palestinian conflict in Baghdad, Iraqi demonstrators waved the Palestinian flag in protest to show solidarity with the Palestinian people [Thaier al-Sudani/Reuters]

Qatar

In Doha, thousands of people waved flags and expressed solidarity with the Palestinians.

I oppose the genocide carried out by Israel in our country. We will do our best to liberate our country Since we cannot be there personally, we are in this protest today I am very angry and very sad about what happened. , Reem Alghoul, a Palestinian living in Doha, told Al Jazeera.

In Doha, thousands of people gathered at the Imam Mohamed Abdul Wahab Mosque. They waved flags to express their solidarity to the Palestinian people. [Showkat Shafi/Al Jazeera]

France

In the important security presence of about 4,200 police officers, hundreds of people gathered in the Barbes neighbourhood in the north of Paris.

Despite the authorities ban, the Paris police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the rally. The authorities feared the outbreak of anti-Semitic violence during the worst violent conflict between Israel and Hamas in years.

A small number of trash bins caught fire. Rocks and other projectiles were thrown at the police, but there were no reports of arrests.

After the violent conflict between Israel and Palestine broke out, people raised the Palestinian flag in protests to support the Palestinians [Benoit Tessier/Reuters]

Spain

In Madrid, about 2500 people, many of them young people wrapped in Palestinian flags, marched to Puerta del Sol in the city center.

They chanted: This is not war, it is genocide.

They are killing us, said Amira Sheikh-Ali, 37, from Palestine.

In the ongoing violence in Puerta del Sol in Madrid, a man supports the Palestinians in protest [Juan Medina/Reuters]

Lebanese

Hundreds of Lebanese and Palestinians protested along the Lebanon-Israel border. Some of them climbed the border wall and caused a fire in Israel, wounding one person.

In a protest on Saturday in the Lebanese border village of Odayseh, some protesters threw Molotov cocktails and rocks on the wall, hundreds of people waved Palestinian and Lebanese flags, and Yellow banner of Hezbollah organization.

Lebanese and Palestinians around Lebanon have traveled to the border to protest the Israeli attack on Gaza.

Protests on the border between Lebanon and Israel [Kareem Chehayeb/Al Jazeera]

Kashmir

In India-administered Kashmir, the police suppressed pro-Palestinian protesters and detained at least 20 protesters.

After Friday prayers, some people holding Palestinian flags took to the streets of the main city of Srinagar.

The protesters put forward slogans supporting Palestine and anti-Israel.

The police stated that no cynical incitement of public anger to cause violence, illegal acts and riots on the streets of Kashmir is not allowed.

When they [Israel] Killing children in Gaza. Everyone on earth should stand up for them. This is to show humanity and unity, but due to fear, we cannot even do this, a 25-year-old resident of Srinagar told Al Jazeera.

United Kingdom

In London, thousands of protesters held placards that read Stop bombing Gaza and chanted Free Palestine, gathered on the marble arch and marched towards the Israeli embassy.

Kensington High Street, where the embassy is located, was crowded with people.

Organizers claimed that as many as 100,000 people gathered in London for demonstrations. The police said they could not confirm any figures.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators raise the Palestinian flag as they participate in protests in London [Henry Nicholls/Reuters]

Germany

Thousands of people marched in Berlin and other German cities under the appeal of the Palestinian Prisoners Solidarity Network in Samido.

The Neukoln district of Berlin was allowed to hold three parades, where there were a large number of Turks and Arabs.

The protesters shouted Boycott Israel and threw stones and wine bottles at the police, leading to the arrest of several people. Other protests were held in Frankfurt, Leipzig and Hamburg.

People participated in protests in Berlin on Friday to support the Palestinians [Axel Schmidt/Reuters]

Additional reporting by Rifat Fareed from Srinagar, Showkat Shafi from Doha and Kareem Chehayeb from Odayseh
Youmna al-Sayed was safe in less than an hour.

However, when only one elevator was working in the al-Jalaa tower, an 11-story building in Gaza City contained about 60 residential apartments and some offices, including offices of Al Jazeera Media Network and The Associated Press, al- Sayed to the stairs.

The Palestinian Free Press said: We leave the elevators for the elderly and children to evacuate. She added: All of us are down the stairs. Who can help the children put them down. I helped the residents there myself. Two kids, and I took them downstairs-everyone was running fast.

A moment ago, the Israeli army, which had bombarded the Gaza Strip for six consecutive days, had issued a telephone warning that the residents had evacuated the building only an hour before they evacuated. Its fighters attacked it.

Safwat al-Kahlout of Al Jazeera also had to act quickly. al-Kahlout said that he and his colleagues started to collect as much as possible from individuals and equipment in the office (especially cameras).

But it takes more time.

An Associated Press reporter pleaded with an Israeli intelligence agent on the phone: Please give me 15 minutes. Outside the building, he added: We have a lot of equipment, including cameras and other things. I can take everything. Take everything out.

The owner of the building, Jawad Mahdi, also tried to buy more time.

He told the officer: What I want to ask is to let four people go in and get their cameras. We respect your wishes. If you dont allow it, we wont do this, but give us 10 minutes. 

There will be no ten minutes, the officer replied. No one is allowed to enter the building. We have given you an hour to evacuate.

When the request was denied, Mahdi said: You have destroyed our lifes work, memory and life. I will hang up and do what you want. There is a God.

The Israeli army claimed that the building had military interests of the Hamas intelligence agency, which was the standard line used after the bombing of buildings in Gaza, and accused the group of operating territories of using journalists as human shields. However, it did not provide evidence to support its claim.

I have been working in this office for more than 10 years and I have never seen anything [suspicious], Al-Kahlout said.

AP Video: AP staff evacuated their offices in Gaza City shortly before the Israeli air strikes destroyed the building. https://t.co/Ib5T2SohXq Associated Press (@AP) May 15 2021

He added: I even asked my colleagues if they had seen anything suspicious, and they all confirmed to me that they had never seen any military aspect, and even fighter jets had never been in or out.

In our building, we have known many families for more than a decade, and we meet every day on the way in and out of the office.

Associated Press President and CEO Gary Pruitt also told Al Jazeera: I can tell you that our bureau has been in that building for 15 years. Of course we dont know Hama. Si is there.

Al-Sayed has been reporting on the Israeli bombing of Al Jazeera and working for the Associated Press. She said she could not understand the threats that houses, lawyers, doctors and media workers housing construction might pose.

Where did the alert come from? Where is Hamas or any military personnel who might be in this building? a Gaza resident asked.

The people here, the residents, know each other. The first five floors are the offices [closed] During the upgrade.So basically what [still here] These are the two media offices and residential apartments of Al Jazeera and the Associated Press (AP). 

Still at 12:12 GMT (3:12 pm), Israels first strike took place. Five minutes later, the al-Jalaa tower fell to the ground after being hit by three missiles, which blew a cloud of black dust and debris into the air. There have been no reports of casualties.

Reminiscences of many years, working in this building for many years, suddenly everything is in ruins, said Al-Kahlout, speaking of the tower he often broadcasts from the roof. It disappeared.

Break: The Israeli air raid razed to the ground, and the building houses Al Jazeera and other international media in Gaza City. Please pay attention to our real-time report: https://t.co/RvtP1lEX1x pic.twitter.com/pr963DBTde -Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) May 15 2021

When the lawyer Islam Az-Zaeem (Islam az-Zaeem) who worked in the building was at home, his cousin  the owner of the Johara building that was razed to the ground for the night on May 13  knocked on the door, Tell him that Al-Jalaa is about to be destroyed.

I ran to the building and saw residents and other employees gathered outside, az-Zaeem told Al Jazeera.

Because of the power outage and the elevator was not working properly, I went in and went up the stairs. I was a little hysterical and fell several times in the dark, yelling and crying.

Az-Zaeem said there were nine legal partners and four interns working on his floor on his floor, and he left the building five minutes before it was razed to the ground.

He said: Even after the building collapsed, I kept shouting that I forgot to lock the office door. Imagine it.

The building was built in the mid-1990s and is one of the oldest high-rise buildings in Gaza City.

Fares al-Ghoul, executive director of Mayadeen Media Group, stated that his company was previously located in the Shorouq building, which was destroyed by Israeli missiles on May 13.

He said: Shorouqs top management is the target of the 2014 war. In 2019, we moved the company to the Al-Jalaa building because we thought it would be safer because it can accommodate the offices of international media organizations.

He said: Now both are destroyed.

Jala bombing, Widely condemned Only a few hours after the Israeli air strikes on the Shati refugee camp, they tried to suppress journalists reporting on the Israeli offensive Killed 10 members of the same family -Eight children, two women-Eid al-Fitr, the religious holiday that celebrates the end of Ramadan (Ramadan)

Since Israel launched an air strike on the Palestinian coastal territories on Monday, at least 145 Palestinians, including 39 children, have been killed in the Gaza Strip. About 950 people were injured.

The violence occurred after Israel planned to deport Palestinian families from occupied East Jerusalem and beyond. Attack on Palestinian believers The protests in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound sparked widespread protests in Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank and within Israel. Hamas said that in response to Israels crackdown, Hamas began firing rockets at Israel. At least 9 people were killed in Israel.

As night fell in Gaza, families and journalists began to return to Jala, hoping to salvage some of the property buried in the rubble.

A man came back to find some of his daughters paintings, because these paintings have a lot of memories, said al-Kahlout, who continued to report on the streets of the bombed enclave. We moved outside and are now applying the emergency plan for reporting. We are working hard to ensure safety. There is no safe place in Gaza, but we are doing our best.

Latest news: Israeli air strikes flatten our media construction @My_Memes And the Associated Press office.. We are observing its development. Beyond shock! ! !Nothing to say pic.twitter.com/PnIQXCap6Z -Sara Khairat | Sara Khairat (@sarakhair) May 15 2021

At the same time, Al-Sayed went to al-Shifa Hospital, which is considered a safe space for broadcasting. She said of the flattening of al-Jalaas architecture: This is devastating.

I worked in that place and I was so sad that it was tragic to see it fell to the ground. We have unforgettable memories in every part of our work and life, she added.

What about the families who have lost their homes and everything they saved to save these apartments? In Gaza, renting an apartment is not an easy task, and now it only takes a few minutes. [they] Lose everything.

Words cannot describe the extent of destruction, and cannot describe the tragedy that people are experiencing.

A Palestinian policeman stands in the rubble of the Al-Jalaa building [Mohammed Salem/Reuters]

With other reports @LinahAlsaafin.
Back in 2015, when I was a columnist for Above the Law, I wrote an article entitled Marijuana ads: Is the pot obscene?. That article focused on general speech issues related to cannabis advertising. Over the years, we have also written about how various social media platforms have broadly banned almost any speech with the word marijuana. Sometimes, Even CBD.Fast forward to 2021 and we still havent seen any serious actions taken by the Federal Reserve against advertisers of cannabis and/or cannabis companies, and we may never do it at this point (although the USPS has two or three things to say Marijuana advertisements in the mail Even if possible Cant do anything About them). In addition to the headaches of social media, the biggest business presentation problem faced by cannabis companies has always been the need to comply with the wide variety of labeling, marketing, advertising, and promotion laws and regulations enacted under the states legalization system. However, the emergence of cannabis NFTs is an interesting presentation and new issues related to advertising.

NFT stands for non-fungible token.One NFT It is a unit of data stored in a digital ledger called a classification chain, which proves that digital assets are unique and therefore not interchangeable. NFT can be used to represent items such as photos, videos, audio, and other types of digital files. After translation, NFT is a unique token on the blockchain that can establish ownership of digital collectibles (such as digital art). There is no doubt that NFT is part of an emerging sub-industry that includes blockchain technology. Especially this year, There has been a substantial increase in the buying and selling of NFTs (for example, Jack Dorsey) First tweet The transaction price of NFT exceeds 2.9 million U.S. dollars). Certain businesses and venture capital firms in the legal cannabis industry quickly adopted NFTs to help promote various products, businesses, industry influencers, cannabis culture, and even Strain art.

From the perspective of marijuana business compliance, the question for NFTs is whether they are equal to marketing, advertising or promotional materials, which must comply with the laws and regulations of various states for legalization.One thing to note is Lava coins, This is  a bag of marijuana that only exists online and is linked to blockchain technology to achieve authenticity. Peakz is behind the lava coin in Forbes magazine. Obviously, according to Forbes, when you buy lava coins, [y]You cant smoke, but as a bonus, if you buy the first digital marijuana strain and if you live in Oregon or California, you can also get some real physical marijuana. For me, as a compliance lawyer in the California cannabis field, concepts like Lava Coin may encounter when complying with the California Medicinal and Adult Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MAUCRSA) and its strict requirements. Some interesting questions. Marketing, advertising and promotion regulations start from the NFT concept itself.

In California, Marijuana Advertising include:

. . . Any written or oral statements, illustrations or descriptions designed to induce the sale of cannabis or cannabis products, including any written, printed, graphic or other materials, billboards, signs or other outdoor displays, bus cards, other periodicals, publications , Radio or television broadcasting or any other media.

It seems that even if the NFT is only used as art, that is, it is described as a description designed to induce the sale of cannabis or cannabis products, it will be interpreted as an advertisement under MAUCRSA, which means that it must comply with the relevant Many other laws regarding its dissemination, consumer age and content (including not being attractive to minors in any way, and the license number of the related cannabis business must be displayed in the advertisement). In addition, if the purchase of NFTs results in abandonment of adult use of cannabis (not allowed in licensed dispensaries or unlicensed businesses in California) or licensed cannabis businesses cannabis discount sales, it may be additional potential evidence. NFT is indeed advertising, marketing or promotional material.

When NFT and marijuana are exploring interesting marriages, NFT producers need to be aware that their creation can be regarded as marijuana advertisements, but they must comply with comprehensive laws and regulations, especially when creators cooperate with marijuana businesses to ultimately promote through NFT In the case of consumer sales. buy. And dont forget that if the cannabis license holder is involved in any intellectual property license or hired work service agreement, depending on control and compensation issues, it may actually be necessary to disclose the creator of the NFT to the national regulator.

At the same time, cannabis NFTs can absolutely only be collectible assets that have nothing to do with advertising or promoting cannabis businesses or brands-the question is whether the NFT is primarily designed to induce or promote commercial cannabis sales. Ultimately, the regulator decides where the appropriate enforcement route is, but the creator of the NFT and the cannabis company or brand with which it works should ensure that they understand where they are before entering the joint venture.
VANCOUVER-Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart apologized and condemned systemic racism, which was described by the citys police department as a case of misidentification.

Vancouver police said that after receiving multiple 911 calls from a man attacking a stranger in the area, police were dispatched to the seawall near English Bay at around 9:15 am on Friday.

The police said in a press statement: It was reported that the suspect appeared to be walking normally, but then suddenly started kicking, punching and spitting at people.

The police said that the police quickly found a person they believed was similar to the suspects description and detained him briefly for investigation. The detention included handcuffing the man, who was described by the police as compliant and claimed to have retired.

Although the police did not specify the person they were detained in the statement, Stewarts statement identified him as Selwyn Romilly, The first black person to be appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

The police said they removed the handcuffs from the man quickly and only allowed him to move on when it was clear that he was not a suspect and did nothing wrong.

The police said they found the real suspect within a few minutes and arrested him. He added that a supervisor from the Vancouver Police Department had contacted the retired judge to apologize and explain the procedure for filing a complaint, if the man was willing to do so.

Vancouver CTV News has contacted Romilly to obtain more information about his experience, but has not received any response.

Stewart said in the statement: I am shocked by the incorrect handcuffs and detention of retired Justice Selwyn Romilly, and have apologized to him. This kind of incident is unacceptable and cannot continue. occur.

The mayors statement went on to say that no one should be unlawfully detained by the police, and emphasized that such incidents can be very harmful, especially for indigenous people and blacks and other people of color, who have faced multiple obstacles and discrimination. 

Stewart said: As a person who continues to benefit from colonialism, I recognize my privileges and how they affect my life and navigation in the government and daily life system. I have contacted the chief (Adam) of the (VPD) ) Palmer and members of the Vancouver Police Department to inform them of my views and actions.

Stewart said the board (with him as chairman) will review the incident at the next available opportunity.

Stewart concluded: I want to say it again. All our institutions are based on colonialism and are therefore systematically racist. This includes the City of Vancouver and the Vancouver Police Department. We must continue to recognize this reality. And try our best to combat racism, especially in our government agencies.
The report says that Beijings Uyghur labor plan is equivalent to forced population transfer and enslavement.

A new report warns that China uses Uyghur forced labor in the global solar panel manufacturing supply chain.

According to a study by Sheffield Hallam University in the United Kingdom, Chinas labor transfer in the Northwest region, and human rights groups say that the Muslim minority Uighurs have suffered this transfer. Persecution and detentionDeployed in an unprecedented coercive environment threatened by continuous re-education and internship threats.

The report added that 45% of the worlds polysilicon manufacturers (the main material used in 95% of solar cell modules) are located in newly constructed Uyghur areas.

The survey determined that many of Chinas major raw material manufacturers, solar-grade polysilicon, ingots and wafer manufacturers indispensable for wafer manufacturing are operating organizations in the region, and they use the indigenous people in the region to transfer forced labor. Many of these manufacturers have good relations with the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.

The report said: The use of forced labor by these manufacturers has had a significant impact on the downstream manufacturers of solar cell modules and the governments, developers and consumers who purchase them.

Exposure Risk

As countries become more committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the demand for solar panels is also growing.

The researchers identified 90 Chinese and international companies whose supply chains have some connection with forced labor.

They called on solar panel manufacturers to evaluate their supply chains and source materials from elsewhere, saying that the examples outlined in the report are designed to provide stakeholders with evidence to judge the risk of forced labor in the solar supply chain. . .

International pressure on Beijing to allow access to Xinjiang is increasing, and Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States held a virtual United Nations conference on Thursday condemn Documented abuse of rights. China has repeatedly denied this accusation.

Amnesty International Secretary-General Agnes Karamad told the incident that about 1 million Uighurs and mainly Muslim minorities in the area were arbitrarily detained.

The United States says that President Biden will urge allies Increase stress In June, he conducted an investigation into Beijing on the so-called forced labor issue at his first leadership meeting.
Antonio Guterres called for an end to the violation of the arms embargo and the evacuation of all foreign fighters.

The head of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, said that foreign fighters and mercenaries violated a ceasefire agreement last year and remained in Libya, demanding that they withdraw and end violations of the UN arms embargo.

Guterres stated in a report to the UN Security Council last Friday that the smooth transfer of power to the new interim government of national unity (the new government) in March will bring about the unification of the country and its institutions and a lasting peace. There is a new hope. . However, he said that continued progress must be made on the political, economic, and security tracks before the election can take place in the second half of this year.

Since the NATO-backed uprising in 2011 toppled long-term leader Moammar Gaddafi (Moammar Gaddafi), Libya has been in a state of chaos, and finally made this oil-rich country in the capital Tripoli a UN-approved government and Split between rival authorities in the eastern part of the country. Both sides have the support of armed groups and foreign governments.

In April 2019, with the support of mercenaries from Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Russia, the rebel military commander Halifa Haftar and the eastern base forces launched an offensive in an attempt to capture Tripoli. The 14-month campaign collapsed after Turkey strengthened its military support for the UN-recognized government through its troops and Syrian mercenaries.

The October 2020 ceasefire agreement included an agreement requiring all foreign fighters and mercenaries to leave Libya within 90 days, leading to a new National Unity Transitional Government agreement, and elections scheduled for December 24.

The United Nations estimates that by December 2020, there will be at least 20,000 foreign fighters and mercenaries in Libya, including Syrians, Russians, Sudanese and Chadians. However, at an informal council meeting in late April, the spokesperson said that there were more than 20,000 people, including 13,000 Syrians and 11,000 Sudanese.

No reduction of foreign troops

Guterres said in the new report that while the ceasefire continues, the UN Political Mission in Libya has received reports of fortifications and defensive positions on the key route between the strategic city of Sirte in central Libya. Key oil fields and export terminals and Jufra.

The Secretary-General said: Despite the commitments made by the parties, the navigation air cargo activities are reported to continue, flying to various air bases in the western and eastern regions of Libya. The report shows that foreign fighters or their activities in central Libya have not cut back.

Guterres said that GNU must prioritize reforms in the security sector, including filling senior civilian and military positions, and developing a road map to unify the Libyan army and address the proliferation of armed groups.

He said: It is vital to put one of the worlds largest uncontrolled weapons and ammunition under national control. I once again call on Member States and Libyan state actors to stop violating the arms embargo. And facilitate the withdrawal of foreign fighters and mercenaries from the country.

Last month, the Security Council passed a resolution urging all foreign troops and mercenaries to leave Libya and authorizing a small UN team to monitor the ceasefire agreement. In a letter to the Security Council on April 7, Guterres proposed to deploy up to 60 monitors initially for a phased deployment as part of the United Nations mission in the country.
In a bizarre military parade, elementary school students in Russia were filmed carrying imitation firearms and shouting songs about being relentless to the enemy.

Vladimir Putin (Vladimir Putin) top security official called and asked them-about 7-year-old children to participate in the show. Strengthen military training for the countrys youth.

5 Saw the pupil holding the imitation machine gun Credit: social media

5 They chanted war songs about being relentless to the enemy Credit: social media

They sang proudly as they walked through the playground and the streets of Elektrostal, an industrial city 36 miles east of Moscow.

They shouted: We are Russians, and God is with us The Russians are here.

The song also includes the following sentences: The enemy has no forgiveness and The last breath of the motherland.

The parade of boys and girls is here Tensions between Russia and the West Close to the level of the Cold War.

The head of the Kremlin Security Committee, Spymaster Nikolai Patrushev (Spymaster Nikolai Patrushev) called for an increase in the Russian youth army- There are already 803,000.

Critics allege that Yunarmia is similar to Hitlers youth in Nazi Germany and that Russias militarization is on the rise.

Patrushev, who once led the frightening FSB security department, called for the establishment and development of training centers in the region to cultivate the military and patriotism of young people.

5 Putins top security official hopes to strengthen military training for children Credit: social media

5 In the parade in the industrial city Elektrostal, a girl pays tribute to people Image source: East2West News

5 Organizers said that some young children did not carry toy guns Credit: social media

He said this will help combat extremism and pro-Western liberal values.

However, psychologist Elena Kuznetsova criticized Elektrostals march-not specifically connected with Yunarmia-and praised the war and death.

She said that children should not wear military uniforms, and the organizers portrayed the war as a kind of holiday.

She told the Takie Dela news media: For most of our ancestors during the war, these clothes were posthumous clothes.

Military uniforms are the clothes of death. I passed away unfortunately and met myself prematurely.

Wearing these uniform boots, wherever you go, you will leave traces of grief. Children need to buy clothes about life, not clothes about death.

However, the organizers of the event insisted that this is not a parade, but an inspection of the parade and singing conducted by the school.

Future VAC Pfizer and Moderna stabbing may prevent future viruses from spreading to us from animals JABS can be scribbled Huge queue after false statement everyone in Bolton invited to participate in the Covid jab today Steam shock After children between 5 and 6 years old are found to be smoking, the elementary school sends the students home Horror in heaven Masked men ambush tourists on the beach of Death Island killed by the British exclusive Feeling nervous Internal Indian variant ghost town ruled by complete fear of blockade virus The daily number of Covid deaths dropped to 7, but with the spread of the Indian variant, the cases increased slightly

Elena Karpacheva, the deputy principal of the school, said that 9-year-olds are holding toy guns, while other 7 to 16-year-olds just parade and sing.

The school is in contact with the Russian Federal Penitentiary Administration (FSIN) that participated in the event.

In 2019, we told one of Putins military leaders how to complain about Russia Children are scared of machine guns Dont even know how to throw grenades correctly.
The Vancouver police apologized because the officers mistakenly detained an 81-year-old retired black judge and detained his handcuffs while walking on the seawall in the morning.

Selwyn Romilly said he was walking around Stanley Park on Friday when two police cars stopped nearby and about five officers approached him. He said that all five looked white and were much taller than his five feet and eight inches.

He told CBC News: They said they complained that someone fits my description. Before I had nothing to say, they told me to put my hands behind my back, and they shackle me in handcuffs.

I dont have a gun, I have nothing on my hands or people. Here, you-9:45 in the morning, near the Third Beach, there are many people there,-you have a black man locked and handcuffed And people passing by. I feel most embarrassed.

He said he told the officers that he was a retired judge and they released him from the handcuffs about a minute later.

Romilly was born in Trinidad and was the first black judge appointed to the Supreme Court of British Columbia. He is also the fourth black student at the University of British Columbia Law School. According to the university .

Speaking of his arrest, he said: You would think that we have passed this stage in Canada.

Sergeant, spokesperson for the Vancouver Police Department. Steve Addison said in an email that the officer was responding to multiple 911 calls about a man attacking a stranger on a seawall near English Bay.

It is said that the suspect walked normally, but then he suddenly started kicking, punching and spitting at people.

Addison wrote: Officials observed a person similar to the suspects description and briefly detained him for investigation. Given the violent nature of the incident, the person was handcuffed.

However, Addison confirmed that the description of the suspect was a dark-skinned man between 40 and 50 years old, wearing a red shirt.

He described Romilly as submissive and said that when he was clearly not a suspect, the handcuffs were quickly removed.

Addison said the police placed the correct suspect in the same area during that time and sent the man to jail. The patrol captain then called Romilly to apologize and explain.

Romiley said that two senior officials have apologized to them and he does not intend to lodge a complaint.

But he still hopes that the police station will make some changes.

Romiley said: They must be very vigilant when training young white police officers to deal with ethnic minorities.

I dont want to say that this is because I was attacked when I was walking in Black, but you are a little surprised why you put these handcuffs on me so early.
LAKE CHARLES - Among President Biden's plans stands a $2T infrastructure package that will fix over sixteen hundred miles of our poor conditioned roads and low posted bridges.

"I believe you need the help, we're gonna try and make sure that you get it." said President Biden

President Joe biden visited Louisiana today to promote his $115B American jobs plan that will help rebuild roads and bridges.

Secretary of The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Shawn Wilson says issues like infrastructure is why Louisiana struggles financially.

"Trucks and commerce that were designed to move products can't move them over the bridges anymore because of the weight limitations and restrictions. From an economic perspective as well as a safety perspective we have to do more to invest." said Wilson

A part of that investment is rebuilding things like the Calcasieu River Bridge - it's infrastructure, is older than the entire interstate system itself.

"We have to build for what is needed now and I promise you we're going to do that." said President Biden

To fix these issues former Secretary of The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Kam Movassaghi says we need more money.

"My plan is a one time $115B investment so we can modernize bridges and roads and highways that need it most." said President Biden

"The source of funds in Louisiana for infrastructure for highways and roads and bridges is 16 cents gasoline tax that we pay and that gas tax hasn't changed in over 20 years." said Movassaghi

Of that 16 cents only seven gets used for supplies - supplies that need to go to new infrastructures and not maintaining old ones.

"So infrastructure is going to get more expensive the longer we take to invest in it and everything around us rightly so has increased in value and in cost." said Wilson

The $2T package will also help with water systems, broad band and airports.

President Biden says our nation as a whole has neglected fixing infrastructure issues over the last 50 years.

While President Biden is here he plans to look at ways to help hurricane recovery efforts and our covid-19 crisis.
Han Ji Eun is reportedly in talks to join a new drama called "Bad and Crazy." If she is ultimately confirmed as a cast, she is reportedly going to play a police officer.

Apart from that, she'll get to act opposite Lee Dong Wook.

Han Ji Eun Might Work with Lee Dong Wook

Back in April, it was announced that Lee Dong Wook is in discussion with OCN for this new thriller series. According to the actor's agency, he received a top billing offer from the company.

While there is still no confirmation up to now, the actor's agency has reported that Lee Dong Wook is positively looking at the offer and considering its merits.

Since the proposed project was already sid to be in its final negotiation, a full and confirmed cast list might be released soon.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Lee Dong Wook to Possibly Lead the New OCN Drama 'Bad and Crazy'

"Bad and Crazy" is said to be a mystery-suspense drama that will revolve around a detective's mission to decipher various unresolved crimes. The detective, however, has a secret on his own. He possesses multiple personalities so it will be interesting to see how that will pan out for him as he gets to the bottom of many disturbing cases.

Lee Dong Wook just might be the most perfect actor for his role. He has been part of several thrillers in the past, such as "Hell is Other People," and "Tale of the Nine-Tailed."

According to earlier reports, the drama will shoot immediately after the casting process is complete.

This is not to mention that the "Bad and Crazy" has been reported to be created by the top-rating thriller series "The Uncanny Counter" writer and producer.

Han Hi Eun is still considering joining the show, so it can be surmised that casting is not yet over. Still, if shooting commences soon, the drama will drop even before the year is over.

Han Ji Eun Moving on from Publicized Breakup?

The last time Han Ji Eun was in the news was for a separation.

Back in September 2020, reports of her breaking up with her then-boyfriend Hanhae made the rounds online. The two were officially just together for a year. They only announced their relationship back in August 2019, although there were reports of them starting to see each other already in December 2018.

Interestingly, a report claimed that because Hanhae was serving his mandatory military service at the time. He did not want the relationship publicized just yet.

Moreover, before their relationship was made official, an insider claimed that when Hanhae was contacted to find out if he's ready to announce the real score of their relationship, Hanhae said that he and the actress were already on the verge of a breakup.

Later on, Hanhae would reportedly claim otherwise. This is why they were able to be with each other for a little over a year.

Her agency sought to protect her privacy at all costs, even if the breakup made the news. The agency said it is true that the actress and her boyfriend broke up, but it would not reveal what the reason is, that this is reserved for the actress to tell.

Hanhae's agency also refused to put a word in, claiming that it is difficult to speak up because this is a very private matter.

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at Kdramastars.

Kdramastars owns this article.

Written by Annie Dee
Xi Focus: China's water diversion project promotes green development

Xinhua) 11:22, May 15, 2021

ZHENGZHOU, May 14 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping on Friday convened a symposium on advancing the high-quality follow-up development of China's mega water diversion project.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, stressed the need to analyze the new situation and tasks facing the South-to-North Water Diversion Project and push for the scientific planning and construction of the project to promote the effective and economical use of water resources.

On Thursday, he inspected the project in the city of Nanyang in central China's Henan Province.

When the water started to gush north through the middle route in December 2014, Xi described the mega water project as an important strategic infrastructure to optimize water resources, boost sustainable economic and social development and improve people's livelihoods.

Six years on, the middle route of the water diversion project, which takes water from Danjiangkou in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, to feed the arid north including Beijing, Tianjin, and the provinces of Henan and Hebei, has proved to be a reliable "lifeline" for water supplies in the recipient regions.

As of March, the mega water project had transferred over 40.8 billion cubic meters of water to the northern areas. More than 130 million people had directly benefited from the project since the first phase of its eastern and middle routes began supplying water.

More than 40 big and medium-sized cities received water from the project, which has also helped ecological restoration of rivers and lakes along its eastern and middle routes.

GREENER NORTH

Major water plants in Beijing have used the supply from the water diversion project in addition to that from Miyun Reservoir in the northeast of the city to provide tap water.

Zhang Ying, a resident in Daxing District, southern Beijing, said local people had to buy purified water for drinking in the past, because of excessive levels of scale-formation in tap water.

"Now the tap water has become clearer and the flow has become bigger," she said.

According to the Beijing Water Authority, the supply of the water diversion project has replenished rivers and lakes.

"The ecological environment around the Miyun Reservoir has been greatly improved, and the species of aquatic animals and plants have increased substantially," said Liu Dagen, director of the reservoir management office.

The water diversion project has also promoted the ecological protection and green development in the source area and along the routes.

In Xichuan County, 380 polluting companies have been shut down to ensure the safety of the water source for the diversion project. The county has invested more than 600 million yuan (about 93 million U.S. dollars) in the treatment of industrial waste. Catering, fishing and animal husbandry business have been banned in reservoir and river areas.

There are 13 automatic water quality monitoring stations along the middle route. Underwater robots are widely used for monitoring aquatic organism and sediment levels, and checking water gates.

Trees are planted within 100 meters on both sides of the diversion canal in Henan, meandering about 640 km. The afforestation along the canal has formed an ecological zone for water conservation. A section of the canal-side green belt in Jiaozuo City, Henan, has recently been opened as a public eco-park.

Meanwhile, the country has been increasing the awareness of water conservation among citizens.

Zhao Tan, director of the water-saving office of the Beijing Water Authority, said despite the water replenished by the water diversion project, the capital still faces severe water shortage, with the annual per capita water resources at about 150 cubic meters.

He said the city has basically realized the collection and treatment of sewage in urban areas. Recycled water has become an indispensable water source in the capital city.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Bianji)
Rising star and Korea's newest heartthrob, Hwang In Yeop teased fans with his latest eyewear brand pictorial.

Famous brand Rieti Revealed that Hwang In Yeop is their New Brand Ambassador!

On May 14, European eyewear brand Rieti had released new sets of photos showing actor Hwang In Yeop as their new muse. The collection has a theme of "Underwater Life," which expresses the interesting imagination of living in the water in a witty and stylish way.

Hwang In Yeop is an artist with lots of skills and an actor with stable acting performances. Plus, he is also a model that conquered various brands and fashion magazines. He successfully ruled previous pictorials with his perfect characterization in different concepts and costumes he wore for every brand.

The 30-year-old actor is also praised for being photogenic. In the newly dropped images, the "18 Again" star displayed his masculine beauty by matching sunglasses with classic white shirts.

Wearing the square-shaped and large-shaped sunglasses was one of the iconic images for Hwang In Yeop because it further emphasized his small yet charismatic face. There is no doubt that he has the power to steal the spotlight with his limitless transformation.

An official representative of Rieti shared that they are happy to be working with Hwang In Yeop and even praised him for having a clear understanding of the concept, which enabled them to produce a stylish and beautiful pictorial. The representative also admired Hwang In Yeop's professionalism at work.

Moon Ga Young Sent Hwang In Yeop a Food Truck in Support of His New Forthcoming Drama

Meanwhile, Aside from doing lots of fashion brand pictorials, Hwang In Yeop is finally preparing for his drama comeback this 2021. In fact, he already started filming the Netflix original series "The Sound of Magic."

He will be working with actor Ji Chang Wook and actress Choi Sung Eun.

It will be his second project for this year following the success of the romantic-comedy series "True Beauty." And just a few days ago, his co-star Moon Ga Young sent him a food truck on the set of his upcoming drama.

actress moon gayoung sent #HwangInYeop a food truck to the filming set of #TheSoundofMagic 



 https://t.co/TRcl4BIWxy pic.twitter.com/PmlQKVpDOp  inyeop archive (@forinyeop) May 8, 2021

You Might Also Like: Moon Ga Young Turns Emotional Upon Reading Hwang In Yeop and ASTRO Cha Eunwoo's Letter

Fans were very happy to see the cute and sweet friendship of Hwang In Yeop and Moon Ga Young. They were also rooting for both actors to have more successful projects in the future.

What can you say about Hwang In Yeop and Moon Ga Young's adorable friendship? Don't forget to share your thoughts with us in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at Kdramastars.

Kdramastars owns this article.

Written by Shai Collins
The ransomware extortion website used by the group responsible for the cyberattack on Colonial Pipeline has gone offline, according to cybersecurity experts and a screenshot viewed by CNN.

The site previously housed announcements from the criminal ransomware group, identified as DarkSide, as well as files of stolen data from other ransomware incidents, screenshots showed. It now shows a blank page with "Not Found" up top.

The FBI confirmed earlier this week that DarkSide ransomware was responsible for the compromise of Colonial Pipeline networks, setting off a shutdown of pipeline operations that led to fuel shortages and massive lines at gas stations along the southern east coast.

The group's site went offline sometime Thursday and was still unavailable as of Friday, leading to speculation that it could have been taken down by law enforcement or that DarkSide itself took it down.

In an announcement posted late Thursday night that was reviewed by the cybersecurity firms Intel 471 and Recorded Future and translated, the group wrote: "A couple of hours ago, we lost access to the public part of our infrastructure," including its blog and payment server.

The DarkSide statement also said "the hosting support service doesn't provide any information except 'at the request of law enforcement authorities.' In addition, a couple of hours after the seizure, funds from the payment server (belonging to us and our clients) were withdrawn to an unknown account," according to Intel 471.

Mandiant Threat Intelligence, the cybersecurity firm that has been working with Colonial Pipeline to get its operations back up and running, said the statement could be an "exit scam" by DarkSide.

"The post cited law enforcement pressure and pressure from the United States for this decision," said Kimberly Goody, Mandiant's senior manager for financial crime analysis. "We have not independently validated these claims and there is some speculation by other actors that this could be an exit scam."

Two cybersecurity experts also cautioned that if the site was seized by US authorities, it would likely have a notice of seizure on the site with law enforcement logos.

But Dave Kennedy, a former National Security Agency hacker who now serves as president and CEO of the information security firm TrustedSec, said that depends on where the group's servers resided.

"If it was in a country we have a relationship with, the US government would work in conjunction with the other foreign government to get the servers taken offline," he said. "If the countries where the servers reside are in more of a hostile country, for example Russia, this is where you would see offensive cyber operations occur where hacking the systems and shutting them down would be an available option."

Kennedy said he believes the site being offline so suddenly bears the hallmarks of a deliberate takedown. "With the sharp focus on Ransomware groups now by the Biden administration and law enforcement, ransomware groups are shaking in their boots," he said. He noted, however, that DarkSide is still not completely shut down because the individuals behind it are still at large.

President Joe Biden said Thursday that the US was going to pursue measures to disrupt the ability of the criminals behind the attack to operate.

"We're also going to pursue a measure to disrupt their ability to operate. And our Justice Department has launched a new task force dedicated to prosecuting ransomware hackers to the full extent of the law," he said.

Colonial Pipeline paid ransom to DarkSide, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN on Thursday. The sources did not say how much the company paid, but DarkSide had demanded nearly $5 million, two other sources familiar with the incident said.

DarkSide is "ransomware-as-a-service" operation, meaning that the developers of the ransomware receive a share of the proceeds from other cybercriminal actors, known as "affiliates," who deploy it.

Officials and cybersecurity experts believe DarkSide operates out of Russia or Eastern Europe, based on the way it targets victims.

On Thursday, Biden said he does not believe the Russian government was behind a ransomware attack, but he said Moscow still bears a responsibility to stop such attacks when they originate within its borders.

"We do not believe -- emphasize we do not believe -- the Russian government was involved in this attack," Biden said. "But we do have strong reason to believe that the criminals who did the attack are living in Russia. That's where it came from."

He said the US has been in direct communications with Moscow about the imperative for responsible countries to take decisive action against these ransomware networks.

Darkside is "relatively new" in terms of ransomware groups, according to Allan Liska, senior security architect, Recorded Future, who said the group has been around since August of 2020, but "they're fairly aggressive" and have "grown very quickly."

"You pay a fee to join their service. And then the main threat actor gets a cut of every successful ransomware payment that you make," Liska said.

The group previously posted a notice on the dark web that their motivation was "only to make money" and claiming it did not carry out the attack on behalf of a foreign government, according to a cyber counterintelligence firm.
An indicted close confidant of Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz has struck a deal with federal prosecutors to greatly reduce his criminal case and plans to help investigators in their sprawling investigation that includes a sex trafficking probe.

Joel Greenberg, a former Seminole County, Florida, tax commissioner, had faced decades in prison on 33 federal counts that ranged from identity theft to sex trafficking of a minor, as well as fraud and bribery allegations.

He plans to now plead guilty to six federal charges, after striking a deal with prosecutors, including a count of sex trafficking of a child, according to a new court filing.

READ: Plea agreement from former Gaetz associate Joel Greenberg

The Greenberg plea documents released Friday paint the picture of a man gone wild -- using popular cellphone apps to make contacts, paying thousands of dollars for sex with younger women, having drug-laced, multi-person rendezvous at hotels like an Embassy Suites, and repeatedly taking advantage of his public office's power and financial coffers.

The Orlando-based federal court revealed on Thursday that Greenberg was planning to plead guilty next week, but details weren't initially available.

Federal investigators are still examining whether Gaetz broke federal sex trafficking, prostitution and public corruption laws and whether he had sex with a minor. Gaetz has not been charged and denies any wrongdoing. The congressman isn't mentioned in the 86 pages of plea deal documents released on Friday.

Gaetz spokesman Harlan Hill questioned Greenberg's credibility while insisting on his client's innocence in a statement. "Congressman Gaetz doesn't seem to be named nor referenced in Mr. Greenberg's plea," Hill said. "Congressman Gaetz has never had sex with a minor and has never paid for sex. Mr. Greenberg has now pleaded guilty to falsely accusing someone else of sex with a minor. That person was innocent. So is Congressman Gaetz."

In the plea agreement, Greenberg admitted to falsely accusing a Florida teacher of having sex with a student in 2019. Greenberg allegedly targeted the teacher after he filed paperwork to oppose Greenberg for county tax collector. Greenberg admits to sending anonymous letters to school officials, purported to be from a "concerned student" alleging an inappropriate relationship between a student and the teacher. Greenberg also amplified these false claims on social media sites, where he alleged the teacher had raped a student.

Gaetz's pattern of false statements and accusations could be used to undermine his credibility as a witness in any case where he is called to testify.

The investigation

The investigation into Greenberg resulted in an indictment last June on allegations of elaborate schemes against a political opponent and making fake IDs.

The bulk of the charges revolved around accusations Greenberg stalked and harassed a political opponent who worked at a school, by trying to falsely frame the person as a white supremacist and child abuser, on a fake Twitter account he allegedly set up using the person's name and photograph and in nine letters he mailed to the school where he posed as an anonymous student.

Previously, CNN reported that Greenberg had been providing information to investigators about how he and Gaetz had encounters with women who were given cash or gifts in exchange for sex.

And prosecutors hint at others whom Greenberg was in contact with.

As part of his plea deal, Greenberg plans to admit in court that he introduced a child "to other adult men, who engaged in commercial sex acts with the Minor in the Middle District of Florida," according to the document filed Friday.

After he was arrested, Greenberg also contacted the victim, "directly and through one of the Minor's friends" to encourage the person to lie, the document said.

Prosecutors describe the sex trafficking scheme in the plea documents as a series of "sugar daddy"-style relationships where Greenberg frequently tried to hide some of his 150 or more payments to women.

He paid women more than $70,000 for sex over two years through December 2018, the document detailing his admissions says.

Greenberg sought out women on a website for "sugar daddies," prosecutors said, then paid them through his personal Venmo account, bank account and credit card. He also used an American Express card from his tax collector's office.

When he would send the payments of a few hundred dollars over the mobile app Venmo, Greenberg would mark them as school-related, "food" or "ice cream" expenses.

A girl who at the time was younger than 18 had met Greenberg over the website, prosecutors said, and told him she was an adult. They then communicated over Snapchat, another messaging app, until they met on a boat.

On the boat, they didn't have sex, but Greenberg still paid the girl $400, prosecutors say. Later, Greenberg paid more than $400 for sex with the girl at a hotel in central Florida, he admits in the plea deal.

The hotel meetings then became more frequent -- as did Greenberg's communications with the victim in 2017. And Greenberg began to offer paying her and others to take the drug Ecstasy, Greenberg admitted in his plea documents.

"Greenberg and the Minor met at hotels in the Middle District of Florida, often with others, at which Greenberg and the Minor engaged in commercial sex acts," at least seven times, his plea admissions document says.

Greenberg also is admitting as part of his plea deal to a cryptocurrency scam, where he used tax collector funds to buy crypto, to scamming the federal coronavirus aid program, and to harassing a teacher who was his political opponent.

He also admits that he leveraged his access to a state driver's license system to make fake IDs. The women he paid for sex he also offered some of the licenses he stole, prosecutors say.

Court appearance Monday

Greenberg, as part of his deal, agreed to give "substantial assistance" to prosecutors, including by testifying at trials or in federal grand juries if needed and in turning over all documents he might have that could help the federal inquiry.

Greenberg's admitted sex charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, yet prosecutors in the plea deal said that if he helped them significantly, he may be able get a sentence less than the minimum.

He also will have to forfeit at least $650,000 obtained illegally and pay restitution to victims, the plea agreement said.

A judge will consider the plea agreement and will decide whether to accept Greenberg's admissions in court at a hearing Monday in Orlando.

This story has been updated with a statement from Gaetz's office
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Recently, a Harris Poll conducted an online among 2,055 adults ages 18+. The survey was conducted within the United States between March 25 to 29, 2021. The survey focused on individuals who had interacted with the health care system in the last year. The aim of the Connected Healthcare Study was to understand the impact COVID-19 has had on health care and communication with providers and gain insights into experiences and preferences as it relates to telehealth and online health care tools.

A key question the survey asked which specific providers the participants typically see (in-person or via-telehealth) once a year or more often. Eighty-four percent of respondents reported that they saw a provider in the last year, most commonly a primary care physician (PCP) (68%). Other providers seen once a year or more often include:

Womens health provider  33% (among women)

Ophthalmologist  26%

Mental health provider  18%

Orthopedist  9%

Other  14%

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was interesting to see that 18% reported seeing a mental health provider. Data from other surveys found that 44% of Americans had seen a behavioral health provider in the last year, making the response in the current survey somewhat low. The number of individuals who reported seeing an ophthalmologist annually was somewhat surprising and may have reflected the confusion among members of the public as it pertains to the difference between ophthalmologists and doctors of optometry. Not surprisingly, the results also showed that older adults were more likely to see overall doctors more frequently. Women with higher household income were more likely to see OB/GYN, and younger patients were more likely to see a behavioral health provider.

More than one in four U.S. patients (27%) reported that they missed an in-person appointment with a health care provider during the COVID-19 pandemic, and just under a quarter of U.S. patients (23%) had put off receiving follow-up medical care because they felt uncomfortable with seeing their health care provider in-person during the COVID-19 pandemic. This data raises significant concerns that important therapeutic and preventive check-ups were postponed and that we are likely to see conditions that have worsened or gone undiagnosed because of these reported delays. These delays will further extend the negative impact on health and wellbeing that the COVID pandemic has already had.

Survey respondents were asked about the patient engagement capabilities that they would prefer their new health care provider offered, 49% selected online appointment scheduling, 49% selected the ability to check-in or complete health forms/appointment paperwork online before an appointment, 48% named online prescription management and online medical records access. Roughly two in five U.S. patients reported that digital communication capabilities we important; 38% expected online bill pay capabilities, and 37% expected telehealth appointments. About a third said that the ability to change or update health insurance online was important, and as a sign of the times, 31% were expecting the new practice to offer online payment estimates.

More than two-thirds of U.S. patients (69%) had seen a health care provider via telehealth since the COVID-19 pandemic began, with more than two in five (46%) meeting with a PCP and about one in five (19%) meeting with a mental health care provider. Other providers whom respondents have seen via telehealth since the pandemic began included specialties like ophthalmology and womens health and orthopedic care, which were not considered typical telehealth users before the pandemic.

Telehealth is clearly emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic as the new normal  an overwhelming majority (84%) of respondents who received telehealth services since March 2020 reported that they plan to continue using telehealth appointments in the future, with the top reasons being that its more convenient (43%) or to avoid being around people who are ill (39%).

One of the most striking results of the survey was that nearly half of U.S. patients (48%) reported that they have sought (4%) or would be likely to seek care (44%) from a different health care provider if their current provider did not offer telehealth appointments. This is clearly a resounding message of support for telehealth from patients to their physicians. As we look back on the broader impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, it will have catapulted patient awareness and acceptance of telehealth and virtual care to the extent that would have been inconceivable before the pandemic. It has also brought to the forefront many other aspects of patient electronic and virtual engagement with providers across all specialties. For example, scheduling appointments, billing, and payment which were all handled predominantly in person previously, are now being done online. In this respect, this terrible pandemic had a bright virtual silver lining.

Betty Rabinowitz is chief medical officer, NextGen Healthcare. She can be reached on Twitter @DrBettyR.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
Linda Weaver has been appointed Chief Operations Officer (COO) of Africa Communications Media Group (ACG), the leading African-owned, pan-African firm handling communications and reputation management for global clients in the African context. Linda, former Chief Operating Officer for Weber Shandwick Africa, joined the ACG head-office team (based in Johannesburg) earlier this week.

Lindas impressive career spans over 30 years, 12 of which have focused on communications and marketing activities for the private sector, as well as government communication and media management. Her key areas of expertise include global brand communications, internal communication, stakeholder engagement, crisis communication and large-scale event management.

ACGs CEO, Mimi Kalinda, welcomed Linda as part of the companys executive management team, stating: Lindas experience, track record and skills are well known in the industry. We are excited to bring her calibre of leadership to our team as we work to expand our business and service our clients with increased innovation and excellence. With exciting global partnerships on the horizon, Linda will play an essential role in ensuring ACG can meet our clients needs and expectations.

Weaver joins the existing highly experienced ACG team to lead the agencys operational strategic plan, which includes business development, financial management and organisational growth throughout Africa. Her appointment in this key role is aimed at enhancing ACGs service delivery to clients in terms of quality, advisory support, efficiency and operational excellence  to name a few. Linda stated: I am excited to join an agency such as ACG that is poised for growth, and I look forward to imparting my passion for mentorship and working with the ACG team to implement global strategies and brand experiences on behalf of our clients. In her previous role, Linda was involved in launching Weber Shandwicks Kenya office in 2018.

ACGs purpose is to develop and implement complete, culturally-attuned and effective communications strategies for clients working in Africa. The communications firm has an extensive network across Africa and a diverse portfolio of services including media, creative services, digital and content creation. ACG clients include public sector organizations, private sector and leading social impact entities, from Africa and across the globe.

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Brand Africa is to unveil the 2021 Brand Africa 100: Africas Best Brands rankings  the Top 100 brands in Africa, in a series of multi-country blended live and virtual events starting in Uganda at 08h45 and closing with a live event in Ivory Coast at 18h00 on Africa Day, 25 May 2021.

As we build back our economies, new opportunities are emerging. Against the backdrop of the AfCFTA which embodies greater intra-africa trade, self-sufficiency and a commitment to build back better, how will African brands and businesses react and reposition themselves post the pandemic? Which brands have retained, improved or lost their status among African consumers? Which brands are recognized for having been helpful during the Covid-19 pandemic?

Programme

The multi-country blended launch programme, hosted by Brand Africa founder and Chairman, Thebe Ikalafeng on 25 May 2021 will start in Uganda in a virtual announcement of the global, East Africa and Uganda results at 08h45. These announcements will be followed by consecutive events in Lesotho at 09h45 SAST, Botswana at 11h30 SAST, Namibia at 13h15 SAST, Nigeria at 14h00 WAT and close with a live launch in Abidjan, Ivory Coast at 18h00 GMT. All announcements will feature panel discussions and/or keynote addresses with local and pan-African thought leaders and brand builders and profiles of leading brands.

Brand Africa 100: Africas Best Brands

Established 2011, the Brand Africa 100: Africas Best Brands rankings are the most authoritative survey and analysis on brands and underlying businesses in Africa, based on a study by Geopoll across over 25 countries spanning all the five economic regions. Collectively they account for over 75% of the population and over 75% of the GDP of Africa. An analysis of the data by Kantar and Brand Leadership over the past 10 years, has established that on average, only 20% of the brands admired by Africans are made in Africa. What will it be in 2021?

Participants

Leading global and African audience of thought leaders, media and decision makers focused on building, investing in and/or influencing businesses and brands in Africa. Over the years, Brand Africa 100: Africas Best Brands has been hosted by the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Kenya Stock Exchanges and Nigeria Stock Exchanges and featured these exchanges and other leading African businesses CEOs, Chief Marketing Officers, Media, Entrepreneurs, Thought Leaders such global economist Dr. Dambisa Moyo, nation branding pioneer and best-selling author of Brand America, Simon Anholt and best-selling of Africa Rising, Professor Vijay Mahajan.

The results will once again be published as the cover feature of African Business which will be on sale globally our beginning of June 2021.

The Brand Africa 100: Africas Best Brands events are organized by IC Events, Brand Leadership and africapractice, and supported by Africa Media Agency and BCW in communication and the Africa Brand Leadership Academy.

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The second round of the Bank of Ireland Begin Together Arts Fund, in partnership with Business to Arts, has been launched with a call for artists and arts organisations in Kilkenny to apply for funding.

The all-island Begin Together Arts Fund will make a total of 1 million in arts funding available over three years, awarded to projects that are adapting due to the pandemic, or are inspired by and responding to our recovery.

The Arts Fund supports or commissions artists and arts organisations to develop arts projects that engage the individuals, audiences and communities involved. All art forms are eligible to apply to the fund. With this second round, Bank of Ireland and Business to Arts are encouraging more applications from artists who specialise in fine-art film and craft-related disciplines and from community arts organisations, who were under-represented in round one.

Artists or groups of artists applying must work with a partner organisation (e.g. a venue or event, arts organisation, community/voluntary organisation or another funding agency/organisation). Applicants can request funds between 3,000  10,000 and average grants will be 5,000, with maximum grants of 10,000. Arts projects with larger budgets that have secured funds elsewhere are encouraged to apply. With each grant round, the fund aims to provide funding to an arts project in each county on the island of Ireland.

The closing date for the second round of applications is Wednesday, 23 June 2021 at 5pm.

During the first round of the Arts Fund over 300,000 was distributed to 36 projects across the island of Ireland. Projects such as Yes, But Do You Care?, a collaboration between visual artist Marie Brett, choreographer/performer Philip Connaughton, The Alzheimer Society of Ireland, and the Dementia Carers Campaign Network that recently launched online via the Irish Museum of Modern Art; Mobile Music Ensembles Covid Care Concerts which toured hospitals and care homes during 2020 and will continue their concerts in coming months; and Locked up in Lockdown, a theatre collaboration between the Lyric Theatre, Belfast and members of a young offenders centre about their experiences of the pandemic.

Oliver Wall, Chief of Staff and Head of Group Corporate Affairs, Bank of Ireland said, Im delighted that the Bank of Ireland Begin Together Arts Fund continues to support new work and artistic practice during these challenging times for the arts. It represents an important part of our wider support for communities in Kilkenny. The projects supported by the Fund will have an important role to play in helping us all to reflect on the last 12 months and look to brighter days ahead.

Catherine Martin, TD, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media said, "The Covid-19 pandemic has thrown what we value most into sharp relief. It is both poignant and powerful to see the eagerness with which cultural content is being consumed and craved, as we now look hopefully towards better times. Thanks to funding provided by my Department, this second round of the Begin Together Arts Fund, in partnership with Business to Arts, will support artists and arts organisations in realising their projects in innovative and engaging ways. I am delighted to see this Fund continue to benefit the sector.

Andrew Hetherington, CEO, Business to Arts said, The Begin Together Arts Fund is a vital source of private sector funding for the arts. The projects funded in round one demonstrate the adaptability and resilience of Irelands arts sector. Business to Arts is proud work in partnership with Bank of Ireland as we progress the fund, reach more communities and help realise quality arts experiences for people across the island of Ireland.

About the Bank of Ireland Begin Together Arts Fund:

This Fund provides fees to artists or groups of artists to create new work and help maximise the budgets of partner organisations (e.g. arts organisations, community/voluntary organisations, etc.) for their programme of activity.

To find out more about the Bank of Ireland Begin Together Arts Fund, please visit https://personalbanking. bankofireland.com/campaigns/ begin-together/

For information on the application process and to complete the online application form, please visit www.businesstoarts.ie/ artsfund/bank-of-ireland
ROCHESTER, Minn. - Med City leaders are expressing concern about how the end of Minnesota's mask mandate might impact marginalized communities.

Dee Sabol, the Executive Director of Diversity Council-Rochester, tells KIMT vaccination rates are lagging behind in many of our minority and immigrant communities. She worries if officials begin relaxing efforts to get everyone vaccinated, a lack of immunity will allow the virus to continue spreading within those groups.

"We know there are disparities in access to the vaccine, and in some hesitations that might be cultural around vaccination that we've still been working to address. And if we curtail our efforts to or focus on vaccination, we are really likely to deeply impact some of our minority population groups," Sabol said.

Sabol isn't the only leader concerned about focus shifting away from vaccine distribution. Rochester Mayor Kim Norton says even as restrictions are eased, officials and organizations in our area will continue being proactive in getting vaccines to these groups.

"Absolutely, we are concerned about making certain that all of our diverse communities have access to vaccines," Mayor Norton said. "There's been just a real effort by many of our non-profits, Mayo Clinic, and others - Olmsted County Public Health, of taking vaccines to the communities, not just saying 'they're here, come get them.' That will not let up. I think there is a real commitment to getting into those communities, and make sure if folks want a vaccine, they can have one - they're free of charge, and they're where you are."

Going forward, Sabol says it's critical officials be very proactive in engaging with at-risk and minority populations about vaccines.

"We need to be extra intentional right now about communicating with our at-risk populations and our minority populations to really finish strong on the vaccination. To make sure that we are equitably making the vaccine available, that we're going the extra mile in communicating, and in doing intentional and authentic outreach so that we don't have disparate impact of the virus continuing while the rest of the established culture goes on post-mask into a vaccinated world."
ALBERT LEA, Minn. - On Sunday morning, heavy equipment arrived on the scene to assist in the clean-up of the 28-car train derailment. Union Pacific crews worked through the night removing debris and clearing eight rail cars from the track.

The company also worked with private contractors during the afternoon to remove track, neutralize the rail bed, tend two rail cars that were leaking hydrochloric acid, and get the rest of the cars out of there.

"There's no risk to the public," said Freeborn County Emergency Management Director Rich Hall. "Freeborn County will stay on top of it to make sure the problem is mitigated, taken care of, and Goose Lake is restored."

Union Pacific and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency are also working together to mitigate any kinds of hazards at the lake.

According to Hall, there were two people on the train during the derailment. Neither are hurt and the cause of the incident still remains under investigation.

Freeborn County officials say the train derailed in the 1300 block of Eastgate Road. There was an unknown hazardous material leak and local residents were asked to shelter in place.

Rochester HAZMAT was on scene to assist with material load containment. Freeborn County Emergency Management confirms the substance leaking from the rail cars was hydrochloric acid.

Albert Lea Police Department, Albert Lea Fire Department, Freeborn County Sheriff's Office, Minnesota DNR, the state chemical response team from the Rochester Fire Department, and Freeborn County Emergency Management responded to the situation.
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John Stossel is author of No They Cant! Why Government Fails  But Individuals Succeed.
In mid-1993, FDA officials prepared to approve Propulsid, a drug that eased nighttime heartburn. But a sign of danger loomed.

FDA medical officer Andre Dubois noted that 48 of 1,993, or 2.4%, of the patients who took Propulsid in U.S. studies experienced heart rate and rhythm disorders. In addition, eight children age 6 or younger who were given Propulsid had died.

Dubois found that the drugs chemical makeup could disturb cardiac function. But he agreed with drug maker Janssen Pharmaceutica, a Johnson & Johnson Co. subsidiary, that the deaths in the studies were attributable to other causes.

He recommended approval along with disclosure in the label of potential cardiac effects. The risk seems very low, he said.

Dubois, however, worked in a division that focuses on drugs for the gastrointestinal tract.

No one at the FDA consulted with the agencys division of cardiac specialists before approving Propulsid on July 29, 1993, according to physicians familiar with the matter. By not tapping their expertise, FDA officials failed to notice what should have been another warning flag: Electrocardiograms showed that Propulsid prolonged patients QT interval, the time during which the hearts main pumping chambers contract and then relax.

If the QT interval--typically about 4/10 of a second--is extended even slightly, it can trigger a disruption or cessation of the heartbeat. Called an arrhythmia, it can result in sudden death.

FDA officials outside the gastrointestinal division had already warned publicly--on June 11, 1990--that two allergy drugs, Seldane and Hismanal, prolonged the QT interval and therefore posed lethal risk. Both drugs were later withdrawn.

Indeed, the danger had been stressed for several years by Dr. Raymond J. Lipicky, director of the agencys cardiology division. Lipicky, writing in the August 1993 issue of the American Journal of Cardiology, said if a drug that prolonged the QT interval had a benefit that was less than lifesaving . . . any risk of death would likely be considered unacceptable.

In approving Propulsid, the FDA agreed to labeling that advised doctors of rare cases of increased heartbeats. The labeling said Propulsids role in the events was not clear.

In response to written questions, Dr. Janet Woodcock, director of the FDAs drug review center, said the danger associated with non-cardiac drugs that prolonged the QT interval was not well appreciated at the time Propulsid was approved. Consequently, she said, this was not identified as a concern by the gastrointestinal division.

By early 1995, Propulsids danger to the heart was certainly identified as a concern within the gastrointestinal division, agency records show.

On Jan. 25, 1995, a senior FDA medical officer, Dr. Stephen B. Fredd, told Janssen executives that recent adverse-reaction reports showed their drug was prolonging the QT interval, perhaps resulting in deaths.

According to the meeting summary, It was the firms position that the cases cited by Dr. Fredd were not clean cases, thus making it difficult to attribute the effect to [Propulsid]. Fredd responded that unequivocal evidence of Propulsids culpability was unlikely to be captured outside of a controlled clinical study.

But within a month, the FDA and the company agreed to the first of five safety-labeling changes that would help keep the drug on the market over the next five years.

Meanwhile, a significant market for Propulsid emerged in the treatment of children.

Propulsid was never proved effective or safe for infants, yet it became the drug of choice for many pediatricians in treating gastric reflux, a common disorder that is usually outgrown by age 1. Reflux can impede infants digestion and, due to their crying, disrupt their parents sleep. As with almost all drugs, doctors could lawfully prescribe Propulsid for any use, or indication, they chose.

On Aug. 15, 1996, the FDA informed the Johnson & Johnson subsidiary that Propulsid was not approvable for children, interviews and documents obtained by The Times show. The rejection, in keeping with FDA practice, was not made public.

In private correspondence a year later, on Aug. 19, 1997, Dr. Lilia Talarico, FDAs gastrointestinal drugs division director, cited at least three recently reported deaths among child patients. She told a company official the agency was considering altering the label of Propulsid to contraindicate, or to warn against its use in infants.

Asked why the FDA did not immediately inform doctors and patients of the deaths, Woodcock told The Times: Labeling changes [advising of infant deaths] were requested by FDA in August of 1997 but were not agreed to by the company until June of 1998.

That revised label did acknowledge several pediatric deaths but left physicians guessing whether Propulsid was the culprit, saying, Causality has not been established.

Parents of children who died after taking Propulsid said in interviews that they had no inkling of danger.

If I had known that this drug caused cardiac arrhythmias, I would never have given it to him, said Tina Englebrick, the mother of 3-month-old Scott, who died in October 1997. The Kansas health department identified Scotts cause of death as sudden infant death syndrome.

Had the parents of Gage Stevens, the deceased 9-month-old, been informed of a risk of sudden death, they would not have administered the medication to their son, according to a lawsuit they filed in a Pennsylvania court on Sept. 10 against the manufacturer and the doctor and hospital who treated him. Gage, who had reflux, was given Propulsid within a pediatric study that was approved by the FDA and performed by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh.

He died at 6:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving 1999. The county coroner concluded that the death was directly related to Propulsid and one other drug administered to the child. The coroner said Gage most probably had died after suffering a cardiac arrhythmia.

Said Dr. Robert R. Fenichel, who retired this year as deputy director of the FDAs cardiac drugs division: It was scandalous that all of these kids were being treated with [Propulsid] in the absence of proven safety and effectiveness.

On March 23, 2000, the FDA announced that Propulsid would be taken off the market as of July as a normally prescribed drug because of scores of confirmed heart-rhythm deaths. Overall, Propulsid has been cited as a suspect in 302 deaths.

FDA administrators now concede that the agency failed to contain Propulsids fatal risk.

Weve had a seven-year history with this drug where its a very rich opportunity for us to learn, the FDAs Dr. Florence Houn told drug industry officials in a Webcast on June 22. One of the things we have learned is the approved indication for a drug really needs to [justify] the serious and life-threatening side effects.

In comments the same month to an FDA advisory committee, Houn added, The labeling probably was not effective.

Why did the agency wait so long to seek the withdrawal of this drug for nighttime heartburn in adults?

We simply tried a variety of measures, Woodcock said in an interview. We have to sort of walk that line: Where do we inform and where do we intervene by removing a drug from the market? That is a very draconian step. . . . And so, we do try to avoid that.

Six specialists involved with the FDAs decisions concerning Propulsid said the volume of prescriptions for reflux in infants helped keep the drug on the market.

One specialist who sought earlier withdrawal of Propulsid said, If it were just the nocturnal heartburn indication we were considering . . . its a pretty easy decision to pull it off the market. Many alternative therapies existed, including over-the-counter products like Tums and Maalox and Zantac.

Woodcock, who was appointed to her position 10 months after Propulsid was approved, said the FDA did not formally weigh the off-label use while deciding to keep the drug on the market. She acknowledged that it was prescribed widely for children but said she relied on pediatricians to make prudent decisions.

Theyre aware of the QT-prolongation issue, Woodcock said. This isnt as if its some mystery. . . . They evaluated this and came to their own conclusions about the risks.

A spokesman for the Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, Greg Panico, said the company did not promote Propulsid for use by children. However, he acknowledged that it did make two educational grants to the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition. The societys literature advised doctors that Propulsid could be used safely and effectively in children.

Panico declined to say how much money the company provided; according to the societys Web site, the group has been generously supported by the Johnson & Johnson subsidiary. The society held a symposium on the use of Propulsid at an October 1998 conference in Orlando, Fla. A spokeswoman for the pediatric society said the companys grants came with no strings attached.

The removal that Woodcock and her aides negotiated this year allows the continued sale of Propulsid under a limited access plan. This authorizes doctors to administer the drug to patients of all ages who have not benefited from other treatments and who would be closely monitored.

In September, the British Medicines Control Agency rejected continued sales of Propulsid there under such conditions, saying, Restricted-access schemes . . . are not adequate to protect public health. The British have warned since 1998 against any use of Propulsid in infants and cautioned against prescribing it to children up to age 12.

For her part, Woodcock said she remains concerned about the drugs use among children. A recent agency review found that, while no clear evidence implicated Propulsid as the primary cause of eight childrens deaths before the July 1993 approval, neither was there enough data to exclude a role for the drug in several of those cases.

As for adult patients who died, Woodcock said, Its a terrible thing to happen to somebody who is just taking the drug for heartburn.

Panico said there remains a place for Propulsid.

When we made the decision to limit access to the drug, we had pleas from families of children who are taking this drug to make sure that these kids can have continued access to it, he said. So, its a balancing act.
During the presidency of former President Donald Trump, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has established the Victims Of Immigration Crime Engagement (VOICE) office.

President Joe Biden has vowed to close down the VOICE office, a decision he made after his inauguration. However, the Biden administration has yet to close the said office.

According to a Time report, the DHS plans to keep the VOICE office open. However, the department plans to rename it and refocus its work to serve the victims and witnesses better.

DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told the Time that the name of the office was a "terrible misnomer." Mayorkas noted that the VOICE office would function the same as other law-enforcement agencies like the Justice Department's Office of Victim Services and victim assistance units in U.S. Attorney's offices in the country.

However, it's still unclear what the Biden administration has done so far to adjust the work of the VOICE office that collects crime data and personal stories through a toll-free hotline.

READ NEXT: Biden Admin May Have To Restart Border Wall Construction To Fill Holes

The VOICE Office

Critics of the former president saw the VOICE office as a cynical stunt that contributed to his political base. It allegedly perpetuated a false idea that immigrants are more likely to commit crimes than U.S. citizens, according to an Associated Press report.

On the other hand, others saw the VOICE hotline for reporting neighbors, colleagues, or strangers they suspect entered the United States illegally.

Barbara Gonzalez, the former head of the VOICE office and a longtime civil servant with the ICE, earlier told The Associated Press that no matter what others say, they were there to help the victims.

Gonzales noted that the VOICE hotline is not involved in arresting and deporting people, adding that their efforts focus mainly on helping victims regardless of immigration status.

Gonzales also emphasized that callers were not asked about their status when they call the hotline. She added that before the VOICE hotline was created, crime victims have no access to a suspect's immigration status.

According to the DHS site, the VOICE office can help victims and witnesses of crimes; individuals with a legal responsibility to act on behalf of a victim; and people acting at the request of a victim or witness.

However, many critics are voicing their opposition to the establishment of the office. Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, said that she thinks the whole premise of the office is racist.

Salas added that it uses the suffering and legitimate tragedy of the victims for a political goal.

DHS Defending Biden's Immigration Policy

Meanwhile, the DHS had brushed off Republican criticism about the current administration's immigration agenda. The department had also defended the decisions to process unaccompanied migrant children at the southern border, CBS News reported.

Sen. Mitt Romney said the policy decision encouraged the increase of migrant children traveling to the U.S. Alejandro Mayorkas responded by saying that they have taken immediate action concerning the unaccompanied children.

Democratic lawmakers also expressed concerns regarding the matter, saying it results in the voluntary separation of families.

Alejandro Mayorkas acknowledged the concern and said they had heard stories that some families self-separate to allow their children to enter the U.S.

READ MORE: Biden Ends Trump Policy That Allows DHS to Deport Caregivers for Migrant Children

WATCH: Biden: Trump's Zero-Tolerance Policy on Illegal Immigration Is a 'National Shame' - From Bloomberg Quicktake: Now






Authorities in a western Mexican state continue to investigate the abduction and killing of three siblings that allegedly involved members of the powerful Jalisco cartel.

Law enforcement in Mexico's Jalisco state said it could have been a case of mistaken identity. According to Associated Press, Jalisco state prosecutor Gerardo Octavio Solis Gomez said Ana Karen Gonzalez, 24; Luis Angel Gonzalez, 32; and Jose Alberto Gonzalez, 29; were kidnapped Friday night.

A group of armed men wearing tactical vests with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel's initials allegedly abducted the siblings from their home at Tlaquepaque in Guadalajara, Jalisco.

Reports said the siblings were forced into a vehicle and driven away. Shortly after the incident, agents from the Jalisco state prosecutor's office were attacked by armed men while escorting an individual.

Jalisco state prosecutor Solis Gomez said the two federal agents and another person survived as they traveled in an armored van. Solis Gomez noted that this escorted person, whom authorities did not identify, lived on the same street as the kidnapped siblings.

On Sunday morning, the bodies of the Gonzalez siblings were found wrapped in bedding and dumped on the side of a road in San Cristobal de la Barranca town. The Jalisco cartel also left a message with the bodies, which included a warning to the government.

Solis Gomez said authorities are now investigating whether the cartel's members abducted the siblings by mistake. The state prosecutor noted that these organized crime groups have "to act fast, and there is always a chance that they made a mistake."

The abductions came as hundreds of individuals fled villages in Jalisco's northern part to escape turf battles between the Jalisco cartel and the rival Sinaloa Cartel, and hundreds of activists, students, and teachers protested in Guadalajara, wearing white and demanding justice in the killings of the Gonzalez siblings.

READ NEXT: Gun Battle Between Rival Mexican Drug Cartels Left 8 People Dead

Jalisco Cartel Celebrates Mother's Day

Meanwhile, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) delivered Mother's Day gifts to some communities in Mexico. Members of the Jalisco cartel delivered gifts to communities in Guanajuato, Jalisco, and Michoacan on Monday.

The gifts were in the name of their leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," according to Mexico News Daily.

With their faces covered, members of the Jalisco cartel arrived in the said communities with banners that read: "Mr. Mencho and the CJNG wish all mothers a happy day."

They handed out household appliances such as blenders, stoves, microwaves, and irons. The activity was recorded in videos, which were later posted on social media.

Some of the recipients stayed in the area to pose for the camera. Others immediately headed home with their new appliances. A song by the band Los Tucanes de Tijuana, which pays homage to El Mencho, was being played from the drug cartel's vehicles.

Gerardo Rodriguez Sanchez Lara commented on the Jalisco cartel's act. Sanchez Lara is a professor of national security at the University of the Americas, Puebla.

Sanchez Lara said the move was a strategic one rather than charitable, as it shows they want social support to create a social shield. Last December, the Jalisco cartel had shown the same gesture when they handed out toys to people.

Jalisco Cartel's Fight for Power

The Jalisco cartel is considered to be one of the most powerful and notorious drug cartels in Mexico.

In December 2020, the former governor was allegedly murdered by members of the cartel in a bar in Puerto Vallarta. Last June, Garcia Harfuch was attacked by at least 12 hitmen in one of Mexico's busiest areas, according to a Business Insider report.

Released footage showed that the Jalisco cartel has access to .50-caliber Barret sniper rifles and FN SCAR assault rifles, which are normally used by U.S. special forces.

David Saucedo, a Mexico-based journalist and security analyst, provided a glimpse of the hierarchal order of the organization.

Saucedo told InSight Crime that the cartel's structure is absolutely vertical, with "El Mencho" being the brain behind everything.

READ MORE: Man With Ties to Jalisco Cartel Arrested For Drug Trafficking In Massachusetts

WATCH: The Origin of the Guadalajara Cartel | Narco Wars - From National Geographic








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A 43-year-old man was killed as Allentown on Friday night saw its second shooting death this week, authorities said Saturday.

Officers responding to the report of a shooting about 10:33 p.m. in the 100 block of North Hall Street found a victim with a gunshot wound, police said in a news release.

The victim was treated at the scene then taken by Allentown EMS to a local hospital, the release states.

The Lehigh County Coroners Office identified the victim as Jose L. Bermudez, of Allentown. He was pronounced dead at 11:12 p.m. at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Salisbury Township, with the cause of death a gunshot wound to the body and the manner of death ruled homicide, First Deputy Coroner Daniel Buglio said in a news release.

Police did not indicate anyone was in custody, and were looking for tips on who was responsible. The Lehigh County Homicide Task Force and Lehigh County District Attorneys Office were also investigating the death, along with city police and the coroners office.

Ahead of a neighborhood peace walk scheduled Saturday night in Allentown, another person was shot about 12:15 a.m. Friday in the 400 block of Allen Street, according to city police.

That followed a shooting that left 29-year-old Erik Mondragon, of Allentown, dead about 10:50 p.m. Monday in the 700 block of Lehigh Street. Another person was shot less than 20 minutes later Monday night in the citys 500 block of North Fifth Street.

Investigators have not indicated the shootings have any connection.

Saturday nights peace walk, organized by Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley, starts at 8 p.m. at Bucky Boyle Park, 10 Pump Place in Allentown. The organization held a similar demonstration against violence April 24.

The Allentown Police Department asked anyone with information on Friday nights shooting to call detectives at 610-437-7721 or the police desk at 610-437-7753, Ext. 1. Additionally, anonymous text tips can be sent via the Tip411 App available on the Allentown Police Facebook Page or via the Allentown Police Department website at allentownpa.gov.

Editors note: This article was updated shortly after publication with the identity of the Friday night shooting victim.

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Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
Freedom and Liberty High School seniors celebrated their prom Friday night at the SteelStacks campus in Bethlehem.

Last year, proms were canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak, but this year, many local schools were determined to find a way to celebrate it.

Due to decreased student interest in attending and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Bethlehem Area School District decided to hold a joint outdoor prom for its students this year.

This years prom looked much different than past years. All students had to wear masks, there was no traditional sit-down dinner and no dance floor.

Students were entertained by their favorite music from a number of speakers as they strolled the Hoover Mason Trestle.

Scroll through the photos above, and to see students arrive all dressed up.

If these photos have you looking for more prom, check out the photos from 2019:

Freedom High School prom 2019

Liberty High School prom 2019

Dont forget to check back to lehighvalleylive.com/prom for full coverage of the celebrations across our region.

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Dont forget to tag @lehighvalleylive in your Instagram photos and @lehighvalley on Twitter - well highlight the best pics!

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Are you one of the people pictured at this prom? Want to buy the photo and keep it forever? Look for a link below the photo caption to order prints in a variety of sizes or products like shirts or coffee mugs.

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Saed Hindash may be reached at shindash@lehighvalleylive.com.
The coronavirus pandemic forced schools and workplaces online. Now the federal government  which has grant programs for small businesses, restaurants and more  is going to help low-income households pay to get online.

Applications are now being accepted for the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, which provides a discount of up to $50 a month or an internet connection or the needed equipment. Theres also a one-time discount of up to $100 to help pay for a laptop, desktop or tablet.

The program was part of the $2.3 trillion coronavirus stimulus and government spending legislation approved in December that also included direct payments of $600 to most Americans.

From virtual classrooms to telehealth visits, the pandemic has made access to reliable, high-speed internet more important than ever, said Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-6th Dist., chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. In this day and age, internet service is a necessity, not a luxury, and ensuring that every family in New Jersey has the ability to telework and stay connected begins with ensuring every family can afford it.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage

Households with income at no more than 135% of federal poverty guidelines are eligible for the assistance. For a family of four, thats an income of $35,775 a year.

You also can qualify if you already receive benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps; Medicaid; Supplemental Security Income or SSI; federal public housing assistance; or the reduced-price school lunch or breakfast program; or receive a veterans pension or survivors benefit.

Households with a substantial loss of income since Feb. 29, 2020, could also qualify as long as their income did not exceed $99,000 for individuals and $198,000 for married couples filing jointly. And students who received a federal Pell Grant in the current year also could get help.

Here is the link to apply. For questions, go to getemergencybroadband.org or call 1-833-511-0311.

Applications are being accepted now. The payments will continue until the program runs out of money or the Department of Health and Human Services ends the COVID-19 health emergency, whichever comes first.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him at @JDSalant.

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RTHK: French police fire tear gas at pro-Palestinian rally

Paris police used tear gas and water cannon on Saturday to disperse a pro-Palestinian rally held despite a ban by authorities, who feared a flare-up of anti-Semitic violence during the worst fighting between Israel and Hamas in years.

Between 2,500 and 3,500 people converged on the heavily immigrant Barbes neighbourhood in the north of the capital, according to interior ministry figures, amid a massive security presence involving some 4,200 officers.

Police blocked off wide boulevards as well as narrow streets where some of the protesters were forced to retreat, while knots of residents and passers-by watched or recorded the scene with their phones.

Some threw stones or tried to set up roadblocks with construction barriers, but for the most part police pursued groups across the district while preventing any march toward the Place de la Bastille as planned.

"You want to prohibit me from showing solidarity with my people, even as my village is being bombed?" said Mohammed, 23 and wearing a "Free Palestine" t-shirt.

As a cold rainstorm settled over the city toward evening, many protesters left, leaving a large group of mostly young men facing off against ranks of officers who held their ground on a stretch of boulevard.

A handful of garbage bins were set on fire and rocks and other projectiles were hurled toward police, but no arrests were reported.

The march was banned on Thursday over concerns of a repeat of fierce clashes that erupted at a similar Paris march during the last war in 2014, when protesters took aim at synagogues and other Israeli and Jewish targets.

"We all remember that extremely troubling protest where terrible phrases like 'death to Jews' were yelled," Mayor Anne Hidalgo said on Friday, welcoming a "wise" decision to ban the march.

But Walid Atallah, president of the Association of Palestinians in Ile-de-France, the region encompassing Paris, accused the government of inflaming tensions with the ban.

"If there were genuine risks of public disorder, of serious problems, they would have prohibited it right away," he told a press conference ahead of the march.

"They banned it at the last minute - it's unacceptable," he said.

Similar protests in Germany and Denmark this week have degenerated into clashes leading to several arrests.

The protest had originally been called to mark the Nakba, as Palestinians call the "catastrophe" of Israel's creation in 1948, which turned hundreds of thousands into refugees.

But a Paris court upheld the ban on Friday, saying the "international and domestic context" justified fears of unrest "that could be as serious or even worse than in 2014".

Interior Minister Gerard Darmanin also called for similar bans in other cities if necessary, and officials prohibited marches in Nice, where around 150 people gathered nonetheless, and in some Paris suburbs.

"We don't want scenes of violence, we don't want to import a conflict onto French soil, we don't want eruptions of hate on our streets," government spokesman Gabriel Attal said on Saturday in Marseille.

But no incidents were reported as around 22,000 people nationwide gathered for dozens of protests and marches, including in several other cities like Montpellier, Toulouse and Bordeaux.

Critics accuse France of being too favourable towards Israel in the latest conflict, which has seen a barrage of rocket fire from Gaza met with Israeli artillery and air strikes.

The ban has caused a split among French politicians, with President Emmanuel Macron's centre-right party and the right-wing opposition supporting the move, but leftists calling it an unacceptable attack on freedom of expression.

Macron's office said he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday, offering his "condolences for the victims of the rocket fire claimed by Hamas and other terrorist groups."

The statement said Macron urged a return to peace and "his concern about the civilian population in Gaza".

France has the largest Muslim population in Europe, with an estimated five to six million people.

It also has the largest Jewish population worldwide after Israel and the United States. (AFP)

This story has been published on: 2021-05-15. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Spirit of self-reliance boosts China's expedition to Mars and beyond

11:25, May 15, 2021 By He Fei ( Xinhua

BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- China's Mars probe Tianwen-1 successfully landed on the surface of the red planet on Saturday, leaving a Chinese footprint on Mars for the first time.

The exciting landing has made China a new member among the world's pioneering Martian explorers. The spirt of self-reliance has played a key role in China's scientific development over the decades despite foreign attempts to block China's technological progress.

Exploring a planet some 55 million km away from Earth is extremely challenging. So far, around 50 Mars missions have been launched globally in humankind's saga to explore Mars since 1960. More than half of them have failed. With a late start, China launched Tianwen-1 last year, but the spacecraft is designed for a bold initiative: to complete orbiting, landing and roving in one single mission. This has never been done before.

China has now become the third country in history to touch down on Mars' surface following the United States and the former Soviet Union. The feat was not easily accomplished.

In the early days of the People's Republic of China, the country was a toddler in scientific and technological development. With the help of a wave of Chinese scientists returning to China from overseas, China has made its early breakthroughs in rocket and space technologies.

Through more than six decades of unremitting efforts, China has achieved one milestone after another in aerospace development, including manned space program, lunar exploration, and its BeiDou Navigation Satellite System.

A new giant leap was recorded in late April, as China sent into space the core module Tianhe of its space station, kicking off a series of launch missions that will complete the construction of the station around 2022.

While China is catching up in space exploration, and has grown from a follower to a trailblazer, it is facing even louder noise from some Western nations.

Following the launch of the Tianhe module, some media and scientists in the United States hyped up irresponsible theories about China's handling of the rocket debris. Their unfounded concerns reflect a fact that Washington is not happy to see China's fast leaps in space and technology, and sees in China a threat to its pursuit of space dominance.

However, such ill-intentioned and self-defeating disruptions will not hinder China's solid determination to move up the ladder in technological development, and promote international space cooperation.

China has always welcomed and participated in global cooperation on the peaceful use of outer space. During its Mars mission, China has worked with European partners and others. In March, it signed an accord with Russia on building an international lunar research station.

It is a common cause of the human race to find inspirations from the universe for solutions to daunting challenges threatening people's life on Earth. In this Odyssey, China, armed with enthusiasm, diligence and the readiness for cooperation, will help propel the humankind to travel faster and farther.

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Bianji)
Walmart, the worlds largest retailer, said Friday that it wont require vaccinated shoppers or workers to wear a mask in its U.S. stores unless state or local laws say otherwise.

Vaccinated shoppers can go maskless immediately, the company said. Vaccinated workers can stop wearing them on Tuesday. As an incentive, Walmart said it is offering workers $75 if they prove theyve been vaccinated.

Customers wont be asked but rather held to an honor system regarding their vaccination status, Walmart said.

Workers, however, will need to answer yes to a vaccination question in a daily health assessment in order to go maskless, the company said in a memo to employees posted on its corporate website.

Integrity is one of our core values, and we trust that associates will respect that principle when answering, the memo states. To get the bonus, workers will have to show their original vaccination certificate.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday eased mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, allowing them to stop wearing masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings.

In Pennsylvania, businesses can still require masks, even under new federal guidance. New Jersey is one of a handful states that will keep a statewide indoor mask mandate in place  for now.

The Diocese of Allentown also on Friday announced those who are fully vaccinated no longer need to wear masks at Mass.

Those who are not fully vaccinated must continue to wear their masks for their protection, and for the protection of others.

Fully vaccinated is defined as having waited at least two weeks after the second dose in a two-dose vaccine, such as Pfizer or Moderna, or at least two weeks after a single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Parishes in the Diocese of Allentown will lift church seating capacity restrictions on the Solemnity of Pentecost, the weekend of May 22-23.

Walmart, based in Bentonville, Arkansas, noted it is offering vaccines at its more than 5,100 Walmart and Sams Club pharmacies, and through special events.

Walmart is the nations largest employer with roughly 1.5 million workers in the U.S. including those at Sams Club, distribution centers and in corporate and managerial jobs.

Walmart was one of the first retailers to mandate masks last July. Its move to allow vaccinated shoppers and workers to not wear masks could lead other chains to follow suit.

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With The Associated Press, supervising reporter Kurt Bresswein contributed to this report. Reach him at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
Beyond a slew of local races on ballots, Pennsylvanias primary election on Tuesday will determine the future of a governors authority during disaster declarations and a Republican nominee aiming to keep a state Supreme Court seat in GOP hands.

Voters statewide will decide four separate ballot questions, including two that ask voters whether to give state lawmakers much more power over disaster declarations, whether the emergency is another pandemic or a natural disaster.

The ballot questions were penned by Republican lawmakers and emerged from a long-running feud with Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf over the extent of his orders to shutter businesses and schools during the pandemic.

The last time voters rejected a ballot question was in 1993, according to information provided by the state. Since then, voters have approved 19 straight ballot questions, usually bipartisan initiatives to expand borrowing authority or to amend the constitution.

Voters also must decide contested primaries for open seats on the three statewide appellate courts: the Supreme Court, Superior Court and Commonwealth Court. Terms are 10 years.

Meanwhile, voters in four parts of the state will decide contests for open seats in the state Legislature.

If recent turnout patterns hold, fewer than one-fifth of Pennsylvanias registered voters will determine the outcomes. About 820,000 voters had requested a mail-in or absentee ballot, about 70% of whom are registered Democrats, according to the state elections department.

Here is a look at the statewide ballot questions and contests for state offices, followed by information specific to the Lehigh Valley:

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DISASTER DECLARATIONS

Republican lawmakers across the country have sought to roll back the emergency powers governors wielded during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pennsylvanias vote is the first of its kind since the coronavirus outbreak.

The two questions ask voters to end a governors emergency disaster declaration after 21 days and to give lawmakers the sole authority to extend it or end it at any time with a simple majority vote.

Current law allows a governor to issue an emergency declaration for up to 90 days and extend it without limit. The constitution requires a two-thirds majority vote by lawmakers to end the declaration.

Wolf and his emergency disaster director have called the proposals reckless and a threat to a functioning society if it prevents a fast and wide-ranging response to increasingly complicated disasters.

Republicans have accused Wolf of fear-mongering. The phrasing of the questions that will appear on the ballot was produced by the Wolf administration, although Republicans say the wording is politically slanted, designed to make the questions fail.

The Legislature did not hold hearings on the measures, and they may end up in court if voters approve them because their effect is in dispute.

Republicans claim the governor cannot order shutdowns without a disaster emergency in effect. Wolf disagrees, saying a governors authority during a public health emergency rests on separate public health law and is unaffected by the ballot questions.

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ETHNICITY AND RACE

Voters must decide whether to add a passage to the constitution outlawing discrimination because of someones race or ethnicity.

If it passes, it would become the constitutions fourth equality provision, added to all men are born equally free and independent, a protection from discrimination in exercising civil rights, and a 1971 amendment that ensures gender equality.

Its believed to be the first time since last summers protests over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis that voters will decide a racial equity issue on a statewide ballot.

Constitutional law professors say it will have little practical effect because courts already consider such discrimination to violate both the state and federal constitutions.

But the lawmaker who originally sponsored the provision, Sen. Vince Hughes, D-Philadelphia, said court cases and judicial decisions will ultimately determine the practical effect of the proposal.

He also said he wants it in place in case federal anti-discrimination case law is reversed by the Republican-majority U.S. Supreme Court or conservative federal judges appointed by former President Donald Trump.

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FIRE DEPARTMENT LOANS

A fourth question will ask whether voters want to allow 22 municipal fire departments in Pennsylvania to have access to a 45-year-old low-interest loan fund that helps some 2,000 volunteer firefighting squads borrow money to pay for trucks, equipment and facilities.

The fund is administered by the office of the state fire commissioner.

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APPELLATE COURT SEATS

The race for an open seat on Pennsylvanias highest court wont tip its balance of power, but the contest does have serious implications for the courts conservative minority.

The retirement of Justice Thomas Saylor, a conservative, will leave the court with just one justice elected as a Republican and five elected as Democrats.

Running to succeed Saylor are three Republicans vying for the party nomination: Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Paula Patrick and two Commonwealth Court judges, Kevin Brobson of Cumberland County and Patricia McCullough of Allegheny County.

Election issues and gun rights have been prominent topics on the campaign trail.

Democrat Maria McLaughlin, a Superior Court judge, is uncontested for her partys nomination.

One seat is open on the Superior Court, which handles criminal and civil appeals from county courts.

Democrats must settle a three-way contest and pick their partys nominee from among Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Timika Lane and two lawyers in private practice, Bryan Neft of suburban Pittsburgh and Jill Beck of Pittsburgh.

Republican Megan Sullivan is uncontested for the nomination.

Two seats are open on the Commonwealth Court, which handles lawsuits and appeals involving state agencies and governmental bodies.

Democratic voters must choose two from among four primary candidates: Common Pleas Court Judge David Lee Spurgeon and lawyer Amanda Green Hawkins of Allegheny County and Common Pleas Court judges Lori Dumas and Sierra Street of Philadelphia.

Republicans Drew Crompton and Stacy Wallace are uncontested in the primary.

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SPECIAL LEGISLATIVE ELECTIONS

Four seats in the state Legislature  two in the Senate and two in the House of Representatives  are vacant and will be filled in special elections Tuesday. The elections will not tip the balance of power in the Legislature, where Republicans control both chambers by comfortable margins.

A Lackawanna County-based Senate seat is expected to remain in the hands of Democrats. A second seat, based in Lebanon County, is expected to remain in GOP hands.

In the House, seats based in Westmoreland and Armstrong counties are likely to remain held by Republicans.

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In ballot questions specific to Lehigh Valley voters:

NORTHAMPTON COUNTY

Northampton County voters are being asked whether to change the title of county council members to county commissioners, a move previously proposed that would bring the county in line with Lehigh and most of Pennsylvanias other counties:

NORTHAMPTON COUNTY HOME RULE CHARTER AMENDMENT

Should the Northampton County Home Rule Charter, Article II, Section 203 entitled Composition be amended that the County Council shall be composed of nine (9) Commissioners. Five (5) Commissioners elected at large and four (4) Commissioners elected by District.

PLAIN ENGLISH VERSION OF THE QUESTION

A yes vote for this question would amend Article II, Section 203, entitled Composition of the Northampton County Home Rule Charter that County

Council shall be composed of nine (9) Commissioners. Five (5) Commissioners elected at large and four (4) Commissioners elected by District.

A no vote would continue Article II, Section 203, entitled Composition for the County Council to be composed of nine (9) members. Five (5) members elected at large and four (4) members elected by District.

QUESTION NORTHAMPTON COUNTY HOME RULE CHARTER AMENDMENT

Northampton County Council has enacted Ordinance No. 689 effective September 7, 2020 proposing to amend Article II, Section 203, entitled Composition to provide that the County Council shall be composed of nine (9) Commissioners. Five (5) Commissioners elected at large and four (4) Commissioners elected by District.

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LEHIGH COUNTY

Voters in Allentown are being asked whether the citys Home Rule Charter should be amended to allow city council to appoint its own solicitor and initiate audits:

Shall Section 701 of the City of Allentown Home Rule Charter be amended to permit City Council to appoint a City Council Solicitor such that Section 701 will read:

A. The Mayor shall appoint a City Solicitor who shall be a member of the bar of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and experienced in municipal law. The City Solicitor, as the Head of the Legal Department, shall serve as chief legal advisor to the Mayor and all City Departments and agencies, represent the City in all legal proceedings to which the City is a party, and shall perform such other duties prescribed by law, by this Charter and by the City Administrative Code.

B. The Mayor shall have the power, if needed, to engage other temporary Solicitors to represent the City as the need may be. Such appointments shall be temporary and shall be for the purpose of representing the City in specific legal matters.

C. City Council may appoint legal counsel to serve as City Council Solicitor to provide City Council with legal advice.

D. The City Solicitor shall direct and control the legal matters of the city Shall Section 403, Subsection A and Subsection D of the City of Allentown Home Rule Charter be amended to authorize and permit the City Controller to initiate and conduct all manner of audits, including performance audits, without first being requested to do so by the Mayor or by City Council and to permit the City Controller to have access to any and all types of information necessary, including City payroll information, to conduct such audits?

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Visit lehighvalleylive.com/elections for more about the primary, including previews of contested Lehigh Valley races like Lehigh County judge, district judges, Allentown mayor, Bethlehem mayor and City Council, and Easton City Council.

By MARC LEVY

Supervising reporter Kurt Bresswein contributed to this report. Reach him at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.

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Authorities investigating eight vehicle windows smashed outside a Bath business say they took the suspect into custody and several other businesses were also vandalized.

The suspect, a 31-year-old Bethlehem man, was taken into custody about 12:55 a.m. Saturday in what Pennsylvania State Police labeled criminal mischief, according to a news release from investigators.

Court records were not immediately updated to reflect whether the suspect was arraigned or what charges he will face.

The vehicles were parked at the Fox Gentlemens Club, 104 E. Main St. in the Northampton County borough, according to police.

Further investigation revealed smashed windows at Aharts Market, Town and Country Restaurant and Bath Drug Pharmacy, state police said in the release, adding the suspect is believed responsible for that damage as well.

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Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
TROPHIES

Former Lehigh Valley congressman Charlie Dent has always been a moderate voice in the Republican Party, which explains why voters in this swing district kept reelecting him through three presidential administrations. He stepped down in 2018 but has remained a prominent voice for what remains of the moderate wing of the GOP. On Thursday, he joined other high-profile Republicans in co-signing a letter that put the partys leadership on notice that he and others are prepared to form a new alliance if they dont get their act together soon. The letter starts with: The Republican Party made a grievous error this week in ousting Rep. Liz Cheney (Wyo.) from the House leadership for telling the truth about Donald Trumps big lie, which has wreaked havoc in our democratic republic by casting doubt over the 2020 election. The fact that Cheney faced repercussions for speaking truthfully about the 2020 election and the Jan. 6 insurrection says all that needs to be said about the current state of the GOP. We shouldnt have to credit Dent for supporting a principle as basic as honesty, but the party has now reached a point where supporting basic principles stands out as a remarkable accomplishment.

Beltzville State Park and its beach have long been a summer oasis for those from the Lehigh Valley looking for an affordable way to beat the heat. But given the closure of public pools last summer due to the pandemic, the park in Carbon County often became overcrowded and not everyone in the crowd was respectful. Littering and other violations such as ignoring an alcohol ban and illegal parking became issues. But the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is trying to stave off a repeat this summer. It has enacted several initiatives to address overcrowding. Additional staff, better signage and more trash receptacles are among the initiatives. These are good moves that will hopefully make for a better park experience, but its also the duty of visitors to abide by the rules. Thats the only way to ensure everyone gets a chance to enjoy the parks amenities to their fullest.

TURKEYS

In response to a lawsuit alleging violation of laws intended to give the public adequate opportunity to weigh in on local government matters, the attorney for Harmony Townships land use board said the board never once deviated from their obligations or their responsibilities' when it came to the process for approving a massive solar array on land that has historically been used for agricultural purposes. Thats a fine argument for the court of law, but in the court of public opinion, its flawed. The land use board approved the project on Jan. 5 in a move opponents say was part of a rush job on to avoid public scrutiny. The opponents position is understandable even if it wont hold up in court. The laws regarding government transparency and open meetings didnt account for a pandemic that would prevent citizens from safely attending public hearings. They couldve attended virtually, but not everyone has adequate internet service or the computer literacy needed to do so, especially in a rural community like Harmony. The land use board shouldve recognized that. It could have either postponed the vote until an in-person hearing was safe or made special accommodations that would have encouraged more public comment. It shouldnt come as a surprise that theres going to be opposition anytime substantial farmland is being eliminated for new development in rural Warren County. The land use board may have followed the law, but it appears to have done a lousy job making sure the community had every opportunity to speak out about the project before any vote was taken.

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The major IT issues affecting hospitals nationwide caused by the ransomware attack are expected to disrupt and could cause long delays at Portlaoise and other Dublin Midlands Hospital Group facilities into next week, according to the HSE.

A statement said all patients should attend their appointments as scheduled unless they hear otherwise from the hospital where the appointment is scheduled.

However, the HSE says patients can expect some delays due to the ongoing issue.

"We ask that you bear with us and we apologise for any inconvenience this has caused.

"We would ask that patients who do have scheduled appointment for next week pay attention to updates on services as hospitals may not be able to access information in order to call and cancel appointments," they say.

The HSE says emergency services remain open across the Dublin Midlands Hospital Group but remain extremely busy.

"We ask that patients consider their care options and only attend the ED in an emergency. Non urgent patients may expect long delays in being seen," said the statement.

Current available information on hospital disruptions from the HSE:

Midlands Regional Hospital Portlaoise: Emergency services continue. All routine radiology appointments are cancelled. We regret any inconvenience and appointments will be rescheduled asap.

Midland Regional Hospital Tullamore: Emergency services continue. All routine radiology appointments are cancelled. We regret any inconvenience and appointments will be rescheduled asap.

Naas General Hospital: Some outpatient appointments have been cancelled for Monday 17th May. The hospital will contact patients directly. We regret any inconvenience and appointments will be rescheduled asap.

Coombe Women & Infants University Hospital: Outpatient appointments are still going ahead but there may be some delays from time to time. Please bear with our staff who are doing everything they can on your behalf.

St Lukes Radiation Oncology Network: all outpatients appointments and all non-emergency Radiation Treatment have been cancelled for Monday, 17th May, across St Luke's Radiation Oncology Network sites: St. Luke's Hospital Rathgar; St. Luke's Centre at Beaumont Hospital; St. Luke's Centre at St. James's Hospital. If you feel unwell or symptomatic please contact your usual St. Luke's Centre directly, the team are available to take your call. We apologise for the impact that this has on our patients at this time.

Tallaght University Hospital: Please only attend the ED if you require urgent care. All routine Radiology outpatient appointments cancelled. We regret any inconvenience and appointments will be rescheduled asap.

The HSE says updates on service disruption will be posted on the HSE service disruption website https://www2.hse.ie/services/hospital-service-disruptions/hospital-service-disruptions-covid19.html.

Updates will also be posted on hospital Twitter accounts and on their website. We encourage all patients to check on these sites for up-to-date service disruption and cancellations for DMHG hospitals.

The HSE adds that it will provide updates as the situation changes on any service disruptions and patient appointments due to the ongoing IT issue via email updates and/or Twitter @DMHospitalGroup @HSELive and individual hospitals who might have their own social media accounts.
IN April 1995, McArthur Wheeler was arrested in Minnesota, under suspicion of carrying out two bank robberies.

He couldnt believe the police found out it was him. He thought he did everything right, to make the robberies full proof. He staked out the banks, knew the correct time to pounce, and he rubbed lemon juice all over his face, which of course made him invisible, so how did they know it was him?

Ill come back to Wheeler in a moment, but do you remember the guy I was telling you about a few weeks back, who bought a car for 50,000 from a redundancy payment.

I called him Flash Harry.

Whether you remember him or not, doesnt really matter. But, if by chance you do, heres the thing, I only told you one half of his story back then. And now Im going to tell you the other half.

You see the reason Im going to talk some more about Flash and McArthur Wheeler, is because both suffer from whats become known as The Dunning Kruger Effect.

Wheeler was actually the inspiration for the Dunning Kruger Effect, because after learning what he did, two researchers working at Cornell University, David Dunning and Justin Kruger, decided to investigate further and find out, were their others like Wheeler. And there was, there were many more like him, and what ended up as being commonly known as the Dunning Kruger Effect, started off as an original paper entitled, Unskilled and Unaware of It.

Anyway, the day I met Flash, he also revealed that he was setting up an online trading account and had set aside 30,000 for this project, which was all the redundancy money he had left.

I asked him what experience he had with trading stocks, and he admitted he had absolutely none, but during lockdown he had time on his hands, and he started reading some books. And one really caught his attention, and it was written by Larry Williams, called, How I Made a Million Dollars Last Year Trading Commodities.

He told me I should read it and if I did, perhaps I wouldnt have to waste my time giving financial advice to, and I quote, mugs who dont know how to invest.

I thanked him for his generosity and my quid pro quo was a suggestion he read a book called, What I Learned Losing A Million Dollars, by Jim Paul.

I told him, I thought anyone interested in investing should start off slowly and study books about losses and find out how not to lose money. Theyre the type of books smart investors are reading because they want to learn from someone elses mistakes, not their own.

That was all lost on, Flash, because he wanted instant success, but there you go, I tried.

And unfortunately, he had some success to begin with, and I say unfortunately, because I think he thought the small success he had, was down to his abilities rather than what I suspect it was, luck.

Worryingly, he wasnt investing in the run of the mill type investments, no, he was investing in music royalties, hurricane options, firearms manufacturers including companies making taser guns. Maybe hes much smarter than I am, and these are the things you should be investing in, but it did seem to me, that youd want to have very specialised knowledge in these areas.

When I asked him how the past couple of weeks of trading had gone, he said not as good as when he started out, and when I pressed him and asked what that meant, he said he was at break-even.

And you know, when someone like him says theyre at break-even, my sense is that theyre down money, and it could be big money.

I wanted to tell you about him, because he was text-book Dunning Kruger. He thought he was smarter than he actually was, which meant he overestimated his knowledge and competency levels.

The obvious downsides to this, are poor decision making, and in his case, it could ultimately lead to his savings being wiped out.

What was sad about the McArthur Wheeler story, wasnt that he was just a particularly stupid and incompetent bank robber, it was, he didnt know he was a stupid and incompetent bank robber. And therein lies the crux of the problem.

Theres a fine line between knowing what we know and what we dont know, and we can easily stray over the line. When we move outside our sphere of competency, we may lack the awareness to know it. And look the truth is, that we all lack self-insights from time to time, and were all members of the Dunning Kruger Club, its just sometimes we dont know when were active members, thats all.

The problem with people suffering from the Dunning-Kruger effect, is (a) not being able to spot their mistakes and (b) not being aware that they have serious knowledge deficits in particular areas. They cant step back and evaluate what theyve done or are thinking of doing.

Thats what the problem with Flash was. He was very unskilled in what he was about to embark on, and he was completely unaware of it.

So, how do we overcome the Dunning Kruger Effect?

Id say, keep learning, and always dig a bit deeper on whatever is important to you. And if one of those areas is personal finance, then find out if you are saving enough into your pension fund, find out when you can afford to retire, find out if are you saving into the correct fund, find out how you can repay your mortgage or any other debt faster, find out how you can optimise your savings by doing it in a sensible way which suits your appetite to risk and so on.

The more knowledge you gain, the more youll realise how much there is to know, which can help pull you back from thinking youre an expert.

Id also say consult with others who are more knowledgeable than you, before you go it alone. Listen to what they have to say and try gain as much insights as you can from them.

If McArthur Wheeler consulted someone close to him and said, listen, I know that if I rub lemon juice all over my face it will turn me invisible, so Im going to rob a bank, and no one will ever know it was me, what do you think?

They may have said, dont think so McArthur. And maybe if he asked and took their council, he wouldnt have been sentenced to 24-years in jail.

So, if youre thinking of moving employer or changing career or setting up a new business or youre a first-time property investor, or youre thinking of buying a property abroad or you want to set up a self-administered pension scheme, get a second opinion. And youre not doing it just to get validation from someone else, you dont need that, youre getting it, to see if youve thought things through properly and you havent missed out on anything, and youre also doing it, because you dont fall victim to the Dunning Kruger Effect, thats all.

Liam Croke is MD of Harmonics Financial Ltd, based in Plassey. He can be contacted at liam@harmonics.ie or www.harmonics.ie
Historian Chris Lawlor, who is a resident of Dunlavin, has just launched his latest book called A Revolutionary Village: Dunlavin, Co Wicklow c.1900-1925.

This eagerly-awaited publication provides an overview of the whole revolutionary period in the Dunlavin region.

Playwright Brendan Behan famously acknowledged the republican reputation and revolutionary tradition of the west Wicklow village when he named an old republican prisoner Dunlavin in his play The Quare Fella.

For the first time, the story of the village during the Irish Revolution is told in the new book. This ground-breaking study of a single West Wicklow village and its environs during the pivotal historical period 1900-25 is unique and constitutes a true micro-history of the revolutionary era.

The book treats of the international and national political background before moving on to examine social and economic life in Dunlavin during the early twentieth century.

Religious and political differences are uncovered and the advent of many new political movements in the region is discussed. A detailed examination of the impact of the First World War on the local area is followed by an examination of Dunlavins experience during the Easter Rising and its aftermath.

An assessment of the rise of Sinn Fein and the partys landmark victory in the 1918 general election (when Dunlavin was in the grip of the great influenza pandemic) leads on to evaluations of both the War of Independence and the Civil War.

Dunlavins Civil War experience is placed in a wider West Wicklow context before the book examines the return of peace and the new reality of Dunlavin taking its place within the Irish Free State. A new era of domestic political sovereignty had dawned in the much-altered West Wicklow village.

The book contains 53 illustrations and 19 appendices, including press reports of meetings held to establish various political organisations in the village, with the original speeches reproduced.

There are lists of the heads of households in Dunlavin in both 1901 and 1911, lists of the members of the three IRA companies in which Dunlavin volunteers served during the War of Independence and lists of the Anti-Treaty IRA in these companies during the Civil War.

These and other appendices enhance the book and provide the reader with much valuable background information.

Get a copy

The book comprises 344 pages and retails at 30 per copy. The book is available directly from the authors house at Sparrow Road, Dunlavin (Eircode W91 T9W0) for anyone wishing to receive signed copies with personal inscriptions. Those wishing to call to the house may contact Chris on his mobile at 087 9321737.

Signed copies may also be ordered on the authors website www.chrislawlor.ie, where postage and packaging costs are automatically added on for national and international distribution worldwide.

The website accepts credit and debit cards, Revolut and PayPal.

Locally, the book is on sale in Dermot Hughes shop in Dunlavin, Crafty Craic in Knockanarrigan and the Woodbine Bookshop in Kilcullen.
A bookkeeper who stole thousands of euro from the family-run business he worked at for over 20 years claimed he did so to save for his child's operation, a court has heard.

Derek Moore (48) colluded with three of his employer's customers to give them cheaper materials in exchange for cash payments, which he lodged into his own account instead of the company's, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard on Friday.

Moore, with an address at Huntstown Avenue, Blanchardstown, pleaded guilty to five counts of stealing just over 92,700 from his employer, Energy Saver Insulations Ltd, on dates between February and November 2018.

He also pleaded guilty to one count of falsifying the accounts at the company, which is located in Dublin 12, on February 15, 2018. He has no previous convictions.

Detective Garda Gareth Daly told John Byrne BL, prosecuting, that Moore cashed a total of 48,000 from the three customers on 14 separate occasions during the period in question. The remaining money stolen represented the loss to the company for the discounted materials, the court heard.

When questioned by gardai in March 2019, Moore said his child was waiting on a scoliosis operation and they had been let down by the HSE. He said the price of an operation in the US was 30,000 and he also needed funds for travelling and time off work.

The court heard the child was eventually treated in Ireland.

Mr Byrne told the court that Energy Saver Insulations, a small, family-run business, was hit with a devastating fire in February 2018, which led to a significant loss of documentation.

They hired an independent consultant to help reconstitute the documents, which led to financial irregularities being uncovered. Three customers were identified who had not paid the company, despite receiving goods.

It emerged Moore, who worked as a bookkeeper for the company for 22 years, met these three men separately on a number of occasions and they paid cash for the goods at a reduced rate. Moore then lodged the money in his personal bank account and doctored the company accounts to cover it up.

No charges have been brought against these three customers, although the court heard there are some civil cases pending.

Moore has repaid 33,000 of the money he stole.

When questioned by gardai, he claimed the arrangement was not his idea and that he was approached by the customers. However, it was unclear whether these customers knew each other, the court heard.

Judge Pauline Codd suggested Moore was not helping his case by claiming three separate people approached him and instigated the thefts.

Defence barrister, Cathal McGreal BL, conceded his client was the inside man in the operation. He said Moore was remorseful and had expressed his regret for what he had done.

Moore had previously been on good terms with the company directors, the court heard. He has since lost his job and is currently unemployed.

Mr McGreal said Moore used some of the money for medical expenses for his child. He said Moore did not live in a fancy house or display any signs of wealth. He was not living it up, he said.

The court heard Moore was approached by a newspaper in relation to the incident and was photographed on his doorstep. As a result, he is now afraid to show his face, Mr McGreal said. He is also likely to find it difficult to get employment, he added.

Judge Codd criticised the media for covering the matter ahead of the sentence hearing, saying the case must proceed by the rule of law, not the rule of tabloids. It's not acceptable, the judge said.

She ordered a Probation Report and adjourned the matter to July 26, next, for finalisation.
A case of criminal damage of three panes of a window brought against a Mohill man were dismissed by Judge Kevin Kilrane who described the property where the damage occurred as the house from hell.



Garda evidence detailed how an investigation was carried out to the damage at 20 O'Carolan Court, Mohill on July 30, 2018.

In a written statement one of the residents of the property, Annie Lupton, claimed the damage had occurred and she had looked out the window and saw the defendant, John Heslin of 20 Cappagh, Mohill walking away with a metal bar in his hand. She subsequently made a complaint to gardai.

Gardai interviewed Mr Heslin and the memorandum of the interview taken was read into the court. In this Mr Heslin denied smashing the window on the night in question. He did admit to breaking a window in the house previously adding there is a history, there is bad blood.

Mr Heslin said that on the night of July 30, 2018 he had visited the home of the mother of one of his children, Ms O'Connell, at around 8.30pm. It was noted that he had interrupted her viewing of the Love Island final and it was after 11pm when he left this property.



Taking the stand Ms Lupton said that she and her partner, Michael Whearty, had been in the kitchen sitting at the table when they heard a noise and went into the hall. Here they met Michael's mother who had been in the living room on the couch near the window, when it was broken. Ms Lupton said she and Mr Whearty went to the window and opened the curtains and saw Mr Heslin walking down the street.

The door was then opened by Mr Whearty and Mr Heslin was seen walking away with a iron bar in his hand.

Mr Heslin's solicitor, John McNulty, noted there were a number of discrepancies between Ms Lupton's statement to gardai and what she told in her evidence to the court.



Ms Lupton said that Mr Heslin was the father of one of her children and admitted she had a grievance with Mr Heslin however she denied that she would ever make a false complaint against him.

Mr McNulty accused Ms Lupton of offering a number of different versions of what happened to gardai. He also noted that Ms Lupton had made other allegations dating to July 25, 2018 at this property where she told gardai that men in balaclavas had been seen outside, that they went away but later returned with iron bars - How do we know these men aren't the ones responsible for breaking your window? he asked Ms Lupton.

He said that there had been a prosecution but Ms Lupton had entered the witness box in relation to this and withdrew the complaint stating these men had done nothing.

Ms Lupton acknowledged the incident where there had been men outside of her house wearing balaclavas but said that they did not break my windows.



Mr McNulty said that this history brought up questions about the credibility of Ms Lupton as a witness.

He also said that the other witness who identified his client as the one who broke the window, Mr Whearty, had never given a statement to gardai on what happened that night.

Judge Kilrane observed the State can just about crawl across the line in relation to this prosecution.

However he said he had a number of problems with the credibility of Ms Lupton which was further compounded by the absence of any statement or appearance by Mr Whearty.

He also noted the absence the only other person who could corroborate Mr Heslin's alibi from court proceedings did not help matters.



Taking the stand, Mr Heslin insisted he had been at Ms O'Connell's home on the night in question.

He said that previously he had broken a window of Ms Lupton's adding, I would be lying if I said I was remorseful about it, but he denied breaking the window in July 2018.

Judge Kilrane noted that the case was a matter of one person's word against another's.

Mr Whearty is an alleged witness on the night in question. He saw what happened, why isn't he here and why didn't he make a statement? asked Judge Kilrane.

Ms O'Connell can verify the version given by Mr Heslin but she isn't here either.

He said that despite all this, Mr Heslin's evidence was more credible. He noted that 20 O'Carolan Court appears to be the house from hell.



If anything I accept Mr Heslin's version of events over and above Ms Lupton's evidence. Her credibility is seriously at question, he said.

He said he had a doubt in relation to this and had no option but to dismiss the matter.

I sympathise with gardai trying to make sense of this, there are wheels within wheels, he admitted.

Also read: Organisers of 'illegal' traveller wedding reception say 'sorry' and hit with 3,000 compo demand
A Polish man who attempted to murder his wife by hitting her head with a lump hammer while she slept has lost an appeal against his conviction.

Lawyers for Andrzej Benko (48) of Ladyswell Road, Mulhuddart, had argued to the three-judge Court of Appeal that his conviction was unsafe. Benko was sentenced to 15 years in prison following a trial at the Central Criminal Court in April 2014 for the attempted murder of his wife, Joanna, at their home on July 5, 2010.

Following the assault Ms Benko suffered life changing injuries and now relies on full-time care.

Mr Benko's barrister Sean Guerin SC had argued that the trial judge should not have told the jury that an accused person can be presumed to intend the natural and probable consequences of their actions. Counsel said that presumption only applies in murder cases as it arises out of section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1964 which defines murder in Irish law and goes on to state: "The accused person shall be presumed to have intended the natural and probable consequences of his conduct; but this presumption may be rebutted."

Delivering judgement on Friday, Ms Justice Una Ni Raifeartaigh dismissed the argument, citing numerous cases where judges had asserted the "presumption" in cases other than murder cases. She said the court is satisfied that the principle applies "across a wide range of offences involving intent".

The judge quoted a previous ruling of the Court of Criminal Appeal which stated: Unless an accused has actually expressed an intent, his intent can only be ascertained from a consideration of his actions and the surrounding circumstances, and a general principle with regard to establishing intention has regularly been stated as being that every man is taken to intend the natural and probable consequences of his own acts.

Justice Ni Raifeartaigh also dismissed an argument that the trial judge's direction to the jury about the presumption was inadequate. Mr Guerin had argued that the judge should have told the jury that the question for them to consider was: "Was death the natural and probable consequence of the accused's actions?"

Justice Ni Raifeartaigh found that the trial judge's direction was "entirely correct in as far as it went" and had correctly stated that the burden of proving that the presumption had not been rebutted lay with the prosecution. She also found, however, that the judge's explanation was "succinct" and "it might have been preferable to give a greater explanation."

The court referred, however, to a decision by the Supreme Court which stated that a judge's charge need not be "perfect". "What is required is a clear, accurate and understandable explanation of the legal principles at play so as to enable the jury to perform its function.

The judge pointed to various parts of the accused's interviews with gardai where he admitted that he intended to kill his wife.

In one extract he said he had the lump hammer because he "wanted to make my justice". When pressed on what that meant he said he wanted "justice to finish my hell" and when asked what would finish his hell he said: "If I would kill my wife." He later said: "The lump hammer was for that purpose, to kill my wife."

This was, Justice Ni Raifeartaigh said, "A clear admission of an intention to kill."

She dismissed the appeal.

Opposing the appeal last year Dominic McGinn SC for the DPP said Benkos lawyers were attempting to over-complicate what was a logical and straightforward concept that the natural and probable consequence of striking a sleeping woman on the head three times with a hammer was death.

Mr McGinn said it was a matter of common sense to reach such a conclusion. He deliberately took a heavy weapon and struck a sleeping, defenceless woman three times on the head, Mr McGinn said.

The original trial heard the couple had been having marital problems with Benko accusing his wife of taking and dealing drugs and spending all his money.
A teenager who pretended to be a garda and attacked a man on the street during the first lockdown last year has received a fully suspended sentence.

Edward Illes, now aged 20, was a passenger in a car which displayed flashing blue lights and took part in stopping people on the street under the guise of being a garda member.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that during one of these incidents, Illes attacked a man after he first asked the accused for identification and then called the emergency services.

The court heard that the behaviour started out as a prank and that Illes could be described as a very genuine person, but a complete eejit.

Illes, with an address at Park Drive Grove, Castleknock, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm at Luttrellstown Road, Castleknock, and to impersonating a garda at Carpenterstown Road, Castleknock, both on April 19, 2020. He has four previous convictions for road traffic offences.

Garda Ciara Darling told Fiona McGowan BL, prosecuting, that during the first lockdown in April 2020, a man was walking in his local area in Castleknock when a car displaying flashing blue lights pulled over beside him.

Gda Darling said the driver of the car asked the man where he was going and if he was out for exercise. Illes, who was the passenger in the car, then shouted at the man asking him for identification.

Illes got out of the car, approached the man and told him to take out his wallet. The man became suspicious that the accused was not a garda and asked to see garda identification.

The accused returned to the car and began looking through the glove box, while the man rang emergency services. Illes then ran towards the man with his fist raised. After the man kicked him in the stomach, Illes pushed him, causing the man to hit his head against a pole.

Illes knocked the man onto the ground and punched him five or six times while he was still on the phone to emergency services. Illes tried to take the phone from him, then ran back to the car and left the scene.

Gda Darling said that later on the same day, a Dublin Bus driver pulled over when they saw a car behind them with blue flashing lights because they thought it was gardai. The driver of the car got onto the bus and said he intended to inspect it.

This incident came to an end when the bus driver asked this man for identification, who told Illes to get it from the car, only for Illes to return and say he could not find it.

Illes also interacted with another man who was out walking his dog in the area, returning to the car after this man asked him to show identification to prove he was a garda.

In interview with gardai, Illes said he did not have a great recollection of events as he had been drinking and that the blue lights had belonged to the driver. The court heard that the driver has not attended court and warrants for his arrest are outstanding.

Gda Darling agreed with Jennifer Jackson BL, defending, that according to her client's co-accused, this behaviour started out as a prank. She agreed her client has not come to garda attention since the offence.

The garda agreed with counsel that her client could be described as a very genuine person, but a complete eejit. The court heard the accused had 1,000 in court as an expression of his remorse.

Ms Jackson said her client had worked two jobs and attended the gym daily prior to the pandemic. She said that during the lockdown he began drinking heavily because of boredom and driving around with his friends.

Counsel said her client now only drinks on special occasions. She said he has instructed her to apologise to the victims and to An Garda Siochana.

Judge Martin Nolan said he did not know what overtook them, but they had engaged in what could be termed very prankish behaviour which turned into very thuggish behaviour.

Judge Nolan said it would be tempting to imprison Illes because on the night he behaved in a very thuggish way. He said the court can accept the accused is unlikely to come back before to court for anything as serious as this.

He sentenced Illes to two years imprisonment, but suspended the sentence on strict conditions, including that he hand over the 1,000 and raise a further sum of 4,000 within one year.

Judge Nolan told Illes that he was a lucky man and that he behaved disgracefully. He told the accused that if he committed another offence, then he would be brought back to this court and this court will remember you.
A young man who smeared his own faeces on the wall of his cell after he was arrested on a night out in Carrick-on-Shannon was sentenced to prison by Judge Kevin P Kilrane when he a before Carrick-on-Shannon District Court recently.



Jamie Fitzgerald, 18 Greenfield Heights, Killucan, Co Westmeath pleaded guilty to criminal damage, being intoxicated in a public place, threatening, abusive and insulting behaviour, and refusing to give his name and address when asked by gardai.

Sgt Michael Gallagher told the court that gardai were called to McHugh's Bar in Carrick-on-Shannon on New Year's Eve after staff reported trouble with a customer.



When gardai arrived on the scene in the early hours of January 1, 2020 they found a very intoxicated Mr Fitzgerald. He refused to provide his name and address and security staff said they were having a particularly difficult time dealing with the defendant.

He called a female garda at the scene a f***ing slut and a whore and gardai were forced to arrest him and place him in a cell at Carrick-on-Shannon garda station.



However, once inside the cell Mr Fitzgerald smeared his own faeces over the wall and a blanket.

Defending solicitor, Martin Burke, said his client was had moved to Dublin as a very young man.

He had travelled to Carrick-on-Shannon on the date in question where his girlfriend's sister had an apartment and had gone into town.



Mr Burke acknowledged his client had become extremely intoxicated observing he doesn't drink at all now. This is an event stemming out of alcohol intake. Not giving his name and address and being unable to stand on his own two feet and slurring his words. This was all as a result of the alcohol.

Mr Burke said that Mr Fitzgerald had brought 300 to court to deal with the compensation of cleaning his cell adding that his client had cleaned out his bank account to do so.



He asked that the court be as lenient as possible adding his client asked me to make an apology to gardai today on his behalf.

Despite the appeal for leniency, Judge Kevin P Kilrane said the defendant must go to prison. His behaviour was shocking and there was no apology until today.

He also noted that Mr Fitzgerald had previous convictions.

His behaviour on the night from the word go at McHugh's and later in the garda station is shocking, disgusting behaviour, said Judge Kilrane.

Mr Fitzgerald pleaded with Judge Kilrane for another chance.



This was a defining moment in my character, he said, adding he was ashamed of the person I let myself become.

I am so sorry for my actions, for letting myself down and for everyone else affected, he added, offering an apology to the gardai in particular.

Mr Burke suggested that any sentence imposed be suspended to leave it hanging over (the defendant).



Judge Kilrane disagreed, sentencing Mr Fitzgerald to three months on the matter of criminal damage and two months each on the summonses for threatening abusive and insulting behaviour and failing to give his name and address when asked by gardai. All sentences were to be served concurrently.

The remaining summons for being intoxicated in a public place was marked as proven and taken into consideration.

Recognisance was set in the event of an appeal.

Also court: Case of criminal damage to Mohill house from hell dismissed
A LIMERICK man has been elected as a councillor near Manchester in England.

Rory Leonard, 25, spent the early part of his life in Hospital, and until the Covid-19 pandemic, was a regular visitor back home.

A primary school music teacher in Stockport, a market town in Greater Manchester, he won election for the British Labour party last week in its Stepping Hill ward.

It was the first time the party had gained a seat in that particular area, where he unseated a Liberal Democrat councillor after a hard-fought campaign. Up until then, it had changed hands between them, and Conservatives.

I knew we had increased our vote, wed worked very hard. But there has never been a Labour councillor in Stepping Hill and we were coming from third place. I thought we might be a close second, but to find out I had won by over 100 votes and we didnt have to go for a recount, it was amazing, he said.

Councillor Leonard remains really proud to be from Shannonside, and also has relatives in Carlow, with his father living over the Limerick border.

He remembers countryside, greenery and small villages from his time up in Limerick, a county he left aged just three when his mum moved to Manchester.

I cannot wait to come back over. Its been ages since Ive seen my Irish family, he added.

The newly-elected member joined the Labour party in Britain back in 2015 when Jeremy Corbyn was first elected leader.

He describes the partys former leader as a breath of fresh air.

He was just so inspiring to young people to offer an alternative vision for society and offer people hope when they had had so many cuts from the [Conservative-Liberal Democrat] coalition, said Cllr Leonard.

Labour suffered a poor election cross-channel last week, notably losing control of one of its legacy seats in Englands north-east.

Cllr Leonard says he wants to see more bold policies from the partys new leader Keir Starmer.

He urged him to reconnect with communities and show Labour fundamentally can shift society to a greater place.
AN Abbeyfeale man who now lives in Killorglin, County Kerry robbed an elderly neighbour in his own home as he was nodding off while listening to the Leinster hurling final on the radio, Tralee Circuit Court has heard.

At a sitting of the Circuit Court, 26-year-old Demetrius OBrien was handed down an 18-month suspended prison sentence after pleading guilty to robbery at the home of a 79-year-old in Killorglin, on November 14 last, contrary to Section 14 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act.

OBrien, of 76 Iveragh Park, and formerly of Abbeyfeale, entered the property and took a 20 note belonging to the man.

Giving evidence, Garda James Lenihan said the man, who lives alone, was listening to the Leinster hurling final between Kilkenny and Galway on the radio when a man known to him entered the property.

OBrien then stood over the pensioner, threatened him, said hed a knife, and demanded money, the court heard.

Prosecuting barrister Tom Rice told Judge Boyle that the 79-year-old had left his door open.

He leaves the door open because he suffers from asthma, Garda Lenihan confirmed.

OBrien then put his hand into the pensioner's jacket and took cash before leaving the house.

Originally from Abbeyfeale, OBrien is now living in Killorglin with a local lady, the court heard. A row erupted between OBrien and his wife and he was put out of the house before he decided to get money for drink by going into his neighbours house, Garda Lenihan told the court.

In his victim impact statement, read to the court by Garda Lenihan, the pensioner stated: A young lad came into my home. This upset me at the time but as time went on I got over it. It could have been a lot worse. Ive been told he has pleaded guilty and I dont have to come to court. This is a quiet area and we dont need that kind of stuff happening around here.

Mr Rice noted there was a dispute over the amount of money taken but said this case isnt about the amount of money taken. He said OBriens motivation was solely to get money for alcohol.

Defending barrister Katie OConnell said her clients actions were opportunistic more than anything, it wasnt premeditated, and there was no violence involved.

He felt rubbish for what he did and has sent letters of apology, she told Judge Boyle.

Unfortunately he did threaten an old man - it was a horrible thing to do but he is a sorry man and extremely remorseful.

He came home drunk, thats how the fight started, added Ms OConnell.

But in response, Judge Boyle said: Mr OBrien is an adult, he shouldnt have anyone trying to keep him on the straight and narrow, and then he goes away and picks on a vulnerable person.

Ms OConnell acknowledged that it was a very nasty crime.

Sentencing, Judge Helen Boyle said the aggravating factors in the case were the age of the victim, the fact OBrien entered his property, put his hand into the pensioner's jacket pocket and took money, and threatened to harm him.

But Judge Boyle acknowledged that no actual violence was used and OBrien didnt have a knife on him.

She said OBrien was lucky because of the fact the pensioner in question was a tough and resilient character.

She noted that while it was considered a serious offence, it was on the lower end of the scale when it came to robbery crimes.

The mitigating factors were, said Judge Boyle, OBriens plea of guilty, the fact he had no previous convictions of a similar nature, his difficult childhood, and his drink and drug addictions.

The sentencing judge said the incident warranted a headline sentence of two years in jail.

She reduced this to 18 months, which was suspended for a period of one year.
THE Mayor of the City and County of Limerick has welcomed the allocation of over 400,000 for repairs and improvement works on non-public roads in rural communities across Limerick.

Mayor Michael Collins was speaking following the government announcement that a total of 404,090 has been being allocated to Limerick under the Local Improvement Scheme.

The focus of the scheme is to support the continued improvement of rural roads and laneways that are not normally maintained by local authorities but which represent a vital piece of infrastructure for rural residents.

This allocation is very welcome for many landowners and farmers right across rural County Limerick. Having proper access to homes and lands as well as our local amenities is crucially important as we continue to promote rural living as a viable alternative to urban living," said Mayor Collins.

There is an increase in the allocation for Limerick this year of 20,000 which is hugely welcome. It is now incumbent on all involved to proceed with these selected works as soon as possible," he added.

Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys, who has announced funding totalling more than 10m nationally, said: As part of Our Rural Future, the Government has committed to increasing the level of investment in the repair of non-public roads through the Local Improvement Scheme. It is an important source of funding for small non-public roads and laneways leading to homes and farms as well as outdoor amenities such as lakes, rivers, mountains and beaches."

Ms Humphreys added: I know there is a significant demand for funding under the Local Improvement Scheme right across the country. That is why I am announcing increased funding for every county under the scheme, however, I am acutely aware that more is needed. I am working to identify if additional funding can be provided for LIS in 2021 and I would therefore urge each Local Authority to utilie the funding announced today, and complete the repair works on the selected roads, as soon as possible."

Local Authorities are responsible for identifying and prioritising roads for improvement works under the scheme, in consultation with local residents and landowners.

The funding provided by the Department of Rural and Community Development will be complemented by a local financial contribution from landowners/householders, as well as local authority resources.

A spokesperson for Limerick City and County Council said there will be a cap of 1,200 on the amount that any individual householder or landowner will be asked to contribute towards the cost of repairs to their road.
LIMERICK playwright Mike Finn is set to return this summer with a new site-responsive production Waiting For Poirot.

Following on from the hugely successful run of Bread Not Profits in Cleeves Factory back in 2019, Limerick audiences are in for a real treat in July with this new comedy.

Honest Arts in association with Lime Tree Theatre and the Belltable present Waiting For Poirot by Mike Finn. Audiences will experience a fast paced, laugh-out-loud, gripping, awe-inspiring, cliche-ridden, high octane romp.

Louise Donlon, director of the Lime Tree says she is excited to bring live performance to Limerick audiences once again in the wonderful setting of the Peoples Park.

"Waiting For Poirot will transform the park every evening into a hive of activity.. This is the best show youll see in the Peoples Park this July. Youll laugh. Youll cry. Youll wish there were toilets," she said adding: "The team could not be more thrilled and delighted to be able to return to live performance, in the company of our best and brightest Limerick theatre talents. What better way to mark the beginning of the end of this terrible pandemic than a tall tale written specifically for the people of Limerick by our very own Mike Finn.

Commenting on the new production, a spokesperson for Honest Arts said: "We feel privileged to have the opportunity to present one of the first live shows in the mid-west region to an 'in person' audience this summer, working alongside the incomparable team of playwright Mike Finn, Lime Tree Theatre | Belltable and our ensemble cast and creatives."

Bookings will open late May at limetreetheatre.ie with dates, times and booking details to be announced shortly. The production will be fully compliant with whatever public health guidelines are in place at the time.

____________________

Waiting For Poirot - the story

The year is 1925 and the fledgling Irish Free State is trying to find its way in the world while emerging from the shadow of a deadly War of Independence. Meanwhile, a bloody Civil War pitted brother against brother, father against son, uncle against aunt, second cousin against third cousin once removed and neighbour against the fella around the corner who owns the butchers.

Into this scene rolls a traveling group of players who labour under the title of Sir Montague Garricks Travelling Theatre & Electric Cinematograph who have taken up residence in the Peoples Park, Limerick. Here, they plan to present the blood-curdling melodrama, Murder In The Red Barn - if they can remember the lines.

However, the curtain has barely risen on this classic play when one of the actors turns up dead! Enter Maguire and Patterson two ex-IRA gunmen turned policemen who are determined to get to the bottom of the case. Meanwhile, a world famous detective is due in town - will he solve the case before them?

However, in a world where nothing is what it appears to be and no one is who they claim to be it will take all of Maguire and Pattersons training to bring the perpetrator to justice. The trouble is, they havent had any training. Meanwhile, the bodys gone missing.

With more twists than a helter-skelter and more surprises than a tuppenny Lucky Bag, Waiting For Poirot will have you on the edge of your seat. If you are on a seat. Which you wont be.
The Delhi cabinet has approved 5,000 assistance to drivers and permit holders of autorickshaws in view of the decreased economic activity and the resultant financial hardships they may face.

Among the beneficiaries are also drivers of e-rickshaws, taxis, Phat Phat Sewa, eco-friendly Sewa, Gramin Sewa and maxi cabs holding Public Service Badge (drivers).

According to a release by the state government, 78 crore was spent as financial assistance for over 1.56 lakh auto and taxi drivers.

"Beneficiaries of the 2020 scheme need not reapply but will get the 5,000 directly transferred to their Aadhar linked bank accounts subject to verification of deaths from local bodies," the government said.

Delhi currently has over 2.80 lakh PSV badge holders and 1.90 lakh permit holders who are eligible to apply for the scheme. The government said that the Delhi transport department has already made necessary budgetary provisions for the same.

"The validity of documents including PSV badge, permit, driving license, etc of all public service vehicles have been extended periodically since March 2020, as per orders by the ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH), Government of India," said the government release.

"The recent extension is till 30 June, and all the holders of the Driving license and PSV badge that are valid as of 1 February 2020, are eligible to receive financial assistance. However, similar to the last scheme, this benefit will only be extended to individual owners of para-transit vehicles and not to companies owning vehicle fleets," it added.

The government said the process is being undertaken after due verification by the department.

The Department has also clarified that all the PSV badge and permit holders of para-transit vehicles people who did not get financial assistance last year because of any reason whatsoever will have to apply again on the website. Link for the same will be made functional within few days on the Delhi transport department's website.

On 4 May, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced that one-time financial assistance of 5,000 will be provided to the PSV badge and permit holders of para-transit vehicles.

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LOS ANGELES (AP)  A Tesla involved in a fatal crash on a Southern California freeway last week may have been operating on Autopilot before the wreck, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The May 5 crash in Fontana, a city 50 miles (80 kilometers) east of Los Angeles, is also under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The probe is the 29th case involving a Tesla that the federal agency has probed.

In the Fontana crash, a 35-year-old man was killed when his Tesla Model 3 struck an overturned semi on a freeway about 2:30 a.m. The driver's name has not yet been made public. Another man was seriously injured when the electric vehicle hit him as he was helping the semis driver out of the wreck.

The CHP announced Thursday that its preliminary investigation had determined that the Teslas partially automated driving system called Autopilot was engaged" prior to the crash.

However on Friday, the agency walked back its previous declaration.

To clarify," a new CHP statement said, There has not been a final determination made as to what driving mode the Tesla was in or if it was a contributing factor to the crash."

At least three people have died in previous U.S. crashes involving Autopilot.

The CHP initially said it was commenting on the Fontana crash because of the high level of interest" about Tesla crashes and because it was an opportunity to remind the public that driving is a complex task that requires a drivers full attention.

The federal safety investigation comes just after the CHP arrested another man who authorities have said was in the back seat of a Tesla that was driving this week on Interstate 80 near Oakland with no one behind the wheel.

CHP has not said if officials have determined whether the Tesla in the I-80 incident was operating on Autopilot, which can keep a car centered in its lane and a safe distance behind vehicles in front of it.

But its likely that either Autopilot or Full Self-Driving were in operation for the driver to be in the back seat. Tesla is allowing a limited number of owners to test its self-driving system.

Tesla, which has disbanded its public relations department, did not respond Friday to an email seeking comment. The company says in owners manuals and on its website that both Autopilot and Full Self-Driving are not fully autonomous and that drivers must pay attention and be ready to intervene at any time.

Autopilot at times has had trouble dealing with stationary objects and traffic crossing in front of Teslas.

In two Florida crashes, from 2016 and 2019, cars with Autopilot in use drove beneath crossing tractor-trailers, killing the men driving the Teslas. In a 2018 crash in Mountain View, California, an Apple engineer driving on Autopilot was killed when his Tesla struck a highway barrier.

Teslas system, which uses cameras, radar and short-range sonar, also has trouble handling stopped emergency vehicles. Teslas have struck several firetrucks and police vehicles that were stopped on freeways with their flashing emergency lights on.

For example, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in March sent a team to investigate after a Tesla on Autopilot ran into a Michigan State Police vehicle on Interstate 96 near Lansing. Neither the trooper nor the 22-year-old Tesla driver was injured, police said.

After the Florida and California fatal crashes, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended that Tesla develop a stronger system to ensure drivers are paying attention, and that it limit use of Autopilot to highways where it can work effectively. Neither Tesla nor the safety agency took action.

In a Feb. 1 letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation, NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt urged the department to enact regulations governing driver-assist systems such as Autopilot, as well as testing of autonomous vehicles. NHTSA has relied mainly on voluntary guidelines for the vehicles, taking a hands-off approach so it wont hinder development of new safety technology.

Sumwalt said that Tesla is using people who have bought the cars to test Full Self-Driving software on public roads with limited oversight or reporting requirements.

Because NHTSA has put in place no requirements, manufacturers can operate and test vehicles virtually anywhere, even if the location exceeds the AV (autonomous vehicle) control systems limitations, Sumwalt wrote.

He added: Although Tesla includes a disclaimer that currently enabled features require active driver supervision and do not make the vehicle autonomous, NHTSAs hands-off approach to oversight of AV testing poses a potential risk to motorists and other road users."

NHTSA, which has authority to regulate automated driving systems and seek recalls if necessary, seems to have developed a renewed interest in the systems since President Joe Biden took office.

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Krisher reported from Detroit.
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American Idol has set no fewer than a dozen music stars for the series grand finale May 23  three of whom may be fairly predictable, given that Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Katy Perry are the shows judges.

Not quite as foreseeable in the final shows performing pecking order: Sheryl Crow, Chaka Khan, Luke Combs, Mickey Guyton, Lindsey Buckingham, Fall Out Boy, Alessia Cara, Leona Lewis and Macklemore.

The show will air on ABC live across time zones May 23 at 8 p.m. ET/5 PT.

Most of the 12 have been household names for some years, but Guyton is just becoming one, for many, after years of being a critical favorite on the country scene. She had her most high-profile TV gig recently when she co-hosted the Academy of Country Music Awards with Keith Urban. Weeks prior to that, she had a prime performance slot on the Grammys.
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Israels air force on Saturday attacked a tower block in Gaza housing the offices of the Associated Press (AP), Al Jazeera and the Middle East Eye.

The airstrikes came six days into renewed conflict between Israel and Hamas. They took place roughly an hour after Israeli military ordered an evacuation of the Al-Jalaa tower building, which housed the outlets bureaus as well as residential apartments.

AP reports that three heavy missiles hit the 12-story building, which collapsed. Military phoned in a warning an hour ahead of time, notifying tenants that the strike was imminent. Video published by independent news outlet Middle East Eye, which also held offices in the building, shows Al-Jalaa owner Abu Husam pleading with Israeli officials over the phone to allow journalists to return to the building to collect some gear before the airstrikes. The request was denied.

WATCH: The owner of al-Jalaa tower pleads with an Israeli officer on live TV to let journalists collect their gear before he bombs it. Moments later, Israeli air strikes demolish the #Gaza building that housed several international media offices used by AlJazeera and MEE pic.twitter.com/a5PRzQNOkC  Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) May 15, 2021

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the attack, stating that Al-Jalaa contained Hamas military intelligence assets.

The building contained civilian media offices, which Hamas hides behind and deliberately uses as human shields, reads a statement that was posted to social media.

After providing advance warning to civilians & time to evacuate, IDF fighter jets struck a multi-story building containing Hamas military intelligence assets. The building contained civilian media offices, which Hamas hides behind and deliberately uses as human shields. pic.twitter.com/zeDjEquePD  Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) May 15, 2021

AP occupied the top-floor office of Al-Jalaa for 15 years. The hub, which included a roof terrace, was a prime location for covering Israels conflicts with Gazas Hamas rulers, including wars in 2009 and 2014. The agency reports that its camera offered 24-hour live shots as militants rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city and its surrounding area this week.

Responding to the attack on the Gaza bureau, AP president and CEO Gary Pruitt issued a statement on Saturday: We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing APs bureau and other news organizations in Gaza. They have long known the location of our bureau and knew journalists were there. We received a warning that the building would be hit.

We are seeking information from the Israeli government and are engaged with the U.S. State Department to try to learn more. This is an incredibly disturbing development. We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life. A dozen AP journalists and freelancers were inside the building and thankfully we were able to evacuate them in time. The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today.

In a separate statement, Al Jazeera said it condemns in the strongest terms the bombing and destruction of its offices.

Dr Mostefa Souag, acting director general of Al Jazeera Media Network, said: We call on the international community to condemn such barbaric actions and targeting of journalists and we demand an immediate international action to hold Israel accountable for its deliberate targeting of journalists and the media institutions.

The aim of this heinous crime is to silence the media and to hide the untold carnage and suffering of the people of Gaza, added Souag. The destruction of Al Jazeera offices and that of other media organizations in al-Jalaa tower in Gaza is a blatant violation of human rights and is internationally considered a war crime. We call on all media and human rights institutions in denouncing this heinous crime, and to stand with Al Jazeera and other media organisations targeted by the Israeli army, despite knowing their use of the building as their headquarters for many years.

Saturdays bombing is being viewed as an attack on press freedom. The New York-headquartered Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) was swift in responding to the events, noting that targeting a building long recognized as a media hub for international outlets suggests the IDF is deliberately targeting media facilities in order to disrupt coverage of the human suffering in Gaza.

CPJ executive director Joel Simon added: We demand that the Israeli government provide a detailed and documented justification for this military attack on a civilian facility given the possible violation of international humanitarian law. Journalists have an obligation and duty to cover unfolding events in Gaza and it would be illegal for the IDF to use military means to prevent it.

This weeks attacks are the worst flare-up of tensions between Israel and Palestine since 2014. It is believed that 140 have been killed in Gaza, while nine have been killed in Israel.

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Joel Greenberg, consummate Florida Man and now-infamous running buddy of Rep. Matt Gaetz, pleaded guilty on Friday to 6 of the 33 federal charges hes been slapped with since last summer. One of the charges to which he admitted in federal court is sex trafficking a minor, noting in the plea that he introduced the minor to other adult men, who engaged in commercial sex acts.

This probably isnt great news for Gaetz considering Greenbergs plea deal includes an agreement to cooperate with the Justice Department, which just so happens to be investigating Gaetz for sex trafficking the same minor.

Greenberg was initially arrested in June of 2020 on stalking charges, forcing his resignation from his post as Seminole County, Floridas, tax collector. Hes since been charged with a dizzying array of crimes, from aggravated identity theft, to embezzling taxpayer money, to trying to bribe a Small Business Administration employee into helping him scam his way into pandemic relief money.

Theres also the charge for sex trafficking a minor, which led authorities to investigate Gaetzs relationship with the same 17-year-old. Gaetz has vehemently denied having a sexual relationship with a minor, and Greenberg did not name his pal in Congress by name in pleading guilty. Since The New York Times broke the news of the investigation into Gaetz in March, however, a substantial amount of evidence has emerged indicating that Gaetz may indeed be one of the other adult men Greenberg hooked up with the 17-year-old.

Greenberg claimed as much in a letter and text messages sent to former Trump adviser Roger Stone, the Daily Beast reported late last month. My lawyers that I fired, know the whole story about MGs involvement, Greenberg wrote in one text sent last December, MG referring to Gaetz. They know he paid me to pay the girls and that he and I both had sex with the girl who was underage.

If Greenberg tells federal authorities what he told Stone, and if said federal authorities feel they can corroborate his claim, Gaetzs days in Congress  and potentially as a free man  could be numbered.

Gaetzs office did not immediately return a request for comment on Greenbergs guilty plea.

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Earlier this month, LaKeith Stanfield became a moderator of a conversation on Clubhouse where dozens spewed anti-Semitic rhetoric and ideals. He has since come forward in a tell-all to the Daily Beast to explain his participation in the chat.

I definitely dont align myself with Louis Farrakhan, I dont stand by him, Stanfield said. Any kind of hate speech, I vehemently reject. Thats not up for debate, hate is not up for debate.

Stanfield alleged that he joined the Clubhouse room because he wanted to educate himself more about Farrakhan, who he said he had heard of, but did not know a lot about. The first room, operating under the guise of having a balanced conversation about Farrakhans legacy, was shut down by a moderator, but a second room picked things right up where they left off. Stanfield told the Daily Beast that he was eventually made a moderator by another one of the rooms members after he digitally raised his hand to ask a question.

I also didnt feel that the conversation was really headed in a direction that was completely attacking Jewish people, Stanfield told the Daily Beast. He went on to insist that he wandered away from his phone when a whole bunch of chaos started to erupt and people are saying all kinds of crazy things, apparently.

Representatives for Stanfield told Variety that the actor does not have further comment on the matter.

The day after the conversation, the Academy Award-nominated actor posted on Instagram an image that said, Thinkin outside of the box come wit a cost with the caption, Theyll always try to discredit and attack you futile. He told the Daily Beast the post had nothing to do with the backlash, but was rather just some song lyrics, which could not be confirmed. The post was later deleted and replaced with an apology. Stanfield wrote he should have shut down the discussion or removed himself from it when users made abhorrent antisemitic statements. The post has also since been deleted, along with all of his Instagram content except for two posts.

Participation in the Clubhouse room was not Stanfields first brush with anti-Semitism. In a now-removed 2013 YouTube music video called Swastikas and Bones, a digitally-inserted swastika appears on his forehead, which then fades and reappears in the corner. He explained the use of the hate symbol was a poor attempt to acknowledge it had been appropriated by the Nazis from its Hindu roots.

As signaled by the wipe of his Instagram, Stanfield told the Daily Beast that he is stepping back from social media and has since had private conversations with influential leaders like Rabbi David Wolpe. He confessed Clubhouse was not the right place to gain a proper understanding about the divisions between Black and Jewish communities and Farrakhan.

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Director Robert Eggers The Northman will release in theaters on April 8, 2022, Focus Features announced on Friday. Universal Pictures International will premiere the film internationally on the same day.

Starring Alexander Skarsgard, Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicole Kidman, Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe and Bjork, the revenge thriller explores the depths at which a Viking prince will go to seek justice for the murder of his father.

Eggers third feature as director wrapped filming in December 2020. Production originally began late last summer in Ireland, but had to pause for a period of time due to COVID-19.

When I went to Belfast [for The Northman], I was pretty scared, Kidman told Varietys Marc Malkin in January. People were saying, Oh my God, if you go, youre going to get COVID. So I was really frightened, but at the same time, I had this sense of duty and I had this sense of this is what I do. Im a creative being who shows up and I put on as much protection as I could and so I did the production and we were all safe and I went, OK, lets go.

The Northman serves as a follow up to 2019s The Lighthouse, which starred Dafoe and Robert Pattinson and earned an Academy Award nomination for best cinematography. In addition to Dafoe, The Northman reunited Eggers and Taylor-Joy, who starred in his directorial feature debut, The Witch. Eggers also co-wrote the screenplay with Icelandic poet and novelist Sjon. It is produced by Lars Knudsen (Midsummer), Mark Huffam and New Regency.

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The largest TV networks are getting ready to snare billions of dollars from Madison Avenue. And lose them, all at the same time.

Expectations are high for the industrys annual upfront, when TV networks try to sell the bulk of their commercial inventory for the upcoming season. With the coronavirus pandemic lifting, TV executives believe they have moved past the lows of last years difficult negotiations with ad buyers and onto a brighter day when most sectors of the economy are ready to spend heavily again on marketing messages.

The annual springtime ritual of programming presentations for ad buyers will be virtual this year, kicking off on Monday with events for NBC and Fox. Disneys many platforms take the stage on Tuesday, as will Discovery and Univision. CBS and WarnerMedia go on Wednesday.

We are seeing great strength in the markets, not just from a pricing point of view, but also from a volume point of view, said Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch, speaking to investors earlier this week. The budgets are bigger and more significant than we would have expected,

Heres the catch: A good chunk of that money will have to go to a dizzying array of streaming venues like NBCUniverals Peacock, Discoverys Discovery Plus, ViacomCBS Paramount Plus, WarnerMedias HBO Max, Disneys Hulu and Foxs Tubi. Simply put, live viewership for linear TV has fallen so much that the networks cannot give their advertisers the ratings guarantees they crave unless they can get them to commit to streaming views as an add-on.

Demand is outpacing the available supply they have to offer. Thats just a fact, said Geoffrey Calabrese, chief investment officer for Omnicom Media Group North America, told Variety. Ratings have eroded to a point where clients desire to find impressions in the linear space is too high.

No one disputes that the networks are likely to see healthy spending. But some executives caution that the largest TV platforms may overplay their hands by demanding stratospheric pricing increases for commercials and sponsorship deals on both linear and streaming outlets.

NBCUniversal has made no secret of the fact that it believes streaming video represents the new primetime. Ad buyers say the company is in some instances seeking eye-popping increases of around 50% in CPMs  the cost to reach 1,000 viewers, a unit that is central to the annual upfront negotiations  for ads on Peacock. The CPM rates for HBO Max are said to, in some cases, be even higher. Both services promise very low ad loads, which makes the commercials scarce and lends impetus for higher rates. Hulu, which carries a heavier ad load, is not seeking such high CPM hikes, buyers said.

You have some targeting capabilities in digital. What you dont have is the mass scale that linear offers. If youre going to argue to me that you should get these rich CPMs, I have a tough time swallowing that, said Calabrese. The networks, he suggested, need to determine if they want spectacular price increases or significant upticks in the volume of ad dollars they collect. They may not get both.

The networks will also be pressing for significant CPM hikes for linear TV. Last year, with money being taken off the table amid the economic uncertainty of the early pandemic, TVs leverage waned. The biggest networks could only muster hikes in the low-single-digit percentage range. The networks are hell bent on returning to double-digit increases this year, buyers report.

Simply put, the networks need to sell their linear inventory for top dollar. The prices commanded by old-fashioned linear TV commercials is still significantly higher than digital or streaming ads, which do not snare the same big, live audiences all watching the same program simultaneously. And if the CPM hikes are too much for some to bear, the networks will be happy to sell to a swelling army of new direct-to-consumer advertisers like Wayfair, Casper or Warby Parker. These are brands that established themselves online and now need to build the kind of mass awareness that big-name products like Tide, Lysol, Apple et al enjoy.

These upstarts dont have the deals that some of their older counterparts have. Longtime TV sponsors benefit from old agreements that limit the rate hikes they must pay each year. If youre a network ad-sales chief, youd much rather sell your TV time to a new digital advertiser who will pay a big pricing increase, rather than a Procter & Gamble or State Farm, who probably wont.

The networks will need to tread carefully. There may be more cash on the table, but its not clear it will reverse the downturn of last years upfront, where Variety estimates primetime ad commitments for the five English-language broadcast networks fell 9.3% to 14.6%, to between $8.2 billion and $9.8 billion, compared with between $9.6 billion and $10.8 billion for primetime in the 2019-2020 season. It was the first time since 2015 that the level of those commitments sagged.

To win this year, the big media companies ought to consider not only if they can notch gains, but whether than can do so without making clients feel like theyre being fleeced. An advertiser who agrees to steady increases and bigger budgets year after year is surely better than one who walks away after submitting to an outrageous deal in a single session.

***

YOUNG AND IMPRESSIONABLE: One of the immutable laws of television holds that people between the ages of 18 and 49 are the most desirable viewers to reach. This year, the networks want to loosen that definition.

All the networks are engaged in discussions about getting paid based on total impressions, rather than on a demo that targets younger viewers. In the past, advertisers focused on people between 18 and 49 or, in certain cases, viewers between 25 and 54. Now, the networks say those younger crowds are more readily available on digital.

The advertisers just buy too young, said Jon Steinlauf, chief U.S. advertising officer at Discovery. You buy TV for what its good at and buy digital for what its good at. Digital is good under 40 and TV is good over 40.

A+E Networks has already been making the rounds of media buying agencies, proposing a total audience currency that lets the company get paid based on the total number of people watching its TV outlets. If advertisers want, they can delineate specific audience goals  by age, gender, predisposition to buy a certain product, response  on top of those deals. According to media buyers, similar concepts from other media companies are also making the rounds.

Local TV stations have been at this for months. As the audiences for local programs winnow, big station owners  including those owned by NBC and Nexstar Media  have moved to impressions-based systems across the board.

Advertisers still want younger consumers. But the media companies are making it plain that capturing them via their main linear product is getting harder to accomplish.

***

PLEASE PROVIDE RECEIPTS: Tracking the flow of upfront ad dollars has always been a tricky task. The rise of streaming may well make any such endeavor impossible.

There is no official tally of upfront ad commitments. For years, one way to try and gauge the networks sales efforts was to compare primetime activity across the board. Thats where the most expensive ads are sold and, as such, makes a decent proxy for how the media industry fared in its efforts to win billions for commercials.

But primetime these days is whenever an individual viewer says it is. A fan of This Is Us or Young Sheldon can watch a single episode or binge through many at times of his or her own choosing. As advertisers are forced to spread their dollars from linear daytime, primetime and late-night to streaming, the comparisons between networks are harder to make. NBCUniversal, Fox, WarnerMedia, ViacomCBS and Disney all have different portfolios of assets that command varying levels of price and volume.

The entrepreneur and former media analyst Tom Wolzien used to try to corelate upfront totals whispered by the networks to the press to actual ad-revenue results disclosed in quarterly and annual reports. His determination? I couldnt find any correlation whatsoever to reality, he said in 2004. In 2021, that connection is likely to become even more tenuous.

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BEIJING (AP)  China has canceled attempts to climb Mount Everest from its side of the world's highest peak because of fears of importing COVID-19 cases from neighboring Nepal, state media reported.

The closure was confirmed in a notice Friday from Chinas General Administration of Sport, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The move reflects the abundance of caution China has taken in dealing with the pandemic. While China has mostly curbed domestic transmission of the coronavirus, Nepal is experiencing a surge with record numbers of new infections and deaths.

China had issued permits to 38 people, all Chinese citizens, to climb the 8,849-meter (29,032-foot) -high mountain this spring. Nepal has given permission to 408 people. Climbing was not allowed from either side last year because of the pandemic.

In Nepal, several climbers have reported testing positive for COVID-19 after they were brought down from the Everest base camp.

The month of May usually has the best weather for climbing Everest. Scores have reached the summit this week and more are expected to make attempts later this month once the weather improves. Two climbers have died on the Nepalese side, one Swiss and one American.

China earlier said it would set up a separation line at the peak and prohibit people on its side from coming into contact with anyone on the Nepalese side. It was unclear how that would be done.

An expert climbing guide, Lukas Furtenbach of Austria, said he was calling off his current Everest attempt with a team of over a dozen climbers from the Nepalese side because of virus fears.

We ended our expedition today because of safety concerns with the given COVID outbreak, Furtenbach said in a message from base camp. We dont want (to) send people or Sherpas up, they (could) get sick high up there and die.

Before leaving for the mountain, he had warned that the virus could spread among the hundreds of other climbers, guides and helpers who are now camped on the base of Everest if all of them are not checked immediately and safety measures aren't taken.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A deputy U.S. marshal was charged in a cyberstalking scheme that authorities said he perpetrated with his ex-wife to have a former lover thrown in jail, the Justice Department said Friday.

Ian Diaz, 43, is accused of working with his then-wife to create fake online profiles in 2016 to pose as a woman with whom Diaz had previously been in a relationship, according to federal prosecutors. The couple used the phony accounts, posing as the former lover, to send themselves threatening and harassing messages, including threats to harm Diazs wife, prosecutors allege.

The couple also posted advertisements on Craigslist in an attempt to lure men to be part of so-called rape fantasies, prosecutors said. The posts directed them to come to the Diazs home in Anaheim, California, in what prosecutors say was an attempt to stage a sexual assault of Diazs former wife and then blame the ads on his ex-lover.

Prosecutors say the two had staged one or more hoax sexual assaults and hoax attempted sexual assaults. They then called the police and asked that officers arrest the former lover, showing investigators the emails and saying they were written by the woman, according to court documents.

The couple reported the threats and postings  that prosecutors say they made themselves  to local law enforcement officers. Diazs former lover was arrested and charged with making the threats and was held in jail for almost three months for conduct for which they framed her and in fact perpetrated themselves, prosecutors allege.

Ian Diaz was arrested Thursday after being charged with cyberstalking, conspiracy to commit cyberstalking and perjury. An attorney who represented him in a related civil case did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. His former wife was not charged in the indictment.

The couple tried to conceal their actions using virtual private networks and encrypted messaging services, according to the indictment.

Diaz, who has worked as a criminal investigator since 2010 in Los Angeles, has been placed on administrative leave and relieved of his duties, a spokesman for the U.S. Marshals Service said in a statement.

We take seriously any allegation of misconduct by our personnel, the statement said. The alleged actions of this employee do not reflect the core values of the U.S. Marshals Service.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  Turmoil from the battle between Israel and Hamas spilled over into the West Bank on Friday, sparking the most widespread Palestinian protests in years as hundreds of young demonstrators in multiple towns clashed with Israeli troops, who shot and killed at least 11 people.

Israel's bombardment of the Gaza Strip continued into early Saturday, when an airstrike on a house in Gaza City killed at least seven Palestinians  the highest number of fatalities in a single hit. That strike came a day after a furious overnight barrage of tank fire and airstrikes that wreaked destruction in some towns, killed a family of six in their house and sent thousands fleeing their homes.

The Israeli military said the operation involved 160 warplanes dropping some 80 tons of explosives over the course of 40 minutes and succeeded in destroying a network of tunnels used by Hamas to elude airstrikes and surveillance.

Israel appeared determined to inflict as much damage as possible on Gazas Hamas rulers before international efforts for a cease-fire accelerated. Since Monday night, Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which has pounded the Gaza Strip with strikes. In Gaza, at least 126 people have been killed, including 31 children and 20 women; in Israel, seven people have been killed, including a 6-year-old boy and a soldier.

Houda Ouda said she and her extended family ran frantically into their home in the Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, seeking safety as the earth shook in the darkness.

We even did not dare to look from the window to know what is being hit, she said. When daylight came, she saw the destruction: streets cratered, buildings crushed or with facades blown off, an olive tree burned bare, dust covering everything.

The latest airstrike targeted a three-story house on the edge of a refugee camp. Said Alghoul, who lives nearby, said Israeli warplanes dropped at least three bombs on the home without warning residents in advance.

I could not endure and ran back to my home, he said. Rescuers called a bulldozer to dig through the rubble for survivors or bodies.

Shortly afterward, Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the airstrike.

The conflict, which was sparked by tensions in Jerusalem during the past month, has reverberated widely. Israeli cities with mixed Arab and Jewish populations have seen daily violence, with mobs from each community clashing and trashing each others property. New clashes broke out Friday in the coastal city of Acre.

In the occupied West Bank, on the outskirts of Ramallah, Nablus and other towns and cities, hundreds of Palestinians protested against the Gaza campaign and Israeli actions in Jerusalem. Waving Palestinian flags, they trucked in tires that they set up in burning barricades and hurled stones at Israeli soldiers. At least 10 protesters were shot and killed by soldiers. An 11th Palestinian was killed when he tried to stab a soldier at a military position.

In east Jerusalem, online video showed young Jewish nationalists firing pistols as they traded volleys of stone with Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah, which became a flashpoint for tensions over attempts by settlers to forcibly evict a number of Palestinian families from their homes.

On Israel's northern border, troops opened fire when a group of Lebanese and Palestinian protesters on the other side cut through the border fence and briefly crossed. One Lebanese was killed. Three rockets were fired toward Israel from neighboring Syria, but they either landed in Syrian territory or in empty areas, Israeli media said. It was not immediately known who fired them.

The spiraling violence has raised fears of a new Palestinian intifada, or uprising, at a time when the peace process has been virtually nonexistent for years. The tensions began in east Jerusalem earlier this month, with Palestinian protests against the Sheikh Jarrah evictions and Israeli police measures at Al-Aqsa Mosque, a frequent flashpoint located on a mount in the Old City revered by Muslims and Jews.

Hamas fired rockets toward Jerusalem late Monday, in an apparent attempt to present itself as the champion of the protesters. In the conflict that spiraled from there, Israel says it wants to inflict as much damage as it can on Hamas military infrastructure in Gaza.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Hamas would pay a very heavy price for its rocket attacks. Israel called up 9,000 reservists Thursday to join its troops massed at the Gaza border.

An Egyptian intelligence official said Israel had turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year cease-fire that Hamas had accepted. The official, who was close to Egypts talks with both sides, spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the internal negotiations.

On Friday, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for Israel-Palestinian affairs, Hady Amr, arrived in Israel as part of an attempt by Washington to de-escalate the conflict.

U.S. President Joe Biden gave a show of support to Netanyahu in a call a day earlier, saying there has not been a significant overreaction in Israels response to Hamas rockets. He said the aim is to get a significant reduction in attacks, particularly rocket attacks.

Hamas has fired some 2,000 rockets toward Israel since Monday, according to the Israeli military. Most have been intercepted by anti-missile defenses, but they have brought life to a standstill in southern Israeli cities, caused disruptions at airports and have set off air raid sirens in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Rafat Tanani, his pregnant wife and four children, ages 7 and under, were killed after an Israeli warplane reduced their four-story apartment building to rubble in the neighboring town of Beit Lahia, residents said. Four strikes hit the building, Rafats brother Fadi said. The buildings owner and his wife also were killed.

It was a massacre, said Sadallah Tanani, another relative. My feelings are indescribable.

When the sun rose Friday, residents streamed out of the area in pickup trucks, on donkeys and on foot, taking pillows, blankets, pots and pans and bread. Thousands took shelter inside 16 schools run by the United Nations relief agency UNWRA, agency spokesman Adnan Abu Hasna said.

Mohammed Ghabayen, who took refuge in a school with his family, said his children had eaten nothing since the day before, and they had no mattresses to sleep on. And this is in the shadow of the coronavirus crisis, he said. We dont know whether to take precautions for the coronavirus or the rockets or what to do exactly.

Israeli military officials cheered the operation as a successful blow against the tunnel network. Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said 160 warplanes operated in a synchronized manner for about 40 minutes as part of the operation.

He said the military aims to minimize collateral damage in striking military targets. But measures the military takes in other strikes, such as warning shots to get civilians to leave, were not feasible this time.

Military correspondents in Israeli media said the military believed dozens of militants were killed inside the tunnels. The Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups have confirmed 20 deaths in their ranks, but the Israeli military said the real number is far higher.

We turned the tunnels which they thought were death traps for our soldiers into traps for them. Reserve Air Force Col. Koby Regev said on Israeli television.

___

Keath reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Isabel DeBre in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Samy Magdy in Cairo also contributed to this report.
PARIS (AP)  French riot police fired tear gas and used water cannons Saturday in Paris as protesters supporting Palestinians in the Gaza Strip defied a ban on marching in the French capital.

Thousands of people marched peacefully in other cities in France and elsewhere in Europe  including in London, Rome, Brussels and Madrid  to highlight the plight of the Palestinians.

In Paris, protesters scattered and played cat-and-mouse with security forces in the city's northern neighborhoods after their starting point for a planned march was blocked.

Paris Police Chief Didier Lallement had ordered 4,200 security forces into the streets and closed shops around the kick-off point for the march in a working-class neighborhood after an administrative court confirmed the ban due to fears of violence. Authorities noted that a banned July 2014 pro-Palestinian protest In Paris against an Israeli offensive in Gaza degenerated into violence to justify the order against Saturdays march.

Organizers sought to denounce the latest Israeli aggressions and mark the fleeing of Palestinians after Israel declared independence in 1948. Stop Annexation. Palestine Will Vanquish, read one poster in a small crowd facing off with police.

Protesters shifted from neighborhood to neighborhood in Paris as police closed in on them, sometimes with tear gas and water cannons, and police said 44 people were arrested. In a lengthy standoff, protesters pelted a line of security forces with projectiles before police pushed them to the edge of northern Paris.

We don't want scenes of violence. We don't want a conflict imported to French soil, government spokesman Gabriel Attal said.

Anger over the Israeli offensive in Gaza drew protests elsewhere in Europe on Saturday. Thousands marched on the Israeli Embassy in London to protest Israels attacks, which included an airstrike that flattened a 12-story building in Gaza that housed media outlets, including The Associated Press.

Demonstrators chanting Free Palestine! marched through London's Hyde Park and gathered outside the embassy gates, watched by a large number of police. Organizers demanded that the British government stop its military and financial support to Israel.

Husam Zumlot, head of the Palestinian mission to the U.K., told the crowd that this time is different.

This time we will not be denied any more. We are united. We have had enough of oppression, he said.

In the Netherlands, a few hundred people in The Hague braved the cold and rain to listen to speeches and wave Palestinian flags on a central square outside the Dutch parliament building. On Friday evening, Dutch police briefly detained about 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators in the city of Utrecht because they were not social distancing.

In other French cities, large pro-Palestinian crowds marched peacefully Saturday in Strasbourg in the east and Marseille on the Mediterranean Sea. Demonstrations were also held in several German cities and in Brussels, host to the European Union. In Madrid, protesters chanted This is not war, this is genocide! in Spanish, with some people holding up homemade signs that read USA Terrorist State and Muslim Lives Matter.

In Berlin, police broke up a pro-Palestinian protest of 3,500 people for failure to comply with coronavirus distancing rules. Protesters responded by throwing stones, bottles and fireworks.

___

Jill Lawless in London, Mike Corder in Netherlands and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed.
Brittany N. Gaddy/AP

NEW YORK  Walmart, the worlds largest retailer, said Friday that it wont require vaccinated shoppers or workers to wear a mask in its U.S. stores, unless state or local laws say otherwise.

Vaccinated shoppers can go maskless immediately, the company said. Vaccinated workers can stop wearing them on May 18. As an incentive, Walmart said it is offering workers $75 if they prove theyve been vaccinated.
Kathleen Reynolds, wife of the late Taoiseach Albert Reynolds, was quite simply one of a kind.

A devoted wife, loving and committed mother, she oozed gentility throughout her 88 gloriously fulfilled years.

The mother of seven was remembered this week as someone who held a deep and resolute faith wherever she went.

Fr Brian DArcy alluded to those deep seated virtues at Mrs Reynolds Funeral Mass at the Church of Sacred Heart, Donnybrook last week.

He said Kathleens innately pious nature played a key, underlying role in the successful formulation of the Northern Ireland Peace Process.

One thing you can say about Kathleen was she was loyal, he said.

When she took a saint on board, that was her personal saint.

There was no other saint. I used to say to her would you not think of saying a wee prayer or a Novena of Hope. No, she said,

I will stick to the one that works.

The secret power behind the plan of peace was Kathleens prayers and Kathleens dedication.

A proud descendant of Ballymoate, it was here the elegantly stylish Sligo native met her future husband during his spell as a CIE work.

At the time, the then Kathleen Coen, was plying her own trade in McGettricks Outfitters.

When goods arrived by train, her future husband delivered them to the shop and later invited Kathleen to go to a dance with him, by bicycle.

It was an invitation which would turn into an abiding union that would last a lifetime.

It didnt come without a few interesting interludes at the outset of the pairs romance, however.

Fr DArcy told of how showband legend Paddy Cole referred to a conversation the Monaghan musician had exchanged with a mourner ahead of this mornings ceremony.

He said as he came into Church that some man had spoken to him outside and said he took Kathleen for a dance one night but during the dance he got a tap on the shoulder from Albert who said: You dont have planning permission for that.

The pair would later go on to exchange nuptials at a modestly sized wedding at Westland Row Church, Dublin, in June 1962.

For the first few months of their newly married life, the couple co habited with Mr Reynolds mother in Rooskey before later going on to buy their own home, Mount Carmel along Longfords Dublin Road.

Within two years of their marriage, their first child, Miriam, was born with Kathleen opting to become a full time homemaker.

Their six other children, Philip, Emer, Leonie, Albert Junior, Cathy and Andrea soon followed.

A full time house helper moved in with the family, but it failed to stop Kathleen aiding the children with their daily homework.

Though always seen both exquisitely dressed and with a dazzling smile on her face, Kathleen underwent personal health issues of her own, always courageously borne and away from the public eye.

In December 1991, she was diagnosed with cancer and like she had done all the way through her life, the power of prayer pulled Kathleen through.

I silently prayed to St Rita of Cascia, she said at the time.

Over the years, I had asked her for little favours, like exam success for the children and the like. She never let us down.

Readily viewed as the perennial mainstay behind her late husbands rise to political stardom, memories have been relived this week of February 1992 when Mr Reynolds was elected Fianna Fail leader.

In an extract taken from Tim Ryans book entitled Albert Reynolds: The Longford Leader, the would be Taoiseach reportedly told his wife on the morning of his election: Youll be proud of me before this day is out.

Upon kissing Kathleen on the cheek, the insatiably proud mother of seven replied: You know Im very proud of you, love. We all are. Good luck and God bless, Albert.

An agonising forty-six minutes later and just after 3:30pm, a newsflash filtered through, confirming the inevitable.

A huge cheer is said to have engulfed the Reynolds living room, prompting Kathleen to sigh: Thank God, its finally over.

If anything ever calls for a celebration, this does.

It was a statement which illustrated just how steadfastly loyal she was to her husbands political career.

Her influence on Mr Reynolds and in the home was unquantifiable.

He likes to have my support, and he thinks it important, she said in an interview with the Sunday Press.

But I wondered at the start, how I was going to attend all those functions.

Indeed it was how the then first lady was likened to her US based counterparts by political correspondents of the day which undoubtedly best summed her up.

Political wives like Kathleen Reynolds dont exist in American politics, Brenda Power wrote at the time.

The difference between Kathleen and the Barbaras and the Hilarys (of Bush and Clinton administrations) is that Kathleen is for real.

Shes the genuine article.

And that, perhaps, just perhaps is how she will be remembered-one of a kind.

The late Kathleen Reynolds is survived by her children Miriam, Philip, Emer, Leonie, Albert, Cathy and Andrea, her sister Sr Emmanuel , her brother Paddy, her daughters-in-law Anne and Erika, sons-in-law Kevin, Niall, Garret and Jamie, her adored grandchildren Phoebe and Heidi, Robert, Stephanie and Mark, Mia, Katie, Jack and Sarah, Charlie, Harry and Anna-Rose, sister-in-law, nieces, nephews, relatives, many friends and her wonderful carers, to whom sympathy is expressed.

May she rest in peace.
The Spanish and Balearic government are making all the right noises to reopen the doors to British tourists as quickly as possible, it could be as early as May 20, depending on the British government, because the UK is the countrys biggest tourism market.

For example, not having UK visitors in May and June could mean a loss of nearly three billion euros compared to 2019 figures.

While Mallorca is very much home from home for the Germans, who are flocking to the island this weekend with much of central Europe on holiday for the next week to ten days, the Balearics needs to maintain this momentum and fingers crossed, once central Europe has gone back to work, Britons living in England will be able to take off for the Balearics.

Covid cases are at a record low in the region, the vaccination roll out has picked up some serious speed and it is unfair that the Balearics should be made to pay the price for higher rates on the mainland, in particular Madrid with which the Balearic government is engaged in a war of words over the handling of the pandemic.

Madrid is still on the red list in Spain with some of the highest levels of cases, intensive care wards still have a Covid capacity of around 43% with the capitals lockdown measures having been very lax. Madrids mismanagement should not be allowed to impact on the Balearics.
The rules and regulations for International travel are changing from one day to the next, causing frustration and disappointment for holidaymakers and Tourism Sectors.

It was hoped that Mallorca would be able to welcome British tourists in June, but thats been thrown in doubt because of the rise in Indian Covid Variant cases in the UK.

Portugal was the only European country to be added to the UKs Green list, but its had its share of indecision too.

The other day, Portuguese officials announced that the countrys State of Public Calamity was being extended until the end of the month, causing widespread panic because thousands of Brits had already booked and paid for their holidays.

Just 24 hours later, the Portuguese Minister of State for Foreign Affairs has confirmed that British tourists will be allowed to enter Portugal from midnight on Monday.

We look forward to welcoming British visitors again, Algarve Tourism President, Joao Fernandes told Travel Weekly. With 48.5% of our international visitors arriving at Faro airport from the UK in a typical year, the absence of British visitors was noticed and missed last summer.

It's not the first time that a country has flip-flopped over International travel and entry criteria and it certainly won't be the last.
Authorities have identified the man found fatally shot in a Lawrence backyard as 25-year-old Edward Javier.

The Essex District Attorneys office said Javier, of Lawrence, suffered multiple gunshot wounds. As of Friday afternoon, no arrests have been made in connection with the shooting.

Around 8:30 a.m. Friday, Lawrence police went to 461 Haverhill St. for a report of a body in the backyard, the district attorneys office said.

There, officers discovered Javier with gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.

An investigation is ongoing and no further information has been released.

Related Content:
Authorities have identified a man killed in a shooting Friday night in New Bedford as 32-year-old Joseph Pauline.

New Bedford police received 911 calls around 6:45 p.m. Friday reporting shots fired outside the Richdale Food Market on Brock Avenue, according to a statement released Saturday morning by the office of Bristol District Attorney Thomas Quinn III.

Officers got to the scene moments later and found Pauline, of New Bedford, in the parking lot suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, the statement said.

Pauline was rushed to St. Lukes Hospital in New Bedford, where he was pronounced dead at 7:44 p.m., the district attorneys office said.

Authorities said the investigation is extremely active and ongoing as of Saturday morning. No further information was released.
A worker has been flown to the hospital after falling 30 feet at a construction site in Kingston, fire officials said Saturday.

The worker fell from the roof of an Amazon facility at William C. Gould Way, according to a Facebook post from Kingston Fire and Emergency Management. Firefighters from both Kingston and Plymouth responded to the scene. The incident was referred to as a construction accident.

The worker was flown by medical helicopter to a trauma center in Boston, officials said.

No further information was immediately available.

Got a news tip or want to contact MassLive about this story? Email newstips@masslive.com or message us on Facebook or Twitter. You can also call our news tips line at 413-776-1364.
This story has been updated with additional comments from legislators.

HOLYOKE  A joint Legislative committee has advanced a bond bill pledging $400 million for a new Soldiers Home in Holyoke, putting it one step closer to Gov. Charlie Bakers desk.

The committee headed by state Rep. Joseph Wagner, D-Chicopee, gave a nod to financing a new, state-run home on Cherry Street in the wake of a deadly COVID-19 outbreak, plus a labor agreement and $200 million bookmark for expanded veterans services across the state.

The House and Senate are expected to sanction the bill through votes in the coming days. The bond bill will be headed for Bakers signature shortly after, Wagner said.

I anticipate that the House and Senate will enact this funding authorization next week, and that it will be sent to the Governor for his consideration and signature, he said.

There is an Aug. 1 deadline for the state to secure up to $260 million in federal reimbursement for the Holyoke project. The additional $200 million for regional equity projects is not subject to the same deadline and will be fodder for future legislative debate, Wagner said.

All Massachusetts veterans who have served and sacrificed on behalf of our nation, particularly the veterans and families touched by the tragedy at the Holyoke Soldiers Home, are deserving of our service on their behalf. It is an honor to be a part of the effort to deliver a newly-constructed soldiers home in Holyoke so that veterans who reside there are afforded the best possible care and services, Wagner said.

The bill surviving the conference committee also includes a labor agreement plus that favors union shops and minority and female contractors.

The effort to build a new Soldiers Home has been a sprint since 77 veterans last year lost their lives to the coronavirus, with the outbreak blamed in part on cramped conditions at the 1950s facility.

Former superintendent Bennett Walsh and medical director Dr. David Clinton were ousted over the fiasco and later criminally indicted. They have pleaded not guilty to 10 neglect counts each, and argue they were scapegoated by state officials.

The Baker administration pushed the Holyoke Soldiers Home capital project in addition to other reforms including a separate legislative committee to probe the response to the outbreak.

In the months that followed (the outbreak), I worked in partnership with my colleagues, including Speaker (Ronald) Mariano, as well as Governor Baker, Health and Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders and members of the veterans community to advance a plan to construct a new soldiers home in Holyoke, Wagner said Friday. I was honored to serve as the lead negotiator in the House to reconcile differences between the House and Senate bills to provide funding for a new soldiers home. The filing of a conference committee report today achieves that goal and represents a milestone on a continuum of working to improve the lives of veterans in Massachusetts.

Wagner and state Sen. Senator Cindy F. Friedman released a joint statement crediting leadership in both chambers for moving the bill through.

We would like to thank Senate President (Karen) Spilka and Speaker Mariano for their leadership, as well as our fellow conference committee members for their efforts in advancing this vital legislation.

Also on the Senate side, state Sen. John Velis, a Westfield Democrat who has championed the cause, said he is heartened to see the bill get closer to closure.

From the very start and after years of tragedy, friends and family of veterans reached out to me with a very clear message: Get this done. The marching orders were clear; get the mission accomplished. So we began: from listening sessions with families to standouts at the Home, to the vigil that took place last month to mark the anniversary of the beginning of the pandemic, this has been a truly long and enduring process, Velis said. We fought for this Home recommendation for months ... We are one step closer to making it a reality.
Restaurant delivery has become an integral part of the contemporary dining experience, and Alchemista, Boston-based food service innovator, is melding delivery with technology to facilitate the at-home enjoyment of restaurant food.

Founded in 2012 to provide chef-quality meals in upscale office settings, Alchemista suddenly found itself mostly without customers when lockdowns rolled out last March.

Alchemista has since pivoted to a program of high-tech food lockers it had previously developed for smaller clients, at the same time creating delivery partnerships with two Boston-area restaurateurs.

The company has been installing what it refers to on-demand modular marketplaces in the lobbies of luxury apartment buildings. Ten of these installations, which the company has branded as The Locket, were in place across greater Boston as of March, with more rolling out weekly.

The individual marketplace lockers are temperature controlled, enabling them to hold hot, cold, or ambient-temperate items; the boxes also incorporate a self-sanitizing UV capacity. Customers order and pay online via an Alchemista app, then subsequently access an individual cubicle using a QR code.

Although Alchemistas own culinary staff prepares meals and snacks to stock the modular marketplaces, the company has also partnered with two James Beard Award winners, Chefs Ken Oringer and Jamie Bissonnette, who operate a pair of Boston South End eateries  Toro, a tapas restaurant, and Coppa, an Italian enoteca. Both restaurants have now created simplified versions of their menus for The Locket program.

Alchemista uses a schedule of twice-daily deliveries to stock its marketplaces with these chef-prepared dishes. Entree prices, which include Alchemistas markup, are between $20 and $25.

Like most third party delivery arrangements, the process isnt profitable at this point, but all involved are bullish about its future potential.

For more information on Alchemista, including photos of menu selections, go to alchemista.com.

Side dishes

Its not just computer chips that are in short supply these days; restaurant operators across the country are coping with a serious shortage of chicken wings.

The wings drought is the result of multiple causes. The February freeze in Texas disrupted chicken-farming operations, while the proliferation of online wings brands has led to steep increases in overall demand. Labor problems at chicken processing facilities are also creating a choke point in the supply chain.

The biggest players in the wings business have, for the most part, have their supplies protected by long-term contracts with poultry producers. Smaller operators and independents, however, are reporting difficulties getting enough wings to sell.

Some have turned to finger food alternatives, such as chicken breast strips, thighs, and pork riblets. Others have trained staff to suggest alternatives to wings and, in some cases, are even limiting the number of wings individual customers can purchase.

Wholesale prices for bone-in wings have risen about 50% over the last several months, and the current supply problems are expected to persist through 2021.

One industry executive joked that what is really needed to remedy this supply predicament is the development of a four-winged chicken.

Champneys Restaurant at the Deerfield Inn will once again be hosting Fancy Nancy luncheons on May 22 at 11:30 a.m. and on May 23 at half-past noon.

Those attending are encouraged to dress fancy as they enjoy a reading of the childrens classic Fancy Nancy during lunch. A full childrens menu will be available; reservations are suggested.

Call (413) 774-5587 for details.

Outside dining has returned to Fort Street as the Student Prince Cafe and Fort Restaurant has reopened its spacious dining tent, offering the establishments full menu as well as live music Wednesday through Saturday evenings.

The Student Prince is also celebrating the month of May with a special Festival of Lamb menu. The selections available range from an appetizer of lamb lollipops to lamb shepards pie and a spring lamb rack.

Mays special dessert is an almond cake served with whipped cream.

To make reservations at the Student Prince, call (413) 734-7475.

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews restaurants are into bacon big-time this spring, offering a Bacon Jammin Burger topped with bacon jam, bacon strips, and bacon aioli. Bacon Jammin wings are also being featured; they come garnished with bacon jam, bacon crumbles, cherry peppers, and barbecue-brown sugar glaze. The Bacon Jammin experience will be available at Red Robin through mid-summer.

Red Robin locations can be found at Holyoke Crossing in Holyoke and on Hazard Avenue in Enfield.

The Irish House Restaurant in West Springfield will be hold a tequila pairing dinner on May 27.

The four-course event will start at 6 p.m. and will feature smoky tuna tostadas, lemon chicken soup, a chicken and seafood paella, and tres leches cupcakes. A different tequila cocktail will be paired with each course.

Tickets are $50; call the Irish Cultural Center at (413) 342-4358 to inquire.

The Irish House Restaurant has also introduced specially-priced Wednesday evening pasta specials.

Sonic Drive Ins are this month featuring chili-topped sandwich creations. Their Twisted Texan cheeseburger gets dressed with chili, American cheese, and fried onion strings; a foot-long Twisted Texan hot dog is similarly garnished.

Two limited-time-only ice cream blast experiences are also available. The Cheesecake Blast features cheesecake pieces blended with ice cream, while the Strawberry Cheesecake Blast also has strawberries swirled in. Both are available through late June.

There is a Sonic Drive In on Boston Road across from Five Mile Pond.

Changes are in store at the iconic White Hut Restaurant on Memorial Avenue in West Springfield.

The White Hut is now open later, serving until 7:30 p.m. seven days a week. The Hut opens at 6:30 a.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Curbside pickup is available.

New menu items have also been introduced this month. White Hut customers can now enjoy two breakfast sandwiches. The Popeye features an egg-spinach scramble with bacon, tomato, and American cheese, while the Western is made with the classic combination of diced ham, peppers, and American cheese. Both are served on a water roll.

During the rest of the day bratwurst topped with sauerkraut and stone ground mustard is now available.

White Huts full menu can be viewed online at whitehut.com; their telephone number is (413) 733-8000.

Participating Dunkin locations are have begun offering an additional diary substitute in the form of coconut milk, which can be specified in espresso beverages for an extra charge.

Coconut milk is also a component in a new series of fruit-flavored refreshers; a coconut milk iced latte is available as well. Both are permanent menu additions.

The Shortstop Bar and Grill in Westfield is now offering a menu of spring cocktail creations.

These include a Pineapple Upside-Down Martini made with pineapple rum, amaretto, and pineapple juice; a tequila-based Mint Strawberry Smash; and The Cuke, a tall cooler that features a shot of cucumber and mint-infused vodka, soda water, a splash of sour mix, and a fresh lime and cucumber garnish.

Shortstop is once again promoting banquet events, which can be held indoors in a private room or outside, with a maximum capacity of 60.

Contact the establishment at (413) 642-6370 for more details.

Masses American Bistro in Chicopee recently installed a new pizza oven in their kitchens, and the restaurant has begun preparing artisanal pizza creations like white garlic shrimp or chicken and broccoli.

To celebrate this menu expansion, Masses is currently offering a $10 pizza and Bud Lite special.

Masses answers at (413) 315-8501.

For those looking for family pack take-out options, the Munich Haus German Restaurant in Chicopee manintains an assortment of options.

Family pack dinner selections, which are available sized to serve either four or six, include an entree selection, salad with a choice of dressings, two sides, and a large package of the restaurants signature chip and dip pre-dinner nibbles.

For larger groups many menu items can be ordered in full-pan or half-pan amounts. Entree options include assorted German sausages, sauerbraten, golumbki, or selected chicken and pork schnitzels. Sides, salads, soups, and apple strudel are also available. A days advance notice is requested on panned bulk orders, and contactless curbside pickup is available.

For a full menu go to munichhaus.com; call (413) 594-8788 to place an order.

Hugh Robert is a faculty member in Holyoke Community Colleges hospitality and culinary arts program and has nearly 45 years of restaurant and educational experience. Robert can be reached on-line at OffTheMenuGuy@aol.com.
SPRINGFIELD  A Connecticut man is awaiting sentencing in federal court after he pleaded guilty Friday to a slew of charges related to the theft of 17 firearms from a West Springfield gun shop.

Christian Castro, 31, of New Britain, entered guilty pleas to theft of a firearm from a federal licensee; being a felon in possession of a firearm; interstate transportation of a stolen firearm; possession, concealment, storage, barter, sale or disposition of a stolen firearm in interstate commerce; and making a false statement to a federal official.

Soon after the theft, Rivera discovered he was a suspect in the robbery, and he and Castro took three guns to New York City to sell them, prosecutors said. the entrance door, and once inside smashing several display cases and grabbing 17 firearms.

Rivera pleaded guilty to charges May 5 and is also awaiting sentencing.

According to FBI records, Castro, Rivera and two others drove stolen cars to locations in Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts stealing from ATMs, attempting other thefts and eventually ending up in the parking lot of the Guns Inc. building the night of Aug. 20, 2020.

Three of the men smashed the front door of the gun shop while the fourth waited in a car.

Once inside the shop, the three spread out, smashed display cases and took handguns out to the waiting cars. One man returned to the building, smashed a third case and took more guns before the gang fled.

What the three did not know was one of the cars they had used carried a GPS tracker, and law enforcement was able to determine where the vehicles went during the crime spree. Also, authorities searched the gangs cellphones and found pictures showing some of the crew with the stolen firearms.

Soon after the theft, Rivera discovered he was a suspect in the robbery, and he and Castro took three guns to New York City to sell them, prosecutors said.

After his arrest, Castro admitted driving to and from the crime scenes but falsely denied touching any of the stolen guns, prosecutors said.

U.S. District Court Judge Mark Mastroianni set Castros sentencing for Sept. 23.
CHICOPEE  In a year when the word Zoom changed from describing something going fast to a proprietary noun for something that kept millions of people locked in one place, one of the few things left to us all was our collective humanity, Elms College graduates were told as they received their degrees Saturday morning.

The 471 graduates of the class of 2021, including some who had not been on campus for the past year, gathered on the Sister Kathleen Keating Quad between Berchmans Hall and the Mary Dooley College Center to receive their degrees.

Graduates sat in chairs set six feet apart under white tents, and all were required to wear face masks during the ceremony.

Ironically, as the class finally came together in one place, COVID restrictions forced their family and friends to watch the ceremony from their cars on large screens set up near outlying parking lots.

Elms College President Harry E. Dumay told the graduates their Catholic education obligated them to be concerned about others.

Quoting Margaret OBrien Steinfels, Dumay said, Our responsibility is for all that is genuinely human, the joy and hope, the grief and anguish for the women and men of our time, especially those who are poor or affected in any way.

Steinfels sensibility is similar to what is taught at Elms, Dumay said: We who work and study in the footsteps of the Sisters of St. Joseph are called to develop and to take with us in our daily interactions with dear neighbors that sensibility for those least advantaged.

Dumay told the graduates that he and his family recently buried his father in his native Haiti, and he took the occasion to recall an article his father once wrote calling on each individual to be a more humane person.

Class of 21, Dumay said, may you keep in your heart the desire to become, day by day, a more humane person. May you use the knowledge that you have acquired at Elms College and continue to keep learning. May you view every person as someone who matters and may you keep caring for the dear neighbor, especially the less privileged. May you keep your faith in your own ability and that of those around you.

The commencement speaker, Haitian novelist Edwidge Danticat, who delivered remarks from her home in Miami, lauded the class of 2021 for exercising the spiritual lessons taught by the Sisters of St. Joseph, even during one of the hardest years.

At a time when there is so much division and pain in this country, you did not run away from the moral and ethical challenges of the past year. You distributed food, diapers and other goods to those in need, and spoke out against inequality and injustice and police and vigilante killings, she said.

Danticat said Haitians have a concept called combite, or, as she described it, a gathering with a shared goal.

Members of a community come together to accomplish something that benefits the entire community or to benefit a single person in need, she said. Combite initially began in agriculture: Today I work your field, tomorrow you work mine. The pandemic has shown, and you have modeled this at Elms, that we respond best to communal challenges when we respond as each others harvest or as a combite. And when we look ahead, and not just dream about or plan our individual futures but that of our neighbors as well.

Class valedictorian Shaughnessy Docekal said everyone in the class of 2021 learned grit, citing qualities including courage, conscientiousness, perseverance, resilience and passion.

Docekal described passion as, That ability to learn your course material not only because you have to, but because what you studied was rooted so deeply in your values, interests and passion that it called to you.

In her final address to the Elms community, Cindy Lyons announced she was stepping down after 15 years on the Board of Trustees and seven as chairwoman.

Lyons said one of her roles as a trustee has been to promote the colleges mission and values as rooted in the tradition of the colleges founders, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield.

The sisters envisioned a college that would challenge students to embrace change without compromising principle, to respond creatively to the demands of their chosen careers, and to advocate for those in need, she said. Believe that your kindness matters, that caring for others kindles a light within you that can illuminate the darkness for someone else. Believe that together we can make a better world.

Lyons, along with Hampden County Sheriff Nicholas Cocci, each received an honorary doctorate of humane letters for their service to the school or the community at large.

As sheriff, Cocchi has implemented programs aimed at returning inmates to society and reducing the number of repeat offenders. Dumay cited Cocchis innovation, dedication and determination in law enforcement and your commitment to a compassionate corrections system.

Cocchi said he and his deputies see compassion as an essential element to their jobs.

I feel as though I am here to receive this degree on behalf of my staff because they are the ones who make it work, he said.

Given the challenges the pandemic presented, Trustee Anthony Cignoli said even having a class of 2021 was an accomplishment.

They didnt know what they were dealing with in the beginning, Cignoli said of the colleges administration. What Dr. Dumay, Cindy Lyons and Vice Chairman Paul Salzer did was extraordinary. To see all the staff and faculty come together and figure this out so we could return as soon as possible. And they did it with almost no incidents of COVID on campus.
WASHINGTON  Gov. Charlie Baker met Friday at the Pentagon with the Air Forces top civilians and uniformed leadership as Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield stays in the running to host the latest F-35A fighters jets.

Bakers public schedule included a meeting with Jennifer L. Miller, acting assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, environment and energy, followed by a separate meeting with both acting secretary of the Air Force John P. Roth and Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., chief of staff of the Air Force.

Baker also had his annual sit-down with the states congressional delegation, hosted by U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield. Neal said last week that he planned for an east-west passenger rail route linking Springfield and Boston to be a topic at that conversation in the Capitol.

The governor also planned to meet with members of the Massachusetts National Guard deployed in Washington following the Jan. 6 riots.

Westfield mayor Don Humason speaks at the ribbon cutting ceremony for the reopening of Runway 15-33 in August. He said the city supports efforts to get the F-35 jets.

But its the Air Force meetings that give a window into the administrations efforts on behalf of Westfield and Barnes.

Brown is the senior uniformed Air Force officer responsible for the organization, training and equipping of 689,000 active-duty, National Guard, Reserve and civilian forces serving in the United States and overseas.

The Air Force has said it will replace the current F-15 fighters at Barnes, home of the Air National Guards 104th Fighter Wing, and at other bases  Fresno Yosemite Airport in California and Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans  with either F-15EX planes or, preferably, the F-35As.

It matters for Westfield and the region whether Barnes gets the upgraded F-15EX fighters or the more modern F-35As, said Westfield Mayor Donald F. Humason Jr. The F-15 platform is getting old, he said, while the future is the F-35. Getting them here could secure the bases future for decades.

What would be better for us and the region (that) if what was going on at the 104th was cutting edge, as futuristic as possible? Humason said. If you are not moving forward and advancing, you are standing still.

Humason said one of the criteria the Air Force will look at is if the bases are in welcoming communities. Fighter jets have caused pushback in some communities, including Burlington, Vermont.

From June 21-25, there will be a site survey at Barnes as part of the base selection process, said state Sen. Jon C. Velis. He said he expects a decision in the fall.

The process was delayed both by COVID-19 and by the transition from the Trump administration to the Biden administration.

Besides being a state senator and former state representative, Velis is on the Massachusetts Military Asset and Security Strategy Task Force and is a major in the Army Reserve.

At Barnes, the airport and its tenants  military and civilian  have a $138.5 million payroll and total economic impact of $236 million a year, according to the citys airport authority. The airport is responsible directly or indirectly for 2,100 jobs.

The 104th Fighter Wing is tasked with providing armed fighters ready to scramble over the Northeast in response to any airborne threat. The unit is responsible for protecting a quarter of the nations population and over one-third of its gross domestic product.
For concert promoter DSP Shows, the work never went away during the pandemic. Just the revenue did.

Last March, John Sanders, a partner in DSP Shows, had traveled to Massachusetts from his home in Pennsylvania to work a number of live music performances. When the virus hit, he rushed to postpone the shows until after the lockdowns were lifted.

We were very naive about what was going to happen, Sanders said. Hes since rescheduled some events a half-dozen times.

For DSP Shows and other promoters, performance halls and live music venues, such has been the story of the last 14 months. But as Gov. Charlie Baker and other state leaders across the country move toward their final stages of reopening plans, these companies are seeking a last push of assistance to get across the finish line.

For many, their hope is that it comes in the form of a Shuttered Venues Operators Grant. Originally passed with bipartisan support in the December federal stimulus bill as the Save Our Stages Act, the SVOG fund provides $16 billion in aid to live performance venues, promoters, theaters, museums and talent representatives. The money can be used on payroll, rent, utilities and a host of other costs associated with businesses reopening.

I think its going to do a lot, said Troy Siebels, president and CEO of The Hanover Theatre in Worcester.

Much of the focus on music venues has been how they operate when nearly all revenue disappears, Siebels said. But he now expects a significant impact from costs associated with reopening  rehiring staff, buying a new HVAC system, updating cleaning protocols and installing touchless ticket scanners and water faucets to eliminate germ spread.

Combined with those additional expenses will be a slow return for audiences still wary of the virus, Siebels guessed.

We anticipate audiences will ramp up over months or years, so we anticipate a couple of years of difficult budget crunch, he said.

When applications for the SVOG opened on April 8, the website crashed under the weight of companies across the country trying to apply for the first-come-first-serve grant program. But technical difficulties werent the only glitch in the process.

The application didnt ask for all the information they needed to make decisions, Siebels said. They said that our grant awards were based on earned revenue, but they didnt ask how much earned revenue we brought in. It was kind of a mess at first.

After nearly three weeks of maintenance, the applications reopened, this time with the correct forms and a working website. Like all those applying, The Hanover will be eligible to receive up to 45 percent of its pre-pandemic earned revenue and will find out by the end of May how much it is granted. For an organization that lost more than 90 percent of its normally $8 million in revenue, the federal money will be a significant boost in the reopening effort.

Ten billion dollars have already been requested from the fund, which is run by the Small Business Administration, Siebels said. Companies were organized by three tiers of priority, the highest being for those whose revenue dropped more than 90 percent during the last year.

Despite its significant losses in earned revenue, The Hanovers nonprofit status and contributions from the public place it in the second priority tier  those who lost more than 70 percent of revenue.

Graham Nash performed at the Academy of Music in Northampton on Friday, Oct. 4, 2019. (Matt Berg photo)

Down 68 percent in earnings from last year, Northamptons Academy of Music falls barely into the third priority group. Aid from the city, fundraising efforts and several grants have helped the Academy of Music get along, Executive Director Debra JAnthony said. But for a venue that serviced 60,000 people a year pre-pandemic, the SVOG money will help immensely.

Since last March, the organization has steadily used up its cash reserves. Much of the staff, including virtually all the front-of-house workers  ticket vendors, bartenders, ushers  were laid off last year. Now, much like The Hanover, the Academy of Music is faced with steep reopening costs.

Our reserves are pretty slim. You have to restaff, but you dont have the reserves. You have to restock on inventory and pay expenses up front, JAnthony said. So, its essential and significant support. Hopefully, well be hearing from [the SBA] by the end of the month.

Even businesses that have generally weathered the storm are in need of the SVOGs help. Signature Sounds, a Northampton record label and organizer of live music events, is in better shape than most, Jim Olsen, its president, said. If anything, people were buying more music during the pandemic.

Signature Sounds will still be eligible for the federal funds, though Olsen said that the business has waited to see whether there would be enough money in the system before applying.

Olsens company lost roughly 25 percent of revenue, far less than some of its competitors, but he said he can see how the pandemic has drained the industry.

Its been really hard. We work with independent artists whose lifeblood depends on being able to tour, he said. Thats how they make their living and having that rug pulled out from under them is really challenging.

Those musicians are not eligible for support from the SVOG.

I think the industry will recover, but I think were going to lose some clubs, Olsen said. I already know some bands that may not make it back from this. I dont think its all going to come back all at once.

Massachusetts has one of the highest rates of COVID-19 vaccinations in the country, and with Gov. Bakers plan to begin the final stage of reopening on August 1, music venues are eying a return to indoor performances then or soon after.

The challenge, Siebels said, is that for some performances, simply being able to reopen wont be enough.

We really cant come back at less than full capacity and make it work for the big shows, he said. We dont break even until 70 percent capacity. For a venue that can host 2,300 people, The Hanover will also need 200 people on staff.

Signature Sounds marquee event, the Green River Festival, is slated to resume this summer at 75 percent capacity. But even as the governor aims for an August reopening, some business owners are still way.

[Baker] better keep his word, Olsen said with a laugh.

Sanders is currently planning indoor shows for the fall, a necessity in a business where any events must be scheduled months in advance. If he has to push the dates back again, it will only continue the story of the past year.

Weve gotten pretty good at postponing shows, Sanders said.

The Hanover is also preparing for fall and winter plays and musicals, including Escape to Margaritaville, which features songs by Jimmy Buffett.

We can all use an escape after this year, Siebels said.
A former Massachusetts mayor first elected at the age of 23 by touting himself as a successful entrepreneur was convicted Friday of stealing money from investors in his start-up to bankroll his lavish lifestyle and soliciting bribes from marijuana vendors who wanted to operate in the struggling mill city.

Jasiel Correia was found guilty of extortion, fraud and filing false tax returns after 23 hours of jury deliberations over four days in a trial that highlighted Correias swift rise and fall in Fall River, where he had dazzled voters at a young age with his promises to turn the city around.

Correia, now 29, was also acquitted on three counts, including accusations that he forced his chief of staff to give him half of her salary in order to keep her city job.

Correia, who insisted he was innocent and attacked the charges as politically motivated, never took the stand. After leaving Bostons federal courthouse fitted with a electronic-monitoring bracelet, Correia told reporters that his fight is not over and predicted he would win on appeal.

Eventually the real truth will come out, Correia said. I will be vindicated and my future will be very long and great.

Acting U.S. Attorney Nathaniel Mendell called the verdict a fitting end to this saga.

Correia made a lot of promises, a lot of bold statements in business, in politics and in government, Mendell said. The jury found today, in its verdict, the truth.

Correias lawyer had argued his client wasnt a criminal, but merely an inexperienced businessman who believed that he was free to use investors money as he deemed fit while he was producing the smartphone app.

Before Correia became mayor, prosecutors say he lured investors to support his app called SnoOwl by falsely claiming that he had previously sold another business for a big profit. Prosecutors say he used nearly two-thirds of the almost $400,000 he took from investors on himself and spent it on things like fancy hotels, casinos, high-end restaurants and expensive gifts for his girlfriend.

Investors who took the stand told jurors they handed over their cash because they believed Correia was bright, trustworthy and headed for great things. One investor said he thought Correia was a boy wonder and that Correia assured him he wasnt going to take a dime out of the company so all the money could go to the development of the app.

Instead, prosecutors say Correia looted a bank account filled with investor money to pay for things like a helicopter tour of Newport, Rhode Island, a Mercedes, a $300 bottle of cologne and a $700 pair of Christian Louboutin shoes for his girlfriend.

These werent occasional purchases, this is shameless continued stealing without any regard for the fact that he is betraying people who trusted him, Assistant U.S. Attorney Zach Hafer said.

Throughout the trial, prosecutors portrayed Correia as a serial liar, who they said misled voters in order to get elected just like they said he duped investors.

In a clip shown to jurors from a 2015 debate during the race for mayor, Correia promised taxpayers that he would take your money and spend it wisely  because he said thats what he had done in his business. His lie about how he previously sold another app for big money allowed him avoid questions about how he could afford such a lavish lifestyle on his $17,000 annual salary as a Fall River city councilor, prosecutors said.

After the Democrat took office as mayor in 2016, prosecutors say Correia quickly turned to old school pay-to-play political corruption, by soliciting bribes from marijuana vendors seeking to operate in Fall River. Marijuana business owners, who were given immunity to testify against Correia, told jurors about how Correia or middlemen negotiated bribes in exchange for letters of approval from the city they need in order to get a license.

Correias lawyer attacked the credibility and sought to shift the blame onto the governments witnesses who had cooperation agreements with prosecutors, suggesting they were lying in an effort to help themselves.

One man, who pleaded guilty in the extortion scheme, told jurors about how he collected an envelope filled with $25,000 in cash that a middleman had put in a shed behind his home. The witness, Hildegar Camara, said he opened the envelope in front of Correia and got spooked, telling the mayor, If you take this or I take this, were going to go to jail.

Another man, who was hoping to operate a marijuana business in Fall River, described how Correia showed up at his familys store and asked for $250,000, saying he needed it for legal defense fees. After Correia and Charles Saliby eventually agreed on a lower bribe, Correias chief of staff told Saliby: Youre family now, according to Salibys testimony.

Correia was acquitted of two extortion counts related to a scheme involving a Rolex watch and one count of bribery stemming from accusations that he convinced his chief of staff to kickback part of her salary to him.

Correias lawyers argued it wasnt a bribe but a loan from a mother-like figure to Correia. And though his chief of staff pleaded guilty to charges including extortion and bribery, she never took the stand to testify against Correia.

Hes scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 20.
AMHERST  The Town Council has invited the community group Reparations for Amherst to discuss racial inequities at Mondays meeting.

Co-founders Michele Miller and Matthew Andrews will present their views with two other Amherst residents, Amilcar Shabazz and Barbara Love. The group has written a 39-page report, Report on Anti-Black Racism and Black/White Disparities in the Town of Amherst.

The report addresses a number of areas of concerns including education, policing, health, employment and housing. It was written by Andrews, Miller, Jeff Fishman, Daiana Griffith, Mattea Kramer, Mary Porcino and Anita Sarro, and edited by Kramer.

In an interview, Miller said, We do expect a committee will be created or at least the town council will recommend this in the near future, to fully examine reparations for Amherst.

Amherst Town Manager Paul Bockelman said he has met with the community group and discussed ways the Town could utilize funds to support the work that they are doing following proper procurement and contracting rules.

Mondays remote-access council meeting that begins at 6:30 p.m. will be broadcast and live-streamed by Amherst Media.

Following the reparations presentation by the quartet, the council is scheduled to discuss the issue.

A budget hearing on the managers proposed fiscal 2022 budget is also on the agenda that also includes: a resolution to oppose closing the Gorse Childrens Center at Mount Holyoke College; discussion on whether to join Pioneer Valley Mosquito Control District; and a potential vote to increase water and sewer rates.
SPRINGFIELD  A court battle between Mayor Domenic J. Sarno and the City Council around oversight of the Police Department has led to nearly $60,000 in legal costs, funded by taxpayers, related to the mayors defense.

The cost is expected to climb higher as Sarno appeals a judges ruling in the City Councils favor.

Councilors led by Justin Hurst, a frequent critic of the mayor, requested that the city Finance Department disclose Sarnos legal bills in the case. As of mid-April, the bills totaled $58,757.75, according to the Finance Department. The potential cost of the appeal was not provided.

The council has not incurred any legal costs in the matter, having obtained the pro bono services of two private lawyers, Thomas Lesser and Michael Aleo of Northampton.

Sarno is being represented by lawyers from Bowditch and Dewey LLP of Worcester.

The city Law Department was not able to represent either side because the case involves one city entity suing another. The Law Department does have budget accounts for legal and professional services outside of Law Department salaries, the Finance Department said.

Hurst and Lesser criticized the expense related to the mayors defense.

It is extremely disappointing that the Mayor is spending tax payer money to appeal such a clear and well-reasoned decision, Lesser said. Given the importance of the Board of Police Commissioners, as well as the preservation of the separation of powers, we will continue to represent the City Council on a pro bono basis.

City solicitor Edward M. Pikula issued the following statement regarding the legal expenses:

There was really no alternative to retaining outside counsel given the fact that the Law Department is conflicted from representing any party in a lawsuit between the Mayor and the City Council, Pikula said. In this case, it makes more sense to have a lawyer experienced in municipal law from outside the City to handle the matter rather than someone who appears regularly in cases involving the City of Springfield.

The rates being charged are below that in comparison to lawyers with similar expertise, Pikula said.

In 2014, The National Law Journal posted the results of an hourly billing survey from law firms, Pikula said. It showed the average attorney hourly rate for partners was $604, and associates charged $307.

Hurst, who is a private lawyer, said it seems from the submitted invoices that there are times the city is paying $375 an hour for the outside counsel.

The numbers appear high to me for work done over the course of four months, Hurst said. Im sure that our own solicitor, the top attorney for the city, doesnt make anywhere near that amount. Im fearful for our taxpayers who have the burden of footing this bill how much a frivolous appeal will cost considering what has already been spent.

The council sued Sarno in Hampden Superior Court in October over his refusal to appoint a civilian police commission. Judge Francis E. Flannery ruled in April that the councils 2018 ordinance creating the commission is valid and enforceable and directed Sarno to appoint its members. Sarno recently filed a notice of appeal of the ruling, saying the council ordinance is an attempt to usurp his executive powers.

A civilian commission oversaw hiring and discipline in the Police Department for a century until 2005, when it was abolished by a state Finance Control Board. Since then a single police commissioner, appointed first by the Control Board and later by the mayor, has overseen the department.
In a decision released Friday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court upheld a 2014 murder conviction that sent an Easthampton man to prison for the rest of his life.

Attorneys for Ryan Welch, convicted in the slaying of his girlfriend Jessica Pripstein, argued that judges involved in the case allowed evidence that should have been withheld.

In its ruling, the SJC upheld rulings by judges C. Jeffrey Kinder and Daniel A. Ford and denied Welch a new trial.

Finding no reversible error either in any issues raised by the defendant in our review under G.L.C. 276, we affirm the defendants conviction and the order denying his motion for a new trial, the justices wrote in a 40-page decision.

Attorneys for Welch and the Northwest district attorneys office argued before the SJC on Feb. 5.

Defense attorney Alan Black argued that statements Welch made while he was hospitalized and text messages he sent about a work-related dispute should have been presented to the jury during the original trial. Black also argued that certain prior bad acts such as Welchs drunken driving conviction should not have been allowed.

Welch was charged with the February 20, 2012 stabbing death of Pripstein, 30, whose body was found in the couples Easthampton apartment.

A Hampshire Superior Court jury found Welch guilty of first-degree murder after barely four hours of deliberation. He was 38 at the time.

Nine years later it is still a tragedy, but finally the Pripstein family can get some closure, Easthampton Police Chief Robert Alberti said of the decision.

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The trial of Louis D. Coleman III, the Providence man accused of kidnapping and killing 23-year-old Jassy Correia after she celebrated her birthday at a Boston nightclub in 2019, is scheduled to begin on Feb. 28, 2022 in federal court in Boston, federal authorities announced on Friday.

Coleman was indicted on a federal charge of kidnapping resulting in death and is facing a sentence of death or life in prison. Prosecutors say Correia died from strangulation and blunt force trauma.

According to court records, Correia went out the night of Feb. 23, 2019 in Boston, to celebrate her upcoming 23rd birthday with friends.

In the morning hours of Feb. 24, 2019, after the club closed around 2 a.m., Correia was outside alone. Eventually, she ended up interacting with Coleman. The two walked along Tremont Street, and at one point, Coleman began to carry Correia in what has been described as a piggyback, according to federal records.

Video shows Coleman and Correia getting inside a red sedan and leaving. Roughly two hours later, surveillance footage shows Coleman parking his car outside his 95 Chestnut St. apartment building in Providence. Federal records said it was around 4:15 a.m. on Feb. 24, 2019.

Federal investigators said they obtained surveillance footage showing Coleman dragging Correias limp body into the apartment building, onto an elevator and into his apartment on Feb. 24.

On Feb. 26 Correias father reported her missing to the Boston police, prompting a massive search for the young mother. Authorities quickly zeroed in on Coleman, who was seen walking toward his red sedan with Correia before she disappeared.

The same day, Coleman was caught on video surveillance entering his apartment building with Walmart shopping bags. Authorities obtained a receipt from a Providence Walmart, which revealed that Coleman bought three protective suits, duct tape, candles, electrical tape, one mask, surgical gloves, two pairs of safety goggles, an odor respirator and CLN release bleach bath, officials said.

Colemans car was stopped on Interstate 95 near Wilmington, Delaware on Feb. 28, 2019. Authorities ordered him out of the car and then asked him if anyone else was inside.

Shes in the trunk, Coleman allegedly responded.

Correias body was in the cars truck, wrapped in a sofa cushion which was inside a black trash bag and inside a large suitcase. The mother of a young girl had been beaten and bound with duct tape. Her body was covered with what appeared to be baking soda.

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Boston Red Sox righty Garrett Whitlock is feeling under the weather after his second COVID-19 vaccine shot, manager Alex Cora said Saturday. Boston placed him on the COVID-related IL.

Righty Colten Brewer was recalled from Triple-A Worcester to take his spot on the active roster vs. the Angels on Saturday. Boston and Los Angeles will play at 4:10 p.m. at Fenway Park.

Its likely Whitlock will spend only one or two days on the COVID-related IL.

Brewer has pitched in one game for Worcester so far this year, allowing one run and one hit in one inning. The 28-year-old posted a 4.59 ERA, 5.14 FIP and 1.72 WHIP in 60 outings (80  innings) for Boston in 2019-20 combined.

Whitlock, a 24-year-old righty, has a 1.77 ERA, 2.91 FIP and 0.98 WHIP in 10 relief outings (20  innings) for Boston this year. Boston selected him in Decembers Rule 5 Draft from the New York Yankees.

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Since Sunday, in the hours after Carlos Cruz was gunned down in Worcester, people mentioned two things about the father of four: his big smile and his giant-sized heart.

Recalling that memory to a group of mourners at a vigil on Friday afternoon, Cruzs brother Javier Pena pointed out that Worcester is known as the Heart of the Commonwealth.

Carlos Miguel Cruz was the heart of Worcester, Pena told the several dozen friends and family members who stood outside the Paku Lounge at 215 Chandler St., where Cruz was shot over the weekend.

Sure, Cruz, who was known as Los, may have been a little rough around the edges, Pena said. But so was Worcester at one time, but Cruz, much like the city, had turned around, the brother said.

He rebuilt himself and he was looking forward to an amazing future, Pena said. Los, my brother, the future expected you.

Cruz, 44, leaves four sons. His partner, Maria A. Collazo, died in 2019 from a brain aneurysm.

Cruzs father, Rev. Jose Perez of the Rock of Salvation church in Worcester, said he worries about the children that now have to grow up without parents.

Its hard to lose both parents, Perez said with pain in his eyes.

He lost his wife and worked hard to maintain his kids and establish a household, Perez continued, buy a home and give them the best life possible, thats what he was working on. Thats what he was doing.

Perez said his son loved to cook, including Spanish food, fried chicken and trying new recipes from various other cultures.

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)

Over the weekend, Cruz was shot in the area outside the Paku Lounge. Police got to the scene around 1:30 a.m. on May 8 and discovered Cruz on the sidewalk. Cruz was shot four times, according to prosecutor Joseph Simmons.

Cruz was rushed to UMass Memorial Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead less than 45 minutes later, authorities said.

Officials say Cruz was shot by 28-year-old Angel Ortiz-Santos, of Worcester, who was arraigned Tuesday on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury and carrying a firearm without a license.

Authorities say a fight broke out between Ortiz-Santos and another person. Cruz was not involved in the fight that apparently started inside the business. According to Simmons, Ortiz-Santos was handed a pistol and people started to leave the lounge.

Outside, people who were with Ortiz-Santos grabbed Cruz, who also had a pistol, and struggled with him over the gun, officials said. Cruz, according to Simmons, had approached the group of people with Ortiz-Santos with one hand up in a type of stopping motion, with the gun in his other hand pointed down.

Cruz was pulled to the ground and then shot. He ran across the street as Ortiz-Santos continued to shoot at him, according to authorities.

Family members set up a GoFundMe page to support Cruzs two youngest sons, Sincere and Tristan Cruz. His two oldest sons, Juan and Carlos Cruz Jr., are in their 20s. The fundraiser has collected $12,750 of a $50,000 goal as of Friday afternoon.

Cruz worked at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester in environmental services and had also finished training as a personal care assistant. He was trying to buy a home outside of the city for his sons, family members said.

As memories of Cruz were shared at the vigil, which was attended by dozens and started spilling out onto Chandler Street, loved ones, politicians and community leaders called for an end to gun violence.

Carlos Cruz was a valued member of this community, Congressman Jim McGovern said. He was a son, he was a dad, he was a member of a family, a co-worker. He was loved. He mattered.

McGovern told the group its so easy to get a gun, in some places without a background check, in the country. That is a fight that must be fought in Washington, D.C., he said.

But here in this community, we need to figure out a way to do better, to get to kids at a younger age, to find ways to avoid another tragedy like the one we saw here from ever happening again, McGovern said.

Sue Mailman, a friend of Cruzs father, stood at a podium placed outside the lounge and said she was shaking inside because the group had gathered there in peace to honor Cruz and his family.

Grieving is an exhausting process and to lose a valued person in our community at such a young age and in such a senseless fashion makes the grieving all the more heartbreaking, Mailman said.

She said she hopes everyone can channel the grief into positive action, to work to come together and get guns off the streets and unite.

Sandy Ellis, a member of the Massachusetts Nurses Association and Worcester resident, told the mourners that nurses have had enough of gun violence.

Nurses have had enough of the devastation these weapons cause to the precious bodies we are here to heal, she said. Weve had enough of the sorrow we see in the eyes of family members who come to us after its too late for saving the one they love, as we watch another mother, father, brother, sister, crumble before us, brought low by a loss too deep for any words to make sense or bring any solace of any kind.

Mourners held battery-operated candles, hugged one another and wiped away tears as speakers addressed the crowd. Cruzs parents were flanked by loved ones as speakers continued calling for an end to gun violence.

Mayor Joseph Petty said gun violence is all too common an issue in the country.

Every life we lose makes our families and our city weaker, Petty said. This is an issue thats shared by all of us.

Vaughn Allen Goodwin, of the Poor Peoples Campaign, called on Worcester to stop violence.

Instead of picking up a bullet, pick up love, he called out to the crowd. Instead of picking up violence, pick up non-violence. Instead of picking up envy, pick up compassion.

Ortiz-Santos was previously accused of committing a fatal shooting. Six years ago, he was charged with murder in connection with the killing of 27-year-old Christian Omar Puello-Rosado at an after-hours party in Worcester. A jury found him not guilty in 2018.

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As construction continues to open a new South High Community School in Worcester, the district has received a waiver from the state to delay full-time in-person learning at the building.

All other high schools in Worcester will be opening five days a week come May 17, per the states guidelines, Superintendent Maureen Binienda said Friday.

South High Community School was among a small group that received approval from the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to delay opening for full-time learning. The others are South Shore Regional Vocational Technical High School, grade 12 only in Somerville, grade 12 only at the Prospect Hill Charter School, LABBB Collaborative and Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical High School.

Waivers were denied for Brockton, Stoneham, Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers, City on a Hill Charter, Boston Day and Evening Academy Charter, Phoenix Charter Academy (Chelsea), Phoenix Academy Public Charter High School Springfield, Phoenix Academy Public Charter High School Lawrence and Boston Prep Charter School.

A waiver is still under consideration for Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School.

Worcester plans to open a new South High Community School for the fall. Because construction is ongoing, the waiver was needed, Binienda told MassLive.

Students will stay in a hybrid learning model until May 28, which is the last school day for seniors. Then, the school will go full remote because the district needs to drop the building by the second week of June, Binienda said.

Some temporary walls are currently being removed, Binienda said, which is not making the space conducive to learning.

Part of the challenge was losing 43 construction days because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the number of workers in the building is smaller because of COVID regulations, Binienda said.

Students with high needs and preschoolers who go to South High will switch to Sullivan instead of going remote to end the year, the superintendent said.

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WORCESTER -- The Worcester Red Sox are proving that they have a stable of pitchers who are ready to contribute if the major-league team needs them.

The pitching staff was on display at Polar Park Friday night, with starter Kyle Hart tossing six scoreless innings and the bullpen allowing just one run and hanging on to help the WooSox secure a 2-1 win in 10 innings. Hart bounced back from a rough first start in which he allowed four runs on seven hits in 3 2/3 innings to shut down the Mets lineup, striking out six.

Eduard Bazardo has already been helpful to the Red Sox in his two brief stints in Boston, most recently tossing two scoreless innings on Wednesday against Oakland. Bazardo wasnt as sharp in the ninth inning Friday night as he has been in Boston, allowing a single and a deep fly ball that was hauled in by Jarren Duran, but he settled down to get a pop-out to end the inning.

Brandon Workman was a bit shaky in his first appearance in Worcester on Opening Day, but looked a lot like his old self on Friday night, getting two easy groundouts and a strikeout in a tie game in the eighth inning.

Additionally, Marcus Walden has allowed only three hits in 4 2/3 innings of scoreless work with seven strikeouts. Closer Kaleb Ort has been nearly spotless in his five outings, logging three saves in three attempts.

And theres certainly no shortage of arms. With the expanded rosters (Triple-A teams can carry 28 active players and 33 players on their roster), its felt difficult for manager Billy McMillon to get everyone outings. Brandon Brennan just made his first appearance for the WooSox on Thursday, tossing a scoreless inning.

The WooSox bullpen owns a 3.59 ERA compared to a 5.28 ERA for the starters.

Santana continues rehab in Worcester

Danny Santana made his second appearance in Worcester for his rehab from a foot infection during spring training. Santana, who played third base on Wednesday night, played the whole game at second base Friday.

The super-utilityman is relatively inexperienced at second base, only appearing in 28 of his 454 major league games in that position. Hes only played third base, the position he played on Wednesday, less, appearing in just 14 games at the hot corner. However, Santana looked plenty comfortable at both positions, although he didnt see a ton of action at second Friday night.

He also went 1-for-3 with a single and a walk. He showed that his speed hasnt been impacted by the injury; after reaching on a walk in the first, Santana wasted absolutely no time stealing second, getting a huge jump on the first pitch. He scooted over to third on a passed ball, but was stranded there.

Alex Cora talks about Jarren Durans strength

Jarren Duran has undoubtedly been on peoples minds lately after the Red Sox No. 3 prospect launched four home runs over the course of five games, including two long balls in the WooSox home opener. Boston Red Sox manager commented on the power Duran showed over the past week on Friday.

Hes a strong individual, Cora said before Fridays game against the Angels. Hes that strong. ... Hes a big kid. It just happens he is very fast. Hes doing a good job down there. Theres a few things that he keeps improving. Catching up with fastballs is very important. Catching up with fastballs up in the zone is very important. Being disciplined with breaking balls down in the zone is important. I know a lot of people are excited about what hes doing. We are, too. But obviously theres an advantage of him getting at-bats and playing every day and going out there and playing defense. So far its been great and were very happy for him.

WooSox introduce new kids WooCrew fan club

The Worcester Red Sox announced a new, free fan club for kids, the WooCrew presented by Shaws. Kids ages 15 and under can join the club for the chance to earn free tickets to WooSox games by participating in community service.

Kids (or their parents, on behalf of their children) can visit woosox.com to sign up.

WooCrew club members receive a WooCrew Member ID card and lanyard, a subscription to a monthly WooSox newsletter, and access to interactive benefits through the WooCrew mobile application, available at woosox.com or the App Store on iOS and Android devices.

The app allows members to earn points at home, throughout the community, and at Polar Park. Kids can redeem their points to receive WooSox tickets, the opportunity to say, Play Ball!, to have lunch with a WooSox player, to be an Honorary Batboy or Batgirl, and to enjoy a game with friends in the Chairmans Suite or the Presidents Suite at Polar Park.
State

Health minister appeals for public cooperation to combat Covid-19

DIMAPUR, MAY 15 (NPN): | Publish Date: 5/15/2021 1:21:30 PM IST

Health & Family Welfare (H&FW) minister S Pangnyu Phom has urged all citizens to cooperate with Covid-19 warriors in all possible ways, besides continuing to pray and seek Gods divine intervention to heal our land sooner than later.

In an appeal on behalf of the State government and H&FW department to all citizens seeking their cooperation and support, the minister acknowledged the inconvenience that they would undergo during the course of lockdown. However, he pointed out that the decision for a lockdown was taken after considering the health safety of our people.

As the State entered the second lockdown to contain the spread of second wave of Covid-19, he stressed that it was the responsibility of all citizens to help the government, the H&FW department and frontline workers in this battle against the pandemic.

Recalling how the first wave of Covid-19 was effectively managed through collective effort, Phom acknowledged the contribution and active participation of health workers, fontliners, civil society groups, churches, media, NGOs and all individuals involved along with the government in the fight.

The optimistic approach of our people during such crisis is truly inspiring and motivates all of us, he added.

As Covid-19 was not over yet, he said everyone should understand that this would be the new normal and that all citizens must act responsibly as the battle against the pandemic continues.

He called for observing Covid-appropriate behaviours and taking vaccine to protect oneself as well as our loved ones, family, co-workers and the community.

The minister urged those showing influenza-like illnesses to come forward for testing and cooperate with surveillance teams in contact tracing.

Pointing out that the frontline workers were sacrificing everything and putting their own lives and their families at risk for the sake of saving lives of others, he emphasised that they needed utmost cooperation and support.
Feature: An Australian scholar's happy memories of China

13:58, May 15, 2021 By Bai Xu and Yue Dongxing ( Xinhua

CANBERRA, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Trips, noodles and his own band with a group of Chinese friends... Australian scholar Rod Campbell described his days in China as among the "happiest" in his life, which seemed to be a sequel from his mom's book.

"I think actually having a personal understanding does change one's opinion on how China works," he told Xinhua in an interview.

The 43-year-old Campbell is now a research director in the Australia Institute, who said that his interest in China stemmed from his childhood memory.

His mom Beris Turnley visited China in 1968 as a member of the National Union of Australian University Students group, during which they lived with farmers on a commune near Shanghai, talked with soldiers, and watched films and operas. She detailed her trip in her book "Journey into China".

Now, at the age of 77, Turnley at her home in Melbourne could still sing some Chinese old songs like "The East is Red" and "Sailing the Seas Depends on the Helmsman".

"I grew up listening to my mom's stories, and... every Friday night we used to get Chinese takeaway food from a shop down in St. Kilda," Campbell recalled.

In high school, he was encouraged to learn Mandarin, when there was a big push to get Australian high school children to learn the language. "We were told in the future, Australia will engage a lot more with Asia," he said.

He then entered the Melbourne University to study geography, and went to China in 2000 for a study trip. Two years later, he visited again, doing a project about grain-growing and the management of the Yellow River.

Talking about the year 2005, Campbell said it was "definitely one of the happiest years of my life," when he was involved in a government program to work in Gansu Agricultural University in northwest China.

He would become very talkative at the mentioning of Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu. "It's quite a big city, and no one's pretentious there. They're just wonderful people," he beamed. "There are clearly the best noodles in the world."

He made many friends, with whom he is still in touch on WeChat. He had his own band, Roujiamo, which literally means marinated meat in a baked bun, a burger-like snack typical in northwest China. "Every now and then, people would recognize me in Lanzhou and say 'hey, you're the guy from Roujiamo'," Campbell said proudly.

He also traveled a lot during the three years, talking with farmers in counties, and went to see the murals in Dunhuang (a city in Gansu Province, famous for the Mogao Grottoes, a world cultural heritage site). He even went to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, where he had a good time.

Thumbing through an album, he showed the photos that he took there: the grand mosque in Kashgar and smiling residents there.

His personal experience gave him the reason to question some reports of Western media. "I think some of the studies that get quoted are pretty misleading," said Campbell. "As a researcher, I find them pretty simplistic."

During his visits, he also witnessed the changes of China.

He has had a friend who used to work in a regional Chinese university with just a standard apartment about 15 years ago. Now he's got a house in the picturesque island province of Hainan, as well as his own car.

"When there's a lot of discussion in Australian media about how China has developed and what does that mean, I really know what that means," said Campbell. "I've seen what it meant for my friends and the improvement in their standards of living."

"There are up to 1.3 billion people with a lot of pretty different opinions and priorities, and keeping them all reasonably well working together is... a big achievement."

The scholar said he was sad to see the relationship between China and Australia come to this stage.

"I'm very sad about how things have turned in recent years," he said. "In 2005, it felt like China-Australia relations are really going in a great direction, and I was part of that, on a collaborative project between Australian and Chinese government agencies and universities."

It is his wish that the two countries could work on areas of mutual interest, such as agricultural research and climate policy. "We're both big countries with lots of deserts. We should be both interested in how to feed ourselves and how to feed our neighboring countries."

"There's still a lot of mutual interest," he concluded. "A lot of mutual respect between people."

(Web editor: Shi Xi, Bianji)
NASHVILLE, TN - MAY 12: Gas pumps are covered with plastic due to the station being sold out of gasoline on May 12, 2021 in Nashville, Tennessee. Following a cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline, many gas stations on the east coast have faced shortages and a rush of customers fueling up. (Photo : Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)

The Colonial Pipeline Co has been running one of the most critical pipelines servicing multiple states along the East Coast. But last week, a malicious ransomware attack forced the company to shut down some of its services in the area, leading to fears of shortage and an uptick in gas prices.

Fortunately, the company has announced that it has worked with a cybersecurity firm to deal with the attack and has stated that operations will resume in the days of the following week. The FBI has also published the identity of the hacker group responsible and is currently monitoring the situation.

Gas shortage 2021 unlikely

Days after the reported hack, some residents in the areas serviced by the pipeline expressed alarm and calls were being made to stock up on gasoline. Panic buying has already been reported in some states days after the cyberattack was reported

In response, officials and company spokespersons immediately assured that any hoarding was unnecessary. With the pipeline's resumed activity in just a matter of days, the disruption that the hacking incident caused is expected to die down just as quickly.

Still, that apparently has not stopped the uproar over scalpers and preppers exaggerating the situation and generating social media notoriety. Over the weekend, the panic had contributed more to the shortage and price hikes than the disruption itself.

Also read: Renewable Fuel Credit Market Due for a Shakeup with Tesla Entry

Colonial Pipeline - Critical infrastructure for southeastern US

The incident proved just how vital the Colonial Pipeline Company has become to the fuel and energy infrastructure down in the southeastern areas of the US. The main pipeline was built around 1964 and spans thousands of miles between New Jersey and Texas, all the while connected to numerous refineries in between. To date, it is still the largest oil pipeline system in the country, pumping over a million barrels for jet fuel and diesel.

The panic buying that was triggered by the pipeline disruption demonstrated just how much of the population still depends on fossil fuels. With ongoing vaccinations, travel restrictions are expected to lift which could lead to a steady resurgence in demand.

This vital position in the area has also generated no small amount of controversy. The pipeline has experienced many major spills during its years of service and has brought it into conflict with many local environmental conservation groups. This has driven the company to invest in more than $30 million to stay in compliance with newer safety regulations.

Strangely enough though, the hacker group responsible for the disruption did not fully realize Colonial Pipeline's importance. In a mixed message posted on the dark web, the FBI reports that the group expressed regret over the 'social consequences' that resulted from the attack but vows to continue targeting firms (only this time, these were apparently not tied to critical infrastructure).

In any case, both Colonial Pipeline and government officials are working to restore order to the gas-hoarding panic. Citizens are requested to report any suspicious price gouging activities at this time. For more details, please refer to the local consumer protections office.

Also read: New Study: Pollution from Combustion of Fossil Fuel is More Dangerous Than Previously Imagined


Scientists from NASA and other space agencies all over the world last month experienced a disturbing hypothetical scenario: A bizarre asteroid had just been found 35 million miles away, and it was on its way to Earth. In six months the space rock was anticipated to hit.

The Short-warning Scenario

The situation was imaginary, part of a week-long exercise that mimicked an approaching asteroid in order to assist US and international scientists rehearse on how to react to such a situation. The simulation made the group learn a difficult lesson: If an asteroid that is Earth-bound were discovered with just that little warning, no one could do anything to keep it from hitting the planet.

The scientists found out that no ever-existing technologies could prevent the asteroid from striking, given the six-month window of the scenario. There is no spacecraft that has the capability of destroying an asteroid or taking it off its path that could fly off the ground and get to the rock within that time frame.

Manager of NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies, Paul Chodas, assisted in hosting the current simulation, and also five past ones like it. He said this operation set the members up for failure. He told Insider: "It's what we refer to as a short-warning scenario, It was very challenging by design." Actually, if an asteroid like that imaginary one were going to Earth, experts would need not months, but years of warning.

Also Read: Meteor Fireball Lights up Mexico Sky Together With Arrival of Hurricane Delta and Minor Earthquakes

The Hazardous Space Rocks

They would need a minimum of five years, as stated by Chodas. The rest like MIT astronomer Richard Binzel, say experts would need not less than a decade. Binzel told Insider: " The most crucial commodity you could possibly wish for is time if confronted with an actual asteroid threat."

But experts haven't recognized most of the dangerous space rocks that pass close to our planet, which makes the chances that they would get a warning period of five- or 10-year very slim. Congress made effort to address this problem in 2005 by decreeing that NASA discover and track 90% of all objects near the Earth 460 feet (140 meters) or larger.

Impacts of Asteroid

Asteroids could wipe out a city the size of New York at that size. But to date, NASA has only identified around 40% of those objects."What that implies is, for now, we are depending on luck to safeguard us from serious asteroid impacts," Binzel said. "But the plan isn't luck."

In NASA's current simulation, the scientists involved had no idea how enormous the hypothetical asteroid was until a week before it was ready to hit Earth. A researcher at the Planetary Science Institute, Sarah Sonnett, who was involved in the exercise, told Insider they were not aware if the object was 500 meters across or 35 meters across. And that makes a lot of difference.

Related Article: Warning: Asteroid the size of the Great Pyramid may hit Earth in 2022

For more news, updates about the asteroid and similar stories don't forget to follow Nature World News!


Officials on the Swedish island of Oland have given warnings to citizens and tourists not to come anywhere close to the dead body of a beached whale which "may possibly explode".

Carcass of a Humpback Whale

Since last week, the humpback whale carcass has been trapped close to the southeast of the island, not too far from the small town of Morbylanga. On Wednesday morning, the local municipality gave a strong warning to locals persuading them not to go into the water and get close to the carcass "under any circumstances".

"There have been reports that people have been staying close to the body of the dead whale that has drifted ashore on south-eastern Oland," this statement was read on Tuesday. "This is risky for the individual ... [and] may lead to harm".

Since the news of the stranded whale has been made known last week, officials of Morbylanga have been collecting samples to discover how to deal with the dead body. The environmental manager in Morbylanga municipality, Staffan Asen said: "When the officials work at the whale, they work with protective equipment and helmets." He added that the whale is presently fermenting because of the decomposition process and may explode.

Also Read: Ambergris: Thai Woman Finds Whale Vomit Worth 185,000 While Walking on the Beach

When Large Whales Dies

These are substantial forces that should not be disregarded. Presently, the whale is trapped just 40 metres from the shore which is outside the town, having inhabitants of less than 2,000. When large whales pass away, one of these two things can occur: Either their bodies sink to the bottom of the ocean and go on to assist smaller life forms, or their bodies can wash up somewhere in the world on some accidental beach.

The initial case is clearly the most preferred, but sometimes, the second case happens - at times in large quantities. When a dead whale becomes beached, decomposition starts almost instantly. The whale's body gasses start to bloat the carcass, and the heat of the sunlight only aggravates this horrifying process.

Effect of an Explosion

As the expansion of gasses takes place in the dead whale's body, the only obstacle between it and the outside world becomes the skin of the whale, and the skin will give at some point. Beachgoers are always urged to keep away from, and not touch, a dead beached whale. This is due to the fact that when the gaseous pressure inside the whale accumulates to risky levels, it can have 'explosive' effects.

Even the slightest prod can disrupt the delicate obstacle between those trapped gasses and the individual, and if it explodes close to you, it can lead to devastating or fatal injuries.

Has a beached whale ever been saved? Over 100 whales trapped on a Sri Lankan beach have been taken into the sea in an overnight rescue operation. One dolphin, three pilot whales passed away due to their injuries following the mass beaching close to the city of Panadura, south of the capital Colombo.

Related Article: Beached Sperm Whale Bore Massive Scars After Deadly Fight Against Giant Squid

For more news, updates about beached whales and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
In Delhi, COVID patients in home isolation will be provided oxygen concentrators at their homes with recommendation of doctors, said Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal. To ensure each Covid patient in home isolation gets oxygen cylinders delivered at home, the Delhi government has set up an 'oxygen concentrator bank' (OCB) for this purpose.



"However, oxygen cylinders will be provided on the recommendation of the doctors only. People in home isolation will be regularly monitored by medical experts and if they need oxygen at home the Delhi government will provide it within two hours. Covid patients, those discharged from the hospitals will also be given oxygen concentrators if they need," Kejriwal said while addressing a press conference on Saturday.

Each 11 districts in the national capital will have an oxygen concentrator bank' (OCB) which will ensure that Covid patients are getting oxygen concentrators within two hours.





Patients who have been discharged but still need medical oxygen can use these oxygen concentrators too. "Our doctors will be in touch with the patients till they recover so that if they need to be hospitalised, timely action can be taken," Kejriwal said, adding that any patient can dial up 1031 to use the service.



Source: IANS Kejriwal stated that if any patient - in home isolation - needs medical oxygen, our teams will reach at their doorstep within two hours. One person - aware of the technical know-how will be a part of the team to help the patient and their families.Patients who have been discharged but still need medical oxygen can use these oxygen concentrators too. "Our doctors will be in touch with the patients till they recover so that if they need to be hospitalised, timely action can be taken," Kejriwal said, adding that any patient can dial up 1031 to use the service.Source: IANS

The Chief Minister said that Delhi from today (Saturday) onward will start a very important service - oxygen concentrator banks. "In every district, there will be a bank with 200 oxygen concentrators. It has been seen that Covid patients often need to get admitted to ICUs when they're not given medical oxygen when needed. Many patients sometimes die. We have set up these banks to close these gaps," he added.
Covid-19 Pandemic emerged in China in late 2019 affecting millions of people all over the world. Till now, the origin of the coronavirus is not found.



Recently, An international group of leading scientists in a letter to the journal Science acclaimed the chance of virus leak from Wuhan lab cannot be dismissed without complete investigation.

All COVID-19s origin theories were not thoroughly reviewed by WHO.





Even the WHO's report detailing the findings, points out only four of the 313 pages discuss the possibility of a laboratory accident.



This urges stringent analytical and neutral investigation need to be place to avoid the conspiracy around the origin of the coronavirus.







Source: Medindia But the letter says there was no balance in considering the two origin theories - spillover from an animal and a lab leak during the WHO investigation.Even the WHO's report detailing the findings, points out only four of the 313 pages discuss the possibility of a laboratory accident.This urges stringent analytical and neutral investigation need to be place to avoid the conspiracy around the origin of the coronavirus.Source: Medindia

'More investigation is still needed to determine the origins of the pandemic,' said the 18 leading scientists, including Ravindra Gupta, a clinical microbiologist at the University of Cambridge, and Jesse Bloom, who studies the evolution of viruses at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Though a team from the World Health Organization along with Chinese experts after a month-long investigation in Wuhan concludes that there is awas extremely unlikely.
Mizoram's Power and Electricity minister R Lalzirliana has set a new benchmark in leading by example. On Friday, the minister was seen mopping the floors of a hospital where he is undergoing treatment for COVID-19 along with his wife and son.

And there are politicians like R Lalzirliana, the power minister of #Mizoram, who was seen mopping the floor of the Covid ward where he is recovering after testing positive.#Aizawl #Northeast pic.twitter.com/IoBhvJB0us  Anupam Bordoloi (@asomputra) May 14, 2021

However, the minister's motive wasn't to embarrass the medical staff or authorities. My motive in mopping the floors was not to embarrass the nurses or doctors but I want to educate and lead others by setting an example, Lalzirliana said.



Lalzirliana had called a sweeper since his room was messy. However, since the sweeper could not come, he himself started mopping the floor. Sweeping, mopping the floors or performing household chores are no new jobs to me. I used to do at home and other places when it was required to do so, the minister said.

The photograph of him mopping the floor has gone viral on social media and people are lauding him for leading by example. Here's what people had to say

Those are the good leaders generally seen in northeast state.Even I had experienced at Gangtok when a top level bureaucrat cleaned the nearby area for some local event made by government.  Subhra (@Subhra__sahoo) May 15, 2021

These r real peoples & real leaders.

Mizoram Minister R Lalzirliana is a normal human being not a robot like pampered babu or businessmen politicians that Modi Shah or many other north Indian leaders are!

Simplicity is totally missing from PM, HM down to last BJP Govt Ministers  Capt G R Choudhary (@captgrc) May 15, 2021

These guys in the central govt should learn from here ... Humility is the hallmark if the great and the learned while arrogance is the mask the weak use to hide their weakness !!! Innumerable examples exist in history if the above facts !!  Rajesh (@rmohan137india) May 15, 2021

Its all about upbringing Anupam.

Lalzirliana is sticking to its roots and routine.

I am happy such person still exist.  Amitabh Dutta (@duttaamitabh) May 15, 2021

very powerful photo, he is protecting a health worker by doing this.  Ravi (@raviohere) May 14, 2021

This entire generation of Mizoram politicians are legends. Self discipline is the dedrock of their politics. Salutes.  shubhankar mukherjee (@shubhan48431879) May 15, 2021

Wonderful gesture from elected representative...  mohit sharma (@mohit00005) May 15, 2021

This is not the first time Lalzirliana has mopped the floor. He had also done the same at Mizoram House during his visit to Delhi in the past. Moreover, it's become a recurring theme in Mizoram to denounce VIP culture. In the past, several ministers have been seen doing chores, using public transport or even cooking during community feasts during festivals.

The minister along with his wife had tested positive for COVID-19 on May 11, after their son tested positive on May 8. After being in home isolation, they were shifted to the state's dedicated COVID-19 facility on May 12. We are fine here. The medical staff and nurses are taking good care of us, he said.
It is indeed an alarming thought that the primary source of a newborn's nutrition can cause a potential threat to your baby's health. New study reveals all 50 samples of US's breastfeeding moms tested positive for polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), groups of about 9,000 compounds that have been used for manufacturing in various industries, considered man-made. Levels found was reported to have reached 2,000 times higher than what some public health advocates recommend is safe for drinking water.

PFAS are also referred to as 'forever chemicals' because its substance comes from manufactured materials such as plastics, clothing, or commercial household products.

They do not naturally break down in the environment and accumulates in the human body. Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) were the most abundant PFAS in these samples.

When findings revealed evidence of PFAS in 50 out of 50 women samples, authors of the study said this causes for concern and threat for the baby's health. Though the sample size is relatively small, they were distributed according to socioeconomic and geographic groupings, which made it difficult to address the issue on an individual level.

PFAS Grave Effects

Toxic-Free Future science director and study co-author Erika Schreder said that PFAS contamination of breast milk is likely universal in the US and have been linked to developing cancer, birth defects, liver disease, thyroid disease, decreased sperm count, and other serious health failures.

Co-author of the study and pediatrician Sheela Sathyanarayana added that while it was a limitation for them to thoroughly analyze the effects on newborns, studies of older children traced back hormonal disruptions to the chemicals and suggests PFAS harm the immune system. This is mostly sad news for infants who needs breast milk more than anything to build up their immune system.

Study shows PFAS concentration in breast milks ranged from 50 parts per trillion (ppt) to 1,850 ppt. Although the FDA has no safety standards for PFAS in breast milk, the count is way higher compared to standards of 1 ppt by Environmental Working Group for drinking waters and Department of Health and Human Services' 14ppt in children's drinking water.

Also read: Your Baby's First Poop May Give Insight on His Allergies

Corporate Actions

Schreder explained that states and retailers should conduct broader phaseouts of consumer products containing PFAS as it is not natural to have these chemicals in breast milks. Moms have already done more than enough protecting their babies in their most crucial stage of development, but having big corporations prevent using chemicals that contaminate breast milks and switch to safer ones is beyond their control.

PFAS data over the last decade showed that while the levels of the phased-out PFOS and PFOA have been declining, the detection frequencies of current-use PFAS are still building up on people. Dr. Amina Salamova, study co-author and associate research scientist stressed out the need to address the entire class of PFAS chemicals, not just legacy-use variations.

Study suggests what mothers can do at this time is to reduce use of commercial products that uses PFAS and boycott entire chemical class, even industries who claims their PFAS do not accumulate as much in human.

Also read: Discovery of Pregnant Egyptian Mummy to Give Insight on Ancient Traditions and Customs
KABUL  Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Mohammad Haneef Atmar, in a telephone conversation with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Palestine, Mr. Riyad Al-Maliki, condemned the escalation of attacks and encroachment on the Palestinian people during the holy month of Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr, calling the bloody attacks unacceptable for the Islamic countries and the worlds peace-loving nations. Minister Atmar called for an immediate end to the violence in the region.

Minister Atmar conveyed H.E. President Ashraf Ghani and the people of Afghanistans deepest condolences to the Palestinian government and people for the martyrdom of dozens of civilians, including women and children, and prayed for swift recovery of the injured.

Expressing Afghan peoples solidarity with the suffering people of Palestine, Minister Atmar stated that Afghanistan supported the legitimate right of the Palestinian people to an independent state, within the borders set out in the 1967 UN Security Council Resolution.

During the meeting, Mr. Al-Maliki thanked the Foreign Minister for expressing sympathy and called the support of the Islamic and other peace-loving countries important and valuable for the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.

Minister Atmar invited Mr. Maliki to visit Afghanistan at his convenience.
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MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (AP)  South Carolina Republicans on Saturday selected Drew McKissick to lead them for a third term as chairman, turning back a challenge from a recent transplant to the state who portrayed himself, over the current chairman, as the candidate most closely aligned with former President Donald Trump.

The vote came during a statewide gathering of delegates.

The contest to lead the states Republican Party in the state  where Trumps 2016 primary victory marked a turning point in solidifying his nomination, and where support for him remained high throughout his term  had devolved into a debate over whose support for the former president was highest.

On one side was McKissick, seeking to continue leading a party that last year further strengthened its power, expanding control in the Legislature, winning back a congressional seat and securing a fourth term for U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham. McKissick successfully call ed off the states 2020 Republican primary in favor of throwing support behind the incumbent, with McKissick saying Trump faced no legitimate primary challenger and had a record of results there.

McKissick faced three challengers, the most vocal of whom was Lin Wood, a Georgia attorney who has falsely insisted Trump actually won the 2020 election. Trump has praised Wood as doing a good job filing legal challenges, though Trumps campaign has at times distanced itself from him. Dozens of lawsuits making such allegations were rejected by the courts.

Wood didn't show up to Saturday's confab. New to South Carolina, he has recently purchased three plantations totaling more than $16 million in Beaufort County, a coastal area south of Charleston.

During a call earlier this year with South Carolina Republicans, Wood said he sensed dissatisfaction with McKissicks leadership during conversations with activists affiliated with tea party groups, saying McKissick had been described to him as a RINO  Republican In Name Only  and that he felt such a person was the wrong fit for the state party.

McKissick secured Trumps endorsement early on, with the former president saying in February that McKissick had done a great job leading the party in the state, which, as home of the first-in-the-South presidential primaries, plays a crucial role in the nominating process.

Trump doubled down after reports of Woods interest in the position surfaced, again praising McKissick but making no reference to Wood. The day before Saturday's vote, Trump issued a third endorsement, again praising McKissick's party leadership.

Wood's supporters have repeatedly questioned the authenticity of Trumps endorsements, offering no evidence of them being fake.

I still love Donald Trump, Wood said last month, asked about Trumps support of McKissick. Nothings going to change my mind about a man who I believe is doing Gods will for this country.

McKissick, who has laughed off the allegation he wasn't a strong Trump supporter, said the former president asked about Wood, though didnt name him on a phone call related to the endorsement.

(Trump) was like, Whos this attorney guy who is running against you? Does he even live in South Carolina?" McKissick told The Associated Press. "Then he said, Thats weird, or something like that. It was kind of comical.

___

Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP.
TOKYO (AP)  An arrested Japanese reporter returned home Friday after being released by Myanmar's ruling junta in what it called a gesture of friendship to Japan.

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Yuki Kitazumi was released after efforts by Japanese diplomats and others. The reporter boarded a plane at Yangon's airport and landed in Japan on Friday night.

Kitazumi, a freelance journalist and former reporter for Japans Nikkei business news, said in brief comments at the airport that he learned of his release the night before and was told to pack his bag in 10 minutes.

As a journalist I wanted to stay in Yangon and keep reporting, but I had to come back, and that is my regret, he said. He said he hopes to keep telling the world about whats happening in Myanmar.

The military seized power on Feb. 1, ousting the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. It has faced large, constant popular opposition, which it has tried to suppress by using force that has cost hundreds of lives and by muzzling the news media.

Myanmar's army-run Myawaddy TV said Kitazumi was arrested on April 18 for inciting anti-military civil disobedience and riots.

Although the journalist is a lawbreaker, the case will be closed and he will be released at the request of the Special Envoy of the Japanese Government for National Reconciliation in Myanmar, in view of the close ties and future relations between Myanmar and Japan," the junta said in a statement read on TV.

Japan has criticized the military governments deadly crackdown on opposition but has taken a milder approach than the United States and some other countries that imposed sanctions against members of the junta.

Kitazumi was also charged with violating visa regulations. He was the first foreign journalist to be charged under a statute which the state press has described as aiming at fake news.

He has posted reports and views about developments in Myanmar on Facebook. Hours before his arrest, he posted a video showing Myanmar citizens gathering at a Tokyo temple to pay tribute to people killed by Myanmar security forces trying to quell protests.

Kitazumi had been detained briefly by police in late February while covering pro-democracy protests in Myanmar.

The announcement that he had been granted clemency came a day after a military court sentenced a Myanmar journalist, Min Nyo, to three years in prison on similar charges.

Min Nyo is a correspondent for the Democratic Voice of Burma, an online and broadcast news agency which has continued to operate despite being banned by the junta.

A statement issued by DVB said Min Nyo was covering a March 3 anti-junta protest in the town of Pyay, 260 kilometers (160 miles) northwest of Yangon, when he was arrested and severely beaten by police.

About 80 journalists have been arrested since the military's takeover. Roughly half are still detained and most of them are being held under charges similar to the one for which Min Nyo was convicted, as are many activists opposed to the military regime.

Rights group Amnesty International said Min Nyos case showed the ruthlessness of the junta and the risks faced by journalists reporting on the juntas abuses.

Min Nyos conviction must be quashed, and he should be released immediately - along with all other journalists, activists and human rights defenders imprisoned and detained solely for their peaceful opposition to the military coup, the group's deputy regional director, Emerlynne Gil, said in a statement. ___

This story was first published on May 14, 2021. It was updated on May 15, 2021 to correct the name of the journalist on first reference. He is Yuki Kitazumi, not Yuki Kigazumi.


End of the Cretaceous period giant mosasaur in Morocco that could have gotten to eight meters long is the third new species to be identified from the region in less than a year, bringing the sum of up to at least 13 species.

Giant Marine Lizards

The high diversity of the fauna reveals how mosasaurs, giant marine lizards related to Komodo dragons and snakes, flourished in the last million years of the Cretaceous period before they were wiped out with most of all species on Earth, by the giant asteroid impact 66 million years ago.

The new species, called Pluridens serpentis, had long, slim jaws with more than a hundred sharp, fanglike teeth to capture small prey such as squid and fish. It had small eyes compared to species it is related to, indicating poor vision. But there are dozens of openings for nerves in the snout, hinting at their hunting ability is by sensing movements of water and changes in pressure.

These nerves may have been responsive to little variations in water pressure, an adaptation that can be found in sea snakes. Senior lecturer at the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath, Dr Nick Longrich who led the study said: "Generally, when animals develop small eyes, it's due to the fact that they're depending more heavily on other senses."

Also Read: New Discovery: The Largest Dinosaur, 'The Spinosaurus' Was Not Well-Adapted To Aquatic Life

Aquatic Lizards and Snakes Uses Chemical Signals to Track Their Prey

The fact that Pluridens possessed so many nerves in the face may imply that it was making use of changes in water pressure to identify animals in low-light conditions, either during the night or in deep, dark water. Mosasaurs may also have possessed other senses within their reach.

Longrich said if it wasn't making use of the eyes, then it's very possible that it was making use of the tongue to hunt, just like a snake. Most aquatic lizards and snakes - filesnakes, water monitors, sea snakes - flick their forked tongues under the water, using chemical signals to trail their prey. Mosasaurs would have looked like dolphins and whales, so it's tempting to think they lived like them.

"But they're very distinct beasts - they're big lizards - so they probably behaved like them." While majority of its relatives were not huge, just a few meters long, Pluridens got big, possibly eight meters long. The largest individuals possessed thick, heavily built jawbones.

Jaw of Pluridens

Dr. Longrich said there is a possibility that big males were battling with these jaws. In some beaked whales, the males have enormous jaws they use to battle with, and male sperm whales can be highly hostile and combative. Some Pluridens jaws display healing injuries, which gives a suggestion of some violent fights.

The Moroccan mosasaurs were wildly assorted. Some possessed small teeth for grabbing fish and squid, others developed blunt teeth used in crushing clams, ammonites, and crustaceans, while others possessed teeth created to cut or tear other marine animals apart - both other mosasaurs.

Related Article: Mosasaur: Giant Dinosaur Water Lizard That Had Teeth Like Shark

For more news, updates about giant sea lizards and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
WINCHESTER  A man from Winsted died following a head-on crash involving a tractor-trailer-involved crash Friday night, police said.

Officers were dispatched to North Main Street along Route 8 near the Winchester treatment plant at about 6:45 a.m. for a reported crash with serious injuries, the release said. Yvon Michaud, 46, who was driving a minivan, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Clayton Ferguson, 39, who was driving the tractor-trailer according to police, sustained minor injuries.

Officials say evidence showed the tractor-trailer, driving south, and minivan, heading north, collided head-on. Michaud, according to police, was ejected from his seat when his car collided with the semi-tractor trailer. Police have not yet determined who was at fault in the crash.

Ferguson was transported to the Charlotte Hungerford Hospital and released shortly after, according to police. Both the minivan and truck had heavy front-end damage. Police said they closed the road for over five hours as they investigated the crash.

The investigation is ongoing, but officials determined the tractor-trailer is registered to a company in Indiana called Central Transport LLC, according to the release.

Anyone with information can call the Winchester Police Department at 860-379-2723.
photo from the State Police Troop B Facebook

NEW HARTFORD  A stretch of Route 44 of the Pine Meadow area in New Hartford remains closed after a car crash, state police said in a Facebook post.

Route 44 between Church Street and Wickett Street is closed after a car versus a telephone pole accident, state police reported in the post. Drivers are advised to use Church Street as a detour in the interim.
LAS VEGAS (AP)  A state court judge said Friday he won't disqualify the district attorney in Las Vegas from handling a bid to set the execution date for a convicted Nevada mass murderer.

A defense attorney for condemned inmate Zane Michael Floyd said they will appeal to the Nevada Supreme Court.

A day after Gov. Steve Sisolak and the top Democrat in the Legislature declared efforts to repeal the states death penalty law dead, Clark County District Court Judge Michael Villani also pushed back to June 4 his hearing of the district attorneys request to set a late July date for Floyd's lethal injection.

Floyd, 45, would be the first convicted killer put to death in Nevada since 2006.

An appeal by his attorneys, deputy federal public defenders David Anthony and Brad Levenson, could slow the pace of Floyd's legal fights against his death sentence in state and federal courts.

U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware II has said he might stop the proceedings in federal court long enough to review the constitutionality of Nevadas untested lethal injection method and the as-yet-undisclosed drugs prison officials would use. Boulware will hear more about Floyds case next Thursday.

Before Villani on Friday, Anthony and Levenson accused Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson of scheduling his request for a judge to issue Floyds death warrant for political reasons  to influence the death penalty debate in the Legislature.

They asked the court to appoint a third-party prosecutor instead.

Alexander Chen, the chief deputy district attorney handling the Floyd case, said state law requires the district attorney or the state attorney general's office to handle death penalty applications.

Levenson accused Wolfson, who favors the death penalty, of pressuring Democrats in the state Legislature  including two of Wolfsons prosecutorial deputies, Senate Democratic Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro and Judiciary Committee Chairwoman Melanie Scheible  to scuttle the death penalty repeal bill.

Wolfson, Cannizzaro and Scheible did not immediately respond Friday to messages seeking comment.

Sisolak, a Democrat, said Thursday he believes capital punishment should be used only in severe situations.

Floyd, 45, was sentenced in 2000 to die for the shotgun killings of four people and the wounding of a fifth at a Las Vegas supermarket in 1999.

Levenson told Villani the repeal bill passed the state Assembly but never got a Senate hearing. He accused the Senate leaders who work for Wolfson, Cannizzaro and Scheible, of being two people who stood in the way. He suggested their non-Legislature jobs were on the line.

If they didnt do what they were supposed to do, would they be invited back? he asked.

The judge issued a written finding to the court record saying he was satisfied that Cannizzaro and Scheible were on leaves of absence from Wolfsons office and that while serving in the Legislature they were not under the control of Wolfson.

The court finds that under the present scenario there is not a separation of powers violation, he said.

Levenson read into the court record a quote Wolfson provided to the Las Vegas Review-Journal for a March 26 report about his call to execute Floyd.

I think the timing is good, Wolfson said. Our legislative leaders should recognize that there are some people who commit such heinous acts, whether it be the particular type of murder or the number of people killed, that this community has long felt should receive the death penalty.

We would be moving forward with the Zane Floyd efforts at obtaining the order and warrant of execution notwithstanding the Legislature, Wolfson said at the time. Im not purposefully moving forward with Floyd because of the Legislature. But because theyre occurring at the same time, I want our lawmakers to have their eyes wide open because this is a landmark case. They need to be aware that there are these kinds of people out there where the jury has spoken loudly and clearly.

Levenson told Villani that Nevada residents and his client deserve the assurance that the lawyers representing the state who are seeking Mr. Floyds execution ... are doing so fairly and not to further an agenda to manipulate the other branches of government.
The head of a national conservative group told supporters it secretly helped draft legislation in Republican-controlled statehouses across the country as part of a coordinated network of organizations pushing to tighten voting laws across the country.

Jessica Anderson, executive director of Heritage Action, made the claim during a recent meeting with supporters in Arizona. A recording of the event was released by the liberal investigative website Documented, which made a copy available for The Associated Press to review. Heritage Action confirmed its authenticity.

In some cases, we actually draft them for them, Anderson said of legislation written for state lawmakers. Or we have a sentinel on our behalf give them the model legislation, so it has that grassroots, from-the-bottom-up type of vibe.

Anderson's comments shed additional light on precisely how well-funded national organizations have seized on false claims about the 2020 election to try to tighten state voting laws. While it is known that Heritage Action and several other groups are working with state lawmakers on legislation, it is rare to hear a leader detail how a group masks involvement to give the bills the appearance of broad political support.

Anderson gave the example of Georgia, where she said an activist affiliated with Heritage had given a letter outlining the group's recommendations to key legislators. The activist first had the proposal signed by thousands of other activists. Other states where she said the group helped write bills included Iowa and Texas  though in Iowa, the authors of the voting legislation said they never spoke with Heritage.

In a statement Friday, Anderson said: Heritage Action is proud of our work to make it easier to vote and harder to cheat. That work begins at the state level through our grassroots and continues in state legislatures throughout the country.

Heritage Action is one of several Republican-affiliated groups that jumped into elections issues for the first time after former President Donald Trumps false claims about election fraud led to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The lies also have fanned deep suspicions about the integrity of the countrys voting systems among GOP activists and donors  Anderson noted Heritage activists cited it as a top issue in a survey  and led to new laws in Georgia, Florida, Iowa, Kansas and other states.

Democrats have argued that the laws make it harder for people to vote, and disproportionally affect Black, Latino, young and other Democratic-leaning voters. Republicans argue the tougher rules will guard against fraud and are needed to restore trust in the election system. On Friday, the liberal group End Citizens United released a report that tallied up more than $42 million that conservative groups have pledged to spend on election laws, including Heritage's $24 million budget.

Heritage and other conservative groups contend they are only trying to counter what they see as an array of well-funded liberal groups that work to loosen voting rules.

Heritage Action announced its effort in March, saying it would push legislation in eight battleground states based on model principles formulated by its parent organization, the conservative Heritage Foundation. Hans von Spakovsky, the foundation's top voting expert and a former member of Trump's 2017 election fraud commission, appeared at the event with Anderson and boasted of regularly talking with Republican secretaries of state. Anderson added that Heritage Action had just had a huge call with secretaries of state, who often serve as a state's chief elections official.

Anderson also said the group runs a Tuesday call to give marching orders to other conservative organizations that have just launched voting pushes, including the anti-abortion rights Susan B. Anthony List and the small government group FreedomWorks.

Anderson took credit for an Arizona law that bans donations to election offices from outside groups. The law was meant to fight back against $300 million in donations from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg last year. She also claimed credit for a controversial provision in Iowa that moves voters to inactive status after missing a single election.

Iowa is the first state that we got to work in, and we did it quickly and we did it quietly," Anderson said. "We helped draft the bills. ... Honestly, nobody even noticed. My team looked at each other, and were like, it cant be that easy.

Iowa Republicans who worked on the voting legislation have said they had no contact with Heritage. In March, Republican state Rep. Bobby Kaufmann told The Associated Press that he had not talked to Heritage or any other outside group. On Friday, he reiterated that denial.

Heritage is telling a bold-faced lie, Kaufmann said. Asked if claiming credit for the bills was a fundraising technique, Kaufmann replied: That's exactly what it is.

State Sen. Roby Smith, who co-wrote the legislation with Kaufmann, also denied working with Heritage. "A number of the policy provisions in SF 413 were also in previous pieces of legislation long before the Heritage Foundation even knew to take credit for some thing they did not do, Smith said in a statement.

Mike Marshall, the regulator who oversees lobbyists interactions with the Iowa executive branch, said Friday he has requested that Anderson provide any contacts that she or other Heritage Action representatives made in Iowa. Marshall said he had also asked the office of Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds to search its records for any such interactions.

Heritage is not a registered lobbyist in Iowa and did not publicly register a position on the election bill when it was released in February.

At the event, Anderson said there was another task besides simply passing new laws. Many Republicans fear that their voters lost trust in the system due to Trumps allegations and then in Georgia didnt cast ballots during two January Senate run-offs, which Democrats won. Heritage wants to make sure conservative voters hear that voting rules are being tightened to prevent fraud.

It's our job to tell them that was done, with the hope that it will restore voter confidence and let people return to the polls in 2022, Anderson said.

__

Riccardi reported from Denver and Izaguirre from Lindenhurst, New York. Michael Biesecker in Washington and Ryan J. Foley in Iowa City, Iowa, contributed.
WASHINGTON  One person is in custody in connection with an "ongoing incident" at the main gate of Joint Base Andrews, Md., the home of Air Force One, a spokesman at the base said Friday.

The main gate is closed as base security forces work with "partner law enforcement officials to address the situation," Zachary Baddorf, a spokesman for the Air Force's 316th Wing at the base, wrote in an emailed statement.

Baddorf did not provide further details on the incident.

Aerial footage by 7News DC showed what appeared to be a remote-controlled bomb squad robot investigating a tan sedan parked about 50 feet away from the base's main gate at about 6:30 p.m. An Air Force explosive ordnance disposal truck was stationed nearby.

Joint Base Andrews most recently made the news for a security incident on Feb. 4 when a civilian entered the base and accessed a military aircraft.

An Air Force inspector general investigation found that incident happened after a "distracted and complacent" airman guarding a gate improperly allowed the civilian to enter the base.

316th Wing operates and maintains Andrews, which is about 15 miles outside of Washington and home to the aircraft that routinely fly the president and other top U.S. officials.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  A Belarusian military officer on Friday was sentenced to 18 years in prison for leaking a document related to the government's crackdown on protests against the country's authoritarian president.

The officer, Capt. Dzianis Urad, was accused of giving the media a copy of a government directive urging the military to help put down the demonstrations.

Belarus' Supreme Court handed Urad an 18-year prison sentence and stripped him of his military rank for the actions that hurt national security.

Earlier this month, President Alexander Lukashenko has stripped 80 military and police officers of their ranks over their suspected links to the opposition.

Lukashenko, who has ruled the ex-Soviet nation for more than a quarter-century, has faced months of massive protests triggered by his re-election to a sixth term in an August vote that the opposition and some election workers said was rigged.

The Belarusian authorities have unleashed a harsh crackdown on protests demanding Lukashenko's resignation. More than 34,000 people have been arrested in Belarus and many of them were brutally beaten.

This article was written by The Associated Press from The Associated Press and was legally licensed through the Industry Dive publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.
STUTTGART, Germany  The U.S. and Greece will likely update a bilateral security pact this summer in a move that could pave the way for more American military missions in the region, Greece's defense chief has said.

Greek Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos, describing military ties with the U.S. as being at an "all-time high," said that the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement between the countries is being amended.

The deal could "bring in more locations" where U.S. troops can operate in Greece, Panagiotopoulos said Tuesday during an online discussion at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The plan also could "enhance what is happening at the selected locations in operation right now," he said.

The agreement could be finalized within two months.

Panagiotopoulos' comments are the latest signal that Washington is looking to bolster its position in the eastern Mediterranean, where Russia has stepped up military activities and where China is gaining influence as a financial stakeholder at various European ports.

Beijing is "very methodically, very patiently, very systematically  like everything China does  expanding its strategic posture in the region," Panagiotopoulos said.

During the past three years, the U.S. has gradually boosted operations in Greece at multiple bases.

Most recently, the U.S. Navy in October muscled up in the eastern Mediterranean when it decided to homeport the USS Hershel "Woody" Williams at its Souda Bay base in Crete, a first for a U.S. ship in at least 40 years.

Since 1969, Souda Bay has mainly served as a logistics hub, serving ships transiting the region, including aircraft carriers.

Beyond Souda Bay, the U.S. operates MQ-9 Reaper drones in Larissa and at facilities in Alexandroupoli, where a port plays a key role for rotating U.S. forces in Europe.

The U.S. activity in Greece comes at a time of strained relations with ally Turkey, which also has been at odds with Athens in connection with an energy rights dispute in the eastern Mediterranean.

Some security analysts have suggested that if relations further deteriorate between Ankara and Washington, bases in Greece could eventually be an operational alternative to Turkey's Incirlik Air Base.

Washington, however, has given no indication that it intends to move forces out of Turkey, where the U.S. Army also operates a missile defense radar at a remote base in Kuerecik.

This article is written by John Vandiver from Stars and Stripes and was legally licensed via the Tribune Content Agency through the Industry Dive publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.
They didnt let a little scolding deter them from making the deal of a lifetime on Shark Tank. The guys behind Float N Grill appeared on the hit ABC show on Friday, May 14.

Hey there Sharks, my name is Michael Bashawaty and Im Jeremy Quillico. Were from Plymouth, Michigan and were here seeking $200,000 in exchange for a 20% stake in our company, the two announced before pitching the Sharks their invention.

MLive first told you about these entrepreneurs and their product a couple years ago. The two say they started creating the grill about five years ago when they said they couldnt find anything around like this.

Float N Grill sells for $229. It features textured marine-grade vinyl, a built-in igniter, a dual latch that locks the grill lid tight and a slot to hold the propane tank in place. The made in the USA product is flip resistant. Theres a removable grease trap so nothing gets into the water. It also has cup holders.

When Mark Cuban asked what their total sales to date were, things went south in a hurry.

Our total gross sales for this year are $19,400.

Jeremy, did you say 19, asked Robert Herjavec.

We just launched a year and a half ago, replied Quillico.

The sand bar community has rejected you, yelled Kevin OLeary. All I know is, nobody is using this in the sand bar. You want 20%. A million evaluation when no one in the sand bar community gives a poo poo about this thing.

Then, the guys started negotiating with Daniel Lubetzky. Im friends with the guys from Weber grill, Lubetzky said. Is there something that youd rather license to them or is there a reason why they couldnt do that themselves? What does your patent cover?

Lubetzky offered to license it to Weber and offered the guys $200K for a 50% stake in their company. Quillico and Bashawaty countered asking for $100K cash, a $100K loan for 20% stake and a royalty of $2 per unit sold until the loan is repaid.

Lubetzky seemed intrigued. The guys told them the maximum stake they were willing to give up was 22.5%. I like your patent. Heres my offer: $100K plus $100K as a loan for a 22.5% stake and 50% of any licensing deals.

The guys accepted the deal and walked out of the Shark Tank with the big investment.

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DEARBORN, MI -- Helen Bandyke was a newlywed 78 years ago when her husband was drafted in World War II.

She wanted to find a way to fill her time, so she went to work building airplane wings.

Helen, who turned 100 years old on March 29, is a Rosie the Riveter, a large group of American women who joined the workforce during World War II to support the war effort.

RELATED: Michigan woman gets special 100th birthday surprise from American Rosie the Riveter Association

Helen worked on airplane wings at the DeSoto-Warren Plant owned by Chrysler in 1943.

She doesnt remember how she heard about jobs at the plant, but she does remember she wasnt fond of being told to slow her work down.

Supervisors thought she was just too quick and told Helen to either slow down or go sit in the ladies room, her daughter, Sylvia Bandyke, said. But the ladies room had mice and Helen didnt want to slow down anyway, Sylvia said.

Not only was Helen a spirited riveter, but she made lifelong friends with other Rosies, one of which is her daughters godmother.

Sylvia credits the determined nature she and her siblings have to their mother. For every birthday and Mothers Day card she gives to her, Sylvia writes about her admiration and respect for her mothers strength.

My mother had a very tough job before she became a Rosie, Sylvia said.

That job was as an assistant at a psychiatric hospital, Sylvia said. After the war, Helen began working as an optometrist assistant where her favorite part of the job was helping people pick glasses they looked best in. Helen worked at least part time in the optometry field until she was 81.

Even when she could only work part time that was good because she likes to be out doing something (and) using her energy to help, Sylvia said.

At 100 years old, Helen still lives on her own though Sylvia and her siblings coordinate care for her. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Helen was also visited by her companion, Ed Weidenbach, a caregiver through Seniors Helping Seniors, an organization offering in-home care from seniors themselves.

Weidenbach would chat with Helen and help with chores on a weekly basis. One day in 2019 she mentioned to him that she was a Rosie.

That was when she was 98 years old and I looked at her and said Helen, that is such a wonderful memory, please tell me more, Weidenbach said. And so she told me as much as she could remember of her story.

Helens story stuck with Weidenbach, so when he saw an article about the American Rosie the Riveter Association, he gave the local chapter a call. The ARRA is a volunteer-based group that focuses on preserving the legacy of Rosies.

Helen's caregiver, Ed Weidenbach, poses for a photo as he celebrates her birthday alongside the Rosies. Photo taken by Sylvia Bandyke.

To celebrate her 100th birthday, Helen was greeted by the AARA, her family members and Seniors Helping Seniors staff, including Weidenbach, who she had not seen in person for about a year.

Seniors Helping Seniors of Southeast Michigan owner Carmo Ribiero said Helen waved to them from the window of her home. She was definitely living that moment, he said.

A couple times that I crossed by the window there, I saw her with her hand kind of waving like a queen, Ribiero said.

Helen was very humbled by the celebration because, in her mind, she just did a job that needed to be done, Sylvia said.

Helen Bandyke was greeted by the American Rosie the Riveter Association to celebrate her 100th birthday on March 29, 2021. Photo taken by Sylvia Bandyke.

Without this big special event, it would have seemed like a special birthday just kind of passed by, Sylvia said.

While birthday events arent always as extravagant as Helens, the Senior Helping Seniors program tries to make all their clients celebrations special, Ribiero said. Many caregivers are not visiting in person anymore, but they still connect with their companions over the phone.

Sylvia and her sister took on Helens care during the pandemic.

Were just thankful that we had a mother still living at home because I have friends with parents in assisted living homes and they couldnt physically see their parents for most of the past year, Sylvia said.

Right now, Sylvia said her and her siblings will try to keep finding ways for Helen to live independently.

I just hope we are able to keep this up and you know, she can keep on living there for as long as she wants to, Sylvia said.

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Scientists have figured out what provokes large-scale volcanic eruptions and conditions that could possibly lead to them.

Hawaii's Kilauea

One of the most active volcanoes in the world is Hawaii's Kilauea. Because of this and its relatively easy accessibility, it is also included in the most heavily outfitted with equipment for monitoring - instruments that aid in measuring and recording everything that happens when earthquakes occur, from the earthquake and movement of the ground to lava volume and advancement.

However, Kilauea's 2018 eruption was particularly massive and was accompanied by a peak collapse. In fact, in more than 200 years it was the volcano's largest eruption.

Experts at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California made use of the abundance of data taken from this uncommon event to shed light on what leads to large-scale eruptions like this one and, perhaps more significantly, what mechanisms provoke them.

Also Read: Earth Could be Left 'Uninhabitable' If Volcanoes Under Antarctica Ice Will Erupt

Caldera Collapse

Lead author of the new study released recently in Nature, JPL's Alberto Roman said: "Ultimately, what made this eruption to be so much larger than usual was the collapse of the volcano's caldera - the massive, craterlike depression at the volcano's peak."

He added that during a caldera collapse, an enormous block of rock close to the top of the volcano glides down into the volcano. As it glides, gets trapped on the jagged walls around it, and glides some more, the block of rock forces out more magma than would be expelled ordinarily.

But what the science team actually wanted to get knowledge of was what initially led the caldera to collapse - and they got their answer. The likely culprit? Vents - openings lava flows through - found a distance away from, and at a much lower elevation than, the volcano's peak.

"At times, volcanoes erupt at the peak, but an eruption can also take place when lava forces its way through vents much lower down the volcano," said the co-author of the study, JPL's Paul Lundgren. "Eruption through these low-elevation vents possibly caused the collapse of the caldera."

The Magma Chamber

A large amount of magma can be rapidly expelled from the chamber (or chambers) below the volcano through these vents, leaving the rocky floor and walls of the caldera at the top of the chamber without enough support. The rock from the caldera can then collapse into the magma chamber.

As the rock falls, it puts pressure on the magma chambers - for Kilauea, the research team recognized two of them - boosting the magma flow to the distant vents and also the total volume of the eruption. The pressurization is similar to compressing a bag of water to force the last little bit of water out.

Some videos can displays how the surface of a volcano changes its form during an eruption causing the caldera collapse on the top. The color bands usually at the lower-right animation box reveal those alterations from before to midway through Kilauea's 2018 eruption. The nearer the color bands to one another, the more serious the deformation in that area.

Related Article: Volcanic Eruptions Underwater Release Enough Energy to Power an Entire Continent!

For more news, updates about volcanic eruptions and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
FLINT, MI-- The owner of Flint-based Oil Chem, Inc. was sentenced to twelve months of imprisonment after dumping millions of gallons of landfill liquid into Flint sewers.

This case should serve as a warning to anyone who knowingly and willfully violates the environmental laws of the United States. You will be prosecuted, said Acting US Attorney Saima Mohsin in a press release.

Robert J. Massey, owner and president of the chemical company, was accused by federal prosecutors in December of knowingly polluting Flint sewers with 47 million gallons of untreated landfill liquid coming from eight landfills.

RELATED: Oil Chem owner accused of dumping nearly 50 million gallons of landfill liquid into Flint sewers

He pleaded guilty to violating the Clean Water Act, a federal law meant to protect water quality, in January.

Court documents show Massey directed his employees to dispose of the landfill leachate through a hose from a tank to a sanitary sewer drain located at the Oil Chem facility, without treatment and in violation of Oil Chems wastewater discharge permit. These actions occurred over an eight-year period from 2007 to 2015.

Oil Chem, Inc., located at 711 W. 12th St. in Flint, had a City of Flint permit under the Clean Water Act to discharge some industrial waste within the permit limits. Sanitary sewers in Flint flow to a wastewater treatment plant before the wastewater is sent into the Flint River.

The discharge point of the plant for treated wastewater was downstream of where drinking water was taken from the Flint River in 2014 and 2015.

RELATED: Oil Chem owner pleads guilty in dumping of 47 million gallons of landfill liquid into Flint sewers

Oil Chems permit did not allow the discharge of landfill leachate waste, which is a liquid formed when water filters downward through landfill while picking up liquids from dissolving materials in trash.

Massey signed and certified the chemical companys 2008 permit application and did not disclose that Oil Chem had been and would continue to receive landfill leachate, which it discharged into the sewers without treatment. Massey also did not tell the city that the company would discharge this new waste stream, which the permit required.

Massey arranged for the chemical company to receive over 47 million gallons of landfill leachate from eight landfills in Michigan. One landfill was found to have polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in its landfill liquid, which are known to have hazardous effects on human health and the environment.

This investigation was also a collaboration of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys Investigation Division, Coast Guard Investigative Service and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources-Law Enforcement Division-Environmental Investigations Section.

The EPA and our law enforcement partners are committed to enforcing regulations designed to protect our communities and our treasured resources, Mohsin said.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- Organizers of an effort to defund the Grand Rapids police say theyll keep pushing their ideas, even if Grand Rapids city leaders refuse to alter a proposed budget coming to a vote next week.

Activists with the group Defund the GRPD rallied Friday, May 14 at the Calder Plaza, in front of Grand Rapids City Hall, before marching to police headquarters on Monroe Center NW.

The rally came just a few days ahead of a scheduled May 20 Grand Rapids City Council meeting where city commissioners will vote whether to approve a $546 million spending plan which includes $55.81 million for police.

About 70 people showed up for the event.

Activists with Defund the GRPD and Justice for Black Lives have been spearheading an effort to slash the Grand Rapids police budget since shortly after the Grand Rapids riot on May 30, 2020. The riot came in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd, a Black man, at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer.

Their demands have gone unheeded so far, and the majority of city commissioners have not shown any penchant for police cuts leading up to this years budget. The proposed budget calls for allocating $55.81 million to police, up from $55.14 million last year.

Related: Activists to city commissioners: Cut $6M from Grand Rapids police before approving budget

If approved, the police funding would represent 35.8 percent of the total budget.

Backers of the defunding effort want the police budget slashed to 32 percent -- a charter-mandated minimum percentage. It would mean cutting nearly $6 million from Grand Rapids Police.

They complain that police have not been acting in the publics interest and have brutalized some in the Black and Brown community of Grand Rapids.

During Fridays rally, marchers stopped outside police headquarters for an extended period, chanting anti-police phrases and giving speeches.

Their presence prompted police to give a warning about blocking the sidewalk. About 10 officers on bicycles and in heavy gear staged in the area.

The protesters eventually began marching back toward Calder Plaza and police did not interrupt any part of the event.

Supporters of defunding the police say theyre prepared to carry on their fight into the next budget year if they get no traction next week with city commissioners.

They said they believe their message resonates with the community and that they are in the majority viewpoint about police behavior, not the minority.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- Protesters in downtown Grand Rapids called for an end to U.S. aid to Israel as the countrys ongoing conflict with Palestine flared into a new round of violence this week.

About 35 people gathered at the corner of Fulton Street and Division Avenue for a protest called Free Palestine: Stop U.S. Aid to Israel.

They hope to raise awareness about the conflict and Israels occupation of Palestinian areas, considered illegal by many. They say Palestinians are suffering disproportionately to any loss by the Israelis.

Both the Israelis and Hamas, the leadership in Gaza, have traded artillery strikes in recent days. But the Israeli technology is more advanced and, so far, a reported 119 Palestinians in Gaza, including 30 children, have been killed. Eight Israelis have died in rocket attacks.

In 2020 the United States provided $3.8 billion to Israel, according to a memo from the Congressional Research Service, which accounts for about 20 percent of the countrys defense budget.

Barbara Howard, an organizer of Saturdays event, said the aid is simply not acceptable and described Israels actions as war crimes.

We are resisting because its our tax dollars that are doing this, she said. We send so much aid to Israel.

Were here to say were not in favor of this and that people should not just blow it off or ignore it, because it is our doing. We are complicit, she said.

Saturdays gathering included several people with Palestinian ties. A 30-year-old man and his mother, who immigrated to the United States from Palestine, showed up.

I think the biggest misconception is that, when people pay attention to these things, they pay attention to these flare-ups and they think this is the point of when the conflict started. But the conflict has been going on for the last 73 years, said the 30-year-old, who didnt want to be named for fear of retribution if he travels to Palestine.

The latest violence, by most accounts, was exacerbated by an ongoing attempt to evict seven Palestinian families from an East Jerusalem neighborhood.

Howard said that after she scheduled Saturdays event on social media, Grand Rapids area people with Palestinian backgrounds contacted her, saying they wanted to attend.

She said it was good for them to be visible at the protest.

They are our neighbors here in Grand Rapids and around the world, she said.

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KALAMAZOO, MI -- A 26-year-old Mississippi man was shot multiple times in Kalamazoo on Friday, but police say his injuries are not life-threatening.

The shooting was reported about 8:40 p.m. in the 100 block of East Paterson Street.

Kalamazoo Public Safety officers said they arrived at the scene to find the Mississippi man with several gunshot wounds.

He was taken to a hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.

Police say they continue to investigate the shooting but believe a dark sedan, possibly a Chrysler 300, was involved in the incident. The car was seen leaving the area after the shooting.

Anyone with information about the shooting can call Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety at 269-337-8120 or Silent Observer at 269-343-2100.

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FREELAND, MI - A local animal rescue is asking for the communitys help in finding out who poured gasoline on a cat in Saginaw County, leaving it with severe skin injuries.

Humane Society of Saginaw County President Liz Quarm said that the organization received a Facebook message on Friday evening alerting them to a cat that was covered in gasoline in Freeland. According to Quarm, the cat was an outdoor community cat who was being fed and provided shelter by a local family. Quarm said that the family became concerned and alerted the Humane Society when they realized that the cat showed up covered in fuel.

The Humane Society of Saginaw County set a live trap for the cat at 6 p.m. on Friday and Quarm said that the cat was caught in the trap at 9 p.m. that evening, much to the relief of his family of caretakers.

When we picked him up they said they were so relieved he would be removed and never hurt again, she said. They also said in the winter he showed up with bloody ear. It was intentionally cut. The damage was not done any other way.

Since the Humane Society of Saginaw County is a foster-based rescue where animals reside in volunteers homes, the cat was brought home with Quarm after being trapped and was washed several times with Dawn dish soap. Milo didnt escape his ordeal unscathed, however. He suffered burns and damage to his skin, leading to fur loss.

His fur was coming out in clumps from his skin being burned from the fuel, said Quarm.

The Humane Society of Saginaw County is actively looking for information related to who did this to the cat, who is named Milo. Quarm said that the organization is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to charges being pressed against the person who harmed Milo. Tips can be anonymously submitted by calling (989) 501-8672.

Quarm said that currently Milo is being treated with a topical foam antiseptic pain reliever and that he is hospitalized today to be watched by a veterinarian.

We do not yet know if he will have permanent health problems as gasoline can do damage by absorbing through his skin as well as him digesting it by trying to lick his fur clean, said Quarm.

Quarm added that Milo does cower in fear and gets scared when people try to pet him, leading the Humane Society to believe that he has been treated badly by somebody for some time. However, Milo is showing some positive signs after his ordeal.

With some baby talk and cheek rubs he begins to relax and purr, Quarm said. Milo does not have a mean bone in his body.

The Humane Society of Saginaw County is currently accepting donations to cover Milos medical bills. At this time, Quarm says they do not have an estimate of what the total cost will be for his care. Donations can be made online at https://humanesocietyofsaginawcounty.org/home or directly to Animal Alley Veterinary Hospital at Freeland.

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Michigan released specifics Friday night about how businesses must enforce the latest version of the states mask mandate  which goes into effect at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 15.

The new mandate allows all fully vaccinated people  which means theyre two weeks removed from their final shot  to ditch their masks in most outdoor and indoor spaces.

Businesses must make a good faith effort to make sure unvaccinated people wear masks, per the order.

To count as a good faith effort, a business can do any of three options: Put up signs to say unvaccinated people must still wear masks, ask customers if they are vaccinated (or have any other exemption) or simply require everybody to wear masks.

To read the full order, click here.

Other components to the health order  like capacity restrictions for various types of gatherings  remain unchanged.

RELATED: Michigan to follow CDC guidance, no masks indoors for vaccinated people; full mask mandate to end July 1

Other people exempt from wearing masks indoors include kids under 2 years old, people actively eating or drinking and those who cant medically tolerate a mask  among other exemptions.

These changes to the mask mandate dont impact employees  as theyre required to follow Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration rules. MIOSHA rules havent been relaxed yet to allow vaccinated people to unmask, but state officials said theyre considering tweaking those rules too.

Some businesses have already said they plan to continue requiring masks for everybody, including Meijer and Kroger.

The latest state health order expires at 11:59 p.m. on May 31, but may be extended. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Friday that Michigans entire mask mandate would be lifted July 1.

The move comes on the heels of new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control, which said vaccinated people dont need to wear masks inside anymore.

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Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah says the alleged assault on CitiFM's journalist, Caleb Kudah, and subsequent invasion of the station's premises by National Security operatives is a test case for the National Media Commission's new Secretariat to investigate the matter.

Government recently commissioned a new secretariat to receive and validate complaints of attacks on media practitioners in Ghana and advocate their rights and freedoms.

The Secretariat, known as: the National Coordinated Mechanism on the Safety of Journalists, is a centre for media practitioners to report issues of intimidation and harassments in their line of duty for investigation.

Mr Caleb Kudah was arrested on the premises of the Ministry of National Security on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, for filming within the precincts of the security installation.

He said he was assaulted by some operatives of the National Security without any provocation.

The National Security operatives detected that Mr Kudah had transferred the video he took to his colleague, Ms Zoe Abu Baidoo.

The Information Minister, in a media interview in Accra on Friday, said an investigation had been instituted by the Ministry of National Security into the allegation.

If the investigation proved that the perpetrators infringed on the work ethics and professional standards of their duties, they would be sanctioned accordingly, he said.

He said while the National Security Ministry was doing its internal investigation it was imperative for the NMC to also conduct its own independent investigation to get to the root of the case.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah also visited Citi FM to commiserate with Management and the journalists involved and urged them to make formal complaint to the new Media Secretariat.

He said government had been strengthening the constitutional set-up institutions, including the NMC, to preserve the rights and freedoms of the media to promote good governance.

He gave the assurance that government would make the findings public and would not shield anyone found culpable.

Some civil society organisations have condemned the alleged assault on Mr Kudah, saying government is using the security agencies to intimidate the media from doing their work independently.

---GNA
Zambian columnist and academic Sishuwa Sishuwa. (Sishuwa Sishuwa)

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Lusaka, Zambia, May 12, 2021  Zambian authorities should drop an investigation into newspaper columnist and academic Sishuwa Sishuwa, who is accused of sedition, and should reaffirm the right to media freedom ahead of the August 12 general elections, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Sishuwa, a lecturer at the University of Zambia, wrote an opinion article published on March 19 in the independent local newspaper News Diggers and republished three days later in South Africas Mail & Guardian newspaper on the potential for unrest in Zambia after the elections, titled, Zambia may burn after the August election. Sishuwa often contributes political commentary to Zambian and regional news outlets, according to a CPJ review of his work.

Zambias ambassador to Ethiopia and permanent representative to the African Union, Emmanuel Mwamba, in an April 26 letter to the Inspector General of Police accused Sishuwa of sedition; the charge is now pending investigation, Mwamba told CPJ via messaging app and the news website Lusaka Times reported. A conviction on sedition carries a minimum sentence of seven years in jail, according to Zambias criminal procedure code.

Police should not waste taxpayers money by entertaining a complaint of alleged sedition against columnist and academic Sishuwa Sishuwa, who was simply exercising his fundamental right to freedom of speech, said Angela Quintal, CPJs Africa program coordinator, in New York. Authorities must also guard against inadvertently opening the floodgates for those close to the ruling Patriotic Front who may want to weaponize colonial-era sedition laws ahead of the August general elections.

Mwamba initially responded to Sishuwas article with a March 29 Facebook post in which he accused the columnist of being a hired gun, calling the opinion piece an attempt to scandalise Zambia, harm its reputation and impose a false and alarming international narrative.

Sishuwa then sued Mwamba, seeking unspecified damages for defamation and malicious falsehood in connection with the Facebook post, News Diggers reported April 21.

Mwamba retaliated by laying the sedition charge against Sishuwa with police, the Lusaka Times reported. Mwamba told CPJ via messaging app that as a former journalist himself, he supported responsible expression that doesnt defame, is not seditious or [is not] writing that promotes incitement or hate speech.

Sishuwa told CPJ via messaging app that the matter should be seen as part of a broader attempt by the authorities to suppress criticism ahead of the elections. By accusing me of sedition, the government wants to intimidate an independent voice, one of the few remaining, seen as having an international audience, he added.

Zambia Police deputy spokesperson Danny Mwale and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services did not respond to several CPJ requests for comment sent via phone and WhatsApp, while an email sent to an address provided on the government website bounced.
Tamale Archdiocesan Catholic Youth Council (TACYC) together with the Sagnarigu Youth Parliament and Catholic Relief Services feast with Muslim brothers and sisters to commemorate the Eid Ul Fitr.

The event amongst other things included the donation of food to Muslim brothers and sisters at the Wurishe Central Mosque in Tamale, Northern Region.

This forms part of a series of activities under the Sahel Peace Initiative (SPI) which seeks to consolidate and strengthen peace in the country.

The TACYC Vice Chairman, Atuimah Azechum Valerius bemoaned, though the country is experiencing relative peace, recent happenings surrounding Wesley Girls SHS fuel tensions among Muslim and Christian communities.

Against this backdrop, he said there is the need for peace initiatives capable of preventing the escalation of these tensions to held.

Th clean-up exercises and workshops held together with the Muslim brothers and sister under the Sahel Peace Initiative is a laudable initiative capable of strengthening peace in the country, he said.

He was quick to add that the Muslim brothers and sisters joined the Christian family to celebrate Easter, thus the need to return the same love on a special day of the Muslim community.

He urged the public to respect all religions and societal differences for peace to prevail as well as create a pathway for sustainable development in the country.

Afa Amidu, a Muslim leader said the initiative is laudable and in line with the teachings of Islam.

According to him, Islam teaches the need for the building of togetherness, peace and harmony amongst us, and also the need for self-discipline and care for one another.

He admonished the public to uphold these basic tenets, so our society and country will be much better off.
National legislation - startup-act is the emerging innovation strategy most countries are adapting to create an enabling environment that supports innovative start-ups and drives local economic growth. The disruptions to the global value chains by the COVID-19 pandemic is a wakeup call to all countries of the urgency to support local innovations and entrepreneurs towards recovery of local economies.

Tunisia led the way as the first African country to pass a startup act that supports the development of tech-enabled ventures in April 2018 [1] . By December 2019, Senegal became the second African country to enact a startup act that spells out tax policies and financing incentives targeted at tech-enabled ventures [2] .

The successes of the Tunisian startup act thus far have inspired other African countries to consider national legislation to promote entrepreneurship. Cote dIvoire, Kenya, South Africa, Rwanda, and Uganda are at various stages of drafting a bill that would foster the growth of startups in their countries [3] .

About the Ghana Startup Act

On August 28, 2020, a technical working committee made up of representatives of multi-stakeholders: National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program (NEIP), Ghana Hubs Network, Young Entrepreneurs Chamber, Ghana Startup Network, i4policy, Accra Digital Center (ADC)*, and the Private Enterprise Federation was inaugurated to draft Ghanas version of a startup act [4] . The launch of the committee was preceded an official visit of the representatives of NEIP, ADC, Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Business Development and The Ghana Hubs Network to Tunisia. The team engaged the Tunisian officials to study the at first hand the processes leading to the enactment of the Tunisian startup act.

The announcement of the first draft of the startup bill was received with several questions from key players in the startup ecosystem in Ghana. Do we need another law to support private businesses? How different is this bill from existing Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (SME) laws?

In this article, I make a case for the Ghana startup act and why all stakeholders in the startup ecosystem should rally together to ensure the bill is expediently passed when the final draft is completed.

What is the Ghana startup Act?

The startup bill (becomes an act when passed by the parliament of Ghana) is a legal framework that defines what a startup is and creates specific incentives that would encourage the creation and development of startups in Ghana to drive economic development.

Why Ghana needs a Startup Act.

1. Definition and labelling of startups.

The National Board for Small Scale Industries (now Ghana Enterprise Agency), the regulatory body for SMEs in Ghana defines SMEs in terms of both a fixed asset and the number of employees. It defines an SME as an enterprise with a turnover greater than US$200,000 and not more than US$5 million, equivalent with not more than 100 employees.

In the academic spheres, Obeng & Blundell (2015) in their study: evaluating the enterprise policy interventions in Africa: critical review of Ghanaian small business support services defined SMEs as businesses employing between 20 and 50 full time workers [5] .

The World Bank Group defines MSMEs in terms of the number of employees (up to 300), total assets/total annual sales between US$100,000 - US$15 million [6] .

So, what is the definition of a startup in Ghana? Is it a venture that just launched? There is no official definition of a startup in Ghana. Definition and labelling of an entity are particularly important because it influences the level of support or incentives due to the entity as well as the responsibilities placed on it. For instance, the Ghana Revenue Authoritys classification of an entity determines the tax rate and tax incentives it receives.

The Ghana startup act would clearly define what a startup is and what it is not. The startup label would provide clarity for policymakers, development partners, corporate entities, and other stakeholders who design specific programs to support the growth of startups in Ghana. Labelling would ensure quality data is collected for program and incentive design.

A succinct definition of startups would remove all ambiguity and territorial clashes among government agencies related to entrepreneurship and private sector support in Ghana.

2. A clear and predictable framework for the startup ecosystem.

Policies are government choices to solve societal challenges. They create the foundation for programs and activities undertaken by Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) in delivering public goods and services. A well-designed policy based on research drives significant economic and social development.

Unfortunately, the life span of a policy proposal is tied to a governments tenure in power. An existing policy can easily be revised or discontinued based on a new governments ideology or priority.

Startups need patient capital and a predictable policy environment to yield results. A policy change could lead to disruption of existing models and potential loss of huge investments made in startups. For instance, in January 2020, the Lagos state government announced a restriction on Okada, tricycles [7] . The change in transportation policy disrupted the business model of bike-hailing startups leading to the loss of millions of investments.

On the other hand, the threshold required to amend or replace a law enacted by parliament is high.

The Ghana startup act would harmonize all the incentive structures aimed at supporting venture building scattered in various policies, programs implemented by different ministries. This ensures alignment, coherence, and continuity needed to catalyze the entrepreneurship ecosystem. A consistent and predictable legislative framework attracts investors and significantly improves the business environment in a country. This makes startup acts preferable to the best entrepreneurship policy or program.

3. Improved ease of doing startup in Ghana.

The World Bank Doing Business Report measures and ranks the ease of doing business in 190 economies across the world. It measures the process for business incorporation, transferring property, getting access to credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, engaging in international trade enforcing contracts, and resolving insolvency. In 2020 Ghana was ranked 118th globally, and 13th in Africa below Malawi, Togo, and Seychelles. On removing obstacles to entrepreneurship, Ghana still maintains a paid-in-minimum capital requirement for business registration and has also made it more difficult for businesses to pay taxes according to the report [8] . This explains the drop in Ghanas rank from 114th in 2019 to 118th. Ghana has not improved on access to credit score, protection of minority investors. The scores are a true reflection of the numerous challenges entrepreneurs and investors face in starting and doing business in Ghana. The startup act prioritizes the unique challenges startups face at distinct phases of their growth and suggests specific recommendations to mitigate them. For instance, the act proposes a tiered tax obligation on start-ups based on their growth stage. It also recommends capacity and financial support for startups to protect their intellectual property, access market, and bankruptcy support, among others.

The success stories of tech startups such as mPharma , ZeePay, AgroCenter , Dext technology among many others are bringing positive attention to the startup ecosystem in Ghana. These startups have thrived despite the unfavourable regulatory conditions and limited funding opportunities they faced.

The Ghana startup act provides the opportunity for policymakers to create a startup-friendly ecosystem that would accelerate the digital transformation agenda and post-Covid-19 recovery of the Ghanaian economy.

The process for drafting the Ghana startup act for is still underway. Many stakeholders such as relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies, entrepreneurs, investors, students, and tech entrepreneurs have been engaged a various forum to make their inputs into the act.

Your views are also welcomed. visit https://ghanastartupact.org/have-your-say/ to add your inputs into the startup act.

Brian Dzansi

Tech and Innovation Policy Analyst

Co-Founder, Ho Node Hub (Digital Innovation Hub that provides digital skills training and support to entrepreneurs)

[email protected]
On May 8, the U.S. Government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Ghana Health Service marked the close of the COVID-19 critical case management training at the Ghana Infectious Disease Center (GIDC) in Ga East, Greater Accra.

USAID/Ghanas Acting Health Office Director, Dr. Stephen Dzisi, joined Ghana Health Service representatives at the ceremony. As a continuation of the initial training, USAID will support the Government of Ghana to expand the GIDC training to district health workers in select regions in the coming months.

During the event, Dr. Dzisi reiterated unwavering commitment to support Ghana's COVID-19 response and thanked the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Services for their continued leadership, We look forward to our upcoming support to cascade this training to the district level in target regions, so lower levels in the health system can also benefit from this important training.

Through the critical care training, 86 clinicians were trained on COVID-19 critical case management and oxygen therapy, using a combination of didactic methods and clinical rounds. The training started in January 2021 and involved four cohorts of clinicians, who participated in four-week intensive training sessions. Clinicians learned and practiced mechanical ventilation, airway management, pulse oximetry, blood pressure monitoring, and chest tube insertion. Trainees used techniques learned to manage COVID-19 critically ill patients at the GIDC wards.

All clinicians received an Intensive Care Unit starter kit, an essential package of supplies to support their work when they return to their facilities. USAIDs assistance also established basic critical care hubs in each regional hospital in Ghana to reduce stress on overwhelmed facilities and helped train clinicians to transfer their skills to other colleagues in their respective regions. The critical care training began during a surge in COVID-19 cases. By improving the intensive care capacity of clinicians, the United States helps Ghana provide better quality of care for critically ill patients. This support enables a more robust response to the COVID-19 pandemic and strengthens Ghanas health system to better respond to future health emergencies.

Clinicians At The Gidc Training Learn Techniques In Mechanical Ventilation

Dr. Chris Owoo, Lead Trainer, Providing A Demonstration Of Mechanical Ventilation
New York, May 14, 2021  Angolas government should allow the television channels Record TV Africa, Vida TV, and Zap Viva to return to the airwaves, and should stop harassing media outlets critical of the government, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

On April 19, the Ministry of Telecommunications Technologies and Media (MINTTICS) ordered all three of the countrys TV operatorsDSTV Angola, TV Cabo, and ZAP TVto cease airing content from Record TV Africa, Vida TV, and Zap Viva, according to a statement by the ministry, which CPJ reviewed, and media reports.

The statement alleged that those channels had violated multiple laws by allegedly failing to properly register as media companies, and cited the Press Law, Television Law, Statute on Journalists, and the General Electronic Communication Regulations as its authority to suspend the channels until they properly registered.

All three channels are off the air in Angola, but are still being broadcast in Mozambique, according to reports.

With next years elections looming, Angolan President Joao Lourenco and his administration should promote a range of media perspectives and ensure that the state does not have a monopoly on information crucial for the public to make informed decisions, said Angela Quintal, CPJs Africa program coordinator, in New York. Censoring media outlets owned by opponents or those critical of the government flies in the face of the presidents purported commitment to a free press.

The MINTTICS statement said that the ministry also planned to revoke the operating licenses of media outlets that had allegedly been inactive for two years or more, which it said comprised 27 of the countrys 144 registered radio stations, 209 of the 243 registered newspapers, and 442 of the 459 magazines. The statement also said that only 10 websites were accurately registered to operate in the country, and did not offer any further details.

Teixeira Candido, president of the Syndicate of Angolan Journalists trade union, told CPJ by phone that Record TV Africa, Vida TV, and Zap Viva had been suspended without receiving any warning that they had been allegedly operating without proper registration.

He added that MINTTICS had no legal authority to suspend the channels, saying the laws cited in the statement only applied to companies such as TV subscription service providers, but did not apply to individual content production companies.

Angolan citizens are now reduced to watching channels that are under direct government control, Candido said.

Andre Mussamo, president of the Angolan chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa, a regional press freedom group, told CPJ by phone that Record TV Africa, Vida TV, and Zap Viva had become targets for authorities because of their journalism critical of President Joao Lourencos government.

Press freedom took a punch with this suspension; diverse and independent news are paramount to a young democracy such as Angola, he added.

Zap Viva and VIDA TV are owned by Isabel and Welvitcha dos Santos, respectively, the daughters of former president Jose Eduardo dos Santos; Record TV Africa is owned by private shareholders and by TV Record Europa, a company affiliated with the evangelical Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) headquartered in Brazil, according to media reports.

Under Lourencos administration, the dos Santos family and others close to the former president have been accused of corruption and prosecuted, according to media reports. Angolan authorities have accused the UCKG of tax evasion and financial crimes, according to media reports.

In addition to the alleged failure to register as cited in the suspensions of Zap Viva and VIDA TV, MINTTICS also accused Record TV Africa of having a foreign citizen as its executive director and of employing non-accredited foreign journalists, both violations of the press laws, according to the MINTTICS statement and news reports.

On April 30, Record TV Africa appointed Angolan journalist Simeao Mundula to replace Fernando Teixeira, a Brazilian national, as director, according to reports. Before he was replaced, Teixeira told CPJ via messaging app that no foreign journalists were employed by the broadcaster, adding that the suspension order was a political decision, and that Record TV Africa had filed an appeal.

VIDA TV owner Welwitcha dos Santos posted on her Facebook page that she believed the ministrys order was another illegality by a government led by a president intent on shutting down all who irritate him.

Zap Vivas communication director, Vanessa Berenguel, emailed CPJ a statement in which the company called the suspension unfair and an unjustifiable mistake. The statement said that Zap Viva had contacted the media regulator repeatedly over the last three years, and had complied with all of its instructions.

When CPJ called DSTV Angola director Glauco Ferreira and Zap HD director Jose Lourenco, they both declined to comment. TV Cabo director Francisco Ferreira told CPJ that although his company was named in the statement, it simply distributed DSTV and Zap HDs offerings.

Nuno Albino, Angolas secretary of state for media, told state broadcaster Televisao Publica de Angola that the suspensions were a normal administrative action. When CPJ repeatedly called Albino for comment, he did not answer the calls and replied via text that he could not talk at that time, and then did not respond to subsequent texts.

CPJ emailed MINTTICS for comment at the address listed on its website, but received an error message that the address was not functional.

Last July, the Angolan government nationalized the Media Nova media group, which owned the broadcaster TV Zimbo, newspaper O pais, Exame magazine, Radio Mais, and printing company Damer; in August, it also nationalized Interactive Empreendimentos Multimedia (IEM) LDA media group, which produced content for subscription channel TV Palanca and Radio Global, according to news reports from the time.

Prior to its nationalization, Media Nova was owned by Manuel Vicente, the former vice president under dos Santos, as well as two army generals, Leopoldino dos Santos and Kopelipa Dias, and IEM was owned by Manuel Rabelais, the former minister of media under dos Santos, as well as by other former officials affiliated with the ex-president, according to reports.

The government of President Lourenco has accused members of dos Santos administration of corruption and of siphoning funds from the state to build media companies, those reports said.
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His Lordship Nana Yaw Gyamfi Frimpong, a Justice of the Koforidua High Court has quashed a dispute in favour of Chief of Gyakiti, Nana Mamfe Otuabeng III against Nana Otwasuom Osae Nyampong IV, Akwamu Pesehene.

The judge further orders Nana Otwasuom Osae Nyampong IV and the Akwamu Traditional Council to pay an amount of Ghc5,000 each to Nana Mamfe Otuabeng III, Gyakitihene.

The case was titled, The Republic versus The Judicial Committee of Akwamu Traditional Council as Respondent, Ex-parte Kwabena Nyankomago and 10 others as Applicants and Nana Otwasuom Osae Nyampong VI as an Interested Party.

According to Nana Otwasuom Osae Nyampong IV Pesehene, who was an Interested Party to the case, the 4th Applicant, Nana Mamfe Otuabeng III has been nominated, elected and installed as the Chief of Gyakiti in the Akwamu Traditional Area.

However, after going through the process of his nomination, election and enstoolment the Gyakitihene ought to have sworn the oath of allegiance to him, being the overlord of the Gyakiti stool to consummate his enstoolment process.

But not Chief of Kotropei who is the 6th Applicant who also has the same status as the interested Party being sub divisional chiefs.

Chief of Gyakiti after going through the process and being recognised applied to have his name registered into the National House of Chiefs which was done but the Interested Party has objected to that as well.

Nana Otwasuom Osae Nyampong IV in his petition is not only asking that the name of Gyakitihene is deleted from the National Register of Chiefs, however, also the Akwamu Traditional Council should make an order compelling the other Applicants to bring the Gyakitihene to swear the oath of allegiance to him before consummating his chiefship.

Gyakitihene as Respondents in the petition, entered appearance to the petition, on 30thJuly 2018 and moved the Respondent on notice for an order to dismiss the petition on grounds that Nana Osae Nnyampong lacks the requisite capacity to have instituted the petition in respect of matters of Gyakiti stool particularly, on the issue of who the occupant of the stool should swear the oath of allegiance.

According to the 26 paragraph affidavit in support of the application, the Applicants being Gyakitihene and others deposed that, Gyakiti stool and for that matter, Gyakitihene do not owe any allegiance to Akwamu Pesehene being Nana Osae Nyampong by way of any customary arrangement by which the Gyakitihene should have sworn the oath of allegiance to the Pesehene.

This is because the Gyakiti stool is not one of the stools under the authority of Nana Otwasuom Osae Nyampong IV, the Akamu Pesehene.

They further contended that since 1732, no properly installed occupant of the Gyakiti stool as Gyakitihene has ever sworn the oath of allegiance to the Pesehene, whose stool is also classified within Chieftaincy set up as being under the same status of the Sub-Divisional Stool within the Nifa Division of the Akwamu Traditional Council.

It was further stated by the applicants that Akwamu Pesehene had no part in the affairs of the stool of Gyakitihene and therefore could not complain about the swearing of the oath of allegiance let alone institute a petition to compel Gyakitihene to swear to him.

However, Nana Otwasuom Osae Nyampong IV who is an Interested Party to the case opposed the application by Gyakitihene and the other Applicants in his 15 paragraph affidavit.

He stated that the depositions in the affidavit in support of the application of the Applicants are untruth, distorted history and a clear lack of understanding of the facts of this case.

According to him, a decision of the Respondent in the case of Nana Mamfe Awauh III and five others versus Nana Ansah Kwao and eight others dated 14th May 2007, a copy of which was attached to his affidavit in opposition as Exhibit NOON 1.

The Respondent differently constituted, found that Gyakiti is part of Kamena which is headed by the Pesehene and it is him that the Gyakitihene, he believed in that suit, has to swear the oath of allegiance to consummate his chiefship.

He contended that it is on record that Nana Mamfe Odame II, the last Chief of Gyakiti, who occupied the same stool as Nana Mamfe Awauh III purports to occupy, swore the oath of allegiance to him when he was installed as a Chief.

The Interested Party also relied on Exhibit NOON 2, which was a letter dated 12th May 2007 written by Nana Mamfe Awuah III to the Registrar of the Akwamu Traditional Council asking for four months extension of time to swear the oath of allegiance to the Akwamu Pesahene.

The presiding judge His Lordship Gyamfi Frimpong quoted extensively from many cases to put an end to any argument that once a party has appealed against a judgment or ruling he cannot apply for the exercise of the supervisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court or the High Court, by way of an application for certiorari.

He further stated that the Court should exercise its discretion to grant the order of certiorari applied for by the Applicants.

He indicated that the Akwamu Traditional Council had no jurisdiction to make the orders it made on 14thNovember, 2019 and the same should be brought to the court to be quashed.
There's an unfair condemnation about the Church of Pentecost (CoP) because it has built and donated a prison infrastructure to the Ghana Prisons Service at Ejura in the Ashanti Region. The assertions made by a section of Ghanaians that the church has failed humanity only demonstrates wisdom except common sense.

Whilst some people are angrily saying CoP should have built a factory, hospital or even a school, some are also saying that they do not see the prison as one thing that the country or that community urgently needs. Do you think setting up a food processing plant would miraculously rid Ghana of social vices? Or are the so-called first world countries with the best social amenities without any crimes?

Going forward, the issue of the prison not being an urgent or a dire need leaves me wondering. How? If you were a prisoner, I would have taken you more seriously. Urgency is a matter of perspective. If you don't agree with it, don't denigrate it.

Prison confinements are traditionally seen as corrective facilities. They are needed in every society and the inmates deserve the dignity of decent treatment. It is wrong for criminals to be allowed to walk the streets freely. Prison is meant for reformation and that is absolutely in the remit of the church. The purpose for this prison is right!

They have not failed humanity and Ghanaians. The Church of Pentecost is doing well and duly deserves to be appreciated. We can attest to the fact that, in March 2003, the founded the Pentecost University College. Since then, it's empowered students to serve their own generation and posterity with integrity and the fear of God.

That notwithstanding, the Church of Pentecost has a Vocational Training Institute which is strategically situated at Gbawe near Mallam. I wish to put on records that, in the year 1995, the womens Wing of the Church of Pentecost saw the need to establish a Vocational Training Institute not only to take care of the educational needs of girls but also to reduce the rate of unemployment among women in the community and the country in general. The school was officially opened on 28th April 1998.

No one can debunk the fact that, other various educational institutions that we have in this country were put up by other Christian institutions. The typical examples I could cite are manifold so let's not go there.

Truth is, I am not a member of the Church of Pentecost, but I have observed how practical they have made the Christian faith. I have observed how willingly theyve collaborated with the State for the good of the country. At a time when eyes are on the Church in particular for allegations of extortion, lack of care for the poor and cult worship, the good examples of the Church of Pentecost are worth highlighting.

For instance, in the wake of the global pandemic, what instrumental roles did the Church of Pentecost not play in augmenting governments efforts towards curbing the spread of the Covid-19 in the country? The yeoman and the frontal role played by the Church of Pentecost in this whole fight against Covid-19 were enormous.

As parts of the churchs Corporate Social Responsibility to help the government in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic, the Church offered its 250 acre ultra-modern Pentecost Convention Centre at Gomao Fetteh, Central Region, to government as an isolation centre.

As though that was not enough, the Church donated 10 vans to the National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE) to aid its public education activities on coronavirus. The Church also donated a full set of 50 Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) worth Gh20,000 to the Health Ministry.

In the epoch of this era, CoP in partnership with Tobinco Pharmaceuticals also donated personal protective logistics worth Gh45,000. 00 to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in support of efforts by the government in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. Al these were aimed at augmenting governments efforts towards curbing the spread of the virus in the country.

Even though, the execution of these commendable feats is not unique to the Church of Pentecost alone. There are other Churches such as the Catholic Church, the Presbyterian Church, ICGC among others and the Moslem Community who are also involved in doing some of these things. However, the consistency with which the Church of Pentecost carries out these social responsibilities is worthy of appreciation, commendation, recognition and emulation.

It's an indisputable fact that, Ghana is confronted with many problems and congestion in our prisons is one of them. The Church of Pentecost has built the prison so that the congestion which is a great trouble and suffering for the prisoners are eased so they can have a little freedom and live like humans. I strongly believe, this is where it is justified.

The Church of Pentecost has done their part, perhaps someone else should emulate them by building a school, hospital or road. The fact that there are schools or factories to be built does not mean we should not improve the conditions of our prisons. It's a mistaken belief that once educational facilities or factories are built; crimes automatically fizzle out of sight. We shouldn't forget that we live in a country where people are educated but plunder the state at the top echelons of leadership. I call them - 'Academic and educational armed robbers'.

The Church of Pentecost has proven to be a first class cooperate citizen in the country. Its sad how some people have taken the prison issue differently. It's just a matter of wrong place, wrong time and false accusations and we all can end up in the same congestion. Yet, people don't want to understand that not everyone in prison is guilty and deserved to suffer inhumane treatment. Even if they are guilty, they are still human beings who deserve some humane treatment.

The author, Bright Philip Donkor is a Student Journalist at the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ). He's a Columnist, Social Activist and Prolific Feature Writer.

Writer's email: [email protected]
The Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), has called on the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), to thoroughly investigate the assault on Citi News reporter, Caleb Kudah by some National Security operatives.

The Centre calls on the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to thoroughly investigate this and many other incidents of assault on journalists by members of security agencies and bring the perpetrators to justice, in accordance with article 218 of the Constitution.

CDD-Ghana made the call in a statement issued on Friday, May 14, 2021.

It further called on the government to implement the recommendations of the Emile Short Commission with respect to streamlining the structure and operations of national security agencies, including but not limited to the training of officers of security agencies to internalise and respect human rights in their activities.

The assault

On Tuesday, May 11, 2021, Citi News Caleb Kudah, was detained by operatives of the National Security Ministry for filming and taking pictures of MASLOC vehicles procured with state funds but abandoned for a long period of time, and parked within the premises of the National Security Ministry.

Mr. Kudah was assaulted by several officers of the Ministry of National Security after his arrest.

On the same day, armed operatives of the National Security Ministry stormed the premises of Citi FM in an attempt to arrest another reporter, Ms. Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo, for allegedly receiving the said pictures and videos electronically from Mr. Kudah.

The dastardly act by operatives of the National Security Ministry has been widely condemned with several groups calling on the officials involved to be sanctioned.

CDD-Ghana condemns assault, raid

The civil society organisation in its statement took on the National Security Ministry for the assault and the raid of Citi FM.

CDD-Ghana condemns the armed invasion of the station's premises and the attempted arrest of its

reporters without regard to the arrest procedure prescribed by law which outlaws the arrest of persons in such situations without a court warrant and caution. The Center also condemns the reported assault of Mr. Kudah by operatives of the National Security Ministry while he was held in custody. This incident, which follows numerous cases of assault on journalists by members of security agencies in the recent past, demonstrates a propensity of law enforcement officers to assault journalists with impunity and complete disregard for rights and freedoms of journalists in the pursuit of their constitutional duty, CDD-Ghana added in the statement.

CDD-Ghana also insisted that Mr. Kudah did no wrong in trying to use surreptitious means to bring to the fore the issue of the abandoned MASLOC vehicles.

The suggestion that a journalist using surreptitious means to uncover and expose wrongdoing is unethical and therefore warrants brutal assault by National Security operatives is as absurd as it is undemocratic. The National Security Ministry, a public institution, cannot be immune to public scrutiny and transparency in its operations.

---citinewsroom
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The District Chief Executive of Dormaa East, Hon. Emmanuel Kofi Agyeman was on Monday May 10, 2021 adjudged the Best Performing and Outstanding DCE of the Bono Region for the year, 2019/2020.

He beats Berekum West and East MCEs, as well as the Dormaa Central MCE who were all nominees for the Regional Excellence Award, due to his distinguished leadership style, remarkably characterized with trust, vision, knowledge and integrity.

He was presented with a Citation and a Golden Stool for being part of the Topmost National Citizens Award winners.

Ambassadors for Peace and Justice Foundation-Ghana, initiators of the award, presented the award prize during an inaugural ceremony of a CHPS compound at Amanfi in the Dormaa East District.

The organization is an NGO established nine years ago by an advocacy group led by one, Mr. Mohammed Bashir Tijani to support in promoting Peace and unity as well as offer humanitarian services and environmental protection.

The aspect of the award, forms part of a project instituted to offer an innovative way of motivating leaders to soar high in their endeavors with the aim of ensuring development and making living conditions better for the ordinary Ghanaian.

The criterion for the award centered on infrastructural development, peace and security, education, health and sanitation issues, leaderships skills and sacrificial attitude and other positive environmental and humanitarian issues.

The president, Mr. Mohammed Bashir Tijani who spoke about the organization and its aspirations, described the Hon, DCE as assiduous and visionary. He stated that Hon. Emmanuel Kofi Agyeman is the 15th on their list to have won their noble prize award.

The DCE, on his part, dedicated the award to His Excellency the President Nana Akufo Addo for reposing confidence in him and making him serve his people as District Chief Executive. He also dedicated it to all stakeholders who have contributed to the products which have given birth to the award.

He mentioned that, this was the third after two other presentations from the Wamfie Methodist Church and a group called Bambisco all in the name of hard work.

He encouraged all and sundry to give off their best in whatever they find doing for their people and the state.

Hon Emmanuel Kofi Agyeman also called on the group calling on government to fix the nation to be patience since the state is in the process of being fixed.
The Institute of ICT Professionals Ghana (IIPGH) with its partners Codie it!, and TinkerToys, from Leipzig, Germany on 3rd May 2021 launched its Digital Design and Creative Coding Hub in Accra.

The event had a splendid setup, hosting about 35 children with their parents, and other invited guests. The launch was live on zoom and on Facebook, which saw over 300 participants connecting across the country and beyond.

At the launch were dignitaries including Hon. Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, Deputy Minister-Designate for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, MP-Mampong; Prof. Fred McBagonluri, President Academic City University College, Board Chair Institute of ICT Professionals Ghana; Mr. Ronny Zienert, Head of Unit, Saxon State, Ministry for Regional Development, International Cooperation, Germany; Dr. Peter Kettner, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Germany; Mr. Prince Sefa, Deputy Director-General Operations, National Communications Authority (NCA), Board Member of Institute of ICT Professionals Ghana; and Hanna Schlingmann, AFOS Foundation for Entrepreneurial Development Cooperation.

Summary

The Digital Design and Creative Coding Hub is meant to be a showroom for tools and concepts for digital learning and creative work  for innovative and creative projects and a center for national and international exchange. The tools and concepts will be accessible to everybody who is interested and will be taught through training and other events to educators and multipliers. The project is supported by the "Creative Resources" program of the German Federal Foreign Office.

Background

The new digital revolution presents amazing prospects. Emerging technologies such as 5G, robotics, artificial intelligence, Internet of things (IoT), big data, cloud computing, mobile applications, and 3D printing, offer enormous opportunities to improve societies.

However, every revolution comes with its challenges. One is the emerging skill gap. New technologies are disrupting industries and changing how we work and socialize. For people without digital skills, it is getting harder to thrive in the workplace irrespective of their chosen career. Thus, there is an urgent need to learn new skills ranging from basic to advanced digital know-how.

To address this skill gap, we need to tackle several challenges associated with the development of a digital literate society and a digital economy. The challenges include affordability, scalability, and sustainability of training; lack of qualified instructors; lack of infrastructure; relevant curriculum, etc. It is also crucial to look at issues of inequalities associated with gender, geographical location, and persons with special needs.

The idea of creating a Digital Design and Creative Coding Hub is to tackle those challenges, to improve the digital literacy in Ghana and to instigate an international knowledge transfer. In Ghana, there is currently a great need and interest in digital tools and new technologies, for art production, for education, for the development of new business models and for the development of new markets.

To make digital skills like coding and digital design available to everybody, access to digital tools and new approaches to teaching and learning are needed. In Ghana, the digitization of education is still in its early stages. There is a lack of technical infrastructure - Internet access and hardware, effective pedagogical concepts, and qualified teachers. For such reason, the hub will be a showroom in which all who are interested can get to know and try out digital tools (hardware and software) and learn how to use them in schools, for creative projects or in business contexts.
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A prayer session led by the Chief Imam of the Tano North Municipality, Chief Imam Alhaji Osman Iddrissu was held at Islamic school park to mark the celebration of Eid-Ul-Fitr.

Leading the prayer, the Chief Imam, Osman Iddrissu said, Muslims celebrate Eid-UI-Fitr to seek forgiveness from Allah.

He advises Muslim youth in the Municipality and the country as a whole to respect elderly persons and avoid indulging themselves in things that will not bring peace since without peace, a nation cannot develop.

The Special Aide to the Vice President, Dr. Gideon Boako, in a speech, wished all the Muslims Barka de Sallah on his own behalf and the Vice President of the country said it was imperative to be part of the celebration to give Allah the glory.

He called on and all and sundry to be lawabiding in order for the Municipality to enjoy the relatively peace it has always enjoyed over the years. He said government want Muslim leadership to impart their skills and knowledge to the younger generation.

He presented 10 mini bags of rice, six boxes of tin tomatoes and four (4) cartons of cooking oil and an undisclosed amount to the Chief Imam and asked the Chief Imam to pray for peace in Duayaw Nkwanta and the entire nation for progress in governance.

The Member of Parliament for Tano North Constituency, Hon. Freda Prempeh who joined the Muslims to celebrate the day, in a speech wished all the Muslims Eid Mubarak. She also expressed the felicities of His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo- Addo, the President of the Republic of Ghana to them.

She said it is imperative as the MP for the area to be part of the celebration to give Allah the glory.

Hon. Prempeh touched on the teenage pregnancy and single mothers which are increasing in the constituency and pleaded with parents to take care of their children.

She used the day to wish all women happy mothers day and caution the public to continue to adhere to the Covid-19 protocols

The Member of Parliament later made a personal presentation of thirty (35) bags of mini rice and forty (40) bags of sugar distributed to all the five zones of Tano North municipal and later gave a ram to the Chief Imam to serve his visitors, and an undisclosed amount to the Chief Imam to say prayer for the President and all and sundry.

Some notable dignitaries who were present at the occasion were Hon Kenneth Adom Agyei (Presiding Member, Tano North Municipal Assembly), Mr Kwabena Akuffo (NADMO Director, Tano North), Dr. Gideon Boako (Special Aide to the Vice President), Hon Freda Prempeh (MP for Tano North), Chief Imam Alhaji Osman Iddrissu, (Assistant Chief Imam) Yakubu Lezer, Malam alhassan Yakubu and others.
The Member of Parliament for Adaklu Constituency, Hon. Kwame Governs Agbodza has cut sod for the construction of an Ultramodern 8-unit classroom for the People of Adaklu Waya community in the Adaklu constituency of the Volta Region.

The sod-cutting ceremony which was observed on Friday 14th May 2021 was graced by the chief and people of the Adaklu Waya Community.

Following this, the residents could not hide their joy to terms with the reality that their public school would be seen constructed for their children in their constituency.

During the event, Hon. Kwame Governs Agbodza said the facility will help improve the educational infrastructure in Adasec, increase the number of enrollments and create a sound environment to facilitate effective teaching and learning in the School.

He also stressed that education is a key tool to personal and National development; hence, his commitment to ensure the provision of quality and accessible education to his dear constituents. As such, the provision of education at the basic and secondary levels will continue to be his topmost priority.

In a press statement signed by the Opposition NDC's communications officer, Mr. Christopher Galenkui, The member of parliament revealed that the 8-unit classroom block project was funded through his immense funding as a member of parliament.

The Headmaster for the school, Mr. Hosu Bartholomew, also commended the lawmaker for the Adaklu constituency for providing them with the Eight Unit Classroom Block.

He said, this new building will bring Adasec back to the glory days.

The headmaster used the opportunity to appeal to the government through the Mp, the Media, guests, and the general public to come to the aid of the school.

He made mention of the uncompleted dining hall and the ICT/Science laboratories as major projects in the school which if completed will make teaching and learning more effective.

Togbe Lablulu V, Senior Divisional Chief of Adaklu-Waya applauded the MP for his kind gesture and his zeal in transforming the school and for that matter Adaklu in general.

READ HIS FULL STATEMENT;

NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS.

ADAKLU CONSTITUENCY

For Immediate Release

14th May 2021.

Adaklu MP Cuts Sod for the construction of 8-unit classroom blocks at Adaklu Senior High School.

The Member of Parliament for Adaklu Constituency, Hon. Kwame Governs Agbodza, today Friday, 14th May 2021, cuts sod for the construction of an 8-unit classroom block at the premier senior high school in Adaklu, Adasec.

The lawmaker at the short ceremony cut the ground for the commencement of this project. In his words, "the pressing need of the school now is to improve the infrastructural deficit in the school as the enrollment keep increasing", he said.

Hon. Kwame Governs Agbodza expresses his heartfelt appreciation to the staff and management of the school for how far they have tried their humanly possible means to manage the situation all this while.

The construction firm, Chriswed Construction Ltd, was tasked by the Hon. MP to speed up with work and deliver the facility within the shortest possible time.

About the source of funding, Hon. Kwame Agbodza hinted that, so far, his firm did the architectural design for free and he will be funding the project which will cost about Ghs1m from his sources.

Togbe Lablulu V, Senior Divisional Chief of Adaklu-Waya applauded the MP for his kind gesture and his zeal in transforming the school and for that matter Adaklu in general.

The headmaster, Mr. Hosu Bartholomew, also extends his heartfelt appreciation to the lawmaker for his contributions to the school. The headmaster used the platform to appeal to the government, guests, and the general public to come to the aid of the school. He made mention of the uncompleted dining hall and the ICT/Science laboratories as major projects in the school which if completed will make teaching and learning more effective.

Thank you.

Signed

Christopher Galenkui.

Communication officer.

Adaklu
PRESIDENT Mnangagwa yesterday said Bulawayo will not be left behind as the Government rolls out developmental programmes throughout the country declaring that the days of centralised development or bambazonke are over.

This is in line with his promise when he ascended to the Presidency in 2017 and after winning the 2018 elections that no one will be left behind in the countrys development agenda that seeks to foster equitable distribution of resources through devolution.

The President has walked the talk on his promise that no one will be left behind as the Government is bringing excitement to the southern region, on the background of perceived historical marginalisation and underdevelopment of the Matabeleland region, in particular.

Since the coming of the Second Republic led by President Mnangagwa, a number of high impact projects have either been initiated in the region or are being completed at an accelerated speed.

Some of the major projects that have been accelerated under the Second Republic include the century-old dream to permanently solve Matabeleland regions water problems through the National Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project (NMZWP), the completion of the Matabeleland North Provincial Hospital among other key projects.

Yesterday, as he officially opened the United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) Orthopaedic Centre and Covid-19 Isolation and Treatment Centre, President Mnangagwa said the modernisation of the health sector will have a far-reaching impact on the countrys economic growth and development anchored on the wellbeing of Zimbabweans.

The 50-bed isolation and treatment centre is a culmination of Governments efforts to curb the spread of Covid-19 through the provision of sound health care infrastructure and provision of improved treatment and care services.

Treasury released $103 million towards the renovation and upgrading of Bartley Memorial Block into the isolation centre while Arundel Sakunda Group complemented Government in the establishment of the facility.

The orthopaedic centre on the other hand, a first of its kind at a national public hospital, was a result of a public-private partnership between the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Zimbabwe Orthopaedic Trust and Cure International and will offer free procedures to children under the age of 18.

The centre will improve access to special orthopaedic surgery and corrective care for children with conditions such as clubfoot, bowed legs, knock knees, rickets and cerebral palsy among other health challenges.

At full capacity, the facility is targeting to conduct more than 2 000 procedures a year.

The President said the opening of the two centres was testimony that the bold and strategic decision by the Second Republic to stabilise, restructure and reform the public health sector was yielding fruits.

Bulawayo Omuhle, the days of Bambazonke are over, you will not be left behind anymore, said President Mnangagwa to wild cheers and applause.

Our commitment to complete and deliver high impact projects which prioritise the needs of the people are ongoing, with greater urgency.

This is in view of the need to put in place critical building blocks towards achieving the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS-1), Vision 2030, said President Mnangagwa.

My Government will indeed leave no stone unturned to ensure that all the people, in all parts of the country, enjoy a better quality of life.

President Mnangagwa said yesterdays event was a precursor to his tour of companies in Bulawayo which he said comes at the opportune time ahead of the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair in July.

The attendant insights from the two-day visit to companies in Bulawayo will undoubtedly help to inform and enrich my Governments perspectives with regards to the transformation and modernisation of industries in Bulawayo as we develop and grow the economy, he said.

President Mnangagwa said sustainable development that leaves no one behind is a collective process which involves all stakeholders.

He said the orthopaedic centre will contribute to new standards in the provision of health care through the improvement in the quality of services and introduction of new tertiary care services. Chronicle
The Greater Accra Zabarma Chief and President of Ghana Zabarma Association, Alhaji Pro-Umar Tanko Abubakar has felicitated with all Ghanaians and Muslims across the World on the occasion of the Eid-Ul Fitr, which marks the end of the Ramadan fasting.

The Greater Accra Zabarma Chief in his goodwill message contained in a press statement on Thursday, May 13, called on all Ghanaians especially Muslims to use the opportunity of the good deeds they exhibited during the just ended Ramadan to reshape their attitudes towards becoming better and beneficial to the society.

He further called on Muslims around the World to use the occasion of Eid-Ul-Fitr to pray for World to become safe against any form of injustice and disunity amongst countries and religions.

He called on Muslims around the world to further continue with the observation of the COVID-19 prevention protocols to help mitigate the spread of the deadly virus.

It is important that Christians and Muslims and other faiths share common bonds that should unite us as one people. Therefore, we should be very careful with our utterances, to protect the peace Ghanaian Muslims and Christians have suffered to achieve in the past years" he noted.

Below is the full text of the statement.

The Greater Accra Zabarma Chief and President of Ghana Zabarma Association, Alhaji Pro-Umar Tanko Abubakar wishes all Ghanaians and Muslims around the world a happy Eid Al Fitr.

On behalf of my cabinet and elders in council, I wish that this Eid festival comes with peace and unity amongst Christians and Muslims not only in Ghana but the world at large.

I am therefore calling on Muslims around the world to use the occasion of Eid-Ul Fitr to pray for the world to become safe against any form of injustice, insecurity, and disunity amongst Christians and Muslims that is currently evident in many countries.

I, further, call on Muslims around the world to continue with the observation of the COVID-19 prevention protocols to help mitigate the further spread of the deadly virus.

I again, call on all Ghanaians and Muslims around the world to use the atmosphere of neighbourly love and continuous practice of good deeds exhibited during the month of Ramadan to reflect on their attitudes, choices, decisions, and everyday life going forward.

It is important that Christians and Muslims and other faiths share common bonds that unite us as one people, therefore we should be very careful with our utterances to prevent jeopardizing the peace Ghanaian Muslims and Christians have suffered to achieve in the past years.

May the Almighty Allah Bless us all.

Signed

Sarki Alhaji Pro-Umar Tanko Abubakar

Greater Accra Zabarma Chief and President Of Ghana Zabarma Association
Ghana's Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MOGCSP) the Department of Social Welfare in collaboration with the Catholic Relief Service (CRA) have marked the 2021 edition of the International Day Of The Family.

The event is celebrated annually to acknowledge the importance of the family system.

The event which took place in Accra on Friday 14th May was on the theme: "Maintaining Our Roots: Strengthening Families in a Changing World".

Rev. Comfort Asare, Acting Director of the Department of Social Welfare, MOGCSP, speaking on behalf of the Minister of Gender, Hon Sarah Adwoa Sarfo, indicated that the success of countries has largely depended on the responsible families.

According to Rev. Comfort Asare, the family is the most important human institution due to its basic and natural unit of society, hence new technologies, demographic shifts, rapid urbanisation, climate, and migration trends have dramatically shaped the world and challenge family cohesion.

"Covid-19 pandemic came with an extensive technological advancement but not without challenges especially for families. Challenges facing families, especially with low-income families are becoming more complex with megatrends including new technologies, demographic shifts, rapid urbanisation, climate change, and migration trends have dramatically shaped the world and affected family cohesion".

In their quest to bridge the inequality gap, she said, many children are found on the street in the major cities of the country, vulnerable to abject conditions.

She added that there is the need for a new strategy aimed at improving family cohesion and strengthening their protection roles in line with the legal framework to address such trends.

The Ministry of Gender Children and Social Protection cannot achieve its mandate without families support. The Government is working hard to find a solution to it. Last year we took 175 children off the street and we are still working to ensure all stakeholders take up their responsibilities to remove over 4000 children found on the streets".

She seized the opportunity to appeal to all parents to keep close bonds with their children and guide them against the megatrends that have made some children vulnerable to predators.

Touching on the impacts new technologies had on families, Mr Daniel Mumuni, County Director of CRS said, despite the multiple benefits of new technologies in our daily lives, our inability to manage the complexities at the family level is putting strain on both parents and children, with the potential of changing the nature of families.

Me Daniel Mumuni disclosed that more than 70% of households reported that their children were experiencing negative emotions during the height of the pandemic in a UNICEF recent report.

Technology can highlight economic disparities due to the cost of computers, phones, tablets etc. Families who could afford them were able to potentially keep their children in school, but likely saw the impacts of cyberbullying and marginalisation while those who couldn't afford felt the impacts of the isolation, meaning poverty can be a driver of family separation, he explained.

He added that we must learn to adapt to these trends to maintain the well-being of the families.

"In Ghana, we have always been well aware of our roots. Our customs and traditions are centred on the family unit, meaning nuclear, extended and communal. However, we must work collaboratively to see how we can confront these issues both as families and as Ghanaians", he said.

He noted that Catholic Relief Services (CRS) will continue to partner with key stakeholders to transform the structural challenge that prevents family and social cohesion to create a better society for all.

About 2021 International Day of the Family Celebration

Since 1993, the International Day of the Family has been celebrated annually to promote awareness of the importance of family and family strengthening. This year, the United Nations Commission for Social Development has declared that nations should focus on the impact of new technologies on the well-being of families. Megatrends including new technologies, demographic shifts, rapid urbanisation, climate and migration trends. This year's celebration is slated for May 15th but because it falls on Saturday, Ghana joined the rest of the world to commemorate it today, May 14th.
A Civil Society Organisation, OneGhana Movement, has condemned National Security operatives' arrest and assault of Citi FM journalist, Caleb Kudah, and the subsequent invasion of the premises of the media house on Tuesday, May 11.

OneGhana Movement insists the action by the security operatives is unlawful and illegal.

A team of seven heavily-armed police officers besieged the premises of Citi FM and Citi TV in an attempt to arrest one of the station's journalists, Zoe Abu-Baidoo.

Zoe was targeted in the raid after the police accused her of electronically receiving some video files from her colleague, Caleb Kudah.

Mr. Kudah, also a broadcast journalist and Host of BackPage on Citi TV, had been accused of filming some abandoned cars at the Ministry of National Security, a supposed restricted security zone on Tuesday, and had sent the videos to Zoe via WhatsApp.

The security operatives after arresting Caleb Kudah subsequently raided Citi FM in an attempt to arrest Zoe.

OneGhana Movement in condemning the act said the National Security does not have the power of arrest.

It, therefore, concluded that the arrest and assault on Caleb Kudah is a clear usurpation of the powers of the Inspector General of Police (IGP) a breach of the 1992 constitution of Ghana.

It is also worrying to note that the National Security is almost operating a police service. The National Security Ministry is not a police service, it is an intelligence agency and should operate as such. Article 200(2) provides that no person or authority shall raise any police service except by or under the authority of an act of Parliament.

The modus operandi of the National Security, as it is now, amounts to usurpation of the powers of the IGP and a breach of the constitution of Ghana. Indeed, similar findings were made against the National Security in the Ayawaso West Commission Report where the Commission recommended among others that the SWAT team should be disbanded.

OneGhana Movement made these comments in a press statement it issued on Friday, May 14, 2021.

---citinewsroom
THE ONE problem facing most Christians today, especially those in Ghana, is the misunderstanding of the word ministry. Some Christians understand it to mean a church; others take it as the exclusive work apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers do. Many others do not understand it at all.

The erroneous conception of ministry as the work pastors do was emphasised by a deacon during a leadership meeting in Kumasi. According to the deacon, ministry belonged only to the clergy and that they should fast and pray, evangelise and visit backsliding members in the hope of restoring them. This was after the lead pastor of the church had complained about poor church attendance.

However, Christian ministry simply means Christian service. And this service has sadly been limited to that of only the clergy through the creation and sustenance of the culture of clericalism in the post-apostolic Christianity.

Thus, today, the clergy, the specially-ordained ministers, who are considered as first-best Christians including popes, archbishops, cardinals, bishops, apostles, curates, vicar, prophets, evangelists and others, are expected to do Christian ministry.

In other words, they are to preach and teach the word of God, baptise believers, counsel troubled people, officiate wedding and burial ceremonies, administrate the church, pray for the sick at the hospitals and homes to receive healing and so on.

However, this notion of the clergy-only Christian ministry is erroneous, considering the scriptural and biblical meaning and contextual application of the word clergy. It is important that the terms clergy and laity are clearly explained.

In the words of George B. Wilson, the word clergy has no intrinsic relation to religion or the holy. The Oxford English Dictionary informs us that a kleros (clergy) was a lot, an allotment, a piece of land, and estate, a heritageWhat was inherited, the thing shared, was quite mundane and secular: physical property. At root, clergy are propertied, people with an inheritance.

Wilson continues that this secular meaning of clergy was gradually transformed by the Christian community. The result is that most Christian churches understand the clergy today as persons functioning within the priesthood of all the people but ordained, or set aside, for particular service, especially in connection with Eucharistic ministry.

That is not to say that the early church did not recognise certain individuals as exercising particular forms of service in the community. It did. But the practice of grouping them together under a single collective noun, as kleros, and thereby distinguishing them from an undifferentiated mass of members is a later phenomenon, reflecting a later stage of societal development.

According to himprior to that stage of development, it would also be a mistake to refer to anyone as laity. The paradox is that there was no collection called laity until there was a class called clergy.

Thus, Prof. Emmanuel Asante, in his book asserts that the distinct categories of lay and clergy are being questioned today, more so, because the Greek word, Laos, from which the English, laity, derives, means quite simply, people.

In the secular Greek, the expression was used in reference to the population of city-states. In biblical Greek, Laos was intended to mean the whole people  that is, a people who are sacred, as distinct from those who are not. Laos then was an inclusive word, denoting all the people of God.

He quotes Robinson and makes the point that, though two words, kleros (clergy) and Laos (laity), appear in the New Testament, strange to say, they denote the same people, not different people.

He further quotes Lightfoot as writing that the only priest under the Gospel, designated as such in the N.T., are the saints, the members of the Christian brotherhood. He concludes by stating that all Christians are God's laity and all are God's clergy.

Now, if all Christians are God's laity and all are God's clergy, then, all are ministers of God endowed with different ministerial gifts and empowered with different spiritual gifts dispensed to them by the Holy Spirit.

In Ephesians 4:11-12, Paul, the apostle, does not mention the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers as only Christians who participate in the ministry of Christ Jesus. He actually points out that these five-fold ministers are set in the church to facilitate the spiritual equipment or perfection of the saints (Christians) for the work of ministry.

This means ministry should not be seen to be the work of only the clergy but all baptised believers. It is for this reason the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers must be upheld, promoted and sustained by the modern church for the furtherance of the gospel.

By James Quansah

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The National Malaria Control Programme (NAMCOP) and its partnersGhana Health Service (GHS), Noguchi Memorial Institute of Medical Research (NMIMR) and Zoomlion Ghana Limited (ZGL)have organised a one-day training workshop in Larval Source Management (LSM) for key stakeholders in the Upper East regional capitalBolgatanga.

The LSM training, which will be replicated across the country, brought together about seventy (70) health workers from ten districts in the Upper East.

The participants were equipped with knowledge and techniques in LSM, a vector control tool, targeted at mosquito breeding sites, with the aim of reducing mosquito breeding in the country.

Speaking at the opening ceremony in Bolgatanga on Monday, May 10, 2021, a Senior Research Fellow at NMIMR, Dr Kwadwo Frempong, said it was not the first time his outfit was engaging in such an exercise.

He said the exercise basically brings together health workers under the Malaria Control Programme, GHS staff members and Zoomlion workers to undergo training in LSM implementations.

It involves helping them [the participants] to identify mosquito species and then helping them to know the sources where mosquitoes basically breed, he explained.

He noted that the training will be an add-on to the already Malaria control programmes in the country, which are the indoor residual spraying (IRS) and the use of long-lasting insecticide nets (LLINs).

and this Larval Source Management is going to support these two major control programmes being that there are quite a number of advantages of this Larval Source Management, the research fellow at NMIMR said.

According to Dr Frimpong, some of the advantages of LSM included support to the insecticide resistant challenges and also helping to control mosquitoes at the larva stage.

LSM also helps control behavioural issues/changes in adult mosquitoes which the IRS and LLINs) do not but only target mosquitoes that rest and feed indoors, he added.

He said the LSM when implemented well will inure to the enormous benefit of communities, adding that we can have a community supporting the control of mosquitoes because we have one aspect of it which is environmental management where the community is involved.

Speaking to journalists after the workshop, a Senior Vector Control Officer, Zoomlion Ghana Limited, Mr Abel Djangmah, described the training as good and successful.

There was full cooperation among the stakeholders, he expressed.

He said the project was centred on mosquito larvae that is, the baby mosquito and not the mosquito itself.

He went on to disclose that the chemical used by his outfit to fight the mosquito larvae which only worked in water bodies was a biological product.

Last year, we were using Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis (Bti). It works best when you put it into water bodies. One challenge that we had with what we were using previously, that was 2009 and 2020, is that the chemical or the biological agent is able to last just within one week. So every week, you have to go and do reapplication, he said.

That process, Mr Djangmah indicated, was quite exhaustive, time-consuming which put a lot of financial constraints on the project.

But thankfully, this time around, we are shifting from the one-week spraying to monthly larviciding. So instead of doing the spraying every week, the product is able to last within the environment for one month. So after a one-month duration, you go back again and do the reapplication, he said.

Thus, he insisted that this years product has a long-lasting effect compared to what was being used previously.

LSM, a vector control tool, for managing mosquito breeding sites is only recommended as a supplementary malaria vector control measure which adds on to other core vector control interventions such as long-lasting insecticidal treated nets (LLINs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS).

There are four main types of LSM including: habitat modification, which means a permanent alteration to the environment, e.g., land reclamation or surface water drainage; habitat manipulation, which refers to a recurrent activity e.g. water-level manipulation, flushing of streams, the shading or exposure of habitats; larviciding, which involves regular application of a biological or chemical insecticide to water bodies; and biological control, which involves the introduction of natural predators into water bodies, for example, predatory fish or invertebrates to feed on mosquito larvae or pupae (WHO LSM Operational Manual, 2013).

When appropriately implemented, LSM can contribute to reducing the numbers of both indoor and out-door biting mosquitoes, and in malaria control, it can be a useful addition to programme tools to reduce the mosquito population in remaining malaria hotspots. Where appropriate, it can also help programmes to reduce their overall dependence on insecticides, thereby making a contribution to preventing the emergence of insecticide resistance. LSM can also be useful to help control other vector-borne diseases, especially dengue as well as solve socio-cultural issues in indoor residual spraying programmes as well as LLIN.

WHO recommends larviciding in areas where mosquito breeding sites are few, fixed and findable, and where the sites are easy to identify, map and treat.
Pro-Palestinian groups in Paris have maintained their call for street marches on Saturday to denounce Israeli violence in the Gaza Strip  despite on ban on demonstrations by police authorities.

The Association of Palestinians in Ile-de-France, which is behind the protest, told France Info radio that its rally would kick off in the afternoon in Barbes, in the 18th arrondissement of Paris.

"Because we refuse to keep quiet about our solidarity with the Palestinians, and because we will not be prevented from demonstrating, we will be present (at the Barbes metro station) on Saturday at 3pm, the organisation said.

Violence between Israeli forces and Hamas militants in Gaza continued for a fifth night Friday, with appeals to leaders on both sides failing to produce a ceasefire deal.

At least 133 Palestinians and eight Israelis have been killed since the fighting began.

Public disorder fears

Nearly 30 groups said they would join the Paris protest, which was banned at the request of Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin amid fears it would disturb public order.

The Paris Administrative Court on Friday upheld the ban following an appeal by the Association of Palestinians in Ile-de-France.

Paris's police prefecture warned in a Twitter post that anyone participating in the demonstration risked a fine of 135 euros.

"We have no interest in being violent, Pauline Salingue, of the New Anti-Capitalist Party, told France Info. We want to make ourselves heardand to denounce the complicity of the French state with Israel.

"We will participate in demonstrations in solidarity with the Palestinians whether they are authorised or banned."

Demonstrations in Strasbourg, Marseille and Nice have also been banned.
A well-furnished CPHS compound and staff quarters with its mechanized borehole and other ancillary facilities has been constructed and commissioned for chiefs and people of Amanfi in the Dormaa East District.

The facility which has already received staff to commence its operations, was constructed within six months by the Vistaway Construction Works with source of funding from the District Common Fund (DCF) and the District Internal Generated Fund (IGF). It would among other services, provide, reproductive health and family planning services, immunization and children welfare services, home education on health and basic consultation, and drug dispensary.

At the inaugural ceremony, the District Health Director, Madam Esther Konadu who introduced the first two staff of the CPHS Compound, a midwife and a community health Assistant thanked both the local and central government for the initiative. She called for the support and cooperation of the chief and people of Amanfi to make work in the facility easier, and also solicited for accommodation for additional supporting staff.

Referring to an old adage health is wealth, the District Chief Executive Hon. Emmanuel Kofi Agyeman reiterated the importance of maintaining a constant healthy lifestyle since the health of every individual determines his or her ability to perform in every sphere of life hence the need to appreciate good healthcare and also patronize the clinic when the need arise for its vibrancy and development.

He added that the government is very much determined to ensure that quality healthcare delivery reaches the doorsteps of every Ghanaian and we as a people should endeavor to support the government in every good way we can.

The Member of Parliament for the area, Hon. Paul Akwesi Apraku Twum-Barima, who presented one motorbike to the health workers to facilitate their movement and make work easier admonished them to render their services to patients with tenderness and respect. He also called on the people of Amanfi to support the workers in keeping the facility in a good shape all the time.

The Odikro of the community, Nana Gyamfi Moro, commended this current government for its timely interventions. He recalled the governments support in providing them the CPHS compound, communication network mask, electrification and reroofing of their classroom block when it was hit by a heavy storm some time ago.

He seized the opportunity to again call on the government for a six-unit classroom block to house school children at the primary level.
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A Civil Society Organisation, OneGhana Movement wants the National Security probe into the alleged assault on Citi FM/TV's journalist Caleb Kudah be aborted.

The Movement said its position is necessitated by a similar promise the National Security Authority made in the assault of Modernghana's editor Emmanuel Ajarfor Abugri who was arrested by the National Security operatives in a similar incident two years ago and nothing came out of it.

Caleb Kudah, Host of BackPage on Citi TV was allegedly assaulted by the National Security operatives who accused him of filming some abandoned cars at the Ministry of National Security, a restricted security zone on Tuesday.

A team of seven heavily-armed police officers raided Citi FM in an attempt to arrest the station's Zoe Abu-Baidoo, whom they accused of electronically receiving some images and video files from her colleague, Caleb Kudah.

In condemning the attack and subsequent raid of Citi FM, OneGhana Movement in a statement signed by Justice Abdulai, is calling for the establishment of a panel of eminent persons for a public inquiry into the assault on Caleb Kudah, ModernGhana's editor Emmanuel Ajarfor Abugri and all other attacks on journalists.

"We recall that when Mr. Emmanuel Ajafor a journalist with Modern Ghana was arrested by National Security operatives in a similar incident, the National Security Authority issued a press statement in which they promised to investigate the matter, but nothing came out of it.

"We join calls for a probe but believe that such must be holistic and for lasting reform. The President, who has oversight of the intelligence agencies must immediately constitute a panel of eminent persons for a public inquiry opened to all who have ever encountered such treatment constantly reported in the media and by lawyers to testify," the statement noted.

OneGhana Movement added that the modus operandi of the National Security amount to the usurpation of the powers of the Inspector General of Police (IGP).

"The modus operandi of the Nationality Security, as it is now, amounts to usurpation of the powers of the IGP and a breach of the constitution of Ghana. Indeed, similar findings were made against the National Security in the Ayawaso West Commission Report where the Commission recommended among others that the SWAT team be disbanded. These recommendations, till date have been ignored."

Read full statement below:
The Director of Advocacy and Policy Engagement at the CDD-Ghana, Kojo Asante, has urged President Akufo-Addo to reform the National Security set up as his legacy.

According to him, the current activities of the National Security has become troublesome to the citizenry.

Mr. Asante said should President Akufo-Addo reform the security establishment, posterity will judge him kindly.

The Director of Advocacy and Policy Engagement at the CDD-Ghana speaking on Citi FM and Citi TVs weekend current affairs programme The Big Issue on Saturday, May 15, 2021, urged President Akufo-Addo to act on the issue now.

I think the government and the President should take these warnings seriously and reform the National Security and their activities if he wants to leave a legacy because their activities as they are now are troubling for the country and the president must act on this now.

Mr. Asante has also charged the government to revisit the recommendations of the Emile Short Commission to deal with some security challenges the country faces. What happened?

Mr. Kudah was arrested at the National Security Ministry on Tuesday for filming abandoned MASLOC vehicles parked at the premises of the Ministry.

A team of heavily-armed SWAT police officers subsequently were dispatched to arrest Citi News' Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo at the premises of Citi FM/Citi TV.

This is because Caleb had forwarded some of the footage he captured to Zoe via WhatsApp.

Caleb Kudah in an interview with Bernard Avle on The Point Of View on Citi TV indicated that he was slapped several times by the security officers.

The Ministry of National Security on Thursday said it has begun investigations into the issue.

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The Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) will begin an exercise to rid the Graphic Road in Accra of illegal occupants and encroachers.

The said exercise has been scheduled to commence on Tuesday, May 18, 2021.

The exercise, which will begin from the Farisco Junction to Obetsebi Interchange forms part of efforts to ensure the free flow of traffic and to keep the city clean.

Speaking at a meeting with stakeholders on the impending clean-up exercise along the Graphic Road at the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Henry Quartey, the Greater Accra Regional Minister, and Member of Parliament for Ayawaso Central said the exercise was expected to reduce indiscipline in the city.

He stressed that the exercise would not be a nine-day wonder and that he would ensure that discipline was maintained.

Mr. Quartey said indiscipline had taken centre stage in the region, hence the need to work together to ensure that the campaign was successful.

He also called on all stakeholders along the stretch to come together on that day to help clean up the frontages of their institutions and assured that his outfit would collaborate with the AMA and its sister Assemblies to enforce the bye-laws.

He has charged corporate institutions within the capital to be responsible and support the sanitation campaign under the Make Accra Work project.

Lieutenant Col. Enyonam-Adih of the Ghana Armed Forces explained that the exercise would commence at 4:00 am from the Trust Bank through to the UTC traffic light, Abidjan market, and its environs.

He reiterated the commitment of the security services towards the exercise to ensure success, and urged all stakeholders to participate.

Representatives of institutions present who pledged their support towards the exercise were Graphic Communications Group Limited, Rana Motors, Accra Brewery Limited, Francoparts, and Japan Motors amongst others.

The meeting also brought together key stakeholders including the Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Mr. Mohammed Nii Adjei Sowah, and his staff, representatives of the Ghana Armed Forces, the Ghana Immigration Service, the Ghana National Fire Service, and the Motor Traffic and Transport Directorate (MTTD).

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A jackal seen roaming the streets in Seke Unit A, Chitungwiza, early yesterday morning fled into a house when early risers started pelting it with stones.

A Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) team eventually shot dead the jackal after they failed to capture the wild animal.

The jackal was seen in the morning by people going about their chores in Unit A and they quickly started chasing it and throwing stones.

It ran into a nearby house, and a large crowd gathered to try and see it. The householder quickly phoned ZimParks and a team was sent to the area.

Chitugwiza Unit A resident, Mr Alfonse Mataruse (wearing a red cap) helps a ZimParks official carry and put into the car the carcass of a jackal killed in the town yesterday.

Narrating what happened, Mr Alfonce Mutengi said he heard commotion from people chasing the animal.

The timid animal then sought refuge in one of our rooms after one of our tenants left the door to his bedroom open. It hid under a bed and I went to investigate only to establish it was an unusual animal. It was quite timid obviously because of the noise and the attack it had been subjected to by members of the public, said Mr Mutengi.





He locked the door and contacted Zimparks. They asked me to verify if indeed it was a jackal and told them it was. They then advised me to lock the door and wait for them. When they came here they tried to capture it but could not do so because they did not have a cage. One other problem was that they could not open fire given the crowd that had swelled and they decided to call the police so that they could control people while they deal with it, said Mr Mutengi.

They then went to get some police officers who managed to contain the crowd while they captured it. They shot it rather than attempting to capture it.

Another resident, Mrs Veronica Mugutso said she was part of the crowd that chased the animal.

Chitugwiza Unit A resident, Mr Alfonse Mataruse (wearing a red cap) helps a ZimParks official carry and put into the car the carcass of a jackal killed in the town yesterday.

What is strange is how the animal got into the middle of residential area given that the nearest bushy area is near Chikwanha business centre which is about 5km away, she said.

ZimParks spokesperson, Mr Tinashe Farawo said the shooting was routine. We received reports and we responded. We treated it as one of the problem animal that is causing discomfort to human life. Our officers shot it and took it away. It is part of the wildlife and human conflict that we have to deal with, said Mr Farawo.

However, Mr Mutengi felt that the incident cast a bad spell at their residence and when The Herald left the place he was busy administering some traditional muti to cast the bad spell associated with the coming of the animal.

I was advised by neighbours that it could be a bad spell and am now using coarse salt and water as part of efforts to cast the bad spell that could be associated with the jackal, he said.

It is likely that the jackal will be tested for rabies infection. Herald
The Media Foundation for West Africa, MFWA, has said it is ready to support Citi FM/Citi TV to take legal action against National Security operatives who assaulted its Broadcast Journalist, Mr. Caleb Kudah.

The Foundation's Executive Secretary, Mr. Sulemana Braimah, said this when he spoke on Citi FM/Citi TVs weekend current affairs programme, The Big Issue on Saturday, May 15, 2021.

Mr. Braimah therefore charged the National Media Commission (NMC) to assert itself and ensure that the right i thing is done on the matter.

The Foundation said it is prepared to do everything to ensure that the brutalisation of journalists becomes a thing of the past.

I am happy that yesterday [Friday, May 14, 2021], when the Information Minister visited Citi FM, he made a point that this must be a test case because not too long ago there was this launch of the National Coordinated Mechanism on Safety of Journalists, and a facility was dedicated for the journalists to report to, and we look forward to the National Media Commission really asserting themselves on this matter because if it is National Security investigating National Security, nothing will happen.

So we look forward to the National Media Commission doing their work, otherwise as Media Foundation, we are very much open, and we are solidly prepared that if Citi FM would want any support to have a legal action taken on this particular matter, it is something that we are prepared to support Citi FM to do so.

This comes after the Broadcast Journalist, Caleb Kudah, was arrested on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, by some National Security operatives for filming abandoned vehicles procured by MASLOC that had been parked at the Ministry for several years now.

A team of heavily-armed SWAT police officers subsequently were dispatched to arrest Citi News' Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo at the premises of Citi FM/Citi TV.

This is because Caleb had forwarded some of the footage he captured to Zoe via WhatsApp.

Caleb Kudah in an interview with Bernard Avle on The Point Of View on Citi TV indicated that he was slapped several times by the security officers.

The Ministry of National Security on Thursday said it has begun investigations into the issue.

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The head of the National Security SWAT unit, DSP Samuel Azugu

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Private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has demanded investigations into circumstances why the report of the Emile Short Commission of Inquiry which recommended among others the re-asssignment of DSP Samuel Kojo Azugu and his Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team at the National Security Ministry has not been implemented.

He said the Inspector General of Police (IGP), James Oppong Boanuh, must be held responsible for this.

Azugu and his people were to go back to the Ghana Police Service but Azugu is still walking in the National Security premises, Mr Kpebu observed on The Keypoints on TV3/3FM on Saturday, May 15.

You go there, you will see him. So it is not only ordinary citizens who are not [obeying rules]. IGP is also to blame. When they said that he should take his men back, why didnt he take them back?

The Commission of Inquiry set up by President Akufo-Addo in the aftermath of the Ayawaso West Wuogon by- election violence in 2019 recommended the immediate removal of DSP Samuel Kojo Azugu from command responsibility at the Ministry of National Security given his failure to appropriately command and control the SWAT team of which he had charge during the operation at the La Bawaleshie school polling station.

It is recommended that he be reassigned by the IGP, the report succinctly stated.

But a recent detention of Citi FM journalist Caleb Kudah at the National Security Ministry proved that the SWAT team of the Ghana Police Service is still in operation at the Ministry.

This Mr Kpebu said is even raising hackles within the Service.

Look, people in the [Ghana] Police Service, they are furious. I have spoken to people in [Ghana] Police Service, they are furious and unhappy about the way we have this National Security thing to grow.

---3news.com
Dr Ing Kenneth Ashigbey, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana Chamber of Telecommunication has condemned the alleged assault of Citi FM/TV's Caleb Kudah and the subsequent raid of the station by National Security operatives to arrest a journalist, Zoe Abu Baidoo.

He said the gun-wielding National Security operatives would have shot him if he was the CEO of Citi Fm because he would not have allowed them access to the premises of the station without a warrant of arrest let alone to allow any of the staff to be whisked away without a lawyer accompanying them.

If this was when I was General Manager of Joy FM, Chief Operating Officer of Multi TV or as Managing Director of Graphic, I would definitely have been shot because there was definitely no way I was going to allow them into the premises without a warrant and there was definitely also no way I was going to allow them to take any of my staff without a lawyer accompanying them. So I think that at this particular point in time it is very sad as a country we are being exposed to this Mr Ashigbey said on news file on Joy News on Saturday, 15 May 2021.

Caleb Kudah, a journalist with Citi FM was allegedly assaulted by the National Security operatives for filming some abandoned state-acquired vehicles in the premises of the National Security Ministry.

Ghanaians including pressure groups and Civil Society Organisations have roundly condemned the action of the National Security operatives.
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The editor-in-chief of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako Jnr. has condemned the invasion of Citi FM and Citi TVs premises by some national security operatives, describing it as unacceptable.

He said the attempts by the operatives to arrest a journalist at the media house, Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo, could have been done in a neat way.

Making a submission on Joy FMs Newsfile on Saturday, Kweku Baako said the arrest of another journalist, Caleb Kudah, and allegations of assault on him should be looked into in consonance with provisions of the constitution and other relevant laws.

The way and manner they invaded Citi FM premises is unacceptable. It ought not to have happened in this state of technology and media and state institutions relationship Things could have been done in a neat way.

Indicating that he has had many similar encounters with operations of national security, he was of the view that impunity by the personnel has become prevalent.

He also called on the citizenry especially civil society organizations to highlight the issue.

It is clearly incumbent on not just journalists or media owners, but I think the entirety of the citizenry especially the focused civil society groups to take up this issue and deal with that cautiously. There are bodies like CHRAJ that can intervene based on the provisions of their Act, and of course the constitution. It is important that when such things happen, as much as you want to be fair and objective, it is difficult to deny that there is a subculture or subculture of immunity, he said

Operatives of National Security last Tuesday arrested and assaulted Citi FM's Caleb Kudah after they found him filming abandoned state-funded vehicles near its offices. The operatives subsequently besieged Citi FM to arrest another journalist, Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo who received the materials captured by Caleb.

No charge has been proffered against the two.

Meanwhile, the National Security Ministry has been widely condemned following the incident with some lawyers and individuals recounting similar experiences deemed to be illegal.

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The leaders of France and New Zealand warned that social media continued to be a driving force to propagate hate, two years after a white supremacist live-streamed the killing of 51 Muslim worshippers in Christchurch.

President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern were speaking Friday at a virtual summit, co-hosted by their countries, aimed at battling extremist content on the internet.

Ardern said efforts to stamp out the spread of harmful content would need to stem from a better understanding of the social media algorithms driving such content.

The existence of algorithms themselves is not necessarily the problem, it's whether or not they are being ethically used, she said, adding that tech companies had shown a real desire to use algorithms for positive interventions.

Macron said the internet had been used as a tool in recent attacks in the US, Austria, Germany and elsewhere  adding that new European regulations against extremist content would help coordination efforts.

In a post on Twitter, he said it was up to "democracies and defenders of freedoms" to find the solutions that would enable a free and secure internet.

Widespread support

More than 50 countries have joined the initiative, known as the Christchurch Call, along with tech giants including Facebook, Google, Twitter, Microsoft and Amazon.

The United States gave its support earlier this week in a shift in policy that came two years after former president Donald Trump declined to participate citing concerns over free speech.

Since Christchurch Call was launched, governments and tech companies have stepped up cooperation to identify violent extremist content online.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the UK had taken down more than 300,000 pieces of terrorist material from the internet over the past decade.

Terrorist content is like a metastasising tumour within the internet, he said in a pre-recorded video shown at the summit.

If we fail to excise it, it will inevitably spread into homes and high streets the world over.
Isaac Essuman, a 10- year-old boy of Dambai College of Education Demonstration Basic School three has been found dead on a mango tree in his mother's house in Dambai, Oti Regional Capital.

The incident, which happened late Thursday night has created a state of panic among residents in the community.

Mr Prince Goka, tenant of the house in an exclusive interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) said, the deceased came to him when he returned from Cape Coast on Thursday.

He said he gave him a loaf of bread and even asked him to wait outside since he used to watch Television series in his room.

Police personnel from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service retrieved the deceased's body, and deposited it at the Worawora government hospital pending autopsy.

The Police also activated investigations to unravel the reason and cause of death of a 10-year old boy.

GNA
Students of Accra New Town Experimental '1' Junior High School (ANT1 JHS) have been advised to learn hard and excel in academic work as their contribution to projecting the image of the school.

They have also been urged to ensure that they return after graduation to motivate their juniors to ensure that the institution remains the best.

President of the 1997 batch of the Old Accra New Town '1' Experimental School Association, Prince Kudjo Agbomadzi, gave the advice on Friday, May 14, 2021, when he led his year group to donate some study materials and Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) worth Ghc 22,000 to the school.

It is their contribution to ensuring that the school progresses academically while the students and teachers keep observing all notable protocols against the Covid-19 pandemic.

The items include 1,800 pieces of Exercise Books, 18 pieces of Teachers Note Books, 600 pieces of Rulers, and 600 pieces of BIC Pens.

The rest include 18,000 pieces of Face mask, 10 pieces of Dispensers, Three gallons of Hand Sanitizers, Four gallons of Liquid Soaps, and 150 packs of Tissue papers, among others.

The Association which was formed and officially launched in 2018 with Israel Nornyibey as its first president has the objective of mobilizing resources in various forms to support the school while assisting the students to improve on their academic performance, among others.

Agbomadzi, told the gathering which was made up of teachers, parents, administrative staff, past students, final year students and some invited dignitaries, that, the association has a responsibility of mentoring all the students in their academic work and in whatever career field they would chose to pursue.

This is not the first or the last time we are going to be donating to the school. Consider this as the beginning of greater things to come. We are doing this as an example to you, so that in the near future when you also complete school and you become successful you'll also come back to help your juniors, he stated.

He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted a lot of educational institutions which is why the Associations decided to lend its support to give hope to the teachers and students of ANT '1' JHS.

Vice president of the Association, Benjamin Quashie, who is resident in South Africa but came down purposely to support the presentation ceremony, lamented the poor infrastructure housing the school.

When we were graduating from this school in 1997, thus 24 years ago, the infrastructure of the school status was far better than what we are seeing here today. There is a lot we need to do for this school so that it can be in a better situation to compete, he stated.

He promised to lead the school's infrastructural transformation charge.

The Honorable Member of Parliament (MP) for the Ayensuano constituency in the Eastern Region, Teddy Addy, who was the special guest of honor at the short function, advised the students to always put God first in all that they do.

I am a living testimony of God's favor. I went through a lot of challenges in life, but with humility and God on my side I am an MP today. The first principle of success in life is to trust in God. I urge you to take your books serious. Don't be in competition with anyone, be ready to help everyone because you may also need help one day. Help each other, respect your teachers, and see them as your parents. Be humble, he stated.

Samuel Aboah, who represented the Ayawaso Central Municipal Director of Education said the move by the association was very thoughtful and a good example worth emulating. He pledged the directorate's support to all activities of the group.

Receiving the items on behalf of the school, the Headmaster, Emmanuel Nyavor, who was extremely excited at the move, commended the past students highly for appreciating the contribution of the school to their careers.

He revealed an initiative by the management of the school to meet with the various stakeholders over plans to position the school as the best in the Ayawaso Central area. To that effect, the school will soon initiate a Speech and Prize Giving Day to recognize the contributions and hard work of pupils and staff.

He also announced plans to purchase a Brass Band for the school as well as introduce a Cadet Corps to boost the school's performance in non-academic activities as well.

Other executives of the 1997 Year Group of the Accra Newtown Experimental '1' JHS are, Vida Asare Oppong  Secretary, Golda Danso Hope  Deputy Secretary, Joyce Sandra Bokpe  Treasurer, Esther Ababio  Deputy Treasurer, Edwin Agyiri  Organizer, Ransford Etse Amaglo  Deputy Organizer, and Richard Sly Deladem  International and Media Relations Officer, Welfare -- Abigail Mensa-Kena, Benjamin Appiah Darko and Bernice Hotor-Bibio
MTN Ghana has presented food items to National Chief Imam, Regional Chief Imams and 6,000 Muslim families across the country in support of this year's Eid-Ul-Fitr celebrations.



Food items including rice, cooking oil, spices, margarine, juice, oats, soft drinks and toilet soap, were presented to families in Nima, Maamobi, Fadama, Ashaiman, Kasoa, Koforidua Zongo, Asawase, Aboabo, Sawaba, Moshie Zongo and Akwatia line.

In addition to the food items presented to Muslim families, MTN also donated cash, airtime and rams to the National Chief Imam and Regional Chief Imams of Takoradi, Tamale, and Kumasi.

Presenting the items at the residence of the National Chief Imam at Fadama, Mr. Salihu Abu, Senior Manager for Customer Relations and Credit Management said, The outbreak of COVID-19 has changed the dynamics of Eid ul-Fitr traditions and celebrations all over the world. Despite all these changes, Eid remains the time of giving thanks for all the blessings in our lives, focusing on the sunnahs we can fulfil and reach out to those facing greater challenges. Our presentation here today is in the spirit of Ramadan and Eid ul-Fitr and in furtherance of our existing relationship with the Chief Imam and the Muslim community.

Mr. Abu also advised the community to adhere to COVID-19 protocols whilst celebrating Eid. He said, We will encourage the Muslim community as well as everyone living in Ghana to continue to observe the health and safety guidelines by wearing their facemasks where necessary. Continue washing and sanitizing your hands regularly as well as keep practicing social distancing.

Receiving the items, The National Chief Imam, Dr. Sheikh Usumanu Nuhu Sharubutu expressed gratitude to MTN Ghana for the continuous generosity towards the Muslim community and offered prayers for the company and staff. He said, We are grateful to Allah for these gestures you undertake. If God favors you with anything such as wealth, he needs you to expend those favors in the right and appropriate place especially in this holy month and more especially in the last night of Ramadan. May Allah help you, whatever you desire and whatever you aspire and visualize, in the future may it come to fruition.

In the Ashanti region, the items were received by Sheik Abdul Mumin Harun, Ashanti regional Chief Imam. On behalf of the Muslim Community Ustaz Ahmed Seidu, Executive Sectary at the Office of the Ashanti Regional Chief Imam, thanked MTN Ghana for the donation and stated that the company has indeed demonstrated its friendship by its continuous support to Muslim communities across the country.

In the Western Region, the items were received by Dr Sheikh Ostaz Ali Hassan Ali, Western Regional Chief Imam and in the North by Sheikh Abdul Salam Ahmed, Northern regional Chief Imam. The community was grateful to MTN Ghana for coming to support them.

MTN has supported the Muslim Community for the past 14 years during Eid-ul Fitr celebrations through donations and the organization of events in Nima, Accra New Town, Kumasi, Kasoa, and Tamale. MTN has also been supporting the National Hajj Board annually in the organization of the pilgrimage to Mecca.
The management of Citi FM and Citi TV has petitioned the National Media Commission (NMC), over the arrest and alleged assault of its journalist, Caleb Kudah, and the subsequent invasion of the premises of the media house on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, by operatives of the National Security.

Mr. Kudah was arrested at the National Security Ministry on Tuesday for filming abandoned MASLOC vehicles parked at the premises of the Ministry.

He was at the Ministry to verify a claim by an official of MASLOC that all the cars had been given out. This was after Caleb Kudah had complained about the wastage of public funds on social media.

A team of heavily-armed SWAT police officers subsequently were dispatched to arrest Citi News' Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo at the premises of Citi FM/Citi TV.

This is because Caleb had forwarded some of the footage he captured to Zoe via WhatsApp.

Mr. Caleb Kudah in an interview with Bernard Avle on The Point Of View on Citi TV indicated that he was slapped several times by the security officers.

He also insisted that he was hit in the groin by one Lieutenant Colonel Agyeman.

The management of the media house has petitioned the NMC to investigate the matter and recommend appropriate actions thereafter.

We are hereby petitioning the National Media Commission to use its mandate under the Constitution that enjoins it to ensure the safety of journalists to investigate or cause to be investigated the two incidents described above and recommend appropriate actions therefrom.

Below is the full petition:

COMPLAINT TO THE NMC ON THE BRUTALIZATION OF CITI FM JOUR N ALIST CALEB KU DAH AND THE RAID OF CITI FM ON MAY 11, 2021

A. INTRODUCTION

Management of Citi FM & CITI TV is lodging this formal complaint to the National Media Commission on the conduct of some officers of the National Security Ministry against two journalists  Mr. Caleb Kudah and Mrs. Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo working with Citi FM/Citi TV and the raiding of the offices of Citi FM & Citi TV by policemen from National Security Ministry on the same day.

This complaint is made pursuant to Section 2 (1) (b) of the National Media Commission Act, 1993 ( Act 449):

to take the appropriate measures that ensure the establishment and maintenance of the highest journalistic standards in the mass media , including the investigation, mediation and settlement of complaints made against or by the press or other mass media;(emphasis ours)

On Tuesday, May 11, 2021, the Director of Operations of National Security, Lt. Col. Frank Agyeman, and a team of SWAT policemen working under the direction of DSP Samuel Kojo Azugu unlawfully arrested, detained, brutalized and tortured Mr. Caleb Kudah and subsequently, raided in aRambo-Style the offices of Citi FM/Citi TV by men from the same unit, in a bid to arrest Mrs. Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo. Theincident caused alarm, fear and panic amongst the members of staff of the company and endangered the lives of innocent Ghanaians.

B. PARTICULARS OF COMPLAINT

1. ARREST, DETENTION AND BRUTALIZATION OF CALEB KUDAH

Around 2:30 pm on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 Citi FM/Citi TV reporters Caleb Kudah went to the carpark of the Ministry of National Security to take photos of a number of abandoned Chevrolet vehicles imported into the country in 2016 for MASLOC but had yet to be distributed as of 2019.

Mr. Kudah was doing a follow up on the state of those Chevrolet vehicles to ascertain if the vehicles were still at the location- a matter of vital public interest regarding the use of tax payers money over which the public is entitled to the truth.

After taking photos of the vehicles he made a short video of some other old vehicles parked under a shed adjacent to the location of the Chevrolet vehicles.

On his way out of the premises, he was accosted by an official of the National Security Ministry, who raised an alarm and accused him of filming national security installations to foment trouble.

Mr. Kudah was immediately surrounded by policemen who seized his phone and roughed him up before sending him into a building in which he met the head of the SWAT Unit DSP Azugu.

During questioning, Mr Kudah identified himself to the officials as a journalist from Citi FM/Citi TV who had come to take photos of some abandoned MASLOC vehicles, which was a follow up on a story he had earlier done.

DSP Azugu placed a phone call to Mr. Richard Mensah, Director of Television of Citi TV to confirm if indeed Mr.Caleb Kudah was a member of staff of Citi FM/CITI TV to which he affirmed.

This notwithstanding, Mr. Kudah was slapped several times and punched indiscriminately by the officers several times while being questioned by DSP Azugu although he had identified himself as a journalist from Citi FM/Citi TV.

After some minutes of that ordeal, he was brought outside the building to underneath a mango tree, at which point he was approached by a well-dressed man in a light-green suit, whom he later identified by name as Lt Col Frank Agyeman.

Lt Col Agyeman upon approaching the now roughed-up and petrified Mr. Kudah, gave him a hefty slap and asked him to kneel down. He then kicked him in the groin and left him lying down.

This action by Lt. Col. Agyeman, seemed to have invigorated the policemen who continued punching and slapping Mr.Kudah for several minutes.

Mr. Kudah pleaded for mercy and tried to explain why he was there, but his cries fell on deaf ears as the policemen continued to indiscriminately punch and slap him from behind.

In total, Mr. Kudah was manhandled and brutalized for close to 5 hours in detention, both in the office of DSP Azugu, as well as in the main national security building.

When he was sent to the main national security building, he was thrown into a room without windows (with some other suspects) and worked on by one of the inmates who threatened him and asked him to remove his shoes and do push-ups amid threats and insults.

He recounts how thirsty he was and asked for water, which he was given, but the handcuffs he was wearing and his tired hands could barely raise the water to his lips.

His horrific ordeal continued until around 7pm when he was released.

Mr. Kudah informed the management of the Citi FM/Citi TV that he was made to write a statement without allowing him the right to counsel as prescribed by law.

2. R AMBO-STYLE RAID ON CITI FM/CITI TV

While Mr. Kudah was in detention, a plain-clothes police officer went on to illegally go through his seized phone, and upon realizing that some of the photos/Videos Caleb took had been sent to the phone Mrs. Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo also a Broadcast Journalist at Citi, proceeded under subterfuge tochat with Zoe using Caleb's phone to create the impression that he was okay, and by so doing tried to lure her out of the office to be arrested.

When this approach failed, they then called Mrs. Abu-BaidooAddo with Mr. Kudah's phone to ask her to report at the National Security Ministry at which point she explained that she would need to confer with management before honoring the invitation by telephone.

Mrs. Abu-Baidoo Addo subsequently informed Mr. Richard Mensah of the call, at which point he indicated to her that he would talk to DSP Azugu while trying to secure Mr. Kudah'srelease.

A few minutes after this, about seven or eight fully armedSWAT police officers from the National Security Ministry, led by a plain clothes officer stormed Citi FM/Citi TV in a Rambo-style in 3 pick up vehicles, accosted Mrs. Abu-Baidoo Addo (who was on a phone call at the car park) confiscated her phone and chased her, to the back of Citi FM in a bid to arrest her.

A chaotic scene ensued amid the cocking of guns and shouts, which was not only unprofessional, but intimidating and dangerous to both Mrs. Abu-Baidoo Addo and the members of staff who had come out in response to the ensuing commotion.

The approach adopted by the SWAT team in their bid to arrest Mrs. Abu-Baidoo Addo, within the precincts of her own office premises was potentially life-threatening to her and the members of staff present at the scene.

It took the management of Citi FM/Citi TV in particular the CEO, Mr. Samuel Attah-Mensah 's intervention to calm the situation. The Policemen then agreed , for a team from Citi FM/TV's Management to accompany Mrs. Zoe Abu-Baidoo Addo to the National Security Office.

The team from management had a cordial meeting with DSP Azugu, and left his office with the impression that all that was required was for the photos/videos to be deleted and the two would be released immediately.

The team was however directed to see Lt. Col Agyeman, who upon seeing the delegation, asked for Mrs. Abu-Baidoo Addo to follow him and refused to speak to the team from Citi FM/TV management.

Mrs. Abu-Baidoo Addo was released at about 5:30 pm after almost 45 minutes in detention while Mr. Kudah was released around 7pm that evening, following the intervention of the Deputy National Security Coordinator, Mr. Edward Kwaku Asomaning who Citi Management reached out to.

Mr. Kudah has been sent to the hospital for medical examination and is currently recuperating from the physical and psychological effects of his ordeal.

Till date, no formal charges have been levelled against the two journalists.

However, the National Security Ministry has indicated that they are investigating the incident.

The statement issued by the Chief Director of the Ministry recounting their version of the events of the day and announcing an internal investigation does not give us an indication that the National Security Ministry will provide an independent and satisfactory investigation in these allegations.

3. CONCLUSION

We are hereby petitioning the National Media Commission to use its mandate under the Constitution that enjoins it to ensure the safety of journalist to investigate or cause to be investigated the two incidents described above and recommend appropriate actions therefrom.

We have attached a video containing more details of the C aleb and Z oe's account of events and another containing CCTV footage of the raid on Citi FM

citinewsroom
Amanfrom, a farming community in the Asutifi South District of the Ahafo Region was thrown into a state of mourning, when seven persons were electrocuted during a downpour on Friday.

Their charred bodies have since been deposited at the Hwidiem St Elizabeth Hospital, while five others, who sustained serious burns, are currently responding to treatment at the Hospital.

The Ghana News Agency (GNA) learnt the rains, which followed a heavy storm, set in around 1730 hours and caused extensive damages to properties, and several electrical poles, where live wires electrified some houses in the town.

However, the victims were pronounced dead on arrival by staff on duty at the St Elizabeth Hospital, and they were believed to have touched iron gates, and metal objects in the electrified houses.

Meanwhile, Mr George Boakye, the Ahafo Regional Minister had visited and consoled the bereaved families and the victims.

He described the incident as unfortunate and promised the government's support to the victims and the deceased families.

The Regional Minister was accompanied by Mr Robert Dwomoh Mensah, the Asutifi South District Chief Executive and some officials of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO).

GNA
Some persons have been injured in a clash between some Ghana Immigration officials and the Asafo group from Ngleshie Amanfro Chiefs Palace.

The clash was triggered by the alleged breach of a ban on drumming and noise-making by the Immigration officials.

Citi News sources say confusion broke out when the Asafo group went to the Immigration barracks to prevent the officials from using their Public Address system while organising a one-week commemoration of their fellow officer who had passed on.

It is believed that the age-long boundary dispute between Awutu Senya East in the Central Region and Ngleshie Amanfro in the Ga South Municipality is a contributory factor to the clash.

District Commander for Ngleshie Amanfro, Superintendent Augustine Okanta Akrofi told Citi News that some arrests have been made in connection with the incident.

Superintendent Augustine was however unable to disclose the number of persons arrested.

We managed to arrest some and brought them to the station. Both sides suffered some injuries. The case is under investigation. Those injured were issued with a medical form to go to the hospital.

citinewsroom
Palestinians inspect the rubble of a house destroyed by Israeli air strikes in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, on May 14, 2021. Tension between Israel and the Hamas-led militant groups has been flaring up since Monday, leaving 122 Palestinians and nine Israelis killed, according to Palestinian and Israeli official figures. (Photo by Yasser Qudih/Xinhua)

GAZA, May 14 (Xinhua) -- Tension between Israel and the Islamic Hamas movement continued for the fifth day on Friday in the Gaza Strip with no sign of any truce.

Overnight and at predawn, the tit-for-tat violent military confrontations between the two sides were intensified. Militants fired more barrages of rockets into Israel, and Israeli fighter jets kept striking on the enclave.

The Hamas-run ministry of health said in a text message that 122 Palestinians have been killed, including 31 children and 20 women, and 900 others injured since Monday in the Gaza Strip.

Eyewitnesses and Palestinian security sources told Xinhua that Israeli army artillery on Friday struck the eastern area of Gaza city with tanks, killing at least two.

At predawn, tanks hit the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahia, killing a mother and her four children, according to medical sources.

The reason behind hitting the family's house wasn't known, which might ignite more tension between the two sides, the eyewitnesses said.

An Israeli army spokesman said in a press statement that the Israeli forces had intensively attacked posts that belong to Hamas, adding that 160 war jets, artillery, and tanks participated in the military operation.

The statement said 150 targets were hit overnight and on Friday morning, adding that many of the targets were underground.

It said the Israeli army will continue its strikes on the militants who fire rockets at Israel.

As the Israeli bombardments were intensified, Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants announced that their militants fired more barrages of rockets into Israel.

Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing, claimed responsibility for launching 100 rockets at the Israeli city of Ashkelon, in response to Israel's "targeting of civilians" in the enclave.

Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, also said that its militants carried out intensive rocket strikes at Israeli cities in southern and central Israel.

The Israeli army said Gaza militant groups have fired more than 1,750 rockets at Israel, most of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system. The rockets fired from Gaza killed at least nine Israelis and wounded 200 others.

Meanwhile, Palestinian sources said the contacts to reach calm between the two sides had so far failed, adding that Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations lead the mediation between the two sides for reaching a truce.
May 15, 2021 Israel Punishes Media For Reporting Its Escalation In Palestine Today is Nakba day which commemorates the violent expulsion of more than 700,000 Palestinians from their homes which began 74 years ago and is still continuing. Just yesterday Fares Akram. Associated Press reporter in Gaza, wrote in a diary about his families expulsion and his life under colonist bombing: GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  On Friday morning, a military airstrike smashed my familys farm in the northern Gaza Strip into a jagged mass of metal and splintered trees. An Israeli bomb had slammed into the yard, carving a crater into the dirt and leaving rubble in its wake. The conflict, once again, hit home. The first Gaza war taught me that while our lush citrus grove might offer some breathing space from the congestion and difficulties of city life, its no refuge. A previous Israeli airstrike killed my father, Akram al-Ghoul, on January 3, 2009. As fighting raged, hed insisted on sleeping at the farm to tend to the cattle and chicken, and to nurture the trees. In all, six of my relatives, three close friends and several colleagues have died in the three bloody wars and countless battles between Israel and Hamas. Each time the violence erupts and I report as a journalist on the people who lost their homes, their children or their lives, the memories creep back. I always think, That could be me. When the thundering bombs, buzzing drones and pounding artillery refresh the pain and trigger the old fear, I seek refuge in work. The Associated Press office is the only place in Gaza City I feel somewhat safe. The Israeli military has the coordinates of the high-rise, so its less likely a bomb will bring it crashing down. Today Fares Akram and Joseph Krauss report: GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  An Israeli airstrike destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children, on Saturday. The strike on the high-rise came nearly an hour after the military ordered people to evacuate the 12-story building, which also housed Al-Jazeera, other offices and residential apartments. The strike brought down the entire structure, which collapsed in a gigantic cloud of dust. There was no immediate explanation for why it was attacked. This was the second high rise housing media studios, offices, telecommunication equipment as well as residential apartments that Israel destroyed in its current attack. Earlier today AP had accused the Israeli military of intentionally misinforming the media to trick the resistance in Gaza. (The trick did not work.) In a statement AP's president condemned today's strike and wrote: The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today. Well, yes. The Israeli military will congratulate itself for achieving that aim. Tow days ago I developed the idea that the resistance, Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Palestine, Hizbullah in Lebanon and Ansar Allah in Yemen, may be planing more of the events than a superficial view reveals: While the conflict was, without doubt, started by the colonial occupiers the course of the recent escalation seems to be managed by the resistance side. It may well be part of a larger plan.

...

While I am still not sure that all of this is part of a plan - from Hizbullah's speech, over unrest in Jerusalem, Gaza missiles, pogroms, to now missiles from Lebanon - it surely looks like a well rehearsed and coordinated (re-)action of the resistance front. Since then more events seem to fit into the picture. Yesterday and over night anti-Arab violence and Palestinian protests within Israel continued as new unrest unfolded in the West Bank where the occupation army killed at least 10 Palestinians. Protesters in Jordan arrived at the border to the West Bank and tried to break through the border fence. Jordanian riot police held them back. At the Lebanese border to Israel protesters crossed over from Lebanon into a disputed area when Israeli forces fired at them. One Lebanese man was killed and another wounded. Such death usually trigger the eye-for-an-eye rule that governs the relation between Hizbullah and the Israeli army. Hizbullah could have used the incident to escalate but didn't. Also yesterday Hizbullah's Deputy Secretary General Naim Qassem visited Hamas and Islamic Jihad leadership in Lebanon. This is highly significant as Hamas had been on the wrong side of the war in Syria. David A. Daoud translates what Naim Qassem said: 1-Hezbollah delegation, headed by Qassem and which included Politburo members Mahmoud Qmati and Hajj Hassan Hoballah, met w/PIJ Sec.Gen. Ziad Nakhala; Hamas leadership in Lebanon Usama Hamdan, Ali Barakeh, Ahmad Abdulhadi; discussed latest developments on Palestinian front 2-Qassem: We came on directions from Sec.Gen. Hassan Nasrallah to meet PIJ, Hamas leadership to confirm that we are with them, and w/Palestinian resistance, and people who now confront the Israeli enemy 3-Qassem: We know now we are in the phase of creating a new equation inside Palestine, which confirms the unity of the Palestinian lands, and the uprising (lit. movement) tying Jerusalem, the lands of '48 (i.e. Israel), West Bank, and Gaza 4-Qassem: this is happening evenly between these different parts of the Palestinian people, so the Israeli will understand that Palestinian people will not accept its occupation of any part of this land (i.e. entire land between Jordan River and Mediteranean) 5-Let them understand Jerusalem is holy of holies of all palestinians, but also all peoples of the region, world, of lovers and supporters of the Resistance, who believe in always focusing on Palestine; they are all in one trench and camp 6-Qassem: We can therefore say that today a new equation is being created in Palestine, and that question of Jerusalem today has assumed its full Palestinian dimension, in opposition to all normalization moves led by Israel, USA; 7-Qassem: this is beginning of burial of normalization, with blood and sacrifices of martyrs. 8-Qassem: Hezbollah is always w/ the Palestinian resistance, jihad of the Palestinian people, liberating Jerusalem; we are with them in material support, backing, solidarity in all paths; we will always carry out our duties as different stages and phases required 9-Qassem: We therefore stress that what Palestinian people and their viable leadership are doing is object of support and backing; in the end, we believe resistance is only solution, there is none other, despite efforts of different forces 10-Qassem: We don't bet on America, or great powers, or those who talk about political settlements; we bet on the living Palestinian youths, who are actively moving; anyone w/Palestine today must be w/ the resistance; whoever isn't w/Resistance isn't w/Palestine 11-Qassem: Palestine doesn't need fervent speeches, it needs jihad, martyrdom, and sacrifices The resistance is united but it is still not clear if Hizbullah will actively join the fight. It may not yet be the right time. Elijah J. Magnier @ejmalrai - 10:39 UTC  May 15, 2021 Palestinian groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad prefer that #Hezbollah doesnt get involved in the battle now and allows the world focus to remain on #Gaza. Any outside intervention- I was told - serves #Israel to play the victim and disperse the attention away from the main cause. Today Hizbullah called on its supporters in south Lebanon to protest at the border to Israel. Any small conflict there could escalate towards war within just a few hours. Posted by b on May 15, 2021 at 15:37 UTC | Permalink Comments next page  next page 
Helen Vlahakis of DeKalb said she got her second dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine on April 23, about a year after she completed treatment for breast cancer.

Vlahakis said her doctor told her to stay home as much as possible while she was still undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatment in March 2020, about when the COVID-19 pandemic became more widespread. She said that limited her outings to just going to the doctors office, grocery store and pharmacy.

But other than that, I didnt do anything because I was going through chemo and radiation and was more susceptible to the virus  and Im diabetic, too, Vlahakis said. So it was a double whammy.

Some residents have expressed feeling heightened anxiety about health and safety as Illinois starts to open up more and more amid the COVID-19 pandemic. However, local mental health experts gave suggestions on how people can better function despite that re-entry anxiety.

Vlahakis said she has coped fairly well throughout the past year or so. She said she has been watching television and otherwise keeping herself busy at home. Even before the pandemic hit, she said, she was wearing a face mask during flu season to protect herself.

But Im still a little wary to venture outside too much, Vlahakis said. I dont know how long the immunity from the vaccines going to last. I just dont know enough about it, other than what they say on the news, (or whether) its going to be like the flu shot, where we have to get it annually or every six months.

J.J. Wett, clinical director for the DeKalb County Youth Services Bureau and licensed therapist, said he has been seeing a mixture of feelings from his clients about society slowly opening back up.

I think you have the relief part of it, where you actually get to see somebody in person, Wett said. And then you have the opposite part of it with the people with social anxiety in general and having to go back to their jobs, schools, all of that. And you see, of course, that flare-up on the anxiety piece of it because they already had social anxiety. For probably around nine months to a year, they really didnt have to go into those social situations, and now they do.

Emily Kunash, a therapist at Next Level Counseling and Wellness in Woodstock, said a common theme she has heard from people is a disconnect within families or other groups, with people being at different levels of comfort when it comes to COVID-19-related precautions.

So sometimes, for example, youve got a husband thats feeling a lot more comfortable with getting together with friends and family and maybe the wife is just a little bit more anxious about it, Kunash said. And so it can create some tension between family members or friends, being at different comfortability levels.

Kunash said being up front about those types of concerns and compromising to a point where everyone can feel comfortable can help. For example, she said, if someone within a group wanted to go to a restaurant and dine indoors but some may feel hesitant about dining indoors, a compromise might be either choosing an establishment with outdoor seating or a restaurant that is strict about health precautions indoors.

The biggest thing is really having conversations that open up communication about whats going on, so that the two  or the families  can discuss how to accommodate the discrepancy, Kunash said.

Wett said some of the most common concerns hes heard from clients include being judged by others for how theyre handling the pandemic or being concerned about a loved one dying from the virus. He said he recommends people acknowledge their feelings and let them just be, rather than trying to replace their negative feelings with more positive feelings.

What I often tell my clients to do is almost have an internal dialogue with that thought, Wett said.

Kunash said validating those feelings goes a long way for those feeling hesitant and people comforting those who are feeling hesitant. She said having clear expectations going into any gathering or event also helps.

It can be really scary for somebody to walk into a situation and not be prepared for what is happening, Kunash said. Be really up front about what it is youd like to see or what you plan to do so that it doesnt feel uncomfortable when you get there.

Wett said anyone who might feel like they wouldnt be able to respond to a gathering situation amid the pandemic in a non-harmful way might want to step back, do some breathing exercises and ground themselves. If someone believes they need more help from a licensed therapist, he said, some might be able and willing to work with patients who are upfront about their financial situation, if thats the only thing standing in the way of getting the help they need.

Another option that might be easier to fit into busy schedules is tele-therapy services like BetterHelp, through which Wett also practices as a licensed therapist. He said therapy has become more accessible than ever for people, especially since BetterHelps cost per session is about one-third of what an in-person session would be with insurance, and BetterHelp also comes with unlimited texting capabilities.

However, Wett pointed out the BetterHelp wait list to match clients with therapists is about a month out.

It wasnt that way in like a year and a half ago, Wett said. But since the pandemic, it just exploded. It jumped.

Sarah Lloyd, one of the owners of Action Consulting and Therapy in Geneva, said staying informed can also boost feelings of control, but also know when to turn off the news. She also urged people to go slow when it comes to re-entering a more open society and to pace themselves with multiple offers to do things they may not have been able to do in the last year.

So it might be tempting to do them all in one day, but thats just going to lead to exhaustion, Lloyd said. Its exhausting to navigate these new experiences and to do them all on the same day.

Even when everything fully reopens and if events are still happening this summer, Vlahakis said she still plans on wearing her mask wherever she goes to help protect the most vulnerable.

When you go to a festival or a fair, there are going to be kids, Vlahakis said, referring to children still not being eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. And I think I just would want to protect the kid who might be out  and have pre-existing conditions or something.

Overall, Wett said breaking the negative stigma of mental health and seeking treatment is one of the biggest things people can do going forward to help themselves or their loved ones.

I want people to know they are not alone in their struggles, Wett said. There are plenty of resources out there.
Meredosia Village Board members are working on ways to improve the community.

Mayor David Werries opened six bids to mow village property and the cemetery. Board members accepted the lowest bid to mow the cemetery of $14,000 for the year by Jack Gregory, pending insurance verification.

It was decided village workers will mow the rest of the property, including City Hall, the village sheds, water plant, sewer plant and parks. A 54-inch mower is being bought from Mt. Sterling Implement for $4,807.

A city limit sign with a natural rock structure around it is being put up at the entrance to the village. Board members discussed other signs that need to be replaced.

Gregory and Werries are going to ask questions to obtain more information before buying a piece of new playground equipment for the park from the Swing Set Factory Depot for an estimated $16,200.

In other business, the Naples Boat Club was approved to hold two extra outside events this year because it was unable to hold events last year because of the pandemic. The club may now have five outdoors events this year.

A bid was approved for $56 by Johnny Rentz to buy the old park pavilion roof from the village.

Mayor David Werries, Village Clerk Patricia Englebrecht and board members Ernie Gregory and John Petri were sworn in at the meeting. Kevin Barth will be sworn in next month.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm says the nation is over the hump on gas shortages following a ransomware cyberattack that forced a shutdown of the nations largest gasoline pipeline.

Problems peaked Thursday night, and service should return to normal in most areas by the end of the weekend, Granholm said Friday in an interview with The Associated Press.

The good news is that ... gas station outages are down about 12% from the peak as of Friday afternoon, with about 200 stations returning to service every hour, she said. Its still going to work its way through the system over the next few days, but we should be back to normal fairly soon.''

A cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them hit the Colonial Pipeline on May 7. The hackers didnt take control of pipeline operations, but the Georgia-based company shut it down to prevent malware from affecting industrial control systems.

The Colonial Pipeline stretches from Texas to New Jersey and delivers about 45% of the gasoline consumed on the East Coast. The shutdown has caused shortages at the pumps throughout the South and emptied stations in the Washington, D.C., area.

President Joe Biden said U.S. officials do not believe the Russian government was involved, but said we do have strong reason to believe that the criminals who did the attack are living in Russia.''

As Colonial reported making substantial progress Friday in restoring full service, two people briefed on the matter confirmed the company had paid a ransom of about $5 million.

Granholm, like other Biden administration officials, urged drivers not to panic or hoard gasoline.

Really, the gasoline is coming,'' she said. If you take more than what you need, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy in terms of the shortages. Lets share a little bit with our neighbors and everybody should know that its going to be okay in the next few days.''

Granholm's agency is leading the federal response to the ransomware attack. She said the incident shows the vulnerability not only of U.S. infrastructure, but also personal computers. Her 86-year-old mother recently suffered a ransomware attack on her iPad, Granholm said.

So its just happening everywhere,'' she said. All these cybercriminals see an opportunity in the cloud and in our connectivity. And so we all have to be very vigilant. That means weve got to have security systems on our devices and individually we shouldnt be clicking on any email with attachments from people you dont know. I mean its just around us.''

Biden signed an executive order on cybersecurity this week, and the Energy Department and other agencies are working to protect critical infrastructure, she said.

Much of the U.S. pipeline infrastructure, like Colonial, is privately owned. The chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which oversees interstate pipelines, said this week that the U.S. should establish mandatory cybersecurity standards for pipelines similar to those in the electricity sector.

Simply encouraging pipelines to voluntarily adopt best practices is an inadequate response to the ever-increasing number and sophistication of malevolent cyber actors,'' said FERC Chairman Richard Glick.

We definitely have to look at it, Granholm said Friday, adding that pipeline organizations have voluntary standards. Even though it may be privately owned, the public uses it. So I think we have to look at that, making sure that they abide by the latest and greatest.''

John Stoody, a spokesman for the Association of Oil Pipe Lines, declined to comment on Glick's proposal. The industry historically has opposed government mandates on cybersecurity.

The ransomware attack should play a role as Congress considers Biden's $2.3 trillion infrastructure proposal, Granholm said.

Obviously pipelines should be considered part of that,'' she said. Cybersecurity should be considered part of that. Energy infrastructure, including transmission grids, should be part of that. We need to upgrade across the board, and hopefully there will be some interest in a bipartisan fashion to see an upgrade in the nations infrastructure.''
MOUNT OLIVE  A Macoupin County man is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail after his arrest on child pornography charges.

Attorney General Kwame Raoul said Michael F. Curran, 69, of Mount Olive was arrested on 10 counts of possession of child pornography, each a felony punishable by three to seven years in prison.
TULSA, Okla. (AP)  The commission formed to observe the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre announced Friday that it had booted Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt from his seat on the panel a week after he signed a bill outlawing the teaching of some race and racism concepts in public schools.

A statement from the commission did not indicate the reason for the parting, and a spokeswoman said the commission had no further comment. However, commission project manager Phil Armstrong this week had sharply criticized the Republican governor for signing a bill into law that prohibits the teaching of so-called critical race theory in Oklahoma schools.

The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commissioners met Tuesday and agreed through consensus to part ways with Governor Stitt, the commission's statement said.

It went on to say that while the commission is disheartened to part ways with Governor Stitt, we are thankful for the things accomplished together. It also said, No elected officials, nor representatives of elected officials, were involved in this decision.

The Republican governor was informed of his ouster only when the commission issued its statement, said Stitt spokeswoman Carly Atchison.

Stitts role has been purely ceremonial and he had not been invited to attend a meeting until this week, her statement said.

The commission was formed to organize events for the anniversary of the massacre that occurred May 31 and June 1 in 1921. A white mob killed an estimated 300 people and wounded 800 while burning 30 blocks of Black-owned businesses and homes and neighborhood churches in Tulsa's Greenwood neighborhood, also known as Black Wall Street. Planes were even used to drop explosives on the area, burning it to the ground.

In a letter to the governor Tuesday, Armstrong said the commission was gravely disappointed that neither Stitt nor a representative chose to attend a meeting Monday night to discuss the signing of the GOP-backed legislation on "critical race theory, which examines systemic racism and how race influences U.S. politics, legal systems and society. Among the concepts that are prohibited are that individuals, by virtue of race or gender, are inherently racist, sexist or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously.

Armstrong had said Stitts signing of the bill on May 7 was diametrically opposite to the mission of the Centennial Commission and reflects your desire to end your affiliation.

Atchison decried the commission's move in her statement Friday.

It is disappointing to see an organization of such importance spend so much effort to sow division based on falsehoods and political rhetoric two weeks before the centennial and a month before the commission is scheduled to sunset," her statement said.

Another member of the commission, state Rep. Monroe Nichols of Tulsa, resigned from the panel Tuesday over Stitts signing of the bill, saying it cast an ugly shadow on the phenomenal work done over the last five years.

The commission has developed and promoted programs, events and activities to remember the 1921 massacre and memorialize its victims. Among the events are Greenwood: An American Dream Destroyed, a presentation that wraps a monthlong run this weekend, and Greenwood Rising: The Black Wall Street History Center," which is scheduled to be unveiled June 2.

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Wallace reported from Dallas.
Evil and innocence collided in the soft bluish glow of a cellphone.

Within seconds of hitting send, the photo she was dared to take became a weapon that would haunt the young teens life.

She had been used, betrayed by someone she thought was a boy her own age. They had spent weeks chatting and texting about everything from school to problems at home.

He knew her well: She shared increasingly intimate details about who she was, where she lived, the fights with her parents.

But he was a mirage  empathetic stories contrived by an adult and carefully calculated to draw her into a world of exploitation that law enforcement authorities in west-central Illinois and across the nation see as a rising threat.

That single picture would be the genesis of increasingly graphic threats and demands.

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Alarming growth

What parents and children should know What is sextortion? Sextortion describes a crime that happens online when an adult convinces a person who is younger than 18 to share sexual pictures or perform sexual acts on a webcam. How does it start? Sextortion can start on any site where people meet and communicate. Someone may contact you while you are playing a game online or reach out over a dating app or one of your social media accounts. Why do young people agree to do this? The people who commit this crime have studied how to reach and target children and teens. How do you know who can be trusted online? That's what is so hard about online connections. The FBI has found that those who commit this crime may have dozens of different online accounts and profiles and are communicating with many young people at the same time -trying to find victims. Be extremely cautious when you are speaking with someone online who you have not met in real life. But how can this harm me? It's true that these criminals don't usually meet up with kids in real life, but the victims of this crime still experience negative effects. The criminals can become vicious and non-stop with their demands, harassment and threats. What do I do if this is happening? If you are ready, reach out to the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or report the crime online at tips.fbi.gov. Our agents see these cases a lot and have helped thousands of young people. Our goals are to stop the harassment, arrest the person behind the crime, and help you get the support you need. If you're not feeling ready to speak to the FBI, go to another trusted adult. Tell them you are being victimized online and need help. - Source: FBI See More Collapse

Online extortion is unfortunately nothing new, and has been growing in the wake of more people working from home and spending more time on computers, tablets and smartphones. Unlike quick-hit schemes that threaten to expose private details of adult users, the nature of child sexual exploitation is particularly heinous because it targets underage victims with threats that can last months or years.

The goal still can be financial gain, but the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children says it can be even more nefarious  from creating child pornography to enticing children for sexual acts.

There are concentrated efforts by local, state and federal law enforcement authorities to attack the problem, but it is growing at an alarming pace. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children recorded 19,174 reports of online enticement in 2019; that number jumped 97.5% in 2020, to 37,872.

Some 78% of the victims were girls. Some were as young as 8.

It isnt slowing, either. Dark recesses of the internet even serve as training grounds for those who hide behind the cloak of anonymity to discuss their methods and swap photos and videos like trading cards.

Lets just say for the Springfield greater metropolitan area, if you threw every law enforcement entity that we have into addressing just this one violation, we wouldnt even scratch the surface, Springfield FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Shannon Fontenot said.

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Preying on fear

It is a manipulative game of degrees in many cases, which can start with contact from someone posing as another young person. From that initial communication, trust is established and built upon  authorities refer to it as grooming  with gifts, money, flattery, lies or other methods, according to the FBI.

Its a crime that involves an adult coercing a minor to create or send explicit images or videos of themselves or others around their age. It can take place in many different ways, mostly through electronic mechanisms. As our society and our kids become more familiar with technology and we become more technologically dependent, it also trickles down to our children, and thats usually the avenue in which they use to coerce these minors, Fontenot said.

Predators are skilled at culling what authorities call P.I.I., personal identifying information, and using it against children without them realizing it.

They present a falsehood, an online presence, that can mislead the child into believing that it is a trusted person, whether its the same age, same sex, same demographic, whether it is race, or even whatever religion that they are, theyll use to create a false bond with this child, and then it progresses from there, Fontenot said. The perpetrator will often use images from previous victims to lead the child into a false sense of security, hey, you and me are just alike, were in the same situation, were the same age, we are faced with the same struggles and then its kind of this you-and-me bond.

Eventually comes a request for a sexual photo or video.

The line of betrayal is crossed.

After the criminal has one or more videos or pictures comes a threat to share that content or the threat of violence to get the victim to produce more images.

Like the common thread of adult exploitation, there can be threats to send the photos or videos to family or friends. There may be a demand for money, but often the pressure is for more, and increasingly explicit, material. Sometimes the predators will claim, wrongly, that the victims will get in trouble for sharing the images.

Shame or fear can prevent the victim from telling anyone what is happening.

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A teen trapped

Ashley Reynolds was 14 when she got the first message from someone claiming to have nude photos of her.

She ignored it. Her tormenter persisted, demanding she send more and more photos in exchange for protecting her reputation.

She complied, hoping it would end. It didnt.

I remember just lying in bed in silence and just thinking. I felt like God was so disappointed in me, and I didnt know what to do. I wouldnt get home until late at night and then Id have to send him all these pictures. And as Im doing this, he would be like, No this isnt right. This one is blurry. or You didnt do this right, you werent doing it right, you gotta do it again, she said. Thats where being a slave to him comes in, because I had to make sure I complied and I sent him all this because, one, maybe tomorrow Ill get a break. Ill get a day off tomorrow if I just do all these right. I never wanted to send them or give him what he wanted, but I wanted my freedom, I guess. So I figured the only way to do that is if I do it right, but nothing was ever right.

Reynolds, now in her 20s, has gone public with her story in the hope of preventing someone else from being trapped.

In her case, it was months later that her parents found out what was happening.

She was embarrassed, but relieved.

They contacted the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Eventually, investigators determined Reynolds was one of almost 600 boys and girls who had fallen into the trap of a man federal authorities identified as Michael Lucas Chansler. The St. Johns County, Florida, man was sentenced in 2015 to 105 years in prison for coercing about 590 children to send him pornographic pictures of themselves, using hundreds of aliases in what Jacksonville, Florida, FBI Special Agent in Charge Michelle Klimt at the time said was one of the largest sextortion cases ever prosecuted.

Chansler was 31 when he was sentenced.

Jacksonville, Florida, FBI Special Agent Larry Meyer, who led the investigation, said even those who had been investigating such cases for years had never experienced anything like it before.

Several of the instances, I think in one Stickcam video, we have four girls all exposing their breasts. They were apparently having a sleepover and he contacted one of them and, again, these four young girls thought they were having a conversation, a video chat session  with a 15-year-old boy theyd never see or hear from again. So theyre all there exposing their breasts, not realizing hes doing a screen capture, and then hes coming back later  very often in a different persona  saying, hey, Ive got these pictures of you, and if you dont want these sent to all your friends or posted on the internet, you are going to do all these poses for me, Meyer said. Thats how a lot of times these young girls got on this slippery slope of what would be a relatively benign picture  to fulfilling his perverted desires.

Chansler was an egregious example, but just one of dozens upon dozens of cases.

Many had fairly PG-13 beginnings.

Usually, once they have the first image, even though it may not be as sexually explicit, it becomes a snowball effect until it gets out of control. And then (its used to) manipulate the child, whether by threatening or blackmailing, Fontenot said.

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No safe haven

There is no one app or online site that poses a risk.

There also is no truly safe haven. Law enforcement officials have seen victims from all social and economic walks of life, from troubled teens to straight-A students.

Regardless of if youre talking about a $20,000 home income or a $1 million income, all children are in need of some kind of social connection, regardless of whether its electronic or in person. So anybody can be a victim, Fontenot said.

And as the ability to communicate with almost anyone almost anywhere grows, the risk increases for younger and younger children. Law enforcement officials once geared their warnings to freshmen and sophomores in high school; now they are reaching into elementary schools.

Every individual that is probably over 8 years old has access to some sort of electronic communication device. Especially over the past year, weve seen these younger children sitting in front of some type of screen longer, Fontenot said. The more and more dependent our society gets on electronic communication and devices  this is always going to be be a rising threat. Its an endless pool of victims for these predators, because there are always kids. Tomorrow theres gonna be another kid that gets online for the first time, the day after that, theres gonna be another, and another, and another, Fontenot said.

The best defense is for parents to be engaged about their childs online presence.

You have to get your arms wrapped around it, your head wrapped around it, and understand what they are doing. A lot of parents dont understand what an avenue this communication is for children.  This is where children get their self-worth, Fontenot said.

He said it is important to have discussions about what is acceptable and what is not acceptable and not be afraid to monitor what is going on.

Thats even more important now because of the changes the pandemic has caused to the norm for children, parents and families.

Jack Turban, a fellow in child and adolescent psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine, said in an article for Scientific American that the reality of being home during the pandemic is that adults are busy and sometimes distracted.

They are struggling to balance the competing needs of managing their own mental health and supporting their children. Luckily there are simple ways they can protect their kids. Even one conversation can have an impact, he said. Parents should have candid talks with their children and take a non-judgmental stance.

Shame is a dangerous factor here and can lead kids to hide risky online interactions while they escalate, he writes. Shame also thrives on silence.
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP)  A fugitive wanted in the killing of a Yale graduate student in Connecticut in February was arrested Friday in Alabama, U.S. marshals said.

An international arrest warrant had been issued for Qinxuan Pan on murder and larceny charges in connection with the killing of Kevin Jiang on a New Haven street on Feb. 6. Marshals offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to Pans arrest.

It was not immediately clear if Pan, 30, has a lawyer who could respond to the allegations.

U.S. marshals said Pan was taken into custody without incident Friday morning in Montgomery and brought to the county detention center. Authorities did not release details of how they found him, or when Pan would be brought before a judge. Law enforcement officials are expected to seek his extradition back to Connecticut.

Once we received information that Pan was in Montgomery, a plan was developed and executed," Jesse Seroyer Jr., the U.S. marshal for the Middle District of Alabama, said in a statement. "This is another example of hard work by federal and state partners to arrest violent fugitives.

Pan is accused of shooting Jiang, 26, multiple times in New Haven, home to Yale. Jiang was found wounded and lying outside his car at about 8:30 a.m. that day.

Police have not disclosed a motive in the shooting. An arrest warrant obtained by Connecticut officials for Pan is sealed from public view until next month.

Jiang, who grew up in Chicago, was a graduate student at Yales School of the Environment who had recently become engaged to be married. He was an Army veteran who graduated from the University of Washington in Seattle in 2016 with a bachelor's degree in environmental studies, according to an obituary prepared by his family.

Pan is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and was working as a researcher in MIT's computer science and artificial intelligence laboratory, according to his Facebook page. He is a U.S. citizen who was born in Shanghai, China. His last known address was in Malden, Massachusetts.

Jiang's fiancee, Zion Perry, graduated from MIT last year. Law enforcement officials have not disclosed any connections between Pan, Perry and the killing of Jiang.

U.S. marshals allege Pan stole an SUV from a dealership in Mansfield, Massachusetts, the day of the killing before driving to Connecticut.

In the days after the killing, authorities said Pan was seen in the Atlanta suburbs driving with relatives and acting strange.

Interpol last month issued a red notice about Pan asking member countries to arrest him on murder and larceny charges.

The successful apprehension of Qinxuan Pan this morning in Montgomery, Alabama, marks the culmination of countless hours of investigation and is a testament to the dedication of all the investigators involved, Lawrence Bobnick, acting U.S. marshal for Connecticut, said in a statement.

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This story has been corrected to show Jiang grew up in Chicago, not Washington state. He attended college in Seattle.
Police fire tear gas on banned Palestinian march in Paris View Photo

PARIS (AP)  French riot police fired tear gas and used water cannons Saturday in Paris as protesters supporting Palestinians in the Gaza Strip defied a ban on marching in the French capital.

Thousands of people marched peacefully in other cities in France and elsewhere in Europe  including in London, Rome, Brussels and Madrid  to highlight the plight of the Palestinians.

In Paris, protesters scattered and played cat-and-mouse with security forces in the citys northern neighborhoods after their starting point for a planned march was blocked.

Paris Police Chief Didier Lallement had ordered 4,200 security forces into the streets and closed shops around the kick-off point for the march in a working-class neighborhood after an administrative court confirmed the ban due to fears of violence. Authorities noted that a banned July 2014 pro-Palestinian protest In Paris against an Israeli offensive in Gaza degenerated into violence to justify the order against Saturdays march.

Organizers sought to denounce the latest Israeli aggressions and mark the fleeing of Palestinians after Israel declared independence in 1948. Stop Annexation. Palestine Will Vanquish, read one poster in a small crowd facing off with police.

Protesters shifted from neighborhood to neighborhood in Paris as police closed in on them, sometimes with tear gas and water cannons, and police said 44 people were arrested. In a lengthy standoff, protesters pelted a line of security forces with projectiles before police pushed them to the edge of northern Paris.

We dont want scenes of violence. We dont want a conflict imported to French soil, government spokesman Gabriel Attal said.

Anger over the Israeli offensive in Gaza drew protests elsewhere in Europe on Saturday. Thousands marched on the Israeli Embassy in London to protest Israels attacks, which included an airstrike that flattened a 12-story building in Gaza that housed media outlets, including The Associated Press.

Demonstrators chanting Free Palestine! marched through Londons Hyde Park and gathered outside the embassy gates, watched by a large number of police. Organizers demanded that the British government stop its military and financial support to Israel.

Husam Zumlot, head of the Palestinian mission to the U.K., told the crowd that this time is different.

This time we will not be denied any more. We are united. We have had enough of oppression, he said.

In the Netherlands, a few hundred people in The Hague braved the cold and rain to listen to speeches and wave Palestinian flags on a central square outside the Dutch parliament building. On Friday evening, Dutch police briefly detained about 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators in the city of Utrecht because they were not social distancing.

In other French cities, large pro-Palestinian crowds marched peacefully Saturday in Strasbourg in the east and Marseille on the Mediterranean Sea. Demonstrations were also held in several German cities and in Brussels, host to the European Union. In Madrid, protesters chanted This is not war, this is genocide! in Spanish, with some people holding up homemade signs that read USA Terrorist State and Muslim Lives Matter.

In Berlin, police broke up a pro-Palestinian protest of 3,500 people for failure to comply with coronavirus distancing rules. Protesters responded by throwing stones, bottles and fireworks.

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Jill Lawless in London, Mike Corder in Netherlands and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed.

By ELAINE GANLEY and BOUBKAR BENZABAT

Associated Press
Tuolumne County  Tuolumne County Public Health reports sadly a previously hospitalized case, a woman in her 90s, has passed away. They report the details are being investigated, it is the 67th death from the disease in Tuolumne County since the pandemic started last year.

There were five new community cases today a girl age 17 or younger, a woman age 18 to 29, two men age 50 to 59 and a woman age 60 to 69. No COVID-positive residents are hospitalized. A total of 13 cases are considered active.

Tuolumne County has a total of 4,139 cases split between 2,722 community cases and 1,417 Sierra Conservation Center (SCC) inmate cases, the California Department of Corrections reports one case remains active. Total community cases released from isolation increased to 2,642 and the total number of tests administered is 94,801. The county reports 18,053 fully vaccinated residents and 4,061 individuals partially vaccinated. As reported here California is allowing children age 12 and older to get the vaccine. More information is below. The newest information about the mask/face covering guidelines are posted here.

Calaveras County  The Calaveras public health reports six new cases since yesterday with the countys total COVID cases at 2,136. Active cases increased five to 12 and recoveries increased one to 2,070 total. No Calaveras residents are hospitalized. In total there have been 996 men, 1,121 women, and 19 with no gender reported infected with COVID. The total number of people over 65 years old identified with COVID is 452 since the pandemic began. Calaveras reports 32,546 vaccinations given and 41,735 COVID tests total.

Mariposa County  Mariposa County Public Health reported two new cases today a 52-year-old female who acquired it through travel-related transmission and a 42-year-old female infected community transmission. One case is hospitalized and five cases are currently active. There are a total of 450 cases since the pandemic began.

Calaveras, Mariposa and Tuolumne remain in the Orange Tier of the States Blueprint for a safer economy. Mono County qualified to move to the least restrictive Yellow Tier and has reported no new cases in the past week.

Testing- The Mother Lode Fairgrounds testing site is open Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 7 AM to 7 PM. The Groveland site is at the Youth Center, 18950 Hwy 120 on Thursdays from 7 AM to 7 PM. Individuals can select the site location when making their appointment at www.lhi.care/covidtesting or by calling 888-634-1123. More details, including Calaveras testing information, are in our events calendar here.

Vaccines  Tuolumne is holding COVID-19 Johnson & Johnson vaccination clinic on May 19 in the Groveland area. For more details and locations, or to register for an appointment, visit www.myturn.ca.gov. Individuals in Calaveras and Mariposa may also register at www.myturn.ca.gov to schedule appointments. You can also call 833-422-4255 if you dont have an email (Mon to Fri 8AM to 8PM, Sat and Sun 8AM-5PM) for assistance. Due to technical issues, those who live in the 95223 area (Arnold) should enter 95222 as their zip code when searching for a location.

Vaccine eligibility is open to everyone 12+ (Pfizer) and 18+ (Moderna and Johnson & Johnson) with photo ID, not currently sick with COVID-19 or had a flu shot within the last 14 days. More information about the local pharmacies and other places offering the vaccine are here.

County/Date

Tier Color Active

Cases New Cases

Total Cases COVID

Deaths Amador 5/11 6 6 1,776 38 Calaveras 5/14 12 6 2,136 54 Mariposa 5/14 5 2 450 7 Mono 5/14 4 0 1,024 4 Stanislaus 5/14 394 74 55,625 1,061 Tuolumne 5/14 13 5 4,139 67
Sacramento, CACalifornia Governor Gavin Newsom unveiled his $268 billion budget, a budget that is one-third larger than the current one that is being propelled by tax revenues and federal stimulus money. A major part of this budget proposal is a $35 million universal basic income pilot program that gives poor people money each month to help ease the stresses of poverty. This will be the first statewide funding for a program for an idea that has gained traction elsewhere. This money would not create a program run by the state itself but allows city governments to pursue funding to start their own.

The new budget also includes a tax rebate for 11 million people who would get direct payments of up to $1,100. Also, 7.2 billion would be set aside to help people that have fallen behind on rent and utility bills.

Other issues receiving funding, drought-related programs will be getting $6 billion, and building housing units for the homeless will get $8.75 billion.

Newsom also announced that the state will use $300 million to forgive traffic fines for low-income residents, with details to be worked out by lawmakers and the states Judicial Council.

Newsom said he wants to spend $11 billion to build what his office termed a modernized transportation system for the next century. That includes not only repairing decayed roads and bridges, but more spending for the states troubled bullet train, other public transportation, the states ocean ports, and projects around the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

Motherlode Senator Andreas Borgeas criticized the budget by saying The Governors use of unanticipated revenue for one-time investments may give Californias a short-term boost from the pandemic, but many of these programs are unsustainable and impractical in the long run. California taxpayers are funding the billions of dollars in recall rebates being distributed by the Governor. Instead of throwing around billions, and at speeds where accountability and efficacy process remained questionable, I would encourage the governor to focus on long-term, sustainable strategies to solve our states issues surrounding homeless, housing affordability, education, water infrastructure, economic growth, and wildfires.
The Latest: China calls for UN council action, slams US View Photo

The Latest on the continuing violence between Israel and Gazas militant Hamas rulers amid the latest escalation in the Middle East:

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BEIJING  Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has called on the U.N. Security Council to seek an early de-escalation of violence between Israel and Gazas Hamas rulers. He also blamed the U.S. for the councils lack of action so far.

Regrettably, the council has so far failed to reach an agreement, with the United States standing on the opposite side of international justice, the state-run Xinhua News Agency quoted Wang as saying in a phone conversation Saturday with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

He expressed support for a two-state solution, and said China, which holds the Security Council presidency this month, expects all parties to speak with a unified voice when the council discusses the conflict later Sunday.

Wang said the Security Council should reconfirm a two-state solution and urge Palestinians and Israelis to resume talks on that basis as soon as possible.

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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  Israeli warplanes have struck several buildings and roads in a vital part of Gaza City early Sunday.

According to photos circulated by residents and journalists, the airstrikes created a crater that blocked one of the main roads leading to Shifa, the largest hospital in the strip.

The Health Ministry said the latest airstrikes left at least two dead and 25 wounded, including children and women. It said rescuers are still digging through the rubble and had so far pulled up five more wounded.

Two hours into the heavy bombardment, there has been no comment from the Israeli military.

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UNITED NATIONS  A U.N. spokesman says Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is deeply disturbed by the Israeli airstrike that destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City housing offices of several international media organizations and residential apartments, and is dismayed by the increasing number of civilian casualties.

The secretary-general reminds all sides that any indiscriminate targeting of civilian and media structures violates international law and must be avoided at all costs, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Saturday.

Earlier Saturday, an Israeli airstrike pulverized a high-rise building that housed The Associated Press, Al Jazeera and other media after warning that it was being targeted.

Guterres singled out the death of 10 members of the same family including children as a result of an Israeli airstrike Friday in the al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Saturday.

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LOS ANGELES  Hundreds of protesters shut down traffic as they took to the streets of Los Angeles, calling for an end to Israeli airstrikes over the Gaza Strip.

The protesters waved flags and signs that said free Palestine and shouted long live intifada, or uprising. They marched from outside the federal building to the Israeli Consulate in the western part of the city on Saturday.

Police shut down traffic on Wilshire Boulevard, a major thoroughfare, and urged motorists to avoid the area. Police from multiple agencies were monitoring the ongoing demonstration.

Also on Saturday, hundreds of protesters gathered in Bostons Copley Square and walked a short distance through the streets to the location of the Israeli Consulate for New England, blocking traffic.

Footage on social media shows protesters then unfurled a banner in the colors of the Palestinian flag with the words Free Palestine while standing on top of the awning of the building where the consulate is located.

Other smaller protests in support of Palestinians took place in Hartford and Pittsburgh, where footage shows one speaker at the protest called on lawmakers to put restrictions on how Israel can spend aid from the United States.

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JERUSALEM  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that the ongoing campaign against Palestinian militants, now in its sixth day, will continue as long as needed.

The prime minister spoke on Saturday from Israels defense ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv and issued a warning to leaders of Gazas militant Hamas group after a series of airstrikes targeted high-level officials and commanders.

Netanyahu says: You cannot hide  not above ground, and not underground. Nobody is immune.

The Israeli leader added that there was no more just or moral campaign than Israels against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and thanked President Joe Biden and other world leaders for their support.

Netanyahus remarks came at the end of a day that saw Israeli airstrikes target and destroy a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets. Everyone was safely evacuated from the building before the strike hit.

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JERUSALEM  Israels Electric Company says that high voltage lines supplying the Gaza Strip with electricity were damaged by rocket fire by Palestinian militants.

The company released a statement on Saturday saying five of the 10 lines have been damaged, in the latest escalation of fighting and that the company cannot fix them because there is no access to the area.

Damage to the power lines came amid days of intense fighting between Palestinian militants and Israel in the Gaza Strip.

Gazas only other source of electricity  besides the power provided by Israel  is its single power plant, which has been working only partially due to fuel shortages. However, both sources are insufficient to cover Gazans needs.

Outages of at least eight hours have long been a daily occurrence in the strip and with the power plant not working at regular capacity, rolling blackouts have increased to 12-15 hours per day recently.

With the latest hits on the power line, more outages are expected.

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BEIRUT  A top Hamas leader says militant groups in the Gaza Strip will not retreat in the face of attacks by Israeli troops, warning that their fighters still havent used all their force at their disposal.

Ismail Haniyeh spoke during a rally attended by hundreds in the gas-rich nation of Qatar on Saturday night. He said that resistance is the shortest road to Jerusalem and that Palestinians will not accept anything less than a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.

He added that the Zionist enemy struck Gaza, flattened towers and carried out massacres, thinking that this will make militant groups retreat. He said that as the Israeli attacks escalate, the resistance will increase (its force) to a higher level.

Haniyeh also said that despite the fact that Gaza has been under siege for nearly 15 years, militant groups will not retreat.

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WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden has expressed strong support for Israels strikes in Gaza in retaliation for Hamas missile attacks on its territory, but raised concerns about civilian casualties and the protection of journalists on a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The White House says Biden on Saturday also shared his grave concern about intercommunal violence within Israel and escalating tensions in the West Bank. Biden and Netanyahu also discussed Jerusalem, with Biden saying it should be a place of peaceful coexistence for people of all faiths and backgrounds.

Biden also held his first call since taking office with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss the violence, in which he called for Hamas, the PAs rival, to stop firing rockets into Israel.

The White House says Biden expressed his support for steps to enable the Palestinian people to enjoy the dignity, security, freedom, and economic opportunity that they deserve and highlighted the resumption of U.S. aid to the Palestinians under his administration.

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RAMALLAH, West Bank  Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has spoken on the phone with President Joe Biden and urged the U.S. to intervene in the conflict and put an end to Israeli attacks on Palestinians.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa says Abbas on Saturday updated Biden on the escalations across the Palestinian territories and said he was working to halt the Israeli aggression against our people and to reach a cease-fire.

The report says Abbas also told Biden that security and stability will be achieved when the Israeli occupation ends, adding that Palestinians are ready and willing to work toward peace with international mediators.

Biden stressed the need to achieve calm and reduce violence in the Mideast, noting intensive American diplomatic efforts to that end. Thats according to the Wafa statement.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Qatars foreign minister has met with a top Hamas official.

Thats according to a statement by Qatars Foreign Ministry on Saturday. It said Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani met Hamas leader Ismail Haniya in the capital, Doha.

The Foreign Ministry said Sheikh Mohammed stressed the need for the international community to act urgently to stop the repeated brutal Israeli attacks against civilians in Gaza.

There was no mention of the Israeli strike that toppled a Gaza tower that was home to offices of both The Associated Press, Dohas Al-Jazeera satellite news network and others.

Meanwhile, Arab League chief said Saturday that Arab states ambassadors to the United Nations are trying to rally international support for Palestinians amid Israeli attacks on Gaza .

Ahmed Aboul Gheit called upon the U.N. Security Council to fulfill its responsibilities in holding Israel accountable in a session scheduled on Sunday to discuss the violence.

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CAIRO  An Egyptian intelligence official says efforts to reach a cease-fire between Israel and the Gaza militant groups are ongoing and have gained a push with the arrival of a U.S. envoy to Tel Aviv.

The official said Saturday that Egypt and other mediators hope that the U.S. will pressure Israel to end the fighting.

The official said its up the U.S. to order Israel to stop such disastrous actions  and added that the situation has started to get out of control in the occupied Palestinian territories. referring to protests in West Bank, Jerusalem and other areas.

He says the mediators do not expect a cease-fire before the U.N. Security Council meeting Sunday.

The official says Egypt is now seeking an hours-long lull to evacuate severely wounded people from Gaza. He says Egypt is pushing for such a humanitarian pause overnight as ambulances are waiting on the Egyptian side of the border.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. U.S. diplomat Hady Amr, the deputy assistant secretary for Israeli and Palestinian affairs. is now in the region to try resolve the escalation.

 Samy Magdy in Cairo;

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BEIRUT  Hundreds of Lebanese and Palestinians have protested along the Lebanon-Israel border, with some climbing a border wall and triggering Israeli fire that wounded one person.

The protest on Saturday evening in the Lebanese border village of Adaisseh saw hundreds marching and waving Palestinian, Lebanese and yellow flags of the militant Hezbollah group.

Some protesters climbed a high border wall where they placed Palestinian and Hezbollah flags.

Lebanons state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli troops fired warning shots near Adaisseh, wounding one person who was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

Lebanese and Palestinians from around Lebanon have been heading to the border to protest against Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip over the past days. On Friday, Israeli troops opened fire at protesters who crossed a border fence, killing a 21-year-old Hezbollah member.

Earlier Saturday, an Israeli military spokesman warned Lebanese authorities not to allow protesters to breach the border.

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VIENNA, Austria  An international network of journalists and media executives vehemently condemn the Israeli airstrike on a Gaza City building housing the offices of The Associated Press and broadcaster Al-Jazeera.

Barbara Trionfi, the executive director of the International Press Institute, said after Saturdays airstrike that the targeting of news organizations is completely unacceptable, even during an armed conflict.

She added that it represents a gross violation of human rights and internationally agreed norms.

Three heavy missiles struck and destroyed the 12-story building about an hour after the Israeli military telephoned the owner to warn a strike was imminent. AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building, which also contained residential apartments.

AP Vice President and Editor at Large John Daniszewski, who chairs IPIs North American Committee and is special envoy for journalist safety, said there is no doubt that Israeli forces were aware that the media offices would be destroyed.

The Israeli military said the militant group Hamas was operating inside the building, but it provided no evidence to back up the claim.

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TEHRAN, Iran  An Iranian state TV channel says the head of the expeditionary force of Irans paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has had a phone call with the head of the militant Hamas group.

Al-Alam, the Arabic-language service of the Iranian state television, reported that Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh spoke by telephone with Quds Force commander Gen. Esmail Ghaani.

Ghaani reportedly praised Hamas as offering a unique and successful answer to Israel.

Hamas officials have praised Iran for providing it weapons and aid in its fighting against Israel, Tehrans regional rival.

The report comes amid a dramatic escalation in the confrontation between Israel and Hamas this week. An Israeli airstrike on Saturday targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets, including Al-Jazeera and also Kuwaits state television.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  The foreign ministers of Egypt and Saudi Arabia are calling for an immediate cease-fire in the fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Thats according to a statement on Saturday carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency.

It says that Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan had spoken to Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

It said the two both agreed that an immediate cease-fire was needed. Egypt has been trying to negotiate a stop to the fighting.

The Saudi statement also said the two diplomats called on the international community to confront the aggressive Israeli practices against the brotherly Palestinian people.

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JERUSALEM  President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have spoken about the situation with Gaza.

According to a statement from Netanyahus office, the Israeli leader updated Biden on the developments and actions that Israel has taken and intends to take. It says Netanyahu also thanked Biden for the unreserved support of the United States for our right to defend ourselves.

It says Netanyahu emphasized in the conversation that Israel is doing everything to avoid harming the uninvolved. The statement added the proof of this is that in the towers where there are terrorist targets attacked by the IDF, they are evacuated from the uninvolved.

The Biden-Netanyahu call came just hours after an Israeli airstrike on Saturday targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  An American organization promoting literature and freedom of speech has called Israels airstrike that destroyed a building in Gaza that was home to the offices of The Associated Press and other media deeply disturbing.

PEN America said in a statement after Saturdays strike that the only reason the world knows about the ongoing fighting between Gazas Hamas rulers and Israel is due to the tireless, indefatigable work of journalists, risking their lives to inform the world.

The organization demanded a detailed accounting of why Israel launched the strike.

PEN America added that the resulting destruction will hobble the ability of professional journalists to do their work documenting a fraught, complex conflict at a critical time.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Al-Jazeera has called the Israeli bombing that destroyed its office in Gaza a clear act to stop journalists from reporting on the conflict between it and Hamas.

Al-Jazeera issued the statement Saturday night after an Israeli strike that destroyed the building that was also home to the Gaza offices of The Associated Press.

The Doha-based broadcaster said in a statement: Al-Jazeera calls on all media and human right institutions to join forces in denouncing these ruthless bombing and to hold the government of Israel accountable for deliberately targeting journalists and media institutions.

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al-Jazeera Media Network, called the Israeli strike a war crime.

The aim of this heinous crime is to silence the media and to hide the untold carnage and suffering of the people of Gaza, Souag said.

Al-Jazeera is a major broadcaster in the Mideast, funded by the Qatari government. It operates in both Israel and the Palestinian territories

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ISTANBUL  The communications director to Turkeys president tweeted that Israels targeting of The Associated Press and Al-Jazeera offices in the Gaza Strip were a blow on the freedom of press.

The airstrike on Saturday targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

Fahrettin Altun said after the attack: I curse these lowly attacks by Israel hitting press centers to cover up its massacres. He also claimed that Israel is continuing its massacres and war crimes.

Turkeys Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted that Turkey stands with the Palestinians, who are still facing ethnic, religious and cultural cleansing.

AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building after the Israeli military telephoned a warning that the strike was imminent within an hour. Three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it in a giant cloud of dust.

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WASHINGTON  The White House says Israel has a paramount responsibility to ensure the safety of journalists covering the spiraling conflict.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted on Saturday that the U.S. has communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility.

President Joe Biden has urged a de-escalation, but has publicly backed Israels right to self-defense from Hamas rockets fired from Gaza.

The White House statement followed an Israeli airstrike that targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets. APs president and CEO Gary Pruitt said the agency was shocked and horrified at the strike.

AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building after the military telephoned a warning that the strike was imminent within an hour. Three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it in a giant cloud of dust.

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MADRID  Thousands have marched in Spains capital to protest the attacks by Israels military on the Gaza Strip.

Many waved Palestinian flags as they marched toward Madrids central Puerta del Sol square on Saturday.

Protesters chanted This is not war, this is genocide in Spanish. Some held up homemade signs that read USA Terrorist State and Muslim Lives Matter.

The rallies in Madrid and elsewhere in the world are taking place against the backdrop of a most serious escalation in the Mideast.

On Saturday, an Israeli airstrike targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children.

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BAGHDAD  Hundreds of demonstrators have gathered in cities across Iraq to stand in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and Jerusalem.

The demonstrators on Saturday waved Palestinian flags and banners across five provinces in rallies called for by influential Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Al-Sadr called on followers to take to the streets and support Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which is under attack by the Israeli military.

Protesters gathered in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, and the southern provinces of Babylon, Dhi Qar, Diwanieh and Basra in a show of support. In Baghdads central Tahrir Square, demonstrators carried a Palestinian flag several feet long. Many also held up photos of al-Sadr.

Al-Sadr is a firebrand cleric who wields significant power in the country. In the May 2018 elections his party won the most number of seats.

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BEIRUT  Hundreds of people have participated in the funeral of a Hezbollah fighter who was shot dead along the Lebanon-Israel border during a rally denouncing Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.

The funeral of Mohammed Tahhan was held in his hometown of Adloun in southern Lebanon on Saturday afternoon. The 21-year-old man died of wounds sustained on Friday, shortly after he was struck during the protest at the border.

On Saturday, scores of Palestinian and Lebanese youth gathered in the border area again to rally against the Israeli military campaign in Gaza. Lebanese troops detained several people who tried to reach the border wall.

Earlier in the day, an Israeli military spokesman warned Lebanese authorities not to allow protesters to breach the border.

A small group had breached the fence on Friday and crossed the border into Israel, triggering the shooting. The Israeli military said troops fired warning shots toward the group after they sabotaged the fence and crossed over briefly.

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BERLIN  The United Nations human rights chief is urging all in what has developed into a battle between Israel and Gazas militant Hamas rulers to lower tensions, and faulted actions by both sides.

Michelle Bachelet, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said in a statement issued in Geneva on Saturday that rather than seeking to calm tensions, inflammatory rhetoric from leaders on all sides appears to be seeking to excite tensions rather than to calm them.

Bachelets statement was issued on Saturday, shortly before an Israeli airstrike destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

In the statement, Bachelet warned that the firing of large numbers of indiscriminate rockets by Palestinian armed groups into Israel, including densely populated areas, in clear violation of international humanitarian law, amounts to war crimes.

There also are concerns that some attacks by the Israeli military in Gaza have targeted civilian objects that, under international humanitarian law, do not meet the requirements to be considered as military objectives.

It added that the failure to adhere to the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution in the conduct of military operations amounts to a serious violation of international humanitarian law and may constitute war crimes.

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BERLIN  Irans foreign minister has called off a planned visit to his Austrian counterpart in Vienna. The decision came after Austrias chancellery and foreign ministry flew the Israeli flag as a signal of solidarity in Israels conflict with the militant Hamas group.

Austrian daily Die Presse reported Saturday that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was due to meet Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg on Saturday morning. But he called off the trip over the Austrian leaders decision to fly the Israeli flag on Friday.

The Austria Press Agency said Schallenbergs spokeswoman, Claudia Tuertscher, confirmed the report. She said: We regret this.

Vienna has been hosting negotiations in recent weeks aimed at bringing the United States back into the 2015 nuclear deal aimed at allaying concerns about Irans nuclear ambitions. France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China are still parties to that agreement.

Irans deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, tweeted on Friday that Austria so far been a great host for negotiations but it was shocking & painful to see flag of the occupying regime, that brutally killed tens of innocent civilians, inc many children in just few days, over govt offices in Vienna.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Saudi Arabia has called for foreign ministers of the worlds largest body of Muslim nations to hold a meeting Sunday. The gathering is to discuss Israeli acts of violence against Palestinians and the Israeli polices use of force against protesters at Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem.

The kingdom will host the virtual summit, gathering ministers of the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation to discuss the Israeli aggression in the Palestinian territory, particularly acts of violence in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the body said Saturday.

The Saudi-headquartered OIC includes countries Iran, Turkey, Indonesia and a range of Muslim majority nations.

The sanctity of Al-Aqsa mosque, one of Islams holiest sites, is a sensitive and emotive issue for Muslims around the world. The OIC was formed 51 years ago in response to a Jewish extremist arson attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem.

The hilltop on which the mosque stands is also sacred to Jews, who revere it as the Temple Mount because it was the site of the biblical temples. Some Jews and evangelical Christians support building a new Jewish temple on the site, an idea that Muslims find alarming because they fear it would lead to the mosque being partitioned or demolished.

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RAMALLAH, West Bank  Palestinians have begun gathering across the occupied West Bank to mark the anniversary of the displacement of hundreds of thousands of refugees from what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.

Nakba Day, Arabic for catastrophe, comes amid widespread Jewish-Arab violence in Israel and heavy fighting between Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas, which rules Gaza. The main event Saturday was held in West Bank city of Ramallah, where the internationally-backed Palestinian Authority is headquartered.

On Friday, Palestinians in the occupied West Bank held some of the largest protests in years and clashed with Israeli forces, who shot and killed 11 people, including a Palestinian who tried to stab a soldier at a military position.

Some 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes during the 1948 war. Today, they and their descendants number around 5.7 million and mostly reside in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

By The Associated Press
The Abraham Art Gallery of Wayland Baptist University is making preparations to welcome the Plains Art Association for the 59th Annual Juried Spring Celebration of Art. The Plains Art Association was founded in 1958 and its annual show has been hosted by the University for over 30 years. Originally held in the Hale County State Bank, the number of submitted artworks outgrew the space and the show moved to the Harral Auditorium hallway. With the opening of the Abraham Art Gallery, Malouf Family Art Center in 1997, the Annual PAA show established a spacious, new home.

The show is made possible by the PAA members, donations from businesses and individuals, and a grant from the Plainview Cultural Arts Council, Inc. given each year. The PAA Officers for the 2020-2021 term are President, Christy Henegar; Vice President, Jimmy Hood; Second Vice President, Carolyn Brain; Secretary, Dana Warren; and Treasurer, Mike Patrick.

Although artists featured in the show usually include regional artists and PAA members, as well as students or teachers, everyone is welcome to enter. All entries must be the original work of the artist and must have been completed within the last two years. Entries must also not have been shown in a previous PAA show. All works done under supervision, such as in classes or workshops, are ineligible. PAA will not accept copies of any kind, nor works that are still wet, in poor taste, or improperly prepared for exhibition. All works must be ready for hanging. Unlimited entries may be submitted for jurying. Entry fees$15 per entry for PAA members and $20 per entry for non-members are payable to PAA and non-refundable. A 20% commission will be charged for all sales except purchase awards, though any dollar amounts that exceed the purchase award limit will also have the commission percentage applied.

The eligible categories of art submitted for judging include oil, acrylic, watercolor, pastels and ink, graphics, photography, and forms such as sculpture, pottery, jewelry and fiber art; works will be received at the Abraham Art Gallery, located on the Atrium level of the WBU library, on May 20 from 1-4 p.m.

While reasonable care will be taken with all submitted works, entries will be handled and displayed at artists risk and neither PAA or the University will be responsible for any loss or damage sustained to art pieces. The judging process will conclude with a critique given by the juror for the artists present on May 22 at 2 p.m. The Plains Art Association 59th Annual Juried Spring Celebration of Art exhibit officially opens to the public at noon on May 24 after the selection of purchase awards.

Purchase awards and money prizes are contributed by individuals and businesses from the community and will be given at the Reception and Awards Presentation on June 27 from 1-3 p.m., the closing day of the show. All works including purchase awards must be retrieved at 3 p.m. on June 27.

Judging the art submissions this year is active community member and artist, Rigo Rey.

The Plainview native is a 25-year veteran art teacher and is employed at Coronado Middle School. He has a great deal of experience in most art mediums but gravitates towards drawing and airbrush as his specialties. As an airbrush artist with 30 years experience in both commercial and artistic topics, he specializes in hard surface murals for the automotive industry. Rey has enjoyed art from a young age and demonstrated an affinity for realism; it was through the influence of his 7th grade art teacher, Fermin Hernandez, that he seriously began to pursue art as a career. As he continued to learn and practice, he gleaned more knowledge about the variety of mediums and processes available for creating art.

He attended Southwestern Oklahoma State University for Pharmacy, but eventually changed to Art when he took an elective drawing class that expanded his creative boundaries. His wife, JoAnn, is an LPC for Texas Tech Health Science Center and Thrive Counseling; together they own and operate the Blackness Haunted House, which allows a broad creative outlet that spans the two dimensional arts, make-up and special effects, sculpture, and engineering mechanisms.

The purchase award donors include Alene Ebling, who donates in honor of Marguerite Butler, Joe and Freda Provence, Ed and Dana Warren, Michael and Candace Keller, and Jean Silverthorne.

Supporting donors include Countywide Title Company, Prosperity Bank, Glyndle Feagin, David Wilder, Carolyn Warrick, Vista Bank, Farmers Insurance/King Agency/Sherrie and Harold King, Steve and Carolyn Brain, Edward Jones Investments/Gary Massingill, The Rose Shop, Happy State Bank, Jan Alford/State Farm Agency, Dr. Douglas Kopp, Drs. Webb & Webb, and Hometown Pharmacy/Alisa Peters.

The Honor Awards this year include Best of Show Award, in memory of Faye Marlin Curry and Ramona Roberts, given by Drury B. Roberts; the Dr. E.C. & Mrs. Lil H. Nicholl Family Award, given by the Lil H. Nicholl Family for Best Concept of Color & Light; the first, second and third place awards in each category are given by the Plains Art Association, and funded in part by a grant from the Plainview Cultural Arts Council, Inc.

Members of this years show committee are chairman Candace Keller; co-chairs Christy Henegar, Lucielle Henegar and Mike Patrick; and assistants Jeanette Curry, Jay Coleman, Hannah Wells, Harriet Feagin, Carolyn Brain and Iva Salinas.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)  Ohios capital city will pay a $10 million settlement for the family of Andre Hill, a Black man who was fatally shot by a white Columbus police officer in December as he emerged from a garage holding a cellphone, the Columbus city attorney announced Friday.

It's the largest such settlement in city history.

Hill, 47, was fatally shot by officer Adam Coy on Dec. 22 as Hill emerged from a garage holding up a cellphone. Coy was fired and has pleaded not guilty to murder and reckless homicide charges.

No amount of money will ever bring Andre Hill back to his family, but we believe this is an important and necessary step in the right direction," Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein said in a statement.

As part of the settlement, a gym frequented by Hill will be renamed the Andre Hill Gymnasium.

At a news conference Friday afternoon surrounded by Hill's family, attorney Ben Crump said, We come here to applaud the city leadership in saying Andre Hills life matters, and to send a message that we're better than this America.

Hill's daughter, Carissa Hill, held her 3-year-old daughter as she called it a a very big day for me and my family.

Were just sad we cant share that with our dad being here, she said. As she once did, her daughter will visit the gym her father loved.

The difference is, when I went, I was going with my dad, Hill said. When she goes to the gym, it will just be for my dad, in my dads name.

Andre Hill's older sister, Shawna Barnett, said that, "the money is a good thing; but having Andre here would be better, Barnett said.

Hill was visiting a family friend when he was shot. Coy and another officer had responded to a neighbor's nonemergency complaint about someone stopping and starting a car outside.

He was bringing me Christmas money. He didnt do anything, a woman inside the house shouted at police afterward.

The shooting was recorded by Coy's body camera, but without sound because Coy hadn't activated the camera on what started as a nonemergency call. A 60-second look-back function on the camera captured the shooting.

Coy, who had a long history of complaints from citizens, was fired Dec. 28 for failing to activate his body camera and for not providing medical aid to Hill. He was initially charged for dereliction of duty for not activating the camera, but those charges were dropped.

Coys attorneys successfully argued the officer didnt violate any duty because he was on a nonemergency run that didnt require the cameras to be activated.

Beyond an internal police investigation, the Ohio attorney general, the U.S. attorney for central Ohio and the FBI have begun their own probes into the shooting.

Following Hills death, Mayor Andrew Ginther forced out Police Chief Thomas Quinlan in January, saying hed lost confidence in the chiefs ability to make needed changes to the department.

The city is narrowing a list of finalists for the new chief, with an announcement expected by months end. All candidates are external, with Ginther saying an outsider was needed to enact broad cultural changes in the department.

The department is under scrutiny for recent fatal shootings of Black people by white officers, including the death of 16-year-old MaKhia Bryant on April 20. And earlier this month, a federal judge ordered the city to alter the way it responds to mass protests, saying officers ran amok during protests over racial injustice and police brutality last summer.

Ginther and other officials invited the Justice Department last month to review the agency for deficiencies and racial disparities in several areas.

Chenelle Jones, a Franklin University dean and chair of its public safety program and a member of the new Columbus Civilian Police Review Board, said no amount of money is going to bring Andre Hill back.

It's not going to solve the bigger issue of the need for transformation within the Columbus Division of Police, she said.

The settlement announcement follows other large payouts in recent months by cities over the killing of Black people by white officers.

In March, the city of Minneapolis reached a $27 million settlement with the family of George Floyd ahead of the trial of Derek Chauvin, the white former officer charged in Floyd's death. Chauvin was convicted in April of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for pressing his knee against Floyds neck for about 9 1/2 minutes as Floyd said he couldnt breathe and went motionless.

In September, the city of Louisville, Kentucky, agreed to pay Breonna Taylors family $12 million and reform police practices. Taylor was shot to death by officers acting on a no-knock warrant.

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Associated Press writers Dan Sewell in Cincinnati and Mark Gillispie in Cleveland contributed to this report.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  Mississippi will remain in the minority of states without a medical marijuana program after the state Supreme Court on Friday overturned an initiative that voters approved last fall  a decision that also limits other citizen-led efforts to put issues on the statewide ballot.

At the heart of the ruling is the fact that initiatives need signatures from five congressional districts to get on the ballot, but because of Mississippis stagnant population, the state only has four districts.

Six justices ruled that the medical marijuana initiative is void because the state's initiative process is outdated. Three justices dissented.

The initiative process was added to the Mississippi Constitution in the 1990s as Section 273. It requires petitioners trying to get any initiative on the ballot to gather one-fifth of signatures from each congressional district. Mississippi had five congressional districts at the time that was written. But the state dropped to four districts after the 2000 Census, and language dealing with the initiative process was never updated.

Whether with intent, by oversight, or for some other reason, the drafters of section 273(3) wrote a ballot-initiative process that cannot work in a world where Mississippi has fewer than five representatives in Congress," Justice Josiah Coleman wrote for the majority in the ruling Friday. "To work in todays reality, it will need amending  something that lies beyond the power of the Supreme Court.

In a strongly worded dissent, Justice James Maxwell wrote that he believes the secretary of state correctly put Initiative 65 on the ballot. Maxwell wrote that the majority opinion confidently and correctly points out that the Supreme Court cannot amend the state constitution.

Yet the majority does just that  stepping completely outside of Mississippi law  to employ an interpretation that not only amends but judicially kills Mississippis citizen initiative process, Maxwell wrote.

About 1.3 million people voted in Mississippi in November, and more than 766,000 of them voted in favor of Initiative 65, which required the state Health Department to establish a medical marijuana program by the middle of this year. The department had been working to create a program as the legal fight continued.

People also have started investing money in businesses related to medical marijuana in Mississippi. A cannabis cultivation supplier announced in April that it was leasing a warehouse in Jackson with plans to open this summer, WLBT-TV reported.

Mississippi was among about three dozen states to have approved medical marijuana, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

To get Initiative 65 on Mississippi's statewide ballot, organizers gathered signatures from the five congressional districts that the state used during the 1990s. They did that based on legal advice issued years ago by the state attorney generals office.

Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler filed a lawsuit days before the election, contending that the signature-gathering requirement is mathematically impossible with four congressional districts. She opposed Initiative 65 because it limits a citys ability to regulate the location of medical marijuana businesses.

The city is pleased that the Supreme Court followed the plain language of the Mississippi Constitution and recognized that, unfortunately, the current voter initiative process is broken, Butler said in a statement to The Associated Press on Friday.

Ken Newburger, executive director of the Mississippi Medical Marijuana Association, said the justices overturned the will of the voters.

Patients will now continue the suffering that so many Mississippians voted to end, Newburger said.

State attorneys said Mississippi has two sets of congressional districts  one set used for congressional elections and one set used for other purposes. An attorney for Butler argued that the only purpose of a congressional district is to have boundaries for electing U.S. House members.

Chief Justice Michael Randolph said during last month's hearing that seven bills have been filed over the years to update Mississippis initiative process to remove confusion about signatures coming from old or new congressional districts, and legislators have not made the change.

Legislative leaders have not said clearly why they have not updated the initiative process in the 20 years since Mississippi lost a congressional district. The problem with five districts versus four has existed first with Democrats in control at the Capitol and now, for many years, with Republicans in control.

People are gathering signatures for several other proposed initiatives, including one to authorize widespread early voting and another to expand Medicaid.

Justices on Friday did not mention two other ballot initiatives that Mississippi voters approved in 2011, after the state dropped from five congressional districts to four. Initiative 27 requires people to show government-issued photo identification before voting. Initiative 31 limits the use of eminent domain  the practice of governments taking private property for other uses.

During the legislative session that ended in April, the Senate tried to create rules for a state medical marijuana program, but the House defeated the effort. Republican Sen. Kevin Blackwell said the proposal was a backstop to have a program in place in case the Supreme Court invalidated Initiative 65. But supporters of Initiative 65 balked at the proposal, saying they saw it as an attempt to usurp what voters approved.

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Follow Emily Wagster Pettus on Twitter: http://twitter.com/EWagsterPettus.
The facial recognition site PimEyes is one of the most capable face-searching tools on the planet. In less than a second, it can scan through more than 900 million images from across the Internet and find matches with startling accuracy.

But its most distinguishing trait is who can use it: Anyone. While most facial recognition tools are reserved for police or government use, PimEyes is open to the masses, whether they're hunting down U.S. Capitol riot suspects or stalking women around the Web.

The search tool stands at the frontier of a new era of facial recognition surveillance: Powerfully sophisticated and available to anyone, with added abilities for those who pay. And without public oversight or government rules controlling facial recognition use, researchers expect that sites like PimEyes will multiply, capitalizing on the Internet's vast bounty of photos and videos - and making it possible for strangers to keep tabs on people's personal lives.

"What is stopping them? Literally nothing," said Stephanie Hare, a technology researcher in London.

"The people who put those pictures on the Internet - with their children, their parents, the people who might be vulnerable in their life - were not doing it so they could feed a database that companies could monetize," she said. There's no clear way to fight back, she added: "I can leave my phone at home. What I can't leave is my face."

Facial recognition has become an increasingly widespread investigative tool for government authorities and law enforcement; airports, stores and schools also use it to verify visitors' identities and boost security. But PimEyes has made it easier than ever for the general public to tap its artificial intelligence power: When a user submits a photo of someone's face, the site will return a catalogue of images linked to other places where that person appears around the Web, including old videos, news stories, photo albums and personal blogs.

The search results don't include exact names, but they offer a detail and precision that has left some people stunned. Pete, a 40-year-old man in Germany who asked that only his first name be used, said he ran a 17-year-old photo of himself drinking a beer on a train and was blown away when it returned a link to a recent video of him on YouTube.

"How did it even work? I'm older, it's a different facial expression, even a different position of my head," he said, comparing the two photos. "It's very creepy and way too powerful. This should not be in the public, available for everyone."

PimEyes says in its online "manifesto" that it believes searching for one's face online should be a basic human right open to anyone, not just corporations and governments, and that the company's work is, counterintuitively, a boon for privacy. PimEyes sells subscription packages to people who want to find where their photos have been posted online or get alerted when they're posted somewhere else.

Though they've built a search engine devoted to unraveling online mysteries, the developers won't say practically anything about themselves. A representative for the company - who declined to share their name, said they'd talk only over email and asked to be referred to only as "the director" - declined to answer questions about how PimEyes works, who is involved with the company or even where the company is based.

"Staying completely anonymous is very important to us," the director said.

The company has defended itself against criticism - and data-privacy laws like the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation, which restricts facial recognition use - by saying it is to be used only by people uploading their own images. But PimEyes enforces that rule with a single checkbox that anyone can easily click to circumvent. The company has no other rules in place to prevent anyone from scouring the Web for someone else.

"The most valuable resource is information . . . [and] we allow people to find, monitor, and protect pieces of information about themselves," the director said. "We don't encourage people to search for other people - it is their own decision to break the rules."

The tool has become wildly popular among strangers looking to "essentially stalk" women around the Web, said Aaron DeVera, a security researcher in New York. On 4chan and other anonymous forums, PimEyes subscribers with deeper search capabilities than unpaid users - subscriptions start at around $30 a month - routinely create threads offering to search out any photo and relay back the results.

Almost all of the photos are of young girls and women pulled from their social media accounts, their dating-app profiles or "creepshots" stealthily photographed without their consent. The people searching often hope to find other photos or learn more personal details "so they can creep on them further," DeVera added: "Something like this that is so off-the-shelf really does lower the barrier to entry for nefarious activity."

In one PimEyes thread on 4chan from October, an anonymous user posted a digital collage, titled "Complete Exposure" and a woman's name, filled with sensitive details of their personal life. It was unclear whether all the photos had been surfaced by PimEyes, or even whether they were all of the same woman. But the collage was scarily comprehensive, including photos of her standing in the middle-school classroom where she teaches, her driver's license, school badge, wedding announcement, the outside of her home and her home address. (The woman, through her husband, declined to comment.)

The director said PimEyes should not be blamed for how it's used by people on a forum like 4chan: "You will probably find some content there that shows how to use Google, a car, or just a plate or any other tool to hurt someone."

Most facial recognition tools, such as Clearview AI, look for matches to an image among photos in a giant database. But PimEyes works more like Google, using bots known as "spiders" to crawl the Web, scanning for photos of faces and then recording those images as numerical code. If the search tool is later shown a photo that resembles one of those images, it will return a direct link to where the image can be found.

PimEyes said last year in a since-deleted webpage that it had analyzed 900 million unique faces - nearly three times the U.S. population - from 150 million websites and processed 1 terabyte of images everyday.

PimEyes said it does not search images on social media, but photos from those sites are regularly among the results, and in a test last year by the German digital-rights blog Netzpolitik, journalists said they found results from Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and TikTok. The company did not offer an explanation, the journalists wrote, adding, "The more we confront PimEyes with questions, the more the company contradicts itself."

PimEyes' bots do, however, catalogue the images on pornographic websites, and people who have used the site said they've often stumbled across those look-alike results when searching for someone else. The company director said the site scans porn images so its customers can find nonconsensual "revenge" porn postings or attempt "to erase the mistakes of youth." One customer who creates sexual content, the director added, uses the tool to find websites that steal their work.

Launched in 2017 by a Polish start-up, PimEyes advertises itself as "an advanced self-monitoring, self-protection and self-image management tool." A Polish blog in 2019 said the site was started by two graduates of the Wrocaw University of Science and Technology, Lukasz Kowalczyk and Denis Tatina, who built it as a hobby project and later monetized it upon seeing the user interest - the greatest of which, they said, came from the United States.

In 2020, the PimEyes brand was transferred to Face Recognition Solutions Ltd., a company with no real online presence and a corporate address registered to a single room in the Seychelles, the island nation in the Indian Ocean that has become a popular offshore haven for companies wanting to obscure their ownership and corporate details.

The same room is also listed as a registered address for start-ups in advertising, finance and cryptocurrency, corporate records show. The PimEyes director said the company chose the Seychelles "because of the good incorporation environment."

The director also offered little about how PimEyes's facial recognition algorithms work, saying only that they are "built in-house." Hundreds of such algorithms have been developed around the world, each with varying features and error rates that can affect how well they work: In a 2019 federal test, the least-accurate algorithms were up to 100 times more likely to misidentify people of color.

Users have been surprised when PimEyes found not just their own photos, but photos they hadn't even realized they'd been captured in. A French journalist ran a webcam photo of himself through the site and found a photo he had no memory of, in which it looked like he'd fallen asleep during a news conference. Another man said the site had found a photo of him from 25 years ago.

Some have also been alarmed by the ease of use: One man tweeted that he had taken screenshots of people's faces while on Zoom calls, then ran them through PimEyes, saying "the results were startling." If he'd wanted, he added, he could have paid to get notifications any time a new photo of them was put online.

The service, though, could suffer from the same issues that plague many facial recognition tools, including wide swings in accuracy depending on the skin color of who's being searched. Some Twitter users have complained that the search engine returned only porn actors who looked nothing like them.

The company declined to answer questions about its development team, finances, customer base, photo index and expansion plans. In March, the company offered to connect The Washington Post with some of its clients, saying "we have many customers who are satisfied with our service," but after several weeks reversed course and said none would agree to talk.

"We help our customers solving sensitive cases, so they might not be willing to share their stories," the director said.

Any PimEyes user can see some limited search results. But only paying "Premium" subscribers can perform unlimited searches, unlock the full image details and get email alerts whenever the site detects a face they've uploaded somewhere else on the Web. For $29.99 a month, a user can search 25 times a day, while $299.99 a month can unlock unlimited searches. An online pricing calculator suggests some users may want to conduct up to 100 million searches a month - a gargantuan number for a business that says users should search only for their own images.

PimEyes has advertised itself as a law-enforcement investigative tool, saying last year in a since-deleted post that it "is actively involved in the fight against online crime." But the company director said that none of its customers are law enforcement agencies. That crime-fighting claim, the director said, is nevertheless "true in some way" because the tool can be used to find illegally used images.

PimEyes allows anyone to request a photo's removal using an online form, one image at a time. But to completely block those photos from showing up in PimEyes's search results, a user needs to pay $79.99 a month for the "PROtect" package - in essence, paying the same company that uncovered the images to also take them down.

PimEyes's widespread use in the pursuit of Capitol rioters, by an online crowdsourced collective of "sedition hunters," has also worried researchers like Hare, the technology researcher, who believed it could be easily misused to target the wrong people or turn untrained sleuths into digital vigilantes.

"Are citizens cops? No. But tools like these can turn anyone into a cop," she said. "If you give people something that can be used as a surveillance tool, people are going to use it as one, and they're not going to feel the need to have an ethical conversation about it."

A tool for amateur detective work, Hare added, can also easily be transformed into a weapon of state surveillance. Before PimEyes, there was FindFace, a similar face-search engine developed by the Moscow tech start-up NtechLab. Russian authorities now use the software to track opposition activists, journalists, protesters and others captured by Moscow's more than 189,000 cameras.

PimEyes said that instances of abuse tied to the search tool were not the company's fault, adding that any "service can be used against the purpose it was created for." Of the "sedition hunters," the director said, "People who misused our search engine did that for a good cause, but it doesn't mean they won't face the consequences of their actions."

But even some fans of the service think it goes too far. Conor Nolan, a photo researcher in London, spent hours on PimEyes attempting to identify members of the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, believing the information could prove invaluable to the FBI. On one of his first searches, PimEyes pointed to one suspect's decade-old mug shot - an investigative breakthrough in a single click.

Nolan said it's scarily accurate and "a technology I'm not comfortable with at all," adding that he thinks governments should regulate such tools before they are made available to the general public. But in the meantime, he said, he intends to keep using it, just because it works so well.

"Ethics aside, it was well worth it," Nolan said. "I'd use it again if I had the need."

In the U.S., PimEyes and other facial recognition companies have few laws to worry about. While members of Congress from both parties have talked about freezing government use of the technology, and federal watchdogs at the Government Accountability Office last year urged them to strengthen face-scan laws, the business is still entirely unregulated at the national level.

Half a dozen states and roughly two dozen cities have banned or restricted the technology for public use; another dozen state legislatures are slated to discuss similar bills this year. But such legislation almost always addresses use by police or public authorities, not companies or private individuals.

That regulatory void has led even the technology's biggest developers to call for stronger laws: Amazon last summer halted its sale of facial recognition technology to police for one year to give lawmakers "enough time to implement appropriate rules," while Microsoft said it would not sell the technology to police until a federal law is enacted that is "grounded in human rights."

Some AI researchers expect PimEyes won't be the last site to attempt unbounded facial search. The rise of "open source" AI has allowed outside developers to easily fold facial recognition software into their own applications: With enough computing power, anyone can use them to play around with the seemingly infinite photo and video data of the Web.

One AI data scientist using the online name "Patr10tic," who spoke in a phone interview on the condition of anonymity to candidly discuss the development of similar tools, said PimEyes's functionality can be closely mimicked using freely available tools such as FaceNet, an open-source facial recognition system developed by Google researchers in 2015 and now widely emulated around the Web.

After the Capitol siege, he used an open-source "face extractor" tool to pull out facial images from more than 40,000 videos uploaded to the heavily pro-Trump social network Parler. He then built a cluster map of those faces, as well as a detailed location map pinpointing where the videos had first been made.

Developers, he said, have a "real duty" to build tools with guardrails against their own misuse. But he's not surprised that such AI uses are expanding rapidly - and he believes that, in many cases, it's already too late to rein in a type of technology that's widely proliferated around the world.

"You're not going to be able to stop people from 'spidering' the Web on their own and using open-source code to build pipelines like this. It's just impossible to enforce," he said. "That's where the world is going. Like the physicists of the 1940s, we can already effectively create a Manhattan Project. All these tools can be used, so to speak, for peace or for war."

- - -

The Washington Post's Julie Tate contributed to this report.
(Bloomberg) -- Walmart Inc. said fully vaccinated staff and customers can now leave their masks at home, a decision that could influence how other businesses respond to the latest government guidance.

Starbucks Corp. also dropped a mask requirement for vaccinated customers starting May 17, while staff will continue to be required to wear facial coverings. Walt Disney World Resort made masks optional in common outdoor areas, although theyre still required indoors, on all attractions, theaters and transportation.

Walmart, the nations biggest private employer, said fully vaccinated staff need not wear a mask at work starting May 18, the same day the retailer reports first-quarter results. The rule applies to all of its U.S. Walmart and Sams Club locations, distribution centers and offices. Customers who have been inoculated can also shop without face coverings as of Friday, although masks could still be required by some local ordinances, Walmart executives said in a memo to employees Friday.

The move by the worlds largest retailer marks a significant step toward a return to normalcy in American life and could set an example for the industry. Retailers have largely required masks for shoppers and employees over the past year, resulting in occasional clashes with uncooperative customers. But Apple Inc., Target Corp. and other retailers havent yet relaxed their mask requirements, creating a confusing environment for shoppers and employees alike.

Costco Wholesale Corp. and Trader Joes also said Friday that they were eliminating mask requirements for shoppers. Those retailers wont require proof that customers have been inoculated. Rather, theyre hoping that customers will be responsible and cooperate, while also remembering to don face coverings in towns and cities that still have mask mandates in place.

Apple has informed its U.S. retail stores that a mask mandate and other Covid-19-related procedures remain in place for now, though the iPhone maker says it continues to evaluate health and safety measures. All of its retail stores have required the wearing of masks throughout the pandemic, and some locations have been operating on a limited basis, such as by appointment only.

A number of companies are also reviewing their mask policies after Thursdays CDC announcement. Target and Home Depot Inc. have decided for now not to adjust their mask requirements. Rite Aid Corp. said its mask policy is still in place pending state and local rules.

Even with the easing of its policy, Trader Joes will still require its employees to wear masks, a spokeswoman said. At Costco, customers will still have to wear face coverings in its pharmacy and optical departments, the company said in a statement.

The head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that fully vaccinated Americans can largely do away with wearing masks and social distancing, a decision that took surprised many companies.

Walmart also said it would give $75 to every employee who gets vaccinated, following companies like Kroger Co., German grocer Lidl and Instacart Inc. that have given cash for proof of shots. Other businesses have given paid time off to get vaccinated.

2021 Bloomberg L.P.
At first, it seemed like a case of Silicon Valley d-baggery. The man is shown smirking at the camera, seemingly knowing that he got away with this potentially deadly stunt.

When the first story was published on SFGATE, it seemed like a cut-and-dry case: A guy is putting others in danger by back seat driving his Tesla across the Bay Area, and, after some calling out of the CHP, he was caught just days later when the CHP received calls of him pulling the same stunt Monday night, the CHP said.

IN TEXAS: Texas is primed to be the next Silicon Valley

Param Sharma, 25, was arrested Tuesday and charged with reckless driving and disobeying a peace officer.

But the story doesnt end there.

An onslaught of emails came in the days after SFGATE first reported on Sharmas antics. Some were from people who said they were former classmates of his at Albany High. One read: Please revoke his license.

Another came from a person who identified himself as Sharma, saying that he was the owner of the car behind the stunt and offering his phone number to chat. And, in effect, he may have admitted to the crime: That was my Tesla and I got it only to commute from the back seat, the man claiming to be Sharma said in an email to SFGATE.

A bit of digging revealed that he did, in fact, want to be seen doing this driverless Tesla stunt. He posted it on his YouTube and Instagram accounts. (In them, he wears the same Ralph Lauren cap as he does in the YouTube video recorded by a third party that went viral.)

He seems to relish the infamy. Sharma recorded himself lip syncing to a song by NorCal rapper Mozzy from his backseat, while controlling the steering wheel with his foot; that post was shared on Instagram the Monday before his arrest.

The caption read, Bitch tell the chp I bought my license.

Another post, showing off the Daily Mails coverage of his back seat driving on an iPad, reads, I came outta the pandemic in a self driving car U blue blue collar peasants cant understand my life.

A bit more digging found that this is all in line with his past behavior.

Sharma went to Albany High in the early 2010s, where he pulled similar stunts, according to a classmate who spoke to SFGATE and was granted anonymity in accordance with Hearsts ethics policy.

Hes just been really kind of one of those guys who acts out, one of those guys who really needs to be the center of attention and to an extent turning dangerous or unacceptable, pretty much a constant thorn in the side of the school administration, the classmate said. Sharma said he was the most popular kid at my school in one interview.

READ ALSO: Elon Musk announces that 'now you can buy a Tesla with Bitcoin' and the cryptocurrency rebounds

The former classmate said Sharma also encountered trouble with local police for another act of dangerous driving. He allegedly was arrested for driving on the opposite side of the road multiple times in Albany. Albany police did not immediately respond to a request for comment from SFGATE. A spokesman with the CHPs Golden Gate Division told SFGATE that hes been cited in the past for the reckless driving, however, meaning his current charges will likely be more severe this time around. (He got off with a warning once before, the spokesman said.)

But as Sharma was gaining local notoriety in the Bay Area, his online persona began to draw global attention.

Fashioned in the style of New York City pseudosocialite Anna Delvey and Lil Tay  the viral child flexer-turned-rapper who recently re-entered the headlines for family turmoil  Sharmas shtick is to knowingly deploy signifiers of wealth and status into social media notoriety. He uses the name ItsLavishBitch on social media; sometimes altered to GoldCollarLavish.

The bio of an Instagram likely belonging to him reads: Im a gold collar u a blue collar 25 left the pandemic richer than ever before. Derision of blue-collar labor, fancy cars, including a Lamborghini, and wads of cash feature heavily in his account.

Everything Sharma has done online seems calculated for maximum outrage and viral potential, a walking, talking algorithm engineered for clout. He says he only uses toilets filled with sparkling water. He holds bands of cash in his mouth. He reportedly has six iPhones.

Hes launched social media tirades on Soulja Boy, Kim Kardashian and other celebrities way above his pay grade. He once accused Rihanna of jacking his style.

Other outlets  especially those with a penchant for novelty and controversy  ran exposes and Q&As.

The headlines were breathless, if not always complimentary. The Internet's Celebrity Bashing Brat King, read Vices. Is this the most spoiled kid in the U.S. or is it just a hoax? asked the Daily Mail. He's "Instagram's Richest Teen," an MTV story declared. A Digital Trends article dubbed him Instagrams richest troll.

Hes also the slightest bit self-aware, knowing that his trolling gets a rise out of people. People feed off the crazy things I do, like pooping in sparkling water, he told Vice. Im using wealth as comedy.

READ MORE: These tech workers left California for Austin. They don't regret it.

But behind the exasperated intrigue surrounding him is a reality thats perhaps a bit more grim. Sharma, then 18, was arrested in 2014 for an incident involving an iPhone, and was placed in the jails psychiatric ward. His then-lawyer told KGO that another inmate tried to kill him.

Aside from being annoying and absurd, until now his viral antics really didnt harm anyone, except for the 1% of celebrities who were the subject of his taunts.

He seems to crave any press in an effort to rack up more followers on the 'gram. Normally, we wouldn't fall for it  but now that his ploys for fame could have real-world consequences, he's unfortunately become a newsworthy figure.

Sharmas follower count is a lot less now on a new account  more than 5,000. At one point, his follower count peaked at 400,000, before the account was taken down. The classmate said Instagram deactivated his account due to an excess of fake followers on the platform.

But it's unclear what punishments Sharma will face; the Alameda County District Attorney's Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from SFGATE.

I dont wish ill on anyone, but hes one of those guys who you see hes in jail and youre not surprised, the classmate said.
ORLANDO, Fla.  Visitors to Walt Disney World and Universal Studios-Orlando were allowed Saturday to remove their masks when outdoors, except when on attractions, in line or riding transportation.

Floridas major theme parks are adjusting face mask policies after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention loosened its recommendations on Thursday as more people get vaccinated for the coronavirus. Masks remain mandatory indoors, except in restaurants when seated or actively eating and drinking.

SeaWorld Orlando and its sister park, Tampas Busch Gardens, are allowing guests who say they are fully vaccinated to remove their masks throughout the parks. The two parks will not require proof of vaccination but are asking guests to respectfully comply.

The CDC guidance still calls for wearing masks in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters.

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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

 UK races to test, vaccinate as virus variant threatens plans

 Success story Taiwan faces its worst outbreak in pandemic

 Detroit tourism seeks rebound after year lost to pandemic

 Floridas amusement parks loosen pandemic mask requirements

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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:

MILAN  Former Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi was released from Milans San Raffaele Hospital on Saturday, where he was treated for complications related to an earlier bout with coronavirus.

The 84-year-old Berlusconi, who was diagnosed with COVID-19 last September, has been in and out of the hospital in recent weeks. He was most recently admitted last Monday. He also spent 24 days in the hospital under medical supervision in April.

The three-time former premier and media mogul left the hospital without passing in front of photographers and television cameras waiting outside. Last year, Berlusconi spent 10 days at the same hospital receiving treatment for COVID-19. He also received a pacemaker several years ago.

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PHOENIX  Arizonas Pima County officials dropped the mandatory mask mandate for fully vaccinated people in line with new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Tucsons mayor will ask the City Council to do the same in the coming days. Mask ordinances in Phoenix and other cities remain in place but are likely to be eased as well.

Arizona health officials on Saturday reported 474 new coronavirus cases and 12 new deaths amid growing vaccination rates. That increased the totals to 872, 496 confirmed cases and 17,459 confirmed deaths.

The state Department of Health Services reported 474 new cases, bringing the total since the pandemic began to 872,496. The 12 new deaths brought the total number tallied in Arizona to 17,459.

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NEW YORK  Yale University is requiring its faculty and staff to get coronavirus vaccinations before the fall term, extending a requirement already imposed for students.

The private university says faculty members, staffers and academic trainees must be fully inoculated by Aug. 1, although there are provisions for exemptions for reasons based on medical conditions or religious or strongly held personal beliefs.

More than 350 colleges and universities around the country are requiring vaccinations for students, at least those living on-campus. However, requirements for employees are somewhat rare. Thats according to information compiled by The Chronicle of Higher Education.

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DETROIT  Tourism leaders in Detroit are banking on a return of conventions and business meetings shut down last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Groups and companies already are booking dates for this year and next. The Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau has designed Detroit-specific packages that feature high-end hotels and restaurants to attract short-term visitors from nearby states.

Not many big conventions are expected this year, but 2022 promises to be a rebound year, said Claude Molinari, president and chief executive of the Detroit convention and visitors bureau.

Professional Convention Management Association President Sherrif Karamat says losses in the U.S. due to COVID-19 are estimated at $300 billion.

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BEIJING  China has canceled attempts to climb Mount Everest from its side of the worlds highest peak because of fears of importing coronavirus cases from neighboring Nepal.

Chinas official Xinhua News Agency says the closure was confirmed in a notice from Chinas General Administration of Sport. The move reflects the abundance of caution China has taken in dealing with the pandemic.

While China has mostly curbed domestic transmission of the coronavirus, Nepal is experiencing a surge with record numbers of new infections and deaths.

China had issued permits to 38 people to climb Mount Everest this spring, and Nepal to 408 climbers. In Nepal, several climbers have reported testing positive for the coronavirus after they were brought down from the Everest base camp.

The month of May generally has the best weather for climbing Everest. Scores have reached the summit this week and more are expected to make attempts later this month once the weather improves. Two climbers have died on the Nepalese side, one Swiss and one American.

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LONDON  Britain says it will host an international meeting next month to combat misinformation about coronavirus vaccines and build global confidence in their use.

The U.K. government says officials, scientists and academics will meet virtually at the Global Vaccine Confidence Summit on June 2 to discuss ways to counter vaccine skepticism.

Heidi Larson, director of the Vaccine Confidence Project at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, says no single government, academic institution or organization can tackle this challenge alone.

She adds to ensure the high levels of vaccine uptake needed to help end the pandemic, efforts must be made to build trust across the various relationships  from scientists and health authorities to business partners and communities.

Britain has one of the worlds fastest vaccination campaigns, with more than two-thirds of adults receiving at least one dose since December.

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WARSAW, Poland  Across Poland people are taking off masks and making toasts as restaurants, bars and pubs reopen for the first time in seven months.

The reopening, limited now to the outdoor consumption of food and drinks, officially took place at midnight between Friday and Saturday. Many people on Friday couldnt wait for midnight and were out on the streets of Warsaw and other cities hours earlier in the evening to celebrate.

Bar owners say they were bombarded with reservation requests leading up to the opening.

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LONDON  Britain is deploying public health officials, supported by the army, to distribute coronavirus tests door-to-door in two northern England towns to help contain a fast-spreading variant that threatens lockdown-easing plans.

Cases of a strain first identified in India have more than doubled in a week. Government scientific advisers say the variant is likely more transmissible than the U.K.s dominant strain, though its unclear by how much.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned that the variant could be a serious disruption to our progress. He says the next stage of lockdown-easing measures will take place as planned on Monday but warned the variant might delay plans to lift all restrictions on June 21.

Labour Party lawmaker Yvette Cooper said the government had not barred visitors arriving from India until April 23, a decision that let in many hundreds of new variant cases.

More than two-thirds of British adults have received a first dose of a coronavirus vaccine and 37% have had both doses. The government is shortening the gap between doses for people over 50 from 12 to eight weeks in a bid to give them more protection.

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THE HAGUE, Netherlands  As coronavirus infections decline in parts of the world and the summer holiday season tentatively begins, the Dutch government has eased travel restrictions for a group of popular vacation destinations.

Among the countries with a lower risk of infections that can be visited starting Saturday are Portugal, Malta, Ireland, Thailand, Rwanda, the former Dutch colonies of Aruba, Curacao and Sint Maarten and a large group of Greek islands.

They previously were designated code orange, meaning the government advised only traveling there if it was urgently necessary. The Greek mainland and Crete remain under code orange.

The destinations are now yellow code, meaning Dutch travelers can visit without having to undergo a COVID-19 test and go into self-isolation on their return.

However, the foreign ministry is stressing that travelers still have to adhere to local rules and restrictions in the countries they visit, which can include showing a negative coronavirus test and self-isolating on arrival.

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TAIPEI, Taiwan  Taiwan has raised the COVID-19 alert level for the capital Taipei and the surrounding area of New Taipei city following its worst outbreak since the pandemic began.

The level 3 alert announced Saturday requires people to wear a mask outdoors and limits indoor gatherings to five people and outdoor gatherings to 10 people. The alert remains in effect for two weeks.

Health authorities said that 180 new locally spread cases had been confirmed through Friday, the majority in Taipei and New Taipei. The daily number of new cases had risen steadily from single digits early this week to 29 before the triple-digit jump announced Saturday.

The epidemic is gaining intensity, Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said, while noting that more cases are being identified as authorities hone in on hot zones.

Movie theaters, museums, indoor swimming pools and amusement parks were among the places ordered closed under the level 3 alert, as were community colleges and senior citizen activity centers.

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NEW DELHI  Indias two biggest cities have reported a drop in daily infections but the government is warning that the devastating surge is spreading in rural areas, where nearly two-thirds of Indias 1.4 billion people live.

India reported 326,098 new confirmed cases and 3,890 deaths in the past 24 hours, though experts say both figures are an undercount. The Health Ministry had reported 343,144 cases on Friday and 362,727 on Thursday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday warned people to take extra precautions as the virus was spreading fast in rural areas. He said the government was mobilizing all resources, including the military.

News reports say villagers have been rushing the sick to nearby towns and cities for treatment because health care facilities are limited in the countryside.

Indias capital has reported less than 10,000 new cases in a day for the first time in over a month. It recorded 8,506 cases in the past 24 hours.

After a peak of 11,000 daily infections, Mumbai, Indias financial and entertainment capital, has been reporting less than 2,000.

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Masks are still required under a Transportation Security Administration rule that will run into mid-September unless it is revoked before then. The Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates airlines, felt the need to remind passengers of the TSA rule.

It issued a statement late Friday to remind the traveling public that at this time if you travel, you are still required to wear a mask on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling into, within, or out of the United States, and in U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations.

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NEW YORK  Walmart, the worlds largest retailer, says it wont require vaccinated shoppers or workers to wear a mask in its U.S. stores, unless state or local laws say otherwise.

Vaccinated shoppers can go maskless immediately, the company said. Vaccinated workers can stop wearing them on May 18. As an incentive, Walmart said it is offering workers $75 if they prove theyve been vaccinated.

Walmart says it wont ask shoppers if theyve been vaccinated. Workers, however, will need to tell the company if theyve been vaccinated in order to go maskless.

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Yves here. Bill Black is back! The website New Economic Perspectives, where Bill and many MMT luminaries held forth, has gone quiet. But Bill was also a regular at Paul Jays The Real News Network, and Black has come for a long-form discussion at Jays new initiative, TheAnalysis.news. Bill uses the title of his book to review and update financial fraud, American style, which means driven primarily by bank executives. He starts with a review of the S&L crisis, where he not only had a ringside seat but also successfully pursued some of the perps. This is one of the reason Bill has little sympathy for the failure to prosecute bankers: hes shown it can be done.

By Paul Jay. Originally published at TheAnalysis.news

Paul Jay

Hi, Im Paul Jay. Welcome to theAnalysis.news, please dont forget the donate button and the subscribe button if youre on YouTube, and be back in a second.

In 2014, a billion dollars disappeared from three Moldovan banks. The Republic of Moldova is a tiny, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. How did a billion dollars do a vanishing act? Thats 12 percent of the countrys GDP.

As the title of Bill Blacks book says, the best way to rob a bank is to own one and thats more or less what happened in Moldova. The heads of the three major banks created a Ponzi scheme between them, loaning and hiding money with each other, moving it offshore to hide the assets. A carousel borrowing scheme was applied. Loans in one bank were paid off with loans from another. The banking fraud in the United States that led to the crash of 07 and 08 makes the Moldovan scandal look like childs play.

Heres the thing, in Moldovia, many of those that were responsible for the fraud went to jail, in the U.S. other than one mid-level trader, it was none that went to jail. Not a single senior executive ever charged in one of the biggest financial frauds ever. Has the situation changed? Could such a scam repeat itself? A docuseries titled The Con breaks down what happened during those years leading up to 2007 08? Heres a trailer from the docuseries.

Excerpt from The Con

Im neither an economist or a scholar. Im just an average American who lost my home and very nearly my family to foreclosure when the market imploded, and Ive spent almost every day since trying to find out why. Once the dust settled, it quickly became clear that my story was no different than millions of other Americans. We all thought that we were alone. We all thought that wed failed, but none of us really knew why. With a gun in her hand, Addie Polk apparently shot herself in the chest as deputies were knocking on her door with eviction papers in hand. This dramatic increase in mortgage fraud cases was the canary in the mine. It was the warning. This was money chasing people. This was not somebody looking for a loan. It was all designed to maximize profits for all of the different players.

The person who sold you a loan made more money if they sold you a higher rate loan. They were sold a lot. Theyre selling to their very clients these loans that they know are a disaster. I lost my home not because of money, because of fraud. I dont believe Addie Polk took out the mortgage on my home. I dont believe she signed any documents. They just generated all this junk, took home huge bonuses, and then when it collapsed, they said, oh, not us. This notion that the financial crisis was there wasnt fraud and there wasnt crime is absolutely wrong. Its dead.

We were targeting, in many cases, minorities. We were waiting for the leadership to say, go, that never happened. The investigation was suppressed. This was all part of the same puzzle that was falling apart. This is the largest conspiracy of lies in the history of the world. This investigation has just begun.

Paul Jay

Now joining us to discuss the history and present state of what he calls control fraud is Bill Black, whos in the film and was an adviser to its producers. Bill is an American lawyer, academic, author, and former bank regulator with expertise in white-collar crime, public finance, regulation, and other topics in law and economics. In fact, hes an associate professor at the University of Missouri, Kansas City in Law and Economics. As I mentioned, hes the author of the book The Best Way to Rob a Bank is To Own One. Thanks for joining us again, Bill.

Bill Black

Thank you.

Paul Jay

So, lets start with this term you use, control fraud. What is it and when does this start to appear in finance?

Bill Black

Well, it started to appear in finance as soon as there was finance, and it isnt unique to finance either. Its obviously an ungainly term. I mean, what the heck is control fraud, and heres the reason for the ungainliness. The insight we had was that when the people who control a seemingly legitimate entity, whether its the government or a nonprofit or a for-profit firm, are able to use that seemingly legitimate entity as a weapon to defraud and predate, and a shield that protects them largely against being held responsible, accountable for their depredations, then youre going to get massively more harmful forms of fraud and predation. And why control? Because the context we developed it in was the savings and loan debacle and the most notorious fraud there was Charles Keating, and he never held the position with Lincoln Savings, the entity that he was using as his weapon and shield, yet he utterly controlled every aspect of the institution.

Paul Jay

OK, now I assume that a lot of our viewers, especially younger ones, but others as well, have no idea what youre talking about. What happened during the savings and loan crisis? When was that? And out of that, how did the control fraud appear?

Bill Black

OK, so by the way, as we discuss this, its the 30th anniversary of one of the key events in that savings and loan debacle when that Charles Keating, who was the most notorious fraud, Looting his savings and loan, was able to bring together a whole series of senators to try to extort first the head of our agency and then a group of us who were the regional regulators in San Francisco, and they went on.

Paul Jay

Whats the agency?

Bill Black

Well, the agency was called at the time the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, but it was about to change its name to the Office of Thrift Supervision. So that gets a little complicated, and we were in a regional entity that had still another name. So, Im going to avoid the names so much and describe what they functionally did most of the time in all of this. In any event, we realized that if you controlled the firm first, people wouldnt believe that you would loot the firm. That seemed crazy to them, but of course, if you think about it, thats who you can loot with impunity because you know where all the safeguards are. Indeed, you are supposed to be the principal safeguard. Its like a homeowner who wants to commit insurance fraud, right? You have a code, and you turn off the home alarm system and you take the things out of your house. You can do that very easily. Well, the CEO can do that even more easily, and what we realized was they use seemingly normal corporate mechanisms to do this. They just use accounting to massively overstate earnings, and then under modern executive compensation, that automatically triggers a huge bonus, and the company then pays the CEO and the other officers these huge bonuses.

If you stuck your hand in the till in America as a CEO and took just ten thousand bucks, youd go to prison for 20 years, but you could take out twenty million, forty million, two billion, through the mechanisms I just explained and never go to jail. This was a really sweet scheme that people had developed, and the way we figured it out is we did autopsies of every failure in the savings and loan debacle. Everybody knew. Everybody told us its not fraud, its just people gambling for resurrection. It was almost a Christian, type of thing, right? The bank was losing money, and so the valiant CEO took high-risk, and sadly, they often lost those high-risk gambles and such. We said no, that doesnt make any sense, and here are two reasons it doesnt make any sense. So first, if you were just gambling, you wouldnt have the pattern of purported success that they were reporting, right? If youre taking a bunch of high-risk honest gambles, youd win some big youd win a few small and youd lose a lot big. Right.

Paul Jay

Now, the gambles are loans theyre making.

Bill Black

Thats right. The gamble is making riskier loans, went the logic. You would expect to see a pattern like that, some winners, some losers type of thing. Except that everybody that followed this pattern that we identified as actually being looting, looting the savings and loan through accounting fraud, reported winning at first and not just winning, but winning at first, right, and they were literally reporting in places like Lincoln Savings, Vernons Savings, which we in the regulatory ranks refer to as vermin. Right, by the time we got through the speaker of the House, Jim Wrights efforts to prevent us from taking the place over, 96 percent of its loans were in default.

Paul Jay

Give us an idea how many banks were involved and when was this? This is during Reagan.

Bill Black

This is Ronald Reagan. This begins in 1981-ish. So right at the beginning of the Reagan revolution, and its facilitated through the first appointee as the top regulator for savings and loans by Ronald Reagan. An academic account economist Dick Pratt, very smart, very quick, clever guy type of thing, but a huge believer in laissez-faire.

He deregulated and he said, hey, we have this, in jargon, its called a natural experiment, because there are many different jurisdictions in the United States. 50 different states, and they have different state regulatory patterns. So, well look and find in all of the United States which state has the most successful savings and loans, and then our deregulation will emulate their deregulation where theyve already deregulated, and they looked and they said Texas, Texas is the model that you need to follow. Its far and away reporting the best results. Well, of course, it was thats where the fraud started because thats where the deregulation started, and the frauds are a sure thing. They are mathematically guaranteed if you follow what we identified as the recipe for accounting control, fraud for looting. If you follow that recipe, it is a sure thing, right? You will absolutely report record profits. They wont be real, but youll report record profits. So, he used the worst possible model for his deregulation and then he deliberately set off what economists called a race to the bottom, which they thought was a good thing because regulation, bad, deregulation, good.

Remember this. In fact, it had begun with Jimmy Carter at the national level before Ronald Reagan. Both parties really believed in this deregulation stuff. So great, Texas is deregulated already, now the United States at the federal level will deregulate even more than Texas. That will set off a race to the bottom where Texas and California will try to deregulate even more and for good reason. In the United States, we have this doctrine called supremacy of the federal government, which means that we can preempt any state efforts to get in the way. So, if the feds deregulate, the state cant do anything to you, but if the state cant do anything to your savings and loan to either help you or hurt you, why should you make political contributions to the state banking chairman of the Senate or House answer. You wouldnt, so that was a powerful incentive to keep the flow of money to the key committee chairmen to deregulate, and California and Texas won the race to the bottom, and these two states produce 60 percent of the total losses out of the savings loan debacle of the 1980s and 1990s.

So good policy, right, in all of these things, in our jargon, I have a doctorate in criminology and I study elite fraud and corruption principally within those fields. This is going to mean what we call a criminogenic environment, and thats a direct steal from natural science, where we talk about pathogenic environments, an environment, like a cesspool that produces lots of bacteria and viruses and such and causes lots of infections where you get the same thing happening throughout whatever portion of the economy you deregulate.

In particular, finance is most susceptible to this. So they deregulated at the worst possible time in the worst possible way, and they said simultaneously, they put in writing, we dont have to worry about no stinking fraud. Fraud is inherently trivial. Right, and Im not overstating. I mean, its not the exact words, but Im not overstating.

Paul Jay

Who said that?

Bill Black

The head of the agency [Dick Pratt], a top academic economist, expert in finance, said.

Paul Jay

Well, were they in on it? The fraud?

Bill Black

What my saying is of this era, it always is. The sad fact is you didnt have to bribe anyone. They really believed in laissez-faire, so to skip ahead a few years, theres this road to Damascus experience. Apparently its a big biblical day in our talk. His successor, Ed Gray. Now, his successor is a personal family friend of both of the Reagans, Mrs. Reagan as well. Critical to his survival, and hes a PR guy, right, thats his thing. So, in the midst of the worst financial scandal in U.S. history at the time, President Reagan says, let me put a PR guy in charge, because what the hell, right? And the trade association, which political scientists rated the third most powerful in the United States. It was called the League of Savings Institutions. They go and tell Ed Gray, youre getting this position because of us. We lobbied with the administration and we lobbied to get you because we were sure you would do what we want done, they tell him this and he tells us the senior staff. So, this is the world, and then two things happen. First, the examiners, the examiners are the people that actually go out into the field and they dont just look at what the institution writes in propaganda policies and such. They look at whats actually happening. Theyre the people closest, and it turns out to that to be able to run the scams Im talking about, you have to destroy whats called the loan underwriting process. Now, thats insane because the loan underwriting process is what makes banks profitable, honestly profitable.

Paul Jay

They evaluate the risk.

Bill Black

Should we take it and if so, at what price? Right. So, its the most critical thing that you would never do if you were an honest banker, which is of course how spoiler alert, were going to convict of felonies over a thousand elites, out of the savings and loan debacle, completely different than whats going to happen in the great financial crisis. OK, so Ed Gray comes in and the first thing he does is he listens to the examiners.

They put in every month these Significant Supervisory Cases, and this is the coming problem. There are roughly three thousand savings and loans and the number in this SSE case book grows from around one hundred to around five hundred. OK, and they are short write-ups, but Gray reads them religiously and he goes. Oh, shit. None of this is running the way the economists claim its running, its a coming disaster, and then he has the peak of his road to Damascus experience. This wonderful, laconic Texan, with a pronounced Texas twang, no art at all, in a Texas accent, but he knows his stuff about underwriting and such, and he drives and hes taking pictures like the eight-millimeter stuff in those days. This is 1982-ish, 1983-ish. So, hes driving for miles with the camera stuck out and narrating as hes going along. In an utterly no inflection voice. Hes not excited, Gray calls it financial pornography, watching it because its mile after mile after mile of real estate developments that arent really being developed where they are just wasting all the material. You can see it rotting on the ground and it goes on for over an hour driving around this huge complex, even goes up in a plane and does the same thing looking down. Many of these things were so bad that they never got beyond the concrete pad for the home.

Paul Jay

And these are all phony loans for building these things.

Bill Black

Right, we call them Martian landing pads. Gray, whos this ardent anti-regulator; He really loves Ronald Reagan and Mrs. Reagan, goes this is obscene and its going to produce a catastrophe. It is my duty, though, I hate it, to try to do everything I have to throw myself in front of this bus. He predicts to us that it will destroy his career both in business and in politics. Hes like 52 prime, super high in a significant position, a riser, and a personal friend, as I say, of the folks, and he knows its going to piss off the Reagans. He starts re-regulating. Charles Keating, alleged super Christian, whos actually a massive fraudster, is an incredible lobbyist, and since hes looting Lincoln Savings, what does he care? He knows the institution is going to fail if you spend an extra 20 million on lobbying. So what? So he lobbies like crazy. He hires Alan Greenspan as a lobbyist. Alan Greenspan personally walks around the Senate recruiting the five U.S. senators who will become known as the Keating Five when they meet with us on April 9th, 1987, to try to extort us to not take enforcement action against Lincoln Savings on behalf of and I quote our good friend Charles Keating type of thing. When Gray begins this reregulation, this majority at the express request of Charles Keatings lobbying effort. Keating was a top 100 granter, a donor to Reagan and Bush. He was very politically connected. A majority of the House of Representatives co-sponsored a resolution telling us to stop the re-regulation. The entire leadership of both parties in the House signed that. So think of this, youve got the president against you, Vice President Bush is running the financial deregulation task force. He hates you, the chief of staff, the former Marine, the former head of Merrill Lynch hates you and is against you. OMB is trying to destroy you. OMB files a criminal referral against Ed Gray on the grounds that hes closing too many insolvent savings and loans.

Paul Jay

And how many had he closed by that point? But they were insolvent.

Bill Black

Yes, but you have to understand the highest priority of the Reagan administration vis a vis the savings and loan debacle at all times, the red line was that you could not say its going to require a federal bailout, because that would mean the federal deficit was really $150 billion bigger and of course, President Reagans top priority was getting the tax cut, and the argument against it was the deficit swelling, and so if they had to admit that the deficit was really much larger, they might not get the tax cut.

Paul Jay

The hole of the bank debt was about 150 billion bucks?

Bill Black

The hole in the insurance fund, so the industry was insolvent on a market value basis by roughly $150 billion, and there were $6 billion in the insurance funds still. So, we went to work every day wondering whether there was going to be a nationwide run for five years.

Paul Jay

How much of this was public at this time?

Bill Black

It was not made public because this was the red line, right? Gray knew that if he crossed this red line hed be removed immediately. So, we just didnt talk about how much it was ultimately going to cost, we just went about trying to make sure it cost as little as possible.

Paul Jay

So, thousands of banks are involved in fraud?

No, three hundred savings and loans were growing more than 50 percent annually, and were following this looting strategy of fraud, but Grays first action, which was before he saw the Texas guys tape, the financial pornography, just reading the examiners Significant Supervisory Cases. The first thing he did, which was in November of 1983, which was essentially when the deregulation that his predecessor had put in place was kicking in, Gray stopped any new savings and loans from starting in California, Texas, and Florida, and the frauds, were almost always real estate developers who were failing, and of course, the dream of every real estate developer is to own their own captive lender like a bank or a savings and loan, because thats what you need as a real estate developer funding. If you have your own bank or savings and loan, thats never an issue type of thing. So, this was like the dream of all time for these sleazy developers.

Paul Jay

And whose money is in these savings and loan?

Bill Black

Well, overwhelmingly ours, right? They are deposits. In America as opposed to other countries the liability side of a bank is almost entirely deposits and in the American context, almost all of those deposits are fully insured by the federal government. So, whos on the hook really? The taxpayers are on the hook. Europe has many more large loans, typically from other banks. That is uninsured hot money, as its called. So, you can see Gray is going to commit political and career suicide and knows that hes going to commit it. The trade association, of course, instantly turns against him as well. So, if you look at the correlation of forces as the military talks about it, its everybody on one side against Gray and pretty much Gray on the other. So obviously, were going to lose, and heres the remarkable thing, yeah, we lost personally. Were unemployable in government, but we stopped this raging epidemic of fraud and the new entrants. Gray by saying no more of these real estate developers are going to come in the door in California and Texas and Florida, he prevented it from becoming any kind of even mild recession, much less a great financial crisis. Thats just the second stage.

The third stage turns out to actually be the great financial crisis, and for that, you have to know what Grays big legacy was. Gray did something really simple. He knew, as I said, that the two great disasters were California and Texas, so he asked everybody he had respect for who were the two top financial supervisors in America, and then he personally recruited them, and appointed them in California and Texas.

The guy in Texas was Joe Selby, who had twice risen through the ranks at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the acting comptroller of the Currency, but of course, he would never be made head because youd have to be politically powerful to get that kind of thing. So getting him was a real coup and he put him in the absolute worst place, which was Texas. Selby was from Texas. Selby knew that this was going to end disastrously for him because Selby was gay, and the speaker of the House, the Democratic speaker of the House, Jim Wright called up Ed Gray and demanded that Gray get rid of Selby on the grounds that Selby was a homosexual. This is how recently these things were that badly screwed up. Even after we brought Charles Keating down, he sued, and one of his lieutenants began a deposition demanding to know who the employees at the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, where I was the top lawyer by then, were homosexuals. Under the allegation that gays are secretive, and they must have a secret conspiracy against Charles Keating because hes a Christian. The chief judge, based on what we call a proffer by the lawyer that says, I have a good faith basis for this conspiracy. Im not just making this shit up right  the judge, the chief judge in Arizona, which is where Lincoln Savings Home was, the parent company, allowed those questions. Now, after that good faith basis, the second question of that lawyer was, have you ever heard a rumor about who might be gay at San Francisco Bank, which is kind of inconsistent with a proffer. Our moderately senior supervisor who is being deposed came back at lunch break in absolute tears. She was just completely broken down by this outrageous treatment, and so this is the first I hear about it and I say the deposition is over, we are going to go for emergency writ in front of the judge, and of course, we destroyed them in that. They had absolutely no basis, but at that hearing, they started the hearing by making a motion to exclude me from the courtroom.

The lawyers for the Keating lieutenant say you shouldnt allow Bill Black to be in this room, and the judge said that may have worked with Danny Wall, Grays infamous successor who caves into Keatings demands and extortion, but it is not going to work in this courtroom, and then because hed been lied to in the proffer, he basically chopped the heads off these folks. That lieutenant I saw in other depositions. I went up to him and told him how scurrilous I thought he was. He said, I cant be bigoted. Im black. Well, I guess you proved it. Again, people forget how recently this kind of homophobia was absolutely dominant and could destroy executives. The point is, Selby prevented a Texas disaster from becoming a Texas catastrophe, knew it would lead not under Gray, but under his successors to his being smeared and fired and did it anyway for America. Mike Patriarca, a name people have not heard was his counterpart in California that I worked with, and he stopped the first aspect that Ive talked about, this looting.

Now, I want to transition to the second aspect, which Patriarca also stops, and that is what becomes the great financial crisis, which actually is the third act of the savings and loan debacle of the early 1990s. This is literally true, Orange County, California, is the financial fraud capital of the world, not America, the world. We were out there and California had jurisdiction over it, and so the examiners came to us. Again, the examiners are the hero of this story, and they said theres a new scam, and youve got to stop it.

Paul Jay

What year are we in?

Bill Black

This is 1990. All right, theres a new scam and youve got to stop it now. So in 1990, we are still dealing with the second act of the savings loan debacle, the looting that I was talking about, and we are incredibly overwhelmed.

Is anybody charged at this point?

Oh, yes, hundreds, but youre right to ask. It doesnt happen immediately and Ill bring you back, but Ill tell that story briefly. No one was being charged in the 1980s. There wasnt even a criminal referral system that was coherent. So first under Gray. Gray said, look, here are two top priorities. One, get the frauds out of controlling the savings and loan because as long as theyre in control, the losses are going to mount exponentially. Two, once you get them out, hold them personally accountable wherever possible by criminal prosecution. Also by lawsuits, not against the savings and loan, lawsuits against them, where you grab their funds.

So thats what we did. So we figured out we had to develop a criminal referral system. So we started making referrals and soon we were making thousands of referrals. We decided to make them public every month. Well, this is back in the day when there were actually more reporters in places and pretty soon places like The Washington Post noticed. There are five thousand criminal referrals and only three prosecutions. What the hells going on? And they would start writing stories.

Paul Jay

Criminal referral means your agency tells the Department of Justice theres a case here. Its a referral to the DOJ. Am I right?

Bill Black

That is correct, And the FBI. Theyre not just, hey, we think we got a problem. We had criminal referral coordinators and they met periodically with their counterparts, the FBI and Department of Justice. We got feedback on every major referral and then we would retrain folks about, OK, this is what they want, they think is weak. This is the strong part, and it got better and better. Continuous improvement regime and B school type jargon. These became superb. In major cases, the text was 40, 60 pages, and 200 to 400 pages of attachments with all kinds of easy things about how to find the most useful stuff. We really set out the entire path to make the prosecution successful.

Paul Jay

So, hundreds of these types of referrals and how many actual charges at that point.

Bill Black

So, thousands of these referrals and in the mid-1980s, essentially two or three prosecutions. The attorney general actually puts in his memoir that they just got tired of getting bashed with all of this. When a new guy comes in after the disgraceful Danny Wall, who gave in to the pressure of the five senators and the speaker of the House. The new guy was Tim Ryan. This is Bush one appointing Tim Ryan to be the new head of the agency. A very bright lawyer, and he hires a very aggressive litigator as his person because as he explains to me personally, he met with Bush and Bush said, your job is to get the heads of the most prominent crooks on pikes.

OK, new regime. He gets appointed in like 1992-ish and such there are over 20,000 thousand criminal referrals, by then there were 30,000 criminal referrals. By then there were a meaningful number of prosecutions, but Tim Ryan also sacrificed his career for the public knowingly, and what he did is bring an enforcement action. We massively increased enforcement actions as well. He brought an enforcement action against the son of a sitting president of the United States of America, and hes been unemployable since.

Paul Jay

Which one?

Bill Black

Neil Bush. Hes the guy that brought that enforcement action and everybody knew what was going to happen if he did that, he was a super-fast tracker.

Paul Jay

If you go back to Gray and the gentleman youre talking about now and you and your team, if all of you had caved to the pressure, what would have happened?

Bill Black

Something akin to the great financial crisis would have happened in the mid-90s.

Paul Jay

Which means these banks would have all failed, the federal insurance plan would have to have stepped in at the rate of.

Bill Black

Oh, it couldnt have. They would have had to bail out the insurance plan, not in terms of billions, which they did eventually, but in trillions of dollars.

Paul Jay

Now, the Reagan administration, the professionals even on Wall Street, they must know this is how its unfolding, and you said earlier they dont want this to go public because how do you do a tax cut in the midst of all this? So, I mean, its really part of the fraud that this keeps getting covered up.

Bill Black

Yeah, but I would go easy on the idea that they knew, right? Remember, the conventional wisdom that I gave you from Dick Pratt was well fraud by elites cant ever be serious.

Paul Jay

Right, one person doing a $20 check is serious.

Bill Black

Well, they look like us, they cant be real crooks. They dress nicely. They speak well. They cant be real crooks; they cant cause real problems.

Paul Jay

But when Gray gets his head around how serious this is and hes a friend of Reagan. He must tell Reagan. So, from at least that point on.

Bill Black

No. Your point is absolutely logical, and I went to Ed Gray to make exactly that point. I said, youre a personal friend. Tell him, and he said, you dont understand, its impossible. I guarantee you, hes right, because I know Ed Gray, not because I know Ronald Reagan. If Ed Gray says it was absolutely impossible, it was.

Paul Jay

Yeah, but from what Im learning about Reagan. Ive just been interviewing the guy Matt Tyrnauer who did this four part series called The Reagans for Showtime and reading some other stuff. Reagan didnt want to hear what he didnt want to know, not because he didnt know, but he didnt want to hear what he didnt want to know.

Bill Black

Yeah, but what does he know about banking?

Paul Jay

Nothing, he just knows that the people that help make him president want such and such, so he doesnt go against them.

Bill Black

As human beings, we are primed for those people that help us the most. Theyre the last people in the world we see as cheats and fraudsters, and Charles Keating was one of his leading donors.

Paul Jay

Was Keating part of that kitchen cabinet that helped get Reagan to run?

Bill Black

No, but Ed Gray was at the savings and loan that was at the heart of the San Diego savings and loan that was at the heart of that kitchen cabinet.

Paul Jay

Because, I mean, they deliberately created Ronald Reagan to be a front man for their agenda.

Bill Black

But again, thats the point, right? So, Don Regan is his consiglieri. Don Regan is the self-professed Marine tough guy who his first words out of his mouth when he meets Ed Gray is youre going to be a team player, arent you? And felt that he could intimidate folks and by the way, the very first thing the Bush administration did within months, its first major legislative proposal, was to make sure that this could never happen again. Now, this is not the crisis. This is Ed Gray. Could never happen again.

Paul Jay

Really?

Bill Black

Yeah, so the first thing the legislation did we were an independent regulatory agency and they eliminated that and made it a bureau within the Treasury  a member of the executive branch, so that there could never be someone independent using their judgment again, Im quite serious. Thats the first thing that they decided to get away with. So, again, you get this immensely successful prosecution. Let me make clear how successful this was. Our key strategic disadvantage, of course, was money. In the form of lobbying, in the form of political contributions. Thats how the terrible things were happening. Thats how at the behest of Charles Keating, the most notorious fraud in America, our jurisdiction in San Francisco, was removed over Keating, at the demand of the five senators and the speaker of the House, Jim Wright, and the cowardice of Grays successor, Danny Wall. For the first time in U.S. regulatory history, he removed the jurisdiction at the demand of the crooks because we had insisted on going forward with our recommendation that it be taken over by the federal government and we had made a criminal referral.

Paul Jay

And youre including these senators in the crooks, these five.

Bill Black

Well, they were assisting the crooks. You can see my notes of the meeting, which is what made it something before the Senate Ethics Committee. Ultimately the only way to get them to back off was to tell them we were about to make a criminal referral and do they really want to be going full force for a massive felon.

Paul Jay

OK, were going to end this here and do a part two and I dont know how many other parts, but were going to let this story unfold. And in the next part, Im going to start by asking Bill, a thousand prosecutions or more. Some people actually went to jail out of all this, and by 2007, 2008, as this whole subprime of the crisis that unfolds, another massive essentially financial fraud, the people involved are not very worried about going to jail. So why when so many people eventually did go to jail, do the next crop of these fraudsters seem absolutely unconcerned that this is going to come down on their heads. So well take that up in the next part with Bill. Thanks for joining us on theAnalysis.news. Thank you, Bill, and look out for part two of our series.
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Apple Patents a Way To Deliver 3D Content Without 3D Glasses Patently Apple. I find 3D hype particularly annoying, since all those products will do is give me a headache. I pray they dont become popular.

Facebook Loses Bid to Block Ruling on EU-U.S. Data Flows Wall Street Journal

Cashing Out Heisenberg Report:

Coming full circle, Rabobanks Every noted that Colonial [Pipeline] paid Russian hackers a ransom of $5 million IN CRYPTO, which could not make a clearer case for why the SEC might want to be step in.

Ireland defies hackers bitcoin demand over health system Financial Times

Class Warfare

Antidote du jour (furzy):

And a bonus (Chuck L, courtesy AnimalRescue):

Another bonus, from guurst. Another reader featured it in comments a few days back, so apologies for not giving you credit.

Snow leopard hunting pic.twitter.com/WwDQnRBA4I  Nature Is Cruel (@TheCrueINature) May 9, 2021

No snow leopards died in the making of this video :-)

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
While global health advocates applauded the Biden administrations recent decision to support waiving intellectual property protections for Covid-19 vaccines as critical, transformative, and unquestionably the right thing to do, Big Pharma took a decidedly less optimistic view of the move and has been hard at work behind the scenes in a bid to thwart the policy, a report published Friday by The Intercept revealed.

In a bid to stymie U.S. support for a proposal by India and South Africa to enact a Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) waiver at the World Trade Organization (WTO), the pharmaceutical industry is distributing talking points, organizing opposition, and even collecting congressional signatures in an attempt to reverse President Joe Bidens support for worldwide access to generic Covid-19 vaccines, according to The Intercepts Lee Fang.

We obtained emails showing PhRMA recruiting Sen. Tim Scott and around 30 House Republicans to lead a new charge against Biden to oppose sharing vaccine know-how with low-income countries.  Lee Fang (@lhfang) May 14, 2021

Fang obtained an email from Jared Michaud, a lobbyist with the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)a trade group whose clients include vaccine developers AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, and Pfizerdescribing how Big Pharma and sympathetic U.S. legislators are pushing lawmakers to oppose a TRIPS waiver.

The email explains that Reps. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.) and Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) are leading an unreleased letter to Bidenwhich currently has 29 co-signersexpressing concerns with the administrations support for waiving IP protections related to Covid-19 vaccines under the WTO TRIPS waiver.

We urge you to contact offices and ask them to sign onto this letter, said Michauds email.

The letter additionally claims that the TRIPS waiver would cost U.S. jobs and be a boon for China, which would profit from our innovation.

Michauds email contains talking points that paint the IP waiver as a national security threat that would irreversibly damage American innovators and the U.S. governments strategic engagement, while a separate document marked confidential claims that waiving intellectual property will undermine the global response to the pandemic and compromise vaccine safety.

According to Fang, The metadata for the document shows that the PDF document was created by Megan Van Etten, an international public affairs specialist for PhRMA.

Fang notes that PhRMA spent $24 million on lobbying at the federal level last year and is one of the biggest corporate players in election spending.

According to OpenSecrets, PhRMA has spent $8.7 million on lobbying so far this year. This, as client Pfizer has raked in $3.5 billion in profits from the sale of its Covid-19 vaccine in just the first three months of 2021.

The Biden administrations decision to support waiving intellectual-property protections for coronavirus vaccines is a big loss for Big Pharma, which ranked among the biggest spenders on Washington lobbying in Q1 of this year.https://t.co/OpTySjD1Yd  OpenSecrets.org (@OpenSecretsDC) May 7, 2021

The group has long shaped drug policy not only domestically but also in the international arena, writes Fang. PhRMA led the push in the late 1990s to pressure South African President Nelson Mandela to drop efforts to break patent laws and allow for the importation and manufacture of generic HIV/AIDS medications, which at the time cost an annual $10,000-$15,000 per patient.

Progressive U.S. lawmakers have taken Big Pharma and its lobbyists to task for their opposition to Covid-19 vaccine patent waivers.

Amid a global pandemic, major pharmaceutical companies are lobbying to protect billions in profits, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said in March following the U.S. Chamber of Commerces dismissal of the proposed TRIPS waiver as misguided.
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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The Nazis were obsessed with race. They suppressed dissent, controlled the dissemination of news and controlled culture. In 1933, the German Student Union started to burn books in an effort to align German arts and culture with Nazi ideas. Books of authors such as Hemingway, Helen Keller and Jack London were considered dangerous and had to be canceled. The students did not see themselves as suppressing culture; they saw themselves as advancing a just culture.

The first thing every totalitarian regime does, along with confiscation and mutilation of reality, is confiscation of history and confiscation of culture. I think they all happen almost simultaneously.  Iranian professor and author Azar Nafisi, whose book Reading Lolita in Tehran was canceled in Iran.

was canceled in Iran. What used to be unimaginable is now taking place in America. We see certain aspects of totalitarianism in the United States: the obsession with race, declaring an ethnic group collectively guilty, shaming, humiliations based on ethnicity, lootings, arson, racist violence, intimidation of opponents, cancel culture, controlled dissemination of news, and indoctrination of children in schools. We see fake news, conspiracy theories, an overhaul of history, a new language imposed, and unprosecuted theft. All in the name of a more just culture.

(Natural News) (Article by Evelyn Markus republished from GatestoneInstitute.org)

On May 8, 1945, men and women rushed to the streets of New York, London and Moscow to hug, kiss and dance. Germany had just surrendered. The war against Nazi Germany was over. The killing had stopped. A great evil had ended. Yet many had mixed feelings of joy and grief. More than 100,000 US soldiers had given their lives and almost another 450,000 had been wounded. In all, 15 to 20 million Europeans had been killed. May 8 is still celebrated in our times as Victory in Europe Day, or V-E Day.

In 1930, my father moved as a young boy from Holland to Germany with his parents and brothers. My grandfather hoped to earn some money there during the Great Depression. He said that nobody had foreseen what would develop in the next fifteen years. Until 1930, there were only a few hundred Nazi Stormtroopers (SA), or Brownshirts, in German streets intimidating voters, opponents and Jews. Many of the stormtroopers wanted socialism. In the following years, their number escalated quickly to thousands, and even hundreds of thousands. In 1933, when Hitler took power, there were two-to-three million SA Stormtroopers in Germany. It went amazingly fast, my grandfather always said.

The Nazis were obsessed with race. They suppressed dissent, controlled the dissemination of news and controlled culture. In 1933, the German Student Union started to burn books in an effort to align German arts and culture with Nazi ideas. Books of authors such as Hemingway, Helen Keller and Jack London were considered dangerous and had to be canceled. The students did not see themselves as suppressing culture; they saw themselves as advancing a just culture.

The intimidations by the Brownshirts peaked on Kristallnacht (The Night of Broken Glass). It was a night of looting, arson and public humiliation  solely on the basis of ethnicity. More than 90 Jews were murdered. Then the Blackshirts (SS entities) finished it off. That night, they brought tens of thousands of Jews to concentration camps.

Nazi officials disguised the organized nature of the pogrom. They described the actions as spontaneous and justifiable responses of the German population to the assassination by a Jew of a German diplomatic official, Ernst vom Rath, in Paris.

The government confiscated all insurance payouts to Jews whose businesses and homes had been looted or destroyed during Kristallnacht and blamed the Jews for the destruction. Soon, more Jewish property was confiscated and Jews got canceled from employment in the public sector and from most professions.

In an interview with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the Iranian professor and author Azar Nafisi, whose book Reading Lolita in Tehran was canceled in Iran, describes what took place:

The first thing every totalitarian regime does, along with confiscation and mutilation of reality, is confiscation of history and confiscation of culture. I think they all happen almost simultaneously.

What used to be unimaginable is now taking place in America. We see certain aspects of Nazi-like totalitarianism in the United States. The obsession with race, declaring an ethnic group collectively guilty, shaming, humiliations based on ethnicity, lootings, arson, racist violence, intimidation of opponents, cancel culture, controlled dissemination of news, and indoctrination of children in schools. We see fake news, conspiracy theories, an overhaul of history, a new language imposed, and unprosecuted theft. All in the name of a more just culture.

On May 8, we remember that America had a leading role in liberating Europe from the totalitarian Nazi regime. But who will liberate America if it becomes totalitarian state? America is playing with fire.

Read more at: GatestoneInstitute.org and Tyranny.news
(Natural News) Oh, those Nazis were very cunning, that is for sure. The Jews of Nazi Germany were not dumb, they just never saw it coming. Propaganda is a very powerful machine, and the psychology of sales was instrumental in wiping out half of all Jewish people on planet Earth. That was then. This is now:

The new scapegoat Jews are everyone who is choosing not to be vaccinated with the prion-creating Covid jabs, and our extermination is being called for in a happy-go-lucky fashion, with catchy little sayings about getting vaccinated that are published and printed on everything from coffee mugs and t-shirts, to bumper stickers and brainwashing buttons to wear on your lapel.

Thats right folks, no promotional campaign can stoop too low when it comes to vaccine promotion. Welcome to Nazi America, where chemical medicine (like the gas chambers) is promoted by the very citizens already sold on heading to the concentration camps for reeducation and full vaccination.

According to ad agencies, vax-infected sheeple are the best tool for reaching the goal of 100% American genocide via vaccine propaganda

A southeastern ad agency in the USA is working hard to help the vax-infected sheeple con the intelligent, researched people into getting jabbed with the deadly Covid vaccine series of shots.

Turning vaccinated community members into advocates is the header for the introduction to the mission of the ad agency pharma/vax shills. They claim that too many Americans, at least 40 million, are in the Ill wait and see category (yes, to see how many vaccinated people die in the next couple years from the vaccines).

More than 50 slogans have already been created and brandished on paraphernalia to help the vax-infected masses coerce and brainwash more vaccine-opponents into move forward with their own demise. You can use these yourself or ask the ad agency to paste them onto anything you like. No ask is too big. Want a tattoo on your forearm? Go for it!

Nazi-style vaccine propaganda being pushed across America right now

The pro-jab propaganda is off the chain. No holds barred. Heres what theyve got so far. While perusing through the slogans, see if you notice a striking similarity to Nazi Germany propaganda:

Vaxi Nation (Because according to the selected-for-termination sheeple, were all in this together)

Let Freedom Sting! (Because death is the opposite of freedom)

Baby Got Vax! (promoted genocide of babies)

Vax for Victory (V for Hitler)

Hug me! Im Vaccinated (to help the sheeple shed and spread disease)

Stick it to Covid (Reverse psychology)

The Lord of the Stings (playing into child psychology)

Vaxx to the Future (target those teens for the Auschwitz vax chambers)

Sting 1 and Sting 2 (for the sting operation of injecting neurotoxins in 300 million unsuspecting Americans)











Compare this VAX for Victory message with Nazi propaganda:

Talented creatives at ad agencies just want to help America be healthy. Thats all. They really care about everyone being safe. Sure. These Nazi-style promotional slogans will surely help the vaccinated start conversations with those darn non-vaxxers who keep using science to prove vaccines are deadly.

Get that one-on-one conversation going with somebody who doesnt like chemicals and human abortion cells injected into their muscle tissue, and let them know were all in this together, and that vaccines are for the greater good, even if a few million people already died just after getting them.

Tune your internet frequency to ChemicalViolence.com for updates on how vaccines ARE the pandemic. Dont get slow walked into the gas chambers of the vaccinated world of idiots. This time, you can see the death machine coming! Consider yourself informed. You too can outsmart the vaccine death cult. Stay informed. This has been a public service announcement from Natural News.

Sources for this article include:

Pandemic.news

ChemicalViolence.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) If you are concerned about those who have been vaccinated with the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) shedding spike proteins onto you through close contact, you will not want to miss the following episode of The Health Ranger Report.

In it, Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, talks to Jeffrey Prather of The Prather Point about pine needle tea, which is showing incredible promise as a remedy against vaccine shedding.

A constituent known as suramin that is found in pine needles has been shown to exhibit an inhibitory effect against various components of the coagulation cascade, as well as against the inappropriate replication and modification of RNA and DNA induced by Chinese Virus injection spike proteins.

Excessive coagulation causes blood clots, mini-clots, strokes, and unusually heavy menstrual cycles, explains an article from the blog site Ambassador Love about what these spike proteins that are shed from the vaccinated can do to others  sound familiar?

All of these symptoms are being observed in the recently vaccinated, it turns out. And evidence is growing to suggest that those who come in close contact with the recently vaccinated are also suffering these symptoms due to vaccine shedding.

Though you will never hear about it from the likes of Anthony Fauci, there are ways to minimize the impact of such exposure, and pine needle tea is one such option.

Pine needle tea is one of the most potent anti-oxidants there is and its known to treat cancer, inflammation, stress and depression, pain and respiratory infections, Ambassador Love explains. Pine tea also kills parasites.

Watch below to learn more about this powerful tea:

Arm yourself against dangerous Chinese Virus vaccine shedders

As explained by the Health Ranger, pine needle tea made from fresh pine needles is a natural remedy that has been used for centuries as protection against illness. It is loaded with vitamin C and other phytochemicals that Native Americans have used forever to treat respiratory infections and other ailments.

Pine needles also contain constituents that have been shown to reduce platelet aggregation in the blood, which can help prevent the deadly blood clots, heart attacks, and other side effects associated with Chinese Virus injections.

In addition to potentially protecting against the deadly spike protein component of the Chinese Virus injection, pine needle tea may also protect against other shedding particles that were designed to further along the global depopulation agenda.

Dr. Judy Mikovits claims that the globalists are already drinking pine needle tea to protect themselves against covid depopulation weapons, though they are obviously doing it in secret to not let the cat out of the bag. Unfortunately for them, we are letting it out for the benefit of our readers and viewers.

Boiling fresh pine needles in order to make a tea is an extraction method thats commonly used in food science as well as Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), says the Health Ranger.

Water acts as a solvent, and through heat and time, some phytochemicals in the pine needles are extracted into the water, making a pine needle tea. (This is how all tea is made.)

Another component of pine needles that the Health Ranger identified as a possible solution to vaccine shedding is shikimic acid, which is also found in Star Anise. Shikimic acid has been used for centuries to treat plagues and respiratory illnesses.

To learn more about the benefits of pine needle tea as well as how to make it, be sure to check out this article.

More related news about natural remedies to protect against Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccine shedding can be found at Natural.news.

Sources for this article include:

Brighteon.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) A doctor from the Philippines is defending the use of ivermectin for preventing and treating Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) infection despite attempts by the countrys regulatory authorities to restrict its use. In an interview with Philippine television station ABS-CBN, orthopedic surgeon and President of the Concerned Doctors and Citizens of the Philippines, Dr. Benigno Agbayani cited 80 clinical studies that show the anti-parasitic drug is 89 percent effective at preventing infection and 80 percent effective at treating COVID-19.

I think Ive read more than anyone on COVID-19, he said when questioned on his medical credentials. According to him, he spends several hours almost every day reading scientific literature pertaining to the coronavirus. Among the topics he has read the most about is the use of ivermectin against COVID-19.

Agbayani claims to have already prescribed the anti-parasitic drug to over 300 of his own patients with tremendous success. But he did not talk about his own patients during the interview. Instead, he highlighted the success rate reported by many studies, which, according to him, is what his recommendations are based on. (Related: FDA-approved anti-parasitic drug ivermectin can kill the coronavirus within 48 hours, reports new study.)

As much as anecdotal [pieces of evidence] are good  and we have many  I really prefer that we stick to the science, said Agbayani. People are trying to scare us from taking ivermectin. Its one of the safest drugs in the world.

You have over 26  as of today [April 11]  randomized controlled trials showing effectiveness, even as high as 89 percent for prevention, and as high as 80 percent for treatment, explained Agbayani. So, I think regardless of what the other groups are doing, you have so much science behind it, I do not see why we have to be so concerned.

As an example, Agbayani mentioned a Sept. 2020 study that found ivermectin can block the receptor sites of the virus on human cells. This can effectively prevent the virus from ever getting inside the cell.

Agbayani continued by saying there are over 80 clinical studies that examined ivermectins effectiveness against COVID-19. He believes these studies should be enough proof of ivermectins abilities. He continues to promote ivermectin both as a prophylactic and a treatment for people who test positive for COVID-19.

Philippine politicians provide free ivermectin, blocked by countrys FDA

Philippine congressman Mike Defensor wants to provide his constituents with free ivermectin. Unfortunately for him, the countrys Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not share Agbayanis enthusiasm for using ivermectin. The congressman has resorted to threatening legal action to allow the drug to be distributed as medicine for COVID-19. According to Rep. Defensor, his planned distribution of ivermectin is legally compliant.

I will fight them in court, he said in a press briefing when asked if he would bow to pressure from the FDA. If they will again stop this initiative, I will fight them in court. Because legally, we are compliant.

Defensors plan involves providing people with forms which will then be given to the doctors who will prescribe ivermectin. Once the prescription has been filled, it will be collected and sent to the licensed compounding laboratory.

The congressman claims it was the FDA itself that said licensed compounding pharmacies and laboratories are allowed to compound ivermectin as long as it has been prescribed by a doctor.

On two occasions during the hearings, they have said that this process is allowed, said Defensor. If they will stop this again and those who need it will not be given the drug, I will fight them in court.

The countrys FDA and the Department of Health (DOH) are trying to make it more difficult for people to get ivermectin.

On Tuesday, April 27, FDA Director-General Eric Domingo said that those wholl be receiving ivermectin need to be first checked by doctors and given proper prescriptions. The following day, DOH Undersecretary Ma Rosario Vergeire added that only hospitals who have been granted compassionate special permits will be allowed to prescribe ivermectin because the drug has not been registered with the FDA for human use in the country.

For the latest updates regarding effective coronavirus medications, visit Pandemic.news.

Sources include:

LifeSiteNews.com

NewsInfo.Inquirer.net
(Natural News) It now seems obvious that the Colonial Pipeline cyber attack was a deep state operation to further disrupt Americas economy and accelerate the engineered collapse. America is under full-blown attack from multiple vectors: Economic, biological weapons (vaccines), political (rigged elections), terraforming / geoengineering, food scarcity, and so on.

The goal is clear: The systematic dismantling of the United States of America, plunging it into chaos and collapse, all while invoking race wars, mass starvation, political unrest and widespread disease.

The pipeline takedown has thrust over 10,000 gas stations into gasoline outages, and this emergency is already interfering with trucking and truck deliveries of food, lumber and industrial materials.

Its also showing the shocking vulnerability of Americas computer-controlled infrastructure, because if a critical pipeline can be taken down so quickly due to remote sabotage, what other components of the U.S. infrastructure are already compromised and ready to be taken offline at a moments notice?

The answer is terrifying: It turns out that most of Americas power grid, banking institutions, energy sector operators and telecom providers are exposed to the internet and subject to being compromised. It also seems that anti-American globalists are already hinting at a coming grid down scenario that many believe will strike the United States this summer, turning into rolling blackouts that will impact many regions, further accelerating the economic destruction of America.

Todays Situation Update podcast is an urgent call to remove yourself from the grid as much as possible. Become self-reliant. Get redundant. Learn to survive without electricity. Because the power grid is targeted for the next takedown:

Brighteon.com/0863c907-d637-4da6-a0cc-c766f65bb182

Heres a 14-minute special report podcast offering a more in-depth analysis of the Colonial Pipeline takedown and what it means for the war on America:

Brighteon.com/61d5a294-035d-4303-b0f1-f1653ef8f732

Find a new podcast each weekday (plus lots of amazing interviews with Americas heroes) at:

https://www.brighteon.com/channels/hrreport
(Natural News) (The Center Square)  Californias wealthiest residents sought to purchase luxury homes in other states during the COVID-19 pandemic, if not leave the state entirely.

(Article by Cole Lauterbach republished from TheCenterSquare.com)

A report from realty company Coldwell Banker suggests many of their California-based home sellers saw their wealthy clients selling and heading for more tax friendly climates that may have fewer COVID-19 restrictions.

The annual review, released in late February, examined the buying and migration patterns of the countrys wealthiest people, with homes selling for as much as $75 million.

Real estate agents in California echoed those elsewhere in the U.S. that buyers are looking for more space and amenities such as pools and home offices. The difference, they said, is their clients are buying elsewhere.

The exodus is unlike anything Ive seen in my 28 years selling San Francisco real estate, with many younger people leaving for financial reasons, and affluent residents just feeling that it was time for a new life outside of the city, said Joel Goodrich of Coldwell Banker Realty in San Francisco.

Goodrich said residents who stayed in the state left for Napa, Sacramento and Lake Tahoe. The wealthy that left the state went to Washington, Nevada, Colorado, Florida and Arizona.

Californias current $75 billion budget surplus is partly attributed to the states reliance on high earners via its progressive income tax, which tops out at a marginal rate of 12.3%. Many of the states wealthy were able to work from home.

In Sacramento, a real estate agent said she had more sellers than ever before leaving California for states like Texas, Tennessee and Florida.

The story was the same in Los Angeles. The analysis said inventory growth outpacing sales suggests the areas wealthy were flocking to other states with lower tax burdens, citing Texas, Nevada, Arizona, Washington and Colorado.

One real estate agent from the area said the Phoenix metropolitan area is a big beneficiary of the California exodus, with more than half of her luxury buyers being from the Golden State.

We saw a significant uptick of buyers from the San Francisco Bay Area in 2020 and also from Seattle, said Debbie Frazelle, an agent in the affluent Paradise Valley area. Taxes are a big driver, but so are restrictive COVID-19 mandates.

Population loss is an ongoing trend in California. The 2020 U.S. Census revealed the states out-migration and low birth rates caused it to lose a member of Congress for the first time in the states history. A report from the California Department of Finance estimated the state lost more than 182,000 people in 2020.

Read more at: TheCenterSquare.com and CaliforniaCollapse.news
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The GST Council will meet on May 28 and is likely to discuss tax rates on COVID-related drugs, oxygen equipment and vaccines.

The meeting among other things is also likely to discuss the compensation mechanism for states' GST revenue shortfall for the ongoing fiscal which began on April 1.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will chair the 43rd GST Council meeting via video conferencing on May 28, 2021.

"The meeting will be attended by MOS Shri @ianuragthakur besides Finance Ministers of States & UTs and Senior officers from Union Government & States," Office of Nirmala Sitharaman tweeted.

Earlier this month, West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra and Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal had demanded that a virtual GST Council meeting be held.

The meeting of the Council is supposed to take place at least once every quarter of a financial year.

However, the panel has not met since October 5 last year.

Congress working president Sonia Gandhi had last month demanded that all life-saving drugs, equipment and instruments required to treat COVID-19 patients must be exempted from GST.

Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress has also made a similar demand.

Sitharaman had, however, ruled out exempting COVID vaccines, medicines and oxygen concentrators from GST saying such an exemption will make the lifesaving items costlier for consumers as manufacturers will not be able to offset the taxes paid on inputs.

Currently, domestic supplies and commercial imports of vaccines attract 5 per cent Goods and Services Tax (GST), while COVID drugs and oxygen concentrators attract 12 per cent levy.

The Centre had last fiscal year released Rs 70,000 crore to states on account of GST compensation.

This is over and above the Rs 1.10 lakh crore released to states under the special borrowing mechanism to compensate them for shortfall in the GST collection this financial year.

As much as Rs 63,000 crore worth compensation is still due to be paid for 2020-21 fiscal year which ended March 31, 2021.

The impact of second wave of the pandemic on GST revenue is likely to be taken into account in the forthcoming GST Council meeting on May 28.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: As the second Covid-19 wave continues to kill thousands and infect lakhs of people across the country, a handful of companies have gone the extra mile to support stricken employees and their family during this distressing phase.

Bajaj Auto said it will continue to pay salary for two years to the family of the employee who dies due Covid-19 as well as fund the education of the children of the deceased. The medical insurance that the company provides will also get extended by five years for the dependents, the Pune-based auto major said. These benefits are over and above other life insurance benefits it offers.

Payment of monthly salary of up to Rs 2 lakh per month for 24 months, education assistance for a maximum of two children of Rs 1 lakh per child per annum up to 12th standard and Rs 5 lakh per annum per child for graduation will be offered under the assistance policy. This support is applicable to all permanent employees retrospectively from April 1, 2020, Bajaj Auto clarified.

Earlier in May, Mumbai-based realty major Lodha Group and Borosil and Borosil Renewables rolled out a similar programme for its employees. The Mumbai-based glassware company said that the family of its employee who loses life due to Covid-19 will continue to receive the salary for the next two years, while Lodha promised to pay 12 months salary to the family of any of its associates who dies of Covid-19 while in the service of the firm.

FMCG major ITC said it will bear the medical expenses of employees who have been infected by the virus. The conglomerate has also extended a loan facility to employees to support medical treatment of certain family members owing to Covid-19 infection, who are otherwise not covered under the companys medical policy. Several corporates have also set up medical facilities for employees and commenced in-house vaccination drives.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Tenders are being finalised for the third and fourth corridor of Chennai Metro Rail with Larsen and Toubro planning to complete the 12 km underground stretch from Kellys Station to Taramani Road junction in approximately 52 months. Both the tenders are worth between Rs 2,500 to Rs 5,000 crore, spokesperson said.

According to a L&T release, the tender to construct 12 km twin bored tunnels from Kellys to Taramani Road Junction also involves construction of diaphragm walls of station box and entry and exit structures of Chetpet Metro, Royapettah Govt Hospital, Thiruvanmiyur Metro Stations and part diaphragm wall of Greenways Road Metro Station, including launching and retrieval shafts in these stations.

This underground Metro Rail tunnel package is a part of Corridor-III of CMRL Phase-II Metro Rail Project.

Similarly, L&T has bagged the order to construct approximately 8 km of elevated viaduct with nine elevated Metro Stations starting from Power House to Porur Junction. The elevated corridor includes 4 km of double deck construction. This elevated Metro Rail package is a part of Corridor 4 of CMRL Phase-II Metro Rail Project.

Interestingly, this comes in the wake of Chennai Metro Rail awarding Rs 1,147 crore contract for the construction of 7.95 km elevated viaduct section and nine elevated stations on Corridor 4 of phase II of the Chennai Metro to a joint venture between Hindustan Construction Company Ltd. (HCC) and KEC International Limited (KEC).

The cost of phase-2 project was reduced from Rs 89,000 crore to Rs 61,843 crore after CMRL made a number of cost cutting measures. Construction of the 118.9-km phase-2 was launched by Union home Minister Amit Shah in November 2020.

During the launch, former Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami requested Shah to intervene for early approval and Centres participation in the project with a 50:50 equity sharing model.
Steni Simon By

Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A few days back, a 12-year-old child who complained of diarrhoea and other symptoms such as fever was rushed to a paediatrician by his parents. After diagnosing the child, the paediatrician recommended routine stool examination and go for a rapid antigen test to check if the child had contracted COVID-19.

During the follow-up treatment, the paediatrician realised that the parents didnt go for an antigen test as the childs fever had come down and the child was feeling better. Many paediatricians say that parents are either delaying or they hesitate out of fear to do the RT-PCR tests even when a child shows symptoms of COVID-19.

Unlike during the first wave, the second wave of COVID is known to be affecting children more and many are coming up with symptoms such as fever, cold, dry cough, diarrhoea, vomiting, fatigue, body rashes, among other flu symptoms, while a few other children also have breathing difficulties.

The third wave of COVID-19 is likely to affect children more severely. Health experts warn parents to take extra precautions and look out for post-COVID complications in children for early intervention.

Experts speak

According to Dr Vidya Vimal, consultant paediatrician, GG Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram, SARS-CoV-2 has undergone mutations and the current strains have been infecting more people, especially children. "A reverse trend is being noticed in the second wave and more youngsters and children are getting infected," she said.

"Earlier, only 10 per cent cases of children getting infected were reported but now 30 per cent more children are getting infected in many states. Though only mild symptoms have been reported, children should be regularly tested for early detection of the virus," she added.

Dr Vidya says, "Post-COVID complications in children can be detected as early as two weeks or even eight weeks after contracting the infection. Parents should immediately consult a paediatrician on observing prolonged symptoms such as fever, vomiting and loose motion. The multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C) is being commonly found in children aged above 12 years but with early detection, the fatality can be reduced."

Besides COVID-19 infection, the health experts have also raised concerns on other infections such as dengue which is being seen in children. The paediatrician also highlighted that, currently, there are hardly three intensive care units for children in Thiruvananthapuram district functioning at private hospitals and if the need arises, efforts should be made to ramp up medical infrastructure to treat COVID-infected children in government hospitals too.

Dr Vidya says, "Tele-consultations have been made available for parents and more awareness is being created so that follow-up screening of children for post-COVID complications is done. More than eight teleconsultation sessions are done for children in a day."

Of late, children are being tested with different variants and this has led to rising infection rate in the age group of 0 to 15. "As the children stay with their parents, their exposure to viruses is inevitable. However, only mild symptoms have been reported in children," said Dr A Santhosh Kumar, former Kerala Medical Board chairman.

"It is advisable for parents to strictly follow the vaccination schedule of their babies since studies show that COVID-19 vaccine can be administered to children only above 15. Mobile care units need to be opened and more paediatricians should check for early diagnosis of post-COVID complications in children so that a dangerous situation can be avoided," he added.

Vaccine trials among children

Meanwhile, the Drugs Controller General of India has finally approved Bharat Biotech to conduct Covaxins Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials among children in the two-18 age group. As part of this, clinical trials will be conducted on 525 healthy volunteers below 18 years of age.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on Saturday will interact with health ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat via video conferencing to review the COVID-19 situation and the progress of the vaccination drive in these states.

"At 3 PM today, I'll be holding a VC with Health Ministers of #UttarPradesh, #AndhraPradesh, #MadhyaPradesh & #Gujarat to review current #COVID19 situation & progress of #COVID19Vaccination drive in their respective States.", tweeted Harsh Vardhan.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also chaired a high-level meeting on the country's coronavirus situation and the ongoing vaccination drive today.

As many as 3,26,098 new COVID-19 cases, 3,53,299 discharges and 3,890 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry

The number of total cases stands at 2,43,72,907, including 2,04,32,898 recoveries, 2,66,207 deaths, and 36,73,802 active cases.

A total of 18,04,57,579 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in the country so far.

The Union Health Ministry on Friday informed that the national recovery rate is 83.50 per cent.

12 States including Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana cumulatively account for 79.7 per cent of India's total active cases, the ministry had said. (ANI)
By Online Desk

Sunil Jain, Managing Editor of Financial Express, passed away on Saturday owing to post-covid complications. He was 58.

Jain's sister Sandhya took to Twitter to confirm the news of her brother's demise.

"We lost my brother Sunil Jain this evening to Covid+its complications. Doctors+staff at AIIMS battled heroically, but the demon was too powerful. May Tirthankaras guide his onward journey; deep gratitude to all who stood by us in these darkest days...," Sandhya wrote.

We lost my brother Sunil Jain this evening to Covid+its complications. Doctors+staff at AIIMS battled heroically, but the demon was too powerful. May Tirthankaras guide his onward journey; deep gratitude to all who stood by us in these darkest days @drharshvardhan @rajivtuli69  Sandhya Jain (@vijayvaani) May 15, 2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi too expressed grief on his passing.

"You left us too soon, Sunil Jain. I will miss reading your columns and hearing your frank as well as insightful views on diverse matters. You leave behind an inspiring range of work. Journalism is poorer today, with your sad demise. Condolences to family and friends. Om Shanti," the PM tweeted.

You left us too soon, Sunil Jain. I will miss reading your columns and hearing your frank as well as insightful views on diverse matters. You leave behind an inspiring range of work. Journalism is poorer today, with your sad demise. Condolences to family and friends. Om Shanti.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 15, 2021

Jain began his journalistic career as a reporter with India Today magazine in 1991 and then went on to become its Business Editor. He then moved on to covering economy and business-related stories for the Indian Express for six years.

Post his stint at Business Standard, he returned as the Assistant Editor of the Financial Express.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Saturday suggested involvement of major vaccine manufacturing companies to speed up production of COVID-19 vaccines and re-hiring of recently retired nursing and paramedical staff to undertake the inoculation drive on a "mission mode" across the country.

The former union health minister also suggested improving oxygen availability and strengthening the field infrastructure by optimum use of pre-fabricated beds and units to set up additional health facilities and vaccination sites.

Azad, who was recently nominated as the head of a 13-member Congress party task force to coordinate COVID-19 relief, made the four suggestions in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan and expressed hope that these "constructive suggestions" would be considered positively.

Highlighting the shortage of the vaccine, human resource, infrastructure and oxygen, he said his suggestions are meant to further supplement the efforts being made by both central and state governments, different organisations and extraordinary contribution by frontline workers including doctors and security forces.

"I am given to understand that there are 21 major vaccine manufacturing pharmaceutical companies in the country.

All of these pharmaceutical companies have state of the art manufacturing facilities compliant to bio-safety norms.

"In fact, seven of them reportedly are WHO pre-qualified manufacturers/suppliers.

Two of such reputable vaccine manufacturers: M/s Serum Institute of India (SII) and M/s Bharat Biotech are manufacturing COVISHIELD and COVAXIN, respectively.

It is now apparent that despite their utmost efforts, they are hard pressed to meet the national requirements," Azad said.

He said with current production capacities and the rate of supply, it may take until the third quarter of 2022 to achieve the desired levels of vaccination.

Azad said while it is understood that the COVISHIELD vaccine is being produced by SII under patent licensing arrangement with Astra Zeneca and Dr Reddy's Lab has lately been licensed to manufacture the SPUTNIK vaccine, "we can surely augment" the production of domestically developed COVAXIN.

"I believe Department of Biotechnology and ICMR have supported the development of the vaccine now being produced by M/s Bharat Biotech.

It may be worthwhile to have them share the technology with, if not all, the remaining WHO pre-qualified pharmaceutical companies.

This will immediately increase the production of COVAXIN manifold thereby instantly improving vaccination coverage," he said.

Referring to skilled human resource, he said as the then Union health minister, one of his focus areas during 2009-2014 was to increase the availability of health human resource.

He said the advisory to engage final year medical students, residents appearing for PG examinations, and nursing students graduates is welcome.

"While this measure will add to the nationwide effort to vaccinate the maximum number in the shortest time.

we may still be short of the required numbers of nursing and paramedical staff for reaching the large unvaccinated population in all corners of the country," he said, adding "due to such shortage, we are unable to increase the numbers of our vaccination sites to desired levels, particularly in rural and remote areas.

" The Congress leader said along with nursing graduates, the government may consider re-hiring recently retired nursing and paramedical staff for six months to one year on payment of the last drawn pay minus pension.

He said many PSA oxygen plants have been installed in the country, many are in pipeline and several more have now been sanctioned.

"These must be installed utilizing the various agencies at the disposal of the government expeditiously and certainly within the specified period."

Azad said nations across the world and development agencies have stepped forward in this time of need with oxygen and oxygen equipment.

"These must be distributed proportionately and with a sense of urgency to reach the end use point(s)."

In order to quickly provide the huge numbers of beds and hospitals needed, he said "we could make optimum use of pre-fabricated beds and units to set up additional health facilities and vaccination sites."

To manufacture the prefabricated beds, he said "we can rope in micro & small-scale enterprises, entrepreneurs, NGOS and CSOs.

Similarly prefabricated units can be manufactured quickly by our medium scale enterprises to enable the setting up of field hospitals and vaccination sites.

Utilising our available technologies and capacities, we should be able to significantly upgrade our field infrastructure with a fortnight to month."

ALSO WATCH:
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday called for a national vaccine strategy and claimed that the government's "disastrous" inoculation policy will "ensure a devastating third wave" in the country.

He also accused the prime minister of making "mother Ganga cry" after bodies of suspected coronavirus victims were found floating in the river.

"The Government of India's (GOI's) disastrous vaccine strategy will ensure a devastating third wave. It can't be repeated enough - India needs a proper vaccine strategy," he said on Twitter.

GOIs disastrous vaccine strategy will ensure a devastating third wave.



It cant be repeated enough- India needs a proper vaccine strategy!  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 15, 2021

Tagging media reports claiming that over 2,000 bodies have been found in 1140 km area along the Ganga, he alleged, "One who used to say 'Ganga' has called him has made Mother Ganga cry."

Gandhi and the Congress have been attacking the prime minister and his government over its vaccine strategy and handling of the pandemic.

In yet another tweet, Gandhi appealed to people to stay safe after cyclone Tauktae warning was issued by the government in many states.

He also appealed to Congress workers to provide all assistance to those in need.

"May 15 Cyclone Alert has been issued in Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka. Cyclone Tauktae is already causing heavy rains in many areas.

"I appeal to Congress workers to provide all possible assistance to those in need. Please stay safe," he said on Twitter.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: India needs to restore deterrence if it wants to stop China from attempting to nibble at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and changing its status quo, noted strategic affairs expert and former National Security Adviser and foreign secretary Shivshankar Menon said on Saturday.

In an online discussion, he said making noises or building some international coalition in response to what China has been doing will be ineffective and India needs to strengthen itself along the LAC to make sure that the neighbouring country is not able to change the situation in its favour.

"The answer is not making noise or building some international coalition or passing resolution at the UN. To my mind (it) is ineffective. If you want to stop them from nibbling at the LAC and changing the status quo, you need to restore deterrence which we did partially around Pangong in August. You need to restore it across the line," he said.

Menon, whose book 'India and Asian Geopolitics: Past, Present and Future' has just been released, was replying to a question at the discussion organised by the Indian Women's Press Corps.

He also called for a broader vision of India's relationship with China.

"If we are saying peace and tranquillity is an essential condition for the rest of the relationship, then how do you explain the fact that in 2020, China again became your biggest trading partner overtaking the US which has been your number one trading partner in 2019.

How do you explain the first quarter of this year, where trade has boomed between you and China, maybe because of medical supplies and the outrageous prices they are charging, whatever it is," Menon said.

The former NSA also said that problem arises when attempts are made to spin the issues.

"The problem is when we start spinning these issues when we play them for domestic politics when we start telling lies about what is happening, what is not happening. Then you cannot deal with it effectively on the ground. Then it becomes very difficult," he said.

He said there was a need to think about how far India can economically decouple itself from China and what it is going to do to strengthen itself on the LAC to make sure that China cannot keep changing the situation in its favour whenever it suits it.

Asked whether the perception of India's mishandling of the second wave of the coronavirus crisis will have an impact on its image, Menon said it was not possible now to gauge if there would be any long-term impact.

"I do not know about the long-term impact. I do not think we can say anything yet. But it certainly means that people will not rely on you to some extent," he said.

On what should be India's foreign policy priorities, Menon said it must focus on consolidating relations with countries in the neighbourhood as also in the Indian Ocean region which included Southeast Asian nations.

"You have to be much more with your neighbours, especially when the world is getting more and more chaotic, more and more fractious, much more difficult," he said.

In that context, he also mentioned that walking away from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) was a "huge mistake" by India.

In November 2019, India pulled out of the RCEP over unresolved core concerns saying the pact in its current form would have an adverse impact on the lives and livelihoods of all Indians.

"So this idea that we can cut off from the word and we are a world unto ourselves; we have so much demand at home and we will run ourselves; for me, that's crazy thinking," Menon said, adding there could have been many ways to deal with the issue.

To a question, whether domestic politics was driving foreign policy he suggested that it has been the case always.

"If you have a domestic politics which is clear about the kind of India you want and the kind of world you want to enable that India; then it is much easier to deal with the world and the world also knows what to do with you," he said.

"They also know what to expect from you and at least for a very long time, we had a very clear view where democracy we were building as a secular, modern democratic country of our own and that is what we would like the world to be a democratic place where laws applied, which is peaceful, and therefore, enabled the rise of India," Menon said.

He said India was a very active participant in the international processes and that it had a very clear view of its role in the world and what kind of world it wanted.

The former foreign secretary also cited examples of how neighbouring countries like Nepal and Sri Lanka looked up to India in drawing inspiration.

"That's stopped; why, because you are not clear what kind of India you are building up.

You are busy arguing about that among yourselves.

And the India that they see some people are arguing for in India is not very attractive to your own neighbours.

So the power of example today no longer works.

"So, it is not just, oh, we dragged domestic politics into our foreign policy, it is the kind of domestic politics we have dragged into our foreign policy that makes the trouble," he said.

Asked about the escalation in the conflict between Israel and Palestine, he said the problem is that Israeli politics were in a very complicated state.

He said there is a real risk of further deterioration of the ground situation because of the nature of Israeli politics with the ambition of individual politicians wanting to look more heroic than their rivals.

On the Quad or Quadrilateral coalition comprising India, the US, Australia and Japan, Menon said New Delhi has significant interests in ensuring freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and it must seize the available options considering its strategic interests.

He said if the Quad serves some of India's interests, then it should go for it.
Sumi Sukanya Dutta By

Express News Service

Dr Priya Sampathkumar is an infectious disease specialist at the highly-regarded Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, USA. In an interview with The New Indian Express, she talks of the missteps most countries have made, the steps needed to prevent a potential third wave from turning as destructive as the second and how 'Covid treatment is not that complex'. Excerpts...

What are your thoughts on the massive healthcare crisis that has arisen due the second Covid-19 wave in India? What implications could this crisis in India have for other countries?

The second wave in India is stressing the system to an incredible extent and in so many ways. Patients have been unable to access care because hospitals have been overwhelmed. Outcomes in hospitals have been poor because doctors and nurses are overwhelmed and there is inadequate supply to treat these huge numbers of patients. There has been a lack of medicines, lack of equipment, lack of ventilators and even hospital beds. Finally, the most critical crisis has been the lack of oxygen. You don't have time to acquire oxygen when a patient is critically ill. In the long term, there is going to be an issue of burnout of healthcare workers and mental health issues, as they are losing patients with potentially preventable deaths. Also, India does not exist in a vacuum. Its borders are fairly porous. The surge in India is definitely going to spread to other countries. And in neighbouring countries, the healthcare system is not even as good as in India. What is happening in India will have a huge impact on other countries.

How do you see the administration's role in handling the crisis in India? What could the governments have done better but didn't?

Covid took the entire world by surprise and all over the world, governments were not prepared for this, neither was the public. Therefore, there were missteps in most countries. These included, one, underestimating the problem and two, in not messaging the problem adequately. This has not been unique to India but all over the world.

ALSO READ | Covid second wave is nearing its peak: Noted virologist Dr T Jacob John

At one point, the US, too, was reporting a high number of daily infections and deaths. How do you compare the crisis management by these two countries, even though there are vast differences in terms of resources?

This time last year, when the US was having its surges, we had the same sort of situation in New York. There were a huge number of cases, the health system was completely overwhelmed and the death rate was very high because healthcare workers could not take care of patients adequately.

The difference between India and the US was one of scale. The initial surge in the US was confined to New York, so it was possible to shift resources from other parts of the country to help New York deal with the situation. Then there was a time in the US with lockdowns and universal masking policies, and all the regions and states were able to prepare and none of the other surges were ever as bad as New York because of preparations that medical institutions and state governments took to get ready for this.

In India, everything is on a much larger scale because of the huge population and far lesser per capita hospital beds as compared to the US. It is very hard to scale up medical preparation and really prepare for dealing with Covid when over 1.3 billion are potentially at risk of infection.

Do you have any advice for policymakers in India for the country's vaccination drive? How crucial do you think vaccination is in the world's fight against the pandemic?

Vaccination is very important in the fight against the pandemic and the current crisis in India is not just one country's problem, as cases will spread around the world if it's not controlled in India. Vaccination may not have an immediate impact, but in order not to have a third surge and not to have ongoing lockdowns, vaccination is very important.

I think for a country as large as India, we need a different model of vaccination from the one used in the US. Registrations and appointments are not feasible to rapidly get a very large number of people vaccinated. We need door-to-door vaccinations. And of course, we need the international community to step up and deliver vaccines to India because although the country has the capacity, it might take a few months and vaccines are needed now.

Do you see a third wave of this pandemic as a possibility? If yes, what do you think can be done to prepare for it?

If we appropriately carry out public health messaging on how pandemics behave and send out the right messages, which are fairly simple, and on top of that carry out an aggressive vaccination programme, it will go a long way in preventing a third wave. But while we need to work on prevention, we also need to prepare as people's behaviour is unpredictable and cannot be fully relied upon. So, you do need to prepare and raise medical capacity and train healthcare workers to recognise cases early and instituting measures at population level to prevent spread. Finally, make sure you have enough supplies including lifesaving things like steroids and oxygen. That way even if there is a third wave, mortalities can be reduced.

ALSO READ | Covid pandemic: Let us look at ourselves too

Will you offer any advice to healthcare workers who are trying hard to save lives despite a severe resource crunch?

What I would say to them is, it is easy to get overwhelmed and say that you need high tech things to treat and prevent Covid. But people just need to step back and look at the tools they have on hand. If you treat people early, you can prevent the disease from progressing to a stage when a patient needs ICU care. Covid treatment is not that complex and I will lay it out here.

Most of the people with Covid will recover fully without any treatment, with just symptomatic treatment, with things like paracetamol. A small proportion of people will progress to needing oxygen and it's important to reach to healthcare providers quickly and get the oxygen and get the medication that is lifesaving - dexamethasone - and if it's not available, there are other steroids that will work. In addition, just good hospital care, proning (lying on stomach) are lifesaving measures. Beyond that, there are very few medicines that you need and a very limited role for these medications.

Certain treatments that are widely used currently are definitely not useful at all. Ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine, fabiflu, azithromycin, doxycycline do not help at all and potentially can be harmful. There are other categories of medications such as vitamins and zinc that again are not going to make a big impact but are at least not harmful.

There is also a question of timing of medicine. So steroids are very useful when a patient has low oxygen levels but that does not mean that steroids taken early in the course of illness will help. Also, steroids taken for a prolonged period are harmful.

For doctors, I would suggest using a reliable source of information and one such source is covidindiatreatment.com. Treatment of Covid does not need to be resource-intensive if you treat early. So good public health, telling patients to stay home when they don't need to go to hospitals and then having a plan on how you will approach patients in hospitals is what you need. You don't need fancy equipment and training and anybody with basic training can take care of Covid-19 patients, provided they have the right information at their fingertips.

ALSO WATCH: India's COVID situation hugely concerning, says WHO | Expert Talk
By Express News Service

KOLKATA: West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday visited Nandigram Assembly constituency, from where CM Mamata Banerjee was defeated by BJPs candidate Suvendu Adhikari, and he broke down into tears while giving his reaction to media.

Wiping out tears with a handkerchief, Dhankhar said he never heard of such post-poll violence.

"Where have I come? I cant believe what I have experienced. Democracy never allows such violence. I never heard of such violence after elections," said Dhankhar at Nandigrams Kendamari.

Dhankhar arrived in Nandigram in a BSF helicopter and visited the areas where post-poll violence unleashed by the ruling Trinamool Congress took place. "It is time when we cant sleep over, such a great challenge to our state. We are sitting on a volcano where people are forced to leave their houses, they are being subjected to all kind of indignities, killings, rapes, loots and extortion tax. I would appeal to the chief minister, it is high time she took note of it. Millions of people are suffering," Dhankhar further said.

On Thursday, Dhankhar visited Sitalkuchi in north Bengal where four persons were gunned down by central forces on an election day and the following day, he went to Assam to meet those who fled Bengal and took refuge there.

After his visit, the governor, who has been at loggerheads with Mamata Banerjee since he assumed office in 2019, tweeted: "After listening to tales of sorrow no tears left in my eyes. Never imagined severity of post poll retributive violence."

Reacting to Dhankhars Nandigram visit, TMC MP and spokesperson Saugata Roy, said, "No one takes him seriously. People in Bengal have understood that he is misusing his position and crossing constitutional limits."
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday called for augmenting healthcare resources in rural areas to focus on door to door testing and surveillance, and asserted that localised containment strategies are the need of the hour, especially in states with high positivity rate in districts.

Chairing a high-level meeting, Modi said states should be encouraged to report their COVID-19 numbers transparently "without any pressure of high numbers showing adversely on their efforts", remarks that come amid reports that many states have been under-reporting their case and fatality tallies.

Modi also directed that a distribution plan for ensuring oxygen supply in rural areas should be worked out, including through provision of oxygen concentrators, a statement from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said.

He said necessary training should be provided to health workers in the operation of such equipment, and power supply should be ensured for smooth operation of such medical devices, it said.

Unlike the first wave of COVID-19 cases last year when rural India was not badly hit, the region has been seriously affected by the second wave in several states.

ALSO READ: West Bengal announces complete lockdown from May 16-30 to curb Covid-19 spread

Prime Minister Modi sought empowering ASHA and anganwadi workers with all necessary tools.

Testing needs to be scaled up further, with use of both RT-PCR and rapid tests, especially in areas with high test positivity rates, he added.

The PMO noted that testing has gone up rapidly in the country, from around 50 lakh tests per week in early March to around 1.3 crore tests per week now.

Modi was briefed about the gradually decreasing test positivity rate and increasing recovery rate, it said, adding that cases had gone over four lakh per day and are now coming down as a result of the efforts of healthcare workers, state governments and the central government.

Officials gave a detailed presentation on the state and district level situation of COVID-19 testing, oxygen availability, healthcare infrastructure and vaccination roadmap.

ALSO READ: India's Covid-19 recoveries outnumber new cases; active infections down by 31,091

The prime minister also took serious note of some reports about ventilators lying unutilised in storage in some states and directed that an immediate audit of installation and operation of ventilators provided by the central government be carried out.

He added that refresher training for properly operating ventilators should be provided to healthcare workers if necessary, the PMO said.
By Express News Service

KOLKATA: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has lashed out at the BJP over its decision to open the partys doors to the turncoats from the Trinamool Congress without studying their popularity among the voters of the state.

Analysing the saffron camps dismal performance in the recently-held Assembly elections in West Bengal, the RSS, in its mouthpiece, Organiser, also listed the Centres mismanagement of the Covid-19 crisis and the effectiveness of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjees welfare schemes as the reasons for the saffron camps defeat in Bengal.

The RSS, in a two-day workshop held in March in Ahmadabad, had opposed BJPs decision to welcome TMC turncoats. The partys national leadership did not pay heed to the RSS objections back then, a senior leader of the saffron camps West Bengal chapter said.

An article published in the Organiser, titled Bad Experiments in Bengal, said, The beneficiaries created by TMC through different schemes, some BJPs wrong steps like welcoming TMC leaders without judging their strength and impact of Covid-19 on last two phases (of the elections) resulted in such decimated performance.

The RSS also pointed out the vote swing from the fold of all key parties, including the BJP, Left Front, and Congress, in favour of Mamata caused a blow to the BJPs expectations. Only 2% reduced vote share of BJP and 5% votes of Congress+Left shifting to TMC made all the difference, the article said.

The RSS mouthpiece also criticised the BJP for not effectively managing the support from SC/ ST communities. There are four major districts where BJP did not get a single seat like in Jhargram (4 seats), South 24 Pargana (31 seats), Purba Bardhaman (16 seats), and Kolkata (11 seats). In Jungle Mahal area where there are total 51 seats, BJP got only 17 seats.

It clearly shows that BJP did not manage effectively the support of SC and ST. From the Matua community also, the BJP did not get full support and it is still a matter of research how this community voted but it is certain, every community gave the priority of benefits received from TMC overall caste and religion-based appeals. It is only the Jalpaiguri region where BJP performed well, got 21 seats out of total 27 seats.

The report noted that the pandemic may have affected the BJPs performance in the last two phases. BJP performed poorly in last two phases, maybe due to Covid-19 pandemic. If we compare with 2019 situations, there are 65 seats where BJP won in both elections, 12 seats where BJP lost in 2019 but won in 2021 but 56 seats where BJP won in 2019 and now lost in 2021.
By PTI

PALGHAR: Police have arrested a 'tantrik' and one more person after conducting a raid at a house in Palghar district of Maharashtra, where people had gathered in large numbers in anticipation of getting cured, officials said on Saturday.

The raid was conducted on Friday noon at the house located in Satkor village of Vikramgad tehsil, they said.

Police said they collected a fine of Rs 12,500 from 25 persons, who had assembled there, for not wearing face-masks.

"Based on a tip-off, the district rural police raided the house and found that some superstitious practices were on there. Around 50 people, including women, were present at the spot," an official said.

Those present at the house were found violating the COVID-19 regulations as they neither maintained social distancing nor wore masks, police said.

During the raid, several people escaped from the spot, but police managed to nab 27 persons, including the 'tantrik' and the owner of the house.

The duo was later arrested.

People from places including Bhiwandi, Manor, Saphala, Wada, Murbad and Vikramgad had assembled at the house.

Authorities conducted rapid antigen test on 27 people, which revealed that they were not infected.
Sumi Sukanya Dutta By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The government on Saturday insisted that the decision to increase the gap between two doses of Covishield to 12-16 weeks was based purely on scientific data and also reiterated that Covaxin production will be raised to 10 crore doses per month soon.

VK Paul, member (health) Niti Aayog and the head of the country's national Covid-19 task force, said in a briefing on the pandemic status that the narrative that the gap between two doses of Covishield has been raised owing to the scarcity of vaccines is "saddening".

"I am pleading to all of you with folded hands to put these controversies to rest," he said and added the argument that the decision was taken under some kind of pressure trivialises the matter.

"Our scientific institutions comprise independent scientists. The National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization is a standing committee that guided the country in the past - on rotavirus and several other immunization policies. Scientists of this panel deliberate and then come to a consensus," he said.

Paul added that India earlier did not go for the gap of 12 weeks, despite a decision by the UK to do so, as there was no evidence on its effectiveness back then and the country's scientific body did not recommend it thinking that there could be a risk of breakthrough infections.

"Just a single dose and delayed second dose could make the chance of infection higher. When clinical trials of the vaccine were conducted, the standard protocol was to administer the two doses in a gap of four to six weeks. Somewhere there was a breach in the protocol and there was a delay in administering the second dose," said Paul.

ALSO READ | Extended gap between two doses of Covishield reasonable approach': Fauci advises India to speed up vaccination efforts

"This breach should not have happened, but it happened. After analysis, it was found that delaying the second dose did not make any difference. But that was not considered robust evidence to extend the gap between the doses," he explained.

On the rationale behind the change of stance now, Paul said that that there is real-life evidence from lakhs of people in the UK, showing that a gap of 12 weeks reduces the risk of infection by 60-85% and also reduces the risk of transmission. "So now we got the confidence to implement the gap."

It was also reiterated in the briefing that while 1.5 crore doses of Covaxin are being manufactured in India as of now, this number will go up to 10 crore months very soon.

ALSO READ | Think out of the box to scale up Covaxin production

Bharat Biotech, said Paul, will start manufacturing 7.5 crore doses every month from August and will further raise it to 10 crore doses. The total Covaxin production, according to him, will go up to 13 crore doses per month once the three public-sector undertakings that have entered into a tie-up with Bharat Biotech for production scale-up start rolling out the vaccines.
By PTI

CHANDIGARH: Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Saturday criticised his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath over his tweet on the declaration of Malerkotla as a district of the state, terming it is an attempt to incite "communal hatred".

Contrasting the communal harmony in Punjab with the "divisiveness" being promoted by the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh, Singh asked the former to stay out of his state's affairs as they are in much better shape than those in UP.

"Any distinction on the basis of belief and religion is contrary to the basic spirit of the Constitution of India. Presently, the formation of Malerkotla (Punjab) is a reflection of the divisive policy of the Congress," Adityanath had tweeted earlier in Hindi.

The UP chief minister's tweet came a day after the Punjab CM announced the creation of a new district of Malerkotla, carving the state's only Muslim-majority town from Sangrur district.

"What does he (Yogi Adityanath) know of Punjab's ethos or the history of Malerkotla, whose relationship with Sikhism and its Gurus was known to every Punjabi? And what does he understand of the Indian Constitution, which is being brazenly trampled every day by his own government in UP," asked the Punjab CM in a strong-worded reaction.

Mocking the UP chief minister's comment, Singh said given the Yogi Adityanath government and the BJP's track record of spreading "communal hate", such a remark was utterly ridiculous, apart from being totally unwarranted and uncalled for.

"The whole world knows of the communally divisive policies of the BJP, and particularly the Yogi Adityanath government in UP," he said in a statement here.

Pointing to the "spate of changes in names of various UP cities", including Mughal Sarai to Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Nagar, Allahabad as Prayagraj and Faizabad as Ayodhya, he dubbed it an "attempt by the Yogi government to rewrite history", which the peace-loving people of India will never condone.

Citing media reports, Singh recalled that UP was the first state in the country to approve "love jihad laws, and Yogi Adiyanath's "open hatred" for the Taj Mahal (which he sees as a legacy of the Mughals) has been the subject matter of criticism in international press.

In fact, the UP chief minister is reportedly the founder of Hindu Yuva Vahini, an organisation that was responsible for starting cow vigilantism, which led to lynching of Muslims in his own state, Singh pointed out.

It was obvious that the tweet of the UP government head on Malerkotla was nothing but a provocative gesture aimed at creating "communal hatred" among the communities living in perfect harmony in Punjab, the chief minister said.

He termed it a "conspiracy on the part of the BJP to spread disharmony" in Punjab ahead of the assembly elections, which are just months away.

"But the UP chief minister seems to have forgotten that his own state is also going to the polls at the same time and if the recent panchayat poll results are any indication, the BJP is in for a complete and shocking rout," he quipped.

Adityanath should focus his energies on saving his own state, where the COVID situation is spirally out of control, with bodies of the victims of the pandemic being found dumped in rivers, thus depriving them of even the dignity of a decent cremation/burial, Singh said.

"A chief minister who cannot protect even the basic human rights of his state's people and allows them to be treated with such shocking disrespect has no moral right to continue in office, leave alone comment on the functioning of another state government," the Punjab chief minister added.

Meanwhile, BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh said the Amarinder government's decision to create Malerkotla as a new district in Punjab was "administratively an imprudent and politically a communal decision".

In a statement, Chugh said at a time when the state was reeling under heavy debt and the economy stood crippled, the decision to create a new district which would involve an added burden of at least Rs 1,000 crore annually on the state exchequer looked purely "imprudent and injudicious" decision.
By Express News Service

KURNOOL/VIJAYAWADA: Tension prevailed at Andhra Pradesh-Telangana border in Kurnool and Krishna districts on Friday with Telangana police disallowing ambulances carrying Covid-19 patients into the neighbouring State. Family members of some Covid patients entered into an argument or pleaded with the Telangana police to let their ambulances go to Hyderabad.

A total of 60 ambulances were stopped at the toll plaza since Thursday midnight and of them, 12 were carrying Covid patients who were in various stages of severity. Unconfirmed reports claimed two Covid patients, one from Kadapa and another from Nandyal had died due to undue delay at the toll plaza. However, Kurnool police clarified they had verified the reports and no such deaths happened.

The Andhra Pradesh government impleaded in a house motion petition filed in the Telangana High Court against a circular issued by the Telangana government barring entry of ambulances from AP. Taking serious note of the issue, the Telangana High Court issued an interim stay on the circular issued by the Telangana government and adjourned the case hearing to June 17.

However, Telangana police refused to allow ambulances at the inter-state borders till 9 pm stating that they were yet to receive orders from higher officials on the High Court stay. A few ambulances with Covid patients waiting at Pullur toll plaza in the hope that the court order will force the police to reopen the border, were pushed into crisis when oxygen supply started depleting.

On knowing about the crisis, Kurnool Superintendent of Police Fakeerappa Kaginelli immediately brought oxygen cylinders from the police hospital in Kurnool and connected them to two patients, who were running out of oxygen supply. The situation at AP-Telangana border is yet to ease. Ambulances are still detained at the border, the SP said giving an update on the situation at 8 pm. Finally, Telangana police opened the border for ambulances at 9 pm.

Earlier in the day, despite pleas by family members of patients, Telangana police did not allow them to enter Telangana. We are taking my husband to Hyderabad for emergency treatment. He is on ventilator support and his pulse is dropping and needs urgent medical attention. Please save him. I have requested them to allow us, but they (Telangana police) are adamant, said a Muslim woman, pleading media to help her take her husband to Hyderabad.

The ambulance carrying her husband was at the toll plaza from 5 am. Her family members said they got a bed allotted in a private hospital in Hyderabad, but police are not listening. They are not even allowing those with bed confirmation letters from hospitals in Hyderabad, her family members said. Veera Reddy S, who was taking his father to Hyderabad for treatment, tweeted to Telangana Minister KT Rama Rao to help him as his fathers ambulance was stopped.

My father with Covid symptoms) is waiting at the Telangana border toll gate and we have a reserved bed in Hyderabad hospital. Control room person says that no officer is available to review the request and confirm the entry. Please help me to enter Hyderabad, he tweeted and attached a copy of the letter from the hospital.Dayakar from Warangal in Telangana returning with his father, who is a Covid patient, from Anantapur, was also not allowed. Similar incidents were witnessed at Ramapuram crossroad at AP-TS border in Krishna district. Several ambulances were stopped.

Having learnt about denial of entry to ambulances into Telangana at Pullur toll plaza, Kurnool MLA Hafeez Khan rushed to the place and requested Telangana police to allow the ambulances, but there was no response on the other side. Several ambulances had to return as the condition of patients was turning serious. The SP said four patients in serious condition were shifted to various hospitals.

Describing Telangana police disallowing ambulances from AP as improper, Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy, Advisor (Public Affairs) to the State government, urged the Telangana government to take a humanitarian approach and allow the ambulances stuck at the inter-state border.

In spite of Telangana High Courts order, police citing technical procedures, are stopping ambulances. Family members of patients who are in a panic cannot follow those rules. All they want is to get to hospital as it is an emergency. The Telangana government should be lenient and allow them, he said and added that the State is even contemplating approaching the Supreme Court to get the issue resolved.

He maintained that Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy is in touch with the Telangana government and making efforts to get the issue resolved at the earliest. At the same time, he urged the people in the State not to go to Hyderabad without proper documentation and confirmation of beds and e-pass as it would only create trouble.

Taking serious view of Opposition criticism on the issue, he said had former chief minister Chandrababu Naidu not acted hastily in shifting the capital from Hyderabad, though the time for common capital is 10 years, the situation would not have arisen.
By Express News Service

MYSURU: In a no-holds-barred attack against the State Government on Chamarajanagar oxygen tragedy, BJP MLC AH Vishwanth on Friday questioned the delay in releasing compensation to the families of victims even after a high court directive.

He said that Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa could have consoled the families of victims by announcing the compensation. "Stop all PWD works and divert money for the compensation," he demanded. He criticised Union Minister DV Sadananda Gowda and BJP National General Secretary CT Ravi for their comments on the high court's intervention in pandemic affairs.

He said that since the comment was made by the Union minister, it reflects the stand of the government. "It is a comment against the court. There is a law of the land and it cannot be violated," he said.

Justifying the court-initiated inquiry, he said that the report by the committee absolved Mysuru of any wrongdoing. "If the probe had been done by officials, they would have said only three deaths occurred at the hospital and blamed the administration of both districts," he said.

Apologise to Mysuru: Sindhuri

MYSURU: In the wake of a High Court-appointed panel clearing the Mysuru district administration of accusations of delay in supplying oxygen to the Chamarajanagara district hospital that led to the death of 24 COVID patients, Mysuru Deputy Commissioner Rohini Sindhuri said that those who made such accusations should apologise to the city.

Speaking to reporters in the city on the sidelines of an event to mark Basava Jayanti, the DC said that the accusations against her eventually turned into an attempt to taint entire Mysuru. "The allegations were baseless. Those who attempted to hold Mysuru responsible for the deaths should now apologise to the city," she said adding that since taking charge seven months ago, she has been facing personal attacks.


Ashwini M Sripad By

Express News Service

BENGALURU : Despite the raging pandemic and the lockdown imposed to contain the spread of the virus, the government does not seem to be feeling much of a pinch as regards revenue from liquor sales.

The Excise department is witnessing near-average sales of liquor and revenue generation has not been affected much, compared to other departments, though liquor outlets are open only for takeaways between 6 am to 10 am.

As per the data available with The New Indian Express, average sale of liquor at present is 1.6 lakh boxes (including Indian Made Liquor and beer) per day, compared to 1.7 lakh boxes on normal days. While one box of IML contains 8.64 litres of liquor, one box of beer contains 7.8 litres.

According to the sources in the Excise department, while the normal daily revenue generation is to the tune of Rs 65 crore, it has now dropped to Rs 55-58 crore. One of the main reasons for this is because liquor is not served in restaurants, bars or pubs due to the lockdown. However, sales have not been affected much as takeaway has increased.

Speaking to The New Indian Express, Excise Minister Gopalaiah said that last year, they had to shut all liquor shops for 53 days. "But, when we opened in May 2020, there was a huge rush outside liquor shops, which is not acceptable during a pandemic, Gopalaiah said.

"This year, we have allowed a four-hour window for sales so that there is lesser crowding. Once the situation returns to normal, we will open all liquor outlets at regular timings," he added.

It is interesting to note that during 2020-2021, the targeted excise revenue was Rs 22,700 crore, which was achieved. This year, the target is Rs 24,580 crore and officials are hopeful of reaching it.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has urged the new government to have a virtual swearing-in ceremony.

The suggestion comes on a day when The New Indian Express had argued in an editorial that "the CM can set an example, and thereby create history again, by exploring the options for a virtual ceremony. At a time when education has gone online almost completely, digital meeting places have replaced workplaces, judges across the country are hearing cases and delivering verdicts virtually, and Cabinet meetings and global conferences are held over digital platforms, a virtual swearing-in is an option worth considering. Of course, the constitutional requirements should be taken care of and certain formalities may need to be dispensed with, to be fulfilled later. And there will be objections and hurdles that will have to be overcome."

ALSO READ | EXPLAINER: Kerala's triple lockdown to fight COVID

IMA state president Dr PT Zacharias and secretary P Gopikumar in a joint statement such a decision 'will uphold a scientific vision and spread the message of Covid-19 prevention among the people'.

The association also welcomed the government's decision to extend the lockdown for another week.

The scientific ways to survive the pandemic include the effective use of lockdown, Covid vaccine and social distancing, they stressed.

The association pointed out that one of the reasons for the second wave in the state was the assembly election campaigns where many avoided proper use of masks and social distancing.
By PTI

MALAPPURAM: An ambulance attendant has been arrested for alleged sexual harassment of a 38-year- old Covid-19 woman patient, police said on Saturday.

The patient was harassed while she was being taken in the ambulance to a scanning centre at nearby Perinthalmanna on April 27, said a senior police official.

The incident came to light after the woman, who is undergoing treatment for pneumonia at the government Wandoor hospital, told the doctors about the trauma she underwent and they in turn informed the police.

The accused was taken into custody on Friday, the police said.

A similar incident of an ambulance driver raping a 19-year Covid-19 patient had been reported from Pathanamthitta in September last.
Biju E Paul By

Express News Service

ALAPPUZHA: "The rockets launched by Hamas fly above our heads. We are safe in the bunker constructed in my home. When rockets are fired from faraway places, we get alerts on the mobile phones and, at the same time, the local alarm starts ringing," said Sajeesh Lawrence, a native of Nedumkandam in Idukki, who is working as a caregiver in war-torn Tel Aviv.

"We immediately move into the bunker. Such bunkers are available in public places like parks, shopping areas, playgrounds and in big buildings. The Israeli government has also introduced an app to monitor the movement of Hamas from the borders and alert people, which is a relief to the millions who are staying in the city of Tel Aviv," he added.

Sajeesh, son of Lawrence Padickal who had been in Tel Aviv for the past nine years working as a caregiver, told The New Indian Express over the phone that the death of Malayali caregiver Soumya Santhosh is a rare incident, because the country is well equipped to intercept rockets and thwart other kinds of attack from Gaza and other border areas.

"More than 1,700 rockets had been launched by Hamas in the past four days and a majority of them were destroyed by the Israeli defence system. However, very few were missed and these hit houses and other human intervention areas of the country," 37-year-old Sajeesh said.

"Soumya's death was also because of such an attack. Hamas has been launching rockets for the past many years and, in 2014, it mounted a strong attack and Israel retaliated. In the years after, such attacks had been very few and the recent relaxation of restrictions in the entry into Al Aqsa mosque had led to the massive attack by Hamas and Israel's retaliation," he added.

His wife Asha and son Alon are in the Maldives. "Buildings are constructed in the country with features to withstand such attacks. A room of each house is constructed as a bunker. The wall of that room will be constructed in double-layered concrete and iron windows," Sajeesh said.

"Oxygen cylinders, dry fruits, medicines and other essentials are always available in the bunker. When a rocket is fired from the launchpad of Hamas in Gaza, the defence system automatically detects its direction and distance it will travel before hitting the target. An alert is sent to the mobile phones in the area and the local alarm set by the government administration goes off," he said.

"After hearing it, people move into the bunkers. When Hamas launches rockets, the Iron Dome aerial defence system of Israel destroys it mid-air most of the time. Very few are missed and these hit civilian areas," he added..

"Normally, the Israeli government does not retaliate immediately. When it becomes a serious problem, they issue a warning to the people in the border areas of Gaza and start retaliating. Such a retaliation is taking place," Sajeesh said.

Sajeesh's father said, "We are concerned about the developments in Israel. Sajeesh keeps saying that the people are safe there, but we are in fear."
Amiya Meethal By

Express News Service

OZHIKODE: A bizarre quarantine rule has got many Saudi Arabia-bound Keralites stuck in the Maldives, the transit point. The unexpected overstay in the island country has resulted in many of them losing jobs, besides paying exorbitant resort bills.



The strange rule states that a Covid negative person cannot leave the resort unless all occupants in the resort/hotel test negative for the infection. It is not clear whether the new rule is enforced by the Maldives government or by the resorts themselves to fleece the transit passengers and make a quick buck.



A majority of the stranded passengers from Kerala have gone there under the 'Saudi quarantine via Maldives' package of travel agencies, costing Rs 1.15 lakh per person for 14-day quarantine, food and RT-PCR test expenses in the island country.

"My flight was on May 11. I had tested negative in the RT-PCR test done after completing the two-week quarantine in a resort here. But on May 10, the resort people told me that I couldn't board the flight as four others staying in another resort apartment were positive. I have neither shared a room nor interacted with any one of them. I missed the flight. My entry visa to Saudi Arabia will expire on May 18. Now, I have been asked to take another two-week quarantine here. I can't join duty on time and I will lose my job," lamented a Keralite stuck in the Maldives.



The resort staff had asked him to pay another Rs 43,000 towards food expenses for the next 14 days or leave. He says that there are many such Keralites stuck in other resorts in various islands of the country as well.

"The cheapest Kerala-Saudi Arabia air fare during normal time is Rs 20,000. But due to Covid second wave, Saudi Arabia has suspended direct flights from India, forcing us to take the transit routes through the Maldives, Nepal and Bahrain. On a daily basis, flights from various countries were being suspended, so I opted to fly through the Maldives shelling out more than Rs 1 lakh. It's only for saving my employment and visa that I dared to travel in such a difficult time. Now I have landed in a much bigger crisis without a single rupee in hand to spend," he said.



As days pass, the stranded people also fear that the Saudi government will change the arrival rule any moment considering the soaring number of Covid cases.



MP intervenes

Meanwhile, Kozhikode MP M K Raghavan has brought the issue to the notice of the Union External Affairs Ministry and Indian High Commissioner in the Maldives. "Some of those stuck there had been allowed to go after they questioned the new rule. It meant the rule is a flexible one. Hence, immediate

diplomatic interference is needed to save our people suffering in the Maldives," the MP pointed out in his letter.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: The Covid second wave continued to rage as Odisha added 11,805 more new infections in last 24 hours pushing the tally to cross six lakh. The disease claimed 21 more lives during the period.

Of the fresh cases, 6,611 were in quarantine and 5,194 were detected during contact tracing. The test positivity rate (TPR) came down from 22% to 20.7% as the number of tests rose to 57,002, including 18,683 RT-PCR tests.

Three districts recorded more than 1000 cases each with Khurda topping the list at 1,414 cases, followed by Sundargarh (1,209) and Cuttack (1197). The TPR in 11 districts was above 20%. Angul registered the maximum 39.3% and it was 36.2% in Boudh.

Of the eight States and Union Territories that have been showing continued increase in daily new cases, Odisha ranked fourth. It is at 12th position in terms of active cases and above the States such as Bihar, Punjab, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Assam and Delhi.

According to the Union Health Ministry, Khurda district is among the top districts showing a surge in daily new cases since the last two weeks. The number of cases in Khurda rose from 9,677 between April 22-28 to 11,058 during April 29 and May 5. The count was 12,854 between the period from May 6 to 12. With an

average positivity rate of 37.5% in last one week is also on top in the State, which has been recording an overall TPR of over 20% for the last nine days.

ALSO READ | COVID-19 second wave hits vulnerable tribal groups in Odisha

With these new infections, the coronavirus tally soared to 6,00,492 of which 5,02,455 have recovered so far. The active cases stood at 95,690. The 21 fresh fatalities took the death toll to 2,294.

Four persons succumbed to the disease in Khurda, three in Angul, two each in Kalahandi, Kendrapara, Puri, Rayagada and Sundargarh and one each in Boudh, Gajapati, Koraput and Nuapada in last 24 hours.

Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra on Saturday said the positivity rate in 10 districts, mostly in western Odisha, has witnessed a declining trend during the ongoing lockdown.

The healthcare facilities are under stress as around 15,000 patients, including 3,000 in ICUs, are under hospitalisation as compared to around 8000 patients, including 836 in ICU, during the peak of the pandemic last year, he said.

Meanwhile, a mathematical model projected that Odisha will have 2.8 lakh more cases by mid June taking the total confirmed cases to 8.25 lakh. Even though the daily infection rate will be maintained, the number of deaths will be relatively lesser. The projected death toll is 2750 by then.

According to an internal assessment made by the Health department, the State is expected to add an average of 8000 cases per day for the next one month.
R Sivakumar By

Express News Service

TIRUPATHUR: In a tragic incident, a twenty-year-old man drowned after falling into an irrigation well while trying to take a selfie at a village in Vaniyambadi in Tirupathur district on Friday, sources said.

K Sanjeev, of Chinnamottur, Vaniyambadi, went to a farm land near his house in the noon. He climbed on a tractor and took a selfie and made it the display picture in his mobile phone. When his friends hailed him for the picture, he thought of taking some more.

The sources stated that he had started the tractor and was taking pictures when it moved backwards and slipped into the 120 feet well which had water to a depth of 35 feet.

The farm workers noticed it and informed the Police and the Fire and Rescue Services (TNFRS).

Led by N Venkatesan, station fire officer, Vaniyambadi, eight TNFRS personnel swung into action to retrieve the body. They used four motors to dewater the well before fishing out the body.

We had to work hard for four hours to retrieve the body of the boy. The water in the well had to be pumped out to take out the body and the tractor, Venkatesan said.

Sanjeev had completed a course in catering and just joined a firm in Chennai.
T Muruganandham By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Giving effect to the announcement of Chief Minister MK Stalin, the Tamil Nadu government on Saturday floated global tenders for procuring 3.5 crore doses of Covid vaccines to be delivered within 180 days progressively from the date of purchase order.

Earlier in the day, the government floated tenders for procuring five crore doses of Covid vaccine. But within a few hours, the government has floated revised tenders reducing the doses to 3.5 crore.

Last date for submission of tender is June 5 at 11 a.m. The tenders submitted will be opened at 12 noon on June 5 at the Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation Limited, Chennai-8. This tender is governed by the provisions of Tamilnadu Transparency in Tenders Act 1998 and the Rules there under. The vaccine doses should be delivered at State Vaccine Stores, DMS Complex, Chennai-6.

ALSO READ: Black fungus might become a cause of concern in Tamil Nadu

The tender norms said the vaccine to be supplied should be produced under the control of a recognised, well-functioning National Control Authority for biologicals, which performs all six critical functions as defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The vaccine should meet current requirements published by the WHO Expert Committee on Biological Standardization, or requirements of an established body of equivalent stature such as the U.S. Pharmacopoeia, the British Pharmacopoeia, the French Pharmacopoeia, or the International Pharmacopoeia, the tender said.

Earlier in the day, the government floated tenders for procuring five crore doses of Covid vaccine. But within a few hours, the government has floated revised tenders for 3.5 crore doses.

Asked about the reasons for revising the quantum of vaccines to be procured, a senior official told TNIE: The population of people in the age group of 18 to 44 is 3.65 crore. The governments aim is to cover 70 percent of this - which is 2.5 crore, which in turn would require five crore doses. Besides, 1.5 crore doses are being procured by Tamil Nadu government through the Union governments allotment from the two Indian manufacturers of vaccines. The rest of 3.5 crore doses are being tried through global tenders. There was an error in interpretation in the tender document which has been corrected now.



The last date for submission of tender is June 5 at 11 a.m. The tenders submitted will be opened at 12 noon on June 5 at the Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation Limited, Chennai-8. This tender is governed by the provisions of Tamilnadu Transparency in Tenders Act 1998 and the Rules there under.

The vaccine doses should be delivered at State Vaccine Stores, DMS Complex, Chennai-6.



The tender norms said the Covid vaccine to be supplied should be produced under the control of a recognised, well-functioning National Control Authority for biologicals, which performs all six critical functions as defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The vaccine should meet current requirements published by the WHO Expert Committee on Biological Standardization, or requirements of an established body of equivalent stature such as the U.S. Pharmacopoeia, the British Pharmacopoeia, the French Pharmacopoeia, or the

International Pharmacopoeia, the tender said.

On May 12, the Tamil Nadu government decided to float short term global tenders for importing Corona vaccines to vaccinate all those in the age group of 18 to 45, at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister MK Stalin.

This is in line with many other states trying to procure from the international market directly after the Central government's advice.

The State government has said that 13 lakh vaccine vials allocated to Tamil Nadu is insufficient for vaccinating all those between the age group of 18 and 45. As such, global tenders would be invited for importing vaccines.
By ANI

WASHINGTON: Dramatically ramping up COVID-19 vaccination drive is key to ending the crisis in India and extending the gap between two doses of Covishield is a "reasonable approach," White House chief medical adviser Dr Anthony Fauci told ANI in an exclusive interview on Thursday.

"When you are in a very difficult situation, the way you are in India, you have to try and figure out ways to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as you can, so I believe that it is a reasonable approach to do," Fauci said.

On Thursday, the Government of India announced that the gap between the first and second doses of the Covishield COVID-19 vaccine has been increased to 12-16 weeks - from the existing 6-8 weeks. This is for the second time in three months that Covishield dosage intervals have been widened and this move has once again garnered criticism, as a cover-up for not having enough vaccines for the people in India. However, Dr Fauci said that this "extended interval" is beneficial even from the efficacy standpoint.

"The fact that you delay it that long, it is very unlikely that it would have a negative effect on the efficacy of the vaccine. I would not refer to it as a cover up when you don't have enough vaccines," Fauci told ANI.

India is most likely to roll out Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against the coronavirus to be administered to citizens starting next week.

With this, India will now have three vaccines to boost its mega vaccination drive which was recently opened for those above 18 years.

ALSO READ | India made 'incorrect assumption' and opened up prematurely: Dr Anthony Fauci on COVID-19 crisis

When asked about the efficacy of the Sputnik V Vaccine, "I've heard about the Sputnik, is that, it seems to be quite efficacious, at a high level of close to 90 per cent or so," Fauci responded.

Last year, when the US was battling with the surge of COVID-19 cases, the Department of Defense docked two naval warships--USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort--on the coasts of New York and Los Angeles to step up the efforts in combating the virus.

Dr Fauci, one of COVID's most trusted names, suggests that India should step up the role of the armed forces in combating COVID-19.

"You can use the military sometimes to get things done quickly that you otherwise in the private sector would not be able to, for example, I know that there's a shortage of hospital beds right now that people who need to be in a hospital or not getting into a hospital because of the shortage of the beds, you can get the military to put up field hospitals, the same way they would during time of war, that could serve as a substitute for the classic hospital." Fauci told ANI.

While replying to a query on resuming travel to India amid the pandemic, Fauci said, "It really is going to depend on the level of infection right now. India has a very very high level of infection. And that would mean that it would be very very difficult to resume travel there right now."

As more people around the world become vaccinated and the summer travel season is approaching, countries around the world are scrambling to get digital health certification programs or Vaccine passports in place.

However, Fauci says that US borders will not have the vaccine passport mandate.

"Several of the airlines may say you're not going to be able to fly on our flight, unless you have a verification that you've been vaccinated, in essence- a vaccine passport, but again to repeat that at least in the United State-that is not going to be mandated from a federal standpoint."

ALSO READ | Getting people vaccinated only long-term solution to end India's COVID crisis: Fauci

India is currently experiencing a devastating surge of COVID-19 with record-breaking cases, hospitalizations and deaths. The country's health care system is teetering on the edge of collapse as hospitals are overcrowded and much-needed medical supplies are in low supply.

He also said that it is imperative for India to collaborate with other countries, and companies to ramp up its vaccine production capability to vaccinate country's huge population against COVID-19.

Calling India as one of the best vaccine producer in the world, the leading American infectious disease expert said,"It's a very very large country with a population of about 1.4 billion people, you only have a couple of percentage of the people who are fully vaccinated and over about 10 per cent or so that have at least one dose so you've got to work out arrangements with other countries, other companies at the same time as ramping up your own capability of making vaccines because as we all know, India is one of the best if not the biggest vaccine producer in the world."

As several countries have announced support for India's response to a devastating second wave of coronavirus infections that has hit healthcare facilities across the country, Dr Fauci told ANI in an exclusive interview: "There was the immediate issue that needs to be addressed as taking care of the people that are already infected. Getting better supplies of oxygen, oxygen cylinders, oxygen generators, PPEs, therapies like Remdesivir and things like that; the things that the US has helped with, but then probably in the intermediate and long run, you've got to figure out a way how to get as many vaccinations, administered to the people of India as possible."

Noting that the B.1.617 mutant first detected in India has been found in over 40 countries including the US, he said, "in the ongoing crisis, the rich countries have a moral responsibility to assist those countries that don't have the capability of doing that, particularly the low and middle-income countries."

Dr Fauci, who is the Director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), is also the chief medical advisor to President Joe Biden.

Regarding the use of vaccine passports in post-pandemic travel, the infectious diseases expert said that they are not going to be mandated by the US government, is likely not to go forward with them, but also noted that several airlines may say that they will not include persons who don't have vaccination verification.

ALSO READ | India's US envoy meets Dr Anthony Fauci, discusses COVID-19 crisis, new strains and variants

Speaking on resuming travel with India, Fauci told ANI: "It is really going to depend on the level of infection right now. India has a very very high level of infection and that would mean that it would be very very difficult to resume travel there right now."

India is currently dealing with a second COVID-19 wave that has swept through the nation, straining the country's health infrastructure and overburdening frontline medical workers.

Several countries around the globe including the UK, Russia, and the US have extended support to India as it continues to struggle with the increase in its health infrastructure needs.

The Union Health Ministry on Thursday informed that 17.72 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in India till now.

"Ten states account for 66.73 per cent of the cumulative doses given so far in the country. More than 34 lakh beneficiaries of age group 18-44 vaccinated under Phase-3 of Vaccination Drive," said Joint Secretary of Union Health Ministry Lav Agarwal.

The country had started the COVID-19 vaccination drive on January 16 with two vaccines -- Covishield (Oxford-AstraZeneca's vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute of India) and Covaxin (manufactured by Bharat Biotech Limited).

The vaccination drive for those between 18 and 45 years of age started in many parts of the country from May 1.
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: At least 11 persons, including three women and seven children, of the same family were drowned after their vehicle plunged into a canal in Pakistan's Punjab province, according to a media report.

The accident happened on Friday in Sheikhupura district when the vehicle heading towards Khanqah Dogran from Qila Didar Singh skidded off the road and plunged into the canal, ARY News reported.

After being informed of the accident, police and rescue officials rushed to the accident spot and retrieved the bodies from the canal.

The bodies were shifted to hospital for medico-legal formalities, the report said.

Rescue officials were of the view that the van plunged into the canal due to over speeding and the unavailability of a safety fence along the road.

"Among those killed are seven children, three women and a man, who belong to the same family," a senior police official was quoted as saying in the report.

Road accidents are common in Pakistan as every year thousands of people are killed in similar types of accidents.

In November last year, a rickshaw carrying family members in Punjab overturned and fell into a canal in which at least 19 people died.
By Associated Press

BEIJING: Twelve people were killed and over 300 injured when two powerful tornadoes walloped Chinese cities of Wuhan and Suzhou on Friday night, leaving a trail of destruction of houses and factories.

Eight people were killed and over 230 injured when a tornado, packing winds of 23.9 meters per second, ripped through the Caidian District of Wuhan on Friday night, toppling some construction site sheds and snapping a large number of trees.

The tornado collapsed 27 houses, while another 130 were damaged.

Two tower cranes and 8,000 square meters of construction site sheds also suffered damage, state run Xinhua news agency reported.

The tornado blew down power lines, triggering a power outage that has affected 26,600 households in Wuhan.

The local power grid has sent staff to fix the glitches and repair works are still going on.

Four people were killed and 19 others injured after a tornado hit the city of Suzhou in east China's Jiangsu Province on Friday, according to local authorities.

In Suzhou, the tornado damaged 84 households and 17 companies.

It also caused power outages, the bureau added.

The tornadoes came as a surprise to the locals as it is quite rare in the region.
NINGBO, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The 38th escort fleet of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy on Saturday left a military port in Zhoushan, east China's Zhejiang Province, for the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somali to escort civilian ships.

The fleet is composed of the guided-missile destroyer Nanjing, the missile frigate Yangzhou, and supply ship Gaoyouhu, with dozens of special operation soldiers and two helicopters on board.

This is the first time for the Nanjing to join an escort mission.

The PLA Navy began to carry out escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and the waters off Somalia in December 2008.
By ANI

MUMBAI: A Kuwaiti ship arrived at Nhava Sheva Port in Mumbai on Saturday, carrying three semi-trailers of Liquid Medical Oxygen (25 metric tonnes each) and 1000 oxygen cylinders on board, to help India combat the coronavirus pandemic.

External Affairs Ministry (EAM) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi expressed gratitude to the government of Kuwait for the much-needed oxygen to help ease pressure on the health infrastructure of the country.

"Taking forward historical ties of friendship. Kuwaiti ship arrives at Nhava Sheva Mumbai (India). 3 semi-trailers of LMO (25 MT each) and 1000 O2 cylinders onboard. Grateful to H.H. Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah the Amir of the State of Kuwait & government of Kuwait," EAM spokesperson tweeted.

Meanwhile, an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft airlifted three oxygen containers to Kuwait for recharging and subsequent return by sea.

"An IL-76 airlifted three oxygen containers to Kuwait for recharging & subsequent return by sea. Airlift of 8 x containers by C-17s to Qatar is underway. The air-sea logistics supply chain ops will make medical oxygen available in reduced timelines," IAF tweeted.

Last week, a shipment of 282 oxygen cylinders, 60 oxygen concentrators, ventilators and other medical supplies from Kuwaiti reached India to help the country fight the deadly second wave of virus

"Deepening our fraternal ties of friendship. Thank Kuwait for shipment of 282 oxygen cylinders, 60 oxygen concentrators, ventilators and other medical supplies that arrived today," Bagchi tweeted.

India is witnessing a second wave of coronavirus that resulted in increased demand for medical oxygen, beds in hospitals and life-saving drugs.

India reported 3,26,098 new COVID-19 cases, and 3,890 deaths in the last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry. It has the second-highest cases of infection in the world.
By Associated Press

WASHINGTON: The White House says Israel has a "paramount responsibility" to ensure the safety of journalists covering the spiralling conflict.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted on Saturday that the US has "communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility."

President Joe Biden has urged a de-escalation, but has publicly backed Israel's right to self-defense from Hamas rockets fired from Gaza.

FULL REPORT | Israeli air raid flattens building that houses international media outlets in Gaza City

The White House statement followed an Israeli airstrike that targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

AP's president and CEO Gary Pruitt said the agency was "shocked and horrified" at the strike.

AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building after the military telephoned a warning that the strike was imminent within an hour.

Three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it in a giant cloud of dust.
By Associated Press

GAZA CITY: An Israeli airstrike destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets on Friday, the latest step by the military to silence reporting from the territory amid its battle with the militant group Hamas.

The strike came nearly an hour after the military ordered people to evacuate the building, which also housed Al-Jazeera, other offices and residential apartments.

The strike brought the entire 12-story building down, collapsing with a gigantic cloud of dust.

There was no immediate explanation for why it was attacked.

The strike came hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp in Gaza City killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children, in the deadliest single strike of the current conflict.

Both sides pressed for an advantage as cease-fire efforts gathered strength.

The latest outburst of violence began in Jerusalem and has spread across the region, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed cities of Israel.

There were also widespread Palestinian protests Friday in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people.

The spiraling violence has raised fears of a new Palestinian intifada, or uprising at a time when there have been no peace talks in years.

Palestinians on Saturday were marking Nakba (Catastrophe) Day, when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what was now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.

That raised the possibility of even more unrest.

U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived Friday as part of Washington's efforts to de-escalate the conflict, and the U.N. Security Council was set to meet Sunday.

But Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.

Since Monday night, Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which has pounded the Gaza Strip with strikes.

In Gaza, at least 139 people have been killed, including 39 children and 22 women; in Israel, eight people have been killed, including the death Saturday of a man killed by a rocket that hit in Ramat Gan, a suburb of Tel Aviv.

The strike on the building housing media offices came in the afternoon, after the building's owner received a call from the Israeli military warning that it would be hit.

AP's staff and others in the building evacuated immediately.

ALSO WATCH:

Al-Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatar's government, broadcast the airstrikes live as the building collapsed.

"This channel will not be silence. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced," an on-air anchorwoman said, her voice thick with emotion.

"We can guarantee you that right now."

Earlier Saturday, an airstrike hit a three-story house in Gaza City's Shati refugee camp, killing eight children and two women from an extended family.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters his wife and five children had gone to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday with relatives.

She and three of the children, aged 6 to 14, were killed, while an 11-year-old is missing.

Only his 5-month-old son Omar is known to have survived.

Children's toys and a Monopoly board game could be seen among the rubble, as well as plates of uneaten food from the holiday gathering.

"There was no warning," said Jamal Al-Naji, a neighbor living in the same building.

"You filmed people eating and then you bombed them?" he said, addressing Israel.

"Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!" The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the airstrike.

A furious Israeli barrage early Friday killed a family of six in their house and sent thousands fleeing to U.N-run shelters.

The military said the operation involved 160 warplanes dropping some 80 tons of explosives over the course of 40 minutes and succeeded in destroying a vast tunnel network used by Hamas.

Lt.Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said the military aims to minimize collateral damage in striking military targets.

But measures it takes in other strikes, such as warning shots to get civilians to leave, were not feasible this time.

Israeli media said the military believed dozens of militants were killed inside the tunnels.

The Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups have confirmed 20 deaths in their ranks, but the military said the real number is far higher.

Gaza's infrastructure, already in widespread disrepair because of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after Hamas seized power in 2007, showed signs of breaking down further, compounding residents' misery.

The territory's sole power plant is at risk of running out of fuel in the coming days.

The U.N. said Gazans are already enduring daily power cuts of 8-12 hours and at least 230,000 have limited access to tap water.

The impoverished and densely populated territory is home to 2 million Palestinians, most of them the descendants of refugees from what is now Israel.

The conflict has reverberated widely.

Israeli cities with mixed Arab and Jewish populations have seen nightly violence, with mobs from each community fighting in the streets and trashing each other's property.
By PTI

NEW YORK: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced plans to tap into the city's stockpile to send COVID-19 test kits, swabs, ventilators, pulse oximeters and other vital medical supplies to India to save lives and beat back the pandemic.

His announcement on Friday came as India recorded 3,26,098 fresh COVID-19 cases that took the national tally to 2,43,72,907, while 3,890 new fatalities pushed the death toll to 2,66,207.

In a statement posted on the official website of the City of New York, de Blasio said that just over a year ago, New York City was the center of the global pandemic.

"Now it is our turn to step up and help India in its moment of crisis. We are sending vital medical equipment to India to send a clear message: nobody is in the fight against COVID-19 alone. Together, we can save lives and beat back the pandemic," the mayor said.

Kapil Longani, Counsel to the Mayor said: "As a proud Indian immigrant with generations of family currently living in India, it breaks my heart to see the ongoing COVID-19 tragedy unfold".

The Mayor is a leading citizen of the world, and on behalf of the Indian community, I offer my deepest gratitude for his decision to commit life-saving resources to India.

"This pandemic highlighted our interconnectedness as a global community, and it's imperative that we stand together in solidarity to defeat this virus," he said.

Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services Melanie Hartzog said as a global city that was once considered thE "epicenter" of the COVID-19 pandemic, it would be unacceptable for New York City to ignore the devastating situation in India.

"This horrible pandemic has taken too many lives, and we cannot stand idle as it continues to wreak havoc in another city.VI stand with my colleagues in the City government to make sure we provide any and all support possible to our fellow citizens in India." Hartzog said.

When the COVID-19 struck the US Last year, New York City became an epicentre, prompting authorities to shut it in mid-March as the coronavirus ravaged the metropolis.

Democratic lawmaker Grace Meng, representative of New York's 6th Congressional district in New York City, said: "India is our dear friend and ally and we must continue to be there for its people in their urgent time of need. I thank Mayor de Blasio for sending this critical aid, and ask all New Yorkers to keep India in their thoughts and prayers as the country battles the surge in COVID-19 cases."

Indian-origin Assembly Member Jenifer Rajkumar said: As the first Indian-American woman elected to state office in New York, I stand in solidarity with the people of India at their time of need.

"The largest Indian-American population in the Western Hemisphere is here in New York City. It was the Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. who said, 'Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly,' and that has never been more true than during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"If there is a COVID crisis in India, then New Yorkers are in crisis. I applaud Mayor de Blasio and Commissioner Chokshi for recognizing that we are all in this pandemic together and for sending supplies to the people of India so they can fight this deadly virus," she said.

Randhir Jaiswal, Consul General of India in New York said: "We greatly appreciate the generous gift by New York City to the Government of India.

The ventilators, bipaps (Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure) and testing kits which have been donated by New York will be immensely useful in fighting the pandemic in India.

"The supplies being sent will further add to the robust assistance provided by the US government to India. The empathy shown by this great City is admirable".

New York's thousands of Indian-Americans are filled with anger and helplessness as they witness the unnecessary tragedy back in the country, said Harpreet Singh Toor, Co-Founder and President of South Asians for Global Empowerment.

"Especially when our own situation has become so full of hope, it is the right time to join Mayor Bill de Blasio in calling for a full-scale effort to donate vaccines, COVID-19 test kits, swabs, ventilators, pulse oximeters, and every other type of relief possible to India," he said.

According to Johns Hopkins University, New York has so far reported 2,081,823 cases and 52,903 fatalities.

India has been severely affected by the unprecedented second wave of the coronavirus and hospitals in several states are reeling under the shortage of health workers, vaccines, oxygen, drugs and beds.
By Associated Press

BANGKOK: Thailand Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha promised a United Nations special envoy on Friday that he will not force back people fleeing violence in neighbouring Myanmar, where the military ousted a democratically elected government in February.

UN Special Envoy on Myanmar Christine Schraner Burgener told Prayuth in a meeting in Bangkok that she hopes Thailand will help find ways to work with Myanmars military to ease the crisis, the prime ministers office said in a statement.

People across Myanmar have participated in massive protests against the military coup. A violent crackdown by the military has cost hundreds of lives.

The military is also battling ethnic guerrilla armies in border regions that are seeking greater autonomy from the central government and support the pro-democracy protesters.

Prayuth told Schraner Burgener that Thailand is closely monitoring the situation on the border with Myanmar and has prepared several areas to shelter refugees and provide medical treatment, the statement said.

Last month, several thousand villagers from Myanmars eastern state of Karen fled to Thailand following airstrikes by Myanmar military planes in territory held by the Karen ethnic minority. They were allowed to stay for a few days and then returned to Myanmar. Thai officials said they went voluntarily.

Refugee workers say most of the refugees hid out in the jungle and did not return to their homes. Close to 50,000 people are estimated to have been displaced by fighting in Karen areas since the beginning of the year.

The escalation of violence and the juntas failure to restore order has led to fears that Myanmar could become a failed state, impacting neighboring Thailand and the whole region.

Prayuth told Schraner Burgener his government is ready to listen and exchange information about Myanmar, according to the statement. There was no immediate comment from the UN envoy.

Prayuth, a former army commander who also came to power by ousting an elected civilian government, is perceived to have a close relationship with the head of Myanmars military government, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing.

Schraner Burgener has been based in Thailand since April. She says she plans to stay in the region in the coming weeks to remain in close contact with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to support the implementation of a five-point consensus on the Myanmar crisis reached by its leaders at a special meeting in Jakarta on April 24.

It calls for the immediate cessation of violence, a dialogue among all concerned parties, mediation of the dialogue by an ASEAN special envoy, provision of humanitarian aid through ASEAN channels and a visit to Myanmar by the special envoy to meet all concerned parties.

Min Aung Hlaings government has since indicated it will consider the ASEAN agreement only after reestablishing stability.

While the juntas use of lethal force to suppress mass protests has reduced turnouts at protest rallies in Myanmars cities and towns, the level of civil unrest remains high.

Some groups of protesters have embraced armed self-defense, often using only air guns, single-shot hunting rifles and homemade grenades and firebombs.

On Thursday, the junta announced the imposition of martial law in Mindat township in the western state of Chin, which borders India. The remote area has been one of the most militant in putting up armed resistance to the security forces, who have suffered casualties in almost daily confrontations.
Last weeks guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased mask-wearing guidance for people who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The change allows people to stop wearing masks outdoors and in crowds, even in most indoor settings as long as they have been fully inoculated.

But the changed guidance doesnt necessarily pertain to every setting. There was some confusion following the announcement as to whether the guidance from the CDC would immediately go into effect and whether it meant anyone could suddenly walk into a grocery store, restaurant or other business without a mask. And questions remain over whether people will have to prove their vaccination status.

In Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont said the unvaccinated (children included) should continue wearing masks indoors and that businesses can choose whether to require mask-wearing. But where allowable, people who have been fully vaccinated can stop wearing masks indoors beginning May 19, per the governors orders.

Indoor masking will still be required for the unvaccinated for a little while longer, Lamont said. I think thats the right thing to do.

Below is a look at businesses that have decided those who have been vaccinated no longer need to wear masks. Please note, just because the corporate office has issued guidance, it does not mean every individual place of business has changed its operations.

Walmart

The worlds largest retailer said Friday it will no longer require vaccinated shoppers and workers to wear a mask in its stores, unless prohibited state or local laws. The retailer said customers will be held to an honor system and workers will have to continue answering a daily health assessment. The company is also offering a $75 bonus to employees who get fully vaccinated.

Costco

The wholesale store said in a letter to members Friday that it would no longer require mask-wearing at its U.S. locations, unless required by state or local rules. Similarly, shoppers and staff are required to have been fully vaccinated, although no proof is required. Face coverings, however, will be required in health care settings, including Pharmacy, Optical, Hearing Aid.

We will not require proof of vaccination, but we ask for members responsible and respectful cooperation with this revised policy, the company wrote.

Trader Joes

The grocery retailer is another among the first chains to not require mask usage, unless required by state or local government. Proof of vaccination will not be required at the store. Unlike some others, employees are required to continue wearing masks.

Target

Target announced Monday, May 17 it would no longer require shoppers and employees who were fully vaccinated to wear face covering, unless required by local or state rules. Target does, however, recommend people who are not fully vaccinated wear face coverings. The store will similarly operate on an honor system, not requiring people to show proof of vaccination.

Starbucks

The use of masks at the coffee chain became optional Monday May 17, unless rules say otherwise locally. The company noted, however, its bathrooms would remain temporarily closed to the public in stores where the cafe or cafe seating is unavailable.

Still deciding

Numerous Connecticut restaurants are still undecided and seeking more guidance. Scott Dolch, executive director of the Connecticut Restaurant Association which represents thousands of businesses in the state, told the Associated Press Friday many owners are asking how the rule will work in practice. Some, he said, voiced concern about having to determine whether customers are actually vaccinated for COVID-19.

That puts a lot of worry on the restaurants. They're like, okay, now I have to deal with the honor system, hoping that that person that told me theyre totally vaccinated, walking around (is fully vaccinated), Dolch said.

Nationally, CVS said it is evaluating their policies in accordance with the latest CDC guidance, but no change had been made as of Saturday.

Continue wearing

At least one well-known retailer in the area is telling shoppers and workers to continue wearing masks for the time being. Stew Leonards, the grocery retailer with stores in Norwalk, Danbury and Newington, as well as New York and New Jersey, said Friday shoppers will continue to have to wear masks, even after May 19.

Stew Leonards was among the first leaders to ask our customers and team members to wear masks last year, but now we are going to be laggers, Stew Leonard Jr., the chains president and CEO, said in a statement.

Stop & Shop is another major grocery chain that has said there are no changes to the companys mask mandate at this time.

Information from the Associated Press was included in this report.
Contributed / Getty

GREENWICH  Local police arrested a 30-year-old Bronx, N.Y., man Friday behind the wheel of a Mercedes allegedly stolen out of New York City.

Greenwich police said Officer Matt Swift was off-duty when he saw the man attempting to engage a group of young females in conversation in a parking lot on Sound Beach Avenue, a press release said.
BRIDGEPORT  A local man is accused of shooting his cousin in the legs and stealing his money rather than helping him locate his stolen car.

George Go Mercer, 24, of Stratford Avenue, was charged with first-degree assault, first-degree robbery and fifth-degree larceny.

During Mercers arraignment on Friday afternoon, Assistant States Attorney Felicia Valentino urged Superior Court Judge Peter McShane to set a high bond on Mercer because of the serious nature of the allegations.

The judge agreed and ordered Mercer held in lieu of $750,000 bond. He continued the case to May 25.

On March 29, police said officers were dispatched to Orange Street on reports of a shooting. When officers got to the scene, police said they found 33-year-old Aaron Freelove lying on the ground in a pool of blood. Freelove was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Police said after recovering in the hospital, Freelove told them he had been shot by a man he identified as his cousin who he only knew by the nickname Go. Police said they were able to identify Go as Mercer from surveillance video.

Police said Freeloves 1996 Mercury sedan had been stolen in Waterbury and Freelove told them that Mercer had allegedly volunteered to help him recover the car for $1,000.

Mercer later called Freelove and allegedly told him he had found the car and the two agreed to meet to exchange the money for the car, police continued.

However, police said instead of producing the car, Mercer allegedly pulled out a handgun and shot Freelove in both legs.

Mercer then allegedly took the $1,000 from the victim and fled, police said.
breaking popular top story

Friday's vaccination updates: On first day of 'bridge' phase, Champaign Co. active cases down slightly (by 2, to 283), percentage of population vaccinated up slightly (by 0.2, to 38.2)
Reporter

Mary Schenk is a reporter covering police, courts and breaking news at The News-Gazette. Her email is mschenk@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@schenk).
The COVID-19 lockdown was a catalyst for many older people to embrace technology, reconnect with friends and build new relationships with neighbors, according to University of Stirling research.

Understanding the coping mechanisms adopted by some over 60s during the pandemic will play a key role in developing interventions to help tackle loneliness, isolation and wellbeing in the future.

The study, led by the Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport, surveyed 1,429 participants - 84 percent (1,198) of whom were over 60 - and found many had adapted to video conferencing technology to increase online contact with existing social networks, while others reconnected with previous networks. Participants reported that lockdown had led them to engage with neighbors and other members of their communities for the first time, while several said social distancing had brought an additional meaning to life, by highlighting what was important to them.

Published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, the paper comes six months after the study - funded under the Scottish Government Chief Scientist Office's Rapid Research in COVID-19 programme - reported in its preliminary findings that social distancing had increased feelings of loneliness in older people.

Professor of Behavioral Medicine, Anna Whittaker, who led the study, said: "Our research found that the COVID-19 lockdown triggered feelings of loneliness in older people - with many experiencing less social contact and support. However, the study also highlighted positive outcomes, for example, lockdown encouraged some older people to embrace and engage with technology - such as Zoom, Whatsapp or FaceTime - to stay in touch with loved-ones or participate in exercise classes or religious groups. Those who engaged in such activity were able to prevent high levels of loneliness, therefore, helping older adults to increase their digital literacy and use of remote social interactions could be a really important tool for addressing loneliness.

"Participants also reported actively looking for new social contact while restrictions were in place - such as contacting friends who they had not spoken to in years and increasing interactions with neighbors and other members of their communities. Significantly, many of our participants reported that social distancing has actually led them to find new sources of satisfaction in life.

"Our study also highlighted that encouraging safe social contact through physical activity and engaging with people in the community may be an effective way to reduce loneliness, improve wellbeing, increase social activity, and improve social support."

The study - which involved a survey conducted between May and July 2020 - examined the impact of social distancing during the pandemic on loneliness, wellbeing and social activity, including social support, in Scottish older adults.

Participants were asked about the strategies they adopted to increase social interaction during this time and reported that the way they interacted with their friends and family, faith, chosen group activities and, to a lesser extent, their employer and colleagues, had changed. More than 300 participants mentioned 'Zoom' - the video conferencing tool - in their answers.

More than 150 participants reported that their religious gatherings had moved online - replacing face-to-face gatherings - while 91 said that social gatherings with family and friends had changed in favour of online 'games nights'. New activities included bingo and quiz nights, while other activities moved online - such as bridge nights, book clubs, choir rehearsals, and dance and exercise classes.

The role of community - particularly neighbors - was mentioned by more than 300 participants and some reported the common experience of getting to know previously unknown neighbors and increase interaction with others in the community at local shops or parks. A pleasant Scottish summer also supported such interactions, several said.

At least 100 people said social interactions were linked to their physical activities - such as time spent outdoors while walking for exercise, walking the dogs or active commuting.

Professor Whittaker added: "Our research underlines the importance of addressing loneliness and social support in older adults - but particularly during situations where risk of isolation is high. Although specific to the pandemic, this study has wider implications of helping us to understand the impact of social distancing and social isolation on older people.

"The findings may be applicable in the future - both in and outwith pandemic situations. In Scotland, the recommendations for improvement may be through encouraging older adults to get to know their neighbors better, getting involved with local buddying systems and community initiatives, including via digital means, and engaging in physical activity, such as daily walks in the community."

While it may prove difficult to consider any aspect of the pandemic positive as such, it is important and worthwhile to reflect on what it has taught us, both about ourselves and society and about the necessary tools to tackle Scotland's increased levels of loneliness and isolation. For example, we've seen first-hand how important the community response has been in terms of supporting older people throughout lockdown and it has been inspiring to witness how people across the country stepped in and stepped forward to help those in need around them. Even as restrictions ease, we hope to see this sense of community spirit continue. The ongoing impact of COVID-19 has also demonstrated just how important increased digital inclusion is and how easily those without access to technology can feel out of the loop. It's reassuring to see so many older people reporting that they have been able to embrace and engage with technology to stay connected and active. However, it's equally important to ensure those who are unable or do not wish to use the internet have alternative ways to stay connected to their communities and support networks. As we take steps towards recovery together, it is vital that no one is left behind and those most impacted are supported to play a full part in society again. We know we will be living with the ongoing effects of lockdown loneliness for a long time to come, and this research will be incredibly valuable when considering how best to tackle loneliness and isolation and to improve the wellbeing of older people going forward." Brian Sloan, Chief Executive of Age Scotland
Dozens of commonly used drugs, including antibiotics, antinausea and anticancer medications, have a potential side effect of lengthening the electrical event that triggers contraction, creating an irregular heartbeat, or cardiac arrhythmia called acquired Long QT syndrome. While safe in their current dosages, some of these drugs may have a more therapeutic benefit at higher doses, but are limited by the risk of arrhythmia.

Through both computational and experimental validation, a multi-institutional team of researchers has identified a compound that prevents the lengthening of the heart's electrical event, or action potential, resulting in a major step toward safer use and expanded therapeutic efficacy of these medications when taken in combination. The team found that the compound, named C28, not only prevents or reverses the negative physiological effects on the action potential, but does not cause any change on the normal action potential when used alone at the same concentrations. The results, found through rational drug design, were published online Friday, May 14 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The research team was led by Jianmin Cui, professor of biomedical engineering in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis; Ira Cohen, MD, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Physiology and Biophysics, professor of medicine, and director of the Institute for Molecular Cardiology at the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University; and Xiaoqin Zou, professor of physics, biochemistry, and a member of the Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center and Institute for Data Science and Informatics at the University of Missouri.

The drugs in question, as well as several that have been pulled from the market, cause a prolongation of the QT interval of the heartbeat, known as acquired Long QT Syndrome, that predisposes patients to cardiac arrhythmia and sudden death. In rare cases, Long QT also can be caused by specific mutations in genes that code for ion channel proteins, which conduct the ionic currents to generate the action potential. Although there are several types of ion channels in the heart, a change in one or more of them may lead to this arrhythmia, which contributes to about 200,000 to 300,000 sudden deaths a year, more than deaths from stroke, lung cancer or breast cancer.

The team selected a specific target, IKs, for this work because it is one of the two potassium channels that are activated during the action potential: IKr (rapid) and IKs (slow).

"The rapid one plays a major role in the action potential," said Cohen, one of the world's top electrophysiologists. "If you block it, Long QT results, and you get a long action potential. IKs is very slow and contributes much less to the normal action potential duration."

It was this difference in roles that suggested that increasing IKs might not significantly affect normal electrical activity but could shorten a prolonged action potential.

Cui, an internationally renowned expert on ion channels, and the team wanted to determine if the prolongation of the QT interval could be prevented by compensating for the change in current and inducing the Long QT Syndrome by enhancing IKs. They identified a site on the voltage-sensing domain of the IKs potassium ion channel that could be accessed by small molecules.

Zou, an internationally recognized expert who specializes in developing new and efficient algorithms for predicting protein interactions, and the team used the atomic structure of the KCNQ1 unit of the IKs channel protein to computationally screen a library of a quarter of a million small compounds that targeted this voltage-sensing domain of the KCNQ1 protein unit.

To do this, they developed software called MDock to test the interaction of small compounds with a specific protein in silico, or computationally. By identifying the geometric and chemical traits of the small compounds, they can find the one that fits into the protein -- sort of a high-tech, 3D jigsaw puzzle. While it sounds simple, the process is quite complicated as it involves charge interactions, hydrogen bonding and other physicochemical interactions of both the protein and the small compound.

We know the problems, and the way to make great progress is to identify the weaknesses and challenges and fix them. We know the functional and structural details of the protein, so we can use an algorithm to dock each molecule onto the protein at the atomic level." Xiaoqin Zou, professor of physics, biochemistry, and a member of the Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center and Institute for Data Science and Informatics at the University of Missouri

One by one, Zou and her lab docked the potential compounds with the protein KCNQ1 and compared the binding energy of each one. They selected about 50 candidates with very negative, or tight, binding energies.

Cui and his lab then identified C28 using experiments out of the 50 candidates identified in silico by Zou's lab. They validated the docking results by measuring the shift of voltage-dependent activation of the IKs channel at various concentrations of C28 to confirm that C28 indeed enhances the IKs channel function. They also studied a series of genetically modified IKs channels to reveal the binding of C28 to the site for the in silico screening.

Cohen and his lab tested the C28 compound in ventricular myocytes from a small mammal model that expresses the same IKs channel as humans. They found that C28 could prevent or reverse the drug-induced prolongation of the electrical signals across the cardiac cell membrane and minimally affected the normal action potentials at the same dosage. They also determined that there were no significant effects on atrial muscle cells, an important control for the drug's potential use.

"We are very excited about this," Cohen said. "In many of these medications, there is a concentration of the drug that is acceptable, and at higher doses, it becomes dangerous. If C28 can eliminate the danger of inducing Q-T prolongation, then these drugs can be used at higher concentrations, and in many cases, they can become more therapeutic."

While the compound needs additional verification and testing, the researchers say there is tremendous potential for this compound or others like it and could help to convert second-line drugs into first-line drugs and return others to the market. With assistance from the Washington University Office of Technology Management, they have patented the compound, and Cui has founded a startup company, VivoCor, to continue to work on the compound and others like it as potential drug candidates. The work was accelerated by a Leadership and Entrepreneurial Acceleration Program (LEAP) Inventor Challenge grant Washington University in St. Louis in 2018 funded by the Office of Technology Management, the Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences, the Center for Drug Discovery, the Center for Research Innovation in Biotechnology, and the Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

"This work was done by an effective drug design approach: identifying a critical site in the ion channel based on understanding of structure-function relation, using in silico docking to identify compounds that interact with the critical site in the ion channel, validating functional modulation of the ion channel by the compound, and demonstrating therapeutic potential in cardiac myocytes," Zou said. "Our three labs form a great team, and without any of them, this would not be possible."
Q: The federal government approved the Pfizer vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds. What does this mean for my child?

Extending the emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to preteens and young adolescents adds nearly 17 million more Americans to the pool of those eligible to be immunized against covid-19, helping to build a vaccinated population closer to herd immunity. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are also testing the efficacy of their vaccines in teens and children.

Although children appear to catch covid less often and develop milder symptoms than adults, they can develop a rare, severe inflammatory response or "long-haul covid" symptoms. It also remains to be seen what, if any, long-term effects these younger patients may experience from covid.

The share of covid cases in children and teens is increasing  nearly a quarter of the new weekly covid cases were found in this age group, as reported May 6 by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association.

And, though kids have been less likely to develop severe illness, they still can pose a risk to vulnerable people around them because they may not even know they are carrying the virus, as documented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dr. Margaret Stager, a pediatrician and the division director of adolescent medicine at MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland, said she has had to explain to her young patients that getting immunized would help their community curb the spread, cut the risk of variants and help society reopen.

I talk about them doing their part," Stager said. "That this is all part of them contributing to the greater good.

The fine print

The CDC this week recommended use of the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 12 to 15 after the Food and Drug Administration extended its emergency use authorization to include these preteens and young adolescents. That means this age group now can receive the same shots in the same time frame  21 days apart  as adults do.

In a reversal of its previous guidance, teens and adults do not need to wait 14 days before or after getting the covid shot to receive a vaccine for another condition. This could be a boon for health care providers who have child patients lagging on other, routine vaccines, which has been a persistent problem during the pandemic.

"It's a tremendous opportunity to play catch-up," said Stager.

CDC officials noted in the May 12 Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices' recommendation that they do not have data specifically looking at potential side effects in patients immunized against covid and other illnesses at the same time. However, the agency made the decision given the strong safety data of the Pfizer-BioNTech shot and previous experience with other immunizations.

This question will become more important as covid vaccines are studied in younger children. Trials are planned to test the vaccine in children as young as 6 months old.

As in adults, the question of how long the immunity lasts in children remains unknown, said Dr. Rebecca Wurtz, an associate professor of infectious diseases at the University of Minnesota. However, she said, it's likely that any waning immunity detected in adults will also be seen among the young.

Whatever we learn in adults," Wurtz said, "kids will be not far behind.

Whether this approval will prompt schools to require vaccination against covid for K-12 students returning to the classroom this fall is a pending question, said Stager. It is unclear whether federal law allows state authorities to mandate a vaccine that has not yet been fully approved. That said, the government's approval will also likely play into parents' decisions about sending their children to summer camp.

What did the trial find?

Pfizer tested the vaccine in 2,260 preteens and young adolescents living in the United States. Researchers followed participants for two months or more, the FDA said. Pfizer's clinical protocol says the company will continue to follow participants for two years after the second dose.

Results show the vaccine is safe to use in this age group, causing side effects similar to those seen in young adult populations for whom it had already been cleared, according to the FDA in a press release. Those vaccinated also produced a strong immune response  the level of antibodies recorded in this age group was even stronger than what was seen in 16- to 25-year-olds.

The vaccinated group also had no covid cases when tested seven days after their second dose. Sixteen participants out of 978 who did not get the shot but were followed as part of the study as a control group tested positive for the virus. In short, the vaccine was 100% effective in preventing covid, according to the FDA.

Why so few kids?

One data point that may give parents pause is the trial's number of participants. The relatively low number  especially when compared with the tens of thousands enrolled in adult trials  is a reflection of what the researchers were trying to accomplish, said Dr. Kawsar Talaat, an assistant professor of international health at Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health.

Gauging whether the shot was safe for children and if it generated a strong immune response did not require a large study group, she said. Statisticians can calculate how many people a trial needs to generate meaningful results without unnecessarily exposing people to dangerous pathogens like the coronavirus.

In addition, the findings pertaining to the younger age group built on what has already been learned in earlier studies.

It's just not practical to do 30,000-person trials over and over with the same vaccine," Talaat said. Large trials are expensive, she added. Including minors also poses extra challenges, said Stager, such as getting parental consent.

Jerica Pitts, a Pfizer spokesperson, said in an email the company is using a "careful, stepwise approach" to including minors in clinical trials.

Stager said physiological similarities among 12- to 15-year-olds in response to vaccines have previously been documented. Studies related to a vaccine for the human papillomavirus have shown kids at this age generated similar, strong immune responses, too.

Administering the vaccine to preteens and young adolescents in large numbers may reveal additional effects that weren't detected in the clinical trials, said A. Oveta Fuller, associate professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Michigan Medical School.

That said, when weighing the threat of the virus versus the vaccine's proven safety, she said, the choice is clear.

The thing is the danger is really not so much the vaccines as it is what it protects against," Fuller said, "and thats covid disease.
A pilgrim wearing a face mask checks his phone while another holds a Brazilian flag while waiting for the start of the religious ceremonies at the Catholic shrine in Fatima, Portugal, Thursday, May 13,... (Associated Press)

A pilgrim wearing a face mask checks his phone while another holds a Brazilian flag while waiting for the start of the religious ceremonies at the Catholic shrine in Fatima, Portugal, Thursday, May 13, 2021. In view of the coronavirus pandemic, the shrine has limited to 7,500 the number of pilgrims... (Associated Press)

OLYMPIA, Wash.  Washington authorities said Thursday all schools in the state must provide full-time, in-person education for students for the 2021-22 school year and that students and staff will still be required to wear masks.

The Washington state Department of Health released guidelines that included mitigation efforts they said were designed to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

The mask directive could prove controversial, as the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday moved to ease indoor mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people. Currently people over the age of 12 are eligible for COVID-19 vaccines in Washington state.

About 1.1 million students attend public schools in Washington state. The Washington state schools directive for fall calls for all people in K-12 schools to wear masks indoors  as well as outdoors if six feet of distancing cant be maintained.

State authorities are recommending COVID-19 vaccinations and testing programs but are not requiring them for in-person instruction in the fall.

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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

 CDC: Fully vaccinated people can largely ditch masks indoors

 More school nurses, health corps part of $7.4 billion virus plan

 Britain's Johnson concerned about rise of Indian virus variant in UK

 Nations once lauded for virus successes lag in vaccinations

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 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:

RENO  Nevada started making COVID-19 shots available to children as young as 12 years old on Thursday after federal health advisers endorsed the use of Pfizers vaccine in kids.

More than 177,000 Nevada residents are in the 12-16 age group now eligible for the vaccine To date, 10% of Nevadas COVID-19 cases have been in the 10-19 age group.

The American Academy of Pediatrics says children account for one-fifth of all COVID-19 cases nationally. A year ago, they made up 3% of the total.

Health officials say adolescents and teens typically have more social contacts than adults. So theres a bigger risk that they will spread the virus.

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CARSON CITY, Nev.  The Nevada website the public uses to get information on coronavirus vaccines is packed with more ad trackers and third-party cookies than any state vaccination website in the country.

An investigation by technology publication The Markup found Immunize Nevadas website implants third-party cookies and trackers that can potentially be used to track how visitors navigate the internet and collect data on them that can be sold for any number of purposes.

The state says most trackers are used to optimize user experience and evaluate their outreach efforts.

Privacy experts say the amount of trackers on Nevadas site in comparison to other states goes beyond data-gathering applicable to outreach.

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LOS ANGELES  The city of Los Angeles is launching a bilingual campaign featuring Latino artists encouraging COVID-19 vaccinations.

The public service announcement unveiled Thursday is called Vacunate Ya, Los Angeles / Get Vaccinated, L.A. and features artists Angelica Maria, Danny Trejo, Pepe Aguilar, Angela Aguilar and Leonardo Aguilar.

The goal of this campaign is simple: to get our hard-hit Latino community vaccinated  and help our city and country defeat this pandemic once and for all, Mayor Eric Garcetti said in a statement.

The 30-second public service announcements will air on local TV news, starting with the Spanish-language version this week and followed by the English version next week. The PSAs will also appear on social media.

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WASHINGTON  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is easing indoor mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, allowing them to stop wearing masks inside in most places.

The new guidance was announced at the White House. It will still call for wearing masks in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters, but could ease restrictions for reopening workplaces and schools.

The CDC will no longer recommend that fully vaccinated people wear masks outdoors in crowds. Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the CDC, says, We have all longed for this moment  when we can get back to some sense of normalcy.

The more people get vaccinated, the faster infections will drop and the harder it will be for the coronavirus to mutate enough to escape vaccines, according to health experts.

This move comes as nearly half of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of vaccine and coronavirus cases are at their lowest rate since September. Also, deaths are at their lowest point since last April.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla.  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says if smaller cruise lines want to leave the state, their void will be filled.

DeSantis made his remarks at a news conference Thursday, saying Norwegian Cruise Line isnt one of the bigger cruise lines. However, the Miami-based Norwegian is the third largest cruise line in the world and has ports of departure in Miami, Port Canaveral and Tampa.

But Norwegian has said it might move departures elsewhere over a law that bans businesses from asking for proof of a coronavirus vaccination. Norwegian hasnt operated in the U.S. since the federal government shut down all cruises last year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The federal government is getting ready to let cruises sail again, but only if nearly all passengers and crew are vaccinated against the virus. DeSantis recently signed a bill banning business from requiring proof of vaccination, prompting Norwegian to say it might move Florida departures to other states or Caribbean ports.

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WASHINGTON -- Many Latinos are forgoing COVID-19 shots because of concerns about losing work hours, getting a bill and immigration worries.

Thats according to a new poll that offers insights into how to raise vaccination rates among the nations largest ethnic minority. The Kaiser Family Foundation Vaccine Monitor poll finds that many Hispanics who remain unvaccinated want a shot. Overall, the poll found that 60% of white adults have gotten at least one shot, with 51% of Blacks and 47% of Latinos.

Latinos who have gotten vaccinated were about twice as likely as whites or Blacks to have received their shots at a community health center. Federally funded health centers cater to low-income people regardless of the patients immigration status.

The poll found 38% of Hispanic adults say a friend or close family member had died of COVID-19, compared with 18% of white adults. The share of Latinos saying they are very worried that they or a family member will get sick from the virus (41%) was four times higher than among whites.

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WASHINGTON  The government is providing $7.4 billion to expand the nations public health capacity by hiring school nurses to vaccinate kids and creating a service corps around health care.

Biden administration coronavirus testing coordinator Carole Johnson says its part of a strategy to respond to immediate needs in the COVID-19 pandemic while investing to break the cycle of boom and bust financing. About $4.4 billion will go to immediate priorities in fighting the pandemic.

That includes $3.4 billion for states and local health departments to step up hiring of vaccinators, contact tracing workers, virus testing technicians and epidemiologists, who are disease detectives trained to piece together the evidence on the spread of pathogens.

Theres also $500 million for hiring school nurses, who could play a key role in vaccination now that the Pfizer vaccine has been cleared for use by teenagers.

An additional $400 million will set up the Public Health AmeriCorps, a service program that enlists young people early in their careers. The money is expected to support tens of thousands of new jobs over a period of five years, Johnson says.

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OKLAHOMA CITY  Some students, faculty and staff at the University of Oklahoma will be required to receive the coronavirus vaccine beginning June 1.

Those who interact with patients at the universitys medical centers and those who study abroad are required to be vaccinated, according to Oklahoma President Joseph Harroz, Jr.

OU is reducing its social distancing guidelines from 6 feet to 3 feet except in patient care settings and designated indoor eating areas. Its also easing masking requirements for certain outdoor activities, using federal CDC recommendations.

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WELLINGTON, New Zealand  Some countries praised last year for controlling the coronavirus are lagging when it comes to vaccinating their populations.

And some, especially in Asia, are experiencing surges in coronavirus cases. In Japan, South Korea and New Zealand, vaccination rates are languishing in the single figures. Not only do those three countries rank worst among all developed nations in vaccinating their people against COVID-19, they also rank below many developing countries, such as Brazil and India. Australia is also performing comparatively poorly.

That compares to the U.S., where nearly half of all people have gotten at least one shot, and Britain and Israel, where rates are even higher.

Japan has fully vaccinated only about 1% of its population. The nation is facing a significant coronavirus outbreak just 10 weeks before it is to host the already delayed Tokyo Olympics  although without spectators from abroad.

Japan went through a more traditional approval process that required an extra layer of clinical testing for vaccines that had already been tested elsewhere and widely used. Then Japan faced a shortage of medical staff to administer them.

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CAIRO  Egypt received its second shipment of vaccines from the international Covax initiative on Thursday.

Health Minister Hala Zayed says a shipment of 1.7 million AstraZeneca vaccines had arrived at Cairo international airport from the international alliance aimed at providing vaccines to middle and low-income countries.

The new shots arrive as the country encourages citizens to register for its vaccination campaign, expanding it beyond medical and tourism workers to the general population.

Health ministry spokesman Khaled al-Megahed says the country also received 500,000 additional doses of the Sinopharm vaccine, and materials for the country to begin production of that vaccine domestically by the end of the year. These two latest shipments put the total number of vaccines at 5 million, according to the ministry.

The daily reported coronavirus cases have surpassed 1,000 in the past two weeks. Last week, the government ordered a 9 p.m. curfew for restaurants, shops, cafes and social clubs and closed public beaches and parks for the duration of the Eid holiday, which starts on Thursday and continues through the weekend.

Egypt, with a population of 100 million people, has registered more than 240,927 confirmed cases and 14,091 deaths.

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BUCHAREST, Romania  Coronavirus restrictions in Bucharest will be eased after its infection rate dropped below 1.5 per 1,000 inhabitants, authorities said on Thursday.

Restaurants, cafes, cinemas, and performance halls can operate indoors at 50% capacity. Between March and May, they faced weeks of indoor closures as the capital grappled with rapidly escalating coronavirus infections.

The capitals prefect Alin Stoica says schools in Bucharest will continue to operate partly online until the capitals infection rate drops below one per 1,000 inhabitants. He also says it is encouraging that one million Bucharest residents have received at least one vaccine dose.

This week, Romanias government extended a state of alert for 30 days. Authorities are trying to vaccinate 5 million people by June 1 in the nation of more than 19 million.

So far, Romania has confirmed more than one million COVID-19 infections and nearly 30,000 deaths.

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LONDON  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says hes concerned about the rise in the U.K. of the coronavirus variant first identified in India.

A closely monitored study of coronavirus infections in England has found that the variant of the virus is becoming more prevalent ahead of the next big easing of the lockdown.

In its latest assessment published Thursday, Imperial College London said overall cases have fallen to their lowest level since last August following a strict lockdown and a successful rollout of vaccines. The so-called REACT study found the Indian variant was identified in 7.7% of the 127,000 cases tested between April 15 and May 3.

The next easing in England is set to take place on Monday when two households will be able to mix indoors and pubs and restaurants will be able to serve customers inside, among other changes. The other nations of the U.K.  Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland  have also laid out similar plans for the coming weeks.

The government hopes to lift most remaining restrictions on social contact in June. Its unclear whether that will lead to a big increase in hospitalizations and deaths given most of those people deemed vulnerable have been vaccinated.

New infections are averaging around 2,000 a day across the U.K., compared with nearly 70,000 in January. There were 11 reported deaths on Wednesday. Overall, Britain has Europes highest confirmed death toll at more than 127,600.
(Newser)  "She now, is, how do you say, the future regnante" of Italy, says Clotilde Courau of her teenage daughter, who lives in Paris. If your reactions are "what?" and "what??" that's understandable. Italy, of course, has no monarchy, which was done away with in 1946 and replaced by a republic. Prior to that, Italy was a kingdom ruled by the House of Savoy, and now there's been a major shakeup in who is heir to that house. In 2019, Vittorio Emanuele di Savoiason of Italy's last kingissued a decree that removed the restriction that only a male could be heir to the Head of the Royal House of Savoy. That meant his granddaughter, the now 17-year-old Vittoria Cristina Chiara Adelaide Maria, will be the one to "eventually lead the family and stake a claim to the defunct monarchy," reports Jason Horowitz for the New York Times.

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And what that's done, per the Times, is add fuel to "an ongoing dynastic dispute between the pretenders to Italys pretend throne." Vittoria's cousin, Prince Aimone di Savoia Aosta, calls her claim invalid (that Aosta branch of the family argues the succession law shouldn't be changed until the monarchy is restored). As for why it even matters, one historian says it's all about money, as it's the heir to the throne who has the power to hand out noble titlesand get payments in return. "By changing the inheritance law, Vittorio Emanuele ensured his branch a future revenue stream and prestige," Horowitz writes, though Vittoria's family says it's really about more principled things, like women's empowerment. (Read the full story, which describes Vittoria's father as "an Italian television personality who claims the title Prince of Venice, which is also the name of his Los Angeles restaurant and former food truck.")
(Newser)  What's it like being attacked by a shark? Not many people know, which is the point of Haley Cohen Gilliland's lengthy piece for Outside Online. She begins by tracking the attack Alex Wilton survived in March 2019 off Mexico's Pacific coast as a way of introducing the Bite Club: a modestly sized Facebook group made up of about 370 survivors who have found a community that understands thema rarity when you consider that Wilton was one of just 64 people on the entire planet to suffer an unprovoked shark attack in 2019. The then-32-year-old's attack happened after flying from San Francisco to Troncones for a wedding. The Silicon Valley product manager was comfortable with open-water swimming and decided to get some exercise after a day cooped up on planes.

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And the odds were heavily in his favor. As Gilliland writes, "Wilton was more likely to be killed falling from bed or by a fireworks show gone awry than breaststroking in the Pacific." And yet: "Something hurtled into him with what felt like the force of a tank" as he swam. What is now thought to be an adolescent great white tore open his right leg, just missing his femoral artery. He made it back to shore and survived, requiring 27 stitches and finding that he could walk without crutches after just a week. If the physical recovery was easy, the mental recovery was not. He suffered flashbacks even while showering or driving on a bridge over water. He had avoided joining the Bite Club, but finally decided he needed "extra help." Gilliland's story introduces the group's founder, an Australian named Dave Pearson, and how Wilton got the encouragement from the group to finally return to the waterand water that sharks frequent at that. (Read the full story for much more.)
(Newser)  The chaotic aftermath of the gas shortage in the South brought about by the Colonial Pipeline hacking continues. On Tuesday a brawl ensued at a North Carolina gas station backed up with long lines, while on Wednesday a Hummer burst into flames in Florida after its driver filled up several containers with gas. The newest report, per NBC News: a South Carolina woman hoarding gas in the car she was driving, which crashed while she was fleeing police, causing the vehicle to burst into flames and the driver to catch on fire. Per a Facebook post by the Pickens County Sheriff's Office, a deputy in Pickens spotted a car on Thursday with a license plate that had been reported stolen and took off after the vehicle. Police say the driver, 28-year-old Jessica Gale Patterson, tried to lose the deputy, but she lost control of her car and flipped it.

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"The vehicle immediately caught fire and multiple explosions were heard inside the vehicle," the statement notes. Police say as the deputy got closer to the car, Patterson got out and "was observed to be on fire," with the deputy having to push her down to the ground to help extinguish the flames. The cause of the explosion, per the police: "containers of fuel" that Patterson had told deputies she was hoarding in the car's trunk. Patterson was taken to a local hospital, though her condition is unclear. Meanwhile, Colonial, which rebooted its systems on Wednesday, said in a Thursday statement that "it will take several days for the product delivery supply chain to return to normal." (Read more gasoline stories.)
(Newser)  Arizona Republicans say the voter restrictions they're pushing after President Biden's win in the state last year are designed to strengthen the integrity of future elections. To some, the changes will make voting even more difficult. The bills, some signed into law this past week by Gov. Doug Ducey, are worrisome for Native Americans who live in remote areas, other communities of color, and voters whose first language isn't English. One codifies the existing practice of giving voters who didn't sign mail-in ballots until 7pm on Election Day to do so, defying a recently settled lawsuit that would have given voters additional days to provide a signature. Another will result in potentially tens of thousands of people being purged from a list of voters who automatically get a ballot by mail. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said Ducey's actions belittle tribes and fail to recognize the unique challenges Native Americans face in casting ballots, the AP reports. They include driving hours to reach polling places, unreliable mail service, and a need for more Native language translators. Other states have enacted restrictions since the election.

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"This is an assault to the election process for people of color throughout this country," Nez said. "Here in Arizona, it's pushing back on the voters of tribal communities." Claims of voter suppression are "outrageous," said the bills' sponsor, Republican Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita. "These are important cleanups and fixes," she said. Turnout on swaths of tribal land surged in 2020, helping Biden win a state that hadn't backed a Democratic presidential candidate since 1996. Before the pandemic, voting was a social event on many reservations. Tribal leaders give voters time off to cast a ballot and get others to the polls. Campaigns courted voters with traditional food. Even when they receive mailed ballots, many Native Americans prefer to drop them off on Election Day at their polling site, no matter how distant. Democratic state Rep. Jasmine Blackwater-Nygren, who is Navajo, said Republicans often say tribal members know what to expect when voting. That's true, she said, but the vast distances, spotty phone service, and lack of home mail delivery on some reservations pose challenges not found elsewhere. "We're saying we dont have the same access to polling locations, and that message seems to get lost," she said.

(Read more Navajo stories.)
(Newser)  President Biden called both sides Saturday in an effort to get them to dial back the heavy fighting in the Gaza Strip. One of the concerns he expressed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a White House release, was about the safety of journalists there. The president "reinforced the need to ensure their protection," the document said, after an Israeli strike destroyed a building in Gaza City earlier in the day that contained the offices of news organizations, including the AP. An Israeli release did not mention any response from Netanyahu about that attack but said the military warns building occupants before such strikes. It said a warning was given Saturday, the Hill reports. Netanyahu assured Biden that Israel was trying to limit civilian casualties, per the Times of Israel. Both countries said Biden repeated his support of "Israel's right to defend itself.

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Biden also called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday. The White House said Biden "stressed the need for Hamas to cease firing rockets into Israel," per Reuters. The US does not hold talks with Hamas, considering it a terrorist organization. The leaders also discussed the loss of civilian lives during the fighting, a US summary said. Biden "expressed his support for steps to enable the Palestinian people to enjoy the dignity, security, freedom, and economic opportunity that they deserve," the White House said, and reiterated to Abbas his backing for a two-state solution. It was the second conversation Biden has had this week with Netanyahu but his first call with Abbas. (Israel said its false report of a ground invasion was an honest mistake.)
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TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Gulf Air will support a cargo airlift of urgent medical supplies and relief items to India to assist in their fight against the COVID-19. Bahrains national carrier will offer cargo capacity on a space-available basis on all flights to India helping local non-governmental organisations deliver relief supplies rapidly to where they are needed by contacting the Embassy of India in the Kingdom.

Captain Waleed AlAlawi, Gulf Airs Acting Chief Executive Officer, said: We have to operate direct flights between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Republic of India since 1960 and its network of cities has always been key to our global network.

We resumed our flights to India in September 2020 to restart the traffic flow between Bahrain and India and have maintained our passenger operations to date. We remain dedicated to supporting cities with vital supplies to help them through this difficult time.

Gulf Air proudly supports the Kingdom of Bahrain in its humanitarian efforts and stands ready to assist non-governmental organisations that have urgent medical supplies for COVID-19 relief to transport these supplies to India Indian Ambassador Piyush Srivastava said: We deeply appreciate the solidarity and support from the Kingdom of Bahrain.

As we battle this global pandemic together and work closely to overcome its challenges, we thank Gulf Air for this kind gesture and for continuing to support India.
Bahrain's Al Qaysariya souq regains lost glory

TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com Bahrains souq Al Qaysariya, one of the oldest parts of Muharraqs market, is all set to welcome visitors after years-long careful preservation. The Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities said they would open the market to the public during events held today and tomorrow from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm. Souq Al Qaysariya is one of the oldest parts of the Muharraqs Market, which played a fundamental role in shaping the pearling economy of Bahrain.

Back in the 19th century, it was the centre of the worlds pearling industry, which connected several trade routes and excelled in several trades, including pearl diving and building pearling ships. The market now includes five historical buildings within the Pearling Path. Among them are the Siyadi shops and stores, a series of shops and storehouses built in the 1860s and three Amarat Fakhro buildings. The buildings have been in continuous use by the Siyadhi family ever since and complete the narrative of the grand pearl merchants, who not only sold gemstones but also goods like dates, rice, sugar, tea and coffee. Designed by Anne Holtrop studio, which has offices in Amsterdam and Muharraq, the newly restored Qaysariyah market now includes several shops selling modern goods. The buildings, according to Anne Holtrop, were reconstructed using old construction techniques and materials. The new stores of the souq are made out of concrete elements cast with unconstrained sand borders on the site.
Agencies | Gaza

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain yesterday strongly condemned the continuing barrage of airstrikes and artillery fire on Gaza, which Israel claimed was targetting tunnels to stop rocket attacks on Israeli towns.

In a telephone call with the Palestine Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Dr Riyadh Al-Maliki, Dr Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, the Foreign Affairs Minister of Bahrain, expressed strong condemnation of the attacks, which had claimed over 122 lives, including 31 children and 20 women and wounded 900 others, so far.

Dr Al Zayani told Dr Riyadh Al-Maliki that Bahrain is with the Palestinian people for their right to establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as capital based on the two-state solution.

The minister also conveyed condolences of Bahraini leadership to families of the martyrs and wishes of a speedy recovery to the injured. A pre-dawn offensive that lasted 40 minutes yesterday killed 13 Palestinians, including a mother and her three children, health officials in Gaza said.

Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus said the Israeli operation included 160 aircraft, tanks and artillery firing from outside the Gaza Strip. Egypt was leading international efforts to secure a ceasefire amid fears the conflict could spread.

Security sources said neither side appeared amenable so far, but a Palestinian official said negotiations had intensified yesterday. Backing Egyptian efforts, Dr Al Zayani stressed the importance of concerted international efforts to stop the escalation and protecting the Palestinian people.

During the call, the minister also welcomed an invitation by Saudi Arabia to hold an Executive Committee of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation at the level of foreign ministers to discuss developments in the Palestinian territories and the Gaza Strip.

What we were targeting is an elaborate system of tunnels that spans underneath Gaza, mostly in the north but not limited to, and is a network that the operatives of Hamas use to move, to hide, for cover, Conricus told foreign reporters, adding that the network was dubbed the Metro.
As Dartmouth College sophomore Nicholas Sugiarto flipped through the course catalog last semester, two words caught his eye: Asian American.

The 19-year-old Chinese Indonesian American didn't know Asian American-focused classes were even an option at the Hanover, New Hampshire, campus. The biomedical-engineering major ended up enrolling in Gender and Sexuality in Asian American Literature" and now wishes he could minor in Asian American studies.

I never realized how long and storied the history of Asians in America has been, Sugiarto said. You also hear about stories that just never made the news or never made it into the standard AP U.S. history textbooks.

That feeling of being seen resonates now more than ever for Asian American and Pacific Islander students and faculty at college campuses around the country. For all the Stop AAPI Hate hashtagging, accounts keep emerging of new incidents of Asian Americans being coronavirus scapegoats or made to feel like foreigners in their own country.

Ongoing anti-Asian attacks along with the March massage business shootings in Georgia that left six Asian women dead have provoked national conversations about visibility.

The debate has renewed an appetite at some colleges for Asian American studies programs. As student diversity grows, so does the desire for representation in the syllabus. But qualified professors of color say such programs wont last if they arent being offered permanent decision-making power.

Inspired by his literature class, Sugiarto added his signature to the nearly 1,000 on a petition calling on Dartmouth to establish an Asian American studies major, a challenge that's been brought to the Ivy League school on and off for four decades.

Sugiarto and his classmates hope this time will be different given recent events.

Eng-Beng Lim, the Dartmouth professor who taught Sugiarto's class, said the petition gained momentum after the massage business killings, and even fueled discussions with administrators.

Those talks recently stalled, though Lim still described it as a promising and critical impasse.

When U.S. universities refuse to support Asian American studies that are framed in a way that we have framed it, its really a missed opportunity to think about how we might have a more nuanced understanding of American racism beyond binary terms of Black and white, Lim said.

Pawan Dhingra, a professor at Amherst College and the incoming president of the Association for Asian American studies, said he is aware of a few other East Coast schools either considering Asian American studies or renewing their commitment to it.

A lot of ethnic studies programs grew out of student demand during key inflection points in American history, Dhingra said. This is an inflection point. The push for ethnic studies  in this case Asian American studies  fits the tradition of how these programs come to be. Its rarely the brainchild of administrators or faculty.

The concept of ethnic studies is believed to have started in California, where it became state law in August that California State University students take one ethnic studies course to graduate.

In 1968, students of color at San Francisco State University, which was named San Francisco State College at the time, joined Black classmates demanding a curriculum that wasn't just Euro-centric. What followed was five months of protests  the longest student strike in U.S. history  and hundreds of arrests.

In March 1969, after intense negotiations, the university officially launched a College of Ethnic Studies. Other schools also devised similar programs.

Alumni who were on strike 53 years ago see parallels with today's Stop Asian Hate rallies, said Mai-Nhung Le, chair of San Francisco State University's Asian American studies program. Young Asian Americans are again demanding classes relevant to them  not just history but everything from popular culture to environmental justice.

But while the backdrop in the 60s was the Vietnam War, today it's two concurrent pandemics: COVID-19 and structural racism, Le said.

Establishing an Asian American studies department is one thing  nurturing it is another. Ethnic studies programs are on shaky ground if schools don't recruit instructors who can plan courses and mentor students.

Of more than 428,000 faculty who were tenured or on tenure-track at degree-granting institutions nationwide in 2019, 70% were white, 11% were Asian or Pacific Islander, 5% were Black, and 5% were Latino. Native Americans and Alaska Natives comprised just 0.4%, according to data gathered by the National Center for Education Statistics.

A furor erupted at Dartmouth in 2016 when Aimee Bahng, an assistant English professor, was denied tenure. She had unanimous support from a departmental committee but not with higher-ranking campus officials. The rejection came as students were making another push for Asian American studies. Bahng had even started planning potential classes.

She recalls receiving hundreds of sympathetic messages from female academics in the U.S. and abroad.

I had an electronic folder of just women or women of color who had been denied tenure," said Bahng, who now teaches at Pomona College. It was amazing but also depressing. ... I always know when its tenure-denial season because I still get a handful of emails."

Dartmouth freshman Anais Zhang, 18, never gave Asian American studies much thought until she was assigned to write about it for the school newspaper after the Atlanta-area massage business shootings. In her research, Zhang learned of all the attempts to start a program that ultimately went nowhere. It left her frustrated.

I talked to a lot of my friends about the article and my shock at how we really dont have an institutionalized program and just my reaction learning about how previous students had put so much effort in petitioning the college and hiring professors ... only to have this support trickle away and have all this progress undone in the subsequent years," Zhang said.

A lot of times fledgling ethnic studies programs decline because junior professors who aren't full time or permanent have to carry them, according to Dhingra.

It's just creating extra labor for faculty that burns people out and it isnt able to grow because it wasnt created with enough infrastructure in the first place, Dhingra said.

At the University of Arizona in Tucson, an Asian Pacific American studies minor launched last month. While it is an "example of the way the university is combating anti-Asian hate and ignorance," it was a culmination of efforts that started several years before the pandemic, said Brett Esaki, an assistant professor who helped come up with the coursework.

The short- and long-term goals are definitely about stability, said Esaki, who is not tenured. We cant just hope for another disaster to get people to say, Youre important. ___

Tang reported from Phoenix and is a member of The Associated Press Race and Ethnicity team. Follow her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ttangAP
DANBURY  Opposition is building to the plan to turn a former motel into a permanent homeless shelter.

Citing concerns about crime and other problems, residents decried the idea this past week at a Zoning Board of Appeals meeting.

Resident Jeff Berlant, who lives on Fairlawn Avenue about a half-mile from the property, said the area has changed since the Super 8 Motel became a place to house people experiencing homelessness last year due to COVID-19.

Berlant said he and his neighbors have seen an increase in drug dealing in the area, among other issues, prompting families to put up neighborhood watch signs.

Thats how scared our community is, he said. Thats not fair.

The state closed on the purchase of the Super 8 two weeks ago, giving a $4.63 million federal grant to Pacific House, a Stamford-based nonprofit, to buy the building. The nonprofit operates the shelter and provides supportive services.

The plan for the 3 Lake Ave. Extension property is to offer 48 supportive housing rooms and 36 units as an emergency shelter, said Rafael Pagan, Jr., executive director of Pacific House.

Individuals will receive case management services, with the goal of finding them permanent housing. The city and nonprofit have placed 114 individuals into permanent housing since moving to the motel, he said.

The board received more than two dozen letters of support from the project, many from agencies that work with homeless individuals.

This type of shelter is expected to be the future of homeless services.

Were excited that Danbury is on the forefront of this and has really served as a model not only for the state of Connecticut, but for the entire nation, said Steve DiLella, director of individual and family support programs for the state Department of Housing.

Nearly two dozen letters of opposition are filed online, but the board received additional letters that were also read during the meeting. It took about an hour and 20 minutes of the five-hour meeting for city staff to read these letters, compared to about 35 minutes for the letters in support.

The board continued the public hearing to its May 27 meeting.

Motel vs. shelter

The nonprofit seeks a use variance from the board because shelters are not normally permitted in this zone.

Attorney Ward Mazzucco argued concerns about transmission of COVID-19 constitutes as a hardship that should allow the nonprofit to get the use variance. A shelter is similar to a motel anyway because both guests are transient, he said.

The only difference, really, is that at a hotel you pay to stay there and here a homeless shelter the residents are not paying to be present, he said.

Resident Benjamin Doto scoffed.

When was the last time [Mazzucco] accidentally checked into a homeless shelter on a business trip or in his travels? Doto asked.

He and others argued the shelter should seek a change to the zoning regulations, rather than a use variance.

The motel is a functionally obsolete building because it could not keep up with competition from nearby hotels, Mazzucco said.

The building is also isolated from nearby commercial properties, such as McDonalds and Dunkin, as well as a Danbury Housing Authority building, he said.

Putting the shelter near the housing authority property where low-income residents live is discriminatory, Doto said.

These residents are Danbury residents, he said. They count just as much as a homeowner does. To treat a tenant differently and just shove it down their throat is just inappropriate.

Neighborhood concerns

Many of the residents opposed the project because they worried about the effect it would have on their neighborhoods. The shelter is about half a mile from Westside Middle School and Mill Ridge Primary School.

Police Chief Patrick Ridenhour said officers would respond when called to criminal activity in nearby neighborhoods.

But he said there has been no increase in workload or call volume since people moved into the Super 8.

Police records show about 535 calls to service to Super 8 from March to August 2020, but around 90 percent of those were proactive property checks that were not related to a specific problem at the facility, Ridenhour said.

Just as police did at the New Street and Dorothy Day shelters, officers patrol the parking lot at Super 8 to ensure there are no problems, he said.

From September 2020 to the present, there were 153 calls logged, with 45 of those being property checks and 108 being actual calls, Ridenhour said.

The number of calls, including property checks and preventative patrols, were 33 percent less at the shelter from November 2020 to March 2021 compared to the number of calls to New Street and Dorothy Day from November 2019 to March 2020, he said.

A resident on Ridge Road who lives about a half-mile from the property said he is not aware of any unwelcomed incidents over the past year.

The location is discrete and would be suitable for this use given its relative location to current public housing, resident Andrew Wetmore wrote to the board.

But Doto, who also lives on Ridge Road, said he is worried hell see the problems he experienced at his downtown property near the citys older shelters. Hes had clean up after individuals went to the bathroom on his Main Street property.

This was a routine event, he said. Im sure its going to continue on the west side of town.

Attorney Neil Marcus, who represents Maron Hotel & Suites down the road and the Dunkin across the street, opposed plan because of its location. The Dunkin closed because guests at the shelter would wander over and sit in the parking lot, he said.

This will affect properties in the neighborhood, he said. You dont have to worry about that. It already has.

Marcus represented Dorothy Day in its unsuccessful lawsuit against Zoning Board of Appeals shutdown order.

Im 100 percent in favor of doing everything we can do (for people experiencing homelessness) but weve got to do it right, he said.
With new federal guidelines promising a whole new world for fully vaccinated individuals, local business owners and leaders are grappling with how best to handle updated mask-wearing guidance and determine the best way forward.

The new guidance, which says that fully vaccinated people can unmask both indoors and outside in small and large groups of people, was announced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Thursday. But many are still waiting for clearer guidance from Gov. Ned Lamont.

Sarah Bouissou, who owns Bernards, a popular Ridgefield restaurant, with her husband Bernard, is not changing anything until she hears more guidelines from the state. Staff will be masked and diners will be asked to wear masks coming and going from their tables indoors, she said.

In the service industry, its challenging because you dont want their first experience when they walk in the door to be, Can I check your papers please? said Bouissou.

She said their customers are divided on their comfortability with masks, and making sure all her clients are happy and comfortable is of utmost importance, so shes not changing any rules yet. Theyre staying at about 50 percent capacity indoors for the time being.

If theyre not comfortable, theyre not coming, Bouissou said of her customers. I have diners say this is the only place that theyll dine inside so I dont want to risk that.

Checking paperwork

To check papers or not to check papers. Thats the current question some restaurant and business owners are dealing with.

RVNAhealths Director of Community Health, Laura Cordeira, said she thinks the new guidance is likely going to create a lot of confusion and could be tricky to oversee and enforce.

Its going to be hard to implement on all fronts because youre going to need some sort of proof, theres going to be some sort of honor system, and theres got to be somebody who is able to enforce it, Cordeira said.

Some businesses are just going to take patrons word for it.

At The Edge Fitness Clubs Danbury, fitness consultant Ashly Rodriguez said theyre not authorized to ask clients for personal health information like a vaccine card, so if someone tells them theyre fully vaccinated, theyll let that person work out without a mask on.

At The Toy Room, a childrens store in Bethel, owner Kim Ramsey hasnt fully made a decision and wants to read her customers reactions first.

Im not the vaccine police, Im not going to question people who come in without a mask on, she said.

For now, if a customer comes in, shell be wearing a mask unless its family or a close friend. Ramsey is often the only employee working inside. But its up to the vaccinated customers whether they want to wear a mask or not.

My attitude right now is just hopefully people have respect for each other and can respect each others decisions as to whether they have a mask on, said Ramsey.

All businesses echoed the same sentiment when it came to their decision: the safety and comfort of our customers comes first.

Several local businesses are wary of scaring off customers who might not be fully ready to be around unmasked people in an indoor space.

Im just starting to see so many of my customers come out from quarantine that I dont want them to feel uncomfortable, said Diane Berkowitz, who owns the restaurant Sonny Side Up with her husband, Sonny. I just dont feel ready to rip the masks off inside yet.

Many of the breakfast spots patrons are older, according to Berkowitz, and she wants to ensure that they feel comfortable coming in.

For now, things will stay the same. Staff will continue to wear masks, and they will ask customers to wear masks coming in and out of the restaurant, and to the bathrooms. Berkowitzs decision also impacts her employees, so she said she works hard to listen to their concerns, too.

If theyre nervous, if theyre worried, I listen to them because theyre so important to me, she said.

At Accente Salon, which has locations in Danbury and Ridgefield, owner Mary Rullo said shes also waiting for more information on May 19.

I feel like people still will be uncomfortable because we work so closely with them, like were on top of them, Rullo said. Itll be up to them.

Shes also leaving it up to fully vaccinated employees to decide whether they feel comfortable wearing a mask or not.

I think its going to be a waiting game to see whats going to happen, Rullo said.

Some changes may be here to stay

The pandemic has altered the way many of these businesses operate, but some of the changes may stick for a while because owners find them beneficial.

Some customers are still very wary of the virus. Rullo has clients whom she hasnt seen in a year and a half that are only just starting to come back in. Another wore gloves throughout her appointment.

On Friday, one of Rullos employees took her client outside to finish the appointment after a smoke alarm briefly went off. A woman on the street came up to employee Tiffany Broderick and asked if she could also get her hair done outside, since she was not yet comfortable coming inside. Broderick told her she could.

In all, Rullo said Broderick gained three new clients because they saw her doing hair outside.

At The Toy Room, Ramsey is taking down her plastic shield at the register on May 19, but is keeping the private shopping hours option and curbside service she started during the pandemic.

Bernards is operating at 50 percent capacity indoors, which Bouissou said is likely to remain for the forseeable future. Berkowitz echoed this sentiment.

[My husband and I are] in our 50s, so we dont know that we want to go back to 100 percent thats a lot of work, she said.

Photo courtesy of Tiffany Broderick

Unvaccinated and on the fence

As restaurants, gyms and salons grapple with what to do with fully vaccinated customers, health providers are still just trying to get people to come in for a vaccine if they are able.

With the new guidance offering a path to normalcy, vaccine clinics and providers are waiting to see whether it will encourage vaccine hesitant people to go ahead and get the shot. For now, all of them said its far too soon to tell what the imapct will be.

I do think the majority who wanted a vaccine have gotten it by now, said RVNAhealths Laura Cordeira.

She doesnt forsee this new mandate making as much of a large scale dent as they might be hoping for.

Leslie Gianelli, vice president of communications for the Community Health Center, Inc. in Danbury, said that while they hope the guidance motivates more people to get vaccinated, she also thinks its too early to know its impact. This sentiment was mirrored by Katie Curran, chief operating officer and general counsel for the Connecticut Institute for Communities (CIFC).

The guidance is very new and will take people a little time to process, Gianelli wrote in an email.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP)  Florida State Universitys hunt for a new president has been narrowed to three outside candidates who are currently top administrators at their current schools, rejecting the candidacy of the states current education commissioner.

The universitys presidential search committee narrowed the choices Saturday to Richard McCullough, Harvard Universitys vice president for research; Robert Blouin, the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hills executive vice chancellor and provost; and Dr. Giovanni Piedimonte, Tulane Universitys vice president for research and a professor of pediatrics at its medical school.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP)  A Missouri man was killed in a single-vehicle crash that happened early Saturday morning, police said.

The Jefferson City Police Department's communications center received a call at 3:19 a.m. of an accident on US 54, police said in a news release. Emergency responders found a white Ford F350 on top of the concrete highway divider.
MOSCOW (AP)  Russia has designated the United States and the Czech Republic as nations that engage in unfriendly actions, a move that limits the hiring of staff for their embassy operations.

The Russian government's order that was posted Friday bans the U.S. from hiring local personnel for its diplomatic missions in Russia and caps the number of local hires for the Czech Republic at 19. The move would likely cost scores of Russians who work as support staff for the two embassies their jobs.
Seventy-five people died in a row for four days in Goa due to oxygen shortage. While the hospital says it has fixed its oxygen issues, geography of supply continues to be a reason behind unequal supply for oxygen in several parts of the country.

In this acute crisis of pandemic the medical oxygen shortage has become very common. Unfortunately, it is the impact of the geographical separation between the substantial bulk of plants producing oxygen and those in need. Knowing the occupancy of beds in the hospitals, we will also be able to work out the average requirement of oxygen there. This will take care of any imbalance in supply, said officer on special duty for Covid-19 Vinod Rao, as states have started setting up the oxygen monitoring systems to monitor the quantity of oxygen supplied to each hospital and the usage to ensure there is no wastage or excess storage.

Seventy-five people have died in a row for four days in Goa even after the hospital says it has fixed its oxygen issues. Goa Forward Party President Vijai Sardesai said, He said the deaths had again happened during the dark hours when the hospital has been seeing oxygen supply fluctuating.

While people have been trying to mitigate the problem for the oxygen supply, the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) has sent in a substantial help by setting up a dashboard for monitoring of oxygen availability and supply across all hospitals in the city. The facility was kicked off on Wednesday.

Also read: States battle vaccine shortage: Eye on producing 10 million vaccine doses per day

Similarly, Uttar Pradesh has set the Oxygen Monitoring System was successful to tag 38 oxygen tanks located in different parts of the country and another 25 will be tagged in the next 24 hours for managing the demand and keeping track of the real-time demand at hospitals.

Kerala being the only state to produce surplus oxygen, has been supplying to the states nearby including Goa, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and more. A conspicuous mismatch is seen between the governments claim on the states demand for oxygen and consumption.

As the state government claims that the oxygen requirement is more than 1,700 MT, the data provided shows that the states consumption of oxygen for Covid-19 infected persons was around 723.86 kilo litre (KL) on May 9, registering a marginal increase from 700.74 KL recorded on May 6.
The Defense Research and Development Organization has announced that the first batch of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) medicine for the treatment of mild to serious Covid-19 cases will be available next week.

Though India is currently experiencing a oxygen and vaccine shortage, there is some good news on the horizon. The Defense Research and Development Organization has announced that the first batch of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) medicine for the treatment of mild to serious Covid-19 cases will be available next week. The first batch of 10,000 doses of 2DG medicine for the treatment of COVID-19 infected patients will be launched early next week and given to patients, the official said.

The pharma companies are working to increase the production of the medication for potential use. A team of DRDO scientists, led by Dr. Anant Narayan Bhatt, created the drug officials have said. 2-DG (2-deoxy-D-glucose), an anti-COVID-19 therapeutic application of the drug, was created in cooperation with Dr Reddys Laboratories (DRL) in Hyderabad by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO).

The findings of clinical trials have shown that this molecule aids in the quicker recovery of hospitalized patients and decreases the need for supplemental oxygen. In COVID patients, a higher proportion of patients treated with 2-DG had RT-PCR negative conversion. Dr. K Sudhakar, Karnatakas Health Minister have also assured that the DRDO 2DG drug for Covid-19 may be a game-changer in the countrys battle against the pandemic.

There are few more anti-viral treatment drugs which are in R&D phase or already gets the emergency approval from the government. Roche India already received the Emergency Use approval for antibody cocktail used in Covid-19 treatment. Bharat Biotech is also manufacturing the nasal vaccine to fight the Coronavirus and company has already started trials in Hyderabad. On the other hand, According to Deepak Sapra, CEO (API and Services), Dr Reddys Laboratories is working with Indian regulators to bring the single-dose Sputnik Light coronavirus vaccine to the country.

Read More: Centre releases new vaccination guidelines: Plan to vaccinate everyone by 2021 end
Dr. Le-Meng Yan, a Chinese virologist and former post-doctoral fellow at Hong Kong University, has claimed that coronavirus was developed in a research lab by China. It was discovered after a substantial investment by China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) and was launched as a bio-weapon from a lab.

Based on the latest information collected by the US State Department, Chinese military scientists reportedly looked at weaponising coronavirus five years before the Covid-19 pandemic and may have anticipated a World War III waged by biological weapons. The papers allegedly reveal Chinese Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) commanders made the sinister prediction, according to the UKs The Sun newspaper, citing sources first published by The Australian.

Dr. Le-Meng Yan, a Chinese virologist and former post-doctoral fellow at Hong Kong University, claimed that the coronavirus was developed in a research lab in China in a paper published in September last year. It was discovered after a substantial investment by Chinas Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) and was launched as a bio-weapon from a lab.

According to Yan, the leaked documents reveal that genetic engineering of viruses was not the start of Chinas study of contemporary bio-weapons in 2015, but rather a phase in the study of bio-weapons for which evidence is now available. But theyve changed a lot since then, and theyve hired a lot of laboratories under the guise of silo labs, foreign labs, and collaboration with the military to grow it. After five to six years, they have gained more expertise and experience, which is what allowed COVID-19 to take place.

The PLA papers suggest that a bioweapon assault might bring down the enemys medical system. It refers to the work of US Air Force colonel Michael J. Ainscough, who believed that bioweapons would be used in World War III. The paper also speculates that SARS, which struck China in 2003, may have been a man-made bioweapon intentionally released by terrorists. They allegedly proclaimed that the viruses could be artificially manipulated into an evolving human disease virus, then weaponized and released in unprecedented ways.

Its worth noting that Chinas biochemical research is focused on the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The facility includes Asias first P4 lab, which cost USD 42 million to construct, as well as the continents largest virus bank, with over 1,500 strains. The P4 mark denotes the highest potential biosafety ranking, which is determined by the level of danger faced by the pathogens tested and the subsequent protective steps. Shi Zhengli, Deputy Director of Wuhans P4 lab, raised eyebrows in a June 2020 interview with a US magazine when she said she was initially concerned about the virus leaking from her lab.

Although the bioweapon theory has piqued public interest since the outbreak began, scathing extracts from a supposed Chinese government paper published in a mainstream Australian newspaper have given credence to the claim. The former deputy director of Chinas Bureau of Epidemic Prevention, Lee Feng, and Xu Dezhong, the former head of Chinas SARS Epidemic Analysis Expert Group, are included in the Australian publications list of writers, which poses serious concerns about the countrys biochemical programmes and lack of accountability about the sources of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Furthermore, in March 2020, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) stunned the world by launching a global deception operation centred on covid-19. This includes claims by state media and diplomats that the virus was a bioweapon, that Covid-19 did not emerge in China, and, misinformation about Western vaccines.

China was also hesitant to invite foreign experts into the country for an impartial investigation, delaying their entrance for months. As a result, after a WHO panel arrived in Wuhan and ruled out the laboratory event scenario as highly doubtful, the international community immediately questioned whether the team of experts leading the investigation had sufficient access. An AFP study reported that the team of experts spent just four hours at the virology institute, an hour at the wet market, and some days inside their hotel without venturing out into the area, further damaging Chinas international credibility.

These claims were labelled outright lies by China on Monday, accusing the US of attempting to smear the country. However, policymakers will be less shocked and more informed the next time China promotes misinformation during a public health emergency if they learn from the past. Uncovered archives, including declassified Soviet records, can provide proof that China intentionally spread misinformation about covid-19 over time.
NORTH HAVEN  Residents will vote Tuesday on a 2021-22 budget that would add several police and fire positions, maintain a stable tax rate and fund the repaving of 10 miles of road, according to First Selectman Michael Freda.

Under the recommended changes, spending for the coming fiscal year would increase by roughly 3 percent over the current fiscal year, from approximately $109 million to approximately $112 million, the town budget proposal packet indicates.

The tax rate would decrease by just 0.01 mill, from 30.72 mills to 30.71 mills, per those documents.

In addition to adding three police officers and two firefighters, the budget would cut three town government positions: one each in the community services department, the finance department and the recreation department, Freda said.

Freda said removing those positions is a matter of efficiency and amounts to $333,000 in savings but does not reduce services for residents.

The budget also includes money to fully build out an emergency operations center and to update the emergency communications system, Freda said, which will improve the towns ability to handle storms and other crises.

We are building a fire training center, he said of additional projects the budget would support. Thatll be a more efficient way to train our firefighters.

The education budget would account for more than half of the towns total expenses, and, at around $58.5 million, it would represent an increase of about 2 percent over the current fiscal years $57.3 million budget, per the budget proposal.

The proposal includes reduced spending on basic items such as textbooks, classroom supplies, utilities and other routine school expenditures .. .to offset contractual obligations, according to a North Haven Public Schools memo included in the budget packet.

A new school psychologist and a part-time human resources specialist would join the district, per the memo, which also indicates the budget proposal reflects one retirement and seven school staff members who opted out of returning next year.

Superintendent of Schools Patrick Stirk could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Funding for the $112 million budget will come from roughly $94 million in property taxes and $8.6 million in state and federal aid, among other revenue sources, according to the document.

Freda said North Haven is expected to receive approximately $2.3 million from the American Rescue Plan. The funds will be issued in two installments  one will go toward the current fiscal year and the other will go toward the next fiscal year, according to the first selectman.

Under the plan, Connecticut counties also received federal aid, which is to be distributed among municipalities. But because the amount of county aid North Haven will receive remains undetermined, Freda said, it is not reflected in the budget.

Polls for the budget referendum will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, according to the town website, which also provides a list of polling places.

meghan.friedmann@hearstmediact.com
NEW HAVEN  Cathy Foster-Mendez, the mom of fallen firefighter Ricardo Torres Jr., gave thanks to the community Saturday at an intimate, powerful prayer vigil, telling the group, If anyone would lay their life on the line for anyone, it was Ricardo.

He was a good boy, he was a good man. He loved and cared about everyone, and a great dad, Foster-Mendez said of her son who always wanted to be a firefighter and paid the ultimate price.

The vigil was held outside Pitts Chapel Unified Free Will Church, to honor Torres and pray for his family, pray for the recovery of critically injured firefighter Lt. Samod Nuke Rankins, who is making progress in the burn unit at Bridgeport Hospital and to honor another firefighter, William McMillian, 27, who died unexpectedly May 6. McMillian leaves a daughter, 5. Torres died and Rankins was injured fighting the same fire on Valley Street Wednesday during the wee hours of the morning.

Torres young widow, Erica Torres, was escorted to the prayer vigil in a black SUV driven by a fire captain, who conveyed the message that she didnt want to be photographed or interviewed by any of the numerous newspaper and television reporters present.

A composed Erica Torres, who is pregnant, stood off to the side, chatting with a stream of people and got minutes-long embraces. The couple also has a toddler.

Erica Torres could be heard thanking people for the prayers, the vigil, and inquiring warmly about Rankins condition, as he was a close friend.

Pitts Chapel is the church of Rankins mother and several of their family members. His mom, Novella Guiont, couldnt attend because shes staying in the hospital by her youngest childs side, but sent her thanks.

The small, yet mightily spiritual group of about 25 people, held hands and heard brief, healing words of church pastor, Bishop Elijah Davis and others.

Church member Lorise Brown, who organized the vigil, said she got the vigil idea because the Bible states that when two or three are gathered together for one purpose, God will be in the midst and in this case, God will go to Bridgeport Hospital and bless Rankins.

Hes off the vent and God is working miracles, Brown said.

Rankins, 28, a popular figure in the community because of his work on behalf of the less fortunate, the school children and the marginalized in society, was pulled unconscious from the burning house on Valley Street after issuing a mayday call, as did Torres.

It looked at first as if Rankins might not pull through as he suffered severe smoke inhalation  but like the fighting, determined man hes known as  turned a corner Wednesday and began breathing on his own when they removed the ventilator. Although hes being directed not to talk as his throat heals, Rankins mind is clear, those close to him say, and in a really telling sign that Nuke was back, he started writing orders for his mom on a note pad .

Retired firefighter Gary Tinney, vice president of the International Association of Black Firefighters said in another milestone Saturday that Rankins sat up for the first time. Tinney said Rankins sent a thank you for all the community prayers.

The Flaming Knights Motorcycle Club did a drive by at the church on residential Brewster Street, then joined the sidewalk vigil.

Rankins great uncle, Joe J. Davis, a retired state police captain, said his great nephew is coming along, but he has a long way to go, to full recovery.

Davis said Nuke has always been the kind of kid who doesnt mind obstacles and has the determination and skill to get around them.

Davis said Rankins philosophy has always been to aim high, dont give up and you can achieve your dream.

Another vigil attendee, Donna Santiago, said shes known the Rankins for years, and that Nuke Rankins pinned her nephew when he joined the fire service.

Santiago said helping others is Rankins calling.

Gods got a bigger plan for him, I believe, she said.

Mendez, Torres mom, thanked all for coming to the vigil, and for the comforting prayers and support from the firefighters and the community.

The support system has been amazing, she said. They say its a brotherhood and it really is.

Mendez said shes enjoyed hearing stories about her son.

Its a lot of sadness, but God is awesome to lift us, said Rankins cousin Sean Hardy, a member of the church.

Toward the end of the event, a small, spontaneous prayer huddle formed to include Torres wife and mom.

Teach us to love one another, was part of the prayer said by Sharyn L. Grant. Bring us together  Black, white, purple.

Donations are pouring in to help the family of Torres, McMillian and Rankins. As of Saturday afternoon, GoFundMe campaigns had raised $241,482 for the Torres family, $7,681 for McMillians daughter and $11,655 for Rankins in less than two days.

Tinney said the three are all part of a tight-knit group of young firefighters who studied together and worked hard to become firefighters.
NEW HAVEN  Qinxuan Pan, charged with the alleged murder of Yale graduate student Kevin Jiang, was arrested Friday in Alabama after being at-large for more than three months and the subject of an international fugitive search.

It was not known Friday whether Pan was being extradited to Connecticut.

James Stossel, deputy chief of the office of public affairs with the U.S. Marshals Service, said Pan was being held at the Montgomery County Detention Center and whether he would be extradited will not be answered right now, because there are too many variables involved from many different sides.

Here are five things to know about the case:

Kevin Jiang

Jiang, 26, was a graduate student at the Yale School of the Environment, a member of Trinity Baptist Church and a West Haven resident.

Born in Seattle and raised in Chicago, he served as an environmental scientist/engineering officer and tank operator in the Army and National Guard and graduated from the University of Washington before coming to Yale. He was a certified fitness trainer and ran his own studio after serving in the military.

He had become engaged to be married to Zion Perry, a fellow Yale graduate student, a week before he was killed on Feb. 3.

In the days following his passing, friends, Yale colleagues, members of his church and fellow National Guardsmen all painted a picture of a person who brought joy to those around him, was excited about his future and devoted to his work and studies. They described him as kind, enthusiastic and open about his faith.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

The pastors of Trinity Baptist, where his funeral was held, expressed their gratitude to law enforcement for arresting the man suspected of killing Jiang Friday.

We are grateful for the diligent efforts of law enforcement and for the arrest of the suspect. We continue to pray that the truth would be revealed, that justice would be done, and that God would bring healing and comfort to Kevins family and loved ones, Matt Coburn, Greg Hendrickson and Nick Lauer, said in a statement.

Peter Hvizdak / Hearst Connecticut Media

Qinxuan Pan

Pan was enrolled as a graduate student in the Massachusetts Institute of Technologys Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science since 2014.

New Haven Police Department

He and his adviser, Constantinos Daskalakis, published a paper last year having to do with mathematical algorithms as they relate to machine learning. Daskalakis could not be reached for comment.

Pan earned his undergraduate degree from MIT in June 2014, according to the university.

A 2009 MIT Admissions blog post, which was removed sometime after police named Pan as a person of interest Wednesday but is archived on another website, indicated Pan moved to the United States from Shanghai as a teenager.

Pan played the piano competitively, according to the post.

He attended Thomas S. Wootton High School in Rockville, Md., according to the website for the International Mathematical Olympiad, which shows he won a silver medal in the competition in 2009.

He was last living in Malden, Mass.

What we know about the day Jiang was killed

Jiang was found slain around 8:30 p.m. Feb. 6 on Lawrence Street near its intersection with Nash Street, according to New Haven police.

Police believe Pan was in the area at the time Jiang was killed, former Police Chief Otoniel Reyes has said. He had allegedly traveled to the area from Massachusetts in a stolen car, according to a police report.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

According to a police report from Mansfield, Mass. Officer Joshua Ellender said a salesman at a local dealership had reported a car stolen at around 7:30 p.m. that day.

According to the report, the salesman explained that Qinxuan Pan walked in today and wanted to test drive a blue GMC Terrain SUV and bring it to his mechanic for inspection before potentially buying it.

The salesman asked Pan around 5:30 p.m. when he would be returning the vehicle. Pan initially asked for more time, saying he had a family emergency, then stopped responding to texts and calls after being told he needed to return the car by closing time at the dealership, according to the report. Ellender asked Malden police to check whether the vehicle was at Pans residence in that community, the report says.

A relative of Pan reportedly told Malden police that Pan had changed his cell phone number and wouldnt tell them where he was, but that he would return the vehicle, the report says.

At 10:30 p.m., Pan had not returned the SUV, the report says. Ellender entered the vehicle as stolen at 10:40 p.m., the report says.

He was then notified at 10:45 p.m. North Haven police had reported they had just towed the vehicle, as it had gotten stuck on railroad tracks in a Connecticut scrap yard, the report says.

In his report, Ellender noted Pan was believed to be potentially involved in a case in New Haven, had concealed the vehicles identity, and fled to another state before New Haven police arrived to question him.

North Haven Chief Kevin Glenn previously said Pan was found behind the wheel of a vehicle with a flat tire in the parking lot of Sims Metals, a junkyard on Universal Drive. Officers found Pan had a valid license and that the vehicle was properly registered, Glenn said.

Was there a connection between Pan and Jiang?

This is not yet established. Perry also attended MIT as an undergraduate student, graduating in 2020 with a degree in biological engineering.

But New Haven police previously said they had not ruled out or confirmed any prior connection between Perry and Pan.

The course of the investigation

New Haven police named Pan as a person of interest in the case Feb. 10, then obtained a warrant charging him with Kevin Jiangs slaying in late February.

Peter Hvizdak / Hearst Connecticut Media

Pan was seen in Georgia in the days following the investigation, according to the U.S. Marshals Office for Connecticut.

A family member reported seeing Pan walking by himself and acting strange, U.S. Marshal Matthew Duffy said. He added that the family could not really describe it but said Pan was not his self.

The marshals office reported Pan could possibly be staying with friends or family in the Duluth or Brookhaven areas of Georgia.

U.S. Marshals obtained an Interpol red notice, defined as a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action, in April.

Duffy said at the time that the agency, in securing the Interpol notice, had not ruled anything out considering Pans whereabouts.

He was arrested overnight in Alabama.

william.lambert@hearstmediact.com
TAMPA, Fla. (AP)  Five years ago, a diminutive teenage girl with striking brown eyes stood shackled and weeping in a Tampa courtroom.

Jennifer Carvajal admitted she was drunk early one morning a few weeks shy of her 17th birthday. She admitted that shed blown through a red light and slammed into another car, killing the driver. She admitted shed made a terrible mistake and vowed to become a better person.

One person paid the ultimate price for my selfish behavior, she said.

She got five years in prison.

Last summer, Carvajal was once again in court, accused of violating probation by walking away from a substance abuse treatment facility.

Shes dancing around a big ol fire, Judge Nick Nazaretian warned her attorney. And shes gonna get burned if she gets too close to that.

Admonished to do better, she went back to treatment.

Two weeks ago, authorities say Carvajal was once again driving drunk. Once again, they say, she crashed and killed a man.

What happened here? The full story is yet to be told. But court and police records yield a glimpse of a tragic life full of wrong turns that also ended two other lives and left many more in pain.

A TROUBLED CHILD

Jennifer Carvajal was born in Tampa in 1997, the second-oldest child in a family of two girls and three boys.

She would later recall childhood memories of hearing her parents fight, of hiding in a closet with her siblings or running down the street to call the police.

Her father sold and used drugs, according to court testimony. He drank. Her mother seemed aloof, once leaving the children for a week.

When she was about 6 years old, several older men in her extended family began to sexually abuse her, according to court testimony. It wasnt discovered until she was 9, when she developed an infection that a doctor diagnosed as a sexually transmitted disease.

At 11, her father was arrested for raping an older female relative. He spent five years in prison, then was deported to Mexico.

At 12, she tried marijuana. At 15, she was smoking and drinking regularly. She was twice hospitalized after trying to take her own life.

Her school attendance was sporadic. She got poor grades and was suspended from Simmons Career Center in Plant City for sneaking off to see a boy.

She would later recall that her boyfriend gave her access to alcohol. She would recall drinking to escape and to forget.

She would recall one early morning when she stayed out all night, taking her mothers car without asking. Shed returned home but left again when her cousin called and asked for a ride to school.

A CRASH

Keith Allen Davis was 52. He was from Pennsylvania but moved to Florida as an adult. His parents and two brothers died when he was young. He had been on his own since he was 16. The person he loved most was Susan Blain, his longtime girlfriend.

They shared a small house in a tidy Plant City subdivision. They had three dogs. He worked delivering the Tampa Tribune and other newspapers in east Hillsborough County.

Thats what he was doing on Feb. 5, 2014. It was chilly at 6:30 a.m., with a light fog, as he worked his route in a black Toyota Echo. It was mostly dark when he descended the exit ramp from eastbound Interstate 4 toward N Alexander Street. He drove through a green traffic signal to head east toward a service road.

At that moment, a gold Lincoln Navigator sped northward on Alexander Street at 55 mph. Its headlights were off. It zipped through the red light and plowed into Davis car.

The Toyota was shoved back and smashed into a concrete divider.

The Lincoln kept going, veering off the roadway, striking a pedestrian crosswalk sign and crushing an above-ground water main before stopping against a palm tree.

I am sorry, it was my fault, Carvajal said when a bystander approached. I just got my learners permit. I dont have insurance.

Davis lay unconscious, bleeding, his bones crushed. He was rushed to Lakeland Regional Medical Center, where he died at 8:09 a.m.

On the floor of the Lincoln, police found an empty can of Four Loko, a fruit-flavored malt beverage known for its high alcohol content. They also found an empty beer can and an empty bottle of Patron tequila.

Lab tests would measure Carvajals blood-alcohol content at .13 a few hours after the crash. The legal limit is .08.

CONSEQUENCES

Carvajal pleaded no contest to DUI manslaughter in adult court. She was 18 when she faced sentencing. She clutched a tissue as she stood with her chestnut hair dyed blonde at the ends, brushing the top of her orange shirt.

Her voice trembled. She asked for forgiveness. She spoke of feeling lost and broken. Instead of seeking help, she said, she tried to forget the pain by drinking.

Now I have no choice but to face reality, she said. Reality is that my actions caused a lot of people pain. ... If there was a way, I wouldnt hesitate to ask for God to take me instead.

She said she wanted to pay for what shed done, but she also wanted help.

Judge Thomas Barber heard from Valerie McClain, a forensic psychologist, who testified that Carvajal showed signs of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. She recommended that any sentence include a requirement that she participate in at least a year of substance abuse and mental health treatment. She opined that a long incarceration would only further the damage.

The judge also heard from people who knew Davis.

Im sorry that Miss Carvajal has had such a hard life, but its still not an excuse, said Toby Stogner, a longtime friend of the victim. When you make a decision to drive with no drivers license  making a decision to drink and drive  those are adult decisions.

Blain, the victims girlfriend, said shed been unable to pay their bills after he died. Shed lost her companion and her home. (She could not be reached for comment for this story.)

State sentencing guidelines put Carvajal in the range of 10 years in prison. Blain told the judge the lowest sentence she could accept was four years  the mandatory minimum for DUI manslaughter.

Carvajals defense attorney, Dee Ann Athan, emphasized her youth and her abusive childhood. She asked for juvenile sanctions or for the judge to treat Carvajal as a youthful offender  a designation that could allow for a less-punitive sentence.

The judge noted that Carvajal accepted responsibility and expressed remorse. He also noted the severity of her crime.

The bottom line to me ... is regardless of a persons life circumstances, you cant kill another person and not receive some punishment, Barber said.

He gave Carvajal five years. He also gave her five years probation, with a requirement to enroll in a residential treatment program.

She was ordered to pay Blain $8,068 for funeral expenses and was permanently barred from holding a drivers license.

NEW LIFE, MORE TROUBLE

Corrections records show that Carvajal accumulated a handful of disciplinary actions in prison for refusing to work, fighting, disrespecting officials and sex acts.

She was released in October 2019. Records indicate she got a job with a cleaning company. She later went to work at a Dunkin Donuts, lawyers said.

Her restitution remained unpaid, records show.

She enrolled in DACCO, a residential substance-abuse treatment program in Tampa. On May 5 last year, she got a warning for appearing to be in a relationship with a peer, according to a probation violation report. When spoken to, she slammed a door, then packed her bags and left.

On May 21, she was back in jail.

In July, Carvajal appeared in Judge Nazaretians courtroom.

She was told that she could do more time. She was also told that DACCO was willing to take her back.

She said she didnt want more jail time.

She killed somebody because she drank alcohol, the judge said. That is extremely serious. And if that was me, it would haunt me forever. And she needs to appreciate and make sure she does what shes supposed to do. Because the other hammer, which is going to be a lot more than five years, could drop in the future. He asked if she understood.

Yes, sir, Carvajal said, her voice small.

A public defender mentioned that Carvajal had completed a three-month treatment program while in prison. She wanted to get credit for it, but had been denied. She also asked if she could go to a different program. The judge declined.

Im not big on lectures today, but this is so serious, what happened, you cant make it worse, okay? Nazaretian said. Youve already spent five years of your life in prison. You dont want to spend another day there.

He gave her a new five-year probation term. Like before, it forbid her to use alcohol or drugs. Like before, it forbid her to drive. Like before, it required that she complete substance-abuse treatment.

The judge also imposed a curfew, requiring Carvajal to be home between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Records show that she completed her treatment on March 10.

ANOTHER CRASH

Six weeks later, on April 25, Florida Highway Patrol Sgt. Jason Moore was cruising the eastbound lanes of Interstate 4. After 1:30 a.m., he noticed a pair of oncoming headlights moving west, much faster than the rest. Moores radar showed a speed topping 110 mph.

The sergeant made a U-turn and raced to catch up to the speeding car, siren blaring, blue lights flashing.

A minute later, near the exit to Mango Road, he pulled up behind a Hyundai Elantra. The Hyundai made an abrupt right turn onto the shoulder, down a grassy slope, then up an embankment.

Four wheels left the ground. The car clipped a wire fence as it sailed into the Gator Ford dealership lot. It slammed onto a parked truck, then overturned, smashing into a concrete light pole and a palm tree. When it stopped, the Hyundai lay on its roof, its back end a snarl of crumpled metal.

Two people were thrown to the pavement. When Moore got to the wreckage, he found one of them, Lexcia Gonzalez, 20, crawling away. Both of her legs were broken.

Asked who was driving, she pointed toward a chain-link fence. There stood Jennifer Carvajal.

Carvajal denied she was the driver.

Moore noted bruising on her left shoulder, which he said extended across her chest toward her right hip. The cars drivers seat belt was extended, hanging loose.

She and Gonzalez were taken to Tampa General Hospital with two others. Grady Ramirez, 19, who was in a front passenger seat, endured injuries described in a report as incapacitating.

Pedro Carbajal, 22, the other ejected passenger, later died.

He was Jennifer Carvajals cousin. An online obituary states that he had three brothers and three sisters. Lexcia Gonzalez was his girlfriend. They had a son named Julian.

At the hospital, Trooper Joshua Lugo met with Carvajal. He noted that her speech was slurred, her eyes were glassy, she had trouble staying awake, and she smelled of alcohol. A medical test pegged Carvajals blood-alcohol content at .10, slightly above the legal limit. Results of a second test, a legal blood draw taken as a result of a search warrant, remain pending.

Reached via phone last week, Carvajals aunt, Cindy Rosales, said the family did not want to comment.

Theyre all in a state of mourning, said Barry Taracks, Carvajals private defense lawyer. Obviously, the charge is extremely serious for my client. She has the deepest sympathy for the deceased as well as the injured.

The Hyundai was registered to Gonzalez. The group had attended a family members birthday party that evening, Taracks said. Gonzalez drove them there, he said. It remains unclear whether she drove after the group left the party, her attorney said.

Carvajal faces a litany of new criminal charges, including DUI manslaughter.

If convicted as charged, Carvajal could face a total of 40 years in prison.

Trevor Bethea, a state probation officer, wrote up a probation violation report, imploring a judge to impose the maximum penalty.

This is the second person that has lost their life at the hands of this offender, he wrote, and her actions continue to display a disregard for the public at large that should be alarming to all parties.

Carvajal is due back in court on Monday.

 Times staff writer Tony Marrero contributed to this report.
DERBY  The Valley NAACP will hold an evening vigil at the Derby Green on May 25, honoring the one-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd.

The citys aldermen approved a request by the Valley NAACP to hold the vigil during its meeting last week.

Gabriella Koc, a member of the NAACP Ansonia branchs planning committee, said it made sense to host the vigil in Derby.

We had some stuff in Shelton, we had stuff in Ansonia. So, we figured (Derby) would be a great place to have our memorial service, she said.

More than a month ago, former police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of the 2020 murder of Floyd in Minneapolis, Minn. Floyds death ignited protests against police brutality and systemic racism across the nation, including several in the Naugatuck Valley over the summer.

Koc said she is expecting a gathering of no more than 100 people. Speakers are expected to include Greg Johnson, president of the NAACP Ansonia branch, and young people from cities in the area. The vigil is planned to start at 7:30 p.m. and will last no more than an hour, she said.

Andrew Baklik, the citys chief of staff, said that Tuesdays event will be first time the city will host a vigil honoring Floyd.

We support the NAACP and any kind of peaceful organization on the Green, he said.

Baklik also said that additional police will be assigned to the vigil, standard practice for any large gathering on the Green.

Koc said the vigil is an opportunity for the NAACP to connect with Derby residents.

We'd love to show Derby some love and have a place, especially in the Valley, she said.

None of the aldermen voiced any objections over the vigil.

Barbara DeGennaro, a first-ward alderwoman, asked about the timing. Koc said she scheduled the vigil for 7:30 pm when it would still be light out and personally extended an invitation to the mayor.

The aldermen approved the request with no objections. Mayor Richard Dziekan said he planned to attend the vigil.

I'm going to be in New York in the morning, Ive got a doctor's appointment, Dziekan said. But I'm definitely planning on showing back up for that. So I will see you.
KIRISHIMA TRAINING AREA, Japan (AP)  Dozens of Japanese, American and French troops landed amid pouring rain from a CH-47 transport helicopter onto a grassy field at a training area in southern Japan, part of Saturday's joint scenario of defending a remote island from an enemy invasion.

The three nations first joint drills on Japanese soil  dubbed ARC21 and which began Tuesday  come as they seek step up military ties amid growing Chinese assertiveness in the region.

Japanese soldiers and their counterparts from the French army and the U.S. Marine Corps also conducted an urban warfare drill using a concrete building elsewhere at the Japanese Self-Defense Forces Kirishima Training Area in the southern Miyazaki prefecture. Around 200 troops took part in Saturday's exercises.

On Saturday, the three countries were also joined by Australia in an expanded naval exercise involving 11 warships in the East China Sea, where tensions with China are rising around the island of Taiwan.

The drills come as Japan looks to bolster its military capabilities 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.

Since the end of World War II, Japans constitution has limited the use of force to self defense. Japan in recent years has continued to expand its military role, capability and budget.

Japan's Vice Defense Minister Yasuhide Nakayama, who observed the exercise, stressed the significance of French participation in the joint exercises regularly held between Japan and the U.S., and often with Australia.

It was a valuable opportunity for the Japanese Self-Defense Force to maintain and strengthen its strategic capability necessary to defend our remote islands, Nakayama said. Together we were able to show to the rest of the world our commitment in defending Japanese land, territorial seas and airspace.

France, which has territories in the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific, has strategic interests in the region.

"It is obviously very important for us because we need to be side by side with people who are sharing this part of the world, Lt. Col. Henri Marcaillou from the French army told reporters after Saturday's exercise.

U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Jeremy Nelson said the three countries showed they can work together for a common goal or common cause.

Britain, which recently adopted a policy of deeper engagement in the region, is sending the aircraft carrier Queen Elizabeth and its strike group, due to arrive in the region later this year. Germany is also set to deploy a frigate to the region.

Japan and the U.S. have been promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific vision of defense and economic framework based on democratic principles in the area in a group known as the Quad, which also includes Australia and India, seen as a move to counter China's escalating influence in the region.

China has criticized the U.S.-Japanese framework as an exclusionist bloc based on a Cold War-era mindset.

___

Yamaguchi reported from Tokyo. Associated Press videojournalist Haruka Nuga contributed to this report.
NEW HAVEN  During an unprecedented period in which City Hall has been physically closed to the public, with many employees working remotely, emailed requests for information often have been the only way for people to get information they need.

While the city says its response rate to Freedom of Information Act requests is about 90 percent, some people seeking information say the city, or at least some officials and departments, have failed to respond adequately to requests.

Mayor Justin Elicker  who was elected on a promise of transparency  and the citys top attorney, among others, say New Haven has done its best to respond to all requests under the state FOI law and will continue to do so.

I think that our staff very much cares to respond quickly and comprehensively to the FOIA requests that we get, Elicker said. They want to do it to fulfill the citys legal obligation and ethical obligation to provide openness and transparency ... so that people can get the information that they need in a timely manner.

I think it is important to note that this is a constant effort to improve what were doing, said Elicker. Im the first to acknowledge that in many ways the city has a lot of work to do to improve our service to the public.

... If people are not answering their phones in City Hall or responding to requests for information, thats a problem that should be reported, Elicker said. City Hall should be functioning.

The main issue, Elicker said, is that there are so many FOIA requests and were understaffed. Ideally, we should have a greater number of staff to respond to peoples requests.

Some people who have requested information from the city, however, said they got nothing  in one case, two years of nothing.

Catherine Avalone / Hearst Connecticut Media file

Guilford attorney William Bloss, who represents the family of Michael Randall Sr., one of two men who died in a May 5, 2019, fire in a house at 150 West St., said he filed an FOI request with the citys Livable City Initiative because a document from the Fire Department indicated that LCI went to this property and he wanted further details. Bloss filed a lawsuit against the city for the family.

Bloss said that on July 2, 2019, he wrote a letter to LCI asking for their records.

He said he got no response for that letter, or a second one in 2019, or third letter in 2020. Not one word  nothing, said Bloss, former chairman of the Guilford Board of Education.

He subsequently filed a complaint last year with the state Freedom of Information Commission, which was docketed on July 30, 2020. He received an additional notice from the FOIC on Oct. 13, 2020, and is waiting for a hearing.

As a lawyer, We do a lot of requests and I dont think Ive ever had a municipality just totally ignore a request, Bloss said.

No average request

Part of the problem has to do with sheer numbers.

During a six-month period through early April, the city received about 400 FOI requests through its online portal, said outgoing Elicker administration spokesman Gage Frank. This does not include records requested in any other manner or that are fulfilled in person, he said.

About 90 percent of those requests have been fully completed, Frank said. He said it was difficult to pinpoint the average length of time it took to respond to request because there is no average request.

Requests can be simple, for example a request for an easily accessible report, and those requests are handled in the ordinary course of business and are generally fulfilled in a matter of hours or days depending upon other departmental matters, Frank said.

Broad requests that result in hundreds or thousands of pages of records require much longer periods for compiling, review and, as necessary, redaction, he said.

The City of New Haven complies with the requirements of the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act and to ensure such compliance, the city is considering a formal policy for managing FOIA requests, which will include departmental training on the topic, Frank said.

According to Elicker, the overwhelming number of requests that the city receives are from lawyers looking for information associated with cases they are preparing, and that occupies a lot of the offices time.

Figures provided by state Freedom of Information Commission Director of Public Education Tom Hennick dont show New Haven as all that different from other Connecticut cities of similar size.

New Haven currently has two open cases out of four complaints filed so far in 2021. It had 29 complaints filed in 2020 and 28 in 2019, Hennick said.

Bridgeport, by way of comparison, had 38 complaints in 2020 and 17 in 2019. Hartford had 18 complaints in 2020 and 52 in 2019. Waterbury had 14 complaints in 2020 and 5 in 2019, Hennick said.

Tracking requests

A portal for Freedom of Information Acts requests that the city put in place in August of 2020 in the midst of the pandemic has been misunderstood, according to Elicker and city Corporation Counsel Patricia King.

Peter Hvizdak / Hearst Connecticut Media file

Frank said the citys FOI policy has not materially changed under Mayor Elicker. The mayor has encouraged departments to ensure transparency by efficiently responding to requests for information.

Hennick said similar portals are in use in Bridgeport and Waterbury.

The portal, which some people seeking information interpret as another hoop members of the public are being asked to jump through before they can have access to information, is optional  and actually was put in place as a way to better track the many requests the city receives and make sure they are being responded to, said King.

What was happening was that people were sending FOIA requests directly to city departments and in some case they were getting loss in the shuffle, King said. But use of the portal is not compulsory, she said.

Theyre not required to use it, but its the best way for us to track the request and make make sure theyre responded to, King said.

And we really do make an effort to respond, she said.

The portal became an issue in particular when people associated with various political campaigns, who had long been used to getting voting lists directly  and easily  from the Registrar of Voters Office, were told they had to first put in a request through the portal

But some of the people involved on both ends now say that was a misunderstanding  and Elicker said the citys attorneys immediately contacted the registrars office to iron it out.

I dont really want to rehash that, said Tomas Reyes, onetime president of the Board of Alders and former chief of staff under former Mayor Toni Harp, who initially felt like he was being to do some added gymnastics in order to get something he long had gotten with no trouble.

Once I looked into that I found out that the people who gave me information had been given the wrong information, Reyes said. I think it was bad communication and the registrar of voters basically was doing what she thought she had to.

When he and others complained, They overturned it right away, Reyes said. I certainly was not interested in creating a problem for anyone. All I wanted was a voters list  and it was a voters list that had always been available to anyone who asked for it for many years.

At this point, thats all resolved, said Republican Registrar of Voters Marlene Napolitano. The office is still closed, so what (Democratic Register) Shannel (Evans) and I are asking is that if someone has a request for a voters list, that it be sent in via email so we can have IT reproduce the voting list as a spreadsheet.

People requesting voter lists or other documents can still go through the FOIA portal if they choose to ... but were telling people if they want a voters list, that they submit an email to Shannel or I, she said. Its back to a simple process other than that people are unable to come into the office.

Frank said there has never been a requirement that all public records requests be made through the citys FOIA portal. Indeed, requests may be made in person, by telephone, facsimile transmission, email, or post, he said. ... For tracking purposes, the city asks departments to reduce requests to writing and forward them to the portal.

File photo

Patricia Kane, former secretary of the Quinnipiac East Community Management Team, said she also has experience with an FOI request to the city. She said it occurred after, on behalf of the management team, she made a request to LCI to let the team use some of a grant it received from LCI for community projects to buy face masks to distribute to residents.

After seeing a contractor giving away face masks, We wanted to follow his example and save lives, Kane said. She said she there was a precedent for it because another management team had done it.

And we were denied permission  and I was a little upset about this, said Kane, who was a volunteer on Elickers 2019 mayoral campaign.

The mayor subsequently released 8,000 masks from the citys stores, she said.

Once the city had given us the masks, we repeated our request and never got a response, she said. Then I filed a Freedom of Information request to LCI, corporation counsel, the mayor, asking in how many cases had LCI previously given approval to redirect the funds from the grants.

It was then that she was told that she had to file a request through the new FOI portal.

But throughout it all, We never had a response to the original request, Kane said.

She said she hasnt yet filed a complaint yet with the FOIC  and doesnt think she should have to, given that this is a mayor who promised transparency.

Frank said that under New Havens policy, requests for access to public records are fulfilled by the departments with custody of the requested records. To the extent that a department has questions about whether a particular record is exempt from disclosure, the department will seek the advice and assistance of the Office of the Corporation Counsel.

mark.zaretsky@hearstmediact.com
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  Nearly 800 residents of French Island plan to sue the city of La Crosse stemming from contamination of private drinking water wells from chemicals known as PFAS, a move that could expose the city to up to more than $39 million in claims.

Attorney Tim Jacobson served the city notice on Friday of its intention to file a lawsuit on behalf of 787 residents of French Island. Jacobson filed a similar document on behalf of 125 residents in February. The filing is the first step that must be taken under the law before pursuing a complaint against the city.
LA JOYA, Texas (AP)  Marely had traveled for 13 days, trekking with her mother from Central America to the busiest corridor for illegal U.S.-Mexico border crossings. Then, as the 12-year-old Salvadoran girl got on an inflatable raft to cross the Rio Grande in Texas in the middle of the night, she discovered her mom wasnt coming with her.

Her mom told her that she loved her very much right before the boat got pushed into the water.

I thought she had already gotten on, but she hadnt, Marely told The Associated Press this week, tears rolling down her cheeks.

But she didnt scream or ask the smugglers to go back and get her mother.

I knew she was on the other side. There was no going back. They told us to run, to keep going, said Marely, who turned herself over to Border Patrol agents in La Joya, Texas.

The AP is not using the girls last name. It does not normally name children without permission from their parents, and the identity of her parents could not be obtained.

Growing numbers of migrant families are making the heart-wrenching decision to separate from their children and send them into America alone. Many families with kids older than 6 have been quickly expelled from the country under federal pandemic-related powers that don't allow migrants to seek asylum. But they know that President Joe Biden's administration is allowing unaccompanied children to stay in the U.S. while their cases are decided.

Forced out of the country, they are sending their older children, like Marely, back to cross alone. These self-separations mean children arrive in the United States confused and in distress. Many have traveled hundreds of miles with their parents without understanding why they cant cross the last stretch together.

Once in the U.S., Marely joined two teenagers traveling without their parents and a larger group of families fleeing poverty, storm devastation and violence in their homelands. For two hours, the girl from a village south of San Salvador walked as a thunderstorm brewed overhead in the vast Texas Rio Grande Valley, a busy stretch for river crossings.

Marelys mother had her memorize the full name and number for her grandmother in Washington, D.C., who told the AP she was expecting to receive her granddaughter.

As more families decide to send their children alone, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has been pressed by lawmakers about the possibility that expulsions could be a new source of family separation. It follows widespread outrage over former President Donald Trump's zero tolerance policy that forced apart families on the border, some of whom still haven't been reunited.

Mayorkas has defended speedy family expulsions, saying they protect both the American public and migrants. He said officials are hearing anecdotally of families who self-separate and added that about 40% of unaccompanied children have a parent or legal guardian in the U.S. and 50% have other relatives who can take care of them after they are released from government custody.

April was the second-busiest month on record for unaccompanied children encountered at the border  17,171 were stopped  following Marchs all-time high of 18,960, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

This week, Border Patrol agents found five unaccompanied migrant girls, ranging from 7 years to 11 months old, near the border town of Eagle Pass, Texas.

Agents about 250 miles (400 kilometers) south in La Joya, Texas, late Wednesday came across an 8-year-old Honduran girl named Emely, who had been walking in the brush for six hours with a group of strangers and had lost a shoe in the mud. She was sobbing uncontrollably because she lost the number of her mother who she says was expecting her in the U.S. and didn't know where she lived.

Emely had lost sight of a fellow migrant who had her contact information, but the mother saw an AP photograph of her arrival on the Spanish-language broadcast Univision and contacted the network.

In an encampment in the Mexican border city of Reynosa, near where Marely last saw her mother, the numbers of expelled migrant families are growing. And they are making desperate decisions.

Jose Rodriguez, 41, of San Pedro Sula, Honduras, has been staying under a gray tarp with a group of Hondurans, but he hasn't been able to sleep since he sent his 8-year-old son in mid-April with a distant cousin to cross the river into Roma, Texas.

Rodriguez had tried to cross the border with his son Jordyn, but the two were expelled in early March. They had no money and no way to return home.

As a parent, it is very difficult. I do not wish this upon anyone. There are people who ask me if I sent my son. Yes, I tell them, but dont do it," Rodriguez said. You need to have a lot of faith and cling to God in order not to fall apart. If you are weak, you may pass out, and if you have heart disease, you may die. It is very hard.

His wife, who stayed behind in Honduras with their 1-year-old, initially opposed sending Jordyn to cross the border alone, but Rodriguez persuaded her. He told her their lives in Honduras would only get worse, with the threat of gangs and the economy hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic and two tropical storms.

To pay the smugglers fees for his sons solo attempt, Rodriguez washed dishes at a taco stand near the encampment for a month and a half. It also took some convincing to get Jordyn to go.

You have to keep going. You will have the best clothes, the best computer and tennis shoes, and toy cars that light up," Rodriguez said he told his son when they said goodbye.

For four days, Rodriguez says he walked around the plaza, stopping every couple of steps to cry, until he received a recorded audio message from a cousin in the U.S. whose number he had written on Jordyns birth certificate.

I have good news for you. They have the boy in a home for children his age, the cousin said.

Social workers now call Rodriguez from a shelter in Chicago twice a week to see if there is anyone Jordyn can stay with in the U.S. Relatives said they could not take care of Jordyn because they also were recent immigrants and had their own children to support.

To this day I do not sleep. The food doesnt taste of anything, because I think of this every single moment, Rodriguez said. What I want is to be with him.

___

Adriana Gomez Licon is on Twitter at https://twitter.com/agomezlicon
HANOVER, N.H. (AP)  A Vermont company is getting more than $5 million for a New Hampshire-based project examining the effects of extreme cold on different kinds of roadways and airstrips.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineer's Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory is providing the funding to Applied Research Associates of Randolph, Vermont. It's part of a $9 million contract to develop and install a transportation loading system at the Frost Effects Research Facility in Hanover, New Hampshire.
Zoning officials in the well-off suburban town of Woodbridge seem unlikely to allow developers to build multi-unit dwellings there without special permission.

The request from civil rights attorneys to change the way affordable housing is approved in Woodbridge has become the focus of housing advocates across the state, as what happens in Woodbridge could eventually have widespread ramifications.

Convinced the towns zoning regulations keep low-income residents from being able to move into town  and keep the town segregated  civil rights attorneys from the Open Communities Alliance and a fair housing Clinic at Yale Law School are also asking the town to throw out its prohibition on multi-family housing and its rule that only single-family homes can be built on a 1.5-acre lot nearly everywhere in town.

Instead, they want the town to allow developers to build two, three or four housing units in structures the same size as a single-family home without needing special permission or having to go through long public hearings. The share of Black or Latino residents living in this suburb is one-third the share living throughout the state.

During the months-long debate on this request, the attorneys and their law school students shared photos of the huge homes that the town allowed without zoning approval or public hearings.

But the Planning and Zoning Commission reached a consensus during a meeting Thursday evening that they want to continue to review everything that isnt a single-family home.

I think its good to maybe have some of the public opinion on it from the folks that live in the area where the development is going. Its kind of fair, Jeffrey Kennedy, one of the six commissioners considering this request, said during a meeting Thursday evening to consider the application.

I think maybe the volumes of single family homes may be a lot larger, and if they all had to come [to us], but Im just guessing. I dont know, said Chairman Robert Klee, in response to a question from another commissioner about how the panel can justify not requiring single-family homes to go through these hoops.,

In the last 30 years, just three two-unit homes have received a building permit, compared to 281 single-family homes.

The panel also seems to be leaning towards lifting the town-wide ban on multi-family housing for a small portion of town near the New Haven border and allowing two-unit homes to be built in areas that have public water and sewer, which also is a small section of town. Developments in those areas would need to set aside 20% of the units for low-income residents, a provision that has shown in other parts of the country to deter development that would allow more density and inherently bring down the typical housing cost.

The higher-density developments that Woodbridge seems ready to allow in parts of town, however, would also still need to be scrutinized by this local zoning panel.

I do recognize, as were taking this step into a new area, having a public hearing can be OK, said Klee.

But the public hearing process itself, some say, is the problem.

Many who show up to testify on proposed affordable housing projects point to frail public infrastructure, clogged streets, a lack of sidewalks and concerns of overcrowding that would damage whats often referred to as neighborhood character.

Research has shown that when a project is opened to public testimony, the feedback is overwhelmingly negative, and the demographics of those testifying are not representative of the region.

Nearly every town in Connecticut prohibits the construction of multi-family housing without special permission from local officials, according to an inventory of local zoning regulations compiled in January by Desegregate CT, a coalition of dozens of non-profits lobbying the legislature to pass land-use reforms to help reverse the states status as one of the most segregated places in the country.

My work shows that an as-of-right process [without a public hearing] is more equitable than our current process, which privileges the voices of advantaged, older, white homeowners. Planning and zoning board meetings triggered by the special permit/variance process amplify the voices of an unrepresentative group overwhelmingly opposed to the construction of new housing, Katherine Levine Einstein, an associate professor at Boston Universitys Department of Political Science, testified before a legislative committee earlier this year on a bill that would have allowed higher-density development around some train stations and town centers without needing town approval. That provision failed to make it out of committee.

Fair housing advocates and attorneys say there is something deeper to the pushback displayed at public hearings that specific projects often receive.

The legal team challenging Woodbridge to allow the construction of four-unit homes in town without a public hearing or special zoning commission approval testified about its frustration with people raising environmental, architectural or other concerns during public hearings about multi-family housing, including during the committees hearing Monday.

These are never things that get raised when you imagine the largest  single family development  but only get weaponized against multi-family, said Karen Anderson, a law student at Yale, told The Connecticut Mirror. She is among those working on the Woodbridge case, which could have implications for other Connecticut towns with a preponderance of land zoned only for single family homes.

A single commissioner, Lawrence Greenberg, said he doesnt want to limit to certain parts of town where more duplexes and multi-family housing is allowed, and saying that it cant be done because of environmental concerns doesnt work for him.

I have trouble with the concept that the rest of the zones would not share in the obligation to provide housing, a variety of housing. And given the sophistication of septic systems and well water, I think it can be done in other areas as well, he said.

There doesnt seem to be agreement among the other commissioners on that point, and they instead seem to be in agreement to allow such development on 230 acres in the 12,038-acre town, or 2% of the land.

The board plans to meet again May 24 to try and finalize the plan before their June 9 deadline.
Deji Adeyanju, an Abuja-based right activist has mocked Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State over his remark of running for the presidency....

Deji Adeyanju, an Abuja-based right activist has mocked Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State over his remark of running for the presidency.

Adeyanju, who is the co-convener of Concerned Nigerian Advocacy Group said Bello lacks the capacity to be president of a pig farm, let alone, ruling Nigeria.

Bello had hinted on running for the 2023 presidency when he pledged not to disappoint Nigerians.

The governor had said some Nigerians were asking him to run for President in 2023.

He had said: Nigerians, the youth and women including very objective elites, are asking me to run for President in 2023.

Reacting, Adeyanju said Bello cannot be Nigerias president because the governor has neglected the Kogi State civil servants.

The rights activist insisted that Kogi State remains the worst governed state in Nigeria.

In a tweet, Adeyanju wrote: NEWS: All Nigerians are asking me to run for President in 2023, I will not disappoint  Yahaya Bello

ME -Yahaya Bello is not fit to be president of a pig farm. Kogi State is the worst governed state in Nigeria. Civil servants are feeding from dustbins.
There was a heavy presence of police, men of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, at Nelson Mandela Freedom Park, Osogbo, the venue of ...

There was a heavy presence of police, men of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, at Nelson Mandela Freedom Park, Osogbo, the venue of the Yoruba Nation Mega Rally on Saturday.

Also sighted at the venue were men of Amotekun Corps, who were positioned at a strategic spot, apparently to prevent participants from accessing the venue.

While our correspondent left the venue around 9am, none of the organisers of the rally had arrived in the area.

But the participants later regrouped under November 27 Bridge along Osogbo/Gbongan Road, Osogbo.
Several good Samaritans helped a driver after his ice cream truck went down a cliff near the Hudson River and crashed Thursday in Bergen County, authorities said.

The ice cream truck, Lexylicious from Toms River, was headed north on Henry Hudson Drive, toward Ross Dock, in the Fort Lee-section of the Palisades Interstate Park when the driver lost control, according to Sgt. First Class Raymond Walter, of the Palisades Interstate Parkway police.

The ice cream truck fell about 20 feet down the embankment, hit trees and landed on its left side, the sergeant said.

Witnesses helped free the driver, who was identified as a 22-year-old Toms River man, according to police. He was taken to a local hospital after complaining of head and neck pain.

Fort Lee emergency medical services and firefighters also responded to the crash. Police said no other vehicles were involved in the accident.

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Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com.
With New Jerseys COVID-19 numbers significantly improving as vaccinations continue, Gov. Phil Murphy and top state lawmakers announced Friday they are working on a plan to end the public-health emergency that has given the the governor sweeping powers for more than 14 months to battle the coronavirus.

Murphy signed an executive order Friday extending the emergency another 30 days. But he said he will let it expire next month if the state Legislature passes legislation before then to make sure his administration has the tools and flexibility it needs to keep combatting the pandemic, rolling out vaccinations, and recovering from the fallout after the order ends.

Its unclear exactly what ending the emergency order would mean, though Murphys office said its expiration would not wipe away all of the states remaining COVID-19 safety restrictions, which the governor has gradually been easing over the last year. Instead, the legislation leaders are drafting would likely address protocols.

Murphy said hes currently working with his fellow Democrats who lead the Legislature  state Senate President Stephen Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin  on the legislation, but they did not provide more details Friday.

After an extremely difficult year, we are seeing the results of our mitigation efforts and our successful vaccination program, Murphy said in a statement. In order to continue on the path to normalcy, we need all available resources to continue our progress in vaccinating New Jerseyans and finally beating back this pandemic.

By working together, we are confident that we can move to the next phase of our recovery effort, the governor added.

Murphy declared both a state of emergency and a public-health emergency on March 9, 2020 as COVID-19 began to spread in New Jersey, one of the pandemics early epicenters and now home to the most COVID-19 deaths per capita in the U.S.

The state of emergency, which gives state authorities certain executive powers and allows the state to receive federal aid, is indefinite. But the public-health emergency expires every 30 days.

The emergency order has given Murphy broad powers to issue dozens of executive orders, including mask mandates and business restrictions, without the approval of the Legislature. New Jersey has instituted some of the most severe restrictions to fight the pandemic and been among the slowest in relaxing its protocol.

Murphys latest extension carries the order into its 15th month. It was set to expire again in the coming days.

Republicans have repeatedly criticized Murphy for keeping the order in place too long instead of working with the Legislature on how to ease restrictions as cases, hospitalizations, and deaths have dropped. Some have accused him of being power-hungry.

There was no reason to drag this out like this, state Sen. Steven Oroho, R-Sussex, said in a statement after Fridays announcement. Its time to bring this one-man rule to an end. The Legislature should have been involved early on, but we were excluded, and the residents of New Jersey paid a heavy price for it.

Murphy has said he enacted drastic measures to help protect the states residents and prevent more death in an unprecedented health crisis.

This all comes as both the governor runs for re-election and as all 120 seats in the Democratic-controlled Legislature are on the ballot this year.

Sweeney said Fridays announcement marks real progress as we work to emerge from the worst public health crisis of our lifetime.

Its the beginning of the end of a crisis that has tragically claimed the lives of an unimaginable number of New Jerseyans and impacted the lives and livelihoods of nearly everyone, the Senate president said. The worst is behind us, and now is the time to move forward to restore the quality of life for the people of New Jersey.

The new normal wont be normal for some time, Sweeney added. We have to make the best use of our resources, our abilities and our determination to address the needs of our citizens.

Coughlin said leaders will work to produce legislation that enables us to safely and responsibly reopen our state as we seek to spur the economy and create jobs.

We will come back stronger than ever, the Assembly speaker said.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage

Murphy made the announcement just hours after he said New Jersey will keep its mandate for all people to wear a mask indoors in public  at least for now  even after federal health officials released updated guidance that says masks are no longer needed for fully vaccinated Americans in most circumstances.

Were not there yet, he said of dropping the statewide indoor mask mandate, though he said that could change in the coming weeks if vaccinations continue to increase and the states outbreak keeps receding.

Murphy did say fully vaccinated people in the state can stop wearing masks outdoors in public, but unvaccinated people should still wear them when in close proximity to others.

This all comes just days before New Jersey is set to take a number of big steps to ease coronavirus restrictions Wednesday, including ending outdoor gathering limits and removing fixed, percentage-based indoor capacity limits for restaurants, gyms, retail stores, churches, and more. But under Murphys order, those establishments must still keep patrons and parties 6 feet away from each other or construct portions between them, and people will still be required to wear masks indoors.

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More than 3.57 million people who live, work, or study in the state have now been fully vaccinated at New Jersey sites, while another 164,121 residents have been vaccinated in other states.

The state has set a goal of having 70% of New Jerseys adults vaccinated by the end of June. A little more than half of the states 6.9 million adults have now been fully vaccinated.

New Jerseys seven-day average for new confirmed positive COVID-19 tests has fallen to 790  down 37% from a week ago and 73% from a month ago. Thats the lowest number since Oct. 12.

There were 954 COVID-19 patients hospitalized across the state as of Thursday night, the lowest number since Oct. 24. Hospitalizations fell below 1,000 on Wednesday. Overall, coronavirus hospitalizations are down 75% since the states second-wave peak of 3,873 patients on Dec. 22.

Still, the state is seeking to ramp up vaccinations now that demand has decreased and many large municipalities  many with large minority populations  have vaccination rates under 40%.

New Jersey, a state of 9.2 million people, has reported 25,932 residents have died from complications related to COVID-19  including 23,284 confirmed deaths and 2,648 fatalities considered probable.

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Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com.
The state released new maps on Monday displaying vaccination rates by town in an effort, it said, to show where vaccine resources need to be deployed.

The data gives a snapshot of rates in each town, but officials acknowledge the numbers in any given municipality may be affected by various factors, including seasonal residencies, second homes and transient college students.

Of municipalities with populations over 10,000, Paramus and Ocean City have the highest rate of fully vaccinated residents at 58%, based on the state map as of Thursday, May 13.

They are followed by Haddonfield Borough (57%), Millburn Township (56%), Voorhees (52%) and Chatham (52%). Next come Denville, Moorestown, Morris and Cherry Hill, all at 51%.

Paramus is also on the top of the list for having the most residents with at least one shot, the data shows. Its one-dose vaccination rate is 73%.

Its followed by Haddonfield (67%), Cedar Grove (66%), Ocean City (66%) and West Windsor (65%).

Rounding out the top 10 list is Chatham at 64%, Voorhees, Verona and Parsippany at 63% and Princeton at 62%.

Looking at all towns across the state, regardless of population size, shore communities post high vaccination rates, according to the maps. But the data for shore towns is skewed by the mobility of seasonal residents, the state acknowledged.

Some towns on the map even show a vaccination rate of more than 100%.

Many counties down the shore, for an example, could have over 100%. A lot of people from Pennsylvania have residences at the shore and they got vaccinated here, Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said at the governors Monday coronavirus briefing. These people would not be counted as full-time New Jersey residents in the Census, thereby inflating the vaccination percentage.

The maps key explains the higher than 100% numbers further, saying it could be because of transient persons (i.e., people who have moved), those who are traveling and not residing in their home where the Census counted them, students who may select their student residence for vaccination data, persons in long-term care (or other facility-based housing outside of the home) which might be counted in a different location for the Census, and other reasons.

To see how your town is doing with vaccinations, when you go to the maps  one shows fully vaccinated data and the other shows percentages of people with at least one-shot  clicking on a municipality will show vaccination data for total residents, residents over 18 and residents over 65.

In some cases, you may need to click on the words At Least One Dose or Vaccine Courses Complete within the white box before the data appears.

Remember this mapping tool is not meant to create competitions among any communities, nor is it meant to shame any communities, Murphy said earlier this week. But, through this data we hope that you will not only have access to the same data that we do, but that you can see why we will be deploying resources, for instance, to certain communities as opposed to others.

Persichilli said the state will use the data to see where its vaccination efforts should be concentrated.

We have a lot of work ahead of us, Persichilli said.

Nearly 3.8 million people have been fully vaccinated in New Jersey as of Saturday. Nearly 4.6 million residents have received at least one dose. There have been 7.87 million doses administered overall in the state, according to the states vaccine dashboard.

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NJ Advance Media Staff writer Nick Devlin contributed to this report.

Karin Price Mueller may be reached at KPriceMueller@NJAdvanceMedia.com.
A man charged with stabbing an off-duty state corrections officer to death during a dispute between neighbors in Vineland last year has been transferred back to jail in New Jersey from Florida.

Zachary T. Latham, 19, was indicted in February on second-degree charges of reckless manslaughter and two counts of aggravated assault in the May 4, 2020, killing of William T. Durham Sr., 51.

The killing followed a long-running feud between Latham and the Durham family that culminated in a bloody brawl at Lathams home.

Latham was freed pending trial following his arrest last May and relocated to Florida, where he was arrested in January on charges that he threatened a motorist with a pellet gun that resembled an assault rifle.

He was charged with two counts of aggravated assault in that case and released with an ankle monitor, but surrendered to Florida authorities in February after his pretrial release in New Jersey was revoked and a warrant was issued for his arrest.

A spokeswoman with the Collier County Sheriffs Office in Florida confirmed that Latham was transferred from that jail at 7 a.m. Thursday on the New Jersey warrant. He was booked into the Cumberland County Jail on Friday evening.

William T. Durham Sr., a correctional officer at South Woods State Prison, was stabbed to death in a fight with a neighbor.

Issues between Latham and the Durhams began when he allegedly taunted and mocked the family on TikTok after a dispute over him speeding in their Vineland neighborhood. He posted videos of his run-ins with the Durhams and those encounters soon turned physical.

Latham was armed with a stun gun and knives when he stabbed the unarmed Durham multiple times. Latham claimed he acted in self defense. Durhams wife and the couples two sons were also charged in the melee.

Two of Lathams friends joined the fight as his wife recorded the incident with her cellphone. They were not charged.

Durhams family had argued that Latham should be charged with murder.

We presented all applicable theories of homicide to the grand jury for consideration and must respect their decision to return an indictment for reckless manslaughter as well as other related and lesser included charges, Cumberland County Prosecutor Jennifer Webb-McRae said when the indictment was handed up earlier this year.

Latham was also indicted on two counts of third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and one fourth-degree charge of unlawful possession of a weapon.

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Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com.
The challenger in the upcoming Democratic primary for Essex County sheriff is calling for an independent investigation into a 2016 crash involving incumbent Sheriff Armando Fontoura in which he struck a pedestrian firefighter.

John Arnold, Jr., a former Newark deputy police director and minister, alleges Fontoura left the scene of the Newark crash but wasnt charged. Arnold said its he was calling for an investigation since it was a matter of public trust.

Elected officials are not above the law, especially when it comes to any harm committed to the very citizens we have been sworn to protect, he said in a campaign statement.

Fontoura, the Essex sheriff for about 30 years, said Arnold made up that he left the scene. The sheriff said he immediately got out of his SUV when he realized his side-view mirror hit the pedestrian and stayed at the scene until a Newark police officer told him he could go.

I stood by for a while and made sure the firefighter was okay, Fontoura told NJ Advance Media in a phone interview. He assured me he was okay. And all the workers were around him and whatnot and the EMS came. And I proceeded to go to the office then and I left the rest of my information with my officer and the Newark officer and she said fine, go ahead.

There was no hit and run, Fontoura said.

A crash report provided by Arnolds campaign - as well as a civil suit filed in the matter - do not indicate any hit and run either.

The crash report has been widely shared on social media groups for Newark residents.

It shows that Fontoura struck James Walker on Wickliff Street near Newark Tech Essex County Vocational School on Aug. 5, 2016.

Walker was a Newark firefighter at the time. The incident occurred the same day of the swearing-in ceremony for former Newark Police Chief Darnell Henry.

Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura addresses members of the Newark Police Department along with family and friends of Acting Police Chief Darnell Henry during Henry's swearing-in in this Aug. 5, 2016 file photo.NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Fontoura told police that Walker turned around and walked into his car, according to the crash report.

Walker told police that he exited his truck, turned around and was struck by Fontouras vehicle. The vehicles driver-side mirror struck him, Walker told police, then he fell and was struck by the vehicles tire.

The reports codes show Walker complained of pain in his leg area and was treated at a Newark hospital. No contributing factor fault was assigned to either person in the crash, the codes show.

Walker filed a civil suit against Fontoura in 2018 and the Superior Court case remains ongoing after being transferred from Union County to Essex County. An attorney for Walker, Jonathan Rosenbluth, did not respond to an email and voicemail on Friday seeking comment.

The civil complaint, in which Walker is suing for damages related to alleged severe and permanent injuries from the collision, made no mention of Fontoura leaving the scene of the crash.

Municipal court records do not show charges for Fontoura in the crash.

Musa Muhammad, a spokesman for Arnold, said the campaign was not speculating when NJ Advance Media pressed for more details that show the incident was a hit and run.

He added that the campaign conducted its own investigation, so were not looking crazy. Arnold is also a former investigator with the Essex County Prosecutors Office.

A 1996 Star-Ledger photo of John Arnold when he was an Essex County Prosecutor's Office investigator.Steve Andrascik

Fontoura said he was headed to his office on Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard, which is just a few blocks away from where the ceremony was to take place later that day. He later returned to the school building near where the collision occurred so he could attend the Henrys wearing-in ceremony.

There were several law enforcement officers at the scene already because of the ceremony, but Fontoura said he requested a Newark police officer to file the report instead of a sheriffs officer to avoid any conflicts of interest.

Arnold also alleged that Fontoura was driving with an expired license at the time of the collision, but wasnt issued a ticket by Newark police. Fontoura said there must have been a glitch in the system and denied driving with an expired license.

The report provide by Arnolds camp is blurry and pixelated, so its unclear what year his license expired. Arnolds campaign said it did not have a clearer copy of the report.

A police report that was widely shared on social media groups for Newark residents about Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura striking a Newark firefighter. It's unclear if the expiration date for Fontoura's license says 2015 or 2019.

The police report was written by Newark officer Wafiyyah Furqan, who is now a sergeant and married to the citys newly appointed public safety director, Brian OHara.

NJ Advance Media requested a clearer copy of the police report from the Newark Public Safety Department, but a spokeswoman did not provide one. OHara, the public safety director, recused himself from commenting on the matter since it involved his wife.

A member of the Newark Police Division was dispatched to take a report at the request of the Essex County Sheriffs Department to ensure no conflict of interest, said Newark Assistant Public Safety Director Raul Malave. No complaint or allegation of a crime or any wrongdoing was made at the time of the incident.

This election is the first time Fontoura has been opposed in a primary in nine years. He is challenged by Barry Jackson and Arnold, who previously ran against Fontoura in 2012.

The primary for the Democratic nomination is on June 8. New Jerseyans will not be sent vote-by-mail ballots automatically this year unless theyve applied for one.

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Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com.
A Trenton man charged last year with the point-blank killing of a woman during a street fight in the citys West Ward also threatened to kill two women that day, the indictment against him charges.

Quasim Hallett was charged last year with killing 24-year-old Quamierah Massey on Hoffman Avenue on April 5, 2020.

Part of the crime was recorded on cellphone cameras and posted online. It shows a bearded man, who authorities say is Hallett, getting involved in the street fight of two women. The man confronts a group of people, a gunshot is heard and people run in panic.

Police arrived to find Massey mortally wounded in the head. She died the next day at a Trenton hospital.

The crime occurred when New Jersey was in the midst of a coronavirus lockdown, but Trenton residents filled a street, mostly maskless, to watch a fight. Masseys killing was the second of three homicides in fours hours in Trenton.

Mercer County homicide detectives identified Hallett as the alleged shooter and a U.S. Marshals task force arrested him about a week later in Delaware.

An investigation into Hallett found he also pointed his handgun at two other women on Hoffman Avenue that day and threatened to kill them, the Mercer County Prosecutors Office announced Friday.

In all, a grand jury indicted Hallett on 10 felonies: first-degree murder, two counts terroristic threats, two counts of aggravated assault and five firearm charges, including being a felon in possession of a weapon.

Hallett remains at the Mercer County jail awaiting trial.

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Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com.
When darkness fell over Princeton Universitys campus Friday night, the show began.

The university is lighting up seven major buildings in orange this weekend as a way to mark the end of the academic year. Its a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the coronavirus pandemic.

Even though commencement is being held Sunday at Palmer Stadium, there still is a limit of two guests per student with assigned seating and masks required. And Saturday nights Class Day celebration, featuring speaker Trevor Noah, author, comedian and The Daily Show host is virtual only.

But the orange lights offer students a rare view of the historic Ivy League campus. Heres a look at some of the spectacular sights on campus Friday evening.

BLAIR ARCH

Blair Arch sits between Blair and Buyers halls. Built in 1897, Blair Hall marked the western edge of campus for 20 years and also served as a gateway to the University for passengers disembarking from the train into town. Due to its exceptional acoustics, Blair Arch now is the setting for performances by more than a dozen student a cappella groups; it is also the site of traditional step sings by the freshman class at the beginning of the academic year and by the senior class before Commencement.

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Blair Arch is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Blair Arch is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Blair Arch is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Blair Arch is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Blair Arch is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

WHIG AND CLIO HALL

From the front facades, Whig and Clio halls look identical. The structures by architect A. Page Brown were built in 1893 in the Ionic style of a Greek temple, replacing earlier buildings made of wood and stucco. The buildings were named after and used by the Whig and Clio student debating societies, which merged in 1928. The American Whig-Cliosophic Society, the oldest college debating club in the United States, now resides in Whig Hall. Clio Hall is now the home for the Graduate Schools administrative offices.

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Clio Hall, right and Whig Hall, left, are lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Whig Hall is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Whig Hall, left and Clio Hall are lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

NASSAU HALL

Today Nassau Hall is used for administrative offices, but this light brown sandstone structure named for Englands King William III, of the House of Nassau, was designated a national landmark in 1960 for serving as a model for colonial college structures and as a barracks in the Revolutionary War. In the Battle of Princeton in 1777, British and American troops quartered there at different times and a cannonball that hit the south wall of the west wing left a scar that is visible today. Nassau Hall served as the nations capitol when the Continental Congress met there between June and November of 1783. Congress was there when it first learned that the British had signed a peace treaty granting independence to the former colonies. This site, known as the Front Campus, is the setting for commencement ceremonies, from which new Princeton graduates symbolically leave campus through FitzRandolph Gate.

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Nassau Hall is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Syekha Alwini, left, of Clifton and Kauther Itani, of Patterson take pictures of their friends who are about to graduate on Sunday. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University seniors Martin Mejia, left, of Santa Rosa CA., majoring in Molecular Biology and Sarah Elkordy, of Little Falls, NJ, majoring in the School of Public and International Affairs, pose for friends' photos in front of Nassau Hall, which is bathed in orange light for graduation weekend. The two are First Generation Low Income students (FLI).Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Nassau Hall is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

STANHOPE HALL

Stanhope Hall, next to Nassau hall houses the Department of African American Studies. The two bronze tigers at left, which sit on either side of the front steps of Nassau Hall were presented in 1911 by Woodrow Wilsons classmates.

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Stanhope Hall is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

ROBERTSON HALL

Robertson Hall is the home of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. The building includes classrooms, offices, a lecture hall, and a small cafe, and hosts many lectures open to the public. With its series of 58 tapered columns, Robertson Hall is one of Princetons finest examples of Modernist architecture. Minoru Yamasaki, also architect of the Universitys Peyton Hall and the former World Trade Center in New York City, designed Robertson Hall. The adjacent Scudder Plaza features a reflecting pool and Fountain of Freedom, a sculpture by James Fitzgerald.

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Robertson Hall is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Robertson Hall is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Princeton University's Robertson Hall is lit in orange on Friday night. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings of this weekend, Princeton University lights up seven major campus buildings in orange as a way to mark the end of the academic year and as a nod to the senior class for carrying on through the difficult year during the COVID pandemic and the curtailing of many of the usual graduation celebrations. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

(Information about the buildings is provided by Princeton University.)

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Michael Mancuso may be reached at mmancuso@njadvancemedia.com
SUNDAY UPDATE: Sunday night is last shot for rocket launch from Wallops site until later this year, NASA says

UPDATE (Saturday, May 15): NASA has scrubbed Saturday nights rocket launch because of cloud cover in Bermuda.

LAUNCH SCRUBBED  Tonight's launch of the Black Brant XII rocket for the KiNET-X mission has been scrubbed due to cloudy skies in Bermuda. The next launch opportunity will be no earlier than May 16, at 8:04 p.m. EDT. This will be the last launch opportunity for our mission.  NASA Wallops (@NASA_Wallops) May 16, 2021

Will the 7th time be the charm for NASAs rocket launch at the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia after six delays during the past week?

The question will be answered Saturday night, when NASA will try again to launch its rocket and create two harmless vapor clouds as part of a mission to study energy and momentum in different regions of the atmosphere.

The long-awaited rocket launch is now scheduled for 8:10 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday, May 15.

LIVE NOW  We're counting down to launch a Black Brant XII sounding rocket carrying the KiNET-X payload. The window opens at 8:03 p.m. ET, but we're still monitoring the clouds in Bermuda. https://t.co/smUMQQ7FlF  NASA Wallops (@NASA_Wallops) May 15, 2021

NASA says the rocket and the greenish-violet vapor clouds may be briefly visible from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York and other eastern states, along with Bermuda  the area where the barium vapors are expected to be released into the sky.

The rocket launch was initially scheduled for last Friday, May 7, but the launch was postponed hours in advance because of unfavorable weather conditions in eastern Virginia, where the Wallops Flight Facility is located.

Rescheduled launches last weekend on Saturday, Sunday and Monday were each scrubbed by upper-level winds that were deemed unsafe for the mission.

On Tuesday night, with the rocket on the launch pad and conditions looking favorable at first, the launch was called off with about 1 minute to go in the 40-minute launch window because skies in Bermuda and at the Wallops Flight Facility were deemed to be too cloudy.

NASA postponed the next scheduled launch, on Wednesday night, saying time was needed for inspections after the rocket came in contact with a metal piece of the launcher support structure during launch preparations at the agencys flight facility.

This map shows when the NASA rocket may be visible after launch from the Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia. NASA says two vapor clouds will form north of Bermuda about 9 minutes and 30 seconds after launch as part of the mission and may also be visible from the eastern United States and Bermuda.NASA

How to watch the NASA rocket launch

If the launch goes off as scheduled tonight, it will take place any time from 8:10 p.m. to around 8:50 p.m. Eastern time. And the launch can be watched on NASAs live video stream.

If you live in eastern United States, youll need a clear view of whatever section of the sky is in line with eastern Virginia. For New Jersey, thats the southeastern sky.

As of now, skies in northern New Jersey are forecast to be mostly cloudy Saturday night, according to AccuWeather and the National Weather Service. Skies in central New Jersey are expected to be partly cloudy. The viewing forecast looks better in South Jersey, with mostly clear skies expected in Atlantic, Cumberland and Cape May counties.

At the Wallops Flight Facility, AccuWeather is forecasting mostly clear skies Saturday night, with wind gusts up to 10 mph, and the National Weather Service is calling for clear skies and winds ranging from 6 mph to 9 mph.

In Bermuda  the other key location for the mission  the Bermuda Weather Service is calling for mostly cloudy skies, with a chance of evening rain showers. In addition, the forecast says winds will be moderate to strong.

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Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com.
By Gia Lusk

COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on the health and well-being of families across our communities. Yet, many of the difficulties families have experienced throughout the pandemic are not new. The COVID-19 crisis has only brought these issues to the forefront.

I have been fortunate to serve as a family and community engagement specialist with BRICK Education Network in Newark since 2019 and have worked with Newark families for nearly a decade. Before the COVID-19 crisis, I helped families with food vouchers, ensured a single mom had a bus card to get to her job interview or helped a father study for a certification exam.

When COVID-19 hit, I found myself asking, how will the families I serve  who were already struggling before the pandemic  make it through this?

Thankfully, we already had the framework in place to help families through difficult times. In 2014, New Jerseys first and only Black-led charter management organization (CMO), BRICK Education Network, created South Ward Promise Neighborhood (SWPN) to provide wraparound services for children and families throughout Newarks South Ward. The pandemic presents new challenges and opportunities around how to break down barriers and provide access to resources. BRICK and South Ward Promise are helping to solve those challenges.

South Ward Promise quickly pivoted to address the urgent needs that arose during the pandemic, launching the COVID-19 Text Hotline to assist families and a Touchless Food and Health & Wellness Care Package Delivery Service, which has delivered over 4,000 packages to families to date. In addition, 200,000 masks have been distributed. The organization partnered with Lyft to help people get to the grocery store, doctors office or pharmacy safely. When school districts closed last year, we made sure families were prepared for remote learning by providing over 325 hotspots, as well as showing families how to set up and use their Chromebooks.

But what truly sets South Ward Promise apart is the human connection. One small, personal connection can make all the difference. When I noticed that one of my students, Prince, wasnt logging on to his virtual classes, I called his mother to find out if everything was O.K.

During our call, I learned that Prince was missing school because there was mold in his room, causing his asthma to act up. One day, the ceiling above them collapsed, exposing the danger that had been there all along. His doctor had previously advised Prince to stay home during the pandemic because of his respiratory issues, but what his health providers didnt know was that there were conditions at home that would put his health in jeopardy.

South Ward Promise stepped in to help. When their landlord wasnt remediating the issue, we connected her with legal assistance and the housing authority. We purchased a new air purifier for Prince, and a team member personally delivered and set up the unit for him.

In February, BRICK sponsored a coat drive, distributing thousands of coats to South Ward families. Prince and his mom were there, and Princes mom captured the coat drives impact best: Just to see the faces of all the kids and parents, and to show relief during this time, its going to make me cry just talking about it. I was having a hard time during this time  and buying a quality coat just to keep him warm was difficult. The coat drive relieved a lot of pressure that families are feeling.

I am happy to report that today, Princes attendance is up, he is an honor roll student, and he is feeling better. Our work is never done, and we will continue to serve as that safety net that makes a difference for Prince and his mom. SWPN is a game-changer for families  breaking down roadblocks and providing resources so that students like Prince can thrive before, during and after the pandemic.

In my work, Ive learned its not enough to provide a quality education  we must treat the whole person by providing human services. What BRICK and South Ward Promise provide is not just a framework for success for the South Ward, it is a model for success that should be replicated in every community.

Gia Lusk is a family and community engagement specialist at BRICK Education Network.

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Can Americans still have a sensible and friendly political discussion across the partisan divide? The answer is yes, and we intend to prove it. Julie Roginsky, a Democrat, and Mike DuHaime, a Republican, are consultants who have worked on opposite teams for their entire careers yet have remained friends throughout. Here, they discuss the weeks events with Tom Moran, editorial page editor of The Star-Ledger.

Q. Lets start with Rep. Liz Cheneys expulsion from her leadership post. What does it tell us about todays Republican Party?

Mike: Too many in Todays republican party care more about Donald Trump than about its core values of economic freedom, strong national defense, and limited government. Liz Cheney is a true conservative, but shes been ousted for not parroting trumps lie about the election being stolen.

Julie: Liz Cheney is a cautionary tale for other Republicans. She helped to create the ecosystem that gave rise to Trumpism  from flirting with birtherism conspiracies against Barack Obama to launching anti-Muslim attacks against the Justice Department. But the minute she deviated from 100% fealty to Trump, the mob turned on her. Eventually, the same mob will turn on Kevin McCarthy and other enablers of the Big Lie, because the revolution always eats its young. Just ask the Jacobins in 18th century France or the early Bolsheviks in the Soviet Union.

Mike: Come for the commentary. Stay for the history lesson from Julie.

Trump will hear this, grow enraged, and the mob will turn on McCarthy, who literally hours earlier worked to oust Liz Cheney from leadership for saying the exact same thing. The revolution will eat its young. https://t.co/CshYWCp2Vg  Julie Roginsky (@julieroginsky) May 12, 2021

Q. Many Republicans, including Reps. Jeff Van Drew and Chris Smith, insists that the problem with Cheney is that shes divisive, not that she insists on telling the truth about the 2020 election. Whats the difference?

Mike: We are supposed to welcome diverse opinions. Cheney is not being divisive on policy. Shes telling the truth and it makes too many people uncomfortable.

Julie: Right. Liz Cheney is the divisive one. Meanwhile, their hero Donald Trump is the Great Uniter.

She is still fighting for a R House majority, inevitably led by McCarthy. That puts Trump in charge. This is not defense of democracy. https://t.co/aSqwX2muBX  Jennifer 'pro-voting' Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) May 14, 2021

Q. Former Gov. Christie Whitman, who voted for Joe Biden, has signed a letter with 100 other Republicans vowing to leave the party if it continues to insist that Trump won the election. Why is that reaction so rare among rank-and-file Republicans?

Mike: For most partisans, politics is a spectator sport. You pick one side and root for the ones in your uniform. Even if the players change, apparently most support the team. And most Republicans who dislike Trump still arent comfortable with the Democrats far left policy positions on taxes and the economy.

Julie: Governor Whitman has nothing to lose. She is no longer running for office and is free to speak her mind. The ones enabling this authoritarian takeover of their party are the elected officials or candidates who are afraid of losing primaries or of not getting hired as Fox News contributors.

These bills should embarrass a party that used to pride itself on its defense of the Constitutional freedoms we are guaranteed. https://t.co/i7Rq3frYsV  Governor Christine Todd Whitman (@GovCTW) April 25, 2021

Q. Gov. Phil Murphy moved to provide $40 million in aid to undocumented workers in New Jersey, who were excluded from earlier rounds of direct aid. Hows that going to play politically in the fall election?

Mike: Murphys re-election will be settled by the big picture, whether or not kids are back in school, people back to work, stadiums and theaters full. This proposal will be controversial, but most people are focused on themselves, not denying help to others.

Julie: Governor Murphy made the right decision for himself politically, although if he was going to give any money, he should have given more to really help these vulnerable communities. It may be an issue for legislative candidates in swing districts, however.

Q. A pro-Murphy group, New Directions New Jersey, revealed that it spent $13.2 million on behalf of the governor during his first term to boost his agenda, and released the names of donors. Any surprises? Is this unusual?

Mike: This is common in politics. Supporters of elected officials band together to support his or her agenda. As long as they follow the law in terms of coordination, they will be fine.

Julie: The only surprise is that the governor still chooses to be affiliated with an organization headed by Brendan Gill, his controversial former campaign manager whom women (including me) have accused of running a toxic campaign in 2017 and who, as this newspaper reported, apparently has a history of physically threatening or assaulting those whom he doesnt like.

Q. Murphy plans to loosen Covid-19 restrictions on May 19. Is it time to end the restraints on restaurants and gyms and theaters? How about the mandate to wear masks outside?

Mike: Yes, it is time. Vaccinations are up, cases are down, hospitalizations are down. Gyms have proven to operate safely, as have most other schools and businesses.

Julie: The governor is right to do this incrementally. Lets see what happens in the two or three weeks after the restrictions are loosened on May 19 and then decide whether to loosen things further.

Mike: As covid cases drop, patience will wear thin if schools arent more aggressive in reopening and restrictions on businesses arent all but eliminated.

I love the clarity @DLeonhardt brings to this subject.



"The Covid risks will not fall to zero, and it is important to remember that. But zero is not a realistic goal, and the freezing of normal life has brought big costs of its own."



https://t.co/DFuGVIHBQ6  Jay Rosen (@jayrosen_nyu) May 14, 2021

A note to readers: DuHaime and Roginsky are both deeply engaged in politics and commercial advocacy in New Jersey, so both have connections to many players we discuss in this column. Given that, we will not normally disclose each specific connection, trusting that readers understand they are not impartial observers. DuHaime, a principal at Mercury Public Affairs, was chief political advisor to former Gov. Chris Christie, and has worked for Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, and President George W. Bush. Roginsky, a principal of Optimus Communications, has served as senior advisor to campaigns of Cory Booker, Frank Lautenberg and Phil Murphy. We will disclose specific connections only when readers might otherwise be misled.

"Socialism is a scare word they have hurled at every advance the people have made in the last 20 years," President Harry Truman said in 1952. "Socialism is their name for almost anything that helps all the people."https://t.co/3Y29B1ccyA https://t.co/LwKi6zpXcH  Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) May 14, 2021

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By Wenonah Hauter

As the White House gears up to promote its $2.2 trillion dollar infrastructure plan, it is facing off with more than a few Republican lawmakers who are determined to debate what is or isnt infrastructure in the first place. This tedious routine should not obscure the fact that the White Houses opening proposal on water infrastructure  $111 billion over eight years  represents a huge victory for water justice: specifically, the goal of eliminating lead in water across the country.

To fully replace the nations lead service lines as well as lead water infrastructure in schools, we will likely need to make a bigger, bolder and more lasting commitment. The White House plan devotes $45 billion to eliminating lead service lines.

While Newarks crisis mobilized a powerful grassroots movement for justice for the citys residents, lead problems have been documented in many corners of the state, affecting over a million people. And the fractured and privatized state of New Jerseys drinking water system presents additional challenges. While state lawmakers and Gov. Phil Murphy have rolled out plans to finance the replacement of lead service lines, a $500 million bonding program has been delayed by the pandemic. And private water companies that replace aging pipes recoup those costs through rate increases.

Lead is a problem that needs a federal solution and weve known this for years. But the lack of urgency has been appalling. Despite how long we have known about the dangers of lead poisoning, it is astonishing that we still do not even have a comprehensive accounting of where lead lines exist in water systems across the nation.

While we should have a better inventory by 2024, the American Water Works Association estimated in 2016 that there were 6.1 million lead services lines, serving 15 to 22 million people. Their estimate for full lead service line replacement was $30 billion, so the Biden administration proposal is in the right neighborhood. But those figures do not include schools, which is largely left up to states (and also largely unregulated). A 2018 GAO survey found that only 43% of school districts across the country test for lead; and of those, 37% found elevated lead levels.

Its no stretch, then, to assume that these costs will exceed the White Houses lead replacement budget, especially if the goal is a full replacement of lead lines and not just the portion owned by a water utility. The last portion of a service line into a house or apartment building is the responsibility of the owner, and without dedicated funding, the costs would fall on landlords or homeowners. Replacing just part of a lead service line can actually increase the dangers of lead contamination.

While the White House proposal is a laudable effort, we need to make an even greater investment in protecting our water systems and there is legislation that gets us there. Public water systems can get permanent support through the WATER Act (HR 1352, S916), which creates a $35 billion trust fund every year to support all of the necessary upgrades to our water and wastewater systems. We need lawmakers like Reps. Frank Pallone and Donald Payne to join the dozens of their colleagues that are already co-sponsoring the WATER Act.

While Republicans float nonsensical arguments about whether or not infrastructure projects are in fact infrastructure, the White House has made lead a priority, and this is a critical victory for environmental justice activists who have fought to defend the health and safety of their communities. The administration would best serve the cause of water justice by including comprehensive legislation like the WATER Act in their overall vision for an infrastructure package that creates American jobs and protects communities that have too often been relegated to the bottom of the nations to-do list. New Jersey and the rest of the nation would be better off.

Wenonah Hauter is the executive director of the national advocacy organization Food & Water Watch.

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A sex-trafficking scandal that is inching closer to Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, one of Donald Trumps most ardent supporters, includes an investigation of a 2019 event billed as a Trump Defender Gala, which named ex-Yankees and Red Sox outfielder Johnny Damon as an honored guest.

According to the Daily Beast, Gaetz was a featured speaker at the Oct. 26 fundraiser at the Westgate Lake Resort in Orlando. The Daily Beast further reports:

Two witnesses present recalled friends reconvening at Gaetzs hotel room for an after-party, where [Megan] Zalonka prepared lines of cocaine on the bathroom counter. One of those witnesses distinctly remembers Zalonka pulling the drugs out of her makeup bag, rolling a bill of cash, and joining Gaetz in snorting the cocaine.

Damon, according to a handout included in the Daily Beast report, was the top name in a list of featured guests that included six other current or former government officials.

On Friday, it was announced that Joel Greenberg, an indicted confidant of Gaetz, has struck a deal with federal prosecutors to reduce his criminal exposure and plans to help investigators.

Damon, who played for the Yankees from 2006-09 and the Red Sox from 2002-05, has been public in his support for Trump. In a DUI stop in February, Damon told police, I know people are trying to target me because Im a Trump supporter.

Damon was charged with resisting an officer without violence. He also was cited for driving under the influence of alcohol and running a stop sign. His wife, Michelle Mangan-Damon, was charged with battery on an officer and resisting with violence.

TMZ reported Thursday prosecutors are not trying to throw the book at Damon ... instead, offering him a pretty sweet deal that involves cutting a check and doing some community service.

We spoke with Damons attorney, Stuart Hyman, who tells us Johnny agreed to enter into a pre-trial diversion program -- which involves making a donation to charity and completing a certain amount of hours of community service. He did not mention the number of hours Damon agreed to. If Damon successfully completes the terms of the deal, Hyman says prosecutors have agreed to drop the case.

His wifes charges are still pending, TMZ reported.

Damon last played in 2012 with the Cleveland Indians. He retired after 18 MLB seasons with 2,769 hits and two All-Star selections.

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Tedros said he could understand why nations want to immunize their children, but he urged them to reconsider and donate as much vaccine as they can spare to the international vaccine cooperative, COVAX, the WHO-run program that distributes vaccine to poorer countries.

At the agency's Friday briefing at its headquarters in Geneva, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus spoke once again about the "gross distortions" of vaccine access in the world. He said just 0.03 percent of the world's produced vaccines have gone to low-income nations.

The World Health Organization Friday questioned wealthy nations moving to vaccinate low-risk groups, such as children, against COVID-19, while some poor and middle-income countries do not have enough vaccine for health care workers.

The WHO chief said many nations are still in the throes of the crisis, with hospitals inundated and care workers who have not had access to the vaccine. He said while India remains "hugely concerning," Nepal, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Thailand and Egypt are all seeing spikes in cases and hospitalizations.

Tedros said some countries in the Americas are still experiencing high numbers of cases. The Johns Hopkins COVID-19 Resource Center reports Brazil continues to rank third in total cases behind the United States and India and second behind the U.S. in total deaths. The WHO chief said the Americas as a region accounted for 40 percent of all COVID-19 deaths in the past week.

The WHO chief did say there was good news this week as a number of new countries have contributed vaccine to the COVAX program and vaccine manufacturers have announced technology transfers and sharing deals with each other to increase production worldwide.

Tedros said he himself was vaccinated this week, and he urged anyone who lives in a country where vaccines are available, to get inoculated as soon as possible.
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Complaining about potholes is part of living in New Orleans, just like learning not to bet against the guy who can tell you where you got your shoes.

But this year, fewer people are calling 311 to complain about potholes. During the first quarter of 2021, 450 people called the city to report potholes, a 20% decrease from the first quarter of 2020, when 542 people called to complain about the unsightly menaces pocking New Orleans' streets.

That's according to the city's database of calls to 311, the New Orleans hotline for non-emergency services. Pothole complaints accounted for 3.16% of all calls to 311 since February 2019.

Allen Johnson, president of the Faubourg Marigny Improvement Association, said he believes calls are decreasing in his neighborhood because there's a lot of road repair work happening.

"We have so much well-needed road construction," he said. "And I think calls are going down because people get tired of calling."

According to the creator of the popular Instagram account "Look At This F****** Street", which documents potholes, sinkholes and various other New Orleans problems, complaints have shifted due to the city's construction projects. He gets 20 to 60 messages a day from followers submitting pictures of the egregious infrastructure issues in their neighborhoods.

"When I started the account in November 2019, I was getting almost all potholes," said the Instagrammer, who asked for anonymity because he fears the Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans might raise his bill. "Im seeing that potholes are less of an issue now, because of the frustration around roadwork. Lots of neighborhoods just don't have a street anymore."

Roughly $500 million worth of road construction projects, largely funded with FEMA money, are now underway throughout New Orleans. By the time the money is spent - a process that is expected to take until 2025 - almost one third of New Orleans' streets will have had some kind of work.

While pothole complaints may be down, New Orleanians' creativity with pothole decorations is up. In March, an eight-foot-tall faux traffic cone appeared in the center of one Uptown pothole. And readers have shared some of their favorite pothole decorations and construction horrors with NOLA.com reporter Doug MacCash, who has collected them into a photo gallery.

The proliferation of New Orleans pothole displays begs the question: does the drop in 311 calls reflect a newfound appreciation for potholes as artistic statements?

Want to share your most picturesque pothole or catastrophic road construction on NOLA.com? Send a photo with your name and the title of the hazard/obstacle to dmaccash@theadvocate.com and we may publish it in our photo gallery.

Staff writer Jeff Adelson contributed to this report.
A 57-year-old woman died early Saturday at a New Orleans hospital after being shot in the back, the Police Department said.

Police said an unknown person dropped her off at a hospital before 1:50 a.m. then fled. They didn't know where the shooting occurred but said they took the initial report in the 1400 block of Foucher Street, the location of Touro Infirmary.

The Police Department did not immediately release more details.
As he drifted for two hours in mountainous waves in the Gulf of Mexico, Bryan Mires kept thinking about his wife and daughter. He didn't know whether he would live or die. But he was carrying an emergency transmitter to alert radio operators of his position, and he thought his chances depended on one of them detecting him.

The first mate on the Seacor Power lift boat, Mires had boarded the vessel at Port Fourchon on April 13, bound with 18 other crew members for a Talos Energy offshore oil platform about 100 miles away near the mouth of the Mississippi River. Their job was to deliver equipment.

The 234-foot vessel left port at about 1:30 p.m., at a time when weather forecasters were warning of tropical storm-force winds and high waves in their course. But three hours into the journey, the Seacor Power sailed into hurricane-force winds and huge swells that made the barge-like vessel dangerously unstable.

When the Seacor Power capsized, Mires was in the wheelhouse. He managed to open the portside door and climb out, he said in an account that was forwarded by his attorney, Paul Sterbcow, and that here makes for the first public account from any of the vessel's six survivors.

Having worked on lift boats for almost 20 years, Mires, a 38-year-old Breaux Bridge resident, was wearing a life jacket. And before a large wave swept him off the deck, he grabbed the vessel's hand-held emergency position indicating radio beacon, or EPIRB.

Once in the water he saw one of the Seacor Power's floating life rings and swam over to grab ahold. The life ring was tethered to the capsized boat by a rope - which wrapped around Mires' legs. Fearing he would get tangled and pulled under, Mires took a knife from his pocket and cut himself free.

He was then adrift in heavy seas, the current carrying him farther and farther from the capsized Seacor Power.

Rescue begins

Within about 30 minutes of the Coast Guard receiving the first notice of the Seacor Power's failure, the agency said, its rescue vessels and a helicopter arrived at the scene. They spotted five men clinging to the hull and picked up two. Civilian vessels that had responded to the calls plucked another three out of the water.

Mires, meanwhile, said that as he drifted away, several vessels passed him by without detecting him on radar, as would be expected if the EPIRB was working.

+4 Before Seacor Power, captain David Ledet aided recovery efforts in this deadly '89 lift boat wreck As a young captain, David Ledet got a firsthand look at the damage that rough seas in the Gulf of Mexico can inflict on a lift boat and its crew.

One of the good Samaritan vessels on the water that afternoon was the M/V Cape Cod, an offshore supply ship owned by Seamar of Lafayette. The Cape Cod's captain saw an inflatable raft as he neared the site of the catastrophe.

"The Coast Guard then asked the captain to help, so he ran all the way to the end of the debris line and then went a little bit further," said a Seamar official, who didn't want to be named because he did not have authorization to discuss the events. "The conditions were horrible, and when the waves are that big and somebody's in a life jacket you only have a split second to see something."

With all of the Cape Cod's crew up on deck, they eventually spotted Mires in his yellow life jacket rising up on swell. It was two hours into the search - yet they had not detected any EPIRB signal from him on their radar.

"Luckily, he could still swim, as the captain didn't want to use his thrusters to get to him in those seas," the Seamar official said. "They pulled him aboard, and he was in good shape."

The Cape Cod crew reckoned that five vessels had passed Mires by. He had drifted about four miles from the overturned Seacor Power when he was eventually rescued.

"To his knowledge, the emergency spotting device that he held the entire time did not work," said Sterbcow, Mires' attorney.

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Six of the Seacor Power's 19 crew, including Mires, were rescued. The bodies of six others, including the captain, David Ledet, have been recovered.

On April 19, the Coast Guard called off its search for the remaining seven. And although volunteers continued for several days more, they remain missing and presumed dead.

A solitary campaign

One of the many who were praying for the rescue of the Seacor Power crew was Steve Myers, whose son, Craig, died a decade ago after evacuating a lift boat, the Trinity II, in a hurricane. Ever since, Myers has waged a solitary campaign to require EPIRBs for everyone onboard ocean-going work vessels.

"All I could think of were those men in the water ... and my son," said Myers, struggling to suppress the tears welling up at the memory.

The Trinity II, which was about one third the size of the Seacor Power, was operating off Mexico in the Bay of Campeche in 2011 when Hurricane Nate quickly formed above it, giving the 10 crew members little warning. The storm caused one of the Trinity II's jackup legs to fail, and when the vessel began to list the crew abandoned ship.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of the accident was a failure by the boat's owner, Trinity Liftboats, and the charterer, Geokinetics, to provide an adequate safety plan. The board also found that the life-saving equipment was inadequate and hadn't been deployed properly by the crew in the haste to get off the listing vessel while it was being blasted by a hurricane.

It took rescuers four days to locate nine of the crew, of whom six survived but were severely harmed by the prolonged exposure to the elements without adequate drinking water. Craig Myers survived three days in the water but died before rescuers found him and his mates.

One of the safety board's findings was that the Trinity II's EPIRB, which the crew had failed to take, could have allowed rescuers to locate them much earlier, likely saving lives and preventing severe injury.

The board is also the lead investigating agency into the Seacor Power failure, and it has already taken testimony from Mires and the Cape Cod's captain, including information about the vessel EPIRB.

+4 NTSB's first report on Seacor Power expected in late May, but it's the start of a long process The lead agency investigating the capsizing of the Seacor Power lift boat in stormy seas on April 13 said its initial findings are expected to

While the safety board investigates, reports and makes recommendations, the Coast Guard is the regulator for vessel safety in U.S. waters. The Coast Guard has long required vessels to maintain a working EPIRB, but Steve Myers thinks that is inadequate and has pressed since his son's death for the Coast Guard to require that each crew member be given an individual EPIRB to help find them if lost at sea.

"They only cost three, four hundred dollars, and I would have paid for it myself if I'd have known at the time," Myers said.

Since 2012, Myers has asked the Coast Guard to issue its own report on the Trinity II, including any action that the agency plans to take to tighten rules on locator devices. He shared emails showing he has written about once a year to request an update about the Coast Guard report, and each time was told by Capt. Janet Espino-Young, prevention officer for the Coast Guard's Miami-based 7th District, that it was imminent.

The latest reply came in December, when she told him the report was being re-edited and looked like it would come in early 2021. It hadn't appeared by the time the Seacor Power capsized, so Myers inquired again a week after the tragedy and received no response.

Coast Guard spokesman John Michelli, when asked by The Times-Picayune | The Advocate when the report might come out, responded: "Due to the time that has passed since the 2011 incident, finding full details and determining the status of that investigation will require further research. We are looking into it and aim to answer your questions as soon as possible."

Myers said he respects the Coast Guard and all it does. He just wants some action that he thinks would save lives.

"I would like the Coast Guard to make personal EPIRBs mandatory for people working offshore, just like life preservers," he said. "I regret that I wasn't aware of the personal EPIRBs before my son's accident. I would have gladly paid for the EPIRB."
The Louisiana Supreme Court has dealt a blow to the case against three youths accused of killing a New Orleans woman during a botched auto burglary at her Mid-City home, ruling that prosecutors may not use at trial a videotaped statement from the alleged shooters girlfriend.

Police should have listened when a handcuffed, sleep-deprived Byrielle Hebert told them 11 times that she didnt want to talk, the justices said in a 5-2 decision issued Thursday. Instead the officers violated the young woman's right to remain silent by pressing until she admitted that she was present at the shooting, the court said.

Court records: Girlfriend of alleged shooter in Mid-City killing tells police she was in getaway car An 18-year-old woman believed to be in the getaway vehicle after a double shooting left a 63-year-old New Orleans security guard dead in Mid-C

Hebert, her boyfriend, Emanuel Pipkins, and Alvin Robertson face non-capital first-degree murder charges in the killing of Zelda Townsend in front of her Cleveland Avenue home. But the court ruling means prosecutors may not play Heberts crucial statement to jurors.

Its a huge deal, said Eusi Phillips, defense attorney for Hebert. I think the state is going to have a decision to make now.

Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams office said it intended to proceed with the case against the defendants in Criminal District Court.

Three teens charged in killing of woman during auto burglary on Mid-City street plus earlier shooting Two New Orleanians had their own brush with death trying to stop a pair of teenage auto burglars the night before the teens killed a woman who

Hebert was 18, Pipkins 17 and Robertson 16 on the night of May 8, 2019, when they became Exhibit A in then-District Attorney Leon Cannizzaros argument that juvenile crime was spiraling out of control with deadly consequences. He held a news conference to announce their indictment in August 2019.

Prosecutors said Hebert and Pipkins had already shot at two people who tried to stop another auto burglary outside a Lakeview bar a night earlier. The victims werent hit.

But Townsend, 63, and her husband werent so lucky, according to the indictment in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court. Alerted by the sound of an alarm, Townsend and her husband raced outside to find Pipkins rummaging through their BMW X5 sport utility vehicle and tried to detain him.

A male shouted out from a nearby Acura, Just shoot em. Prosecutors say Pipkins did, killing Townsend and wounding her husband, who managed to return fire with his gun. Townsend, a grandmother, had worked as a bank security guard.

Pipkins also was wounded in the exchange of gunfire. That night, his aunt and Hebert dropped him off at Tulane Medical Center for treatment Officers took Hebert in handcuffs to the Police Departments homicide office for questioning.

The court majority's unsigned opinion lays out what happened next.

Hebert arrived in a holding room at 12:30 a.m., with both hands cuffed behind her back. Detective Marylou Agustin unlocked the restraints, cuffed one of Hebert's hands to the desk and told her that she could go home once she gave a statement.

Left alone in the room, Hebert began pulling on the handcuffs and banging on the table. At 1:24 a.m., Agustin returned to the room in an effort to get Hebert to talk.

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Over the course of the night, Agustin told Hebert at least six times that if she talked, she could go home or to the hospital to visit Pipkins. At least 11 times, Hebert told Agustin or other officers that she didnt want to talk.

Around 3:30 a.m., lead detective Barret Morton entered the room and told her she was under investigation for murder. "Sir, I ain't got nothing to speak to y'all about," Hebert said.

But the detectives persuaded Hebert to sign a form waiving her rights and continued to talk to her. Eventually, she admitted to being with Pipkins and another male unknown to her in the Acura, and to witnessing the shootout with the Townsends. She was placed under arrest for an unrelated warrant at 5:05 a.m.

The detectives methods sparked a legal battle over whether police had scrupulously honored her desire to remain silent, the standard under the U.S. Constitution. The trial judge, Franz Zibilich, ruled that they had. And under Cannizzaro, the district attorneys appellate division won a ruling on the statement from the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, setting the stage for the Supreme Court.

Williams succeeded Cannizzaro Jan. 11. His newly appointed chief of appeals, Ben Cohen, defended use of the statement in oral arguments against Heberts appellate attorney, Jane Hogan, before the state Supreme Court on March 22.

Prosecutors seized on the written waiver and a remark Hebert made to Morton, "Ill speak to yall, but...". However, the Supreme Court's majority said it could not view the waiver "in a vacuum and ignore the preceding hours defendant spent handcuffed to a desk shouting that she did not want to talk to anyone." The state also failed to prove that Agustins promises that Hebert could go home werent improper, the court said.

Justice Will Crain wrote the dissent, which was joined by Justice Jefferson Hughes. He said that during her five hours in police custody, Hebert was allowed to eat, visit the restroom and sleep, undermining the argument that she was coerced. Meanwhile, Crain said Agustin's suggestions that Hebert would be allowed to leave weren't improper inducements, because Hebert wasn't yet a suspect at that point.

Hebert's statement to Morton that she had nothing to speak with the police about, Crain said, "did not clearly invoke the defendants right to remain silent. Having nothing to say is not the same as expressing an unwillingness to speak."

Even if she had invoked her right to remain silent, Crain said, Hebert "permissibly change[d] her mind" once Morton informed her that she was a murder suspect.

While the majority opinion was confined to Hebert's statement, it was also hailed by the defense lawyer for Pipkins, Gregg Carter. "Without that statement, their case is largely circumstantial," he said.

In a statement, Williams' first assistant said the District Attorney's Office respects the court's decision.

"We look forward to working with the NOPD to ensure that their interrogation procedures are in accordance with the constitution and the law as well as continuing to vigorously seek justice for the family and friends of Zelda Townsend," Bob White said.

This article has been updated with comment from the District Attorney's Office.
Families of nearly 260,000 students in Louisiana will soon receive a new debit card pre-filled with funds for groceries this summer, following the reauthorization of a federal program aimed at helping kids who couldn't access free or reduced-price meals in their schools during the pandemic.

Some students will be eligible for up to $1,200 from the Pandemic EBT, or P-EBT program, depending on how many months they learned from home during the 2020-21 school year.

The cards should go out in the mail starting in June, according to Louisiana's Department of Child and Family Services.

Officials said eligible students who learned on a combined schedule of remote and in-person learning will receive $48.23 for every month they were in hybrid learning. Eligible students who attended virtually will receive $120.71 per month. Benefits will be retroactive to Aug. 1, 2020, to cover the full 2020-21 school year.

Shavana Howard, the assistant secretary for DCFS, said that families would be receiving their cards even if they took advantage of grab-and-go meals provided by schools or school districts.

The benefits follow a year of difficulties for kids and families. Job losses and school disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic fell particularly hard on lower-income families. The state's unemployment rate is at around 7%, and with school ending for the year, many families will continue to struggle.

"It speaks to the level of support and level of help people really need in order to meet their daily needs," Howard said of the P-EBT and other food service programs. "That's what our programs are here for."

Nearly 280 names being considered for new school buildings in New Orleans: see the contenders The list of potential new names for some New Orleans public school has been finalized -- and it's a long one.

This is the second wave of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service benefit, one of several federal relief efforts approved by Congress to soften the economic blow from COVID-19.

More than 40 states, along with the District of Columbia, were approved for P-EBT this year. Last year, during the first round, Louisiana distributed more than $137.1 million in P-EBT benefits to 284,259 families and their children.

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This year the program is operating a little bit differently. Howard said fewer students will be eligible for full benefits because many went back to in-person learning, whereas last year all schools in the state closed their doors in March.

Last year, nearly 200,000 who were eligible didn't apply, officials said. This year, the state made changes to allow school districts to directly report who was eligible so families could bypass the application process.

+15 'We're taking steps back': Facing 'anti trans' bills, New Orleans students speak out Audrey Ligier held her white lace dress as she stepped out of her front door two years ago on the way to her homecoming dance, confident in he

Approximately 699,000 students  or 87% of all students across the state  receive free or reduced lunch, according to the Louisiana Department of Education. That includes some districts considered to be so high-poverty all students are allowed to get them.

In East Baton Rouge Parish schools, the 12,500 students who are currently learning virtually  almost a third of all students in the district  are eligible for full benefits. In addition, all 40,000-plus children in the school district are eligible for benefits for August when the Baton Rouge public schools operated virtual-only.

The parish school system attempted a variety of ways to "fill in the gap when kids are at home," according to Nadine Mann, director of the district's child nutrition program, including with curbside meal pickups and home deliveries via the group Focus Foods.

In New Orleans, where about 85% are economically disadvantaged, the district's nearly 45,000 students in its network of charter school started the year remotely. About 40% continued to learn from home through the first semester.

NOLA Public Schools wasn't able to provide more recent data on the number of qualifying students learning remotely or on hybrid schedules.
Britain Changing Protocols to Combat Virus Variant The spread of a variant first detected in India offers a warning for countries easing restrictions even though their vaccination campaigns are incomplete.

The variant first detected in India is forcing the U.K. to speed up delivery of second doses of vaccine. A vaccination center in London in April. The British authorities are considering reintroducing local lockdowns to stem the spread of a coronavirus variant first detected in India. Credit... Justin Tallis/Agence France-Presse  Getty Images LONDON  Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain said on Friday that vaccination protocols would be changed to swiftly deliver second doses to people over 50 to combat the spread of a coronavirus variant first detected in India, a warning sign for countries that are easing restrictions even though their own vaccination campaigns are incomplete. We believe this variant is more transmissible than the previous ones, Mr. Johnson said at a news conference. What remained unclear, he said, was by how much. The infectiousness of the variant, known as B.1.617, remains the subject of intense study and some leading experts have said it is too early to assess its transmissibility. If it proves significantly more transmissible, Mr. Johnson said, we face some hard choices. He added that there was no evidence that the variant was more likely to cause serious illness and death, and that there was no evidence to suggest vaccines were less effective against the variant in preventing serious illness and death. While he said that England would not delay plans to ease restrictions on Monday, before a full reopening in June, he warned that the variant could force a change of course. The numbers of cases involving B.1.617 rose to 1,313 cases this week in Britain from 520 last week, according to official statistics. The extent to which the variant has spread globally is unclear, because most countries lack Britains genomic surveillance abilities. That ability has allowed Britain to spot the rise of concerning variants quickly, offering an early warning system of sorts, since a variant seen in one nation almost invariably pops up in others. The B.1.617 variant has been found in virus samples from 44 countries and was designated a variant of concern by the World Health Organization this week, which means there is some evidence that it could have an impact on diagnostics, treatments or vaccines and needs to be closely monitored. Most cases detected in Britain are in northwestern England. The focus has been on Bolton, a town of nearly 200,000 that has one of the countrys highest rates of infection and where health officials have warned of widespread community transmission of B.1.617. Some cases have also been reported in London. That rapid spread has led officials to debate speeding up dosing schedules and opening up access to shots in hot spots to younger age groups. In Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister, said on Friday that plans to ease restrictions in Glasgow would be delayed at least a week out of concern about an uptick in cases that officials said might be driven by the variant. Coronavirus Variants and Mutations Tracking recent mutations, variants and lineages. Much is unknown about the new variant, but scientists fear it may have driven the rise of cases in India and could fuel outbreaks in neighboring countries. Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, the technical lead of the W.H.O.s coronavirus response, said a study of a limited number of patients, which had not yet been peer-reviewed, suggested that antibodies from vaccines or infections with other variants might not be quite as effective against B.1.617. The agency said, however, that vaccines were likely to remain potent enough to provide protection from serious illness and death. British officials have said the variant appears to be even more contagious than the B.1.1.7 variant, which was detected last year in Kent, southeast of London, and swept across Britain in the winter, forcing the country into one of the worlds longest national lockdowns. The B.1.1.7 variant has now been found in countries around the world. In the United States, the B.1.1.7 variant has become the predominant version of the virus, now accounting for nearly three-quarters of cases. But the U.S. surge experts had feared ended up a mere blip in most of the country. The nationwide total of daily new cases began falling in April and has now dropped more than 85 percent from the horrific highs of January. Britains speedy vaccine campaign saved at least 11,700 lives and prevented 33,000 people from becoming seriously ill in England, according to research released by Public Health England on Friday. Infections, serious illness and deaths have plummeted across Britain. Only 17 deaths were reported on Friday. But the vaccination campaign has slowed since last month because of supply shortages and the need to start distributing second doses. The number of daily first doses on average last month was 113,000, far below the average of 350,000 daily doses administered in March. Only those over 38 are currently eligible. Correction : May 14, 2021 An earlier version of this item misstated the affiliation of Christina Pagel, a science adviser. Ms. Pagel is a member of Independent SAGE, a group of expert advisers unaffiliated with the government. She is not a member of SAGE, a panel of government advisers. Marc Santora and

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Uruguay has the worlds highest death toll per capita. Administering a coronavirus shot during a vaccination day for homeless people in Montevideo, Uruguay, on Thursday. Credit... Raul Martinez/EPA, via Shutterstock BUENOS AIRES  For most of the past year, Uruguay was held up as an example for keeping the coronavirus from spreading widely as neighboring countries grappled with soaring death tolls. Uruguays good fortune has run out. In the last week, the small South American nations Covid-19 death rate per capita was the highest in the world, according to data compiled by The New York Times. As of Wednesday, at least 3,252 people had died from Covid-19, according to the Uruguayan Health Ministry, and the daily death toll has been about 50 during the past week. Six out of the 11 countries with the highest death rates per capita are in South America, a region where the pandemic is leaving a brutal toll of growing joblessness, poverty and hunger. For the most part, countries in the region have failed to acquire sufficient vaccines to inoculate their populations quickly. Contagion rates in Uruguay began inching up in November and soared in recent months, apparently fueled by a highly contagious variant first identified in Brazil last year. In Uruguay, its as if we had two pandemics, one until November 2020, when things were largely under control, and the other starting in November, with the arrival of the first wave to the country, said Jose Luis Satdjian, the deputy secretary of the Health Ministry. The country with the second-highest death rate per capita is nearby Paraguay, which also had relative success in containing the virus for much of last year but now finds itself in a worsening crisis. Experts link the sharp rise in cases in Uruguay to the P.1 virus variant detected in Brazil. We have a new player in the system and its the Brazilian variant, which has penetrated our country so aggressively, Mr. Satdjian said. Uruguay closed its borders tightly at the beginning of the pandemic, but towns along the border with Brazil are effectively binational and have remained porous. The outbreak has strained hospitals in Uruguay, which has a population of 3.5 million. On March 1, Uruguay had 76 Covid-19 patients in intensive care units. This week, medical professionals were caring for more than 530, according to Dr. Julio Pontet, president of the Uruguayan Society of Intensive Care Medicine who heads the intensive care department at the Pasteur Hospital in Montevideo, the capital. That number is slightly lower than the peak in early May, but experts have yet to see a steady decline that could indicate a trend. It is still too early to reach the conclusion that weve already started to improve, were in a high plateau of cases, Dr. Pontet said. Despite the continuing high number of cases, there is optimism that the country will be able to get the situation under control soon because it is one of the few in the region that has been able to make quick progress on its vaccination campaign. About a quarter of the population has been fully immunized. We expect the number of serious cases to begin decreasing at the end of May, Dr. Pontet said.

Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are powerfully effective against Covid-19, a C.D.C. analysis confirmed. A man in Los Angeles being vaccinated in March. The C.D.C. released a study on Friday providing more evidence that the vaccines are working well in real world settings. Credit... Allison Zaucha for The New York Times The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna coronavirus vaccines are 94 percent effective at preventing symptomatic Covid-19 illness, according to a new study of more than 1,800 health care workers in the United States. The research, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released on Friday, provides yet more evidence that the vaccines are working well even outside controlled clinical trials. This report provided the most compelling information to date that Covid-19 vaccines were performing as expected in the real world, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the C.D.C. director, said in a statement on Friday. This study, added to the many studies that preceded it, was pivotal to C.D.C. changing its recommendations for those who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19. The findings are based on an ongoing study of health care workers in 25 states. This interim analysis included data on 1,843 health care workers who were routinely tested for infection with the coronavirus. More than 80 percent of participants were female. Some 623 workers tested positive between January and mid-March. Those who were fully vaccinated were 94 percent less likely to develop symptomatic coronavirus infections than their unvaccinated peers, the researchers found. The figures are consistent with the efficacy estimates from the clinical trials. The scientists also found that a single dose of the two-shot regimen was 82 percent effective at preventing symptomatic infection. That figure is higher than has been reported in other studies and may be a result of the relative youth of the study participants, who had a median age of 37 to 38. Fewer than 2 percent were 65 or older. C.D.C. scientists had previously found that fully vaccinated health care, frontline and essential workers were 90 percent less likely to contract the coronavirus. Those findings helped allay fears that vaccinated people might still be likely to carry the virus, even asymptomatically, and spread it to others. The concern was one of the main rationales for asking vaccinated Americans to continue to wear masks, a recommendation that the C.D.C. lifted on Thursday.

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Taiwan hits a daily case record. Disinfecting seats at a Covid-19 testing site in Taipei on Saturday. Credit... Ritchie B Tongo/EPA, via Shutterstock Taiwan, which has had remarkable success in containing the coronavirus, raised restrictions for its main city to their highest level since the start of the pandemic on Saturday, after reporting a daily record of 180 new locally transmitted infections. Taiwans current outbreak  its worst yet by far  began in late April with a cluster in airline workers. Saturdays caseload represented more than half of the 344 locally transmitted cases that the self-governing island has recorded during the entire pandemic. The Taiwanese premier, Su Tseng-chang, and other officials told reporters on Saturday that masks and other medical supplies to fight the outbreak were plentiful. Mr. Su urged Taiwanese to be obedient, helpful and protect yourselves, your families, all of society and our country. The government raised the restrictions in the city of Taipei to Level 3 out of 4, still short of a full lockdown. Even so, the announcements sent a shiver of anxiety through Taipei, and some residents filed into supermarkets to stock up on food, toilet paper and other essentials. I felt a bit panicky in recent days because of the surge of cases, said Chen Mei-ling, 58, a retired high school teacher who stood in a long line at a Taipei supermarket. It seems that the pandemic will last for a while and we cant expect a virus-free environment in the near future. The restrictions in Taipei and adjoining New Taipei City include a ban on indoor gatherings of more than five people and require the use of protective masks outdoors. Many public venues across the island will be closed, except for essential facilities like hospitals and police stations. Taiwan has for decades been at loggerheads with China, which considers the island democracy to be a breakaway region that must accept eventual reunification. The Taiwanese government took swift measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus from China early last year, even before the Chinese authorities confirmed that it was highly infectious. Chris Buckley, Amy Chang Chien and

After the pandemic, will more Americans wear masks for colds and flu? At a bookstore in San Francisco in March. Until the pandemic, there had seldom been a cultural push for mask wearing in the United States. Credit... Jim Wilson/The New York Times Once Americans return to crowded offices, schools, buses and trains, so too will their sneezes and sniffles. Having been introduced to the idea of wearing masks to protect themselves and others, some Americans are now considering a behavior scarcely seen in the United States but long a fixture in other cultures: routinely wearing a mask when displaying symptoms of a common cold or the flu, even in a future in which Covid-19 isnt a primary concern. Such routine use of masks has been common for decades in other countries, primarily in East Asia, as protection against allergies or pollution, or as a common courtesy to protect nearby people. Leading American health officials have been divided over the benefits, partly because there is no tidy scientific consensus on the effect of masks on influenza virus transmission, according to experts who have studied it. Nancy Leung, an epidemiologist at the University of Hong Kong, said that the science exploring possible links between masking and the emission or transmission of influenza viruses was nuanced  and that the nuances were often lost on the general public. Daniel Victor and

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Singapore announces new restrictions after vaccinated airport workers become infected. Changi Airport in Singapore this week. The airport outbreak began with an 88-year-old member of the airport cleaning crew who was fully vaccinated but who tested positive for the virus on May 5. Credit... Wallace Woon/EPA, via Shutterstock SINGAPORE  Singapore said on Friday that it would ban dining in restaurants and gatherings of more than two people to try to stem a rise in coronavirus cases, becoming the latest Asian nation to reintroduce restrictions after keeping the illness mostly in check for months. The new measures came after the city-state recorded 34 new cases on Thursday, a small number by global standards, but part of a rise in infections traced to vaccinated workers at Singapore Changi Airport. The airport outbreak began with an 88-year-old member of the airport cleaning crew who was fully vaccinated but who tested positive for the virus on May 5. Co-workers who then became infected later visited an airport food court, where they transmitted the virus to other customers, officials said. None of the cases linked to the airport outbreak are believed to have resulted in critical illness or death, according to officials. In all, 46 cases have been traced to the airport, the largest of about 10 clusters of new infections in the country. Because we do not know how far the transmission has occurred into the community, we do have to take further, more stringent restrictions, said Lawrence Wong, co-chair of Singapores coronavirus task force. The measures will be in effect for about one month beginning on Sunday. According to preliminary testing, many of those infected were working in a zone of the airport that received flights from high-risk countries, including from South Asia. Several have tested positive for the B.1.617 variant first detected in India, which the World Health Organization has said might be more contagious than most versions of the coronavirus. Singapore health officials said that of 28 airport workers who became infected, 19 were fully vaccinated with either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, the only two approved for use in Singapore. Unfortunately, this mutant virus, very virulent, broke through the layers of defense, Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung told a virtual news conference on Friday. Mr. Ong also said that the rise in cases very likely means that a long-delayed air travel bubble with Hong Kong would not begin as scheduled on May 26. Singapore, a prosperous island hub of 5.7 million people, saw an explosion of infections among migrant workers living in dormitories, but a two-month lockdown and extensive testing and contact tracing contained the outbreak. Although Singapore has kept much of its economy open, its vaccination effort has not moved as quickly as many expected: less than one-quarter of the population has been fully inoculated. Changi Airport, which served more than 68 million passengers in 2019, is operating at 3 percent of capacity as Singapore has paused nearly all incoming commercial traffic. Employees there work under strict controls, wearing protective gear and submitting to regular coronavirus tests. Singapore joins Japan, Thailand and other Asian countries that have struggled to contain new outbreaks fueled in part by variants. But Paul Ananth Tambyah, president of the Asia Pacific Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infection, said that the rise in cases was not overly worrying. The reason for my optimism is that we now have effective vaccines, better diagnostics, proven treatments and even potential prophylactic agents, he said. If these are employed in a targeted approach, it is unlikely that we will end up with the same problems we had last year.

The oxygen supply in New Delhi has stabilized, allowing it to be shared elsewhere. Workers moved oxygen cylinders for transport at a factory in New Delhi on Sunday. The city has now received enough oxygen to share its supply. Credit... Atul Loke for The New York Times After shortages in oxygen in New Delhi led to scores of people dying in hospitals, officials said there was now enough supply in the Indian capital to start sharing a surplus of the lifesaving gas to needier parts of the country. For weeks, the New Delhi government appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a larger share of Indias oxygen reserves, with the battle for air ending up in the nations highest court. On Thursday, just days after receiving the amount it had requested, New Delhis second-highest official, Manish Sisodia, said the citys demand had fallen and its excess supply should be reallocated. The number of cases is coming down, hospital bed occupancy is coming down, and demand for oxygen, too, is down, Mr. Sisodia told The New York Times. It was an indication that the crisis in the capital might be reaching a peak. The oxygen shortage in New Delhi began in April and has been linked to dozens of deaths, in and out of hospitals. Health care facilities and crematories were overwhelmed, and medical professionals and residents were left scrambling for scarce resources. Thousands of people in the city of 20 million stood in line at oxygen refilling stations, bringing cylinders into hospitals for friends and family or hoarding them at home in case the need arose. The rise of new coronavirus infections in India has slowed. But, in pattern seen in nation after nation battered by the virus, death rates often plateau a few weeks later. And with the virus spreading in low-income rural areas, the overall crisis shows no sign of abating. As of Wednesday, the official death toll surpassed 258,000, although experts suspect the true number to be much higher. As the smoke from New Delhi crematories starts to clear, dozens of bodies have surfaced along the holy Ganges River in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Krishna Dutt Mishra, an ambulance driver in the Bihari village of Chausa, said that poor people were disposing of bodies in the river because the cost of cremations had become prohibitively expensive. On Friday, the Indian news media showed bodies wrapped in cloth of the saffron color, considered auspicious in Hinduism, buried in shallow graves on the sandy banks of the Ganges River in the Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh. Priyanka Gandhi, a leader of the opposition Indian National Congress party, called for a High Court investigation, saying that what was happening in Uttar Pradesh was inhuman and criminal. India Coronavirus Map and Case Count See the latest charts and maps of coronavirus cases, deaths, hospitalizations and vaccinations in India.

After initial hesitation, a survey finds that many Latinos in the U.S. now want the Covid vaccine. A woman from the Guatemalan Maya community in Lake Worth, Fla., at a Covid vaccine center last month. Credit... Saul Martinez for The New York Times Latino adults in the United States have the lowest rates of Covid-19 vaccination, but among the unvaccinated they are the demographic group most willing to receive the Covid shots as soon as possible, a new survey shows. The findings suggest that their depressed vaccination rate reflects in large measure misinformation about cost and access, as well as concerns about employment and immigration issues, according to the latest edition of the Kaiser Family Foundation Covid-19 Vaccine Monitor. Earlier polls had suggested that skepticism about the vaccine was widespread among Latinos, but the latest survey showed that hesitation is declining. Nearly 40 percent of all the unvaccinated Latinos responding to the survey said they feared they would need to produce government-issued identification to qualify. And about a third said they were afraid that getting the shot would jeopardize either their immigration status or that of a family member. Their responses also pointed to the importance of community-based access. Nearly half said they would be more likely to be vaccinated if the shots were available at sites where they normally go for health care.

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Heres what readers are saying about the new U.S. guidance on masks. A protest in Utah last year. Some readers expressed hope that the rule change would prompt people to get vaccinated but others worried about cheaters. Credit... Rick Bowmer/Associated Press Throughout the pandemic, few topics have touched so raw a nerve in the United States as mask wearing. Confrontations have erupted from state capitols to supermarket checkout aisles, and debates raged over whether mask mandates violate First Amendment rights. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provoked a flood of reaction with its announcement on Thursday that Americans who are fully vaccinated may stop wearing masks or maintaining social distance in most indoor and outdoor settings. Heres a sampling, edited for length and clarity, of how Times readers reacted to the news on Facebook and on our website: I think this is a good incentive for the hesitators. Hopefully theyll want to participate in activities (the ones that require proof of vaccination) maskless, so perhaps this will be an incentive, as they see others in the community enjoying life more. writes Jerry B., on Facebook. Very, very few people have been wearing masks for the past 6 months. Covid is a real risk  I certainly dont want it  but our cases have dropped precipitously, even with minimal masking. This announcement is welcome  the world will not end if people stop masking, writes Stephen from Oklahoma City. I see the need for this policy change, but I fear that the cheaters  those who are not vaccinated but pretend to be  will be the ruin of us all, writes Cary in Oregon. I have my doubts about the incentivization bit, writes Andrew from Colorado Springs, Colo. I figure it will simply mean that suddenly everyones been fully vaccinated, true or not. That said, as a double-shotted person, I figure my chances of being taken out by an anti-vaxxer are now less than my chances of being taken out by a texting driver. Im down with that. Whats to stop anti-masker/anti-vaxxer contrarians from mingling unmasked with the vaccinated population? I have little trust in this, writes Mary Beth in Santa Fe, N.M. I am fully vaccinated and caught Covid anyway. I do think it made my symptoms more mild, but you can bet your bippy Im going to be wearing my mask when I am out of quarantine.  writes Jaime P., on Facebook. What do you think about the guidance? Join the conversation. Kevin Hayes contributed research. Sona Patel and

A new law in India makes it harder for foreign aid to reach Covid patients, critics say. People receiving oxygen in Delhi last month. Credit... Atul Loke for The New York Times Indias devastating Covid-19 surge has galvanized corporations, nonprofit organizations and individuals in the United States to raise millions of dollars and send medical supplies to assist the nation of 1.4 billion. But a sweeping change to Indias law governing foreign donations is choking off aid just when the country needs it desperately. It is struggling through a second wave of coronavirus that, since beginning in mid-March, has more than doubled the countrys total confirmed infections to over 24 million and raised the known overall death toll to more than 266,000  numbers that experts say are vast undercounts. India Coronavirus Map and Case Count See the latest charts and maps of coronavirus cases, deaths, hospitalizations and vaccinations in India. The amendment, abruptly passed by the government in September, limits international charities that donate to local nonprofits. Almost overnight, it gutted a reliable source of funding for tens of thousands of nongovernmental organizations, or NGOs, which help provide basic health services in India, picking up the slack in a country where government spending in that area totals just 1.2 percent of gross domestic product. The amendment also prompted international charities to cut back giving that supported local efforts in fields such as health, education and gender. Newly formed charities are rushing to find NGOs that can accept their donations without tripping legal wires. And nonprofits are being smothered in red tape: To receive foreign funds, charities must get affidavits and notary stamps and open accounts with the government-owned State Bank of India. Everyone was caught off-guard, said Nishant Pandey, chief executive of the American India Foundation, which has raised $23 million for Covid-19 efforts. On May 5, his group wired $3 million to an Indian affiliate to build 2,500 hospital beds. A week later, Mr. Pandey said, the money still hadnt cleared.

In some U.S. counties, nearly all people over 65 are vaccinated. People over 65, who are much more likely than younger people to become seriously ill from Covid, have been a high priority since the U.S. vaccination campaign began. Credit... Christopher Capozziello for The New York Times More than 70 percent of Americans who are 65 or older are fully vaccinated, and 84 percent have received at least one dose, a much higher proportion than for younger Americans, according to federal data. The numbers have surpassed President Bidens goal of at least partly vaccinating 70 percent of the nations adults by July 4. Some counties have blown far past that threshold, getting shots into more than 90 percent of residents 65 and older and offering an example for other areas where vaccine campaigns have lagged. Two of the most populous 90-percent-plus counties are Jo Daviess County, Ill., across the Mississippi River from Dubuque, Iowa, and Dane County, Wis., which includes Madison, the state capital. Elected and health officials in both counties suggested that some of the measures that they have adopted locally, such as expanding access and relying on trusted medical figures to share information about vaccines, were also reflected in the federal governments strategy to reach those who have not received shots yet after the pace of vaccination has lagged in recent weeks. President Biden has pushed for tens of thousands of pharmacies to allow people to walk in for their vaccinations, and ordered up pop-up and mobile clinics, especially in rural areas. The administration is also enlisting the help of family doctors and other trusted messengers to build up confidence in the vaccines. On Thursday, Mr. Biden praised another incentive: The recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that people who have been fully vaccinated can go without masks in most situations. In Dane County, Joe Parisi, the county executive, said this week that a number of efforts contributed to his countys success in at least partly vaccinating most of the nearly 78,000 people 65 or over who live in the county. Over 90 percent of that group had been completely vaccinated as of Friday, according to local and federal data. Officials strove to maximize access to the vaccine. They set up a mass vaccination site in December at the Alliant Energy Center, an arena and exhibition complex in Madison, and have distributed vaccines at health centers, pharmacies and mobile vaccination clinics, according to Morgan Finke, a spokeswoman for the county public health department. Mr. Parisi said that the county worked with local hospital systems, health care providers, senior care centers and nursing homes to locate homebound people and help them get shots. They did not encounter much hesitancy. People wanted the vaccine, Mr. Parisi said, that certainly wasnt the problem with that age group. Even so, he said, fostering trust and answering peoples questions are very important, especially now that the most eager recipients are already done. Mr. Parisi said the county partnered with trusted local doctors to spread the word about the vaccines through local news media outlets. We tried to share as much information as possible, Mr. Parisi said, by providing those voices that are nonjudgmental and can answer questions. In Jo Daviess County in the northwestern corner of Illinois, communication and community partnerships also played a major role, Lori Stangl, the countys director of clinical services, wrote in an email. Of the roughly 6,000 seniors in the county, 96.7 percent are fully vaccinated as of Friday, according to the C.D.C. Ms. Stangl credited extensive collaboration both within the county and with neighboring counties and states. Since Jo Daviess County borders Iowa and Wisconsin, many of our residents were able to receive vaccines there as well, Ms. Stangl wrote, especially early on, when our allocations were low. Though county leaders celebrate their success with seniors, she wrote, they are mindful that they still have many younger people left to reach. As of Friday, 54.9 percent of the countys total population had been fully vaccinated, according to the C.D.C.

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Shootings in New York spiked during the pandemic, and may outlast the virus. Times Square, where three people, including a toddler out toy shopping, were shot last Saturday. Credit... Dakota Santiago for The New York Times As of the second weekend in May, New York City had recorded 505 shooting victims, the most through that point of any year in the last decade. The rise began in 2020, and experts say the economic and physical strain of the virus, which disproportionately took lives and jobs from neighborhoods already struggling with such violence, most likely drove the increase. Those factors are not likely to subside soon, criminologists warn. Fears are growing that gun violence will slow the citys ability to bounce back from its long lockdown. Restaurants, stores, offices and theaters will be allowed to open fully May 19. But the cycles of violent retaliation fueled by individual shootings in recent months will be hard to break, said Jeffrey Butts, the director of the research and evaluation center at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. This could be a generation that we have screwed up for some time, Dr. Butts said. Other large cities, including Los Angeles and Philadelphia, also reported jumps in gun violence during the pandemic. Chicago, with about a third of the population of New York City, saw 865 shootings by the first weekend of this month, compared with about 550 in 2019 and 650 in 2020.
In many ways, the campaigning on Friday was a continuation of the previous nights debate, where the candidates leaned into their sharply different approaches to law enforcement and to the question of whether the city can police its way out of a spike in gun violence.

Ms. Wiley, a former counsel to Mr. de Blasio and civil-rights lawyer, said at the debate that she would take $1 billion from the Police Department and use the money to create trauma-informed care in our schools, because when we do that violence goes down and graduation rates go up.

Another candidate, Dianne Morales, who has called for cutting the $6 billion police budget in half, said that safety is not synonymous with police. Mr. Stringer and Mr. Donovan have also called for shifting at least $1 billion from the police budget to social services.

Ms. Garcia, a former sanitation commissioner, staked out a middle ground on Thursday, saying, We do need to respond when the M.T.A. says we need more cops in the subway. That does not mean were not sending mental health professionals into the subway as well.

Mr. Adams and Mr. Yang have opposed defunding the police, and on Thursday night Mr. Adams repeated his call for a reinstituted unit of plainclothes police officers to target gang activity in the city.

We have to deal with intervention, he said, and stop the flow of guns into the city, adding, We have to deal with this real, pervasive handgun problem.

In one of the debates fiercer exchanges, Ms. Wiley called Mr. Adams an apologist for stop-and-frisk policing. That prompted him to counter that he was actually a leading voice against the abuse of stop-and-frisk and that Ms. Wiley had showed a failure of understanding law enforcement.
At the discount appliance store about a mile from my house, new shipments arrive on Fridays. Every week now, I drag my children there so we can hunt for a deal on a range or refrigerator. Most of the appliances have some glaring imperfection  a handle askew, a softball-sized dent on the door, a scratch that streaks across the front. So far, Ive been unwilling to accept these flaws. Im waiting for the unicorn: the imperfect refrigerator or stove that is just flawed enough to still be acceptable.

I put in a call to Nicole Curtis, who most recently starred in Rehab Addict Rescue on HGTV, and is perhaps the countrys best-known shoestring renovator. I caught up with her while she was sitting in her car in an Ace Hardware parking lot in Los Angeles about to buy spray paint for a set of chairs. The secret to scavenging, she said, is time. If youre going to be cheap, you have to put the work in, she said. Thats why I always ask people, do they have more time or money?

You must also be fast and flexible. See a deal on a site like eBay, Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace, and you cant wait until Saturday to get it. As for my hunt for damaged appliances, Ms. Curtis is all in. I buy scratchy, dented appliances all day long, she said. (Floor models are another way to save, as stores will often sell theirs at a discount.)

The biggest source of savings, she said, is in the cabinets. Accounting for 29 percent of a remodeling budget, according to HomeAdvisor, cabinets are the single biggest-ticket item in a renovation. At the beginning of her career, Ms. Curtis would often ask contractors if she could clear out the materials of the homes they were about to demolish. They have no use for the extra stuff, she said. Its just going to go in their dumpster.

Ms. Curtis is starting a line of home goods this fall, where she plans to sell, among other things, a line of mid-market vanities. For those of us who are willing to forgo the new vanity, she suggests asking contractors or neighbors who you know are remodeling if they would pass along their unloved but perfectly usable ones. Make friends with the owners of a few antique shops, too, and they might alert you to the next fabulous light fixture.

There is no shame in knocking on somebodys door, Ms. Curtis said. There is no shame in your game. If you want something, go and ask for it.

You could even go dumpster diving. Trolling the sidewalks on trash night in search of discarded furniture became a pandemic pastime for many New Yorkers this year. So it seems logical that the same rules of scouring would apply to a kitchen. Drive through a wealthy neighborhood, and someone might have left a sink or other building materials on the curb.
SAN ANTONIO  Minnesotas statewide mask mandate is over. But in Minneapolis, the states largest city, face coverings are still required.

In Michigan, Kentucky and Oregon, governors cheerily told vaccinated people that they could go out maskless. But mask mandates remained in force for New Yorkers, New Jerseyans and Californians.

So unexpected was new federal guidance on masks that in Kansas City, Mo., Mayor Quinton Lucas went from saying he would not change his mask order, to saying he would think about it, to announcing that he was getting rid of it altogether, all in the span of about seven hours.

Across the country, governors, store owners and people running errands were scrambling on Friday to make sense of the abrupt change in federal guidelines, which said fully vaccinated people could now safely go most places, indoors or outdoors, without a mask.
The Israeli military abruptly announced after midnight on Friday that its ground forces had begun attacking in the Gaza Strip, saying it on Twitter, in text messages to journalists, and in on-the-record confirmations by an English-speaking army spokesman.

Several international news organizations, including The New York Times, immediately alerted readers worldwide that a Gaza incursion or invasion was underway, a major escalation of Israeli-Palestinian hostilities.

Within hours, those reports were all corrected: No invasion had taken place. Rather, ground troops had opened fire at targets in Gaza from inside Israeli territory, while fighters and drones were continuing to attack from the air. A top military spokesman took responsibility, blaming the fog of war.

But by Friday evening, several leading Israeli news outlets were reporting that the incorrect announcement was no accident, but had actually been part of an elaborate deception. The intent, the media reports said, was to dupe Hamas fighters into thinking that an invasion had begun and to respond in ways that would expose far greater numbers of them to what was being called a devastatingly lethal Israeli attack.
Quite the opposite. Moynihan believed that no one should have a family structure like his own. He was born in Tulsa, Okla., in 1927, and spent his early youth in Indiana and the New York suburbs. His father, an alcoholic journalist, abandoned the family when Pat was a preteen  and the Moynihans experienced one of the most dreaded forms of American poverty: falling out of the middle class. They pitched up in Hells Kitchen, in New York City, at the time an Irish slum, where his mother tended bar. Pat shined shoes (he once told me that he set up his kit next to Woody Guthrie, who was busking in Bryant Park). He worked the docks, he graduated from Benjamin Franklin High School in East Harlem. He started at City College, then joined the Navy  World War II was on  which paid for most of his education. A 5-year-old boy needs a father, he wrote in the early days of the controversy. If he has to live without one, he has been cheated. It does not matter if he goes on to become a Supreme Court justice or a brain surgeon. He has been cheated.

Moynihan was a cornucopia of incongruities, flagrantly Irish  but with the style of an English toff. He considered himself a working-class guy, but he had studied at the London School of Economics and undergone years of psychotherapy. He considered himself the last Sachem of Tammany Hall, the famed political machine; but he was too protean for strict partisanship. My favorite Moynihan story came from Tim Russert, who was the senators driver in the late 1970s. One evening in New York, Russert went to pick up Moynihan at the Carlyle Hotel. He was about to knock on Moynihans door when he heard a distinctive, percussive laugh: Ah! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Russert paused. Another peal of laughter. Finally, he knocked and Moynihan opened the door. He had been watching The Honeymooners, that grand urban Irish comedy of manners.

A period of bitterness followed the report. Moynihan was flushed from the Department of Labor, exiled to academia, ran for City Council president in New York and lost. In 1969, he published Maximum Feasible Misunderstanding, a sour account of the War on Poverty, a rumination on the failure of the liberal truth that government could make things better. The War on Poverty was not declared at the behest of the poor; it was declared in their interests by persons confident of their own judgment in such matters, he wrote. A new layer of government was proposed during the Johnson administration, Community Action Programs (CAPs). They would involve maximum feasible participation of the poor, perhaps even community control of antipoverty funds. But many of the CAPs came to be run by left-leaning radicals and eventually Black militants, who tried to organize the slums against the local municipal governments, which was not what President Johnson had in mind. The antipoverty program came to be associated with the kind of bad manners and arrogance that are more the mark of the rich than the poor, Moynihan wrote. Indeed, it was the antics of the college-educated leftists that defined that slum of a decade, as he later called the 60s.

Of course, the bad manners and arrogance Moynihan complained about were also being directed at him. His home in Cambridge, Mass., was under police guard. The Moynihan Report was canceled by the academic left, ignored for nearly 20 years; its truths would be resurrected only in 1987 by the Black sociologist William Julius Wilson in The Truly Disadvantaged. In the meantime, Moynihan went through a period where he found succor among neoconservative intellectuals  former liberals skeptical of Johnsons Great Society initiatives and appalled by the excesses of the New Left. The great strength of political conservatives at this time, he wrote, is that they are open to the thought that matters are complex. Liberals have got into a reflexive pattern of denying this.

His outrage led to what seemed to many of his liberal friends a betrayal: He joined the Nixon administration as assistant to the president for urban affairs. He remained a New Deal liberal, nonetheless. In fact, as early as 1965  in an article for the Catholic magazine America  he proposed an answer to the family problems he had described in the report: Give poor people a guaranteed income. At the very least, they would feed their children. At the most, men wouldnt have an incentive to leave their homes. (The existing welfare system gave money only to women who had been abandoned.) This was the Family Assistance Plan that Richard Nixon introduced and nearly passed. It was the predicate for what Moynihan proposed as a period of benign neglect of the Black community  a truly unfortunate phrase  that would allow the wounds of the 1960s to heal. Moynihans idea of giving people money, as opposed to giving them bureaucrats intent on reforming their behavior, had legs. It has been pursued by President Biden in the form of an expanded child support tax credit, which even some Republicans want to make permanent. Bidens program may cut child poverty in half.
If they want to permit employees to remove masks indoors, yes, I believe it does put the burden on the employer to verify, said Kristin White, a lawyer at Fisher Phillips who specializes in workplace safety regulations.

Walmart employees can go mask-free starting May 18 by answering yes to a vaccination question that is part of a daily health assessment, top executives wrote in a memo on Friday. If you are not vaccinated, we expect you to answer no and to continue to wear a face covering, the memo said. Vaccinated customers are allowed to go maskless in areas that dont have stricter mandates.

Ms. White said she advises clients to request proof of vaccination from employees. We dont recommend you just take people at their word, she said.

The new C.D.C. guidance, which allows fully vaccinated individuals to go without a mask in most places, may empower companies to mandate vaccines by creating an incentive companies can offer to encourage vaccination. Walmart also said in its email  titled Two new reasons to get vaccinated!  that it would be giving $75 to those who have gotten a shot. (To get the bonus, employees must show their original, completed vaccine cards.)

As of Friday afternoon, some lawyers said they were still awaiting guidance from the E.E.O.C. as to whether allowing vaccinated individuals to go mask-free indirectly reveals their status, which could be considered protected information under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

And while the C.D.C. sets the benchmark for all other guidance, Thursdays announcement doesnt mean all companies can go fully unmasked just yet, even if they require employees to be vaccinated. The C.D.C.s advice doesnt override local and state rules, and while some states have begun to lift their mask mandates, others, including New York, said they would study the new guidance before deciding whether to adopt it.

The White House is also reviewing a new emergency standard on Covid workplace protections from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Labor groups have been pushing for new rules for about a year. OSHA currently suggests social distancing and masks in the workplace  but a temporary standard would establish requirements. Any new standard now needs to consider Thursdays guidance.
Journalism for rent

Mr. Simpson loved holding court with reporters, regaling them with war stories and presenting himself as a journalistic wise man. At a conference of investigative journalists in 2016, he said he and Mr. Fritsch had started Fusion to continue their work as reporters who righted wrongs.

I like to call it journalism for rent, he said.

Fusion GPS, like its competitors, belonged to a wider web of enablers  lawyers, public relations executives and crisis management consultants  who serve the wealthy, the powerful and the controversial. For their part, private intelligence firms take on jobs that others dont know how to do or dont want to get caught doing.

Information gathered by private investigators is often laundered through public relations firms, which then shop the material to journalists. Jules Kroll, who created the modern-day private intelligence industry in the 1970s, broke that mold by leaking information directly to reporters. Mr. Simpson took it a step further. He sold Fusion GPS to clients by emphasizing his connections at major media outlets and assured journalists that he was really still one of them.

People who have never been a reporter dont understand the challenges of printing what you know, right, because you cant just say what you know  you have to say how you know, and you have to prove it, Mr. Simpson remarked at the 2016 conference. When youre a spy, you really dont have to get into a lot of that stuff.

Fusion GPS also mined a field that other private intelligence firms avoided  political opposition research. And when Mr. Trump emerged in 2016 as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, lawyers for Hillary Clintons campaign hired Fusion to dig into ties between Mr. Trump and Russia.

In the fall of 2016, Fusion GPS invited selected reporters from The Times, The New Yorker and other news organizations to meet Mr. Steele in Washington and receive briefings on what he had uncovered about the Trump campaign and the Kremlin. As is often the case in the world of private intelligence, the meetings came with a catch: If news organizations wrote about the dossier, they had to agree not to disclose that Fusion GPS and the former British agent were the sources of the material.

Mr. Steele was described to journalists as having played a pivotal role in breaking huge cases, including the 2006 poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, a former K.G.B. agent, and the F.B.I.s investigation into bribery at FIFA, soccers governing body. And when speaking about Mr. Trump and Russia, he came across as calm, understated and confident, according to reporters who attended the meetings.
A growing list of retailers, restaurants and theme parks will allow fully vaccinated customers and workers to go mask-free, following new coronavirus safety guidance from the federal government on May 13 that said vaccinated people rarely transmit the virus.

Heres the latest on companies that are changing their mask policies.

Amazon

Amazon, the e-commerce giant, said that starting on Monday, fully vaccinated warehouse workers would no longer be required to wear face coverings at work, unless mandated by state or local law. To be eligible to shed their masks, employees must be two weeks out from being fully vaccinated and show a copy of their vaccine card.

Costco

Costco, which has more than 500 U.S. stores, said it would allow fully vaccinated customers to go mask-free where state and local guidance allowed. The retailer said it would not require proof of vaccination but would ask for its customers responsible and respectful cooperation with this revised policy.

Disney parks

Walt Disney World Resort in Florida said that it was no longer requiring visitors to wear masks in most outdoor areas as of May 15, though masks are still required at indoor locations. Disneyland in California continues to require masks indoors and outdoors because of state mandates. Disneys chief executive, Bob Chapek, said on an earnings call that the company had begun to increase capacity and that the C.D.C.s new guidance is very big news for us, particularly if anybodys been in Florida in the middle of summer with a mask on. About 150 million people visited Disneys parks in 2019.
Yitzhak Arad, who as an orphaned teenage partisan fought the Germans and their collaborators during World War II, then went on to become an esteemed scholar of the Holocaust and the longtime chairman of the Yad Vashem remembrance and research center in Israel, died on May 6 in a hospital in Tel Aviv. He was 94.

Yad Vashem announced the death but did not specify the cause.

Mr. Arad was not even bar mitzvahed when the Germans invaded Poland and what is now part of Lithuania in 1939 and began rounding up Jews, forcing them into ghettos and murdering them. His parents and 30 close family members would perish before the war ended in 1945.

But he survived. He was a forced laborer at first  cleaning captured Soviet weapons in a munitions warehouse  and then, sensing the fate that was probably awaiting him, he began smuggling weapons to partisans in the forests and formed an underground movement in the ghetto. He, his sister and their underground associates eventually stole a revolver and escaped, meeting up with a brigade of Soviet partisans.

Mr. Arad went on to take part in ambushing German bases in what is now Belarus, and setting up mines that blew up more than a dozen trains carrying German soldiers and supplies. Among his exploits was a battle with pro-German Lithuanian partisans in fields and forests covered in deep snow.
Whether Medina Spirit can be justifiably labeled a junkie, given how little choice he or any other horse has over what trainers and vets introduce into their thoroughbred bodies, is moot. There are no conclusive results yet, and the horse passed the first of three tests required to race in the Preakness Stakes. Still, Mr. Trump might have noted that among countless other measures tacked onto the nearly 5,600-page Covid-19 relief and government funding bill he signed less than a month before leaving office was that long-overdue Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act.

The measure is meant to establish an independent, nonprofit authority that is overseen by the Federal Trade Commission to write rules and penalties for thoroughbred racing to be enforced by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency  the one that deals with doping in human competition. The act was pushed over the legislative line by a federal indictment more than nine months earlier in which 27 people in the horse industry were charged with widespread use of drugs that stimulate endurance, mask pain and reduce inflammation, sometimes leading, according to prosecutors, to fatal injuries, all designed to elude detection in existing tests. Among the drugs was one known as red acid, which reduces inflammation in horses joints. In the long history of horse doping, tests have found substances as varied as frog and cobra venom, Viagra, cocaine, heart medicines and steroids.

The new authority is supposed to crack down on all that as of July 1, 2022, though the act still faces legal challenges from horse racing organizations. (Mr. Baffert is on record in support of it.) Why they would resist centralized control and the level playing field it could offer is puzzling; attendance at horse races has been in decline for years, and the heavy toll of breakdowns among horses  the euphemism for catastrophic injuries incurred during racing, often requiring that the horse be put down  is one reason.

Stern, centralized controls cant come too soon. But the industry need not wait another year. One way to show good faith would be to get the result from that second sample from Medina Spirit promptly and then to let the chips fall where they should.
The word bias commonly appears in conversations about mistaken judgments and unfortunate decisions. We use it when there is discrimination, for instance against women or in favor of Ivy League graduates. But the meaning of the word is broader: A bias is any predictable error that inclines your judgment in a particular direction. For instance, we speak of bias when forecasts of sales are consistently optimistic or investment decisions overly cautious.

Society has devoted a lot of attention to the problem of bias  and rightly so. But when it comes to mistaken judgments and unfortunate decisions, there is another type of error that attracts far less attention: noise.

To see the difference between bias and noise, consider your bathroom scale. If on average the readings it gives are too high (or too low), the scale is biased. If it shows different readings when you step on it several times in quick succession, the scale is noisy. (Cheap scales are likely to be both biased and noisy.) While bias is the average of errors, noise is their variability.

Although it is often ignored, noise is a large source of malfunction in society. In a 1981 study, for example, 208 federal judges were asked to determine the appropriate sentences for the same 16 cases. The cases were described by the characteristics of the offense (robbery or fraud, violent or not) and of the defendant (young or old, repeat or first-time offender, accomplice or principal). You might have expected judges to agree closely about such vignettes, which were stripped of distracting details and contained only relevant information.
In the long run, a girl with a book is a greater threat to extremism than a drone overhead.

The way to long-term change is education, said Sakena Yacoobi, a hero of mine who has devoted her life to educating her fellow Afghans. A nation is not built on temporary jobs and mining rights, contractors and political favors. A nation is built on culture and shared history, shared reality and community well-being. We pass these down with education.

Since 9/11, we Americans have sought to defeat terrorism and extremism with the military toolbox. As we pull our forces out of Kabul and Kandahar, this is a moment to reflect on the limits of military power and the reasons to invest in more cost-effective tools to change the world, like schooling.

After almost 20 years and $2 trillion, the mightiest army in the history of the world couldnt remake Afghanistan. Some Americans are critical of President Biden for withdrawing from Afghanistan, but I think he made the right decision. Ive long argued that we were losing ground and that the war was unsustainable.

I reached that conclusion after Afghan contractors in Kabul who supplied U.S. forces told me that for every $1,000 America paid them, they gave $600 to the Taliban in bribes to pass through checkpoints. To support a single U.S. soldier in Helmand Province, contractors paid the Taliban enough in bribes to hire 10 men to fight against that American.

Yet while Americas longest war is unsustainable, we must remember our obligations. We should greatly accelerate visas for the roughly 17,000 Afghan translators, aides and others who have worked with the United States and will be in danger when our forces are gone. Otherwise, their blood will be on our hands.
Darnella Frazier was just 17 when she recorded a video that shook the world. Her cellphone video, uploaded to Facebook, captured Derek Chauvin kneeling on George Floyds neck and upended the Minneapolis Police Departments official narrative of the encounter, ultimately contributing to a guilty verdict.

One year after the death of Mr. Floyd, many young people view race and racism in America with a new urgency. Young Americans were on the front lines when protests erupted after Ms. Fraziers video went viral, leading marches and initiating challenging conversations. Some were experienced activists, but many were participating in demonstrations for the first time.

To understand how the protest movement of last summer affected the lives of young people, we are asking readers under 30 to write in. What were your experiences and thoughts on race, racism and the aftermath of George Floyds death over the last year?
Covid-19 cases are decreasing in the United States, and masks are no longer required everywhere, but the pandemic is not over  and wont be until younger children can also be vaccinated, epidemiologists said in a new survey by The New York Times.

The true end of the pandemic  when it becomes safer to return to most activities without precautions  will arrive once at least 70 percent of Americans of all ages are vaccinated, they said. Adolescents just began receiving vaccines this week, and those for children younger than 12 are not yet approved.

Children are key to ending the pandemic, said David Celentano, the chair of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University and one of the 723 epidemiologists who participated in the survey this month.

They are optimistic this will happen, even if not as quickly as many Americans hope. In five years, they expect Covid-19 will be more like the flu, circulating at a lower rate and with some deaths every year  but no longer a public health crisis necessitating lockdowns.
K.C. Cage-Singleton, a 30-year-old landscaper and father of four, was walking in Baton Rouge, La., in October 2009 when two officers approached him because they thought his clothing resembled that of an armed robbery suspect. Records show they chased him into an apartment complex, shocked him with a stun gun and beat him with a baton. The coroner cataloged a slew of injuries, including abrasions, lacerations and broken teeth, but said the manner and cause of his death were undetermined, citing probable sickle cell trait. The officers were not charged.

Army Sgt. James Brown, 26, had completed two tours in Iraq and was struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder in July 2012 when he turned himself in to the El Paso jail to serve a two-day sentence for drunken driving. The authorities said he became violent, and he died after five jailers in riot gear piled atop him, pulled a mesh mask over his head and bound him in a chair. The medical examiner ruled that he had died a natural death caused by sickle cell crisis, and a grand jury declined to bring charges.

Gamel Brown, a 30-year-old property maintenance supervisor, cut his hand on a broken mirror at his home in a Baltimore suburb in January last year, prompting a call to 911. The police who responded said he became extremely combative, and they jolted him several times with a stun gun. After he died at a hospital, the medical examiner said that the manner of his death was undetermined  and that it was caused in part by sickle cell trait. The states attorney filed no charges.

In three cases, deaths linked to sickle cell trait that were deemed natural or of indeterminate cause were later ruled homicides  as occurred when Martin Lee Anderson, 14, died at the hands of his jailers at a northwest Florida juvenile detention camp in January 2006.

You cant put the blame on sickle cell trait when there is a knee on the neck or when there is a chokehold or the person is hogtied, said Dr. Roger A. Mitchell Jr., the former chief medical examiner for the District of Columbia and now chairman of pathology at the Howard University College of Medicine. You cant say, Well, hes fragile. No, that becomes a homicide.

Not every death that is tied to the condition is inherently questionable. Medical experts say sickle cell trait has caused deaths in rare cases of extreme overexertion, especially among military trainees and college athletes. Three of the in-custody deaths identified by The Times involved people who were exercising vigorously in jail yards or running hard before they collapsed  and law enforcement officers said that at most they put handcuffs on them.

In none of the deaths examined by The Times did the person have actual sickle cell disease, though there were instances when imprecise language by medical examiners left the false impression the trait and the disease were the same.
Though masks have been found to slow the spread of the coronavirus, their place in the American wardrobe has become more than just epidemiological. Over the last year, as Republicans pushed back against mask mandates, some Democrats wore masks even while outdoors and alone, and updated their Facebook profile photos to show their mouths and noses covered.

Im hyper-aware that wearing a mask or not wearing a mask says something about me, said Annie Krabbenschmidt, 27, a gig worker and writer who lives in Los Angeles. She said she had apprehensions about giving up her mask. They are so much more than a safety vest, at this point.

The new guidance seemed to scramble all the presumptions people had come to understand about who wears masks and who does not.

Someone with no mask might still signify that they oppose masks and doubt the risks of Covid-19  or it now might mean the person is fully vaccinated and following C.D.C. guidance to the letter. And someone with a mask might now be signaling their support for virus-control efforts but rejection of the latest C.D.C. guidance  or it might mean that a person is unvaccinated and following the rules to stay masked. Or it might mean something else altogether. Easy labels have vanished.

With no national system to check who is vaccinated and who is not, the new federal guidance leaves an unavoidable  but gaping  hole, some people said. Theres no guarantee, they said, that unvaccinated people will not discard their masks along with the vaccinated ones, potentially creating a risk that the virus will continue to circulate.

You never know who is vaccinated or who is lying, said Bayleigh Harshbarger, 22, who said that she is vaccinated (and telling the truth). She covered her face to go shopping Saturday in Kansas City, Mo., though a mask mandate expired a day earlier. Its just so normal now that I feel weird walking places without a mask, she said.
President Biden has pushed for tens of thousands of pharmacies to allow people to walk in for their vaccinations, and ordered up pop-up and mobile clinics, especially in rural areas. The administration is also enlisting the help of family doctors and other trusted messengers to build up confidence in the vaccines.

On Thursday, Mr. Biden praised another incentive: The recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that people who have been fully vaccinated can go without masks in most situations.

In Dane County, Joe Parisi, the county executive, said this week that a number of efforts contributed to his countys success in at least partly vaccinating most of the nearly 78,000 people 65 or over who live in the county. Over 90 percent of that group had been completely vaccinated as of Friday, according to local and federal data.

Officials strove to maximize access to the vaccine. They set up a mass vaccination site in December at the Alliant Energy Center, an arena and exhibition complex in Madison, and have distributed vaccines at health centers, pharmacies and mobile vaccination clinics, according to Morgan Finke, a spokeswoman for the county public health department.
The Pew survey showed that among Republican Jews, nearly three-quarters said they felt a strong attachment to Israel, while only 52 percent of Jewish Democrats expressed the same belief. Jewish Democrats are also much more likely to say that the United States is too supportive of Israel.

The shifting views on Israel and the Palestinians have not gone unnoticed by Jewish Democrats. In synagogue email exchanges and private WhatsApp groups, American Jews fret about whether there is wholehearted support for Israel in the party, posting details about solidarity marches and encouraging their members to stand united.

In his suburban Philadelphia congregation, Rabbi Shai Cherry worries that support for Israel has become even more divisive.

With the rise of Ms. Ocasio-Cortez and the left, and the unalloyed support for the Netanyahu government on the right, he said in an interview, there is a sense that liberal American Jews are being squeezed.

Like many of his congregants, he questions the policies of the Netanyahu government, but he said that now was not the time to debate finer points of policy. This past week, he sent an email to his congregants urging them to stand united against those who wage war on the very existence of our one and only Jewish state.

During his first four months in office, Mr. Biden devoted little attention to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, an intractable issue that had bedeviled his predecessors. But the violence in recent days, the worst in years, has proved just how difficult that will be. And now, Mr. Biden finds his administration buffeted by conflicting forces within his coalition.

Neglect is not a policy, said Jeremy Ben-Ami, the president of the pro-Israel, pro-peace advocacy group J Street, who would like to see Mr. Biden more engaged in the region.
Mr. Trumps approach was essentially to sidestep the challenge of reducing tensions between Israel and the Palestinians in favor of promoting closer ties between Israel and some of the Sunni Arab states, based in large part on their shared concerns about Iran.

The accords he helped negotiate were widely seen as demonstrating declining interest on the part of some of Israels Arab neighbors in backing the Palestinians, giving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel more latitude to pursue strategies that further intensified Israeli-Palestinian tensions.

It was very difficult for anyone who knows the region to believe that the signing of the Abraham Accords was going to be some breakthrough for peace, said Zaha Hassan, a visiting fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace who specializes in Palestinian issues.

Vali Nasr, a professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, said that the accords had been based on the idea that the Palestinian issue is dead, and had rewarded Mr. Netanyahus hard-line approach of supporting Israeli settlement activity and other expansive territorial claims.

This was proof of his theory that you can have land and peace, Mr. Nasr said.

Former Trump officials say that however the hyperbolic former president billed the Abraham Accords, which later expanded to include Morocco and Sudan, they were never seen as a means of settling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
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In a lifetime of working with horses, Gary Kidd, 73, had never adopted an untrained wild mustang before. But when the federal government started paying people $1,000 a horse to adopt them, he signed up for as many as he could get. So did his wife, two grown daughters and a son-in-law.

Mr. Kidd, who owns a small farm near Hope, Ark., said in a recent telephone interview that he was using the mustangs, which are protected under federal law, to breed colts and that they were happily eating green grass in his pasture.

In fact, by the time he spoke on the phone, the animals were long gone. Records show that Mr. Kidd had sold them almost as soon as he legally could. He and his family received at least $20,000, and the mustangs ended up at a dusty Texas livestock auction frequented by slaughterhouse brokers known as kill buyers.
The problem is that many raw materials and key equipment remain in short supply. And the global need for vaccines might prove far greater than currently estimated, given that the coronavirus presents a moving target: If dangerous new variants emerge, requiring booster shots and reformulated vaccines, demand could dramatically increase, intensifying the imperative for every country to lock up supply for its own people.

The only way around the zero-sum competition for doses is to greatly expand the global supply of vaccines. On that point, nearly everyone agrees.

But what is the fastest way to make that happen? On that question, divisions remain stark, undermining collective efforts to end the pandemic.

Some health experts argue that the only way to avert catastrophe is to force drug giants to relax their grip on their secrets and enlist many more manufacturers in making vaccines. In place of the existing arrangement  in which drug companies set up partnerships on their terms, while setting the prices of their vaccines  world leaders could compel or persuade the industry to cooperate with more companies to yield additional doses at rates affordable to poor countries.

Those advocating such intervention have focused on two primary approaches: waiving patents to allow many more manufacturers to copy existing vaccines, and requiring the pharmaceutical companies to transfer their technology  that is, help other manufacturers learn to replicate their products.
ATHENS  A convicted Greek neo-Nazi and member of the European Parliament was extradited back to Greece on Saturday to serve a 13-year prison term for his part in running the criminal organization Golden Dawn, once Greeces third-largest political party.

Ioannis Lagos arrived in Athens on a flight from Brussels, the seat of the European Parliament, where he has sat as an independent since 2019. The parliaments lawmakers stripped him of his immunity at the end of last month.

Greek state television aired footage of the handcuffed 48-year-old being escorted off a plane and into a van at the Athens International Airport by armed officers of the Greek polices counterterrorism unit. Shortly afterward he was rushed through the back entrance of the capitals court complex.

For orthodoxy and Greece, every sacrifice is worthwhile, he told reporters.

Mr. Lagos was a leading member of the extreme-right and now-defunct Golden Dawn, which rose to prominence in Greeces Parliament in 2012 at the peak of the countrys financial crisis. He was among dozens of former legislators and supporters of the party convicted in a landmark verdict last October.
The first signs of the tourism season creeping back to life were visible at Greeces ports and airports on Saturday as the country officially opened its doors to international visitors.

After lifting quarantine requirements for dozens of countries last month, the Greek authorities expanded the eligibility to more nations on Friday and relaxed some restrictions. Travelers must present a certificate of vaccination, proof of recovery from Covid or a negative PCR test.

The first flights arriving at Athens International Airport came from France, Germany, Sweden, Lithuania, Latvia and Switzerland, with most visitors heading for the Greek islands. Hundreds lined up for ferries at the countrys main port of Piraeus, near the capital, joining Greeks taking advantage of the ending of a ban on travel between the countrys regions.

Heraklion Airport on Crete was buzzing for the first time in months, with Germans, French and Israelis among the first arrivals, and the authorities said they expected 10,000 arrivals on the island over the next three days. Mykonos and Santorini, two of the countrys most popular summer destinations, welcomed just a handful of flights, as hotel occupancy remains set at around 30 percent for May. But hopes are high for the summer, with bookings for July close to 90 percent.
You know and I know: No country would tolerate this, Mr. Netanyahu said. Israel has responded forcefully to these attacks, and we will continue to respond forcefully until the security of our people is reinstated and restored.

With American, Egyptian and Qatari officials attempting to negotiate a pause, an American envoy, Hady Amr, landed in Israel for two days of talks with Israeli and Arab counterparts.

On Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces said its fighter jets struck a media tower in Gaza housing the offices of The Associated Press and Al Jazeera, because it also contained military assets belonging to Hamas. The I.D.F. said it had provided advance warning to civilians in the building to allow evacuation.

Gary Pruitt, the chief executive of the A.P., said he was shocked and horrified by the attack and called on Israeli authorities to present evidence of Hamas presence in the building.

Demonstrations broke out again in the West Bank on Saturday, Nakba Day, an annual commemoration of the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes in 1948. In Ramallah, the administrative center of the West Bank, a siren sounded for 73 seconds to mark the years since the dispersal.
President Biden urged the leaders of Israel and the Palestinians to avoid additional deaths of children and other civilians in the escalating conflict on separate calls on Saturday and also affirmed his commitment to a two-state solution to bring peace in Jerusalem and elsewhere across Israel and the occupied territories.

Speaking to President Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinians leader, Mr. Biden demanded that Hamas militants stop firing rockets into Israel. Speaking to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, he maintained Israels right to defend itself from the militant group based in the Gaza Strip.

Mr. Biden also raised concerns with Mr. Netanyahu about the safety and security of journalists in the conflict after Israeli forces targeted a building in Gaza that housed international reporters and other news crews in Gaza. He reinforced the need to ensure their protection, said a White House statement describing the conversation between Mr. Biden and Mr. Netanyahu.

In both calls, according to the White House statements, Mr. Biden said the Palestinian people deserved greater security, freedoms and economic opportunities, and signaled that a two-state solution was the best pathway toward doing so. He also updated both Mr. Netanyahu and Mr. Abbas on ongoing diplomatic talks among officials from the United States and in the Middle East to negotiate a cease-fire in the current conflict, the worst in at least seven years.
The police said the stone throwers started it; several worshipers said the opposite.

Whoever struck first, the sight of stun grenades and bullets inside the prayer hall of one of the holiest sites in Islam  on the last Friday of Ramadan, one of its holiest nights  was seen as a grievous insult to all Muslims.

This is about the Judaization of the city of Jerusalem, Sheikh Omar al-Kisswani, another leader at the mosque, said in an interview hours after the raid. Its about deterring people from going to Al Aqsa.

That set the stage for a dramatic showdown on Monday, May 10. A final court hearing on Sheikh Jarrah was set to coincide with Jerusalem Day, when Jews celebrate the reunification of Jerusalem, by dint of the capture of East Jerusalem, in 1967.

Jewish nationalists typically mark the day by marching through the Muslim Quarter of the Old City and trying to visit Temple Mount, the site on which the Aqsa Mosque is built.

The looming combination of that march, tensions over Al Aqsa and the possibility of an eviction order in Sheikh Jarrah seemed to be building toward something dangerous.

The Israeli government scrambled to tamp down tensions. The Supreme Court hearing in the eviction case was postponed. An order barred Jews from entering the mosque compound.

But the police raided the Aqsa Mosque again, early on Monday morning, after Palestinians stockpiled stones in anticipation of clashes with the police and far-right Jews. For the second time in three days, stun grenades and rubber-tipped bullets were fired across the compound, in scenes that were broadcast across the world.
HARANABUSH, Syria  When the Syrian government attacked their village, Radwan al-Shimalis family hastily threw clothes, blankets and mattresses into their truck and sped off to begin new lives as refugees, leaving behind their house, farmland and television.

Among the belongings they kept was one prized technology: the solar panel now propped up on rocks next to the tattered tent they call home in an olive grove near the village of Haranabush in northwestern Syria.

It is important, Mr. al-Shimali said of the 270-watt panel, his familys sole source of electricity. When there is sun during the day, we can have light at night.

An unlikely solar revolution of sorts has taken off in an embattled, rebel-controlled pocket of northwestern Syria, where large numbers of people whose lives have been upended by the countrys 10-year-old civil war have embraced the suns energy simply because it is the cheapest source of electricity around.
Although vaccination is vitally important to stopping the viruss spread, she noted that millions of Americans still had not been vaccinated. Less than half of the population has had a single dose of vaccine, and less than 40 percent are fully vaccinated.

The union also criticized the C.D.C. for other actions, including its decision to stop monitoring breakthrough infections among vaccinated individuals and to investigate such cases only if they result in a hospitalization or death. The agency announced that, as of May 1, it would no longer track or investigate all infections among vaccinated people so that it could maximize the quality of the data collected on cases of greatest clinical and public health importance.

The nurses said that meant the C.D.C. would not gather the data necessary to understand whether vaccines prevent mild and asymptomatic infections, how long vaccine protection lasts and what role variants play in breakthrough infections.

The union also called on the agency, which recently recognized that the virus could be transmitted through aerosolized particles, to update its guidance about ventilation and respiratory protection accordingly. The union also called on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to immediately issue emergency temporary standards on infectious diseases to protect people in the workplace.

The C.D.C. did not immediately respond to the criticisms. Introducing the new recommendations on Thursday, Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, the C.D.C. director, cited two recent scientific findings as significant factors: Few vaccinated people become infected with the virus, and transmission seems rarer still; and the vaccines appear to be effective against all known variants of the coronavirus.
The Biden administration reiterated that it was working toward de-escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and a lasting peace in Gaza.
MENAFN.com 30 May 2021

(MENAFN - Gulf Times) US President Joe Bidens first months in office have been impressive. The number of Covid-19 vaccines that..
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..
The US will support a proposal to waive IP protections for coronavirus vaccines, Washington's top trade official has said. More than 100 countries want the temporary suspension of patents on COVID-19 vaccines.
Reuters - Politics 20 May 2021

The 35 out of 211 Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives who voted for the independent commission to probe the Jan. 6..
The US president and his aides wish to avoid being drawn into this graveyard of US-led peace initiatives.
Europe's largest economy can expect a strong economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, with an even more positive outlook for 2022, Economy Minister Peter Altmaier says.
Nature and capitalism both abhor a vacuum. There's a coalition of companies ready to fill Central Canada's Greyhound-shaped hole  and talk of a new coast-to-coast bus network. But some of that transformation might need government help.
Three-time French champion jockey Pierre-Charles Boudot is suspended for three months as a "precautionary measure" following his indictment over an allegation of rape.
Police Scotland and the British Transport Police have issued warnings that they will be keeping a close eye on the city with..

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Thousands have people have gathered on the streets of central London to protest in solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing conflict with Israel.
Alexander Burakov was arrested in the town of Mogilyov while on an editorial assignment for DW's Russian service. During his sentencing, he told the court that he was mishandled in the detention facility.
The violence continues, with eight children and two adults killed on Saturday in Gaza and one Israeli man killed in a Hamas rocket attack on the city of Ramat Gan.
Royal Caribbean International is canceling planned sailings from Haifa, Israel due to unrest in the country and region, the cruise line announced.


An interagency team of officials has briefed US lawmakers on America's Covid-19 assistance to India who then urged the Biden administration to make the military available to bring additional urgent medical supply donations to the country. "As US seeks to help India fight...I appreciate administration's willingness to brief India Caucus on its efforts," Congressman Chabot said.
An aircraft from Kazakhstan, carrying a consignment of 105 ventilators, 7,50,000 masks/respirators, and other medical equipment arrived in New Delhi on Saturday morning, as part of global assistance to India to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.
Kigali, Rwanda (PANA) - All CAF members invited to CAF executive meeting in Rwanda registered through the Rwanda Biomedical Center website where they uploaded their negative result certificates after their PCR tests
Amid spiralling violence in Israel and Palestine, Congress on Friday sought immediate cessation of hostilities and urged the Modi government to work with the UN Security Council to restore peace in the region. "The issue is both moral and humanitarian. India as a member of the UNSC should proactively work to achieve this objective, said senior Congress leader Anand Sharma.
(MENAFN - Gulf Times) Confirmed deaths from coronavirus (Covid-19) in Colombia passed 80,000 on Friday, with intensive care units (ICUs) almost full in the biggest cities, where crowds have been gathering for weeks of protests. Authorities warned this week that the demonstrations  initially called in opposition to a now-canceled tax reform but which have expanded to tackle inequality and police brutality  were set to prolong an already-devastating third wave of the epidemic. Bogotas mayor echoed that warning, saying the capital had on Thursday reported its second-highest number of new Covid-19 cases and highest number of deaths since the pandemic began. ''I dont know what more to say, to warn, to beg, to plead, Claudia Lopez said in a Twitter message late on Thursday that urged people to stick to social-distancing rules. On Friday she announced that she was infected and would self-isolate. Demonstrators have marched across Colombia since April 28, around the time that nationwide daily deaths hit a record 505. Average deaths are hovering around 470 per day and on Friday the cumulative toll reached 80,250. The pressure on ICUs in the capital ''is worrying, the government said late on Thursday, adding patients would be transferred by air to other cities. ICU occupancy for Covid-19 patients in Bogota stands at 94%, according to local authorities. In Medellin and Cali, the rates are at 99% and 95%, respectively. Health experts say they respect peoples right to protest, but warn large groups cannot continue to gather. ''We cant go on like this, Andrea Ramirez, an epidemiologist at Bogotas Universidad de los Andes, told Reuters. ''Were now talking about an almost life-or-death situation, as right now if people get sick and need an ICU, they wont find one.MENAFN15052021000067011011ID1102085048
Israeli air strikes pounded the Gaza Strip Saturday, killing 10 members of an extended family and demolishing a building housing international media outlets, as Palestinian militants fired back barrages of rockets. On the sixth day since the conflict escalated, the death toll rose and violence also swept the occupied West Bank as a US envoy []
Thousands of protesters marched in support of Palestinians on Saturday in major European cities including London, Berlin, Madrid and Paris, as the worst violence in years raged between Israel and militants in Gaza. In London, several thousand protesters carrying placards reading Stop Bombing Gaza and chanting Free Palestine converged on Marble Arch, near the British []
Israel pummelled the Gaza Strip with air strikes on Saturday, killing 10 members of an extended family and demolishing a building housing international media outlets, as Palestinian militants fired back barrages of rockets. The sharp uptick in violence, now in its sixth day, claimed more dead as clashes also swept the occupied West Bank. As []
PA - Press Association STUDIO 15 May 2021

Thousands of people have gathered in central London to show solidarity with the people of Palestine amid the ongoing conflict with..
Growing numbers of migrant families are choosing the heart-wrenching decision to send their unaccompanied children into America. President Joe Biden is allowing children traveling alone to stay in the U.S. while their asylum cases are decided. (May 14)


Protesters took to the streets in London on Saturday to demonstrate against the ongoing violence in the Middle East. (May 15)


Reuters - Politics 23 May 2021

[NFA] A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas held into a third day on Sunday as mediators spoke to all sides about extending the..
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - Twelve policemen, including an officer, were killed and 14 other injured when narcotics dealers ambushed a police covoy chasing them in south Darfur, near the border with the Central African Republic, last week
Thousands of protesters in London and Madrid marched in support of Palestinians as the worst violence in years raged between Israel and militants in Gaza.
Mediaite 10 Jun 2021

MSNBC's Charlie Sykes warned that while it's easy to laugh at the election audit in Arizona, it's a symptom of something deeply..
(The Center Square)  Local governments across New York state reported a strong April as sales tax collections reached $1.5 billion for the month. Thats an increase of $464 million from April 2020, the first full month of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a release Friday from State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

The 46 percent spike is an indication of how anemic last years tally was as many businesses across the state were closed during the first weeks of the emergency. However, DiNapoli noted that this years numbers compared very favorably to April 2019 totals.

The 2021 numbers were up $137 million, or 10.2 percent, from the same period in 2019.

The strong collections in April show that the economy is gaining steam, thanks in part to federal aid, more lifts in restrictions and a climb in the vaccination rates, DiNapoli said in a statement. However, local governments must monitor changing economic conditions and continue to be vigilant when it comes to their finances.

All but one community saw gains in sales tax revenue for the month. Those gains ranged from 28.2 percent in Schuyler County to a 130.9 percent increase in Schenectady County.

The only county that saw a decline was Oswego, where the $2.4 million collected represented a decline of 13.7 percent.

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New York City reported $657.3 million in sales tax receipts, up nearly 40 percent from the $470.8 million collected last year.

Long Island reported a 52.5 percent spike as Nassau and Suffolk counties reported $153.4 million in receipts for the month. Thats compared to $100.6 million last April.

Statewide, sales tax revenue is up 5.3 percent for the first four months of the calendar year. New York communities have collected $5.7 billion, compared to just less than $5.5 billion for the same period last year.

In New York City, collections are down slightly for the period. At just less than $2.4 billion, its off by about $77 million, or 3.1 percent, from January to April 2020.

The Big Apple joins Oswego (-2.6 percent) and Schuyler (-0.6 percent) as the only New York communities reporting fewer sales tax collections through the start of the year.

Meanwhile, Sullivan County has reported the best four-month gain of any community or county. For this year, the county in the Mid-Hudson Region has reported $17.6 million in tax revenue, a 34.4 percent gain from last year.
Starbucks joined many other retailers in announcing policy changes regarding masks based on the latest federal and local coronavirus guidance. Oregon is among the states that changed its restrictions based on the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week.

Starbucks store employees will remain masked but as for customers, Starbucks announced changes that go into effect Monday:

Use of Facial Coverings: It is our responsibility to protect our partners and customers, and we are committed to meeting or exceeding all public health mandates. With widespread vaccine availability and the ongoing progress against COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is now recommending that fully vaccinated people can resume indoor activities without wearing a mask, except where required by local regulations or law. As such, facial coverings will be optional for vaccinated customers beginning Monday, May 17, unless local regulations require them by law. As we continue to ensure the health and well-being of our partners and customers, our restrooms generally remain temporarily closed to the public in stores where the cafe or cafe seating is unavailable.

Oregon still hasnt issued detailed guidance to businesses as to how to determine customers vaccination status.

As of Friday, the state epidemiologist said Oregon businesses that choose to offer mask-free shopping for people who are fully inoculated against COVID-19 will likely be required to inspect each customers vaccination card and check the dates of individual shots.

The state said more guidance would be forthcoming within days.
A 39-year-old Portland man is facing 12 criminal charges after he reportedly pushed a woman into traffic near Southeast Hawthorne and Cesar E. Chavez boulevards, set a power pole on fire and brawled with officers responding to the scene, police say.

Kenneth Church was arrested Thursday afternoon. Hes accused of and assault, reckless endangering, criminal mischief and three counts of attempted assault on a police officer, among other charges.

Police responded to the intersection at about 3:15 p.m., more than 20 minutes after a call came in about the incident.

Investigators said Church pushed a 67-year-old woman into the busy street. Drivers had to brake in order to avoid her.

The woman told police that Church shoved her so strongly she was lifted clean off the ground before landing in the street. She was hospitalized after the incident and had broken bones and a vertical wrist fracture.

Witnesses told police Church kicked the woman while she was in the road and that he threw trash cans into the street, grabbing at passing cars and busses. He also reportedly set a power pole next to Pepinos Fresh Mexican Grill on fire.

When officers responded to the scene, Church tried to fight them off and bit two of them during the scuffle, police said.

Church was taken to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center upon his arrest. During the ride, Church told an American Medical Response crew member he had taken lots of methamphetamine before the altercation, court documents show.

Church was booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center. His bail was set at $250,000, according to the Multnomah County District Attorneys Office.

--Eder Campuzano
OLYMPIA, Wash.  Washington state health officials said Saturday that theyve identified an E. coli outbreak to PCC Community Market brand yogurt produced by Pure Eire Dairy.

The dairy is working with the state Department of Agriculture to identify and recall all affected products, the state Health Department said in a statement. Officials said anyone with this brand of yogurt should throw it away.

The outbreak now includes 11 confirmed cases, including six children under the age of 10, infected with bacteria that have been genetically linked.

There were eight cases in King County and one each in Benton, Snohomish and Walla Walla counties, officials said.

Seven people have been hospitalized. Three people have developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a serious complication of E. coli infection.

 The Associated Press
A Gresham police officer told investigators that he feared a car would run him over when he shot at it last year in a Portland neighborhood and killed the driver, his attorney told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

But Officer James Doyles account doesnt appear to fully mesh with footage from his body camera, forensic evidence and statements from other officers at the scene, according to sources familiar with the investigation.

Prosecutors are now working to bring the case to a grand jury to decide whether Doyle will face charges for his use of deadly force.

The Multnomah County District Attorneys Office has spent an unusually long time  almost a year  reviewing the case and has yet to present it to a grand jury. District Attorney Mike Schmidt first brought in the state Department of Justice and now a criminal defense attorney to help his office with the review.

No police officer involved in an on-duty killing has ever faced criminal charges in Multnomah County.

Both Doyles attorney and the Gresham police union have criticized the delay as prejudicial to the officer and unfair to the family of the man who died, Israel Mark Tyler Berry, 49.

Doyle had responded last May 31 to a 911 call about a neighborhood confrontation in outer Southeast Portland near Gresham. Gresham police were helping take calls for Portland police, who were consumed with responding to mass social justice protests.

Police have released few details of what happened beyond naming Doyle, Berry and the location of the shooting on Southeast Kelly Street in the Powellhurst-Gilbert neighborhood.

Mark Makler, Doyles lawyer, said Doyle stepped from his patrol car after arriving to the disturbance call and within seconds believed Berrys car was going to hit him.

Berrys car was a dangerous weapon, Makler said.

Officer Doyle was at risk of serious physical injury or death when he had to make a split-second decision to use deadly physical force, he said.

Gresham police policy allows officers to shoot at moving vehicles or their occupants when an officer reasonably believes there are no other reasonable means available to prevent the threat of the vehicle, or if deadly force other than the vehicle is directed at the officer or others. Police in Oregon can cross city lines and retain their law enforcement authority.

Makler said he cant comment on what the Gresham police body camera footage shows before a grand jury reviews the case.

Two sources with knowledge of the case but unauthorized to talk about it publicly told The Oregonian/OregonLive that the footage raised questions about whether Doyle reasonably believed his life was in danger.

They said the body camera video shows Doyle continuing to fire on Berrys car after it already passed by Doyle at a slow speed. Asked specifically about this, Makler repeated that he cant comment on the evidence before a grand jury review.

Investigators early on raised questions, the sources said, including:

Was Doyle standing in a position where he reasonably could have been run over? Did he make any effort to get out of the way? Why did he continue to fire once Berrys car had gone by?

Why was there a bullet entry wound under Berrys arm, which would suggest Doyle may not have been in front of Berrys car at the time the shot was fired?

Two Portland officers at the scene didnt believe Doyle was in jeopardy at the time of the shooting, the sources said.

Two neighbors independently described a quick escalation by police.

One said she heard four to five shots shortly after officers arrived. Another said it didnt look to her as if the officer was in harms way.

The concerns from investigators prompted the Multnomah County District Attorneys Office last fall to seek assistance from the state.

Doyle declined to answer questions from Portland police detectives immediately after the shooting. Under state law, if homicide detectives compelled an officer to speak in a criminal investigation, the material obtained in the interview couldnt be used in a prosecution. Portland police investigated the fatal encounter as they do all shootings by officers in the city.

Doyle eventually gave his account in an interview late last year to a state Justice Department investigator alongside Portland police detectives, both the sources and Makler said.

Makler said Doyle has cooperated at every turn with the investigation on the shooting.

He said the Justice Department and Police Bureau were collaborating but then suddenly he was told that the state investigators no longer were involved. He said he wasnt told why.

Last week, the district attorney disclosed that he had taken the unprecedented move of hiring a defense lawyer in mid-March to serve as a co-lead prosecutor to help bring the case to a grand jury. Schmidt said in a statement that cases of deadly force by police demand the highest possible degree of transparency and objectivity.

But this week, Schmidts office declined The Oregonian/OregonLives request to release the body camera footage, citing the ongoing investigation. Gresham police have worn cameras since the start of 2020. Portland police dont have them.

A district attorneys spokesman said prosecutors plan to go to the grand jury within the next month. Schmidt, through the spokesman, declined comment on details of the investigation into the shooting.

Berrys sisters, stepfather and a close friend who came to feel like Berrys adopted mother said theyre struggling to understand why Berry was killed.

Two neighbors -- Julie Goss, who saw the shooting that night, and Jenna Napier, who heard the gunshots -- both said the chain of events didnt make sense.

I remember wondering why he felt the need to shoot, Napier said. It just seemed unnecessary.

Goss said Berry didnt need to die. We want transparency and honesty, Goss said. Its been very traumatic, and I want justice.

One of Berrys sisters, R. Rand of Arizona, wrote to The Oregonian/OregonLive in a Facebook message, The death of our baby brother needs answers and justice.

RESIDENTS CALLED 911

Before Berry died, security camera footage from a nearby home shows the confrontation leading up to the 911 call that brought police to the 12400 block of Kelly Street.

Neighbors said they saw Berry sitting inside a black car parked outside a white house on the block for hours.

As day turned to night, security video obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive shows Berry still sitting in the parked sedan, its lights on.

At one point, the video shows Berry getting out of his car and standing in the street. He paces back and forth and walks around his car several times, twirling what looks like car keys or a lanyard in his hand.

He eventually opens the trunk of the car, takes out three garbage bags filled with cans and tosses them onto the front lawn of the white house.

A woman, an older man and a younger man are soon seen emerging from the white house. Though the video doesnt have sound, it appears Berry is shouting and pointing at them as he stands beside his car.

The residents of the home walk up to him during the exchange when Berry suddenly shoves the older man to the ground, according to the video.

The woman from the white house pushes Berry, tries to chase him away from her property and bangs on Berrys car as Berry got back into his car, pulls forward, quickly reverses and knocks down several trash cans in front of the home.

He then turns into the driveway of the house, backs up and takes off west on the street toward 122nd Avenue.

A resident of the home called 911 about 9:30 p.m., according to radio traffic between police and dispatchers obtained through an online scanner archive service.

A dispatcher relayed, Anyone available? ...Theres an unknown male in a black Chrysler, honking a horn, and threatening to 55 our caller -- referencing the code for dead.

The residents of the white house are seen on the neighbors security video looking down the street when Berrys car returns traveling east screaming back down the street, really fast, said Corey Carter, who provided the video to police.

Carter said Berry drove past the residents but had to turn around because Kelly Street leads to a dead end.

As Berry drove west again past the white house, at least two police SUVs turned onto Kelly from 122nd Avenue and headed toward Berrys car, witnesses said. Doyle was in one of the SUVs.

Julie Goss was in her motorized chair outside Kellyville Assisted Living several doors down from the white house when she heard the loud argument between Berry and the residents.

She rode closer and said she saw a woman grab a bat from her driveway and strike the drivers side of Berrys car.

She watched as Berry drove up and down the street.

Goss said she saw the police SUVs pull onto Kelly Street without emergency lights or sirens going. She estimated the SUVs stopped about 5 to 6 feet away from Berrys car, which was facing toward them.

Four officers got out of their SUVs and stood in the street in a shooting stance, between their SUVs and Berrys car, she said.

Then she heard five shots, she said. Berrys car didnt seem to be moving fast or at all at that point, she said.

SHOTS FIRED

Jenna Napier and her partner were watching an Avengers movie at home when she heard someone outside yell, Dont move! or Stop your vehicle! followed seconds later by four to five loud shots.

We hit the floor instinctively, Napier said.

She then peeked out her front window and saw Berrys car motionless in the street right in front of her house. She lives one door down and across the street from the white house.

Neighbors in interviews with The Oregonian/OregonLive gave differing accounts about whether police shot through Berrys front window or drivers side window or both. Investigators havent said how many times Doyle shot Berry or whether the shots went through Berrys front or side car windows.

Goss said she saw an officer fire through the windshield of Berrys car.

Another resident who asked not to be named recalled seeing a large hole broken out in the middle of the drivers door window as she came outside after hearing the shots.

The emergency dispatch audio captured officers reporting the shooting.

Shots fired! one radioed in. All cops here are fine. Suspect still in vehicle. Hes likely been hit  about halfway down the block.

A short time later, an officer directed dispatch, Keep medical coming. Couple of gunshot wounds.

Officers pulled Berry from the drivers seat to the street.

Napiers partner, a paramedic, went out and tried to provide emergency medical care to Berry but he was already dead, Napier said. Her partner told her that Berry appeared to have at least one bullet wound in his side, Napier said.

The Gresham police car closest to Berrys car was about a half cars length away, Napier said.

The distance made her think that Berry had stopped and wasnt trying to ram the SUVs, but she didnt see what happened, she said.

Berry didnt have a gun, the sources said.

A LOT OF FACTS  NEED TO COME OUT

Doyle has been on paid leave since the shooting, a usual step following a police shooting. He joined Gresham police in 2018.

Doyle had only the dispatch information when responding to the call of a motorist threatening to assault someone, his lawyer said. Doyle didnt have time to stand around and figure out how to approach Berry, Makler said.

Officers are asked to make split second decisions about what they perceive as creating serious physical injury or death, he said.

The district attorneys prolonged inquiry unjustifiably taints Doyles case, Makler said. In the vacuum of a grand jury decision on whether the shooting was in self-defense, questions are left to fester, he said.

Were now almost 12 months in, Makler said. Theres a lot of facts that havent come out and need to come out. I can tell you that for many, many, many months, we have advocated to try to get this resolved.

Officer Thomas Walker, a representative of the Gresham Police Officers Association, said Doyles use of force in these circumstances, was lawful and appropriate.

I have grave concerns as to why Mike Schmidt and his office does not publicly acknowledge this, Walker wrote. He also said no new information has come to light since Portland police turned over the findings of their investigation and all the evidence last September to prosecutors.

He said he also wanted to recognize the friends and family of Israel Berry. They deserve answers just as much as we do.

Brent Weisberg, Schmidts spokesman, said the delay in a grand jury review followed having to pivot from the Justice Departments involvement to Sam Kauffman, the private lawyer being paid $300 an hour for his work as a special deputy district attorney.

Each special prosecutor starts without a comprehensive understanding of the case, interviews and evidence, Weisberg said.

To build that knowledge takes significant time. In this case that reset occurred twice  once when the Oregon Department of Justice started working on the case and then again when Samuel Kauffman was appointed special deputy district attorney, he said in a written response to questions.

Neither the Justice Department nor the District Attorneys Office have explained why the pivot occurred.

The Multnomah County District Attorneys Office has worked on this case diligently since the death of Israel Berry, even during the civil unrest, change in leadership, moving to a new courthouse, a historic increase in gun violence and the COVID-19 pandemic, Weisberg said. Follow up investigation at the request of the Oregon Department of Justice occurred and is occurring again at the request of Special Deputy District Attorney Sam Kauffman.

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW  WHY

Berry was cremated and his remains were returned to his siblings, said his stepfather, Myron Parker.

Berry, the youngest of six children, had followed his mother to Portland around 1990.

At the time of his death, he was unemployed, receiving disability benefits and renting an apartment with other roommates in Portland, said Parker and Rand, his sister.

The 2015 Chrysler 3200 he was driving belonged to his neighbor, Betty Young, 82. She lived next door to Berry on Holgate Boulevard and knew him for 20 years, first meeting him after he got out of prison. Berry is a registered sex offender and has convictions for third-degree sex abuse in 2012, using a child in display of sexually explicit conduct in 2004 and sex abuse and sodomy in 1992.

Young said she lent Berry her car.

Berry had gone to the home on Kelly Street to retrieve a phone that he had given to a young man who lived there but others in the household didnt want Berry to contact the man, Young and Rand said.

The residents in the white house didnt return calls from The Oregonian/OregonLive or answer the door to give their account of what happened.

Berry had plans to move into a North Portland home that had belonged to an aunt who had recently died, Young said.

What I would like to know about the shooting is why? Young said. How come we cant get any information about Israel and what happened. Itll be a year in about two weeks. Nobody will tell us anything.

Young said she received some of Berrys ashes.

Until I get closure, I dont want to get rid of him. I want to keep him. I do need answers so my heart can rest.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212

Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian
More than two-thirds of Portland-area residents say they disapprove of how Portlands mayor and City Council have handled two of the citys most pervasive and contentious issues: homelessness and destructive protests.

The findings come from a poll of 600 people across the metro area commissioned by The Oregonian/OregonLive and conducted from April 30 to May 6.

Suburban residents were a tad more critical of city leaders response to protests than residents of Portland proper. Seventy-five percent of those who live outside the city reported they were unhappy with Portlands handling of protests, while 68% of city residents took that stance, the poll showed.

But when it comes to homelessness, city residents and suburbanites are equally dissatisfied with the mayoral and council response, the poll found. Three-fourths of both groups expressed disapproval of their leadership on the thorny issue, which has been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.

Just 3% of metro-area residents said they strongly approve of how the mayor and council have handled homelessness while 4% gave that answer regarding protests.

Levels of dissatisfaction were largely consistent among those who identify as white or a person of color and across education levels and household incomes.

The perception of bungled leadership underscores the challenges the citys elected officials face as they seek to address social problems that have underlying causes and potential solutions bigger than a mayor or council can reach but are often held to account for their success or failure.

Survey participant Mohammed Hasoon, 27, said the proliferation of outdoor encampments has made Portland feel less safe, vibrant and attractive than the city he moved to in 2014.

Tents and other makeshift structures now line sidewalks and public right of ways from downtown all the way to his home near Southeast Crystal Springs Boulevard and 82nd Avenue, he said, creating sanitation hazards and other challenges across residential and commercial areas.

Earlier this week, Hasoon said he watched firefighters extinguish a blaze that broke out in an encampment along Interstate 205.

I do feel bad for people, you know, sleeping on the streets, said Hasoon, a home caregiver who is training to become a truck driver. But with all due respect to our city officials, how can they let this continue? Is this something good? Is this something nice?

Mayor Ted Wheeler and all four city commissioners who serve with him  Jo Ann Hardesty, Mingus Mapps, Carmen Rubio and Dan Ryan  declined requests for interviews Friday. The latter three have been in office less than nine months.

Instead, the council issued a joint statement highlighting its recent work that makes it easier to create new shelters and other housing options for those experiencing homelessness in Portland. It also touted the citys budget for next year, approved Thursday night, which pours millions of new dollars into tackling homelessness.

We are grateful for Portlanders patience, share their sense of urgency, and are actively working on further policy changes that will meet the communitys needs, the statement said.

The surge in campers in many parts of the city has reflected a number of factors, including spiraling housing costs and a lack of ready and effective treatment for chronic mental health and addiction issues.

As the pandemic raged, Portland leaders decided not to clear most campsites or move homeless people into crowded shelters for fear of exposing them to COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention strongly advised letting homeless campers remain in place to lessen the risk of disease spread.

The citys decision to follow that guidance allowed encampments to swell in size and number while city-funded sanitation crews tasked to remove trash and litter from them largely stood down.

Although Wheeler has repeatedly said the city needs to get people off the street as quickly and as humanely as possible, such actions have largely stalled. The mayor and city commissioners remain reluctant to allow large encampments to be swept without providing those living there a safe alternative place to stay.

Adding to the challenge is Portlands years-long joint effort with Multnomah County to get homeless or near-homeless residents into permanent affordable housing, which often pits demands for the city to immediately address street camping against that longer-term goal.

We are crucified for not cleaning up the streets when we give our money to the county and the county is not responsive to that, preferring to stick with its stated priority of permanent affordable housing, Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty said at a City Council meeting this week.

All the while, residents say theyre watching the crisis deepen.

It has just gotten worse and worse and worse, said Leanna Lindquist, 67, who participated in the survey. These people need help. They are ill. We wouldnt let somebody bleed to death in the street.

Lindquist, a retired nurse who lives in Northwest Portland, also said shes grown increasingly frustrated with the citys ongoing protests and the inability of elected leaders to rein the most destructive actors.

Some national media outlets and a presidential spotlight elevated Portland as a national symbol of unrest last summer during large, raucous demonstrations over civil rights and police accountability after a Minneapolis police officer murdered George Floyd.

The large protests receded by the fall, but city leaders have been unable to stop small groups of vandals from sporadically attacking businesses and civic organizations at night, tagging them with graffiti, smashing their windows or setting fires. That prompted many downtown businesses to board up their facades.

Such direct action events have tied the mayor, who serves as police commissioner, and law enforcement in knots. They have also displeased those in the larger Black Lives Matter movement who want police reform, or even an end to the citys police agency, but have condemned the property destruction and have worked to separate themselves from those who advocate vandalism.

We are united in supporting the right to protest and appreciate the Black Lives Matter movement for bringing a racial reckoning to our county, the mayor and city commissioners said in their statement. We are also united in condemning arson, violence, and property damage as tactics, and grateful to our partnership with (Multnomah County District Attorney) Mike Schmidt, which ensures that those who commit crimes are prosecuted.

Lindquist said she believes recent statements by Wheeler and members of the City Council decrying the ongoing property damage at demonstrations and supporting targeted arrests and prosecutions of those accused of committing the worst crimes ring hollow.

Theyve come a little bit too late, Lindquist said. Its like a wound. When you dont care for it and let it get out of control, you have a serious problem.

The police response during demonstrations has often been aggressive and indiscriminate, activists say, galvanizing many to return to the streets. More than two dozen lawsuits filed against the city since the protests began outline allegations of excessive force by police, inhumane use of tear gas, unlawful dispersal orders or other violations of civil rights.

Still, Lindquist said she believed that not enough destructive demonstrators had been prosecuted or held accountable in any way. Some of that falls on Wheeler, she said.

The mayor is also police commissioner. The guys got some power, Lindquist said. And he also bears some of the responsibility. Theres a lot of bad to undo.

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh; 503-294-7632

Email at skavanaugh@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @shanedkavanaugh

Todays report is part of the ongoing series Downtown in Distress. Read Part 1.

Listen to business reporters Mike Rogoway and Jamie Goldberg discuss the ongoing series Downtown in Distress on Mondays episode of Beat Check with the Oregonian. Subscribe to Beat Check on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts.
The road to hell, they say, is paved with good intentions.

And good tenants? Tyler Madarus has a story for you.

When Madarus first offered Andrew Barlow the spare bedroom in his Albany apartment, he was worried about his old high-school friend. Barlow had just gone through a breakup, Madarus says, and was lonely and discouraged.

Barlow agrees: I was really depressed. He helped me out.

I couldnt let someone live on the streets who I thought was a decent person and was in a bad situation, says Madarus, who works at the Bigfoot Grille in Lebanon. I told him he could have a room for a while, until he got back on his feet.

Its been four years.

Several things have changed over the years. Madarus, 30, and his wife, Ariel, moved into a 1,300-square-foot home on South 3rd Street in Lebanon.

The house at the center of the storm

They had two gregarious kids, Olivia and Ezekiel. Tylers mother, Angi, also moved into the three-bedroom home.

Have I mentioned the bearded dragons, the gnarliest of the familys many household pets?

And, yeah, things went south with Barlow in that increasingly congested living space.

He became more reclusive, Madarus says. Struggled to keep a job. Wouldnt help with the housecleaning or mowing the lawn. While he paid rent, he wouldnt take the hint that hed overstayed his welcome.

Madarus asked Barlow to move out six months ago, just before Ezekiel was born: He said, I have nowhere to go.

I wasnt in a financial position to make a move, Barlow says. If I moved anywhere, it would have been into my car.

At the end of his rope, Madarus finally gave Barlow notice on April 5 that he wanted him out of the family home in 30 days. I didnt think I needed an attorney, he says, to remove someone from my private residence.

Madarus opted for a no-cause eviction, he says, because that had the least impact on his ability to rent in the future.

In Covid-19 Oregon, that was a serious mistake.

Last September, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issued an executive order banning evictions based on nonpayment or without stated cause. To help the many Oregonians struggling to sustain a business or draw a salary during the pandemic, the Legislature not only extended the moratorium through the end of June, but set up costly penalties for landlords who violated the law.

Madarus didnt think of himself as a landlord, just a frustrated husband and dad who thought four-month-old Ezekiel needed his own room. But he jumped the gun by filing his eviction complaint with the Linn County Justice Court on April 6, rather than waiting 30 days.

Four-month-old Ezekiel doesn't have his own bedroom but he's king of the couch

Next thing he knew, Barlow handed him a declaration of financial hardship for eviction protection. Barlow also sought out Steven Crawford of Legal Aid Services in Albany, who filed a counterclaim.

Barlow was entitled to three-months rent, or $1,500, Crawford argued, because Madarus delivered that termination notice before the end of the moratorium. Whats more, Crawford wrote, Barlow also deserved another $1,000 in statutory damages for the landlords retaliatory conduct.

What passes for retaliation here? A flanking maneuver by the bearded dragons?

Not quite. Madarus locked the door to the laundry and played loud music while Barlow was sleeping.

My infant son slept next to the speakers, Madarus counters. And he only locked the laundry room to protect the expensive and borrowed tools he was using to renovate the lone bathroom in the house.

Not surprisingly, Barlow and Madarus disagree on most of who did what as the relationship unraveled. Barlow insists Madarus did everything he could to make my life miserable. When he wrote me that notice, he knew I was barely scraping by. He said it didnt matter.

Crawford was left to negotiate the tentative peace treaty. He asked Barlow  who had just scored a new job  how much time and money he needed to relocate, and Madarus was presented with several options.

He could wait until the state moratorium on evictions ended on July 1, then give Barlow 60 days notice, meaning Barlow might hang around until Labor Day weekend.

Meet Tina, the friendliest of the bearded dragons

Or Madarus could pay $3,800 in relocation costs  Barlow was determined to push the limit on damages  and Barlow would vacate the house by June 1.

Madarus didnt hesitate. Exhausted by the ordeal, he agreed to hand his old pal the $3,800 parting gift, a settlement the Justice Court quickly approved.

I had to give him every last cent of my savings to get him to move, Madarus says. Hes trying to cause as much damage as possible on the way out.

The living arrangement, clearly, didnt age well. It began with a gesture of generosity, and it didnt end with one. When I asked Madarus what he made of that, he said, I feel like Im being punished for being a good guy. And that the world is not meant for good people.

What will he need to feel at home again on South 3rd Street, much less the planet? The words were a long time coming:

Time. And space.

-- Steve Duin

stephen.b.duin@gmail.com
SEATTLE  A suburban Seattle man has been arrested and charged with entering the U.S. Capitol with a pro-Trump mob during the Jan. 6 deadly insurrection.

Joseph Elliott Zlab, 51, of Lake Forest Park, was arrested Thursday in Everett, an FBI spokesman told The Seattle Times. Zlab was charged with one count of unauthorized entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds and one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, charging documents show.

Zlab, who runs an Everett construction firm called JMZ Contractors, made an initial appearance in federal court in Seattle on Thursday. He faces up to a year and a half in prison, if convicted.

Neither Zlab nor his federal public defender responded to messages left by the newspaper on Friday.

According to an FBI affidavit, a man matching Zlabs description was seen in widely disseminated photographs and video entering the Capitol with the mob that forced their way into the building while Congress was certifying the 2020 presidential election results.

Ten days later, the FBI received an anonymous tip that Zlab was in the Capitol that day and gave the name of Zlabs business. A federal agent found a picture of Zlab on his business website and called him, the affidavit states.

During the phone call, Zlab confirmed he attended Trumps speech on Jan. 6 and participated in the march to the U.S. Capitol, the statement says. Zlab stated he circled the Capitol building two to three times taking pictures, according to the affidavit.

When the agent asked Zlab if he went inside the Capitol building, Zlab stated that he thought he needed an attorney because he did not want to say anything incriminating, the affidavit states.

After the agent obtained additional photos and footage of Zlab allegedly entering and walking inside the Capitol, the FBI obtained a search warrant April 8 for Zlabs Gmail account and found a folder dated Jan. 6. It contained several photos of the Capitols interior, including one that appears to depict other protesters in a haze-filled corridor, the affidavit says.

The FBI then conducted surveillance outside of Zlabs business and took a photo of Zlab that an agent used to confirm he was the man captured in the Jan. 6 images inside the Capitol, the affidavit states.

Zlab is the sixth Washington resident to be charged in connection with the insurrection.

 The Associated Press
Gov. Kate Brown issued a fiery letter this week taking lawmakers to task for planning a $9.3 billion schools budget that she said would betray the interests of Black, Indigenous and other students of color, only to do an abrupt about-face Friday without achieving any apparent commitments to better serve them.

In a two-page letter to legislative leaders Monday, the governor said that given the huge state and federal cash infusions already flowing to schools over the last year, lawmakers should be talking about transformational change, not pumping extra money into the status quo school funding system that districts can spend as they decide.

Enlarging a budget for a school system built on a foundation of Oregons history of racism will benefit white, affluent students at the expense of students of color and students from families with lower incomes in urban and rural communities, the governor wrote.

With 19 months left in her term, Brown noted this session is her last opportunity as governor to shape the K-12 schools budget and pledged not to sign a budget that leaves behind Oregons Black, Indigenous and other students of color.

But by Friday morning, the governor appeared to have abandoned her push to dedicate any increased funding to historically underserved students. In a press release, she threw her support behind the unrestricted $9.3 billion state school fund budget the legislative Ways and Means Committee had already approved in an early morning meeting. Senate Bill 5514 now heads to the Senate floor for a vote as soon as next week.

In the press release, the governors administration sought to portray the outcome as a win for communities of color. In the coming days, the governors office and legislators will work with education leaders and leaders from communities of color to identify concrete actions to be undertaken in partnership with school districts to further these urgent goals, they wrote.

However, with the state school fund bill out of committee and teed up for a floor vote, any commitments by school districts to spend portions of that money on targeted equity initiatives would be purely voluntary.

Brown does appear to have succeeded at getting lawmakers to halt their plan to get $200 million for the schools budget from a reserve account to insulate schools from future economic downturns, at least for now. The Ways and Means committee was scheduled to vote on that proposal, Senate Bill 226, on Friday but tabled it.

Lawmakers will decide what funding sources to tap to achieve a $9.3 billion state school fund for 2021-2023 after the Wednesday state revenue forecast, the governors administration said.

Brown had initially proposed funding the state school budget at $9.1 billion, slightly higher than legislative budget analysts said would be necessary to continue current programs and services. Co-chairs of the Ways and Means Committee agreed earlier this year in their budget framework.

But school districts and the statewide teachers union insisted that would dramatically underfund K-12 schools and force districts to lay off teachers. Citing calculations that include higher personnel costs than legislative budget analyses used, the groups said they need a $9.6 billion state school fund in order to prevent cuts.

The reasons for that $600 million difference are both arcane and important. For example, the coalition of school officials and the teachers union anticipate a 5% annual increase in health insurance benefit costs because employees tend to choose more expensive plans while legislative analysts anticipated annual increases of 3.4%, since the average increase for all public employee plans is limited by statute. They also disagreed  by roughly $200 million  on how deep a decrease schools will see in their pension contribution costs. Legislative budget analysts also calculated how much overall operating cost will rise based on average cost from the current two-year state budget, while districts and the union said districts most recent, higher-cost year should be the base. And while legislative analysts looked at average projected personnel cost increases for districts statewide, the school boards and teachers union based their figures on the 13 largest districts in the state.

The push to enlarge the schools budget even further has strong support from Republicans, who tried unsuccessfully in committee Friday to push for $9.6 billion. In an interview Friday, House Republican Leader Christine Drazan said Republicans want schools to reopen fully for in-person learning in the fall and schools should receive the money they need to achieve that.

We have this call out there that we should fully reopen schools next year and I take really seriously how hard this last year has been on teachers and students and families, said Drazan, who is from Canby. Next year is going to be daunting, once kids are hopefully back in the classroom and educators begin to address learning losses.

Drazan said there could be multiple funding sources available to boost school funding, beyond the more than $1 billion schools have received to specifically respond to pandemic challenges. For example, she pointed out the state received $2.6 billion in the latest federal relief package and next weeks revenue forecast could increase projections for the general fund.

At the Ways and Means Committee Friday, the governors letter did not spur any discussion of equity in school funding. Lawmakers did not reference Browns letter and they did not talk about education initiatives to serve Black, Indigenous and other students of color, with one exception. Sen. Lew Frederick, a Portland Democrat who is co-chair of the Ways and Means education subcommittee, said during the discussion of the state school fund that theres more than 15 different programs targeting the needs and advancement of BIPOC students as part of this. Frederick did not respond to a call and text message seeking clarification, since no such programs appear to exist within the state school fund.

-- Hillary Borrud; hborrud@oregonian.com; @hborrud

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A 25-year-old woman shot Wednesday in Portlands Woodlawn neighborhood has died at a hospital, marking the latest fatality in an ongoing spate of gun violence.

Danae K. Williams of Portland was one of two people shot in the 6800 block of Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Police said the other person, a man who has not been publicly identified, remains hospitalized with critical injuries but is expected to survive.

Portland police have not detailed the circumstances of the shooting, and no arrests have been announced.

The homicide is the 32nd in Portland this year. That figure includes a fatal police shooting at Southeast Portlands Lents Park last month.

Detectives are investigating, and police said they want to interview several witnesses who they believe left the scene before talking to officers.

Police urged anyone with information to contact Detective Brad Clifton (Brad.Clifton@portlandoregon.gov; 503-823-0696) or Detective Michael Greenlee (Michael.Greenlee@portlandoregon.gov; 503-823-0871.)

 The Oregonian/OregonLive
Attracting more people to downtown Midland has been a longtime goal of city and business officials.

In 1965, officials were challenging themselves that if downtown Detroit can rebound from the decline of the late 1950s, so can downtown Midland.

Benjamin Hines, president of Midland Downtown Business Association, was convinced. "Now is the time .. to progress and expand. We should make a point to see that these empty buildings are filled with new businesses."

He also supported a retail division with the framework of the Midland Chamber of Commerce.

Hines' contemporary in 1965, Marvin Stein, president of the Midland Downtown Business Association, said the "new high-level, four-lane" bridge (Poseyville) across the Tittabawassee River is a "definite step forward towards revitalization of the downtown business area."

Stein also suggested downtown needed a "high-rise combination hotel-motel" and additional specialty shops. He also backed proposed parking plans that included closing two city blocks for parking as well as the development of the parking lot at the foot of McDonald and Ashman streets.

Two-hour parking meters were installed on streets and in city lots in 1969 to provide additional revenue for the city to purchase land for downtown parking. There also was "free" parking in certain lots; patrons would feed the meter and then be reimbursed for the 5 cent cost if they spent $2 or more at the business.

An urban design plan prepared for Midland in 1972 called for a major tenant to be located in the downtown area.

"The new shopping malls feature air-condition stores, no weather elements to contend with, a large selection of goods and services and leisurely shopping with no worries about feeding the parking meters," said Julius Jay Grosberg, owner of Jay's Mens and Boys Wear. He said downtown has to be urbanized in order to compete and survive the new concept in shopping.

Grosberg called for free downtown parking and uniform storefronts.

Free Saturday parking was instituted in 1972. A year later, members of the Midland Downtown Business Association offered to pay the remainder of the city's debt for parking facilities -- $25,000 -- if the city would remove all parking meters in the central business district.

In 1973, meters were removed from downtown city parking lots. The city was providing free parking with two-hour limits in lots during the week and free parking on Saturdays. Street meters would remain.
Attracting more people to downtown Midland has been a longtime goal of city and business officials.

In 1965, officials were challenging themselves that if downtown Detroit can rebound from the decline of the late 1950s, so can downtown Midland.

Benjamin Hines, president of Midland Downtown Business Association, was convinced. "Now is the time ... to progress and expand. We should make a point to see that these empty buildings are filled with new businesses."

He also supported a retail division with the framework of the Midland Chamber of Commerce.

Hines' contemporary in 1965, Marvin Stein, president of the Midland Downtown Business Association, said the "new high-level, four-lane" bridge (Poseyville) across the Tittabawassee River is a "definite step forward towards revitalization of the downtown business area."

Stein also suggested downtown needed a "high-rise combination hotel-motel" and additional specialty shops. He also backed proposed parking plans that included closing two city blocks for parking as well as the development of the parking lot at the foot of McDonald and Ashman streets.

Two-hour parking meters were installed on streets and in city lots in 1969 to provide additional revenue for the city to purchase land for downtown parking. There also was "free" parking in certain lots; patrons would feed the meter and then be reimbursed for the 5 cent cost if they spent $2 or more at the business.

An urban design plan prepared for Midland in 1972 called for a major tenant to be located in the downtown area.

"The new shopping malls feature air-condition stores, no weather elements to contend with, a large selection of goods and services and leisurely shopping with no worries about feeding the parking meters," said Julius Jay Grosberg, owner of Jay's Mens and Boys Wear. He said downtown has to be urbanized in order to compete and survive the new concept in shopping.

Grosberg called for free downtown parking and uniform storefronts.

Free Saturday parking was instituted in 1972. A year later, members of the Midland Downtown Business Association offered to pay the remainder of the city's debt for parking facilities -- $25,000 -- if the city would remove all parking meters in the central business district.

In 1973, meters were removed from downtown city parking lots. The city was providing free parking with two-hour limits in lots during the week and free parking on Saturdays. Street meters would remain.
DETROIT (AP)  Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's private round trip to Florida to see her ailing father was paid for from a fund that's used for travel not covered by tax dollars, her chief of staff said Friday.

The cost was $27,521, with Whitmer personally paying $855 of that amount, according to the Michigan Transition 2019 website, which lists donations and expenses. The nonprofit was initially formed for inauguration events.

The lack of details has dogged Whitmer since the March trip was revealed in April.

As chief of staff, I acknowledge we could have done a better job of answering questions about this trip with more clarity while also balancing the need to protect the governors security, and for that I take responsibility, JoAnne Huls told senior staff in a memo.

Whitmer left Michigan on March 12 and returned on March 15.

She continued to carry out her duties as governor while she assisted her father with household duties like cooking and cleaning. ... The governors flight was not a gift, not paid for at taxpayer expense, and was done in compliance with the law, Huls said.

The Associated Press last week confirmed flights to West Palm Beach using aviation-tracking website Flightradar24. The Gulfstream 280 business jet is registered to Air Eagle, whose agent is John Nicholson, executive vice president of Detroit-based PVS Chemicals, according to state records.

On May 7, when asked who paid, Whitmer said: Ive said everything Im going to say about my trip to go check on my father. It was a quick trip. It was an important family reason for doing it, and Ive got nothing to add.

She said her office does not discuss her travel because of an incredible number of death threats. A group of men is charged with plotting to kidnap her over her coronavirus restrictions.

Huls said Whitmer took her father, Richard Whitmer, to a medical procedure Monday at the University of Michigan.

Mr. Whitmers procedure was successful, and we are hopeful that his condition improves, Huls said.

Tori Sachs, executive director of the conservative group Michigan Rising Action, said the use of a nonprofit to help pay for Whitmer's personal travel is "shady and makes it clear why she tried to hide the trip and cover up who paid. She called for an investigation.

___

Associated Press writer David Eggert in Lansing contributed to this report.

___

Follow Ed White at http://twitter.com/edwritez
People in Michigan who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 dont need to wear a mask any longer, and people who arent vaccinated dont have to wear one outdoors, officials said Friday, also declaring that the states indoor mask requirement will expire in July.

The announcement from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the state health department came a day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people.

Michigans revised order, which wasnt public yet, will take effect at 9 a.m. Saturday, according to the Associated Press.

People wont have to wear a mask outdoors regardless of whether theyre vaccinated. While indoors, the fully vaccinated can go without a face covering but the unvaccinated still must wear one, at least until the states mandate ends after July 1. It wasnt immediately clear what sort of requirements could remain after that date  which is nearly seven weeks away and will allow time for more vaccinations.

More than 55% of Michigan residents ages 16 and older have received at least one vaccine dose. The state still has the countrys highest two-week infection rate, but it has dropped significantly recently.

With millions of Michiganders fully vaccinated, we can now safely and confidently take the next step to get back to normal, the Democratic governor said in a statement. The message is clear: Vaccines work to protect you and your loved ones. If you have not yet received your vaccine, now is the time to sign up.

The order was announced more than a week after state officials lifted an outdoor mask requirement except in gatherings of at least 100 people and in organized contact sports, and said vaccinated people arent mandated to be masked at indoor residential gatherings evens if others are unvaccinated.

In Detroit, Christoph Cunningham, 28, was wearing a mask as he rode an electric scooter to Andrews, a bar, for lunch. He said hes fully vaccinated and agrees with the new federal and state policies.

I have confidence in the science behind it all, said Cunningham, who works in the culinary field. Ill eventually take my mask off more and more. I might take it off to make other people comfortable. ... If you dont feel comfortable not wearing a mask, I think you should be able to keep it on. Dont beat anyone down about it.

Whitmer plans for the health department to ease indoor capacity restrictions when 60% of people get at least one shot and to end them entirely when 65% receive a dose. At 70%, the gatherings order will be rescinded such that broad mitigation measures go away.

House Speaker Jason Wentworth, a Farwell Republican, urged the governor to lift the indoor mask requirement sooner.

There is no science that says July 1 is a safer date to stop wearing a mask than any other day; it is just a round number on the calendar, he said in a statement. Lets move it up sooner, embrace the strategy of trust thats working right now and move Michigan past this pandemic.

Midland County recorded 34 COVID-19 cases on Friday, according to the state's daily report.

Friday, May 14 COVID-19 numbers:

Midland County: 34 cases were added. Pandemic total is 6,647 cases, 710 probable, 80 deaths and four probable deaths.

Bay County: 26 cases were added; pandemic total stands at 10,358 cases, 652 probable, 326 deaths and 14 probable deaths.

Gladwin County: three cases were added; pandemic total stands at 1,883 cases, 378 probable, 53 deaths and three probable deaths.

Isabella County: 14 cases and one death were added; pandemic total stands at 5,258 cases, 887 probable, 88 deaths and four probable deaths.

Saginaw County: 43 cases were added; pandemic total stands at 19,429 cases, 1,310 probable, 564 deaths and 17 probable deaths.

On Friday, the state added 1,766 new cases and 34 deaths. Overall, Michigan is at 873,335 cases and 18,500 deaths.

Testing

The state report shows as of Friday, Midland County has performed 74,346 COVID-19 tests. Gladwin County is listed as having administered 21,431 tests.

Midland Countys seven-day rolling positivity rate on May 10 was listed at 9.7% and Gladwin County was listed at 11.1%. Our 12-county region is listed at 13% and Michigan is at 9.5%.

Associated Press reporters David Eggert and Ed White contributed to this report.
MSU Extension of Midland County and cooperating parent educators sponsor the Parents Corner. Send submissions to Midland County MSU Extension Educator, Lisa Treiber, 220 W. Ellsworth St., Midland, MI 48640

NEMCSA Head Start Preschool. Preschool aged children wanted for the 21-22 school year! NEMCSA Head Start offers preschool experiences at no cost to families of children 3-4 years old. Head Start also serves children with special needs and/or disabilities. NEMCSA Head Start is a member of the Midland County Regional Preschool Partnership. The first step to enroll is to complete an online interest form at www.michiganpreschool.org. NEMCSA Head Start offers full day and half day programming that runs four days a week. Classrooms are offered in Midland, Sanford, and Mills area: Sites include the Longview Early Childhood Center, M-20 locations, Washington St. location, Sanford Early Childhood Center, and North Midland Family Center. For more information, or to learn if your family is eligible for NEMCSA Head Start, call Ashley Bryce 989-590-0088 or Kelly Scoles 989-492-7702 ext. 1301.

History Hike. Join Chippewa Nature Center Historical Interpreter Corrine Bloomfield from 1:30 to 3 p.m. May 15 to hike the trails and explore the natural resources that brought people to the region. Hikers will look for evidence of how nature has influenced our history and guided the settlement of our area. Ages 15+ are invited (under 18 w/adult). Pre-registration is required, visit www.chippewanaturecenter.org. Masks are required.

Food Safety Q & A. MSU Extension offers a week 30-minute informational program about food preservation. A short presentation will be shared focusing on a timely topic, leaving plenty of time for Q & A. The next session title is: Keeping Food Safe During Celebrations. Join in on this quick free presentation at 1 p.m. Monday, May 17. To register, visit: https://events.anr.msu.edu/SpringFoodSafetyQA/

Be Safe and Ready for Emergencies. Learn how to be prepared during weather emergencies. MSU Extension is offering Lunch and Learn sessions twice a month at noon, with topics covering food safety, planning for farm issues, financial distress, becoming mindful when handling emergencies. Join online via Zoom for these free sessions. The topic on May 18 will be: Food Safety After a Flood. To register visit: https://events.anr.msu.edu/emergencypreparedness2021/

Pantry Food Safety  Its Your Job! MSU Extension offers food safety training for volunteers and staff working in food pantries and food banks. Topics covered include handwashing, personal hygiene, cleaning, and sanitizing, receiving food and produce, storing food, re-packaging, and legal issues. This free online training will be offered from 9 a.m. to noon May 19. To register visit: https://events.anr.msu.edu/PantryFoodSafetySpring/

Investigating Food with Science. Michigan State University Extension offers an after-school online program, exploring how cooking is an experiment and baking is a science. Each week MSU Extension educators will explore the science behind food-related topics and food safety along with a fun, kid-friendly recipe, or experiment demonstration. The demonstrations will be designed for youth to experiment at home if they desire and provide youth a chance to share their experience the following week. On May 19, the topic: Chemistry of Ice Cream. The session runs from 4 to 4:30 p.m. Visit: https://www.canr.msu.edu/events/investigating-food-with-science-spring2021 to register for this free session.

Cooking for Crowds. Is your organization preparing for a food event? The Cooking for Crowds class educates groups who offer food fundraisers and events such as dinners, soup suppers and bake sales. Join MSU Extension to learn how to keep the community safe and prevent foodborne illness. Note: this course does not take the place of the eight-hour ServSafe Manager Course for the Person in Charge, it is designed for volunteers. This online class is being offered at different times, the next session is from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. May 19. Cost is $15/participant. Each participant will receive a food safety manual, food safety posters, accompanying food safety information and instruction from the three-hour online session. For more information or to register, visit: https://www.canr.msu.edu/cooking_for_crowds/events. Questions, email Lisa Treiber at treiber@msu.edu or call 989-832-6643 (leave a message).

Wildflower Walk. Spring wildflowers bloom quickly on the forest floor before the tree leaves open at Chippewa Nature Center. Take a woodland walk with a CNC naturalist to find and identify these colorful beauties from 6 to 7:30 May 19. Learn to recognize the diversity of shapes, patterns, and unique pollination strategies. Ages 9+ are invited (under 18 w/adult). Pre-registration is required, visit www.chippewanaturecenter.org. Masks are required.

Story Hour. Come spend an hour learning about nature from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. or 11 a.m. to noon May 20 at Chippewa Nature Center. The hour will include a story, crafts, and other age-appropriate activities. The entire program will be held outdoors so dress for the weather. Pre-registration is required, visit www.chippewanaturecenter.org. Masks are required.

Nature Adventures: Animal Life Cycles. Animals change as they grow, sometimes looking vastly different from stage to stage. Children are invited to visit Chippewa Nature Center to dip in the pond and search the forest and the meadow in pursuit of animals in all different stages of life. This program takes place from 2 to 3:30 May 20. Ages 5-12 are invited. Fee $10/CNC members $8. To learn more, visit www.chippewanaturecenter.org. Masks are required.

Bird Walk. Spring migration is underway with new birds arriving every day at Chippewa Nature Center. CNCs variety of habitats support over 200 bird species making this an excellent wildlife hotspot. On May 21 or May 22, from 8 to 10 a.m., learn to identify birds by using field markers, listening for songs and calls, watching flight patterns, and using habitat clues. Birders of all experience levels are welcome. Loaner binoculars are available or bring your own. Ages 9+ are invited (under 18 w/adult). Pre-registration is required, visit www.chippewanaturecenter.org. Masks are required.

Michigan Cottage Food Law. Thinking of selling your homemade food items? Learn how to prepare and sell foods to the public under Michigans Cottage Food Law. MSU Extension will host this two-hour online workshop which combines education about the Cottage Food Law and food safety aspects of preparing and selling your cottage foods safely. Guest speakers include an educator from MSUs Product Center and an inspector from Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. Join the team to learn more from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 22. To register for this free event: https://www.canr.msu.edu/cottage_food_law/events

Safe Food = Healthy Kids. Looking for a training for your childcare center or home? Michigan State University Extension is hosting several online sessions with education credits. Learn what the best practices are for food safety to help keep kids safe. Topics include cleaning and sanitizing, cooking, storing food, common allergens, and personal hygiene. The workshop can count towards annual training hours for licensed childcare providers. This is also an approved training of Great Start to Quality. The next class will be offered from 6 to 9 p.m. May 24. To register, visit https://events.anr.msu.edu/SFHKSpring21 There is no charge to participate in this session. Other dates will be offered, they are included on the link listed.

MSU Extension Extras Parenting Hour. Check out MSU Extensions May Extension Extras Parenting Hour topics and register today! Classes are on Tuesdays from 8 to 9:30 p.m. (no charge). Come to all or pick and choose what is interesting to you. Certificates of attendance are provided. Topics for May include: Young at Art, Working Together to Develop Early Literacy Skills, and Together We can Co-Parenting. Registration is required in advance via Zoom: https://msu.zoom.us/.../register/WN_05jHybVpS_mAL6UGN0va6g Questions, contact Courtney Aldrich at aldric82@msu.edu

Guiding Principles for Highly Successful Parenting Webinar Series. Looking for parenting support? Join MSU Extension's Guiding Principles for Highly Successful Parenting Webinar series, starting June 1. This free online series for parents of toddlers to teens will help you develop family routines, build emotional control in your child, be a calm, assertive parent, develop consistent rules and relationships and develop empathy as a parent. Registration is open now. Class will run once a week for five weeks from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Certificates available for up to 7.5 parenting education hours. For more information or to register, visit: http://bit.ly/GPJune2021. Registration ends May 25.
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP)  Two children were found dead Saturday morning in a suburban Phoenix apartment after a woman flagged down a police officer and said she was hearing voices telling her to kill her children, police said.

Officers went to her apartment and found a 9-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy dead with obvious signs of physical trauma," Tempe Police spokesman Sgt. Steven Carbajal said.

The mother who flagged down a Tempe officer about 7 a.m. near a police station is Yui Inoue, 40, Carbajal said in a statement. Inoue was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder, he said. No other identities have been released.

Police said they had been called to the same apartment earlier Saturday morning because of a domestic dispute involving a husband and wife. Carbajal said the couple was separated, and no one was arrested. The children were safe in bed at the time, and there was no apparent reason to call child welfare authorities.

It didnt seem like there was an immediate threat to the children, he said. Parents, couples, argue and they have disagreements, and they have issues that come up that often don't require that type of intervention.

Carbajal said officers were doing that they would to support the father.

Carbajal called it a tragic incident."

Its just so unfortunate that a 9- and 7 year old that rely on their parents, especially their mother, to really care after them could have been involved in something this tragic, Carbajal said in an interview.

The officers who found the children were also receiving counseling.

A lot of the officers on that call have children, and even the ones that don't, we see a lot of tragedy over the course of our career. But you can't prepare yourself for something like that, Carbajal said. The aftermath is really one of the hardest things to deal with.

The officers who discovered the dead children were not the same ones who were at the apartment just after midnight on the domestic dispute call. The father was not at the apartment when officers returned to find the children.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A year before her election to Congress, Marjorie Taylor Greene searched for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at her Capitol office, taunting the New York Democrat to get rid of your diaper and talk to the American citizens, as shown in video unearthed Friday by CNN.

I am an American citizen. I pay your salary through the taxes that you collect from me through the IRS, Greene says through the mail slot of a locked door. I am a woman. I am a female business owner and I'm proud to be an American woman. And I do not support your socialist policies.

The Georgia Republican continued: If you want to be a big girl, you need to get rid of your diaper and come out and be able to talk to the American citizens." Two men appear along with her in the video, also mocking Ocasio-Cortez and her staff through the mail slot.

The release of the since-deleted video, which was initially broadcast in February 2019 on Facebook Live, came the same week that Greene followed Ocasio-Cortez off the House floor, shouting that the Democrat supported terrorists and doesnt care about the American people, as first reported by The Washington Post. She has been challenging Ocasio-Cortez to a debate on Twitter, entreaties that Ocasio-Cortez had been ignoring.

Asked Friday about the context of the 2019 video, Greene told reporters, Walking around and talking to members of Congress who serve the taxpayers that, now weve got taxpayers arent even allowed to come talk to us, thats the context."

The incidents add to a portrait of the activist-turned-lawmaker who has shown little interest in governing, but has instead used her platform to float conspiracy theories, push Donald Trump's false claims about a stolen 2020 election and further her own notoriety. Her combativeness toward colleagues has only grown after an unprecedented rebuke where the House stripped her of committee assignments, effectively ending her ability to shape legislation.

Another confrontation Friday involved a member of her staff.

Rep. Eric Swalwell said a staffer for Greene yelled at him to take his mask off after stepping off the House floor, an unusual of breach of decorum. Though the CDC has relaxed mask-wearing guidelines for those who have been vaccinated, many lawmakers continue to wear them, and they are still required on the House floor.

"I had a mask on as I stepped off the Floor. An aide with @mtgreenee yelled at me to take my mask off. No one should be bullied for wearing a mask,"' Swalwell tweeted. So I told the bully what I thought of his order."

On Twitter Friday, Greene said she had witnessed the confrontation and claimed, No one yelled.

Greene's behavior has alarmed some members of Congress, where feelings remain raw after the deadly Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters intent on overturning the outcome of the 2020 election.

This is a woman thats deeply unwell and clearly needs some help," Ocasio-Cortez told reporters Friday. Her kind of fixation has lasted for several years now and the depth of that unwellness has raised concerns for other members, as well.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Greenes behavior was beyond the pale and raised the possibility of an ethics investigation.

This is beneath the dignity of a person serving in the Congress of the United States and is a cause for trauma, and fear among members, especially on the heels of an insurrection, Pelosi said Thursday..

Yet so far, Republicans have shown little appetite for punishing Greene. They rallied around her in February after some of her past comments came to light, including her endorsement of calls to assassinate leading Democrats. That left it to Democrats, who were joined by 11 Republicans, in voting to strip her of her committee assignments.

As a congressional candidate, Greene posted a photo in 2020 of herself with a gun next to images of Ocasio-Cortez and fellow Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.

Before her election, she also supported Facebook posts that advocated violence against Democrats and the FBI. One suggested shooting Pelosi in the head. In response to a post raising the prospect of hanging former President Barack Obama, Greene responded that the stage is being set.

In one 2018 Facebook posts, she speculated that lasers or blue beams of light controlled by a left-wing cabal tied to a powerful Jewish family could have been responsible for sparking California wildfires.

And in February 2019, Greene appeared in an another online video filmed at the U.S. Capitol, arguing that Omar and Tlaib werent really official members of Congress because they didnt take the oath of office on the Bible. Both women are Muslim.
BEIJING (AP)  Back-to-back tornadoes killed 12 people in central and eastern China and left more than 300 others injured, authorities said Saturday.

Eight people died in the inland city of Wuhan on Friday night and four others in the town of Shengze, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) east in Jiangsu province, local governments said.

The first tornado struck Shengze about 7 p.m., damaging homes and factories and knocking out power, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The Suzhou city government, which oversees the town, said in a social media post that four people had died and 149 others had minor injuries. Shengze is near Shanghai on Chinas east coast.

Another tornado hit Wuhan at about 8:40 p.m. with winds of 86 kilometers (53 miles) per hour, destroying more than two dozen homes and triggering a power outage affecting 26,600 households, Xinhua said. Officials in Wuhan said at a news conference Saturday that eight had died and 230 were injured.

They said that 28 homes collapsed in Wuhan, another 130 were damaged and put economic losses at 37 million yuan ($5.7 million), the Hubei Daily newspaper said. Construction site sheds and two cranes were also damaged, while downed power lines knocked out electricity, Xinhua said.

Photos showed a swarm of rescuers searching through building debris in Wuhan after midnight Friday and workers clearing metallic debris at a factory in Shengze in the morning.

Wuhan is the city where COVID-19 was first detected in late 2019.

Tornados are rare in China. In July 2019, a tornado killed six people in the northeastern Liaoning province, and another tornado the following month killed eight on the southern resort island of Hainan.

In 2016, a tornado and accompanying hailstorm killed 98 people in the eastern Jiangsu province.
The following list includes recent reports from the Midland County Sheriffs Office and the Midland Police Department. Compiled by reporter Andrew Mullin.

Thursday, May 13:

11:26 p.m.  Officers responded to an OWI in the area of Isabella Street and Vance Road.

10:30 p.m.  Deputies were sent to a Jasper Township home for a report of a domestic assault involving a 17-year-old suspect and her 22-year-old sister. The victim had her hair pulled and her face scraped. The suspect was bit on the arm. Both injuries were minor. The guardian of the girls did not want to pursue charges but wanted the incident documented.

9:59 p.m.  Officers responded to a vehicle crash in the area of West U.S. 10 and the U.S. 10 West Business route.

8:29 p.m.  Deputies responded to a report of an assault that occurred at a Porter Township residence. The 21-year-old Porter Township woman advised a 38-year-old Porter Township man grabbed her. There were no injuries. No charges were wished to be pursued from the incident.

8:01 p.m.  Officers responded to a hit and run incident on South Saginaw Road and East Haley Street.

7:50 p.m.  Officers responded to an OWI in the area of Eastman Avenue and West Sugnet Road.

1:32 p.m.  Officers responded to a driver who was driving with a suspended license and an improper plate.

12:39 p.m.  Officers responded to a vehicle crash in the area of West Larkin Street and Jerome Street.

12:02 p.m.  An animal control deputy received a complaint of a stray dog in the Collingwood and Kilmer streets area in the city of Midland. The dog was unable to be located at this time.

11:28 a.m.  A deputy was dispatched to a Jerome Township school reference a disorderly 7-year-old student. The deputy assisted in getting the child turned over to his 41-year-old mother without incident.

10:36 a.m.  A deputy assisted a Midland Police Department school resource officer while investigation an incident that occurred at a midland school involving a 13-year-old male.

10:32 a.m.  Officers responded to a crash on Joe Mann Boulevard.

8:03 a.m.  Deputies were dispatched to a Jerome Township residence regarding a disorderly 15-year-old girl. Deputies spoke with the juvenile and her 48-year-old aunt (guardian) who were arguing with each other over the juvenile not wanting to go to school. The situation was calm while deputies were on the scene and the juvenile was counseled on the importance of finishing school. Deputies transported the juvenile to school without incident and no assault occurred.

1:19 a.m.  An anonymous caller requested deputies attempt a wellbeing check on an 84-year-old Lee Township man after concerns arose that the man's 31-year-old grandson was at the residence, violating a conditional bond. Contact was made with the 84-year-old man who advised he was fine, did not need law enforcement assistance, and the grandson was not at the property.
To the editor:

I strongly disagree with Greg Mayvilles letter to the editor on May 10, in which he asserts that our Republican representatives in Michigan are far right or radical. The fact that liberal politicians are taking full advantage of the changes to our voting procedures during the pandemic and now want to keep and increase those changes seems much more radical than the idea of going back to the standards that were upheld prior to the pandemic. Disrupting constitutionally set practices should not be something thrown out with the pandemic bathwater. I take issue with people labeling traditional standards as radical.
To the editor:

This is in response to a letter I received recently from our State Sen. Jim Stamas, in which he attempts to justify the GOP 39 bills dealing with election reform:

Dear Jim,

Your claim that the GOP 39 so-called election reform bills protect and support our election system is disputed by quite a few sources, including the New York Times, Bridge Magazine and Detroit Free Press, and many Michigan television stations.

There are many others I am not citing here. In short, Jim, I believe that had the GOP fared better in the November election, you and your party would not now be putting forth these bills or claiming the election system needs reform. In fact, the election may have been one of the fairest elections ever conducted, overseen by experienced and qualified officials (from both major parties), and (according to over 60 court cases) with little to no evidence of fraud.

Your letter, to quote Judge Judy, pees on my leg and tells me its raining. In short, your lack of integrity in this matter is transparent.

LARRY LEVY

Midland
Port-Louis, Mauritius (PANA)  Mauritius would promulgate the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (Kingdom of Lesotho) Regulations 2021 soon, the Mauritian Government announced following the weekly meeting of the Cabinet on Friday in Port-Louis
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On Monday we had learned that Apple hired the author of the book "Chaos Monkeys" which was a NY Times Bestseller. He had been with Apple for over two months and his professional title at Apple was noted as "Product Engineering, Ads Platform." On Wednesday we posted a report titled "In a rare move, Apple Employees circulate a Petition demanding an investigation into the company's 'misogynistic' new hire." On Thursday, we posted a report title "Apple Backtracks and Sends their recent Ad Engineer Hire Mr. Martinez Packing after receiving an angry Employee Petition." We ended the report noting: "Whether we'll hear from Mr. Martinez on this matter in the future is unknown at this time." 24 hours later, Mr. Martinez took to Twitter.

Late yesterday Mr. Martinez took to Twitter to clarify his position on the matter that occurred at Apple. Below is an initial tweet that you could visit.

I have thus far maintained my silence on the Apple situation as I've sought to settle things amicably with the company that I admired, and at which I hoped to build the future of ads privacy.



As they however are not maintaining their silence on the matter, neither will I.  Antonio Garcia Martinez (@antoniogm) May 14, 2021

Below is a string of Tweets from Martinez in the form of a graphic.

(Click on image to Enlarge)

It sounds as though Mr. Martinez is thinking of a wrongful dismissal lawsuit and who could blame him. The rebuke of Mr. Martinez was purposely leaked to The Verge by an Apple employee likely linked to the petition so as to pressure Apple management to act. It worked, but there's likely a price to be paid for such actions of firing someone so publicly after seeking him out for employment.

Below is an excerpt from the original petition sent to Eddy Cue and team this week:

"We are deeply concerned about the recent hiring of Antonio Garcia Martinez. His misogynistic statements in his autobiography  such as "Most women in the Bay Area are soft and weak, cosseted and naive despite their claims of worldliness, and generally full of shit"  directly oppose Apple's commitment to Inclusion and Diversity. We are profoundly distraught by what his hire means for Apple's commitment to its inclusion goals, as well as its real and immediate impact on this working near Mr. Garcia Martinez. It calls into question parts of our system of inclusion at Apple, including hiring panels, background checks, and our process to ensure our existing culture of inclusion is strong enough to withstand individuals who don't share our inclusive values.

It's concerning that the views of Mr. Garcia Martinez expresses in his 2016 book Chaos Monkeys were overlooked  or worse, excused  during his background check or hiring panel. We demand an investigation into how his published views on women and people of color were dismissed or ignored, along with a clear plan of action to prevent this from happening again." [Emphasis theirs]

It's unlikely that Apple could win in a wrongful dismissal case knowing the deep and extensive process that Apple executes to through to hire someone.

One of the questions remaining is, whose head will roll for this mishap, failure and embarrassment to the company?

To learn more on this, listen to the interesting Recode Media podcast with Peter Kafka titled "Antonio Garcia Martinez's controversial exit from Apple" here (or here).
Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, the Minister of Education (MOE), has said the licensing of teachers was not to demean the profession but to make the work more attractive to meet global standards.



The licensing and registration of teachers will enhance the profession for teachers to play their rightful roles in the socio-economic transformation of the country, he stated.



The Minister said this on Friday at the launch of the Ghana Teacher Licensing and Registration exercise in Accra to commence a nationwide issuance of teacher licence and registration numbers for all in-service teachers in the country.



The exercise, organised by the National Teaching Council (NTC), in collaboration with the MOE and the Ghana Education Service (GES), will begin in the Greater Accra region at the circuit centres, Shai-Osudoku from Monday, May 17, 2021, and later extended to other regions.



Dr Adutwum said education in the country had gone through some reforms over the years to ensure quality standards, stressing that the current reform had seen the necessity to professionalise teaching to play its mandate effectively and efficiently.



The NTC is mandated by Education Regulators Body Act 2020 (ACT 1023) to improve the professional standing and status of teachers and to ensure licensing and registration of teachers in the country.



It is, therefore, heart-warming that we have the NTC in place to ensure that teachers are professional in the discharge of their duties, he said.



As a teacher, I am proud to be here to talk about licensing of teachers. I called myself the Teacher in-Chief because I think my job is to ensure that the profession improved to the highest standards.



I want the country to know that the sacrifices made by teachers will never be in vain, we will continue to work with them and professionalized them so that they can do their job very well.



Teaching is a great sacrifice, it is part of you, part of your soul, your mind, heart and you have a unique role to play in the shaping of the next generation of Ghanaians, the Minister said.



He called for collaboration from teachers and all stakeholders to create an effective and robust educational system that could transform the socio-economic fortunes of the nation.



The Ministry and the GES is setting up a special teachers portal for them to register their grievances on the platform. We will assign case managers who will handle the issues to make sure that the complaints are resolved.



When they are resolved, there will be a dashboard for me to know that there was for instance a reduction of 20,000 complaints from Ashanti or other regions. I want to remove the impediments of teachers and improve their welfare issues to do their job well, he said.



The Minister commended the NTC for the proactive role taken to streamline the teaching profession in ensuring orderliness in the system and called for the support of all stakeholders for its success.



Dr Christian Addai-Poku, the Registrar, NTC explained that, the exercise targeted two categories of teachers, qualified teachers who had successfully acquired the required training from a recognised teacher education institution before September 1, 2018, and that per the arrangements, those teachers were not supposed to pass Ghana Teacher Licensure Examination (GTLE).



Another group of qualified teachers is those who have passed the GTLE and completed their induction training.



The categories, Dr Addai-Poku said were expected to first register on the portal: tpg.ntc.gov.gh and avail themselves personally at the registration centre to be issued their licence.



He said the exercise would not only help NTC issue licence to teachers but also help build a credible database of teachers to properly inform decision-making.



The Registrar appealed to Directors, School Managers, and Teachers in both public and private practice, Unions and Service Providers to support the exercise and make it a success, stressing we are grateful to the Unions for their cooperation throughout the tough negotiation processes.



Professor Kwasi Opoku Amankwa, the Director-General, GES, encouraged teachers to take advantage of the opportunity to register, adding that the new Act would enable teachers to assume their full role as a professional organisation.



As professionals, it is the expectation that the Act will ensure the quality of teaching and learning, employ qualified teachers who will abide by the code of ethics of the profession, he said.



Dr Adutwum, Prof Amankwa, and other Senior Directors of NTC were taken through the registration processes and presented with their licence cards as professional teachers.





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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Lucozade Ghana donated 50 cartons of drinks to the Asuma Banda Airport West Mosque Complex. The Donation is in support of the 2021 Eid ul-Fitr Celebrations also known as the "Festival of Breaking the Fast" as Muslims the world over bring their fast to an end.



The donation comes on the back of a concerted effort by Lucozade Ghana to support Muslim communities across the country with the recovery drink of choice. In an interview, Mr Mensah Seneadza, Country Manager of Lucozade Ghana said This year, we are excited to provide cold restorative refreshment to over 4,000 members of our cherished Muslim community as they break their fast.



Together with our partner Rafimex, we are donating to the Airport West Muslim community, the Cantonments Mosque as well as supporting the Salafest across the country.



Given the current restrictions imposed by the Government of Ghana to help stem the spread of COVID-19, the Ramadan celebration was mostly virtual across the country.



Imam Abubakar Alhassan who received the items on behalf of the Muslim community expressed gratitude to Lucozade for their gesture, he said, we are very grateful you never forgot us, May God Almighty always remember you and make all the visions you have as a corporate entity be achieved and even beyond your expectations.



Lucozade Ghana has over the years supported the Muslim community and the wider Ghanaian society through various intervention projects; most recent being a campaign to rid the countrys beaches of plastics and filth and support to the Ghana Infectious Diseases Centre at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic last year.

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 government realized $666m out of its targeted revenue of $1.5 billion from the upstream petroleum industry for the year 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19.



The drop in the targeted revenue was also attributed to the low oil prices on the international market.



The Manager, Project Evaluation at Petroleum Commission (PC), Ebenezer Harmah, disclosed this at Sekondi on Monday, at a stakeholders meeting with the Western Region House of Chiefs attended by the Minister of Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, and the Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs Minister, Mr. Kojo Kum.



Mr. Harmah explained that since the pandemic broke in the country in 2020, there had been a significant drop in crude oil price arising out of demand shock, increased cost of operation, impact on exploration and appraisal investments, investment attraction, and local content development.



The PC, he said, had proposed that the government support producing fields to ensure that production rates were not affected, take proactive steps to mitigate the impact of COVID- 19 at the upstream industry and also engage all affected contractors to map out contingency strategies.



Mr. Harmah suggested that strategies, including the resumption of suspended operations, aggressive reserve replacement to drive accelerated sustained exploration and sustained investment attraction, to promote Ghanas sedimentary basin for future licensing.



There could also be direct negotiations for open acreages and petroleum agreements under negotiations.



On the current oil production profile, the Evaluation Manager told the House that three fields had been developed and produced since the inception of commercial oil discovery to date, namely Jubilee, Tweneboa Enyera Ntomme (TEN) and Off Cape Three Point (OCTP).



However, Mr. Harmah explained that Ghana risks production decline if no further reserves are developed.



He continued: Reserves replacement is very imperative for the sustained industry. Indeed, reserves need to mature aggressively.



For the Jubilee Fields, he said, the recoverable reserve was 642 million barrels (mmbl) and production since inception to March 2021 was 319 mmbbl, with total gas export of 154 Billion Standard Cubic Feet (BSCF).



The TEN Field has produced 93mmbl out of the 195 mmbl as of March 2021, while total gas export is 16bscf during the period. SGN/OCTP Field has a recoverable reserve of 205 mmbl of oil and condensate and 1.07 Trillion Cubic Feet (TCF) of Non-Associated Gas (NAG).



Production from inception to March 2021 is 56mmbl and 138 BSCF of NAG. Total gas export as of March 2021 is 112 BSCF, Mr Harmah added.



Concerning ongoing exploration works, he mentioned that AMNI was to conduct geological studies and drilling planned for last quarter of 2021 while ECO was also involved in a drilling campaign initially planned for July 2020 but were postponed due to COVID 19.



He said these, however, were expected to begin in 2022.



The Voltain basin also has the largest unexplored inland basin in Ghana, covering about 103,400 sq km, 40 percent of the landmark of Ghana, and that currently, the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation was conducting reconnaissance survey of that area.

Source: The Ghanaian Times









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The Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) and Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has assured Ghanaians of their commitment to quickly complete all ongoing projects on time, to bring relief to its electricity distribution system and customers.



In a joint statement issued in Accra by the two companies yesterday, they stated that key projects that were currently underway in the Greater Accra, Central and Ashanti regions would enhance power supply reliability in the country.



The statement explained that the US$60m Pokuase Bulk Supply Point (BSP) project, funded by the US government through the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), was expected to be completed by the first half of 2021.



It said Upon completion, it will provide flexibility for ECG to distribute power around the city in case of challenges in other parts of the system andwill benefit over 350,000 households overall.



The statement also explained that that of the US$50m Kasoa Bulk Supply Point (BSP) project would be completed by August 2021, to benefit over 251,000 households, which would help reduce the reliance on the Mallam BSP for power distribution to the Central Region.



It said upon the completion of the Kasoa project, there would be improvement in reliability and supply quality to Kasoa and its environs, and result in reduction in transmission and distribution losses that was currently being experienced in that part of the country.



They, however indicated that an anticipated power interruptions in relation to the Kasoa project would be communicated to the general public in due course.



Aside the two projects stated earlier, the statement noted that, The AFD funded 161kV Tema  AchimotaMallam transmission reinforcement project, for example, will increase transmission capacity more than four-fold, enabling the transfer of adequate power from the Tema enclave to Accra.



This, it explained, Will provide enough redundancy in the transmission and distribution systems, the statement pointed out, and upon the completion of the Anwomaso-Kintampo transmission project by the end of 2021, would eliminate current transmission bottlenecks and ensure supply reliability to Kumasi and the Northern parts of the country.



All these projects, according to GRIDCo and ECG were aimed at boosting the efficiency of the value chain in order for customers to enjoy quality, reliable and stable power supply.



The two companies on Tuesday, April 20, released a schedule for power cuts in parts of Greater Accra Region, which started four days ago and expected to end on Monday, May 17, 2021, and have since made available, a timetable for the eight days exercise to guide affected customers and the general public.







Source: Graphiconline.com









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The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has called on the Government to take decisive steps to ban the use of mercury in small-scale mining.



He said the use of mercury in gold processing should be banned given its toxicity to the environment and human health.



Speaking at the regional consultative dialogue on small-scale mining in Kumasi, Otumfuo Osei Tutu said the prohibition of the use of mercury, which was already in force in international mining practices and standards, was necessary to ensure the safety of the people.



He said the country ought to promote legitimate and responsible small-scale mining and with the exception of properly designed mining alluvial operations, mining near rivers and water bodies should be outlawed.



Scientists say the inhalation of elemental mercury vapors could cause neurological and behavioral disorders and emotional instability, memory loss, and neuromuscular changes.



Additionally, it has the potential to harm the kidney and thyroid.



Otumfuo Osei Tutu underscored the need to train and build the capacities of small-scale miners on the use of less dangerous means of gold recovery to halt damage to the environment.



He said it was imperative that the capacities of the Minerals Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency were improved by resourcing them to effectively regularise and regulate the activities of small-scale miners.



The Asantehene was optimistic that it would ensure compliance with regulatory requirements as well as responsible mining and practices.



Personal safety and sound environmental practices should be a critical aspect of small-scale mining going forward, he said.



As it was with the situation for large-scale mines, reclamation and rehabilitation of mined-out areas ought to be a key aspect of small-scale mining operations, the Asantehene said.



In his view, the renewal of licenses should be contingent on effective mining and reclamation efforts by operators.



Otumfuo Osei Tutu reminded district assemblies of the crucial role they had to play in ensuring small-scale mining activities in Ghana conformed to the required norms.



They should make sure that in collaboration with the regulatory authorities, small-scale mining is effectively monitored so it is done in compliance with the required practices and regulatory framework, and then illegal miners could also be stopped, he stated.



Mr. Samuel Abu Jinapor, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources affirmed the Governments resolve to be ruthless against those caught engaging in illegal mining.



It is a national emergency, which calls for a national consensus, the Minister said and called for a patriotic and non-partisan approach to addressing the menace.



The dialogue brought together participants from the Ashanti, Bono-East, Bono, and Ahafo regions.



It aimed at providing input into the national discourse on the regularisation of the sector through coordination of diverse views.



It was also to develop appropriate policy options with the overarching goal of improving the operation, regulation, management, and good governance of the sector.



Participants included metropolitan, municipal, and district chief executives, traditional authorities, the Chief Executives of the Minerals, Lands, and Forestry commissions.



Others were representatives of political parties, Civil Society Organisations, and organized small-scale mining companies and associations.





Source: GNA









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"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
The Chief Executive Officer of the Securities Warehouse Limited, Adam Bonaa has described the National Security as one of the wasteful agencies in Ghana.



He believes being the foremost intelligent agency it is parked with unintelligent personnel whose background remains questionable.



His comment follows a statement released by the National Security on the attack on two Journalists from Citi FM.



The Journalist, Caleb Kudah had gone to the offices of the National Security to film but was arrested and according to him was manhandled.



Mr. Bonaa who was speaking to Alfred Ocansey on the 3FMs Sunrise Morning Show however noted, I think we should just disregard the statement they put out. They have already made conclusions where they said they are going to investigate so what investigations culminated into you realizing that Caleb used false pretenses to have access to the place. If he did then it means you people are not intelligent. For me they are such an embarrassment to the country.



According to the Security Expert The National Security is one of the wasteful ministries we have in the country parked with unintelligent people. If you know what intelligence means, it means their work is to share intelligence with the Police, Immigration to act upon it.



He believes the unit has some fine brains but they have been pushed back and those who are not smart are those who are doing intelligent work.



In intelligence you dont need muscles to do the work. You can see someone who can barely see, smell or walk and for me that person is a crack intelligent. Have they ever investigated themselves? he questioned.





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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An officer of the Ghana Armed Forces has made a passionate appeal for the extension of the operating caveat of Operation Halt to cover the seizure and destruction of all gold mining equipment within two kilometres radius of rivers.



He cautions that the current mandate of removing and destroying mining equipment within 100 metres radius of rivers will not achieve the desired results.



A trending video of the armed officer and his colleagues in fatigues by the side of a heavily polluted river, has a Chinese, apparently under arrest shedding tears as he is queried over the propriety of his activity.



In the video, two large tubes connecting to pumping plants are submerged in the river and per the officers account, one tube supplies water to an illegal mining site about a kilometre away while the other returns dirty, waste water from washing the gold into the river to further pollute it.



In his estimation, the fight against illegal mining and its attendant destruction of the nations river bodies will not succeed if the current mandate limiting the activities of soldiers deployed in the exercise remains at 100 metres, because the perpetrators have now resorted to operating the illegal mines at considerable distances away from the rivers, and yet continue to pollute the rivers.



So you see it, this is the problem, these guys are well established with machines, plants. They have two plants, one supplying water to their site which is about a kilometre from here, then when they wash the gold, when they wash the gold, they now discharge the water through the second plant into the river. So one of the pipes is supplying their washing machine which is about a kilometer from here, and one is discharging water, the waste water into the river, polluting the river. So this is the main problem, you see. The guys are operating beyond 100 metres from the river, yet their establishments are causing so much destruction to the river. So the caveat we are operating with, the 100 metres caveat is not feasible, its not feasible if we need to really deal with this issue head-on.



We have to review that caveat. We have to review it, the 100 metres, and give us freedom of action so that we can operate fully to achieve the success we all desire, other than that we will finish this operation and these guys will still be on the water and be destroying it, there will not be any change. So if we really need to get serious, we really need to make impact, real impact on the ground. This thing, they should give us a minimum allowable operational distance of two kilometres from the river, anything within two kilometers astride the river we should destroy it. Even this one that we are seeing here is one kilometre from the river but yet they are the very people causing the mayhem, they are the very people destroying the river than even those with the smaller, smaller machines. We need to relook at this, very, very key, very important.



It is not immediately clear exactly when the video was recorded or the location, and while Graphic Online is immediately unable to identify the officer, his passionate appeal comes in the wake of renewed threats by small scale miners to sue the government if it sustains Operation Halt, mandated to stop all mining activities within 100 metres radius of rivers.



President Akufo-Addo in April directed the Ghana Armed Forces to remove all persons and equipment engaged in mining activities on Ghanas rivers, in a renewed effort to stop illegal gold mining or galamsey, and to reclaim polluted rivers. The exercise took off in the Central and Western regions.









Source: Graphiconline.com









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The National Peace Council (NPC) has called on Ghanaians to exercise restraint and be circumspect in their comments and pronouncements on issues of the Wesley Girls Senior High school in Cape Coast.



A press statement issued and signed by Reverend Ernest Adu Gyamfi, the National Chairman of the Council said this was necessary because it would help calm issues, promote peaceful co-existence and ensure tolerance while the issue was being addressed by the appropriate authorities.



The Council respectfully reminds Ghanaians of how far we have come as a people by living together for centuries, it added.



The statement applauded the dialogue between the Muslim Community, Methodist Church and the Ghana Education Service towards the amicable and peaceful resolution of the issue.



It, however, urged all to calm their followers as efforts to build the time-tested peaceful co-existence among Christians and Muslims were made by the relevant authorities and organization.



It further indicated that the Council was taking the appropriate steps to reinforce the commendable initiative.

Source: GNA









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The Center for Democratic Development, Ghana (CDD-Ghana) has issued a statement condemning the recent armed invasion of the premises of Accra-based Citi FM, and the arrest of two of its reporters, and the alleged assault on one, Mr. Caleb Kudah.

CDD-Ghana wants the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) "to thoroughly investigate this and many other incidents of assault on journalists by members of security agencies and bring the perpetrators to justice, in accordance with article 218 of the Constitution."



Read CDD's statement in full below



CDD-Ghana condemns assault of Citi FM reporter by National Security operatives, calls on CHRAJ to investigate and bring perpetrators to book



On Tuesday, May 11, 2021, Mr. Caleb Kudah, a reporter of Citi FM, an Accra-based radio station, was arrested by operatives of the National Security Ministry. He was arrested for allegedly taking unauthorized pictures and videos of vehicles procured with state funds but reportedly abandoned for a long period of time and parked within the premises of the National Security Ministry.



On the same day, armed operatives of the National Security Ministry invaded the premises of Citi FM in an attempt to arrest another reporter, Ms. Zoe Abu-Baidoo, for allegedly receiving the said pictures and videos taken by her colleague, Mr. Kudah. Ms. Abu-Baidoo was released after a few hours, while her colleague Mr. Kudah was released later on the same day.



CDD-Ghana condemns the armed invasion of the stations premises and the attempted arrest of its reporters without regard to the arrest procedure prescribed by law which outlaws the arrest of persons in such situations without a court warrant and caution.



National Security Ministry probes assault of Citi FM journalists



The Center also condemns the reported assault of Mr. Kudah by operatives of the National Security Ministry while he was held in custody. This incident, which follows numerous other cases of assault on journalists by members of security agencies in the recent past, demonstrates a propensity of law enforcement officers to assault journalists with impunity and complete disregard for rights and freedoms of journalists in the pursuit of their constitutional duty.



The suggestion that a journalist using surreptitious means to uncover and expose wrongdoing is unethical and therefore warrants brutal assault by National Security operatives is as absurd as it is undemocratic. The National Security Ministry, a public institution, cannot be immune to public scrutiny and transparency in its operations.



The failure of the relevant State institutions to effectively investigate these frequent assaults on journalists and hold the perpetrators accountable demonstrates a growing trend of complete disregard for the rule of law and fundamental human rights. CDD-Ghana condemns this worrying development which continues to undermine press freedom in an emerging democracy such as ours.



The Center calls on the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to thoroughly investigate this and many other incidents of assault on journalists by members of security agencies and bring the perpetrators to justice, in accordance with article 218 of the Constitution.



Further, the Center calls on government to implement the recommendations of the Emile Short Commission with respect to streamlining the structure and operations of national security agencies, including but not limited to the training of officers of security agencies to internalise and respect human rights in their activities.









Source: Graphiconline.com









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A Zimbabwean chief has denied reports that he had summoned former First Lady Grace Mugabe to his traditional court, in the latest twist in a row over the burial of ex-President Robert Mugabe.



A summons in the name of Chief Zvimba, the traditional chief of Mugabes home region, has been circulating on social media.



It accuses Mrs Mugabe of having gone against local culture by burying her husband at the family homestead, instead of a place "chosen by his relatives and mother".



It says the late president's body should be exhumed and reburied "according to the culture of the Zvimba people".



But according to Zimbabwes private NewsDay paper, the summons was delivered to the Mugabe home in the capital, Harare, by police officers and a presidential aide - and the complainant was actually a man from Mugabes rural village.



"I know nothing about this issue, Chief Zvimba told Newsday.



Mugabe, who led Zimbabwe to independence and ruled for 37 years, died in 2019 in a hospital in Singapore at the age of 95.



His family decided on a private burial in Kutama in Zvimba district - about 90km (55 miles) west of Harare - after weeks of argument with the government led by Emmerson Mnangagwa, who replaced him in 2017.



The army had forced Mugabe to step down after suspicions that he wanted his wife to succeed him.



After his death two years later, he was buried under concrete at a small ceremony in the courtyard of his rural homestead reportedly in a steel coffin. National heroes are normally buried at a national shrine in Harare.



His family says they were simply honouring the former presidents wishes

Source: BBC









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The Ashanti Regional Strategic Business Unit (SBU) of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has expressed worry about the activities of illegal miners, commonly known as galamsey, around the company's installations.

It said aside from disrupting power supplies to its clientele in the region, the activities of the illegal miners were also endangering the lives of the people in the communities.



According to the company, the illegal miners dug around the poles supplying electricity to communities in and around the mining areas, and in the process uprooted the poles.



He said all the poles and installations of the company carried live power, which could pose danger to the lives of the people in the communities.



Concern



In an interview with the Daily Graphic, the Ashanti Regional Communications Manager of ECG, Mr Erasmus Kyere Baidoo, said the company was losing revenue and incurring costs in replacing such poles due to the activities of the illegal miners.



He thus appealed to opinion leaders in those mining communities and residents to help the company to stop the activities of the illegal miners by reporting those working in and around the company's installations to the police.



He said it would be in the interest of the illegal miners themselves and residents to stay away from installations to safeguard their lives and those of fellow residents.



Experience



He said at Akrokerri in the Adansi North District, the activities of the illegal miners led to the destruction of one of the 11KV poles, which cut off power to nearby communities.



He said the conductors also got destroyed in the process and had to be replaced by the company.



Fortunately, he said, the technical team from Obuasi and Kumasi were called in to reposition the pole and replace the conductors to restore power to the affected communities.



He reiterated his call to security agencies, opinion leaders and the community members to keep watch and to protect the ECG installations from the activities of illegal miners.



Printed and Published by the Graphic Communications Group Ltd., graphic road, p. o. Box 742, Accra.









Source: Graphiconline.com









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The Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) has called for absolute independence of the office of the Attorney General (AG) from the Ministry of Justice to enable it to carry out its prosecutorial functions effectively.



Nana Ofori Owusu, National Chairman of the Party who made the call at a news conference in Accra on Wednesday, said the seeming lack of separation of the office from the Ministry of Justice made it practically impossible and difficult for it to prosecute political corruption cases, especially persons from the ruling government.



Article 88 (1 and 2) of the 1992 Constitution states that: There shall be an Attorney-General of Ghana who shall be a Minister of State and the principal legal adviser to the Government.



It also stipulates that: The Attorney-General shall discharge such other duties of a legal nature as may be referred or assigned to him by the President, or imposed on him by this Constitution or any other law.



Mr. Owusu, however, noted that there was a need for an immediate amendment of the Article, which made the AG also the Minister of Justice, to make it more independent and free from political interferences.



History has shown that it has been difficult to deal with political corruption cases because the prosecution is always done by the Attorney General who is also a Minister of State, he said.



He added that: The result is that no AG has been able to prosecute a fellow Minister who is from the same political party. It has always been ex-government appointees and people in the private sector who are seen as political threats who are prosecuted by serving governments Attorney General.



Mr Owusu said that had created the perception that such cases were mere political witch-hunting.



He said the enormous powers of the AG required that he/she was separated from Cabinet to enable them to have the necessary independence to do the job without or with less political considerations.



The PPPs solution is that there must be an independent Attorney General, not a Special Prosecutor who is still under the control of the AG in any way, Mr. Owusu said.



The conference was to address some pertinent issues the Party believed were hampering the development of the country and proposed solutions to them.



The Chairman bemoaned what he said was the shirking of the check and balances responsibility on the Executive by Parliament, a situation he attributed to the infusion of the parliamentary system of government with the presidential system.



"The selection of at least 50 percent of ministers from the legislature denies Parliament the needed brilliant human resource, which is usually selected into the executive to become ministers, he said.



The Chairman said that limited the strength and ability of Parliament to effectively check the executive and properly hold it accountable.



We, the citizens should as a matter of urgency, promote the campaign to amend the constitution to prevent the president from selecting 50 percent of his ministers from amongst the members of parliament, he said.



Mr. Owusu said MPs, who were also appointed as Ministers had little time to perform their parliamentary duties to the detriment of their constituents.



He also reiterated calls for the elections of Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives by the citizens to facilitate development at the local levels

Source: GNA









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A member of the Communication team of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) has taken a swipe at conveners of the hashtag on social media, #fixthecountry.



#Fixthecountry is a social media campaign aimed at keeping the government on its toes to improve the living conditions of Ghanaians.



Saaka Salia speaking on Neat FM's Me Man Nti programme accused #fixthecountry conveners of being mischievous.



"These are a group of mischievous individuals; they are either embarking on this campaign for mischievous purposes or are mere political detractors..."



Listen to him in the video below





Source: Peacefmonline.com









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After marrying his wife, Bill Gates would spend a long weekend every year at a cozy beach cottage in North Carolina  with his old girlfriend.



The billionaire Microsoft founder made sure the bizarre arrangement was part of the deal when he married Melinda French in 1994, he told Time magazine in a 1997 profile.



We can play putt-putt while discussing biotechnology, Gates said of his private getaways with fellow nerd techie and ex Ann Winblad  who is now happily married to actor Kevin Klines detective brother, Alex Kline, a source told The Post on Tuesday.



Gates even sought Winblads approval before proposing to his wife.



When I was off on my own thinking about marrying Melinda, I called Ann and asked for her approval, he said, adding that Winblad gave the other woman the thumbs up.



Read Full Story .... nypost.com >>> :

















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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- While millions of Americans have recently received a third stimulus check, many are waiting on Congress to decide if a fourth check is coming in 2021.

The Internal Revenue Service is distributing more than 1.1 million payments with a value of more than $2 billion in the eighth batch of Economic Impact Payments from the American Rescue Plan, which is part of the third stimulus to help Americans amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

While the White House says stimulus checks are not free, Congress has been tasked with the decision about whether to provide more direct payments to Americans.

And many Americans are pushing for a fourth stimulus payment. More than 2 million people have signed a petition from a Denver, Colo., restaurant owner asking Congress and the Senate to approve monthly government checks of $2,000 until the end of the pandemic.

Here are a few facts surrounding the possibility of a fourth stimulus check:

Many lawmakers are pushing for recurring direct payments throughout 2021 as part of a fourth government package.

President Joe Biden has talked about a potential $3 trillion spending bill for 2021. The new stimulus bill would focus on revving the economy, combatting inequality, and repairing the countrys infrastructure that has been fractured due to the coronavirus pandemic.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was asked during a press briefing last week if the country will see another round of stimulus checks, or even checks every month until the pandemic ends, in Bidens new proposals. Those proposals include the American Jobs Plan or the American Families Plan . Well see what members of Congress propose, but those are not free, she said, referring to the stimulus checks.

The American Families Plan calls for the Child Tax Credit to be extended until 2025. While pleased with the proposed four-year expansion, House Democrats, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, are pushing for the expansion to be made permanent.

Americans previously received two other stimulus checks  $1,200 in March 2020 in the early pandemic, and $600 in December 2020. The third check includes up to $1,400 for single people and dependents and $2,800 for married couples.

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By FARES AKRAM and JOSEPH KRAUSS, The Associated Press

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  An Israeli airstrike destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets on Saturday, the latest step by the military to silence reporting from the territory amid its battle with the militant group Hamas.

The strike came nearly an hour after the military ordered people to evacuate the building, which also housed Al-Jazeera, other offices and residential apartments. The strike brought the entire 12-story building down, collapsing with a gigantic cloud of dust. There was no immediate explanation for why it was attacked.

The strike came hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp in Gaza City killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children, in the deadliest single strike of the current conflict. Both sides pressed for an advantage as cease-fire efforts gathered strength.

The latest outburst of violence began in Jerusalem and has spread across the region, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed cities of Israel. There were also widespread Palestinian protests Friday in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people.

The spiraling violence has raised fears of a new Palestinian intifada, or uprising at a time when there have been no peace talks in years. Palestinians on Saturday were marking Nakba (Catastrophe) Day, when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what was now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. That raised the possibility of even more unrest.

U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived Friday as part of Washingtons efforts to de-escalate the conflict, and the U.N. Security Council was set to meet Sunday. But Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.

Since Monday night, Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which has pounded the Gaza Strip with strikes. In Gaza, at least 139 people have been killed, including 39 children and 22 women; in Israel, eight people have been killed, including the death Saturday of a man killed by a rocket that hit in Ramat Gan, a suburb of Tel Aviv.

The strike on the building housing media offices came in the afternoon, after the buildings owner received a call from the Israeli military warning that it would be hit. APs staff and others in the building evacuated immediately.

Al-Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatars government, broadcast the airstrikes live as the building collapsed.

This channel will not be silence. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced, an on-air anchorwoman said, her voice thick with emotion. We can guarantee you that right now.

Earlier Saturday, an airstrike hit a three-story house in Gaza Citys Shati refugee camp, killing eight children and two women from an extended family.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters his wife and five children had gone to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday with relatives. She and three of the children, aged 6 to 14, were killed, while an 11-year-old is missing. Only his 5-month-old son Omar is known to have survived.

Childrens toys and a Monopoly board game could be seen among the rubble, as well as plates of uneaten food from the holiday gathering.

There was no warning, said Jamal Al-Naji, a neighbor living in the same building. You filmed people eating and then you bombed them? he said, addressing Israel. Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hamas said it fired a salvo of rockets at southern Israel in response to the airstrike.

A furious Israeli barrage early Friday killed a family of six in their house and sent thousands fleeing to U.N.-run shelters. The military said the operation involved 160 warplanes dropping some 80 tons of explosives over the course of 40 minutes and succeeded in destroying a vast tunnel network used by Hamas.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said the military aims to minimize collateral damage in striking military targets. But measures it takes in other strikes, such as warning shots to get civilians to leave, were not feasible this time.

Israeli media said the military believed dozens of militants were killed inside the tunnels. The Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups have confirmed 20 deaths in their ranks, but the military said the real number is far higher.

Gazas infrastructure, already in widespread disrepair because of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after Hamas seized power in 2007, showed signs of breaking down further, compounding residents misery. The territorys sole power plant is at risk of running out of fuel in the coming days.

More:

3 biggest airlines in U.S. halt flights to Israel

Gaza militants, children among 24 dead in Israel airstrikes on Hamas
By Jeremy Roebuck, The Philadelphia Inquirer (TNS)

A week before the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot, top leaders of the Proud Boys convened a video chat to discuss the organizations plans for Washington that day. And Zach Rehl, president of the groups Philadelphia chapter, took a leading role in guiding that conversation, federal prosecutors now say.

Hoping to avoid mistakes from past rallies that had devolved into open street brawls with far-left activists, the group decided this time they would maintain a lower profile. Theyd leave their traditional black-and-gold polo shirts at home, equip themselves with encrypted radios, and focus their attentions on riling up normies  or unaffiliated supporters of President Donald Trump  they could hide behind.

Were doing a completely different operation, Rehl allegedly told the others. Theres gonna be a lot of contingencies and plans that are laid out. Theres gonna be teams that are gonna be put together.

Details of that Dec. 30 video conversation emerged late Thursday in a government court filing that revealed for the first time just how central prosecutors believe Rehl was in directing the Proud Boys actions during the deadly insurrection.

While the 35-year-old former Marine was arrested in March and charged in a federal conspiracy case along with three other top leaders of the organization, authorities had  up until Thursday  released few details putting him at the center of the Proud Boys planning.

Instead, prosecutors primarily directed their fire at two of Rehls codefendants: Joseph Biggs, a Proud Boys organizer from Florida, and Ethan Nordean, of Auburn, Wash., whom authorities have described as the organizations de facto leader on Jan. 6.

Nordean has recently accused the government of withholding records of conversations the men had on private messaging apps that would minimize their role in fomenting violence. Prosecutors responded to that claim with their new filing Thursday, quoting excerpts from thousands of pages of the groups communications, in some cases more damning than any that had been released so far.

The excerpts paint Rehl as not only standing beside Biggs and Nordean as they stormed the Capitol building but also as one of a small inner circle selected weeks in advance to help lead the charge.

According to the filing, the groups national president, Enrique Tarrio, chose Rehl, Nordean, Biggs, and two other Proud Boys leaders prosecutors did not name to form a six-man upper-tier leadership team to organize for the riot.

One member of that group said on the Dec. 30 video call that Rehl spoke with the same authority as Tarrio himself.

Tarrio is not going to tell you something different than Zach is going to tell you, the unnamed leader said. Its all one operation plan.

Lawyers for Rehl, Nordean, and Biggs maintain that the plan their clients were discussing was simply to rally in Washington in support of Trump. None of the men, they argue, arrived with the intention of committing violence or breaching the Capitol perimeter.

The communications quoted in the governments filing Thursday tell a different story.

Drag them out by the (expletive) hair, if they steal it, one of the unnamed members of the inner circle wrote two days before the riot.

Hours before the Capitols perimeter was breached, another Proud Boys leader messaged the group saying he wanted to see thousands of normies burn that city to ash.

Its going to happen, one of his colleagues responded. These normiecons have no adrenaline control. ... They are like a pack of wild dogs.

Photos and videos that have circulated widely on social media show what happened next.

In this Jan. 6, 2021, photo, Proud Boys members Ethan Nordean, left, Zachary Rehl and Joseph Biggs walk toward the U.S. Capitol in Washington, in support of President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Rehl, Nordean, Biggs, and Rehl  wearing a camouflage Make America Great Again cap and carrying a Temple Owls backpack  led a crowd of roughly 100 Proud Boys members from the Washington Monument toward the Capitol security lines.

They threw themselves into the fray as a mob of Trump supporters attacked police and smashed their way into the building. A photo would later surface showing Rehl inside the Capitol, smoking a cigarette amid a mob of rioters carousing in the office of Sen. Jeff Merkley (D., Ore.).

If there was any doubt as to the Proud Boys intentions from the start, prosecutors wrote Thursday, it was put to rest by the leadership teams communications in the hours after the Capitol was cleared.

Im proud ... [of] what we accomplished, Rehl wrote, according to the filing.

Another member of the group shared video of a clash between rioters and police outside the Capitol after the Proud Boys had entered. This could have been us, the man complained.

Tarrio defended their choice to hang back and let others commit the violence. Make no mistake, he wrote, according to the filing. We did this.

FILE - In this Jan. 6. 2021, file photo, people storm the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, file)AP

And when Congress reconvened later that evening to resume certifying President Joe Bidens victory, one member of the six-man leadership team messaged the others: We failed. The House is meeting again.

That sense of disillusionment only grew in the weeks that followed.

Many members of the Proud Boys inner circle had expected they would be hailed as heroes on the right for their actions, their internal communications suggest. But as even some Republicans began condemning the riot as sedition, a sense of betrayal spread.

Supporters of then-President Donald Trump try to break through a police barrier Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. (AP File Photo/Julio Cortez)AP File Photo/Julio Cortez

Within weeks, the FBI began arresting people, including Biggs, who was taken into custody Jan. 20 in Florida  a development that prompted Rehl to message the others to describe the case against their colleague as a steaming pile of dog excrement.

Rehl, Nordean, and a third Proud Boys member, Charles Donohoe, of North Carolina, would soon join Biggs as defendants in a case that now threatens to send them to prison for decades. All four remain in custody pending trial. Tarrio, who was arrested on unrelated charges two days before the riot, has not been charged with participating in the planning.

But as the dragnet closed around them, Nordean apparently had a change of heart.

In one of the last communications quoted by prosecutors in their filing, Nordean cursed the president they had headed to Washington to support, writing: Ive followed this guy for 4 years and given everything and lost it all. ... He led us to believe some great justice was upon us ... and it never happened.

(Expletive) you, Trump, he added. You left us on the battlefield bloody and alone.

More:

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If the weather is clear, you could to catch a glimpse of the NASA rocket that is scheduled to be launched from the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia Saturday.

After six delays in a week  most of which were related to unfavorable weather conditions like cloudy skies or upper-level winds  NASA postponed the launch again Friday night to assess the rocket for potential damage.

NASA is hoping to get its Black Brant XII rocket off the launching pad no earlier than 8:10 p.m. on Saturday, May 15.

The rocket will release a chemical that will create two harmless vapor clouds as part of a mission to study energy and momentum in different regions of the atmosphere.

NASA says the rocket and the greenish-violet vapor clouds may be briefly visible from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York and other eastern states, along with Bermuda  the area where the barium vapors are expected to be released into the sky.

LAUNCH UPDATE  The Black Brant XII launch is now scheduled for no earlier than Saturday, May 15, with the window opening at 8:10 p.m. ET. The team continues to inspect the rocket and launcher after the vehicle came in contact with a launcher support during launch preparations. pic.twitter.com/2IMEkZ8wMn  NASA Wallops (@NASA_Wallops) May 13, 2021

The rocket launch was originally scheduled for Friday, May 7, but the launch was postponed hours in advance because of weather conditions in eastern Virginia, where the Wallops Flight Facility is located.

Rescheduled launches on Saturday, Sunday and Monday were each scrubbed by upper-level winds that were deemed unsafe for the mission.

On Tuesday night, with the rocket on the launch pad and conditions looking favorable at first, the launch was called off with about 1 minute to go in the 40-minute launch window because skies in Bermuda and at the Wallops Flight Facility were deemed to be too cloudy.

NASA postponed the next scheduled launch, on Wednesday night, saying time was needed for an inspection after the rocket came in contact with a launcher support during launch preparations at the agencys flight facility.

A NASA official told Newsweek that the support structure involved in the incident was a metal stand that supports the launch rail.

In abundance of caution it was decided to inspect the integrity of the motors, umbilical connections and sections between the motors to make sure everything is in the proper condition for flight, the official told Newsweek, adding it is normal for these type of science missions to have delays.

This map shows when the NASA rocket may be visible after launch from the Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia. NASA says two vapor clouds will form north of Bermuda about 9 minutes and 30 seconds after launch as part of the mission and may also be visible from the eastern United States and Bermuda.NASA

If the launch goes off as scheduled Saturday, it can be watched on NASAs live video stream.

To watch in person, keep an eye on the southeastern sky.

Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com.

More: NASA simulation confirms theres no technology able to stop a massive asteroid from hitting
LEWISBURG - Bucknell University has retained an outside firm to investigate what top officials are calling a horrific incident involving the student LGBTQ+ community.

In a letter Friday, Bucknell University President John Bravman and two other top administrators condemned the intimidation and harassment at Tower House: Frans House, the center of student life for the LGBTQ+ student community. Bravman also bluntly criticized the universitys public safety officers response to the incident.

Named for Fran McDaniel, the late director of the universitys LGBT office, the house provides gender-neutral housing and a safe place for LGBTQ+ individuals and allies on campus.

We are both outraged and sorrowful that the residents endured this violation of the space that is so critically important to them as a community, Bravmans letter states. These actions will not be tolerated. (Read the letter from Bucknell leaders.)

Public safety reported a group of students approached the former Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity house and allegedly harassed and intimidated residents attempting to enter the building.

It is clear from multiple accounts that the students violated the physical space and, far more importantly, the residents sense of place and security, the letter states.

Further, it is equally clear that Bucknell public safetys response to the incident was lacking in myriad ways.

We are gravely concerned about these potential violations of the Student Code of Conduct.

In response, the university has retained an outside firm to conduct an immediate investigation of these actions and submit a full report to Bucknell administration as soon as possible.

Based on the findings of this external review, appropriate consequences for the students behavior will be swiftly determined and implemented.

We have also engaged an outside firm to immediately investigate public safetys response and will implement corrective and disciplinary measures as appropriate.

Additionally, we will implement additional educational and professional development for public safety officers to foster a better sense of safety and belonging for all members of the Bucknell community.

Many in the Bucknell community have offered support for Tower House residents, the letter states. It cites counseling and academic support that may be necessary as finals are just beginning.

We will also be continuing conversations with Frans House affinity group students about their future housing needs and working to identify and designate a permanent residence for members of our LGBTQ+ community, the letter continues.

We cannot erase the ugliness and subsequent trauma of last nights transgression against the students of Frans House  but we can commit to addressing it in a way that protects LGBTQ+ Bucknellians and better ensures their safety in the future.

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If you requested a mail-in ballot to vote in Pennsylvanias primary election but figure you may be out of time to send it in the mail, you still have some options.

Some counties have drop boxes or satellite offices where you can return mail-in ballots or absentee ballots. The primary election is Tuesday, May 18. All ballots - including mail-in ballots - must be returned by 8 p.m. on May 18.

In the Harrisburg region, some counties (but not all) have drop-off boxes. Some are placed at locations that may be more convenient for those who live far from their county election office.

Dauphin County

Voters can use a drop-off box located by the front entrance of the Dauphin County administration building at 2 S. Second St. in Harrisburg. Its available at all hours.

Dauphin County residents also can return ballots to the Northern Dauphin Human Services Center at 295 State Drive in Elizabethville. This option is available weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Cumberland County

A drop-off box is located in the lobby of the county election office at 1601 Ritner Highway, Suite 201. Its available from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, May 17 and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Lebanon County

Voters can use a drop box at the election office at 400 S. 8th Street, Room 209, Lebanon, 17042. Its available from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, May 17 and until 8 p.m. on Election Day.

York County

A drop-off box is located inside the front door of the county administrative center at 28 E. Market St. in downtown York. It can be used from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, May 17 and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day. Also, a drive-thru option will be available at that location on Saturday, May 15, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Perry County

In Perry County, the drop-off option is to take it to the board of commissioners room at Veterans Memorial Building at 25. W. Main St., New Bloomfield. This can be done weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and until 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Find your box

Pennsylvanias elections website offers a full list where you can find drop boxes, your county elections office or satellite locations.

You should know

You cant return a mail-in ballot or absentee ballot at your polling place. But if you didnt fill out the mail-in ballot, you can surrender it and vote with a regular ballot.

If you requested a mail-in ballot and it didnt arrive, you can vote by provisional ballot at your polling place.

Dont know where your polling place is? Find it here on the states election website.

The Pennsylvania primary election features contest for municipal races, school board elections, county contests and judicial races.

There are also four ballot questions, including two related to a governors powers in declaring emergencies. All registered voters can vote on the ballot questions, but many races will be limited to members of the Democratic or Republican parties.

There are four special elections to fill vacancies in the Pennsylvania General Assembly, and all registered voters can cast ballots in special elections. Theres a special election to fill a vacant seat in the Pennsylvania Senates 48th District, which covers all of Lebanon County and parts of Dauphin and York counties. The other seats are in western Pennsylvania and northeastern Pennsylvania.

If youre not a registered voter, youve missed your chance to vote in the primary. But you can register to vote in the general election in November. You can do it online at the states elections website.

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Knoebels and Dutch Wonderland have become the latest central Pennsylvania amusement parks to drop the face mask mandate for anyone who is fully vaccinated.

Dutch Wonderland and Hersheypark announced that in light of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)s latest guidance, masks and social distancing will only be required this season for those who arent or are only partially vaccinated for the coronavirus.

Knoebels said face masks are not required outside, but anyone over 2 must put one on to go into an indoor attraction. Employees will continue to wear face coverings at all times, the attraction said on Facebook. Those over the age of 2 who are not or only partially vaccinated must wear masks at all times, except while eating or drinking.

These new policies go into effect immediately. However, none of the parks have announced measures to verify whether guests have actually been fully vaccinated.

As we begin the Summer 2021 season, we will continue to modify our operations to best protect our staff and visitors from COVID-19, Dutch Wonderland said on its website. While we are committed to enhanced standards in an effort to keep you as healthy and safe as possible, there remains an inherent and elevated risk of exposure to COVID-19 in any public place and any place where people are present.

Throughout the pandemic, we have followed the guidance from our national and state health experts to provide a safe environment for our guests and team members, the post read. The CDC and the Pennsylvania Department of Health concluded that those who are fully vaccinated are no longer required to wear face coverings in most situations.

More information on Knoebels, Dutch Wonderland and Hersheyparks COVID-19 safety measures can be found on their websites.

READ: Pa. businesses can still require masks, even under new federal guidance

Masks still required at many central Pa. grocery stores, including Giant, Karns and Weis
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  The mayor of Mississippis capital city and a state senator both apologized Saturday for shootings 51 years ago by city and state police officers that killed two people and injured 12 others on the campus of a historically Black college.

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and state Sen. Hillman Frazier of Jackson spoke during a graduation ceremony for the Class of 1970 of what was then Jackson State College, now Jackson State University.

Lumumba apologized on behalf of the city to the families of the two men whose lives were cut short by the violent police response to the protest against racial injustice. Killed were 21-year-old Jackson State student Phillip Lafayette Gibbs and 17-year-old James Earl Green, a high school student who was on campus while walking home from work.

Jackson States 1970 commencement was canceled because of the bloodshed, and graduates that year received their diplomas in the mail, if at all. On Saturday, 74 of the 400-plus 1970 grads donned caps and gowns and stood in the sunshine to receive the recognition denied to them a lifetime ago.

As James Baldwin once wrote: When we cannot tell the truth about our past, we become trapped in it, Lumumba said. I believe, as a city, we must publicly atone for the sins of our past and proclaim a new identity of dignity, equity and justice.

The May 15, 1970, shootings at Jackson State had largely been overshadowed by violence from days earlier, when Ohio National Guardsmen shot and killed four Kent State University students amid a Vietnam War protest.

Lumumba and Frazier are both Black, and both represent a city now more than 80% Black. Jackson was majority-white in 1970, and the Jackson Police Department and Mississippi Highway Patrol officers who went on campus were white.

Lumumba said the Jackson Police Department officers unjustly gunned down two innocent young Black men, terrorized and traumatized a community of Black students and committed one of the gravest sins in our citys history.

Frazier was a Jackson State student in 1970. He said he had gone to dinner that night and was delayed in returning to campus. But he believes he might have been standing near his friend Gibbs during the gunfire, if not for that delay.

The state of Mississippi never apologized for the tragedy that occurred on this campus that night  never apologized, Frazier said. So, since Im here representing the state of Mississippi in my role as state senator, Id like to issue an apology to the families, the Jackson State family, for the tragedy that occurred that night because they took very valuable lives.

Officers marched onto Jackson State the night of May 14, 1970, to quell protests against racial injustice. According to a report by President Richard Nixons Commission on Campus Unrest, Jackson State students had been throwing rocks at white motorists. James Lap Baker, a member of the Class of 1970, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that students were fed up with white people driving through campus shouting racial slurs, throwing bottles and endangering Black pedestrians.

Students had gathered outside the Alexander Hall womens dormitory and B.F. Roberts dining hall across the street  some protesting, others simply enjoying each others company as women returned to the dorm before curfew.

After midnight that May 15, a Highway Patrol officer used a bullhorn to address students, Baker said. Someone in the crowd threw a bottle, and officers started shooting indiscriminately, later falsely claiming they had seen a sniper in a dorm window.

A Jackson TV reporter recorded 28 seconds of gunfire. When it had ended, Gibbs and Green were dead and 12 other people were bleeding. Windows of Alexander Hall shattered and its walls were left with pockmarks still visible today.

John A. Peoples Jr., who was Jackson State president from 1967 to 1984, said during Saturdays ceremony that he remembers the sickening smell of blood streaming down the stairway of Alexander Hall after the shootings.

We sat on that lawn the rest of the night singing freedom songs, Peoples said.

Baker crawled through grass after the shootings to return unharmed to his off-campus apartment after what he calls a planned massacre. No officer ever faced criminal charges, and an all-white jury awarded no money to the Black victims families in a civil lawsuit.

Jackson State on Saturday awarded posthumous honorary doctorate degrees to Gibbs and Green, and their sisters accepted those. The graduation took place on the site of the once-busy street that was closed years ago and turned into a pedestrian zone named the Gibbs-Green Memorial Plaza.
DRUMS  A McClure woman is a victim of a serial killer after a Luzerne County detective said the 43-year-old man beat and stabbed the woman to death before waiting three months to collect her skeleton and dispose of the remains in a dumpster in Columbia County.

Harold David Haulman III, 43, was arrested Friday for the death of 25-year-old Tianna Phillips, who went missing in 2018. Haulman was charged as he walked in for a hearing in a December homicide case where he is charged with killing Erica Shultz, 26, of Bloomsburg. In addition to those cases, investigators are also looking into his possible involvement in a 16-year-old homicide case in Michigan.

Haulman, charged by Luzerne County detective and former state trooper Shawn Williams, waived his preliminary hearing on the December murder charges and was immediately arraigned on the Phillips murder charges Friday before District Judge Daniel ODonnell.

Haulman, listed on court documents as a transient with no permanent address, also was met by Michigan investigators. They said that they were in the state because of ties to a 16-year old Michigan cold case where a 21-year-old pregnant woman went missing. Luzerne County Assistant District Attorney Dan Zola said Haulman is a person of interest in the Michigan case. Investigators contacted law enforcement in Michigan when Haulman mentioned the womans name during the investigation, he said.

Zola, who said the district attorneys office is discussing the death penalty for Haulman, said a serial killer is off the streets after Haulman was arrested on the second count of homicide.

Haulman kept his head down while being led into the courtroom. He did not speak to reporters and walked right by a crowd of Shultz and Phillips family members outside the district judges office.

Investigators from Michigan said Haulman has links to Ashley Parlier, a pregnant 21-year-old who went missing from Battle Creek, Michigan in 2005. Zola said Haulman was also convicted in the late 1990s in Germany of murder but was able to get the charge reduced, which ultimately set him free from prison across seas. Michigan Detective Dave Homminga said Friday he plans to release more information about the case next week.

If these situations dont match the definition of what a serial killer is, then nothing does, Zola said.

Connection made

Phillips was reported missing by her sister Toshia Feaster on June 13, 2018. The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) agency opened a file last year on Phillips who police said was last residing in Berwick when Feaster said she went missing.

Berwick police at the time would not discuss the case with The Daily Item other than confirming an investigation into Phillips disappearance was underway in 2018. Feaster, who attended Fridays arraignment, told The Daily Item in 2018 and the family believed from the day she was reported missing something bad had already happened.

On Dec. 6, 2020, relatives reported Erica Shultz missing to the Bloomsburg Police Department. During that investigation, law enforcement learned Shultz was in contact with Haulman when detective Williams interviewed Haulmans wife, Anne Haulman.

Investigators say Feaster spoke with police after Haulmans arrest in Shultzs death in December and informed them Haulman had been in contact with her sister. Feaster said she had text message conversations with Haulman about her sisters disappearance, which she provided to Williams. In one of the text messages, Feaster asked Haulman if he knew where her sister was and Haulman responded: I dont know where she is, according to the transcript.

Anne Haulman told police that Haulman was involved with Phillips, according to court documents. Anne Haulman told investigators Haulman and Phillips were seeing each other and that he became irate when she confronted him about the situation, police said.

On June 13, Haulman left a residence in Duncannon and told his wife he was going to scout out a spot, and didnt return until June 14, police said. When Haulman returned, Anne Haulman said he told her he had killed Phillips, police said. The woman didnt believe him and later in the day Haulman returned home and showed her two photos of what appeared to be a dead woman, police said.

In September 2018, Haulman returned to the location of Phillipss body and collected items, police said. Haulman asked his wife to go with him and she told investigators she went because she was in fear of her life, police said.

Once the couple arrived at a location in Luzerne County, Haulman exited the vehicle, while his wife remained inside, police said. Haulman returned 20 minutes later with a garbage bag that appeared to have contents in them, police said Anne Haulman told investigators. Haulman told his wife he removed Phillipss skull, clothing and ribcage from the area, police said. Police said Haulman dumped the trash bags in a dumpster behind a movie theatre on Route 11 in Scott Township.

Zola said Phillipss body or the weapons allegedly used have not been recovered.

Letters, confessions

Last summer, the relationship began to dissolve and the two separated, police said. Haulman later wanted to reconcile with his wife and he sent her a birthday and anniversary card and told her he authored a confession letter about the Phillips homicide to ensure he would never hurt her, police said Anne Haulman told investigators.

The letter, part of the criminal complaint, stated on June 13, 2018, Haulman picked up Phillips and took her for a drive. Haulman wrote that he pulled a knife out and attacked Phillips from behind. Haulman continued in the letter that he returned to the scene months later and retrieved evidence and disposed of it in a dumpster, police said. I, Harold David Haulman, committed this crime on my own and of my own free will, David Haulman, the letter ended, according to police.

During a December interview with Williams and other troopers, Haulman began to make references to the girl from Berwick, police said. Haulman admitted to killing Phillips and began to provide the location of where her body was located, police said.

Haulman told police he had a relationship with Phillips and his wife found out and that he killed Phillips because his wife wanted him to, police said. Haulman said after he picked up Phillips he thought to himself, I may as well get this over with and thats when it hit him, I need help, Haulman told investigators, according to police.

After the murder, Haulman said he changed his clothes and drove to an area of the Susquehanna River, directly across the river from Sunbury, and tossed the hammer and knife, police said.

During a Jan. 4 interview of Haulman, Williams said Haulman asked him if all three cases, Shultz, Phillips, and Parlier would be combined because he was not interested in a trial, police said. That was the first time the name of Parlier was mentioned, police said.

Haulman told investigators he would take them on a field trip, and lets get this thing over with, according to a criminal complaint.

Numb

Feaster, of McClure, attended the arraignment Friday morning with other family members. She said she was saddened but relieved there was an arrest.

I cant thank Detective Shawn Williams and state police enough, she said. I also want to thank The Daily Item for allowing me to tell my story in 2018 when no one would listen to me.

Phillipss aunt, Julie Martin, of Beaver Springs, said she was numb.

I dont know how else to describe this, she said. We are just so thankful for the support we received from law enforcement from the state police, Shawn Williams, and Dan Zola.

Former Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis said when Bloomsburg Police reached out to her in December, she immediately sent Williams to investigate.

From a prosecutors view, seeing and sitting with victims makes you understand and feel the pain they are in, Salvantis said. When we learned of these cases and spoke with families, I knew we needed to do all we could for those families. I am happy that both these families now have some answers. and I am proud of how our office, the Bloomsburg Police Department and state police all worked together on this. Thats how it should be.

Zola said he feels for the victims families.

We all want the families to know we are here for them, he said.

Williams said the case is unique.

This is something that our area doesnt see, he said. I want to let all the victims families know we are here for them and I want to thank the Luzerne County District Attorneys Office, the state police, Bloomsburg Police, and the FBI for their assistance in this investigation.

Haulman is due back in court at 11 a.m. on May 25 in Drums for a preliminary hearing on the Phillips murder charge.
Story by JEFF MARTIN, FRANK BAJAK and NOMAAN MERCHANT

Gas shortages at the pumps have spread from the South, all but emptying stations in Washington, D.C., following a ransomware cyberattack that forced a shutdown of the nations largest gasoline pipeline. Though the pipeline operator paid a ransom, restoring service was taking time.

As Georgia-based Colonial Pipeline reported making substantial progress in restoring full service, multiple sources confirmed that the company had paid the criminals a ransom of nearly $5 million in cryptocurrency for the software decryption key required to unscramble their data network.

The ransom  75 Bitcoin  was paid last Saturday, a day after the criminals locked up Colonials corporate network, according to Tom Robinson, co-founder of the cryptocurrency-tracking firm Elliptic. Prior to Robinsons blog post, two people briefed on the case had confirmed the payment amount to The Associated Press.

The FBI advises against paying such ransoms because it only encourages a global criminal feeding frenzy that has worsened during the pandemic. But many ransomware victims  especially those ill-prepared for a quick recovery with carefully managed backups  opt to pay.

President Joe Biden said Thursday that his administration would seek to put the responsible Russian-speaking ransomware syndicate out of business, and its operators later said they were shutting down. Biden has said he intends to speak directly to Russian President Vladimir Putin about his governments harboring of ransomware criminals that have caused tens of billions of dollars in damages in the West in the past year. The pipeline shutdown is the most damaging cyberattack on U.S. soil.

The tracking service GasBuddy.com on Friday showed that 88% of gas stations were out of fuel in the nations capital, 45% were out in Virginia and 39% of Maryland stations were dry. About 65% of stations were without gas in North Carolina, and nearly half were tapped out in Georgia and South Carolina.

There are ample supplies of gasoline in Pennsylvania, according to the GasBuddy tracker, which showed no shortages in the Harrisburg area. Gov. Tom Wolf urged residents to avoid panic-driven purchases of gas.

Were monitoring potential impacts from the Colonial Pipeline shutdown, but Pennsylvanians should know we are expecting minimal impact in our commonwealth, Wolf said on Twitter Wednesday.

Earlier this week, Sheetz and The Giant Company said they were seeing some temporary disruptions. Retailers said Pennsylvania shouldnt see any severe issues unless people begin buying more than they need.

Colonial said Thursday that operations had restarted and gasoline deliveries were being made in all of its markets, but it would take several days to return to normal.

A gas station owner in Virginia said panic buying is the problem.

Its like a frenzy, Barry Rieger, who owns a gas station in Burke, Virginia, told WJLA-TV.

Many authorities are warning of the dangers of hoarding gas.

In South Carolina, a woman was severely burned after flipping a car that a deputy tried to pull over for a suspected stolen license plate Thursday night. The fire touched off multiple explosions due to fuel that she was hoarding in the trunk of the vehicle, a Pickens County sheriffs statement said.

A cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them hit the pipeline on May 7. The hackers didnt take control of the pipelines operations, but Colonial shut it down to prevent the malware from impacting its industrial control systems.

Biden has promised aggressive action against DarkSide, the syndicate responsible for the attack. Its public-facing darknet site went offline on Thursday, and its operators said in a cybercriminal forum post that the group had lost access to it and would be shutting down.

This does not necessarily mean U.S. or allied cyberjockeys knocked it offline. Cybersecurity experts said that DarkSide, which rents out its ransomware to partners to carry out the actual attacks, could have taken it down to prevent Western law enforcement from tracking down the rest of its infrastructure.

It could also be an exit scam, many noted. Ransomware gangs have dissolved and rebranded under different names in the past when the heat was on. In his blog post, Robinson of Elliptic said the cryptocurrency wallet used by DarkSide to receive the Colonial payment was emptied on Thursday.

Yelisey Boguslavskiy, director of research of the cybersecurity firm Advanced Intelligence, noted that the moderator of a top darknet forum for Russian-speaking cybercriminals, XSS, said Thursday that he was officially prohibiting all ransomware-related activity and discussion on the forum.

That could suggest fears of a U.S. crackdown  or pressure from the Kremlin. While there is no indication the Kremlin benefits from ransomware extortion, U.S. officials say ransomware gangs are tolerated by Russias security services, which have employed some of their members.

DarkSide stole information from Colonials network prior to locking up the data on May 7. What it stole is unclear. The company is not saying. DarkSide is among the ransomware gangs that employ double extortion, threatening to dump online sensitive data they steal before activating the ransomware. In Colonials case, that could potentially include data on contracts with suppliers that would be of keen interest to stock and commodities traders.

The Colonial Pipeline system stretches from Texas to New Jersey and delivers about 45% of the gasoline consumed on the East Coast.

Richard Joswick, global head of oil analytics at S&P Global Platts, said gas stations should be back to normal next week if the pipeline restart goes as planned and consumers are convinced they no longer need to panic-buy fuel. Full recovery would take several more weeks, he estimated.

-

Bajak reported from Boston, Martin from Marietta, Ga., and Merchant in Washington. Freida Frisaro in Miami also contributed.
A 25-year-old Catasauqua woman is charged with poisoning her 14-month-old son with vape oil in February at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Salisbury Township, the Lehigh County District Attorneys Office reports.

Alexia Tretter, of the 1000 block of Third Street, was arraigned Wednesday afternoon before District Judge Michael Joseph Pochron on charges of aggravated assault (two counts) and endangering the welfare of a child. She was released on $25,000 unsecured bail pending a preliminary hearing tentatively scheduled 1:30 p.m. May 27 before the same judge, records show.

The baby initially arrived with her mother at 12:05 p.m. Feb. 26 in the emergency room and was suffering from trouble breathing or asthma, court papers say. The baby was treated and cleared for discharge by the next morning, court papers say.

But he soon went into distress, with Tretter telling medical personnel that he was coughing, gagging and vomiting, court papers say. When medical staff came back in the room several minutes later, they saw the child had been put back on oxygen, and Tretter was still in the room, court papers say.

A relative arrived a couple of hours later and said the baby was lethargic and not himself as Tretter went outside to vape and call her mother, court papers say. The baby was changed and slept throughout the visit, which ended about 2:30 p.m., court papers say.

Just after 3:30 p.m., the baby suffered seizures, coughing, gagging and throwing up, court papers say. A toxicology specimen was taken and would later show a nicotine level of 299 ml in the babys system, court papers say.

After a pediatric intensive care team alert, the baby was moved to an ICU, court papers say. Tretter was exhibiting odd behavior around the baby, but the child was perking up and responding well, court papers say.

About 6:15 p.m., Tretter notified staff that oxygen was removed and the baby had begun to vomit again, court papers say. The babys heart rate jumped to 190 beats per minute, authorities said.

There was a strong fruity smell in the room, and Tretter was asked if she gave something to the baby or had lotion, court papers say. She initially denied both but later told another nurse that she had used lotion, court papers say.

A nurse asked Tretter if she gave the baby vape oil to drink and Tretter denied it, saying, No, that would kill him, court papers say.

The baby was intubated and Tretter began moving equipment and videotaping, court papers say. She adjusted a camera on an EEG machine and was told to stop touching equipment, court papers say.

Early the next morning, toxicology samples were twice taken from the baby and showed deadly high levels of nicotine and cotinine  specifically vape oil  in the baby, court papers say.

These high levels were a direct result of ingestion of vape oil by the baby, court papers say.

Tretter was ordered removed from the room, and the baby recovered with no more incidents, court papers say. The baby was released March 3, court papers say.

Tretter was confronted about why she did this to the baby and she began to cry, court papers say.

Ultimately, the defendant admitted to poisoning (the baby) with vape oil, court papers say.

Tretter doesnt have a listed phone number and couldnt be reached for comment. She is being represented by the county public defenders office but a specific attorney had yet to be assigned, court records show.

Tony Rhodin can be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com.

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A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
PHILADELPHIA (AP)  A day after Philadelphias health commissioner was forced to resign over the cremation of partial remains belonging to victims of a 1985 bombing of the headquarters of a Black organization, the city now says those remains were never actually destroyed.

Mayor Jim Kenney released a statement late Friday saying that the remains of MOVE bombing victims thought to have been cremated in 2017, under orders from Health Commissioner Thomas Farley, were located at the medical examiners office that afternoon. Among the 11 slain when police bombed MOVEs headquarters, causing a fire that spread to more than 60 row homes, were five children.

I am relieved that these remains were found and not destroyed, however I am also very sorry for the needless pain that this ordeal has caused the Africa family, Kenney said, adding that many unanswered questions surround the case  including why Farleys order wasnt obeyed.

Kenney compelled Farley to resign Thursday, the 36th anniversary of the MOVE bombing, after consulting the victims family members. At the time, the mayor said Farleys decision to order the cremation and disposal of the remains, without notifying the decedents family members, lacked empathy.

FILE - In this Feb. 3, 2021, file photo, Philadelphia Health commissioner Dr. Tom Farley, left, speaks with members of the media as Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney listens during a news conference at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia. Kenney said in a statement Thursday, May 13, 2921, that Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley decided to cremate and dispose of the remains several years ago. Farley was forced to resign after Kenney said he learned human remains from the 1985 bombing of the headquarters of a Black organization had been cremated and disposed of without notifying family members. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)AP

In a statement released by the mayors office Thursday, Farley said that he was told by the citys medical examiner, Dr. Sam Gulino, that a box had been found containing materials related to MOVE bombing victims autopsies. The box turned out to contain bones and bone fragments.

It is a standard procedure to retain specimens after an autopsy ends and the remains are turned over to the decedents next-of-kin, Farley said  but not wanting to cause more anguish, he ordered their disposal on his own authority, without consulting other top city officials.

After recent reports that local institutions had remains of MOVE bombing victims, Farley said he reconsidered his actions. Kenney said Farley told him about his order late Tuesday, took responsibility and resigned from the $175,000-a-year job hed held for five years.

I profoundly regret making this decision without consulting the family members of the victims and I extend my deepest apologies for the pain this will cause them, Farley wrote Thursday.

Gulino was also placed on leave pending an investigation. Kenneys statement Friday didnt mention Farley or Gulino by name, but promised the investigation would continue with full transparency for the victims family.

An attorney for the victims family members, Leon A. Williams, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that city officials, including Kenney, had notified the family Friday.

Kenneys statement said the family members and their representatives were able to ask the medical examiners office questions and he pledged to turn over the remains once the investigation was complete.

There are also clearly many areas for improvement in procedures used by the Medical Examiners Office, he wrote.

A lawyer who had accompanied MOVE members to a meeting with Kenney prior to Fridays revelations, Michael Coard, had said they were outraged, enraged, incensed, but mostly confused by what was thought to have been the destruction of the remains. He said Thursday that a lawsuit was possible.

Williams did not describe the familys reaction to Fridays news to the Inquirer.

Late Thursday, dressed all in white, MOVE members read a minute-by-minute account of the bombing and the confrontation that led up to it: Philadelphia police, attempting to serve warrants on four members and evict the rest of the Black back-to-nature group, dropped a bomb from a helicopter, igniting fuel for a generator stored on the roof.

Members on Thursday recounted alleged comments from the city emergency officials directing first responders to let the house burn. Fire department leaders later said they were scared their firefighters could face gunfire if they attempted to get to the home in the middle of the block. The fire quickly spread, displacing more than 250 people.

The city appointed a commission to investigate the decisions that led to the bombing, and in 1986 it issued a report calling the decision to bomb an occupied row house unconscionable. MOVE survivors were awarded a $1.5 million judgment in a 1996 civil lawsuit.

City officials claimed at the time that neighbors had filed complaints, saying there were issues with sanitation, vermin and noise at odd hours. But documents gathered by the commission and in the research into the bombing showed city officials, including the mayor, had designated the group as a terrorist organization. Group members maintained they had been targeted since the 1978 eviction attempt where a police officer was killed and called the complaints explanation a lie.

I hope that this latest discovery can give them some level of solace, Kenney said of MOVE members Friday.

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A very explosive situation: The anniversary of the MOVE bombing in Philadelphia
Connie Beard was hopeful.

The 20-year-old Harrisburg resident had recently gained the right to vote, thanks to a constitutional amendment that lowered the voting age from 21 to 18.

I really think a lot of young people will go out and vote and there will be a change as more become involved in politics and government, Beard told The Patriot in 1971. Maybe now the politicians will wake up and think about the things young people are saying; maybe theyll listen. "

Fifty years ago and in record time, the United States ratified the 26th Amendment, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 in all elections. About 10 million people became enfranchised.

In the Harrisburg area, young people were divided over whether their new ability to vote would make a significant difference in American politics.

Passing the amendment

Efforts to alter the voting age began during World War II when the federal government lowered the military draft age to 18, according to Smithsonian Magazine. If 18-year-olds could risk death for their government, then they should be able to vote for the type of government theyre risking their lives for, the argument went.

In the 1960s, a time of intense youth activism, Pennsylvania joined other states in seeking to lower the voting age.

KNOW YOUR CANDIDATES: PennLives 2021 primary election voters guide

In March 1969, young people spoke to the Pennsylvania House State Government Committee at a hearing on the issue. The Patriot summed up their arguments for why they should be able to vote:

 Youths are more educated and mature than past generations.

 Youths are more politically aware and active.

 Youths feel alienated and want to participate in the political system.

 If young people are old enough to die for their country, theyre old enough to help decide who will run it.

Arguments against lowering the age included worries that 18-year-olds werent mature or knowledgeable enough to vote, especially in a time of campus unrest.

In February 1970, Pennsylvania passed a state constitutional amendment lowering the voting age to 19.

Later that year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that Congress could lower the voting age for federal elections but not state and local races.

Recognizing that this would cause complexity at the polls  Pennsylvania, for example, would have to provide a separate ballot for 18-year-olds  Congress pushed for a constitutional amendment setting 18 as the minimum age for all elections.

The measure was ratified in 100 days, the shortest time of any constitutional amendment in American history. President Richard Nixon certified the amendment July 5, 1971.

What new midstate voters thought

With newly enfranchised voters in their midst, central Pennsylvania schools used the amendment as an opportunity to educate students about civics.

In the fall of 1971, Harrisburg High School implemented a voter awareness program, the culmination of which was a mock election on a voting machine. About 1,100 11th- and 12th-graders voted for city and county candidates in the off-year election.

Young people interviewed by The Patriot in the months after the amendment was ratified were divided on whether their age group would have an impact and whether the ability to vote even mattered.

It really doesnt mean too much to me. Theres nobody I want to vote for, said Anne St. Peter, 18, of Camp Hill. If young people go to the polls, they could help to change things  thats if they go. But I dont think they will have that much of an impact.

On the other hand, David Hall, 18, of New Cumberland, said: When I heard about the vote passing, I felt a little more powerful in the community; I felt I could actually do something.

Some hoped young voters wouldnt give in to apathy.

Since Im black, I know black people have become apathetic about politics, said Emma Givens, 19, of Harrisburg. Most candidates dont represent a black view, especially nationally. So many young black people feel voting is a case of putting into office the lesser of two evils. But I feel the vote is the one way we can make some changes in this system, and I think youth should utilize the privilege. In the long run, I do think it will bring about effective change.

Stephen R. Reed, 22 and future mayor of Harrisburg, said young people could bring change by assuming positions in political parties, such as ward leader and committee member.

If even one per cent of young voters would become active in their parties, the impact would be fantastic on candidate selection and platforms, Reed said.

In the 1972 election, which Nixon won in a landslide, 50% of those ages 18 to 24 cast ballots, according to the Census Bureau.

Even lower

Low turnout among young voters has long been lamented, although 57% of voters ages 18 to 34 cast ballots in 2020, up from 49% in 2016, the Census Bureau reported.

Efforts to lower the voting age continue today.

In March, for example, the U.S. House rejected a proposal by Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., to lower the voting age to 16 in congressional and presidential elections.

In the state House this year, Rep. Brandon Markosek, D-Allegheny County, introduced a bill that would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to pre-register to vote.

Joe McClure is a news editor for The Patriot-News. Follow him on Instagram: @jmcclure5nine.

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Ebrahim Raisi, head of Iran's judiciary attends the Interior Ministry to register his candidacy for the June 18 presidential elections at the elections headquarters of the Interior Ministry in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, May 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
For students jazzed about music, Joye in Aiken has some news of note.

From June 24-27, Joye in Aiken (the nonprofit organization known for its Festival and Outreach Program featuring Juilliard artists) will present a four-day Jazz Camp open to student musicians from eighth through 12th grades.

The non-residential camp will be held in partnership with USC Aiken and will take place on the university campus.

The camp will be led by Joye in Aiken Artistic Director for Jazz Riley Mulherkar. Mulherkar is a Juilliard-trained jazz trumpeter and a 2019 recipient of Lincoln Centers prestigious Emerging Artist Award.

Trombone superstar and Juilliard alumnus Wycliffe Gordon will teach a master class as a guest clinician. Also participating as faculty members will be Juilliard-trained pianist Mathis Picard, along with fellow Juilliard alumni Bryan Carter (drums) and Dan Chmielinski (string bass).

Sandra Field, president of the Joye in Aiken Board of Trustees, explains that the campers will stay very busy with classes and other activities over the entire jazz-filled weekend.

The camp opens with registration on Thursday afternoon, June 24, Field said. Thats followed by the Jazz Explosion concert that evening, which features the faculty members. On Friday and Saturday, the students will be in classes from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. On Sunday, theyll be rehearsing for, and presenting, a concert for the public. So their schedule will be very full, but theyll also have time to jam with each other and make new friends.

She notes that the intensive curriculum for the camp will focus on rehearsing and performing as part of a jazz combo; jazz improvisation, playing and skill building; music theory; and jazz history and appreciation.

Jim Capalino, a member of the Joye in Aiken Board and the major sponsor (with his wife Carlin Vickery) for the four days of activities, explains that the Jazz Camp is a particularly impactful and timely addition to the organizations extensive Outreach Program.

This is the first time Joye in Aiken has been able to offer something like this since the Juilliard Jazz Camp here in 2013, Capalino says. In this year especially, when education was so heavily impacted by COVID, we feel its important to be able to give students a fun experience that will also provide them with truly world-class instruction.

Tuition for the camp is $200. Lunch will be included, and financial assistance will be available for students who would otherwise be unable to attend.

Access to the arts, and especially to high-quality arts education, is a very important part of Joye in Aikens mission, Capalino says. Financial circumstances should never be an impediment. We want to be sure that the camp is open to any student who wants to come and who can benefit from it.

Capalino sums up by noting how unique the opportunity is for local music students. The musicians who will be teaching this camp are some of the best in their disciplines in the world, he said. To be able to learn from them, jam with them, be mentored by them, is a chance that may only come along once in a lifetime. I urge every interested student in our area to take advantage of it.

To register for the camp, visit www.joyeinaiken.com. Inquiries can be directed to Jazz Camp Chair Jack Benjamin at jackb@usca.edu or Joye in Aiken Executive Director Janice Jennings at director@joyeinaiken.com.
Aiken's hospital celebrated National Hospital Week this week with different festivities each day.

Aiken Regional Medical Centers employees were given 2021 Hospital Week T-shirts on Monday, while there was a breakfast held on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the hospital announced the winners of its Nightingale Awards, which recognize excellence in nursing. Travis Johnson was named nurse of the year, while Amy Adams was named nurse tech of the year.

Food truck day was Thursday, with many local food trucks coming out for both lunch and dinner. HD 98.3 provided music for the lunch crowd, while DJ Calvin performed during dinner. Associates received two $4 vouchers to be used at the trucks.

On Friday, the hospital announced some other awards including employee and manager of the year, while holding an ice cream sandwich party.

This years hospital week has provided us an opportunity to express our sincere appreciation to our more than 1,000 associates and physicians, said Jim OLoughlin, chief executive officer at Aiken Regional Medical Centers. Over the last year, our team has continually displayed compassion and dedication in serving the healthcare needs of our community. This weeks celebrations are just a small way for us to give back and celebrate their unwavering commitment.
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It was while sitting in a gas line waiting to fill up this week that I reread a few emails sent my way following last weeks attempt to encourage more people to get their vaccination. Most of the readers were extremely supportive, a couple of others not so much. One lady in particular started her email by telling me she knew I had been a sportscaster, but when did I become a doctor or a scientist.

If anybody takes the time to contact me with good or bad thoughts regarding what Ive written, I reply. As far as Im concerned, that reader is entitled to some response. Sometimes, it will simply be a thank-you for the kind words. Other occasions, I may just explain these are just my thoughts or observations and sorry they dont jibe with yours.

This lady, though, was insistent I understand she didnt want the government using her as a guinea pig. She also felt the nation was getting better because the problem was oversold and not really that serious to begin with.

Heres the deal. The issue of vaccinations is not about each of us individually but how we all might be better prepared to fight the virus. Instead of getting into a back-and-forth that might ultimately become personal or snarky, I decided to spend a few minutes talking to somebody who has decided to do more than just recognize the need. Shes decided to meet people where they are, instead of waiting for them to convince themselves this is the right thing to do.

Serving the underserved

Estee Perlmutter was born and raised in Charleston. She attended Academic Magnet High School, then left for college out of state before returning to MUSC where she received her license as a nurse practitioner.

When she and her husband returned to Charleston five years ago, Perlmutter went to work for Liberty Doctors, a primary care clinic that deals in family medicine. Her boss, Dr. Hugh Durrence, asked if shed be willing to lead an effort to get the vaccine to people who didnt have the access or motivation to sign up for the shot themselves.

She was asked to commit to the challenge for two months. Shes now into her third month of delivering these injections to people who would never go online to schedule an appointment.

Two or three times a week, Perlmutter loads up her car with boxes of supplies, a tent and some card tables. A fellow employee at Liberty Doctors, John Park, volunteered to coordinate the clinics.

Hes been a huge supporter of the effort, Perlmutter says.

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The clinics seek opportunities to reach hospitality workers and African American churches. During a recent visit to a church on Rivers Avenue in North Charleston, some construction workers repairing the steeple were convinced to receive the vaccine. That was a huge boost for the volunteers and a "shot in the arm" for the entire effort.

Perlmutter has heard all the excuses. Some tell her the vaccine was developed too quickly or theyre afraid it will affect fertility. Others might state theyre afraid of needles, even though there are tattoos all over their body.

Shes undaunted in her mission and admits shes frustrated that some people believe the problem is over.

Its too early to celebrate, just yet, she says.

The problem is personal

Theres an underlying reason Perlmutter wants as many people as possible to receive the vaccine. Her father started receiving chemo treatments not too long ago. Chemo totally compromises the bodys immunity. In that condition, her dad must rely on everyone else he encounters to be safe. The last thing she wants, at this point, is for her father to lose his fight against cancer because somebody else passes along the virus.

This is not only about our individual selves, she says, we all have to buy-in.

So just how busy has this group she spearheaded been? In a little more than two months, theyve set up 25 clinics and administered 23,000 doses.

Next week, shes already excited that her team will be reaching teenagers in schools. She finds it refreshing and looks forward to vaccinating those young arms.

As I sat in my car looking at other Lowcountry motorists trying to find a gas pump with fuel, I couldnt help but be thankful that our community has such people as Perlmutter who are so passionate about getting this vaccine to those who wouldnt otherwise receive it. It takes the sting out of some of the other daily concerns. And it also reminds me that Im no longer a sportscaster and have never been a doctor or a scientist.
When Charleston area Amazon driver Antonio Greene learned a person living along his route was undergoing chemotherapy, he thought of his own family.

Greene, who lost both parents and a grandmother in the past few years, would randomly buy cards and flowers for his mother to keep her encouraged.

Greene, a North Charleston native, did the same last summer for a Summerville man who had been immunocompromised amid the pandemic.

Greene's act of kindness has attracted national media attention and has landed him among seven people to be recognized by the JFK Foundation.

"I didn't expect any of this to happen," Greene said. "It was a small act of kindness, which is what I always do.

The seven people "who have risked their own health and safety to protect others during the COVID-19 pandemic" will receive a Profile in Courage Award from the JFK Foundation.

Ambassador Caroline Kennedy, daughter of late President John F. Kennedy, and her son, Jack Schlossberg, will present the awards for COVID Courage as part of a virtual ceremony that will air for the public at 6 p.m. May 26. Among those being honored include a former state health director, grocery store owner, fire department captain, intensive care nurse, Native American academic director and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney also will be honored during the ceremony for his vote in the first 2020 impeachment trial to remove then-President Donald Trump from office.

The honorees put their own lives at risk to keep others safe and "inspire us all with their courage and give new meaning to President Kennedys legacy of public service, said Caroline Kennedy, who also serves as honorary president of the JFK Library Foundation.

Schlossberg said we can make a difference if we answer the call to serve.

Greene's initial answer to that call has transformed into an unexpected bond.

The card left by the Amazon associate for Denise and Carlos Pagan encouraged Carlos to get well soon.

After dropping the gifts off, Greene circled back to the house some weeks later to make sure they had received the gifts. Around that time, unbeknownst to Greene, the Pagans notified local media outlets about his act of compassion.

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Speaking through a glass door, the family told Greene how the flowers and card encouraged them.

Though Greene and his wife and children recently moved to Charlotte, the two families had exchanged numbers and still keep in touch.

Greene bought Carlos Pagan a prayer book, and the Pagans bought the Greenes a wedding gift when the couple married last year.

About two months ago, the Pagans told Greene that Carlos' cancer was in remission. It uplifted Greene to know he may have played a role in helping the patient recover.

Healing is possible through prayer and faith in God, Greene said.

"I felt good knowing hes good now," Greene said.

Greene's generous gesture came as the Amazon driver was putting his own life at risk to deliver people mailed products.

Greene, whose employer is Amazon's contracted delivery service based in Hanahan, still drove to take people their packages as many people in other industries worked remotely.

The essential worker said he didn't fear for his life, taking extra safety precautions that included heavily sanitizing his work van. Greene also got regular tests for the virus, all of which were negative, he said.

His faith also played a formidable role, he said.

"Every time I woke up in the morning, I prayed first," he said.
Georgetown, SC (29440)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 73F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 73F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph.
Kingstree, SC (29556)

Today

Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds light and variable.
Jamal Sutherlands death at the Charleston County jail is part of a slow-rolling crisis that has enveloped South Carolinas detention centers and prisons in a state that has long struggled with caring for those with mental illnesses.

Over the past two decades, the states jails and prisons have swelled with inmates grappling with mental illness. Its part of a national trend that's led some experts to dub these facilities Americas new asylums. One Justice Department report noted some 44 percent of inmates surveyed had been previously diagnosed with a mental health disorder.

The shift from psychiatric beds to cellblocks has placed increasing pressure on jail and prison staff, many of whom are ill-equipped to deal with inmates struggling with profound mental illness. But the crisis often plays out behind bars and razor wire, seldom drawing attention until a tragedy, such as Sutherlands Jan. 5 death after a struggle with detention officers.

Investigators are still trying to determine if criminal charges are warranted in connection with the incident in which Sutherland endured multiple jolts from a stun gun, as well as officers pressing on his back. The 31-year-old Goose Creek man had been transferred to the jail after a fight at a facility where he was being treated for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Experts say the episode demands a larger public conversation about how people with mental illnesses are treated while incarcerated.

The tragic death of Jamal Sutherland has yet again brought to light the disparities in the lack of proper procedures to ensure the safety of an individual during a mental health crisis, said Rob Aitcheson, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness Charleston office.

South Carolina has been dogged for years with horrific tales about the treatment of people with mental illness in custody. Its a state where at least five times more people with mental illnesses are housed in jails and prisons than in hospitals, a 2010 study by the nonprofit Treatment Advocacy Center and the National Sheriffs Association found.

Since the 1960s, the state's Department of Mental Health and private hospitals have dramatically reduced their inpatient beds and sent patients to their local communities to receive care. The move was lauded as more humane, and potentially cheaper, than lives spent institutionalized. But some question whether it went too far.

The states prisons became virtual warehouses for people with mental illnesses after steep cutbacks in funding for care. By 2014, the Department of Mental Health had seen its budget shrink by 40 percent over a decade  the largest drop of any state since 2002.

Despite increases in funding in recent years, South Carolina still currently ranks 45th in the nation for its number of public psychiatric beds, NAMIs Aitcheson said.

Unfortunately, mental health seems to only come to the forefront when there are cases of tragedy, he said.

Such was the case when a class-action lawsuit revealed numerous stories of inmates with mental illness in South Carolina prisons being gassed, locked in solitary confinement for years at a time, denied effective treatment and caged naked in filthy cells.

The suit, filed in 2005, took nearly a decade to wind its way to trial and reach a final ruling that brought about sweeping changes. By that time, eight prisoners with mental illnesses had died, six from suicide. The Corrections Department has since dramatically reduced the use of solitary confinement, expanded mental health screenings and programs, and bolstered training in crisis intervention, among other things, agency spokeswoman Chrysti Shain said.

But the situation has also become more demanding, as the prison system grapples with a doubling in the percentage of inmates identified as having mental health issues, Shain said. That number now stands at more than one in four prisoners.

Different tactics

Charleston County had been hailed in recent years for taking a progressive path in handling offenders with mental illnesses.

A team of five clinicians from the state mental health agency work at the Charleston County jail, where they assess new inmates and check every day on prisoners in the unit where Sutherland was housed. The agency is working to get its staff into detention centers across the state.

Its staff also train law enforcement officers statewide in crisis intervention so they can more effectively deal with people who have mental illnesses, said Jennifer Roberts, executive director of the Charleston Dorchester Mental Health Center.

In Charleston, the center provides one 40-hour training a month, mostly targeted at new officers but also those who want to brush up.

They like to go. They like to learn how to do a better job working with our patients, Roberts said.

She wasnt sure whether the officers who encountered Sutherland had that training.

The agency also has teams of 24-hour mental health professionals that respond to calls in all 46 counties, as well as facilities where law enforcement officers can drop off people who need care.

We divert a whole bunch of people from going to jail with those units, Roberts said.

In addition, the countys Criminal Justice Coordinating Council brought authorities and advocates together to devise ways to improve public safety and community well-being.

Among other things, they pushed for alternatives to jail for people who have mental illnesses, are homeless or are substance abusers  a process they called diverting and deflecting. It focused on providing assistance and issuing warnings or tickets rather than arrests that put these folks in jail.

Sutherlands experience seemed to cut against that grain.

His parents said he had struggled with mental health issues as an adult. Those problems landed him at Palmetto Behavioral Health, a North Charleston psychiatric facility. But a fight that occurred there on Jan. 4 led to his arrest on a misdemeanor assault charge and a transfer to the county jail, authorities said.

Video footage of his arrival show a man who was clearly in the throes of a delusional episode, cursing and loudly proclaiming that the Illuminati were after him. But things didnt turn violent until two detention deputies tried to remove him from his cell to attend a bond hearing the next morning.

Thats when he ended up on the floor, repeatedly shocked with a stun gun, a knee pressed on his back, as deputies tried to cuff him. He howled in pain until he spoke no more. He appeared unresponsive as deputies dragged from his cell face down.

His cause of death was ruled excited state with adverse effects caused by prescription medications as he was being subdued.

Once people with mental illnesses land in the country's jails, they encounter officers who often have scant training in dealing with them, according to a 2016 report by Public Citizens Health Research Group and The Treatment Advocacy Center.

Nationwide, almost half of jails devote a mere 2 percent or less of their initial training to teach staff and sheriffs deputies to deal with seriously ill inmates. And almost two-thirds reported devoting two hours or less of their annual training to the unique needs of these inmates.

But that doesnt appear to be the case here.

One of the deputies involved in the extraction was Sgt. Lindsey Fickett, who as recently as September was a member of the jail's 12-member Special Operations Team. Under former Sheriff Al Cannon, the team was assigned to the jail full time and was similar to a SWAT team.

In years past, Fickett and other members of the team received training in dealing with inmates with mental illnesses and in so-called "Dynamic Cell Extraction," Sheriff's Office records show. According to other agency records, profits generated from inmate purchases in the jail's commissary paid for stun guns, uniforms and overtime for the team.

Deputies in the unit responded to requests to restrain inmates along with other incidents, including assaults and suicide attempts, records show.

In an interview last year, then-Assistant Sheriff Mitch Lucas, said the team deterred law-breaking behavior just by their presence and had made the jail safer.

It more than paid for itself, as far as Im concerned, Lucas said of the team.

It is unclear if the groups activities continued under Sheriff Kristin Graziano. Sutherland died on Graziano's first full day on the job.

Need for understanding

At a May 14 news conference, Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg, Police Chief Luther Reynolds, City Council members and faith leaders said the video of Sutherlands treatment as an inmate with mental illness was disturbing and inappropriate.

Jamal Sutherland deserved the mental health treatment he sought, Tecklenburg said. Mental illness is not a crime."

Sutherland had no previous arrest record, according to a state criminal background check.

Reynolds noted that someone struggling with a psychiatric diagnosis often encounters police only after a multitude of preceding failures. By that point, they may be belligerent, with no easy access to care. And the police are often least qualified to deal with them, he said.

Paton Blough, a Greenville man and mental health advocate who lives with bipolar disorder, has had his share of interactions with police.

It's been 15 years since one occasion when officers tried to transport Blough from a hospital in a patrol car during a mental health crisis. Blough said he believed the car would explode, so he was fighting, in spite of the hand and leg cuffs he was wearing. Officers jolted him three times with a stun gun.

In contrast, Blough recalled another situation when a bartender called the police during one of his episodes. The officer who responded "took his time with me," Blough said, and waited while a family member brought medication.

"The difference was the way the officers responded to me. The condition I was in was the same," Blough said. "When you're in that tense situation, an understanding person can make a big difference."

Blough's advocacy today focuses on crisis intervention training. Through that kind of training, police and jail officers can get a better grasp on the experience of psychosis and how to respond to it.

But too often, such training comes too late.

Stephen Hobbs contributed reporting.
Clergy and elected officials voiced outrage yet urged calm a day after the late-night release by the Charleston County Sheriff's Office of dozens of videos showing in graphic detail the final moments of Jamal Sutherland's life.

The look into the 31-year-old's January death at the county jail raised serious questions about how people with mental illnesses are treated by police, advocates and officials said. Release of the videos late May 13 came after several days of ratcheting tensions over an investigation that spanned months and left lingering questions over how and why Sutherland died.

The videos drew parallels to the death of George Floyd, a Minneapolis man killed in police custody last year. Like Floyd, Sutherland was also Black. In both instances, a law enforcement officer had a knee on the men's bodies while each stated: "I can't breathe."

Speaking outside the Sheriff's Office on May 14, Sutherland's mother said her second of three children was a man of God who should have been treated better.

"Mental illness doesn't give anybody the right to put their hands on my child. That's my child. I loved my child," Amy Sutherland said.

"Remember, he is a human being. He is not an animal," she added. "He was treated like one, but that's not who he was."

Sutherland's death remains under investigation. The newly released videos show that deputies shocked him with a stun gun as they tried to get him out from a cell to attend his bond hearing.

The county coroner attributed Sutherland's demise to an excited state with adverse effects of prescription drugs as deputies tried to subdue him. His manner of death remains undetermined and under investigation, according to the coroner.

Sutherland died a day after Sheriff Kristin Graziano was sworn into the role. In a separate news conference on May 14, she acknowledged that the videos her office released were horrific.

The two deputies involved, Lindsay Fickett and Brian Houle, are still employed with the Sheriff's Office. They have been reassigned to desk duty and an internal investigation is ongoing, which could determine their future with the agency.

Ninth Circuit Solicitor Scarlett Wilson has said she expects to make a decision on whether to file charges by the end of June.

In the meantime, Graziano said the Sheriff's Office would review what occurred and develop policies on how to better care for inmates with mental health conditions.

At another news conference earlier in the day, the Rev. Matthew Rivers of Charleston's St. Johns Chapel called for progress on a communitywide debate about injustice and mistreatment to address police brutality.

We want to tell Black Lives Matter we are here with you, we want you to know your voice matters, he said, challenging local clergy to get involved in the dialogue.

We want justice, we want to say the name Jamal Sutherland," Luther Reynolds, Charleston's police chief, said at the same press conference. "We want this to get the attention it deserves, he added, while also calling for civility and cooperation.

Body camera videos

The newly released video included body camera footage that captured deputies as they entered Sutherland's cell to take him to a bond hearing. It was the morning of Jan. 5 and Sutherland had been at the jail for roughly 14 hours.

Sutherland ignored repeated commands that he drop to his knees while inside his cell. After using pepper spray, deputies Houle and Fickett ordered Sutherland to get onto his stomach.

Soon after, Fickett is seen shocking Sutherland with the stun gun, causing Sutherland to cry out. Then Houle fired his stun gun, leading Sutherland to writhe on the floor.

Sutherland had been jailed after fighting broke out at Palmetto Lowcountry Behavioral Health, a mental-health facility. Days earlier, he heard voices and became paranoid. Sutherland was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia as a teenager and lived with his parents in Goose Creek.

Sutherland and another patient from the center were arrested after the fight, accused of third-degree assault and battery, a misdemeanor, and taken to the jail.

Inside the cell the next day, deputies told him to stop resisting their efforts to get him in handcuffs. At one point, Sutherland was heard saying: "I'm not resisting, officer."

As he was handcuffed, Houle had his knee on Sutherland's back and remained there for over 2 minutes.

"I can't breathe," Sutherland said.

When deputies eventually lifted the man out of his cell, he was visibly limp and unresponsive, his head slumped onto his shoulders.

CPR was then performed on Sutherland, both by hand and with the assistance of a mechanical device known as a "thumper" which provides chest compressions. Medical staff also responded to examine Sutherland, who continued to appear unresponsive.

A video recorded Houle, the deputy, saying Sutherland got hit with a stun gun "probably about six to eight times at least."

Continued efforts to resuscitate Sutherland failed.

Pressure had been mounting on Graziano, the sheriff, to release the videos showing Sutherland's final moments despite fears that it could spark protests in response.

In a statement when she released the videos after 10 p.m. May 13, Graziano said she had waited to do so in deference to Sutherland's family.

But the time was right to make them public, she said.

"I will continue to make myself available to the Sutherland family and offer my sincere condolences," Graziano said in the statement. "I must respect the integrity of the ongoing investigations to ensure justice is served, and therefore I will not be commenting on specific aspects of the video."

'No more hurt'

Deputies used their stun guns to subdue Sutherland even before he showed signs of aggressive resistance. That goes against guidelines published by the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

Stun guns should not be used by more than one deputy, only be deployed on people actively resisting or showing aggression who also are at risk of harming themselves or others, according to the guidelines.

Axon, the company that makes Tasers, a brand of stun gun, specifically calls for law enforcement officers to not use them on people with mental health conditions.

While stun guns are meant to not kill a person, that is not always the case.

The news agency Reuters documented more than 1,000 incidences in the United States in which people died after police stunned them, specifically with a Taser.

Dr. Justin Norris, an emergency care physician at Roper St. Francis Healthcare, said the electrical pulse from a stun gun causes short, sustained muscle contractions which can cause more serious reactions if the person has a certain medical conditions or is using drugs or prescriptions.

A statement from a coalition of activist groups called Sutherlands death an egregious lack of regard for the human rights of mental health patients," especially those in custody.

Jamals death speaks to the inefficacy of police training to handle mental health crises and how their presence further escalates an already delicate situation, the groups statement said.

Sutherlands death was similar to one at a state Department of Mental Health facility in 2019.

There, longtime patient William Avant suffocated at the bottom of a dogpile of caregivers who were attempting to restrain him, The State newspaper reported in 2019.

Employees pinned Avant face down and lay across his back for 4 minutes, preventing the patient's diaphragm from expanding to take in air. Their actions broke from the mental health agency's employee training, which stresses patients should only be physically restrained when absolutely necessary, and never face down. The department's training manual, in all capital letters, demands employees never lie across the patient's head, neck, back or chest as doing so might "interfere with their breathing."

Avants family sued the agency and later agreed to a $1.95 million settlement.

Sutherland's parents have not yet filed a lawsuit related to their son's treatment in the jail. But they are represented by an attorney.

Around noon May 14, Amy Sutherland stood alongside her husband, James, and another of their sons in front of the hulking concrete jail in North Charleston.

She pleaded for calm and prayed for justice, while urging that the videos of her son's final moments not lead to violence.

I want us to view this tape and I want us to learn, she said. Please, no more hurt.

Thomas Novelly contributed reporting from Charleston and Avery Wilks from Columbia.

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If the federal government wants to fund an expensive infrastructure project, the law requires agencies to consider whether its necessary and whether other alternatives are available with less impact on the health of our communities. That consideration did not happen for a proposed new Interstate 73 from I-95 in Dillon County to just east of Aynor in Horry County.

Thats why the Coastal Conservation League remains opposed to the project, and in support of considering cheaper upgrades to S.C. 38 and U.S. 501, the existing highways that a new $2 billion I-73 would run just alongside, cutting through family farms and hundreds of acres of pristine freshwater wetlands.

First, we should be clear on what this project really is. This new stretch of interstate through inland Pee Dee counties would do nothing to address traffic on the local roads of the Grand Strand, such as U.S. 501 between Conway and U.S. 17. It would connect with S.C. 22 west of Conway, which goes to North Myrtle Beach, leaving the roads of Myrtle Beach untouched. The roads it would bypass arent crowded and dangerous  the U.S. 501 bypass north of Marion, for example, is four lanes, with no at grade intersections  that is, no stoplights or stop signs. There are alternatives available to the expensive I-73 proposal.

The project would destroy pristine wetlands along the Little Pee Dee River, which means federal law requires the Army Corps of Engineers to issue a permit to ruin these natural resources. We are questioning whether the Corps made the right decision to issue these permits. There isnt a clear need for the I-73 project, and current plans failed to consider any alternatives that would minimize and avoid wetland fill impacts. We are also asking if the Army Corps and the Federal Highway Administration complied with federal law when they failed to update a 10-year-old analysis for this project in light of changed circumstances, including the fact that the road likely will have to be tolled to meet its hefty price tag.

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But this isnt just about natural resources. This is also about how the government funds transportation in South Carolina. Act 114, a state law from 2007, requires the state to evaluate objective criteria when planning transportation projects. The stretch of I-73 from I-95 to Aynor does not make the cut. Its a small segment of interstate that would not connect to a national I-73. Funding this project (and requesting limited transportation funds from the Biden administration for it) would come at the expense of projects that are more urgent and would benefit our state more, such as the long list of upgrades on I-26, I-95 and other congested highways.

Its up to groups such as the Coastal Conservation League to question how the government plans to spend more than $1 billion on an ill-advised transportation project that would cause irreversible damage to our state when better alternatives are available.

Thats why we went to court  to ensure that the federal government follows the law  and thats why we continue this effort. While we would rather find consensus and work together to find good solutions, we take our mission of protecting the health of communities in the South Carolina coastal plain seriously.

Laura Cantral is executive director of the Coastal Conservation League.
Editorials represent the institutional view of the newspaper. They are written and edited by the editorial staff, which operates separately from the news department. Editorial writers are not involved in newsroom operations.
Kids probably wont die or even get terribly sick as a result of Gov. Henry McMasters demand that schools allow children to attend without masks, in defiance of Education Superintendent Molly Spearmans requirement and DHECs recommendation. After all, serious illness and deaths from COVID-19 are rare in young people.

We just hope the unmasked kids dont turn our schools into superspreader destinations that trigger a significant uptick of infection in our communities, increasing the opportunities for mutations that are impervious to the vaccines. After all, only a handful of students are vaccinated, and requiring kids to wear masks is what kept the virus from spreading significantly in the schools all year. And although the vaccine has significantly reduced COVID transmission in South Carolina, the rate was so high to begin with that its still above the level where DHEC and the CDC say its safe to abandon our public health precautions.

We hope the kids who continue to wear masks arent forced to spend too many days out of the classroom  which we fought so hard to allow them back into  because an unmasked child tests positive for COVID and everybody nearby has to quarantine for 10 days. After all, kids havent had to quarantine as long as they and the infected child were wearing masks.

We hope there arent so many unmasked kids that responsible parents feel the need to pull their kids out of the classes to protect them from infection  particularly since many districts cant make room virtual classrooms this late in the school year. But we understand why some parents would: Masks mainly protect other people, not the wearer, and since children whose parents object to masks are more likely to take risks that expose their own children to infection, its those careful kids who the governor just put at greater risk of infection.

We hope too that voters remember Executive Order 2021-23, which is probably the most irresponsible thing Gov. McMaster has done in a lifetime in public office. It was certainly the most nakedly political: an action taken for absolutely no reason but to appeal to that small minority of South Carolinians who insist that COVID is not dangerous and masks are  a group that will have an outsize voice in the Republican primary election he will face in a year.

Contrary to their hysterical claims, there is nothing harmful about wearing masks, except to a tiny portion of people whose medical conditions already allow them to opt out. Nor is there anything oppressive about requiring people to wear masks for a few months, while were still fighting an airborne pandemic that is still hospitalizing and killing South Carolinians every day. Contrary to Mr. McMasters populist rhetoric, parents should no more be able to send their kids to school without masks than without shoes or shirts or pants.

As exciting as it was to get the CDC's all-clear Thursday for fully vaccinated people to shed their masks, that has no bearing on this matter because most students aren't even eligible yet to be vaccinated; those who are only became eligible a few days ago.

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We applaud DHEC Director Dr. Edward Simmer for requiring parents who complete the McMaster-mandated parental opt-out form to acknowledge that his agency and the CDC still recommend masks in school and to release the school from any liability if their child is infected.

We applaud Education Superintendent Molly Spearman for explaining very clearly what the governor had done. While she questioned his legal authority to overrule the decision of a fellow constitutional officer, she recognized that he had made it impossible for all practical purposes for school districts to enforce a mask requirement and thus had been successful in his mission of circumventing public health guidance by inciting hysteria and sowing division in the waning days of the school year. Given that reality, she made the pragmatic decision to rescind her own order rather than wage a debate over constitutionality that would pit elected officials, students, and families against one another.

What Ms. Spearman didnt say was that the governor either deliberately or carelessly made his order much more disruptive than it had to be.

Instead of ordering DHEC and the Education Department to produce a mask opt-out form for parents to complete and send back to school, he could have asked them in advance to produce the form, so it was ready when he issued the order.

Instead of making his order effective immediately, he could have delayed it until the start of the week, to give schools time to prepare for the change, and to give responsible parents time to consider the ramifications of his order, and what if any changes they wanted to make.

And if a concession of three days was just too much, he at least could have made his announcement in the morning, giving schools an opportunity to send information home with students before the order took effect the next morning, rather than waiting until after 5 p.m. when students had already been dismissed and school offices were closed for the day.

Demanding zero risk  as some on the left are doing  is unrealistic and might be just as irresponsible as denying that theres any risk from COVID-19. But were nowhere near zero risk. We hope Mr. McMaster hasnt just pushed an acceptable level of risk even further out of reach.
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Insights

What counts as culture? Is it simply the original culture, as we understand it, or should it include the cultural features introduced over time? Read more
The IDF may have pulled off a tactical coup by luring Hamas leaders to shelter in their tunnel network late Thursday night/early Friday morning when it publicly intimated that it was undertaking a ground offensive into Gaza.

Yaakov Katz reconstructs events in some detail for the Jerusalem Post story Did IDF deception lead to massive aerial assault on Hamass Metro?

Arutz Sheva removes the question mark and adds a metaphorical exclamation point in 450 bombs in 35 minutes: This is how the IDF tricked Hamas. Subhead: IDF publishes unclear notice  causing Hamas to panic, escape into terror tunnels. The story reports:

Hamas underground city was hit with enormous force, and the IDF collapsed the terror tunnel system, on the heads of the terrorists hiding in the tunnels. During the attack, many kilometres of terror tunnels were destroyed. As of now, neither Israel nor Hamas is clear on the exact scope of the damage, but according to estimates, a large number of terrorists were buried in the sands beneath Gaza.

Quoting a military source, the Times of Israel also covers the story in Report: Heavy bombing of Hamas metro destroyed miles of tunnels, killed dozens.

Benny Avni cautiously evaluates the operation in the excellent New York Sun column Feint by Israel May Have Delivered a Major Blow to Hamas. Let it be.
This week, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted on two of Joe Bidens nominees for top Justice Department jobs. The nominees are Todd Kim for Assistant Attorney General (AAG) for the Environment and Natural Resources Division and Kristen Clarke for AAG for the Civil Rights Division.

The committee reported Kim out on a bipartisan basis. However, the vote on Clarke was 11-11, along strict party lines. Not surprisingly, no Republican member was willing to vote in favor of a civil rights nominee with a history of expressing anti-Semitic, Black supremist, and anti-police sentiments. Not surprisingly, no Democratic member had any compunction about voting for such a nominee.

The committee vote on Clarke mirrored its vote on Vanita Gupta, who is nearly as awful, for Associate Attorney General. Gupta ultimately was confirmed by a vote of 51-49.

Clarke very likely will be confirmed, too. I expect Joe Manchin to vote for her and probably Lisa Murkowski, as well.

If Manchin and Murkowski run for reelection, I hope they will be called on to explain their votes. I doubt that Alaska Republicans and West Virginia voters as a whole agree with Gupta and Clarke about policing and the police or, for that matter, about race relations in general.

Any candidate wishing to call attention to Manchin and Murkowskis vote (assuming they back Clarkes nomination) should listen to the presentations by Republican Senators during the markup on Clarkes nomination. They can be viewed here. I recommend, in particular, the speeches of Sens. Mike Lee and Ted Cruz. Lees begins at around the 50 minute mark; Cruzs at around one hour and five minutes.

Both Senators attack Clarkes record along the lines we presented here, here, and here (for example). They also added material we have not discussed.

Lee argued, persuasively, that Clarke opposes voter suppression only if it adversely affects certain groups (no need to guess which ones). He showed that in cases where the white vote is suppressed (the Ike Brown case being the most notorious), Clarke seems fine with voter suppression.

Lee also pointed to Clarkes terrible record on protecting against religious-based discrimination. He demonstrated her blatant disregard for the constitutionally-protected religious rights of certain groups  rights it will be her duty to enforce if shes confirmed.

Lee also focused on Clarkes support, in a 2019 letter, for Tamika Mallory, a radical who asserted that white Jews uphold white supremacy.

Cruz homed in a statement Clarke made about the police, a statement so offensive  so sickening  that it should disqualify her from a top DOJ position quite apart from her call in 2020 for defunding the police (and her dishonest refusal to admit that she advocated defunding).

Clarke called the police the new KKK, with blue uniforms replacing the hoods. If Joe Manchin and Lisa Murkowski vote to confirm Clarke, this statement should be thrown at them non-stop the next time they face the voters.

Its possible, in theory, that Clarkes tenure at the DOJ wont be marred by the anti-police dogma she has spewed over the years. In that case, Manchin and Murkowski wont have much explaining to do.

But if Manchin and Murkowski believe that Clarke will do an about-face on police and policing, they are deceiving themselves.
Last Friday, advocates against child and sexual abuse in Nigeria commemorated the first year, a community-based-approach to curb such menaces took off in four rural communities in Abuja.

The event, attended by government officials, community members and health advocates, was organised to take stock of how the initiative fared, its progress and limitations one year on.

Launched by the Sexual Offences Awareness and Response (SOAR) with funding from the European Union under the rule of law and anti-corruption programme  RoLAC, the initiative was aimed at breaking the endless cycle of sexual and violent crimes against women and children.

The Community Child Protection Committee (CCPC) was inaugurated.

It is a team of young men vested with responsibility to monitor, investigate and report incidents of rape and sexual crimes to appropriate authorities.

Due to their vulnerability, a mentorship programme, aimed at grooming children to become advocates of child sexual and violent abuse, was set up as the second approach.

PREMIUM TIMES previously reported the installment of the CCPC in Tacha1, Kayarda, Wukara and Wuna communities all within Abuja and also reported how the mentorship programme is grooming teen advocates against sexual violence.

Community-based-approach

Despite considerable effort towards prevention and prosecution, there is still a high prevalence of sexual and violent crimes in Nigeria and justice for rape victims is seldom within reach, advocates say.

Nigeria has an extremely low conviction rate for rape and sexual abuse, despite an increase in violence against women. But the shortcomings in Nigerias legal system is just one of the challenges facing survivors.

Many more cases of rape and sexual crimes are undocumented, unheard, and unreported in rural communities, where lifesaving service providers such as hospitals, support centres, and the police are out of reach.

At the event, several stories on how cases of sexual violence and abuses were identified, investigated and reported through the community-based initiative were shared.

Leaders in the various communities narrated how the initiative aided in reducing incidents of sexual assault.

Several challenges and limitations to the progress of the programme were also highlighted.

Chinyere Eyoh, a rape survivor, is the founder of the SOAR initiative. She began the advocacy against sexual crimes in 2011.

Speaking at the event, she said about 12 cases of sexual assault were handed over to the police through the initiative in the past one year.

The CCPC and the mentorship programme is voluntary. We allow the community members to choose who they want to serve. We collaborated with the three area councils in Abuja where the four communities are located. Naturally, they are duty-bound to create such initiatives, she said.

Mrs Eyoh said so many other cases did not make the appropriate channels such as police and or NAPTIP because some community members did not fully cooperate.

Sometimes, they will want you to pay them for what they are the ones to benefit from. This is because they dont have a full grasp of the situation.

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There were incidents that were reported to the police but could not be followed through because some parents or guardians restrict their wards/children/victims from speaking, she said.

Mrs Eyoh said SOAR will be pulling out from coordinating the programme to allow local leaders to fully take over.

The chief of Wuna community, Yusuf Isah, said since the programme kick started, cases of sexual abuse reduced in the area. He said he will ensure that the initiative is sustained with his statutory power.

The country head of RoLAC, Toyosi Giwa, described localised strategies in the fight against sexual abuse as the bedrock of all response efforts.

The best bet is to approach the problem locally as you can see with the programmes in the Abuja communities. Residents are giving positive reviews, she said.

There are three important steps in addressing sexual abuse: prevention, protection and prosecution of perpetrators, Mrs Giwa said.

When this process starts at the community level, it generates more impact and that is why we are supporting SOAR to build capacity of community members into leaders and watchdogs checking sexual abuses.

Through the mentorship programmes, teens were trained to know the different types of abuse, recognize the signs and know the appropriate channels to report incidents.

Mrs Giwa also decried the bureaucracy in Nigerias justice system, blaming it for stalling several cases thereby letting culprits off the hook.

There are laws in place that prescribe what type of punishment to perpetrators and specific compensations to victims but the problem has been implementation and enforcement.

Dialogue

A week before Fridays event, a dialogue session was held in Tacha1 village, one of the designated communities.

The dialogue session was an avenue for residents and advocates to share ideas on how locals will continue with the initiative independently, according to Johnson Ameh, SOARs community engagement officer.

We are officially handing over the running of this initiative to the community so they can continue from where we stopped, he said.

The idea is to establish a local system that can track sexual violence and break the chain of silence. The most important thing is for the committee members to be dispassionate in monitoring and reporting cases without any form of bias even after we have left.

Baba John, the chiefs secretary and a CCPC member explained how the community is making plans for the continuity of the program.

Since this program started, we have stopped hearing stories about sexual abuse in the community. We the community members must mobilize ourselves to continue the program, he said.

After this event, my duty is to sit down with the chief and explain to him why we need to continue with this program. It is now our responsibility.

We will also discuss with neighboring communities and let them know about this initiative so when cases of sexual abuse come up, they can report to us and we will take it up.

John however said the challenge they will face is funding. Most of the CCPC members that started with us have left because they are not being paid. It takes passion to do a job you are not getting a reward from.

Mr Ameh said SOAR will from time to time provide guidance and assistance to communities where the initiative has been instituted to ensure sustainability.

Raising teen advocates

Children who received courses on issues such as sexual and child abuse, HIV and breaking a culture of silence were less likely to be a victim of rape  or a perpetrator, according to a recent Human Science Research Council survey in Africa.

Ruth Nwafor, a thirteen-year-old junior secondary school student, is one of the many children in Tacha1 who graduated after undergoing the mentorship program.

She and many other graduates took turns to share what they learnt from the program after the dialogue session.

I now know the different forms of sexual and child abuses and the different techniques used by the perpetrators, Ruth who is aspiring to become a nurse said.

I have nine siblings who I am now teaching how to avoid people trying to take advantage of them. I am no longer scared to speak up.

Rosaline Nwafor, Ruths mother, said shes happy about the level of awareness her daughter has been exposed to.

One of the mentors, Happiness Onah who also teaches in a private school in the community, said she expects children who went through the program to teach their peers who did not have the same opportunity on ways to speak up against sexual violence.

With the consent of parents, we enroll about 80 children and train them for a month. When they graduate, we enroll another set. We go from home to home to sensitize parents on the need to release their kids, she said.

Samuel Okereafor, another mentor who is also a teacher, said he volunteered to train the children because of his passion to stamp out sexual violence against children in the community.
The Court of Appeal in Lagos on Friday upturned the conviction of four companies with bank accounts holding $15.5 million that was linked to Patience Jonathan, wife of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

A panel of three justices of the court, in a judgment delivered via Zoom, unanimously ruled that the conviction of the four companies by the Federal High Court in Abuja in November 2016 violated the constitutional principle of fair hearing.

PREMIUM TIMES got details of the judgment from lawyers from the two sides of the case on Friday.

Conviction

Babs Kuewunmi, the trial judge at the Federal High Court in Lagos, had on November 2, 2016, convicted the four companies of money laundering involving $15.5 million kept in their Skye Bank accounts.

The judge gave the decision after some individuals speaking for the firms pleaded guilty to the offences on their behalf when the charges were read in court.

The convicted firms are, Pluto Property and Investment Company Limited; Seagate Property Development & Investment Co. Limited; Trans Ocean Property and Investment Company Limited, and Avalon Global Property Development Company Limited.

They were on, September 15, 2016, arraigned on 15 counts of money laundering alongside a former Special Adviser on Domestic Affairs to ex-President Jonathan, Waripamo-Owei Dudafa, a lawyer, Amajuoyi Briggs, and a banker, Adedamola Bolodeoku.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) which alleged that the funds were stolen from the State House, had earlier seized the funds from the companies.

While the acclaimed representatives of the firms pleaded guilty to the charges on behalf of the firms, Mr Dudafa, and the two others pleaded not guilty.

The trial judge then went ahead to convict the firms.

The companies are found guilty in count 2,3,4,5,6,7,8, and 9. In order not to prejudice the case of first, second and third defendants, sentencing them is hereby reserved pending the end of the trial of the first, second and third defendants, the judge had ruled.

The trial has yet to be concluded at the trial court as of Friday, PREMIUM TIMES was told by lawyers involved in the case.

Appeal

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, later approached the court with an application urging the court to set aside the conviction.

But the judge rejected the application prompting Mr Ozekhome to go on appeal against the decision.

Mr Ozekhome along with another lawyer, Ige Asemudara, filed four separate appeals on behalf of the firms contending that the conviction of the companies was a nullity considering the circumstances of their guilty plea.

They submitted that the lower court ought to have set aside its decision convicting the firms.

Judgment

Delivering judgment on the appeals on Friday, the Court of Appeal agreed with the appellants and set aside the conviction of the four companies especially in view of the fact that the validity of the plea of guilt which was challenged by the appellants had yet to be determined before the trial court pronounced them guilty.

In the lead judgment delivered by C. N. Uwa, the appeal court held that the convictions of the four companies breached the principle of fair hearing provided for in the constitution.

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Other members of the panel, Tunde Awotoye and James Abundaga, agreed with the lead judgment.

Mr Asemudara, Ejieke Onuoha and Azubuike Akpe represented the appellants at Fridays proceedings, while Rotimi Oyedepo and A. O. Mohammed appeared for the respondent, the EFCC.

Background

In 2017, the four companies, represented by Mike Ozekhome, filed an application asking the Federal High Court in Lagos to reverse the guilty plea earlier entered on behalf of the companies in November 2016.

He also sought an order of the court nullifying the previous proceedings because those who represented the company were not authorised to do so.

Mr Ozekhome said his clients were not given a fair trial before their conviction because they had no legal representation of their choice and that he was only briefed to represent the companies after its directors pleaded guilty despite not being authorised by the board to do so.

He accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of using impostors to plead guilty on behalf of the companies.

Moving his motion seeking to set aside the companies conviction, Mr Ozekhome said they were convicted in gross violation of the 1999 Constitution, which he said occasioned a miscarriage of justice.

He urged the court to declare the previous proceedings null and void and start the trial afresh.

The application, he said, was on the ground that the court failed to pass a sentence on the convicted companies, as the judge reserved sentence until the end of the other defendants trial.

Mr Ozekhome also said the companies were denied the right to cross-examine the purported directors who purportedly pleaded guilty.

Theyre just busybodies and interlopers who were pressured to come and plead guilty. They had no mandate to do so, he said.

But Rotimi Oyedepo, the counsel for the EFCC, urged the court to dismiss the application, describing it as an abuse of court process.

Mr Oyedepo said the application amounted to asking the judge to revisit its ruling and to assume the position of an appellate court.

He denied that the directors who pleaded guilty were not authorised to do so, saying there was evidence that they were indeed the companies directors from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and from the companies bank accounts.

The court in its ruling delivered on July 2018 dismissed the application by the four companies

PREMIUM TIMES had reported how Babs Kuewumi, the judge, said a lower court could not reverse itself, adding that it could only do so in exceptional cases where there is a serious procedural irregularity or where the court lacks jurisdiction.

The main issue to be addressed in this application is whether this court can revisit its earlier decision whereby the applicants were convicted, the judge said.

Once a court gives an order or judgment, it has no legal competence to reverse itself or set aside its previous order. Considering the circumstances of this case, I have not been shown any valid reason to make me revisit my decision. This court is already functus officio.

Im in agreement with the prosecution that this application is incompetent. It is hereby refused and accordingly dismissed.

The firms had filed separate appeals against the ruling.

The appeals were granted by the Court of Appeal on Friday.

Lawyers said the Fridays judgment implies that the ruling will begin afresh at the trial court.
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Between January 2019 and April 2021, 12 states in Nigeria recorded 881 cases of oil spillage, according to data obtained from NOSDRA, a government-run satellite tracker.

About 77 per cent of the spills occurred in only three oil-producing states: Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers. The three are among Nigerias highest oil producers for that period. However, Nigerias second-highest oil producing state during the period, Akwa Ibom, only witnessed 26 oil spills within that period.

The states with the highest FAAC earning from the 13 per cent oil derivative (and technically highest oil production) from 2018 to 2020 were Delta, Akwa Ibom, Rivers and Bayelsa states respectively.

The total spillage reported within this period amounted to about 43,000 barrels of oil, worth over $3 million (at $70 based on the May 5 crude price in the international market), which is equivalent to N1.23 billion (at N410 to a dollar).

Using the 2018 Constituency Project Report by civic organisation BudgIT, this amount can build three classrooms of four blocks (at N8 million each) and drill three solar-powered boreholes with 100,000 litres capacity tank (at N25 million each) in each of the twelve states.

The NOSDRA tracker said the data is fluid and changes on an ongoing basis as new spills are reported. The quoted toll is as of May 1. NOSDRA only has records of the state-by-state breakdown for the past three years.

States with highest spills

Rivers, Delta and Bayelsa had the most cases of oil spillage during the period. While Rivers State had 352 spills, Delta State had 233 cases and Bayelsa was third with 89.

The three states together, thus, recorded more oil spills (674) than all other states put together (207); about 77 per cent. In fact, each of Rivers and Delta recorded more oil spills than the nine other states (apart from Delta and Bayelsa) put together (207).

Abia had 41 incidents; Imo  31; Akwa Ibom  26; Edo  19; Lagos  11; while Kaduna and Ondo each had 2 cases.

In terms of volume, the spills amounted to about 26,268 barrels lost in Rivers State; 9,134 in Delta State; and 1,219 in Bayelsa State, according to the tracker.

States Incidents Barrels reported spilled Others 74 1805.65 Abia 41 1599.58 Akwa Ibom 26 1.29 Bayelsa 89 1219.1 Bayelsa, Rivers 1 105 Delta 233 9133.99 Edo 19 93.45 Imo 31 2189.89 Kaduna 2 41 Lagos 11 100.63 Ondo 2 8 Rivers 352 26267.83 Total 881 42565.42

The three states, therefore, accounted for over 85 per cent of the volume of oil spills within that period. Rivers State alone accounted for more than 60 per cent of the spillages.

While Abia State lost 1,600 barrels of oil to spills in the last three years, Imo State lost 2,190 barrels. Edo lost 93 barrels; Kaduna, 41 barrels; Lagos, 101; Ondo, 8; Akwa Ibom, 1.29.

Around 70 per cent of the spills recorded by NOSDRA in the past 11 years were as a result of sabotage and oil theft, also known as bunkering, a review of the tracker by this newspaper showed.

Financial implications of oil theft

Oil theft not only deals a huge blow to the nations pipeline facilities, but it also contributes a massive drain on the countrys finances and causes pollution.

A PREMIUM TIMES analysis had found that a total of 1,161 pipeline points were vandalised across Nigeria in the 21 months between January 2019 and September 2020.

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Likewise, between October 2018 and October 2019, the country recorded 2,181 vandalised pipeline points.

According to figures mined from the monthly financial reports of the nations public oil company, NNPC, this has a huge toll on the nations oil revenue.

From January 2019 to January this year alone, repairs of the pipelines and other facilities came at an outlay of about N15 billion, this newspaper found.

Data from NNPCs monthly FAAC reports from December 2019 to January 2021 showed that the company spent a total of N59.1 billion on the repair and management of the pipelines in about one year.

Oil spill clean-up

By law, oil companies must close off oil spill sites within 24 hours of being notified of an oil spill on their fields.

After this is done, a Joint Investigative Visit (JIV) is launched to determine the extent of the spill. The team is usually made up of representatives of the affected community, that of the oil company, and relevant government agencies.

The purpose of the deployment is to determine, among other things, the cause, impact, and scale of the spill. Each party is required to sign a JIV document in case of a legal hearing or compensation.

Within two weeks of a confirmed spill, oil companies are mandated by the law to submit the details of the spill information filled in a document called FORM B to the regulatory authorities.

When the clean-up is deemed completed, reports of the clean-up operations are to be filled in another FORM C which will be submitted to the regulatory agency.

Oil companies whose facilities are breached always take responsibility for oil spill clean-up, whether the spill was due to their own operational fault or oil theft by members of the host communities.

However, they are required to pay compensation to the affected local communities affected if the spill was the companys fault.

Contrary to what the law stipulates, some 1,948 (which is about 20 per cent) of the oil spill sites recorded in the last 11 years were not visited by a joint investigation team, data shows.

Triggers of oil spills

Aside from bunkering and oil theft which are potentially lucrative businesses for criminals, oil spills have thrived due to the inaccessibility of some oil spill sites. This is not helped by the presence of armed criminals involved in illegal refining around these sites.

Even though incidents of oil spills are to be reported within 24 hours, some go unreported due to the vested interest of the party responsible for the oil spill as they will be required to clean it up and provide compensation.

Likewise, there have been reported cases of affected local communities denying spill clean-up teams or regulators access to spill sites.

Suspicion and mutual distrust among oil companies, regulatory agencies and local communities (some of which may be hiding their illegal refining facilities) have not helped this too.

(Support for this report was provided by the Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism (PTCIJ) through its Natural Resource and Extractives Programme).
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Kaduna State workers, including members of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), have begun a warning strike from Saturday.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the state had earlier announced its plan to embark on a strike to protest against mass disengagement of workers and other alleged anti-labour moves by the state government.

In line with NLC directives on shut down of activities in Kaduna, you are hereby directed to ensure TOTAL BLACK OUT in Kaduna by 00 hours on Saturday 15th May, 2021, the General Secretary of NUEE, Joe Ajaero, said in a circular obtained by PREMIUM TIMES.

He then advised the workers to liaise with other states or regions through which Kaduna could be back-fed to ensure that there is no supply of electricity to the state.

Any Station or Officer whose unit is found wanting, the Chapter or State Council will be sanctioned for anti-union activities, Mr Ajaero warned.

Also, aviation workers will on Sunday shut down flight operations at the Kaduna Airport in solidarity with the other unions.

The unions are National Union Of Air Transport Employees, Association Of Nigeria Aviation Professionals and National Association Of Aircraft Pilots And Engineers.

In a letter jointly signed by the leaders of the three bodies, dated May 14, the workers said the strike was in consonance with the declaration by the NLC.

Other unions, including railway workers, local government employees and university workers, will not resume to their duty posts on Monday.

The state governor, Nasir El-Rufai, in April, announced the plan to disengage civil servants in the state, citing fiscal reasons.

He stated that a significant amount of the statutory federal allocations is being spent on the wages of public servants. According to him, the decision was one of the necessary moves to salvage the states finances.

Therefore, the state government has no choice but to shed some weight and reduce the size of the public service. It is a painful but necessary step to take, for the sake of the majority of the people of this state, the Monday statement partly read.

The public service of the state with less than 100,000 employees and their families cannot be consuming more than 90% of government resources, with little left to positively impact the lives of the more than 9 million that are not political appointees or civil servants.

It is gross injustice for such a micro minority to consume the majority of the resources of the State, he said.
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A police sergeant attached to Kano Commands Motor Traffic Division (MTD), Kabiru Isah, has been commended for returning over one million naira (N1,294,200.00) he recovered from the scene of a fatal accident.

A statement issued by police spokesperson in Kano, Abdullahi Haruna, on Friday said the officer found the money while conducting scene analysis, minutes after the fatal accident.

Mr Haruna said the owner of the money was knocked down from a motorcycle he was riding by a trailer along Zaria Road Kano and died.

The owner had kept the money in a shoe box with him on the motorcycle.

While handing over the money to the family of the deceased, the commissioner of police in the state, Samaila Dikko, called on police officers and other people of the state to emulate the good conduct of Mr Isah.

The managing director of Kano Road Traffic Agency (KAROTA), Baffa Danagundi has reportedly rewarded the police sergeant with one hundred thousand naira (N100,000.00).
The Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP), Lagos State Ministry of Justice, has stalled any possibility of releasing the embattled Yoruba actor, Olanrewaju James, popularly known as, Baba Ijesha on bail.

The DPP said it arrived at the decision because of the criminal charges Baba Ijesha has to answer.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, made the disclosure to reporters on Friday at the Police Public Relations Office, Oduduwa, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos State.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Baba Ijesha was arrested in April for allegedly sexually molesting a minor.

Mr Adejobi said that the DPP advised the police to still detain Baba Ijesha, because the case against him, according to legal advice, is sexual assault by penetration, pending when he would be charged to court.

Invariably sexual assault is more like defilement too, considering the age of the victim.

So, Baba Ijesha is being kept with the police not within our own power, but because of the legal advice from the DPP pending when Baba Ijeshas case will be charged to court.

If the DPP has advised us to release Baba Ijesha, we will have released him, the spokesperson said.

Turnaround

Baba Ijeshas case , according to him, was initially bailable, based on the statement that his offense was based on indecent assault which was a bailable offense.

However, after the DPP investigated the case file, the police advised that they shouldnt release Baba Ijesha on bail pending when he will be charged to court.

The DPP said that there are a number of cases Baba Ijesha will be charged for, particularly sexual assault by penetration, which is a serious offense, he said.

In addition, Mr Adejobi said police cells were managed and decongested to avoid overcrowding inmates.

He said that most of the cases currently at their disposal were bailable offenses and they had been bailed while unbailable cases that were not yet in court, were granted tentative bail.

By tentative bail, the offender goes home, only after providing a substantive surety that assures to produce the offender as and when due, so our cells are well managed and not congested, Mr Adejobi said.

He, however, said several cases that make up offenders in police custody were pending cases attached to court and still within the police facilities.

As a result of the COVID-19 test, we cant take them to correctional centres.

But they will be within our custody which makes up a number of cases we have now, the police spokesperson said.

(NAN)

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An Anglican Archbishop, Isaac Nwobia, has urged the federal government to convene a national dialogue to address issues of insecurity in the country

Mr Nwobia, who is the Archbishop/Bishop of Diocese of Isiala Ngwa South (Aba Province), made the call during the 4th Synod of the diocese at St. Peters Cathedral Owerrinta, Abia State on Thursday.

The archbishop, while speaking with reporters during the opening session of the Synod, said that national dialogue was important, as the communication gap could be responsible for some of the present security challenges in Nigeria.

The president should summon us, either as a meeting or a confab, so that people can say why they are annoyed.

The solution should be that we need to sit down, dialogue and sort things out, he said.

The cleric condemned the destruction of some of the nations security facilities.

If we destroy the things that guard us, what will be our gain? What will be the future of this country?

He said the church would use the four-day synod to deliberate on the insecurity and pray for peace and unity of the nation.

Also, the Bishop of Umuahia Anglican Diocese, Geoffrey Ibeabuchi, said that people in leadership were disconnected from the upcoming generations.

Mr Ibeabuchi, during his sermon on discipleship, advised leaders to serve and lead.

According to him, that way, the youth will emulate them for the good of the nation.

He called on Christians to embark on adequate discipleship as a means of fulfilling Christs great commission.

(NAN)
Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State on Friday said there was no record of Indian COVID-19 variant in the state, as was speculated on social media.

The governor stated this in Benin at a news conference to provide an update on COVID-19 response in the state.

Mr Obaseki was represented by the Permanent Secretary from the state Ministry of Health, Osamwonyi Irowa.

He said the federal government had on April 26, taken precautionary steps by restricting international travel from India, Brazil and Turkey to curtail COVID-19.

We as government have reached out to the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) with regards to any Indian variant in Edo and the verified information reveals that the said sample was collected in January.

There is currently no update or report suggestive of any such occurrence or new case of COVID-19 reported within Edo in the past 96 hours.

Edo has witnessed a 12.9 per cent drop in the number of infected persons comparatively, he said.

According to him, there has also been a 23.5 per cent comparative increase in the number of older persons infected with COVID-19 in the two waves of COVID-19 in the state.

Mr Obaseki said that the prevalence of COVID-19 among young persons, especially school children in Edo was low, as it has dropped by 18.5 per cent comparatively for the first and second wave.

He explained that out of a total of 54,534 COVID-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction samples for testing, 4,905 persons had been infected with COVID-19 and five persons were currently on treatment, while 4,715 persons had recovered from the disease.

A total of 185 persons have died, with no new case reported in the past 48 hours across the State.

A total of 36,235 persons have been vaccinated across the State with the first dose of AstraZeneca Vaccine accounting for 89.1 per cent of our set target already vaccinated, he said.

Mr Obaseki said that schools should revert to normal session arrangements of 8 a.m. to 2p.m. and enforce a no facemask no entry mandate.

He stressed that people must wear masks that completely cover both the mouth and nose, while temperature checks should be positioned at entry points into the schools.

He urged all eligible citizens to be vaccinated against coronavirus as soon as possible, describing it as a major step in curbing the pandemic.

News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalled that on May 4, federal government barred passengers coming from India, Brazil and Turkey coming to Nigeria

The step was part of precautionary measures to reduce the risk of a spike in COVID-19 infections as concerns over the new wave of the disease in some parts of the world continue to mount.

The federal government in its statement also threatened to impose a fine of $3,500 per passenger on any airline that fails to adhere to the instructions.

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(NAN)
The family of the late Nowamagbe Omoigui who died in April on Friday launched a centre for the advancement of art, history and medicine in memory of the renowned scholar.

The Nowa Centre for Advancement of Art, History and Medicine is to be operated by DAGOMO Foundation, led by an independent board, with support from the Omoigui family, well-wishers and donors.

A family-driven initiative, the centre was set up to serve as a tribute to the legacy of Mr Omoigui, and to preserve his intellectual property and body of work in the three fields.

The late Mr Omogui is brother to Ifueko Omogui Okauru, a former chairperson of the Federal Inland Revenue Service.

The Chief Programme Officer of DAGOMO foundation, Titilola Park, who unveiled the centre Friday, said it was established to promote the study and works of art and the impressive works of Nowa Omoigui.

His immense achievements are recognised internationally and locally, Ms Park said. The Nowa Centre will archive the chronological military history and Edo people. Seminar and lectures will form key tools in the dissemination of the message.

The Centre would curate rare historical materials and publications inclusive of historical artefacts and archaeological findings of significance.

The centre will also encourage and solicit the donation of books, articles, artefacts, art, mementoes and other items of ancient and contemporary significance by individuals and families with due recognition accorded.

Ms Parks explanation was buttressed by her colleague, Dan Uhimwen, who said because Dr Nowa made history available to all, this will be a catalyst to encourage people to follow in his part.

Billed to be sited in Benin City, Edo State, the hometown of Mr Omoigui, the centre will also run a virtual space where Mr Omoiguis works in arts, history and medicine will be curated.

Organizers said the centre will run a physical and virtual medium where artworks can be contributed by members of the public, families and organisations of similar interest.

In addition to this, the centre will run a museum that members of the public can visit for the purposes of cultural research and civic education.

The centre will also oversee an annual memorial lecture which will be held on the 18th of April every year to commemorate the day of his passage.

Also, an annual art and history exhibition will be held on 28th March every year to mark the day of his birth.

The organizers further sought financial donation to promote the centre.

Mr Omoigui, described as a precocious talent who set records everywhere he went, was born on March 28, 1959. He died on April 18.

Nowa Omoigui shattered the glass ceiling in Cardiology by being the first Nigerian immigrant to serve as Chief of Cardiology of a major University Medical School in the United States  The University of South Carolina, Columbia, Abraham Ariyo, a cardiologist, said in a tribute.

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His achievements ushered in a new era of possibilities. He inspired new generations of young Africans and African Americans in Cardiology worldwide. He chartered a new course, allowing us to redefine our future. By his example, we know that there are no limits in pursuing our dreams in the field of Cardiology.

Hegraduated from high school at age 15, from Federal Government College, Warri in Nigeria. He graduated with distinction and set a record as the first in the history of the school (and one of the first in West African History) to obtain a Grade A1 in Fine Arts.

In 1975, after a year of pre-Med at Kings College in Lagos, he gained admission to study Medicine at the Nigerias premier Medical School, The College of Medicine, University of Ibadan. In 1981, he graduated at the top of his Medical School Class with distinction and delivered the valedictory speech. After Internship, he spent a mandatory year of service at the Brigade of Guards where he set new records by coordinating an air, sea and land Military disaster drill, and received a National Award from the Nigerian President Shehu Shagari in 1983.

In the U.S., he did Medicine Residency at St. Marys Hospital in Rochester, NY and served as Chief Resident at Cook County Hospital in Chicago.

He obtained a Masters degree in Public Health from the University of Illinois. He trained in Cardiology at Stanford University and in Interventional Cardiology at the Cleveland Clinic (Americas best heart centre).
Two more petitioners have been awarded compensation of N11 million by the Lagos Judicial Panel on Restitution for Victims of SARS abuse and police brutality on Saturday.

The first award of N10 million compensation was issued to the family of late Rasheed Kareem, who was killed by a bullet shot by the police during the #EndSARS protest

Another sum of N1million was awarded to another victim of police brutality.

Olalekan Bankole, the brother to the late Mr Kareem earlier narrated to the panel how the deceased was killed by police officers from Area C in Surulere.

He said the deceased was shot in the head on October 21, 2020, at Stadium area of Surulere.

Giving the panels ruling on Saturday, Doris Okuwobi, the panel chair, said from the totality of evidence before it, the panel found that police officers shot at unknown persons at Surulere area on October 21, 2020, and there was an extrajudicial killing of the late Mr Kareem.

An independent investigation should be conducted into the sporadic and deliberate shootings and killings of unarmed persons at Tejuosho, Aralile and its environs on the 21st of October, 2020.

A further investigation of police officers that shot and killed the deceased is recommended. The erring police officers should be brought to book accordingly.

A sum of N10 million is awarded as compensation for the unfortunate death of Mr Rasheed Olanrewaju Kareem, Mrs Okuwobi ruled.

Unlawful arrest and torture

The second petitioner, Adeyinka Austin, was awarded N1 million compensation for his unlawful arrest, detention and torture by police officers.

The petitioner, an English tutor, earlier narrated how the police unlawfully arrested him, detained and tortured him for allegedly defrauding a woman.

Mr Austin said his vehicle was impounded by the police and despite that police investigation revealed he had no contact with or defrauded the complainant, he was subjected to constant abuse and torture.

Giving the position of the panel on the matter, Mrs Okuwobi said the petition was undefended by the police and there was incontrovertible evidence by the petitioner.

ALSO READ: Judicial panel awards two petitioners N10 million compensation

The petitioner was not found to have committed any criminal act when he was arrested and presented in public with handcuffs.

Mrs Okuwobi said the respondents have failed to show that the petitioner has committed any crime despite his arrest, detention and torture.

The arrest and detention of the petitioner from 28 September, 2017 to 30 September, 2017 is found to be wrongful, illegal and unconstitutional. The confiscation of the petitioners car was found to be unlawful and unconstitutional.

The petition is entitled to compensation, the panel hereby awards a sum of N1 million in favou for the unlawful arrest, detention torture and degrading treatment meted to the petitioner by the respondent, the retired judge ruled.

As of Saturday, the Lagos judicial panel had awarded N68.2 million to 12 victims of police brutality so far.

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Three other petitioners received no compensation because they could not prove their cases before the panel.
The Finnish court trying former Revolutionary United Front commander Gibril Massaquoi for war crimes allegedly committed in Liberia heard from a defence witness on Friday who had testified against former Liberian president Charles Taylor in the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

Codenamed witness 7 the former RUF commander echoed the testimonies of previous witnesses testifying to the court in Freetown that Massaquoi could not have been in Liberia when dozens of Liberian witnesses said he committed atrocities.

Like previous witnesses, 7 denied knowing Massaquoi had ever fought in Liberia and said the witnesses in Liberia who accused Massaquoi of atrocities including murder, rape and torture, were lying against an innocent man.

When I heard that Massaquoi was in jail because he is accused of fighting and killing in Liberia, I cried, because he never fought any war in Liberia but he only went for peace talks with Taylor in 2000, he said.

Witness 7 was the latest of 19 witnesses who will testify on Massaquois behalf in the Sierra Leone sessions of the trial.

Massaquois defence team is trying to establish doubt about the testimonies of dozens of witnesses in Liberia who said Massaquoi in his alias of Angel Gabriel committed atrocities in Lofa County and in the Waterside area of Monrovia, Liberia.

The defence contends Massaquoi was under witness protection in Freetown when the witnesses said he committed crimes in Liberia and could not have traveled to Liberia.

Defence witnesses have also suggested that there was another fighter in Liberia at the time with the name Angel Gabriel who may have committed the crimes.

Prosecutors challenged the witnesss testimony saying he had told the Special Court for Sierra Leone a different story from that he was telling the Finnish court.

Reading from his statement in The Hague, prosecutors cited a passage where he said he witnessed a vehicle filled with ammunition leave former President Taylorss house and go to the Airfield in Monrovia.

He said ammunition was put onboard a chopper and taken to Lofa as supply for the RUF. Witness 7 told the Finnish Court he could not remember that testimony or those events.

A portion of The Hague testimony read: Witness told the court that he saw Charles Taylor giving US 10,000 dollars to Sam Burkarie, also known as General Mosquito, and the witness saw Mosquito counting the money.

Looking nervous, Witness 7 said, It has been long, I cannot remember saying anything like that.

7 admitted going to Liberia to clear a supply route in Lofa County as soldier also said the previous day, and said the RUF pushed LURD rebels as far as the Guinea border.

I was the brigade commander, and I went to Foya, Kolahun and Voinjama because the road was blocked by LURD forces, he said. I carried men with me and Massaquoi was not part of us because he was not in Liberia.

Code 7, who said RUF fighters were known as the Cobra Unit by the Liberian government, denied that RUF fighters killed any civilians in Lofa.

Dozens of witnesses in the Liberian section of the trial in March had detailed numerous atrocities committed by RUF forces in Lofa County under the command of Angel Gabriel including the burning to death of dozens of children.

Witness 7 said he had only witnessed a Liberian army commander known as Zig-Zag Massa committing atrocities.

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I saw Zig-zar Massa killing human beings, drying their bodies and eating them. I was afraid and stayed far away from him, while I was in Liberia, he said.

The man also told the court he was testifying in fear for his security because he had suffered greatly as a result of testifying against Taylor in the Special Courts hearings in The Hague.

Witness 7 said after he returned everyone knew that he had testified and people came to kill him. He said he fled his home to save his life.

The witness showed a mark on his leg, which he said was from the incident. The Finnish judges assured 7 that if he felt threatened in any way, he should let the Finnish police know.

Background

Massaquoi is being prosecuted in Finland for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Liberia.

Massaquoi was relocated to Finland in 2005 in return for informing on Taylor and others for the Special Court. But when Civitas Maxima, of Switzerland and Liberia-based Global Justice Research Project presented Finnish investigators in the city of Tampere, where he was living, with evidence of his war crimes in Liberia, they charged him in March 2020.

Massaquois trial began on February 1 in Tampere. Rather than transport more than 80 witnesses set to testify to Finland in the midst of a pandemic, the Finnish court traveled to Finland and Sierra Leone.

Meanwhile, another defence witness, codenamed 10, told the court hearing on Friday that he was a radio operator for Massaquoi and said he knew Massaquoi when they were all trained together by the RUF leader Foday Sankoh in 1991. He said Sankoh came to liberate his people.

In 1999 to 2003, I was operating radio for Massaquoi because he had a satellite to speak with BBC, RFI and VOA. Massaquoi was the public relations officer for the RUF, after Ivory Coast peace in 1996, he said.

In another section of inquiry, 10 said a strange number called him from Switzerland last year and the person told him there was a court trial coming to Sierra Leone.

I saw a Switzerland number on my phone and when I missed the call so I called, the person said there was going to be a court trial and he wanted me to be on his side. When I asked for his name, he did not call his name so I told him if he cannot call his name, I wont talk so I hung up the phone.

When Witness 10 gave his phone to a court officer to search for the number, the court could only see his returned call to the number but did not see a call coming to him from the number.

10 said Massaquoi played a role in the Sierra Leone Special Court as a principal witness because he was the PRO for the RUF and he knew he was in witness protection.

However, Witness 10 did not say he knew Massaquoi was in witness protection and unable to travel in the crucial period of 2003 when the alleged crimes in Liberia took place.

He was at a safe location and police was protecting him in 2007 to 2008. While he was under witness, I met him in 2008 (and) it was the last time I saw him, he said.

Witness 10 also denied knowing Foday Sankoh gave diamonds to Charles Taylor and that Massaquoi received a satellite phone from Charles Taylor.

Taylor was convicted by the Special Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity including trading Sierra Leonean diamonds for weapons.

He is serving a 50-year-sentence in a UK prison. Sankoh died while awaiting trial.

The trial continues on Saturday.

This story was in collaboration with New Narratives as part of the West Africa Justice Reporting Project. Funding was provided by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. The funder had no say in the storys content.
The Kaduna State Government has said that it will implement its decision to rightsize the public service and not subject public policy to a mobs veto.

The state government explained that since late 2020, workers below Grade Level 14 have been staying at home as part of the COVID-19 prevention efforts, except those that have been declared as essential by their commissioners and agency head.

Therefore, it expects officers from Grade Level 14 upwards and workers on essential duty to continue at their duty post as usual.

The Commissioner of Local Government, Jafaru Sani, and Head of Service, Bariatu Y. Mohammed, stated the governments position during a press conference on Saturday (today).

According to them, KDSG regards the strike action and shutdown threats as futile gestures that will not stop it from taking the painful but necessary actions to cope with the fiscal crisis.

They said the Kaduna State Government believes that the welfare of public servants is sustainable only within the larger context of the general welfare of residents of the state that the government itself is mandated to serve.

Thus, it is not sustainable to persist in spending 84% to 96% of its FAAC receipts on salaries and personnel costs as has been the experience of the state since October 2020.

The administration said it will protect its facilities and its workers right to access and exit their offices.

It disclosed that it has alerted the security agencies of plans by some trade unionists to get hoodlums to attack power transmission stations, hospitals and public infrastructure like streetlights and waterworks in a repeat of the violence and vandalisation wreaked by what it called the Ayuba Wabba-led hooligans during the November 2017 rampage in Kaduna.

The statement noted that the Kaduna State Government has been assured by some trade unions that they will not be part of the planned sabotage of social and economic life in the state.

Saying some trade unionists have been persistently hostile to it, the Kaduna government wondered if something other than worker interest is at play! The statement narrated instances to demonstrate the Kaduna State Governments commitment to the welfare of its employees, including regular payment of salaries and pensions.

It added that Kaduna State civil servants bought most of the non-essential residential houses the government sold in 2017 and the state government supported their ability to pay for these houses by arranging single-digit interest mortgages for them.

The government said it could not understand why certain trade unionists persist in traducing the state government and lying about its record, despite Kaduna State being the first state to pay the minimum wage, raise minimum pension to N30,000 monthly, faithfully implement its contributory pension scheme, and pay over N13bn inherited arrears of gratuity and death benefits over five years.

The statement noted that the NLC has been citing fake figures from a forged memo while claiming at different times that 4,000 or 20,000 or even 60,000 officers have been affected by the rightsizing exercise. KDSG explained that it has not yet determined the precise number of political appointees and civil servants to be affected as it is still verifying personnel records.

It bears noting that given the patchy level of compliance with the new minimum wage across the country, it is the state government that blazed the trail in paying it and has continued paying it at both state and local government levels that some trade unionists are consistently traducing.

The statement added that in September 2019, the Kaduna State Government became the first government at any level in Nigeria to pay the new minimum wage, along with consequential adjustments and it has continued to faithfully respect this obligation. It followed up by swiftly raising the minimum pension to N30,000 monthly for retirees on the old defined benefits scheme.

The 23 local government councils in the state also complied and began paying the new wages. Amidst all the revenue challenges we have encountered over the last six years, the Kaduna State Government has always prioritised its ability to deliver capital projects and pay its personnel costs, especially salaries.

Kaduna is also one of the states that is most faithful in implementing the Contributory Pension Scheme, effective from 1 January 2017. It has courageously attempted to settle the N14bn it inherited as arrears of death benefit and gratuity from 2010, commencing payments with those who had exited service the longest. Since 2015, the Kaduna State Government has paid over N13bn in death benefits and gratuity.

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As part of its commitment to the public service as the vehicle for the delivery of services and public goods to citizens, this government initiated the Public Service Reform and Revitalisation Programme in 2016. Its purpose is to modernise the service and make it more efficient and ICT-savvy. Apart from teachers and health workers, this government continues to also recruit required professionals for its agencies.

It creates new jobs as it exits personnel from cadres that have been rendered obsolete. It is investing in training and has devoted 2% of FAAC receipts to fund training as a rigorous investment in building and boosting the capacity of its personnel.

As sitting tenants, Kaduna State civil servants bought most of the non-essential residential houses the government sold in 2017 and the government supported their ability to pay for these houses by arranging single-digit interest mortgages for them.

Therefore, this government has demonstrated in action its commitment to the welfare of its workers. But it insists that this is sustainable only in the context of the general welfare of residents of the state that the government itself is mandated to serve. Thus, it is not sustainable to persist in spending 84% to 96% of its FAAC receipts on salaries and personnel costs as it has been the states experience since October 2020. This government was not elected to devote most public funds to paying government workers and treat that as its defining governance mission, to the detriment of developing the state and its people.

READ FULL STATEMENT BELOW

Text of Kaduna State Government press conference addressed by the Commissioner of Local Government and the Head of Service, 15th May 2021

Gentlemen of the Press,

1. On behalf of the Kaduna State Government, we wish to issue the following statement.

2. In September 2019, the Kaduna State Government became the first government at any level in Nigeria to pay the new minimum wage, along with consequential adjustments and it has continued to faithfully respect this obligation. It followed up by swiftly raising the minimum pension to N30,000 monthly for retirees on the old defined benefits scheme. The 23 local government councils in the state also complied and began paying the new wages. Amidst all the revenue challenges we have encountered over the last six years, the Kaduna State Government has always prioritised its ability to deliver capital projects and pay its personnel costs, especially salaries.

3. Kaduna is also one of the states that is most faithful in implementing the Contributory Pension Scheme, effective from 1 January 2017. It has courageously attempted to settle the N14bn it inherited as arrears of death benefit and gratuity from 2010, commencing payments with those who had exited service the longest. Since 2015, the Kaduna State Government has paid over N13bn in death benefits and gratuity.

4. As part of its commitment to the public service as the vehicle for the delivery of services and public goods to citizens, this government initiated the Public Service Reform and Revitalisation Programme in 2016. Its purpose is to modernise the service and make it more efficient and ICT-savvy. Apart from teachers and health workers, this government continues to also recruit required professionals for its agencies. It creates new jobs as it exits personnel from cadres that have been rendered obsolete. It is investing in training and has devoted 2% of FAAC receipts to fund training as a rigorous investment in building and boosting the capacity of its personnel.

5. As sitting tenants, Kaduna State civil servants bought most of the non-essential residential houses the government sold in 2017 and the government supported their ability to pay for these houses by arranging single-digit interest mortgages for them.

6. Therefore, this government has demonstrated in action its commitment to the welfare of its workers. But it insists that this is sustainable only in the context of the general welfare of residents of the state that the government itself is mandated to serve. Thus, it is not sustainable to persist in spending 84% to 96% of its FAAC receipts on salaries and personnel costs as has been the experience of the state since October 2020. This government was not elected to devote most public funds to paying government workers and treat that as its defining governance mission, to the detriment of developing the state and its people.

7. In response to the fiscal headwinds caused by declining FAAC receipts and huge outlays on personnel costs, the government announced in April 2021 that it will rightsize the public service and reduce the number of political appointees and civil servants. The necessary verification of credentials for full implementation of this painful but necessary decision is still being done. It has not determined the total number of officers that might be affected by the decision. Neither has it stopped paying the minimum wage, despite the prompting of the denizens of sentiment who have urged it to suspend payment and thereby violate the national Minimum Wage Act. The Kaduna State Government prefers to take lawful and rational steps that are within its powers to rightsize its personnel and thereby reduce its wage bill.

8. However, since making its intentions known in this regard, the Kaduna State Government has been subjected to a veritable campaign of lies and misrepresentation. Such is the absence of rigour that the NLC itself has cited in its correspondence the contents of a forged memo that first made its nasty appearance in 2019, alleging the casual engagement of workers on Grades 01-06, the imposition of maximum staff strength of 50 on each local government and the compulsory retirements of officers that are above 50.

9. The NLCs wanton fictions have been echoed by some other trade unionists who have variously and falsely claimed that the rightsizing exercise affects 4,000 or 20,000 or even 60,000 workers. This is not true, and neither is their claim that the Kaduna State Government has stopped paying the minimum wage. It bears noting that given the patchy level of compliance with the new minimum wage across the country, it is the state government that blazed the trail in paying it and has continued paying it at both state and local government level that some trade unionists are consistently traducing. Perhaps something other than worker interest is at play! We already know from the events of 2017 that some trade unionists privilege their ego and narrow interests above public welfare.

10. Such trade unionists have used fictions and misrepresentations to build up a campaign of hysteria. The Kaduna State Government has been made aware of plans by some trade unionists, led by Ayuba Wabba, to reprise the mayhem they visited on Kaduna during their rampage of 8 November 2017. That day, in one of the most shameful displays of irresponsibility, they thrashed the premises of the Kaduna State House of Assembly as part of their futile attempt to force the government to retain 21,780 teachers who did not pass a Primary 4 competency test. The State Government sacked the failed teachers and swiftly recruited 25,000 teachers to replace them and to promote the right of the children of the poor to decent education.

11. Following that shameful 2017 episode, there is a subsisting warrant for the arrest of Wabba for the vandalization of government facilities, in violation of the Miscellaneous Offences Act and other laws of the land.

12. As is appropriate, the security agencies have been notified of the plans of some trade unionists to recruit hoodlums, including from other states, to create a destructive spectacle and further their self-serving narrative about public service jobs and insecurity.

13. The Kaduna State Government has been assured by some trade unions that they will not be part of the planned sabotage of social and economic life. We acknowledge and appreciate these assurances.

14. The Kaduna State Government wishes to clarify that it will not be blackmailed by the criminal plans to attack and shut down power transmission stations, hospitals, government offices and infrastructure such as waterworks and streetlights. We note the brazen threat to the operations of private companies, their workers and facilities and the indifference to the rights and interests of their customers.

15. Kaduna State Governments obvious investments in schools, hospitals, roads and other infrastructure represent the rebuke to specious arguments that paying salaries will suffice as evidence of governance. Kaduna State pays salaries to its workers, but it also invests to develop the state, as every fair-minded person can see. But when its revenues drop, it will do what rational people do by reducing its expenses. Therefore, the state government calls on residents of the state to resist the apostles of violence and do their utmost to protect public facilities.

16. On 20 December 2020, the Kaduna State Government asked workers below Grade Level 14 to stay at home, effective 21 December 2020 as part of Covid-19 prevention efforts and they have not been recalled to their offices since then. However, they continue to get paid. Along with officers from Grade Level 14 upwards, those workers that have been declared as essential by their commissioners and agency heads are expected at their duty posts as usual.

17. The Trade Union Act is clear in prohibiting strike action by workers that are engaged in the provision of essential services. The law also forbids subjecting any other person to any kind of constraint or restriction of his personal freedom in the course of persuasion for strike action.

18. The planned strike action and shutdown are futile gestures, just like Ayuba Wabbas bluster and histrionics in 2017. KDSG has notified the security agencies who would take steps to thwart the violent intent of the organisers. Apart from the restrictions imposed by Covid-19 protocols, a ban on public processions subsists in this state. This was imposed precisely because of the violence that has frequently broken out from such processions even when they began with innocent intent.

19. For its part, KDSG will protect its facilities and the right of its staff to access and work in their offices. It is unlawful for anyone to try to deny them access or exit. Government offices are not the property of any trade unionist and none of them should entertain thoughts of locking up or vandalizing any facility.

20. As in 2017, the Kaduna State Government will not subject its policy to the veto of a mob. This government did not campaign on a platform of tired populism and it was not elected to practice timidity as public policy. It is not about to create the mistaken impression that it has much fiscal wiggle room as a subnational or that it is the supreme goal of government to pay 100,000 people while ignoring the larger public welfare of 10m citizens. The trade union laws of this country are not a cover for irresponsibility, and therefore everyone concerned should be rightly guided.
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Unlike his counterparts in the southern part of Nigeria, Governor Yahaya Bello has said Kogi State will not ban open grazing until it has made provision for ranching.

Earlier in the week, the governors of the 17 southern states met in Delta State and agreed to end open grazing, to check farmer-herder clashes and other security threats.

(We) affirmed that the peoples 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;

ii) 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, the communique detailing their resolutions read.

But the governor, in an interview with Channels TV, Friday evening, said he holds a different view on the issue.

I have not banned grazing because theres no provision for ranching yet. There is no provision for ranching. Should I send away millions of Fulani people that are living their normal lives, that have been living with us peacefully over the years? Should I send them away?

Mr Bello said he has instead, integrated the herders by ensuring that their conflict with farmers does not exist.

I inherited a problem in Kogi and have solved it with the cooperation of my traditional rulers, with the youths, women, with farmers and even Fulanis themselves.

We know that the land is no longer enough but we can accommodate each other within the limited that we have. We cant just send them out. A lot of the Fulanis have been driven from the south.

I am not in any way criticising those who enacted the law banning open grazing. Of course, open grazing is outdated, is archaic but we met a system that has failed. We must be able to manage it in such a way or to the extent that we will be able to come up with ranching.

Mr Bello said cattle-rearing is a business done by many people including people who are not of Fulani extraction.

There are several other non-Fulani that are rearing cattle. Majority of these our leaders have millions of cattle taken care of by Fulanis, by non-Fulanis alike. So we should I just heap it on Fulanis?

So, what we did in Kogi was to accommodate them. We accommodate them in our governance system from local to the state level, in our community level. We accommodated them in every decision were going to make.
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President Muhammadu Buhari is billed to depart Nigeria on Sunday to Paris, France, on a four-day official visit to attend African Finance Summit.

In a statement by presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, the summit will focus on reviewing African economy, following shocks from COVID-19 pandemic, and getting relief, especially from increased debt burden on countries.

The summit, to be hosted by President Emmanuel Macron, will also draw major stakeholders in the global finance institutions and some Heads of Government, who will, collectively, discuss external funding and debt treatment for Africa, and private sector reforms, amongst others.

The president will be accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed; Minister of Trade and Investment, Adeniyi Adebayo, and Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire.

Also on the trip are: National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno and Director General of National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ahmed Rufai.

Read the full statement by the Presidency:

STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE

PRESIDENT BUHARI TO PARTICIPATE IN AFRICAN FINANCE SUMMIT IN PARIS, MEET WITH EMMANUEL MACRON ON SECURITY

President Muhammadu Buhari will on Sunday, May 16, 2021, depart Abuja for Paris, France, on a four-day official visit to attend African Finance Summit which will be focused on reviewing African economy, following shocks from Coronavirus pandemic, and getting relief, especially from increased debt burden on countries.

The Summit, to be hosted by President Emmanuel Macron, will draw major stakeholders in the global finance institutions and some Heads of Government, who will, collectively, discuss external funding and debt treatment for Africa, and private sector reforms.

During the visit, President Buhari will meet with the French President to discuss growing security threats in Sahel and Lake Chad region, political relations, economic ties, climate change and partnership in buoying the health sector, particularly in checking spread of Covid-19, with more research and vaccines.

Before returning to Nigeria, President Buhari will receive some key players in the oil and gas sector, engineering and telecommunications, European Council and European Union Representative for Foreign and Security Policy and Commission, and members of the Nigerian community.

The President will be accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, Minister of Trade and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, and Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire.

Also on the trip are: National Security Adviser, Maj. Gen. Babagana Mohammed Monguno (rtd) and Director General of National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Amb. Ahmed Rufai Abubakar.

Garba Shehu

Senior Special Assistant to the President

(Media & Publicity)

May 15, 2021
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A police Sergeant, Kabiru Isah, has returned N1.2 million recovered from an accident scene to the relatives of the deceased in Kano State.

The Kano State Police Public Relations Officer, Abdullahi Haruna, said this in a statement on Saturday in Kano.

Mr Haruna said that the police officer, who was attached to the commands Motor Traffic Division (MTD), recovered the money while conducting analysis at an accident scene on the Kano-Zaria road.

He said that an articulated vehicle had knocked down a motorcycle rider, who died on the spot, adding that the victim was in possession of the money packed in a box.

The police officer returned N1,294,200 found at the scene of the fatal accident, he said.

Mr Haruna said that the Commissioner of Police, Samaila Dikko, handed over the money to the relatives of the deceased and called on police personnel and residents of the state to emulate Mr Isahs good deed.

According to him, the Managing Director, Kano Road Traffic Agency (KAROTA), Baffa Dan-Agundi, gifted Mr Isah with N100,000 as reward for his honesty and dedication to duty.

Mr Haruna said that the command, in a related activity, distributed food items to widows of 26 police personnel who lost their lives in service.

(NAN)
No fewer than 25 rape cases were recorded in Enugu State from January to March 2021, the Centre Manager, Tamar Sexual Assault Referral Centre (Tamar SARC), Evelyn Onah, said.

Mrs Onah disclosed this on Saturday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu.

She said that 31 cases of attempted sexual assault and five Gender Based Violence (GBV) were also recorded within the same period.

She said that some of the cases involved minors as well as adults within the ages of five, 24 and 22.

The centre manager disclosed that an 88-year old woman was recently raped by a 22-year old man at Nsukka.

The boy was later apprehended and is currently in police custody, she said.

She said that a yet to be identified man in April raped a 47-year-old woman who was returning from a church programme.

Just last week, we received a report that a 22-year-old girl was gang-raped while another 14-year-old girl was also raped on her way to the stream.

The suspects were all arrested and will be charged to court, she said.

Mrs Onah attributed the surge in incidences of rape in the state to rise in social vices and economic hardship in the country.

According to her, the incidences of rape has increased because many residents are idle while some are doing it as part of their lifestyle.

She, therefore, urged the youth to engage themselves on more productive and positive activities that would take their mind off crime.

Stop intimidating the weak with your power but use such powers to protect them so that the society can gain something from you, she said.

Mrs Onah said the greatest challenge to the prosecution of rape cases in the state was that most families, sometimes, abandon such cases in the court because of shame and to protect their name.

Some will even collect as low as N10,000 to settle out of court because of poverty in the land, she said.

Mrs Onah urged survivors of rape to always speak out than to remain in silence.

Tamar SARC was set up by the Enugu State Government to support GBV survivors, with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through Pathfinder International.

The centre offers free medical, counselling and other support services to the victims and survivors of GBV in the state and beyond.

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(NAN)
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The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has declared a three-day prayer for the peace and unity of the country in the face of mounting insecurity.

The General Secretary of CAN, Daramola Bade-Joseph, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday in Lagos.

Mr Bade-Joseph said the event, which would hold from May 28 until May 30, had become necessary following the spate of insecurity in parts of the country.

He said that the prevailing circumstance had made it imperative to seek Gods intervention to restore peace and progress in Nigeria.

According to him, all participating denominations are expected to gather in the evenings of each of the days set aside for the prayers.

He appealed to CAN members to pray God to give the political leaders in the country the wisdom to do justice and show fairness to all manner of persons irrespective of ethnic group, creed and religion.

We should also pray that the law enforcement officers rise to their responsibilities by providing the necessary security we need in Nigeria, Mr Bade-Joseph said.

(NAN)
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Some youth agitating for a Yoruba nation have stormed Osogbo, the capital of Osun State, calling for the breakaway of the ethnic group from Nigeria.

The agitators, who are currently holding their rally, have grounded activities in the state capital as major roads are blocked.

They are members of a proYoruba nation group, Ilana Omo Oodua. PREMIUM TIMES obtained pictures of hundreds of the agitators with placards on Saturday.

Some of the inscriptions are We want Freedom, Omo Yoruba Ile Ti Ya among others.

They converged on November 27 Bridge in the Africa area, Osogbo, for the protest and marched through Ogo-Oluwa, Aregbe junction, Fakunle, Ola-Iya, and Odi Olowo areas.

They were also seen chanting secession songs, and distributing handbills to people along the streets.

Our correspondent confirmed that security operatives have been deployed to the scenes of the rally. The state police spokesperson, Yemisi Opalola, did not respond to our correspondent calls and text messages.

The latest rally is coming two weeks after some of the agitators were arrested in Ogun State for carrying out the same activities.

A similar rally by Yoruba nation agitators was held in Ibadan, Oyo State capital on April 21. It was also disrupted by the police.

Some high profile Nigerians have said only an urgent restructuring would save Nigeria from breaking up.

It would be recalled that 17 southern governors in Nigeria also called for restructuring.

But the presidency has maintained that calls for restructuring are recurring threats to the corporate existence of the country with factions giving specific timelines for the President to do one thing or another or else, in their language, the nation will break up.

A former governor of Oyo State, Rashidi Ladoja, who seems not to be comfortable with the Yoruba nation agitators on Thursday said Yorubas should act rather than talking too much on secession.
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Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State has warned traditional rulers to desist from fomenting trouble over appointment of chiefs in their domain.

Mr Akeredolu gave the warning on Saturday in Ikare Akoko at the occasion of official presentation of instrument of appointment and staff of office to Adeleke Adegbite, the Owa-Ale of Ikare-Akoko.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the stool of Owa-Ale of Ikare-Akoko became vacant after the demise of Oba Samuel Adegbite on Sept. 1, 2020.

The governor, represented by his Deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, said government would not hesitate to deal decisively with any traditional ruler caught engaged in acts of lawlessness.

Mr Akeredolu added that any traditional ruler that was dissatisfied with any decision on chieftaincy matters should seek redress in the court of law instead of taking laws into their hands.

The governor urged the newly installed traditional ruler to demonstrate high level of integrity in the discharge of his responsibility and should focus attention on his area of jurisdiction.

At this juncture, I wish to express my utmost displeasure over the recent mayhem that erupted in this community over the removal and subsequent appointment of the new Olokoja.

We are all aware of the current state of insecurity in this country.

Therefore, under no circumstance shall we tolerate another wave of killing of innocent citizens and wanton destruction of properties over any security issue in the community, much less of any minor chieftaincy matter, he said.

Mr Akeredolu later assured the gathering that security of residents of the state was his priority, adding that he is making efforts to rid the state of miscreants and criminals.

Earlier, the Chairman of Akoko North-East Local Government, Omojola Ashimiyu, urged the new traditional ruler to be an apostle of peace and carry along all his people both home and abroad in his day-to-day administration.

Mr Ashimiyu also advised the people of the town to embrace peace and support the new traditional ruler for his tenure to witness unprecedented achievements.

Responding, Mr Adegbite appreciated the governor for fatherly and leadership role he displayed in maintaining peace in Ikare land.

The traditional ruler, who apologised on recent disturbance of the peace in the town, assured that he would continue to speak with his people to live in peace and tolerance to avoid a reccurrence.

Going down memory lane, this is the 18th Owa-Ale in lkare since my progenitors migrated from lle-lfe, the ancestral home of the Yoruba people.

Permit me to mention that Obaship assignment, like any other leadership role, is a call to selfless service.

Having accepted my unanimous selection to assume the throne of my forefathers and lead the good people of Ikare Land as the Owa-Ale Adimula, I promise, by Gods grace, not to disappoint you, he said.(NAN)
Initially focused on the voluntary carbon credit segment, XELS launched its blockchain platform and eponymous digital asset earlier this month. The startup's tokenized offset credits, which exist on an immutable public ledger, are designed to boost both transparency and participation in carbon markets. Unlike traditional carbon credits, XELS cannot be modified or double spent, and the process of "burning" used tokens ensures the credit is retired forever.

Anyone with access to a computer and an internet connection - from eco-conscious individuals to corporations that wish to show consumers they're serious about tackling climate change - can buy and trade XELS. By working with Redshaw Advisors, XELS will be able to ensure the legitimacy of each credit it tokenizes, while also providing an additional record of the credit's retirement in the Redshaw Advisors' registry account. Upon retirement, Redshaw Advisors will also issue certificates that XELS' clients can use to show the exact amount of CO2 they've neutralized.

"We are delighted to have been given the opportunity to advise, consult, and procure for XELS across carbon markets - compliance and voluntary - and renewable energy," stated Bill Goldie, Head of Voluntary Market at Redshaw Advisors.

In the future, XELS seeks to offer regulated "compliance" credits in addition to voluntary offset credits. The startup is in advanced discussions with multiple listed Japanese corporations that wish to significantly curtail their environmental impact, in line with Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's goal of reaching net zero domestic emissions by 2050.

"In many ways, Japan is playing catch up with the rest of the world, and the European Union in particular," explains XELS founder and CEO Takeshi Nojima. "XELS will become the easiest, most transparent way for businesses to join the fight against global warming, and we'll be able to provide clear proof of their commitment - backed by Redshaw Advisors. That's something consumers will appreciate, and eventually demand from the companies they support."

XELS was founded in 2017 and is a member of the Climate Chain Coalition. XELS tokens can be obtained on the Bittrex Global and MXC cryptocurrency exchanges.

Redshaw Advisors, founded in 2014, with a long track record of success in the European carbon markets, has a growing presence in voluntary markets. Among numerous industry accolades, Redshaw Advisors was named 2020's Best Trading Company and Best Advisory/Consultancy for EU ETS credits and Renewable Energy Certificates, as well as Best Trading Company for the Voluntary Carbon Market.



XELS website: www.xels.io .

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SOURCE XELS Limited
Travala.com Smart program subscribers receive 12-month Zomato Pro subscription for use in Portugal; Zomato Pro members receive 12-month access to travel discounts and loyalty rewards on Travala.com

LONDON, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Travala.com, the world's leading cryptocurrency-friendly online travel agency (OTA), and Zomato , a global platform for restaurant discovery, today announced a strategic partnership for Portugal that gives travelers and diners more flexible and cost-effective options as global travel slowly picks back up. The partnership brings direct benefits for premium paid subscribers of both companies: Travala.com Smart program members will receive a 12-month subscription for Zomato Pro in Portugal , and Portugal's Zomato Pro members will gain 12-month access to the Travala.com Smart Lite program, which includes discounts and loyalty rewards for travel bookings on the OTA's platform.

Zomato Pro is the company's premier all-encompassing membership that unlocks amazing privileges and discounts at the best restaurants across dining out and delivery. With a 12-month subscription to Zomato Pro in Portugal, Travala.com Smart members will now enjoy:

Additional discounts on their order, over and above other offers.

Discounts available on "It In- or Takeaway"

Up to 40% off the total bill value, no cap on discount

No daily, weekly or monthly limits on

Access to 1,100 Zomato Pro restaurant partners across Portugal

"Global travel is rebounding in a serious way as a year of pent-up demand has driven millions of people to make up for lost time," said Juan Otero, CEO of Travala.com. "To help our most loyal users take advantage and do so in a cost-effective way, we partnered with one of the world's largest and most respected restaurant aggregators to bring them great benefits across highly rated restaurants in one of Europe's most popular destinations. We expect Portugal to be just the beginning of a long-term partnership that will expand, and bring significant savings, to travelers across Europe."

The Travala.com Smart program is the company's premier membership program designed to give travelers deep discounts, loyalty rewards. With this new partnership, Zomato Pro Portugal users will gain 12-month access to Smart Lite benefits, including:

Up to 2% Smart discount on listed prices at the time of booking

Up to 2% loyalty rewards back after completing your trip

Up to 3% discount when booking with AVA, Travala.com's native cryptocurrency

Access to Travala.com's massive supply of over 3 million travel products

Zomato Pro Portugal users are not eligible for the Smart program's bonus rewards

"We share a deep passion with Travala.com to empower people to discover new experiences no matter where they are, and this new partnership gives Zomato Pro and Travala.com Smart program members just that," said Steven Murray, country manager, Zomato Portugal. "As people begin to travel again, doing so with flexible, cost-effective options is critical. We're thrilled to open our Pro membership in Portugal to Travala.com's Smart program users and provide our subscribers fantastic travel discounts, enabling users of both companies to ultimately deliver amazing experiences."

Food delivery and aggregator apps like Zomato have seen surges in both users and revenues over the past year , as shelter-in-place orders caused by the pandemic have driven millions of users to order food from home. Zomato, founded in India in 2008, is the largest restaurant aggregator in Portugal and one of the most popular aggregators and food delivery service providers in the world. Its technology platform connects customers, restaurant partners and delivery partners. Customers can search and discover restaurants, read and write customer generated reviews and view and upload photos, order food delivery, book a table and make payments while dining out.

Backed by industry giant Binance, Travala.com offers over 3 million travel products worldwide, including stays, flights and activities, all bookable via 40 supported cryptocurrencies (including Bitcoin) and fiat. Last week, the company launched " Concierge ," a premium, personalised service for high-net-worth travelers, and earlier this year added over 400,000 tours and activities through a partnership with Viator . In April, Travala.com saw a record revenue growth of 12,593% year-over-year, with a record4,200+ room nights booked.

For more information on this partnership, please visit travala.com

About Travala.com

Founded in 2017, Travala.com is the leading cryptocurrency-friendly travel booking service with 3,000,000 travel products worldwide, including stays, flights and activities. Backed by industry-giant Binance, Travala.com is a champion of cryptocurrency adoption, accepting over 40 leading cryptocurrencies in addition to traditional payment methods. AVA bolsters the Travala.com value proposition. As the native cryptocurrency of the platform, AVA can be used for payments, receiving loyalty rewards, discounts and bonuses, among several other use cases. In addition to unbeatable prices via its Best Price Guarantee, Smart users on Travala.com can also enjoy additional discounts and loyalty rewards for eligible bookings made on the platform.

About Zomato

Zomato is a restaurant review, restaurant discovery, food delivery and dining out transactions platform providing in-depth information for over 1.5 million restaurants across 24 countries and serves more than 70 million users every month.

press@zomato.com

CONTACT: travala@shiftcomm.com

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SOURCE Travala.com
About 10 minutes after the disaster hit, China's emergency response office issued a statement on the situation from Beijing, and the People's Liberation Army (PLA) activated its preparedness plan.

Just 21 minutes after the quake, four helicopters were dispatched to survey the damage, and 6,100 officers and soldiers from neighboring areas and over 3,000 members of the Sichuan Armed Police Force deployed to the scene.

In less than 10 hours, 20,000 troops and armed police were at the disaster sites assisting with relief work, with an additional 34,000 security officers on their way.

The speed at which a government reacts to disasters speaks to its capacity to solve problems and its resilience.

COVID-19 has provided another stern test.

In the early stages of the outbreak, Wuhan in Hubei Province was in dire need of medics and equipment. The government rushed more than 330 medical teams comprising over 40,000 healthcare workers to the city.

Nineteen provinces were corralled to provide direct assistance to other surrounding provincial communities.

At first, the lockdown of Wuhan elicited confusion and even panic.

But the government provided timely updates and addressed the challenges that came with lockdown through grassroots community actions mobilized by local authorities.

In doing so, the spread of the virus was curbed and social stability maintained.

"I have never seen, in my life, this kind of mobilization," said World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom. "China's speed, China's scale and China's efficiency is the advantage of China's system."

Not only did the government work on measures to tame COVID-19, but it also charted a 15-year socio-economic development blueprint.

China has proved itself adept at turning crises into opportunities.

"Roots of China's Growth" is a 10-episode series marking the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which has presided over the country's meteoric rise as a global power. The series focuses on 10 fundamental elements of the strategy that has led to China's transformation from an impoverished nation over the past 100 years. This article is the first in the series.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-05-12/Why-China-s-leadership-model-enables-quick-solutions-10ceG1ztKrm/index.html

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SOURCE CGTN
The new monument  made entirely of granite, standing 8ft tall, 9.5ft wide, 4ft deep at its base  displays the engraving of each of the 93 Army soldiers aboard, as well as the names of the 11 flight crew members, many of whom were veterans themselves. The inscription on the stone reads:

"Missing in action; Presumed dead. Flying Tiger Line Flight 739 went missing on March 16, 1962, with 93 U.S. Army soldiers on board. These men and their flight crew perished in what would become one of the biggest aviation mysteries out of the Vietnam War era.

THE NAMES OF THOSE WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES AND WHO REMAIN MISSING ARE INSCRIBED HERE SO THAT THEY WILL BE SAID ALOUD AND THEIR MEMORY WILL LIVE ON."

The land where this monument has been erected was donated by WAA Founder Morrill Worcester and is located on the balsam tip land where brush is harvested each year to make veterans' wreaths to be placed on the headstones of our nation's heroes on National Wreaths Across America Day. "When I first heard the story about this mission, I was shocked to learn that nothing has been done for these families," said Worcester. "I said that day, that we would do something to make sure these people are honored and remembered, and to hopefully give some closure to these families."

The mission of Wreaths Across America is to Remember the fallen, Honor those that served and their families, and Teach the next generation the value of freedom. Today's ceremony touched on all aspects of this as the names of each person aboard Flying Tiger Line Flight 739 were said out loud, and their names and story were etched in stone for future generations to learn about their service and sacrifice.

The video from today's Facebook Live Broadcast can be found on Wreaths Across America's Official Facebook page here. This is the first time that many of these families have met one another to share their stories and experiences stemming from that fateful day. The story of Flying Tiger Flight line 739 can be found here.

Leading up to the monument unveiling, interviews with family members were broadcast on Wreaths Across America Radio. You can hear their first-hand experiences regarding this historical moment in our country's history and their emotional reactions to their family members being honored and remembered, 59 years later.

Wreaths Across America would like to offer a special thanks to the Worcester family for not only their donation of land, but their incredible work to prepare the grounds and install this new monument, as well as commitment to care for it long into the future.

A full list of names, pictures of the new monument, and broll from the unveiling ceremony are available upon request.

About Wreaths Across America

Wreaths Across America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded to continue and expand the annual wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery begun by Maine businessman Morrill Worcester in 1992. The organization's mission  Remember, Honor, Teach  is carried out in part each year by coordinating wreath-laying ceremonies in December at Arlington, as well as thousands of veterans' cemeteries and other locations in all 50 states and beyond.



For more information please visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org.

Press contacts:

Amber Caron

[email protected]

(207) 513-6457

Sean Sullivan

[email protected]

(207) 230-4599

SOURCE Wreaths Across America

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WASHINGTON, May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today announced that it will join other Muslim organizations in boycotting the White House's virtual Eid celebration due to the Biden Administration's "incredibly disappointing and deeply disturbing" response to the Israeli government's human rights abuses against Palestinians in Gaza and East Jerusalem.

The "White House Virtual Eid Celebration" is scheduled to take place online on Sunday, May 16. The event is designed to recognize the Eid ul-Fitr (EED-al-FITTER) holiday that marks the end of the month-long fast of Ramadan.

A growing coalition of American Muslim organizations has called for the community to boycott the event in response to Biden administration statements that "ignore the Israeli assault on Al-Aqsa and the Muslims worshipping inside, the expulsion taking place in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, and the ongoing siege of Gaza that has already claimed the lives of hundreds, but also have the audacity to lay the blame on the victims: the Palestinian people."

SEE: We Boycott the Biden Eid Celebration

https://ampalestine.salsalabs.org/MUSLIMCOMMUNITYBOYCOTTOFBIDENEIDCELEBRATION/index.html

In a statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:





"CAIR joins other American Muslim organizations in cancelling our plans to take part in President Biden's Eid celebration. We cannot in good conscience celebrate Eid with the Biden Administration while it literally aids, abets and justifies the Israeli apartheid government's indiscriminate bombing of innocent men, women and children in Gaza. President Biden has the political power and moral authority to stop these injustices. We urge him to stand on the side of the victims and not the victimizer."

"The American Muslim community has been incredibly disappointed and deeply disturbed by the Biden Administration's unbalanced response to Israel's planned ethnic cleansing in Sheikh Jarrah, attacks on worshippers at Masjid Al-Aqsa and the bombing of civilians in Gaza, which we would have expected from the previous administration.

"If the White House continues along this morally-unconscionable path as more Palestinian children die, the White House risks causing severe damage to President Biden's relationship with American Muslims and all others who defend civil and human rights."

Awad noted that CAIR had previously encouraged the Muslim community to take part in the White House Eid event.

CAIR Community Advisory: Join the White House Virtual Eid Celebration on May 16th

https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-community-advisory-join-the-white-house-virtual-eid-celebration-on-may-16th/

Since then, CAIR said, the Biden Administration has refused to condemn or even mildly criticize the Israeli government for sparking this cycle of violence by attempting to expel Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah and attacking Palestinian worshippers at Masjid Al-Aqsa, one of the holiest sites in the world for Muslims.

CAIR also said that by repeatedly justifying the Israeli government's bombing of civilians and civilian infrastructure in the Gaza Strip as legitimate acts of "self-defense," the Biden Administration has emboldened Benjamin Netanyahu to continue killing Palestinian children, toppling apartment buildings, and destroying refugee camps.

An increasing number of Democratic members of Congress have called upon President Biden to more assertively confront the Israeli government's violations of Palestinian human rights.



SEE: Biden followed pro-Israel U.S. precedent. But new critics shake the status quo.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/far-away-tense-jerusalem-squad-pressures-biden-israel-palestinian-conflict-n1267275

[NOTE: During Eid ul-Fitr or "feast of fast breaking" holiday, Muslims would normally offer public prayers, exchange social visits and seek to strengthen family and community bonds. Eid ul-Fitr is the first of the two major Muslim holidays. The second holiday, Eid ul-Adha (EED-al-ODD-ha), comes near the end of the Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca.]

Thomas Jefferson was the first President to host an iftar, the meal breaking fast during Ramadan, at the White House in 1805. Every President since Bill Clinton in 1996 has hosted an iftar for members of the community during their presidencies. President Trump ended the tradition in 2017 and restarted it in 2018 but largely limited invitations to foreign diplomats.

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.

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


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 Cobalt 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.

Buyers can benchmark their preferred pricing models for Cobalt Market, Procurement, Management with the wider industry information and identify the cost-saving potential.

Insights to help buyers identify and shortlist the most suitable suppliers for their Cobalt Market requirements. This procurement report answers the following questions:

Am I engaging with the right suppliers?

Which KPIs should I use to evaluate my incumbent suppliers?

Which supplier selection criteria are relevant for?

What are the Cobalt Market category essentials in terms of SLAs and RFx?

Grab your Free Sample now to unlock further information on other key aspects of this market

Insights into strategies that will help buyers optimize their category management practices. The report answers the following questions:

What should be my strategic procurement objectives, activities, and enablers for the Cobalt Market category?

What negotiation levers can I pull for cost-saving?

What are Cobalt Market procurement best practices I should be promoting in my supply chain?

Some of the top Cobalt Market suppliers enlisted in this report

This Cobalt Market procurement intelligence report has enlisted the top suppliers and their cost structures, SLA terms, best selection criteria, and negotiation strategies.

Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. Ltd.

PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel

UMICORE NV/SA

Glencore plc

Freeport-McMoRan Inc.

Vale S.A.

Sherritt International Corp.

ERAMET SA

ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc

Huayou Cobalt Co. Ltd.

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
RADNOR, Pa., May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The law firm of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP announces that a securities fraud class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against Skillz Inc. (NYSE: SKLZ) ("Skillz") f/k/a Flying Eagle Acquisition Corp. ("FEAC") on behalf of those who purchased or acquired Skillz securities between December 16, 2020 and April 19, 2021, inclusive (the "Class Period").

Investor Deadline Reminder: Investors who purchased or acquired Skillz securities during the Class Period may, no later than July 7, 2021 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class. For additional information or to learn how to participate in this litigation please contact Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP: James Maro, Esq. (484) 270-1453 or Adrienne Bell, Esq. (484) 270-1435; toll free at (844) 887-9500; via e-mail at [email protected]; or click https://www.ktmc.com/skillz-class-action-lawsuit?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=skillz

Skillz is an internet tech company that provides a proprietary gaming platform for mobile gaming users and developers. FEAC was formed as a special purpose acquisition company in early January 2020 by its sponsor Eagle Equity Partners II, LLC, led and controlled by defendant, Harry Sloan, a member of Skillz's Board of Directors and former President and Chairman of FEAC. Within eight months, FEAC and Mr. Sloan had secured $158 million in private placement commitments in connection with a business combination between FEAC and its target  Skillz. After a definitive merger agreement and subscription agreements were executed, on September 8, 2020, FEAC, through its Board of Directors, filed a merger proxy statement and prospectus on a Registration Form S-4.

The Class Period commences on December 16, 2020, when Skillz issued a press release, which was attached to Skillz's Form 8-K filed on December 17, 2020, entitled "SKILLZ BECOMES FIRST PUBLICLY TRADED MOBILE ESPORTS PLATFORM." Throughout the Class Period, Skillz touted its business prospects.

However, on March 8, 2021, a research report by Wolfpack Research titled "SKLZ: It Takes Little Skill to see this SPACtacular Disaster Coming" was publicly released which described, among other things, how: (1) third-party app data shows installations of the three games responsible for 88% of Skillz's revenues (21 Blitz, Solitaire Cube, and Blackout Bingo) all declined substantially; (2) Skillz did not disclose the substantial decrease in the popularity of these three games (despite their material importance to its growth trajectory); (3) Skillz is not taken seriously by gaming industry players; (4) Skillz has a long history of boasting about "big partnerships" which have amounted to nothing of value; and (5) Andrew Paradise, co-founder of Skillz and its Chief Executive Officer, does not have the relevant experience that had been expressed. Following this news, shares of Skillz fell by 10.9% to close at $24.45. This disclosure represented approximately $762 million loss of investor value.

Then, on April 19, 2021, an anonymous Twitter account named Eagle Eye Research, released a short seller report. The report stated, "[Skillz] has never turned a profit and we doubt it ever will." The Eagle Eye Report alleged that Skillz was "recognizing revenue from 'virtual' money it gave its customers to spend although no real cash is generated in the process." Following this news, shares of Skillz fell by 6.61% to close at $12.55 on April 19, 2021, losing approximately $254 million in investor value.

The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, the 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 others, 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 Skillz's valuation.

Skillz investors may, no later than July 7, 2021 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class through Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP or other counsel, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed as a lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff.

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP prosecutes class actions in state and federal courts throughout the country involving securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duties and other violations of state and federal law. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP is a driving force behind corporate governance reform, and has recovered billions of dollars on behalf of institutional and individual investors from the United States and around the world. The firm represents investors, consumers and whistleblowers (private citizens who report fraudulent practices against the government and share in the recovery of government dollars). The complaint in this action was not filed by Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP. For more information about Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP please visit www.ktmc.com.

CONTACT:

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

James Maro, Jr., Esq.

Adrienne Bell, Esq.

280 King of Prussia Road

Radnor, PA 19087

(844) 887-9500 (toll free)

[email protected]

SOURCE Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

Related Links

http://www.ktmc.com


CLEVELAND, May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- US demand for office furniture is forecast to advance 2.5% yearly in nominal terms through 2025, according to Office Furniture: United States, a report recently released by Freedonia Focus Reports. Continued gains in office building space and employment will drive sales as offices purchase more furniture to accommodate an expanding workforce and stock of office space. A forecast increase in office improvement activity will further support gains as companies remodel workspaces to support modern office design layouts such as activity based working and to minimize disease transmission. Finally, elevated sales to employees working from home will also boost gains.

This report features insights on work-from-home habits and pandemic-related furniture purchases from the results of a proprietary national online consumer survey of US adults. The Freedonia Focus Reports National Survey has a sample size of approximately 2,000, screened for response quality, and representative of the US population on the demographic measures of age, gender, geographic region, race/ethnicity, household income, and the presence/absence of children in the household.

These and other key insights are featured in Office Furniture: United States. This report forecasts to 2021 and 2025 US office furniture demand and shipments in nominal US dollars at the manufacturer level. Total demand and shipments are segmented by product in terms of:

seating

storage and tables

desks

other office furniture, such as bookcases, credenzas, modular workstations, and overhead bins for office systems

Total demand and shipments are also segmented by material as follows:

wood

other materials, such as metal and plastic

To illustrate historical trends, total demand, total shipments, the various segments, and trade are provided in annual series from 2010 to 2020.

Sales of used, recycled, and refurbished furniture are excluded from the scope of this report. Custom architectural and woodwork are also excluded, as are partitions, shelving, showcases, and stands. Establishments exclusively manufacturing furniture parts are excluded. Office furniture purchased for home use is included. Re-exports of office furniture are excluded from demand and trade figures.

About Freedonia Focus Reports

Each month, The Freedonia Group  a division of MarketResearch.com  publishes over 20 new or updated Freedonia Focus Reports, providing fresh, unbiased analysis on a wide variety of markets and industries. Published in 20-30 pages, Focus Report coverage ranges from raw materials to finished manufactured goods and related services such as freight and construction. Additional Consumer Goods reports can be purchased at Freedonia Focus Reports or MarketResearch.com.

Analysis is intended to guide the busy reader through pertinent topics in rapid succession, including:

total historical market size and industry output

segmentation by products and markets

identification of market drivers, constraints, and key indicators

segment-by-segment outlook in five-year forecasts

a survey of the supply base

suggested resources for further study

Press Contact:

Corinne Gangloff

+1 440.684.9600

[email protected]

SOURCE The Freedonia Group
DUBLIN, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "White Cement Market Research Report by Type (White Masonry Cement and White Portland Cement), by End User (Commercial, Industrial, and Residential) - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The Global White Cement Market to Grow USD 8,998.54 Million by 2025, at a CAGR of 5.10%. The Global White Cement Market is expected to grow from USD 7,015.52 Million in 2020 to USD 8,998.54 Million by the end of 2025.



Market Segmentation & Coverage:



This research report categorizes the White Cement to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets:



The White Masonry Cement is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period



Based on Type, the White Cement Market is examined across White Masonry Cement and White Portland Cement. The White Masonry Cement commanded the largest size in the White Cement Market in 2020, and it is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.



The Residential is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period



Based on End User, the White Cement Market is examined across Commercial, Industrial, and Residential. The Residential commanded the largest size in the White Cement Market in 2020, and it is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.



The Asia-Pacific is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period



Based on Geography, the White Cement Market is examined across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas region surveyed across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific region surveyed across Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa region surveyed across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom. The Europe, Middle East & Africa commanded the largest size in the White Cement Market in 2020. On the other hand, the Asia-Pacific is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.



Company Usability Profiles:



The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global White Cement Market including Adana Cimento, Aggregate Industries, Cementir Holding S.p.A., CEMEX S.A.B. de C.V., Federal White Cement Ltd., J.K. Cement Ltd., Saudi White Cement Co., Saveh White Cement Co., UltraTech Cement Ltd, Union Cement Company, and Cimsa Cimento Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S..



Cumulative Impact of COVID-19:



COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, so for and, the long-term effects projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. the ongoing research amplifies the research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlaying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report is delivering insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecast, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market.



FPNV Positioning Matrix:



The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the White Cement Market on the basis of Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape.



Competitive Strategic Window:



The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies. The Competitive Strategic Window helps the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. During a forecast period, it defines the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth.



The report provides insights on the following pointers:

1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players

2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes the markets

3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments

4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players

5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and new product developments



The report answers questions such as:

1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global White Cement Market?

2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global White Cement Market during the forecast period?

3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global White Cement Market?

4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global White Cement Market?

5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global White Cement Market?

6. What are the modes and strategic moves considered suitable for entering the Global White Cement Market?



Key Topics Covered:



1. Preface



2. Research Methodology



3. Executive Summary



4. Market Overview

4.1. Introduction

4.2. Cumulative Impact of COVID-19



5. Market Insights

5.1. Market Dynamics

5.1.1. Drivers

5.1.1.1. Growing construction Industry in worldwide

5.1.1.2. Associated key benefits over grey cement

5.1.1.3. Increasing demand by various smart city projects

5.1.2. Restraints

5.1.2.1. Concern over high production cost

5.1.3. Opportunities

5.1.3.1. Rising applications of white cement for innovation, artistic, and aesthetic senses in architecture

5.1.3.2. Potential demand in APAC due to rapid infrastructure development

5.1.4. Challenges

5.1.4.1. Limited applications in heavy construction such as bridges and buildings

5.2. Porters Five Forces Analysis

5.2.1. Threat of New Entrants

5.2.2. Threat of Substitutes

5.2.3. Bargaining Power of Customers

5.2.4. Bargaining Power of Suppliers

5.2.5. Industry Rivalry



6. Global White Cement Market, By Type

6.1. Introduction

6.2. White Masonry Cement

6.3. White Portland Cement



7. Global White Cement Market, By End User

7.1. Introduction

7.2. Commercial

7.3. Industrial

7.4. Residential



8. Americas White Cement Market

8.1. Introduction

8.2. Argentina

8.3. Brazil

8.4. Canada

8.5. Mexico

8.6. United States



9. Asia-Pacific White Cement Market

9.1. Introduction

9.2. Australia

9.3. China

9.4. India

9.5. Indonesia

9.6. Japan

9.7. Malaysia

9.8. Philippines

9.9. South Korea

9.10. Thailand



10. Europe, Middle East & Africa White Cement Market

10.1. Introduction

10.2. France

10.3. Germany

10.4. Italy

10.5. Netherlands

10.6. Qatar

10.7. Russia

10.8. Saudi Arabia

10.9. South Africa

10.10. Spain

10.11. United Arab Emirates

10.12. United Kingdom



11. Competitive Landscape

11.1. FPNV Positioning Matrix

11.1.1. Quadrants

11.1.2. Business Strategy

11.1.3. Product Satisfaction

11.2. Market Ranking Analysis

11.3. Market Share Analysis

11.4. Competitor SWOT Analysis

11.5. Competitive Scenario

11.5.1. Merger & Acquisition

11.5.2. Agreement, Collaboration, & Partnership

11.5.3. New Product Launch & Enhancement

11.5.4. Investment & Funding

11.5.5. Award, Recognition, & Expansion



12. Company Usability Profiles

12.1. Adana Cimento

12.2. Aggregate Industries

12.3. Cementir Holding S.p.A.

12.4. CEMEX S.A.B. de C.V.

12.5. Federal White Cement Ltd.

12.6. J.K. Cement Ltd.

12.7. Saudi White Cement Co.

12.8. Saveh White Cement Co.

12.9. UltraTech Cement Ltd

12.10. Union Cement Company

12.11. Cimsa Cimento Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S.



13. Appendix

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/o9krb5

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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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

http://www.researchandmarkets.com


NEW YORK, May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Juan Monteverde, founder and managing partner at Monteverde & Associates PC, a national securities firm rated Top 50 in the 2018-2020 ISS Securities Class Action Services Report and headquartered at the Empire State Building in New York City, is investigating Dakota Territory Resource Corp. ("DTRC" or the "Company") (DTRC) relating to its proposed merger with JR Resources Corp. Under the terms of the agreement, DTRC and JR Resources have incorporated a new company, NewCo, that will acquire all outstanding securities of both DTRC and JR Resources in exchange for a number of shares of NewCo.

The investigation focuses on whether Dakota Territory Resource Corp. and its Board of Directors violated securities laws and/or breached their fiduciary duties to the Company by 1) failing to conduct a fair process, and 2) whether the transaction is properly valued.

Click here for more information: http://monteverdelaw.com/case/dakota-territory-resource-corp. It is free and there is no cost or obligation to you.

About Monteverde & Associates PC

We are a national class action securities litigation law firm that has recovered millions of dollars and is committed to protecting shareholders from corporate wrongdoing. We were listed in the Top 50 in the 2018-2020 ISS Securities Class Action Services Report. Our lawyers have significant experience litigating Mergers & Acquisitions and Securities Class Actions. Mr. Monteverde is recognized by Super Lawyers as a Rising Star in Securities Litigation in 2013, 2017-2019, an award given to less than 2.5% of attorneys in a particular field. He has also been selected by Martindale-Hubbell as a 2017-2020 Top Rated Lawyer. Our firm's recent successes include changing the law in a significant victory that lowered the standard of liability under Section 14(e) of the Exchange Act in the Ninth Circuit. Thereafter, our firm successfully preserved this victory by obtaining dismissal of a writ of certiorari as improvidently granted at the United States Supreme Court. Emulex Corp. v. Varjabedian, 139 S. Ct. 1407 (2019). Also, over the years the firm has recovered or secured over a dozen cash common funds for shareholders in mergers & acquisitions class action cases.

If you owned common stock in the Company and wish to obtain additional information and protect your investments free of charge, please visit our website or contact Juan E. Monteverde, Esq. either via e-mail at [email protected] or by telephone at (212) 971-1341.

Contact:

Juan E. Monteverde, Esq.

MONTEVERDE & ASSOCIATES PC

The Empire State Building

350 Fifth Ave. Suite 4405

New York, NY 10118

United States of America

[email protected]

Tel: (212) 971-1341

Attorney Advertising. (C) 2021 Monteverde & Associates PC. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Monteverde & Associates PC (www.monteverdelaw.com). Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.

SOURCE Monteverde & Associates PC

Related Links

http://www.monteverdelaw.com


WASHINGTON, May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. press leaders called for Israel to stop attacking buildings that house journalists in Gaza after an Israeli missile destroyed the al-Jalaa building, which housed offices of the Associated Press, al Jazeera and other news organizations.

Israeli officials said they struck the al-Jalaa building because Hamas used part of it.

But Saturday's strike was the latest in a series of Israeli military attacks on facilities where journalists have been working to bring to the world the story of the ongoing conflict.

On May 11 and May 12, Israeli warplanes bombed two other buildings that housed more than a dozen international and local media outlets.

National Press Club President Lisa Nicole Matthews and National Press Club Journalism Institute President Angela Greiling Keane issued the following statement:

"The Israeli airstrike on an office tower in Gaza Saturday is part of a pattern this week of Israeli forces destroying buildings in Gaza that house media organizations. After Israeli forces provided warning of the attacks, journalists and other civilians were able to escape death. But, as AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt put it, AP journalists and freelancers saw their equipment destroyed and 'narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life.'"

This trend prompts the question of whether Israeli forces are attacking these facilities to impair independent and accurate coverage of the conflict.

We call upon Israeli authorities to halt strikes on facilities known to house press.

Reliable media organizations are the best sources of accurate information about events in Gaza, and they must not be prevented from doing their vital job."

Founded in 1908, the National Press Club is the world's leading professional organization for journalists. The Club has 3,000 members representing nearly every major news organization and is a leading voice for press freedom in the United States and around the world.

The National Press Club Journalism Institute, the Club's non-profit affiliate, promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press and equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire civic engagement.

Contact: John Donnelly, NPC Press Freedom Team Chairman: [email protected], 202 650 6738

SOURCE National Press Club

Related Links

http://press.org


Babson College Celebrates and Honors the Classes of 2020 and 2021 in Multiple In-person and Digital Ceremonies Tweet this

During the graduate school Commencement address, Dr. Bourla explained the enormity of the COVID-19 vaccine development by Pfizer's scientists and engineers. "They needed to think far out of the box, and design completely new ways of working," he said. "By thinking big and by shedding ourselves of the preconceived notions, held by ourselves and others, we were able to make the seemingly impossible possible."

Dr. Bourla concluded his remarks by challenging the graduates to ask themselves three questions during every step of their life journey: "Am I being true to my purpose? Have I aimed high enough? And do I have the right mindset?" Dr. Bourla continued, "because asking the right question is what unlocks the most powerful answers."

A 1999 Babson College alumnus, Siminoff urged the graduates to follow their instincts in the undergraduate ceremony. "It is hard to listen to your gut over a professional's advice," Siminoff said. "Your gut is a whisper, and typically advice is a roar, but it is in that gut that all the intricacies of your journey lie."

Beginning May 1, Babson began hosting both in-person and digital celebrations to honor the tenacity and adaptability of the Class of 2020 and Class of 2021. Five in-person celebrations featured a procession in caps and gowns, speeches by students and College leadership, the opportunity for graduates to cross the Commencement stage as their names were read aloud, and a special performance by Nashville recording artist, entrepreneur, and 2009 Babson alumnus Jamie Kent, who wrote a song specifically for the graduates.

Additionally, on May 8, two digital ceremonies for the Class of 2020, featured Commencement addresses from Richelieu Dennis Jr. '91, founder of Sundial Brands and founder and chair of Essence Ventures, and Carla Harris, vice chairman, managing director, and senior client advisor at Morgan Stanley. Both Dennis and Harris also received Honorary Doctor of Laws degrees.

In his Commencement address, Babson College President Stephen Spinelli Jr. MBA'92, PhD spoke about the difficulties of the past year. "Class of 2021, you didn't choose to be at the center of these momentous events and historically formative times, but they are your call to action," he said. "The complex problems of the world todayinjustice, inequality, poverty, climate changerequire entrepreneurial leaders like you to solve them." Spinelli also reminded the graduates of their own strengths, saying, "You have built your entrepreneurial muscle over these past 16 months, thriving in a world turned upside down. If you can handle that, you can handle anything."

In a year unlike any other, Babson students, faculty, and staff used their entrepreneurial leadership skillset to adapt swiftly, think critically, and react positively to the most difficult of global challenges. Babson College is proud to graduate the next generation of entrepreneurial leaders and formally present both the Class of 2020 and Class of 2021 to the world.

VIDEO AVAILABLE FOR CLASS OF 2021 IN-PERSON CELEBRATION:

'Thank You for Being the Examples of Leadership We So Cherish at Babson'

https://entrepreneurship.babson.edu/2021-commencement-video/



VIDEO AVAILABLE FOR CLASS OF 2020 IN-PERSON CELEBRATIONS & DIGITAL CEREMONIES: Welcome Home, Class of 2020

https://entrepreneurship.babson.edu/video-class-of-2020/

About Babson College

Babson College is the educator, convener, and thought leader of Entrepreneurship of All Kinds. The top-ranked college for entrepreneurship education, Babson is a dynamic living and learning laboratory where students, faculty, and staff work together to address the real-world problems of business and society. We prepare the entrepreneurial leaders our world needs most: those with strong functional knowledge and the skills and vision to navigate change, accommodate ambiguity, surmount complexity, and motivate teams in a common purpose to make a difference in the world, and have an impact on organizations of all sizes and types. As we have for nearly a half-century, Babson continues to advance Entrepreneurial Thought & Action as the most positive force on the planet for generating sustainable economic and social value.

SOURCE Babson College

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LOS ANGELES, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS (C.A.R.) President Dave Walsh issued the following statement in response to the May Revise budget proposal announced earlier today:

"California has a housing crisis. Our state desperately needs more housing to meet the needs of diverse middle class and low-income Californians. We appreciate Gov. Newsom's recognition of this challenge and his commitment to address this critical need in the May Revise budget proposal and today's press conference. However, the May Revise budget proposal must be amended to further increase housing stability through homeownership. Homeownership is key to building generational wealth and helps to stabilize communities. But homeownership rates are at the lowest in California since the 1940s, and there's significant disparity in homeownership. Black and Latinx Americans are twice as likely to rent as whites.

"With California's historic state budget surplus, there has never been a better opportunity to begin to seriously address this inequity and California's severe housing shortage by making smart investments and policy reforms that turbocharge the planning and construction of new homes for people from all walks of life.

"This is about more than just housing; it's about equity and access to homeownership for all Californians. Median home prices in California exceed $720,000. Many middle-class families of color in our majority minority state are priced out of the market of available homes. This leaves these families with a choice of remaining a forever-renter with no opportunity to build equity, or enduring unreasonably long commutes to a job in a community in which they cannot afford to live.

"Without action, Californians who otherwise love our state will be forced to leave. Last year marked the first decline in California's population in decades as only a quarter of households can afford the median price of a home. Families can expect to pay 70 percent more in rent than elsewhere in America. This is inexcusable and inconsistent with the California dream. Homes should be accessible to all Californians.

"We are urging immediate action through the state budget process to address inequities in homeownership and increase the supply of housing at all levels of affordability. Of the $9.3 billion allocated to housing in this budget, only $725 million is allocated directly towards expanding homeownership opportunities and accessory dwelling construction. We can advance critically needed new housing in California through budget investments. We call on the Legislature to enact the governor's housing proposals but also to:

Establish and fund a Housing Accountability Unit as proposed by the governor in January.

Approve matching grants and tax credits to compliment those proposed by Biden's Administration. These grants will help local governments plan and implement housing programs, while providing tax credits to developers constructing affordable units. California must not limit its tax credit programs to rental housing and must assure we equally encourage the construction of owner-occupied units.

must not limit its tax credit programs to rental housing and must assure we equally encourage the construction of owner-occupied units. Fund a tax credit for our states working families who are first-time, low- and moderate-income homebuyers.

Create parity in state funding programs to assure that the construction of homeownership housing is given equal consideration. We cannot focus all of our resources on the development of rental housing if we are going to help working Californians, including those from traditionally financially disadvantaged communities, buy homes and close the wealth gap.

"These investments are essential to building more housing in our state  and fast. We could not agree more with Gov. Gavin Newsom's ambitious call for aggressive increases in the supply of housing, but there has been little progress in making this dream a reality. To achieve the housing we need, our state must expand its focus beyond funding affordable rental housing and increase opportunities for working Californians to access all forms of stable homeownership housing."

"This is about the future of our state. This is about keeping more Californians from falling into homelessness. This is about our friends and family, our neighbors and our communities. Let's come together to prioritize more housing in California  it's the right thing to do."

Leading the way in California real estate for more than 110 years, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS (www.car.org) is one of the largest state trade organizations in the United States with more than 200,000 members dedicated to the advancement of professionalism in real estate. C.A.R. is headquartered in Los Angeles.

SOURCE CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS (C.A.R.)
RADNOR, Pa., May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The law firm of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP reminds investors that a securities fraud class action lawsuit has been filed against Churchill Capital Corp IV (NYSE: CCIV) ("CCIV") on behalf of those who purchased or acquired CCIV securities between January 11, 2021 and February 22, 2021, inclusive (the "Class Period").

Investor Deadline Reminder: Investors who purchased or acquired CCIV securities during the Class Period may, no later than July 6, 2021 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class. For additional information or to learn how to participate in this litigation please contact Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP: James Maro, Esq. (484) 270-1453 or Adrienne Bell, Esq. (484) 270-1435; toll free at (844) 887-9500; via e-mail at [email protected]; or click https://www.ktmc.com/churchill-capital-class-action-lawsuit?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=churchill

CCIV is a blank check company, also known as a special purpose acquisition company. Atieva, Inc., d/b/a Lucid Motors ("Lucid") is an American automotive company specializing in electric cars. As of 2020, Lucid's first car, Lucid Air, is in development.

The Class Period commences on January 11, 2021, when Bloomberg News reported that Lucid "is in talks to go public through a merger with one of Michael Klein's special purpose acquisition companies, according to people familiar with the matter." Michael Klein launched CCIV in April 2020 and raised $2,070,000,000 in CCIV's initial public offering. It was rumored that the Lucid was merging with CCIV. On February 16, 2021, Lucid's Chief Executive Officer, Peter Rawlinson, appeared on Fox Business News with Neil Cavuto touting that Lucid was aiming for a spring delivery of its first vehicles.

On Monday, February 22, 2021, the long anticipated merger agreement between CCIV and Lucid was announced. CCIV and Lucid's transaction equity value was estimated at $11.75 billion. However, at 6:22 p.m. that same night, Ed Ludlow of Bloomberg News reported that Mr. Rawlinson announced that production of its debut car will be delayed until at least the second half of 2021, with no definite date set for delivery of an actual vehicle.

Following this news, CCIV's stock price fell from a close of $57.37 per share on February 22, 2021, to a close of $35.21 per share on February 23, 2021.

The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, the defendants failed to disclose a true and accurate picture of CCIV's business, operations and financial condition.

CCIV investors may, no later than July 6, 2021 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class through Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP or other counsel, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed as a lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff.

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP prosecutes class actions in state and federal courts throughout the country involving securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duties and other violations of state and federal law. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP is a driving force behind corporate governance reform, and has recovered billions of dollars on behalf of institutional and individual investors from the United States and around the world. The firm represents investors, consumers and whistleblowers (private citizens who report fraudulent practices against the government and share in the recovery of government dollars). The complaint in this action was not filed by Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP. For more information about Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP please visit www.ktmc.com.

CONTACT:

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

James Maro, Jr., Esq.

Adrienne Bell, Esq.

280 King of Prussia Road

Radnor, PA 19087

(844) 887-9500 (toll free)

[email protected]

SOURCE Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

Related Links

http://www.ktmc.com


"The Doors of Opportunity honor the courage the class of 2021 demonstrated to achieve their academic goals," said LCCC President Marcia J. Ballinger, Ph.D. "Many of our students faced incredible challenges throughout their journey and yet they persevered to become college graduates  perhaps during the most challenging years of their lives."

The graduating class includes 1,854 LCCC graduates earning 2,234 degrees or certificates, and an additional 365 graduates earning associate, bachelor's or master's degrees through LCCC's University Partnership  the largest class in the 25-year history of the program. The class of 2021 also includes 94 students who are earning an associate degree during the same year that they are graduating from high school through the Lorain County Early College High School and College Credit Plus programs.

The 21 doors also represent the depth of academic opportunities LCCC provides its students by offering more than 100 programs, including a University Partnership providing bachelor's and master's degrees, high-school dual enrollment options, and short-term training certificates.

Aidan Bundy  a first-generation college graduate who earned his Associate of Applied Business in Computer Information Systems Software Development  says his story can be encompassed in one word: serve. Bundy wants to work in software and gaming development to help others find joy through games, similar to how he brightens the spirits of children in local hospitals through Heroes United, an organization with volunteers who dress as superheroes and visit patients.

"Seeing children's faces light up and all of their worries go away when they see their favorite superhero makes all the difference to the children during their darkest times," Bundy says. "I love helping people in any way I can and using my love for programming to bring people joy through games would be my ideal career."

On a door boasting the word "achieve" is the story of Akua Agyemang, Coca-Cola Academic Team Gold Scholar and member of the All-Ohio First Academic Team. Agyemang earned an Associate of Science degree with a 4.0 grade point average and plans to transfer to a four-year university to earn a bachelor's degree in biochemistry before attending medical school to become an obstetrician-gynecologist.

"LCCC has allowed me the opportunity to collaborate with bright students and faculty members who share a passion for utilizing their intellectual talents to help others, as well as the privilege to work closely with those who share the same values and passions as myself," she says.

Ballinger says that while the single row of doors symbolizes the commonality among a united graduating class, each door brings to life the unique path a student takes to reach this day.

"A one-size-fits-all approach to education no longer works in today's world," Ballinger says. "So LCCC meets our students where they are in life to help them reach their academic goals. And today, our graduates are walking through that door, toward the opportunities that lie ahead."

The Doors of Opportunity display will be open for viewing daily through May 23. Visitors are encouraged to bring their smart phones to interact with the doors, take photos, and share on social media using #LoraincccGrad and #LCCCProud.

Learn more about the LCCC commencement and celebrate the graduates at commencement.lorainccc.edu.

SOURCE Lorain County Community College
NEW YORK, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Danimer Scientific, Inc. ("Danimer" or the "Company") (NYSE: DNMR) and certain of its officers and directors. The class action, filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, and docketed under 21-cv-02708, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons and entities other than Defendants that purchased or otherwise acquired Danimer securities between December 30, 2020 and March 19, 2021, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to recover damages caused by Defendants' violations of the federal securities laws and to pursue remedies under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act") and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, against the Company and certain of its top officials.

If you are a shareholder who purchased Danimer securities during the Class Period, you have until July 13, 2021 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at [email protected] or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased.

[Click here for information about joining the class action]

Danimer was formerly known as "Live Oak Acquisition Corp." ("Live Oak"), a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company. In December 2020, Live Oak consummated a business combination with Meredian Holdings Group, Inc., doing business as Danimer Scientific ("Legacy Danimer"), a performance polymer company specializing in bioplastic replacements for traditional petrochemical-based plastics (the "Business Combination"). Following the Business Combination, Live Oak changed its name to "Danimer Scientific, Inc.," changed its business to Legacy Danimer's business, and replaced its management with Legacy Danimer's management.

Since 2020, Legacy Danimerand, following the Business Combination, Danimerhas sold polyhydroxyalkanoates commercially under its proprietary "Nodax" brand name for usage in a wide variety of plastic applications including water bottles, straws, and food containers, among others. The Company has touted Nodax as a 100% biodegradable, renewable, and sustainable plastic, which is purportedly superior to traditional plastics because of its advanced biodegradability. The Company attributes Nodax's advanced biodegradability to microorganisms in nature that eat the bioplastic.

The complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company's business, operations, and compliance policies. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Danimer had deficient internal controls; (ii) as a result, the Company had misrepresented, inter alia, its operations' size and regulatory compliance; (iii) Defendants had overstated Nodax's biodegradability, particularly in oceans and landfills; and (iv) as a result, the Company's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.

On March 20, 2021, the Wall Street Journal ("WSJ") published an article entitled "Plastic Straws That Quickly Biodegrade in the Ocean, Not Quite, Scientists Say" addressing, among other things, Danimer's claims that Nodax breaks down far more quickly than fossil-fuel plastics. The WSJ article alleged that, according to several experts on biodegradable plastics, "many claims about Nodax are exaggerated and misleading." While Danimer reportedly asserts its claims are factual, the article cites at least one expert as stating that making broad claims about Nodax's biodegradability "is not accurate" and is "greenwashing."

On March 22, 2021, the first trading day following the publication of the WSJ article, Danimer's stock price fell $6.43 per share, or 12.87%, to close at $43.55 per share on March 22, 2021.

Following the end of the Class Period, on April 22, 2021, Spruce Point Capital Management ("Spruce Point") published a report on Danimer, noting, among other red flags, various inconsistencies with Legacy Danimer's (and Danimer's) historical and present claims regarding the size of its operations, Nodax's makeup and degradability, and the Company's expected profitability.

Following the publication of the Spruce Point report, Danimer's stock price fell $2.01 per share, or 8.04%, to close at $22.99 per share on April 22, 2021.

Then, on May 4, 2021, Spruce Point published another report on Danimer alleging that the Company had "wildly overstated" production figures, pricing, and financial projections based on documents Spruce Point had acquired from the Commonwealth of Kentucky's Department of Environmental Protection under the Freedom of Information Act, all of which cast serious doubt on the integrity of the Company's internal controls.

Following the publication of this second Spruce Point report, Danimer's stock price fell $1.49 per share, or 6.31%, to close at $22.14 per share on April 22, 2021.

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


NEW YORK, May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Juan Monteverde, founder and managing partner at Monteverde & Associates PC, a national securities firm rated Top 50 in the 2018-2020 ISS Securities Class Action Services Report and headquartered at the Empire State Building in New York City, is investigating Star Peak Corp. II ("STPC" or the "Company") (STPC) relating to its proposed merger with Benson Hill. Under the terms of the agreement, STPC shareholders will own 20% of the combined company.

The investigation focuses on whether Star Peak Corp. II and its Board of Directors violated securities laws and/or breached their fiduciary duties to the Company by 1) failing to conduct a fair process, and 2) whether the transaction is properly valued.

Click here for more information: http://monteverdelaw.com/case/star-peak-corp-ii. It is free and there is no cost or obligation to you.

About Monteverde & Associates PC

We are a national class action securities litigation law firm that has recovered millions of dollars and is committed to protecting shareholders from corporate wrongdoing. We were listed in the Top 50 in the 2018-2020 ISS Securities Class Action Services Report. Our lawyers have significant experience litigating Mergers & Acquisitions and Securities Class Actions. Mr. Monteverde is recognized by Super Lawyers as a Rising Star in Securities Litigation in 2013, 2017-2019, an award given to less than 2.5% of attorneys in a particular field. He has also been selected by Martindale-Hubbell as a 2017-2020 Top Rated Lawyer. Our firm's recent successes include changing the law in a significant victory that lowered the standard of liability under Section 14(e) of the Exchange Act in the Ninth Circuit. Thereafter, our firm successfully preserved this victory by obtaining dismissal of a writ of certiorari as improvidently granted at the United States Supreme Court. Emulex Corp. v. Varjabedian, 139 S. Ct. 1407 (2019). Also, over the years the firm has recovered or secured over a dozen cash common funds for shareholders in mergers & acquisitions class action cases.

If you owned common stock in the Company and wish to obtain additional information and protect your investments free of charge, please visit our website or contact Juan E. Monteverde, Esq. either via e-mail at [email protected] or by telephone at (212) 971-1341.

Contact:

Juan E. Monteverde, Esq.

MONTEVERDE & ASSOCIATES PC

The Empire State Building

350 Fifth Ave. Suite 4405

New York, NY 10118

United States of America

[email protected]

Tel: (212) 971-1341

Attorney Advertising. (C) 2021 Monteverde & Associates PC. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Monteverde & Associates PC (www.monteverdelaw.com). Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.

SOURCE Monteverde & Associates PC

Related Links

http://www.monteverdelaw.com


Another satellite constellation prepares for launch, this one aimed at next-gen connectivity for IoT devices

Not keen on a 5G mast in your street? At least it'd be harder for crackpots to burn down 'a flying cell tower in orbit'



The Register reports: Another satellite constellation prepares for launch, this one aimed at next-gen connectivity for IoT devices. 5G IoT operator OQ Technology has inked a deal with satellite firm NanoAvionics to build what OQ boss Omar Qaise described as a "flying cell tower in orbit."



Assuming that cell tower had a volume of 30cm x 20cm x 10cm and weighed 6kg.



The 6U satellite is the second mission for NanoAvionics with OQ Technology and will be the latest addition to the latter's Low Earth Orbit constellation. The plan is to provide basic commercial IoT and Machine to Machine (M2M) services, using 5G connectivity, to customers with a focus initially on Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and Latin America.



The mission, dubbed Tiger-2, will feature two payloads onboard the diminutive spacecraft; a primary payload for satellite-based IoT and M2M services using low frequencies, and a secondary payload aimed at demonstrating the use of high frequencies for IoT radio links.



Qaise told The Register that three missions were expected this year, and the target was to eventually have more than 60 satellites at an altitude of 550-600km "for real-time coverage." The spacecraft are expected to last five years and, if undisturbed, de-orbit within 25 years. "We can also actively bring them down," he added.



Where the likes of Starlink and Oneweb are aimed squarely at broadband services and shovelling large amounts of data around for applications such as streaming, Tiger-2 and its siblings target IoT devices. Qaise cited hardware such as sensors or tracking devices that require only short messages. "So instead of having millions of users with large amounts of data, you have billions of devices with small amounts of data."



Qaise also highlighted another key difference  rather than needing a router-like device to distribute the internet service, "we use the same existing mobile and cellular devices to connect to the satellite directly. The satellite acts as a flying cell tower in orbit."



It'll certainly be a challenge for 5G protestors to set on fire.



Two more missions are scheduled after Tiger-2, followed by a batch of six satellites. The plan is to eventually make the coverage global, and Qaise told us that customers would be able to use the service by Q3.

The company also plans to secure frequency licences and partnerships in key countries.



For those groaning at the thought of yet another constellation (although one with considerably fewer satellites than something like Starlink) Qaise insisted that the chance of a collision in the selected orbits was low, and active monitoring and manoeuvring would be used if needed.



As for the ride to orbit, the mission will launch as part of the SXRS-5 rideshare aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 later this year.



https://www.theregister.com/2021/05/12/oq_5g_iot/
SHENZHEN, China, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- X Financial (NYSE: XYF) (the "Company" or "we"), a leading technology-driven personal finance company in China, today announced it filed its annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on May 14, 2021. The annual report can be accessed on the Company's investor relations website at http://ir.xiaoyinggroup.com as well as the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov.

The Company will provide a hard copy of its annual report containing the audited consolidated financial statements, free of charge, to its shareholders upon request. Requests should be directed to the Company's IR Department at [email protected].

About X Financial

X Financial (NYSE: XYF) (the "Company") is a leading online personal finance company in China. The Company is committed to connecting borrowers on its platform with its institutional funding partners. With its proprietary big data-driven technology, the Company has established strategic partnerships with financial institutions across multiple areas of its business operations, enabling it to facilitating loans to prime borrowers under a robust risk assessment and control system.

For more information, please visit: http://ir.xiaoyinggroup.com.

For more information, please contact:

X Financial

Mr. Frank Fuya Zheng

E-mail: [email protected]

Christensen

In China

Mr. Eric Yuan

Phone: +86-10-5900-1548

E-mail: [email protected]

In US

Ms. Linda Bergkamp

Phone: +1-480-614-3004

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE X Financial

Related Links

www.xiaoyinggroup.com


A look at some of the major movers this week in the world of small caps

It was a case of Viva La Revolucion as ( ) welcomed the governments latest lockdown guidelines.

The company, whose brands include Revolucion de Cuba, said trading at its bars has been extremely strong since the government allowed bars with outdoor drinking spaces to reopen for business.

The shares rose 20% after the company said it is confident that further pent-up demand exists and that strong trading is anticipated in the months to come as restrictions fall away and it fully opens up its estate.

There was no good on you, Boris! statement from ( ), the Lebanese restaurants group, but that did not stop the shares from rising 32% this week.

Although demand for hospitality shares was high this week, oil firm (LON:MTAD) was the top riser this week after it received approval of the plan of development for its Heron Field project in Mongolia.

Mongolia's Mineral Resources Professional Council has, subject to some technical clarifications being made, given the green light to the development plan.

With the recent relaxation of lockdown restrictions in Mongolia, Petro Matad is now in discussion with MRPC's designated officials to clarify the points raised to secure MRPC written approval of the plan of development.

Shares in Petro Matad were up 68% on the week at 8.55p.

In a similar vein, PLC ( ), the battery metals specialist, jumped 32% after it said its joint venture partner has received the approval of the Environmental Permit Ep-L2 (708) authorising the excavation of laterite ore deposit and direct shipping ore operations at the company's Mambare Nickel-Cobalt project in Eastern Papua New Guinea.

The approval is conditional, as is normal in Papua New Guinea, on the activity complying with the Environmental Act 2000. The granting of the approval brings to an end a wait of more than two years for Corcel.

Elsewhere in the resources sector, ( ) jumped 46% after it said its joint venture partner has started its Year 4 exploration programme at the Senala gold project in Senegal.

The programme will comprise around 11,000 metres of reverse circulation and diamond drilling at the Fare and Madina Bafe prospects.

Another gold miner, Lexington Gold Limited ( ), rose by a third on the back of full-year results.

What was so thrilling about the results was not immediately apparent, with the company reporting a wider loss before tax of US$712,000 for 2020 compared to a loss of US$482,000 the year before.

The net cash position was much improved, however, at US$2.9mln compared to US$0.1mln at the end of 2019.

On the subject of share price mysteries, sector peer URU Metals Limited ( ) and its board joined the rest of us in professing ignorance of the reasons for the companys 36% share price increase this week.

The board said it is not aware of any specific reason for this increase.

It seems barely a week has gone by this year without Hurricane Energy PLC (LON:HUR) featuring in this column, usually on the debit side of things and this week is no different, with the shares down 18% after the company lifted the lid on its highly-dilutive debt deal.

A deal struck with a 69% majority of the groups convertible bond holders will see some US$50mln of the total US$230mln debt swapped for new shares in the company.

These refinancing shares will equate to 95% of the groups fully diluted pro forma equity immediately following the restructuring.

The bondholders  and subsequently the majority owners of the company  agreed to amend the terms for the remaining US$180mln of outstanding bonds to extend the maturity date out to December 2024.

Hurricane shares now trade at 0.69p; four years ago they would have set you back about 50p. Long-suffering Hurricane shareholders must be hoping the restructuring deal puts a line under things and the company can get back to exploiting its Lancaster field.
Yangon, May 15 : At least two people were killed and six others injured in explosions of handmade bombs across Myanmar on Friday, state-run media reported.

According to the report, two people on a motorbike threw a handmade bomb at security personnel near a university located in Ayethaya town of Shan state, killing two civilians who were at the scene on Friday.

On the same day, explosions of handmade bombs took place near a bank in Myitkyina township, at a township administration office in Moe Mauk township of Kachin state and at a shop in Pakokku township of Magway region, respectively.

Six people including one security personnel were injured in the explosions, the state-run media said.

Several events of handmade bombs and mines explosions recently took place in Myanmar's regions and states while martial law orders were imposed in six townships of Yangon region and one in Chin state.
Nairobi, May 15 : Kenya will start administering the second dose of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in the first week of June, the Ministry of Health said in a statement on Friday.

This followed the country's revision of the duration between the first and the second does from eight weeks to 12 weeks in line with the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation late in April, the Xinhua news agency reported.

"The ministry has revised the interval period for the administration of the AstraZeneca vaccine to 12 weeks. This means the country would begin administering the second dose of the vaccine in June," said the ministry amid a shortage of the jabs in Kenya following the crisis in India.

Kenya commenced inoculation against the coronavirus in early March, soon after the country received 1.02 million AstraZeneca vaccine doses that were manufactured in India under the COVAX facility.

The ministry assured the public that efforts to acquire the Covid-19 vaccines are underway to ensure as many as eligible people are fully immunized in the shortest time possible, and that the entire adult population will be vaccinated by June 2022.

"To secure the second dose of the vaccine as fast as possible, the government is working with the COVAX facility, which is a program that ensures low and middle income countries access Covid-19 vaccines," said the ministry.

The ministry ruled out mixing of Covid-19 vaccines even when jabs from other manufacturers become available in the country.

Data from the health ministry showed that as of Friday, Kenya had vaccinated 934,436 people against the coronavirus including 284,411 elderly citizens aged 58 years and above, 162,396 healthcare workers, 146,538 teachers, 79,906 security officers and 261,185 general population.

Kenya has confirmed 165,112 Covid-19 cases, 113,432 recoveries and 2,976 fatalities as of Friday.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
United Nations, May 15 : UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for a unified Security Council over the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict and regretted the lack of multilateralism.

Asked what the Secretary-General expects from Sunday's emergency meeting of the Security Council on the violent escalation, Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Friday: "What we would like to see is a strong, unified voice for de-escalation, for a cessation of hostilities and a push to get the parties back on track to find a political solution to this conflict that has been going on and on and on." Asked for the UN chief's comment on the fact that one single Security Council member blocked the proposal for a Friday meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Dujarric said Guterres is concerned about the state of multilateralism "as we've seen it during the pandemic and as we've seen it in other aspects", reports Xinhua news agency

"We would like to see member states put to action the ideals that we all have to live up to within this organisation," he added.

With regard to the Security Council, he said the more unified the council is, the stronger its voice and the stronger its impact.

The Security Council on May 7 held a high-level debate on the need to uphold multilateralism and all council members came out in support of it.

Yet days later, the US, an ally of Israel, blocked the proposal for a Friday Security Council meeting, according to diplomats.

The Security Council later agreed on such a meeting on Sunday.

This week's violence in the Gaza Strip is the worst since 2014.

It came after weeks of rising Israeli-Palestinian tension in East Jerusalem, which culminated in clashes at a holy site revered by both Muslims and Jews.

Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, began firing rockets after warning Israel to withdraw from the site, triggering retaliatory air strikes.

About 1,800 have been fired at Israeli territory since Monday, and some 430 of them went down inside the strip.

So far, Israel has reported eight deaths due to the rockets out of Gaza.

The Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip says the Israeli response has resulted in 119 deaths and 830 injuries.

The last clash, in 2014, claimed the lives of 70 Israelis and 2,100 Palestinians.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Washington, May 15 : The latest decision by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) allowing fully vaccinated people from not wearing a mask in most indoor and outdoor settings has set off a scramble across the country to update local Covid rules and adjust social norms, media reports said.

"Major corporations and local shopkeepers weighed whether to take down 'masks-required' signs on their doors. People heading to the office or coffee shop or grocery store had to navigate rapidly shifting scientific advice and government restrictions," Xinhua news agency quoted The New York Times as saying in a report on Friday.

Surprised state and local officials, including some who withstood months of protests and lawsuits to keep mask orders in place, said they needed time to evaluate the new federal guidance, it added.

The CDC on Thursday announced that vaccinated Americans can mostly stop wearing masks indoors, leaving "some wondering how businesses and public venues would follow the new guidance, given just 35.8 per cent of the American population is fully vaccinated and the only way of proving you've been immunized is the CDC's vaccine card, which can be forged", business magazine Forbes said in a report.

A host of states have already moved to ease their mask mandates in accordance with the CDC's new guidelines, including Illinois, Kentucky, Washington, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Oregon and Minnesota.

Meanwhile businesses like Home Depot, Kroger and Starbucks announced they would keep their policies requiring employees and customers to wear masks for now, while Delta airlines will require new employees to get vaccinated, according to the report.

Meanwhile, the requirement to wear masks during while travelling on buses, trains, planes and other modes of public transportation still stands, according to the CDC.

Even vaccinated individuals must cover their faces and physically distance when going to doctors, hospitals or long-term care facilities like nursing homes.

According to official figures, about 154 million people in the US have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 jab, but only about one-third of the nation, some 117.6 million people, have been fully vaccinated.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Glasgow, May 15 : Police in Scotland have freed two Indian nationals, who were held inside a detention van, after protesters surrounded the vehicle demanding their release, according to a media report.

The incident took place on Thursday in Glasgow's Kenmure Street following a stand-off between the police and protesters, the BBC report said.

Earlier in the day, the two men had been removed from a flat and were lodged in a UK Home Office detention van.

According to the Home Office, the two Indian nationals had been detained over "suspected immigration offences".

But after they were taken in, hundreds gathered in the area, with one man crawling under the van to prevent it from moving, said the BBC report.

Some of the protesters were heard shouting "let our neighbours go".

In regard to the men's release, Police Scotland said: "In order to protect the safety, public health and well-being of all people involved in the detention and subsequent protest in Kenmure Street, Pollokshields, Ch Supt Mark Sutherland has, following a suitable risk assessment, taken the operational decision to release the men detained by UK Immigration Enforcement back into their community meantime." Condemning the detention, Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the move was "unacceptable".

She said she would be "demanding assurances" from the UK government that they would not create such a dangerous situation again.

Humza Yousaf, the Scottish government's Justice Secretary called the detention "completely reckless", adding "that the situation should never have occurred".

The Sikhs in Scotland group said in a statement that it was "deeply concerned", and urged the Home Office to "abandon forced removals and to adopt an immigration policy based on human rights, compassion and dignity".
Chandigarh, May 15 : Six-time Congress MP and two-time Governor R.L. Bhatia passed away in Amritsar on Saturday, his family members said.

Former Minister of State for External Affairs, Bhatia was 100 years old. He represented the Amritsar parliamentary constituency six times from 1972, and was the Governor of Kerala from 2004 to 2008 and of Bihar from 2008 to 2009.

He was admitted to Fortis Hospital a day earlier after he complained of uneasiness.

Known for his impeccable image, Bhatia would have turned 101 on July 3.

MP Manish Tewari paid a visit to Bhatia at his residence in December last year to enquire about his well being along with Amritsar MP Gurjeet Aujla.

In a tweet after the meeting, Tewari wrote, "Spent some wonderful time in his company, marvelling at his memory and recollection of events, even at this age!"
London, May 15 : UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced that the country is planning to accelerate its coronavirus vaccination program for priority groups amid concerns over the spread of the Indian variant.

Speaking at a press conference at Downing Street on Friday, Johnson said those aged over 50 and those considered clinically vulnerable will be able to get a second vaccine dose after eight weeks, reports Xinhua news agency.

He said the spread of the new variant, known as B1617.2, would not affect the scheduled easing of lockdown in England from May 17.

But the Prime Minister said the variant could cause "serious disruption" to the next stage of lockdown easing on June 21.

Johnson said "at this stage" there are some important unknowns but he believes the variant is "more transmissible" than previous ones, and therefore the race between the vaccination programme and the virus could get tighter.

He said there was "no evidence" to suggest the current vaccines would be less effective against the strain.

Joining Johnson for the press briefing, England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said the country is going "in a very steady but rapid progression in terms of vaccination", starting with the most vulnerable people, including some people in their 30s.

Whitty said he hopes everybody in Britain has their first vaccine by end of July.

"That is the aim," he said.

The latest development came after four people in Britain have died due to the variant first detected in India, Public Health England (PHE) said cases of the variant known as B1617.2 in Britain have more than doubled to 1,313, up from 520 infections recorded by PHE last week.

According to the latest official figures, more than 36.1 million people in Britain have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine.
San Francisco, May 15 : Google has filed a legal brief with over 40 companies including Apple, Amazon, Twitter and Microsoft to protect a work authorisation programme that allows the spouses of H-1B visa holders to work in the US.

The earlier Donald Trump administration had proposed to end the issuing of work authorisation (H-4 EAD) for certain spouses of high-skilled talent who came to the US on H-1B visas as part of his anti-immigration policy.

US President Joe Biden has already permitted dependents of H-1B visa holders to continue working in the country. The development is expected to provide relief to over 1 lakh Indian nationals who had moved to the US along with their spouses for work.

Google said in a statement late on Friday that to support this important programme, "we are leading an amicus brief with over 40 companies and organisations to preserve and protect the H-4 EAD programme." "This builds on an amicus brief we recently joined in support of a lawsuit filed by the American Immigration Lawyers Association to expedite the delayed processing time of H-4 work authorisations," said Catherine Lacavera, VP, Legal at Google.

The H-4 EAD programme also provides work authorisation to H-4 visa-holders -- more than 90 per cent of whom are women.

H-4 visas are reserved for the spouses of people with H-1B status.

"As an immigrant myself, I have been the beneficiary of a welcoming America and I hope we can ensure that same welcome for future immigrants by preserving the H-4 EAD programme," said Lacavera.

"Ending this programme would hurt families and undercut the US economy at a critical moment," she added.

Google said that a fair immigration system is necessary to preserve America's laudable history of welcoming people from different places and to fuel a virtuous cycle of innovation.

"Unfortunately, an impending court case is putting both at risk at the most inopportune moment," it added.
Foundations of Amateur Radio

Soldering Irons and Software

The activity of amateur radio revolves around experimentation. For over a century the amateur community has designed, sourced, scrounged and built experiments. Big or small, working or not, each of these is an expression of creativity, problem solving and experimentation.

For most of the century that activity was accompanied by the heady smell of solder smoke. It still makes an appearance in many shacks and field stations today, even my own, coaxed by an unsteady hand, more and more light and bigger and bigger magnification, I manage to join bits of wire, attach components and attempt to keep my fingers from getting burnt and solder from landing on the floor.

I've been soldering since I was nine or so. I think it started with a Morse key, a battery and a bicycle light with a wire running between my bedroom and the bedroom of my next door neighbour. In the decades since I've slightly improved my skill, but I have to confess, soldering isn't really my thing.

My thing is computers. It was computers from the day I was introduced in 1983 and nothing much has changed. For reasons I don't yet grasp, I just get what computers are about. They're user friendly, just picky whom they make friends with.

When I joined the amateur community, it was to discover a hobby that was vast beyond my wildest imagination, technical beyond my understanding and it was not computing. Little did I know.

Computing in amateur radio isn't a new thing. For example, packet radio was being experimented with in 1978 by members of the Montreal Amateur Radio Club, after having been granted permission by the Canadian government. In 2010 when I came along we had logging, DX-clusters and the first weak signal modes were already almost a decade old.

Software Defined Radio has an even longer history. The first "digital receiver" came along in 1970 and the first software transceiver was implemented in 1988. The term "software defined radio" itself was 15 years old when I joined the hobby and truth be told, it's a fascinating tale, I'll take a look at that at another time.

When I started my amateur journey like every new licensee, I jumped in the deep end and kept swimming. From buying a radio, to discovering and building antennas, from going mobile to doing contests and putting together my home station, all of it done, one step at a time, one progressive experiment after another, significant to me, but hardly world shattering in the scheme of things.

Now that I've been here for a decade I've come to see that my current experiments, mostly software based, are in exactly the same spirit as the circuit builders and scroungers, except that I'm doing this by flipping bits, changing configurations, writing software and solving problems that bear no relation to selecting the correct combination of capacitance and reactance to insert into a circuit just so.

Instead I'm wrestling with compilers, designing virtual machines, sending packets, debugging serial ports and finding new and innovative ways to excite transceivers.

For example, today I spent most of the day attempting to discover why when I generate a WSPR signal in one program, it cannot be decoded by another. If that sounds familiar, that was what I was doing last week too. This time I went back to basics and found tools inside the source code of WSJT-X and started experimenting. I'm still digging.

As an aside I was asked recently why I want to do this with audio files and the short answer is: Little Steps.

I can play an audio file through my Yaesu FT-857d. I can receive that and decode it. That's where I want to start with my PlutoSDR experiments, so when I'm doing this, I can use the same audio file and know that the information can be decoded and that any failure to do so is related to how I'm transmitting it.

Back to soldering irons and software. In my experience as an amateur it's becoming increasingly clear that they're both the same thing, tools for experimentation, with or without burning your fingers.

I'm Onno VK6FLAB

 This article is the transcript of the weekly 'Foundations of Amateur Radio' podcast, produced by Onno Benschop, VK6FLAB who was licensed as radio amateur in Perth, Western Australia in 2010. For other episodes, visit http://vk6flab.com/. Feel free to get in touch directly via email: cq@vk6flab.com
Wuhan, May 15 : Six people were killed and 218 others injured after a tornado hit Wuhan city, the capital of China's Hubei province, government sources said on Saturday.

The tornado, packing winds of 23.9 metres per second, ripped through the Caidian District at 8.39 p.m. Friday, toppling some construction site sheds and snapping a large number of trees, reports Xinhua news agency.

According to an initial investigation by local authorities on Saturday morning, houses of 27 households have collapsed, and those of 130 households were damaged.

Two tower cranes and 8,000 square metres of construction site sheds also suffered damage.
Tokyo, May 15 : Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has announced an expansion of a state of emergency over Covid-19 to the three additional prefectures of Hokkaido, Okayama and Hiroshima.

The government has previously extended the state of emergency in Tokyo, Osaka, Hyogo and Kyoto until the end of May while expanding it in Aichi and Fukuoka prefectures, reports Xinhua news agency.

The emergency state was initially set to be eased on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the government is expanding a quasi-emergency to Gunma, Ishikawa and Kumamoto prefectures, Suga said.

At a task force meeting, Suga said Hokkaido, Okayama and Hiroshima will go into stricter restrictions, including a ban on restaurants serving alcohol from Sunday to May 31.

The government had initially planned to put Okayama and Hiroshima under a quasi-emergency while maintaining the one in Hokkaido but it changed course at the request of a panel of experts.

Under the extended state of emergency, restaurants and bars continue to be prohibited from serving alcohol or offering karaoke services and must close by 8 p.m..

Non-compliance will be fined for up to 300,000 yen.

Meanwhile, businesses continue to be encouraged to have employees work from home.
Santiago, May 15 : Chilean Health Minister Enrique Paris has called on citizens to maintain protective measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 during the landmark polls slated to take place on Saturday and Sunday.

In a statement issued by the Ministry of Health, he said: "(We must) always maintain self-care measures, use a mask, wash hands with soap and water, use hand sanitizer, keep physical distance and, of course, carry your own blue pencil, since these are the most effective measures to avoid new infections," Xinhua news agency Paris also said that in the last 24 hours, 6,903 new Covid-19 cases and 127 fatalities were registered, which took the overall infection tally and death toll to 1,273,516 and 27,647 deaths.

On Saturday and Sunday, the South American country will hold elections for councillors, mayors and, for the first time ever, regional governors and members of a constituent assembly to draft a new Constitution.

To facilitate voting, authorities will waive the requirement of obtaining a special permit to leave the house amid Covid-19 lockdown measures, and a curfew will begin at 2 a.m.

The much-anticipated elections are set to elect 155 constituents to draw up a new Constitution as a political solution to the social unrest that erupted in October 2019.

Similarly, the Governors of each of the country's 16 regions will be elected for the first time.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
San Francisco, May 15 : Ireland's High Court has dismissed a bid by Facebook bid to block a European Union privacy regulation that could suspend the flow of data from the EU to the US.

According to a report in The Wall Street Journal on Friday, the Irish court dismissed "all of Facebook's procedural complaints about a preliminary decision on data flows that it received in August from the country's Data Protection Commission".

The court rejected Facebook's claims that the privacy regulator had given it too little time to respond or issued a judgment prematurely.

Facebook first appealed the order in part because it claimed the Irish Data Protection Commission (IDPC) and the EU's other privacy regulators "were moving too quickly and hadn't given the company appropriate time to respond," reports The Verge.

The IDPC leads enforcement of EU privacy law for Facebook and other companies that have their European headquarters in the country.

Facebook's European headquarters are in Dublin, giving Irish regulators the lead in enforcing EU privacy law for the company.

The commission still needs to submit a final draft of its order to EU privacy regulators, If it is approved, it could have a widespread impact on all companies doing trans-Atlantic business online.

According to Facebook, a lack of safe, secure and legal international data transfers would damage the economy and hamper the growth of data-driven businesses in the EU.
Islamabad, May 15 : Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has reaffirmed his country's support to the Afghan peace process for a sustainable political settlement in the war-torn neighbouring country.

The intra-Afghan negotiations provide a historic opportunity to achieve an inclusive, broad-based and comprehensive political settlement in Afghanistan for ending the long-lasting conflict, Qureshi said during a call on with his Afghan counterpart Mohammad Hanif Atmar, Xinhua news agency reported.

He said Pakistan welcomed the announcement of the three-day Eid-ul-Fitr ceasefire by the Afghan parties recently, adding that efforts should continue for a permanent ceasefire.

Both sides also agreed to maintain high-level bilateral exchanges and work together for the further consolidation of Pakistan-Afghanistan relations.
Jerusalem, May 15 : Tensions between Israel and the Islamic Hamas movement, the worst since 2014, has continued unabated in the Gaza Strip with no sign of any ceasefire between the two sides to end te violence.

Overnight and at predawn on Friday, the tit-for-tat violent military confrontations between the two sides were intensified, reports Xinhua news agency.

Hamas militants fired more barrages of rockets into Israel, and Israeli fighter jets kept striking on the enclave.

The Hamas-run Ministry of Health said that 122 Palestinians have been killed, including 31 children and 20 women, and 900 others injured since Monday in the Gaza Strip.

Witnesses and Palestinian security sources told Xinhua that Israeli army artillery on Friday struck the eastern area of Gaza city with tanks, killing at least two.

Tanks hit the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahia, killing a mother and her four children, according to medical sources.

An Israeli army spokesman said in a statement that the forces have intensively attacked posts that belong to Hamas, adding that 160 war jets, artillery, and tanks participated in the military operation.

The statement said 150 targets were hit overnight and on Friday morning, adding that many of the targets were underground.

It said the Israeli army will continue its strikes on the militants who fire rockets at Israel.

As the Israeli bombardments intensified, Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants announced that their militants fired more barrages of rockets into Israel.

Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing, claimed responsibility for launching 100 rockets at the Israeli city of Ashkelon, in response to Israel's "targeting of civilians" in the enclave.

Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, also said that its militants carried out intensive rocket strikes at Israeli cities in southern and central Israel.

The Israeli army said Gaza militant groups have fired more than 1,750 rockets at Israel, most of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system.

The rockets fired from Gaza killed at least nine Israelis and wounded 200 others.

Meanwhile, Palestinian sources said the contacts to reach calm between the two sides had so far failed, adding that Egypt, Qatar and the UN lead the mediation between the two sides for reaching a truce.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Kolkata, May 15 : BJP boycotted the Speaker election in the West Bengal Assembly protesting against post-poll violence in the state and that is indicative enough that the saffron party will not leave grounds to the Trinamool Congress though the ruling party captured over two-third majority in the recently concluded assembly polls.

"We are going to play the role of a constructive opposition. We are with the ruling party so far as any development program or any initiative that will benefit the people but we will protest strongly if we see that Trinamool Congress is trying to cause hindrance to the people.

"We have already played the role of a cooperative opposition so far as the state's effort to control coronavirus and vaccination is concerned but we cannot accept hooliganism of the ruling party after the announcement of the election results," a senior BJP leader told IANS on the condition of anonymity.

Though the BJP legislative party is yet to develop a comprehensive plan of action for the upcoming Assembly Sessions, its state high command has already instructed the 75 MLAs to go back to their constituencies and reach out to the people.

When asked how they would like to fare in the coming sessions in the assembly, another senior BJP leader said, "It is very difficult to say right now. We will decide once and when things occur. This is for the first time we are playing the role of the main opposition and we don't want to send a wrong signal to the people".

BJP is primarily worried on two accounts -- the erosion of votes particularly among the upper and lower caste Hindus and the absence of an acceptable face who will be able to counter Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

State BJP President Dilip Ghosh has already told the national leaders present in the state to go back and assured that the state BJP unit is capable of handling the ground situation better making it clear that the national BJP leaders did not have an acceptance among the voters.

The BJP legislative party has already nominated TMC turncoat, who defeated Mamata Banerjee in Nandigram battle -- Suvendu Adhikari as the Leader of the Opposition.

It goes without saying that an avid speaker Adhikari will put a stiff resistance both to Mamata Banerjee and the party in general inside the assembly. BJP will definitely try to reap the benefits of it.
New Delhi, May 15 : Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday appealed to his party workers to provide all possible assistance to those in need in view of cyclone Tauktae alert issued in Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka.

"Cyclone alert has been issued in Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka. Cyclone Tauktae is already causing heavy rains in many areas. I appeal to Congress workers to provide all possible assistance to those in need. Please stay safe," he tweeted.

His remarks came after the Central Water Commission issued an 'orange bulletin' for Kerala and Tamil Nadu, saying severe flood is expected due to cyclonic storm, Tauktae.

In a tweet, the commission said water levels were likely to reach 'danger' and highest flood levels in both the coastal states.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also holding a meeting to review preparations against the cyclone.

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
Washington, May 15 : US House Republicans have voted for former President Donald Trump's staunch defender Elise Stefanik to fill the No. 3 leadership position of conference chair after veteran lawmaker Liz Cheney was removed from the position.

Publicly supported by Trump and top House Republican leaders, Stefanik was elected on a 134-46 vote on Friday, reports Xinhua news agency.

The vote came two days after Cheney, a fierce critic of Trump, was ousted from the post.

Stefanik said on Thursday night that she would fight to keep Republicans united as they head into the 2022 midterm elections.

Liz Cheney, the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, was the highest-ranking GOP woman in Congress, and has vowed that she won't remain silent about the former President's baseless claims of widespread voter fraud, which she describes as "The Big Lie".

"We have to get people to vote for us. And we can't do that if we are a party that's based on a foundation of lies," she said on Fox News on Thursday night.

Stefanik backed Trump as the party's presidential nominee in 2016 but worked to portray herself as an independent voice for her district before 2019, according to a CNN report.

In 2019, she emerged as one of Trump's most outspoken defenders when the Democrat-led House moved to impeach the former leader for the first time, for which he praised her as "a new Republican star".

After the 2020 presidential election, Stefanik supported an objection during the Electoral College vote count in Congress held to certify Joe Biden's win.

She also signed onto an amicus brief in support of a lawsuit from Texas to the Supreme Court that sought to overturn the results of the election in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and Georgia, said the CNN report.

Earlier this month, Trump said in a statement that Stefanik "is a far superior choice (to replace Liz Cheney), and she has my complete and total endorsement for GOP Conference Chair".

Stefanik's replacement of Cheney is widely thought to have underscored Trump's massive and continuing influence on the increasingly divided Republican Party.
New Delhi, May 15 : Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan will be holding a meeting with Health Ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat on Covid-19 situation and progress on vaccination drive in these states later on Saturday.

Harsh Vardhan will hold a meet with the Health Ministers of these four states through video conference at 3 p.m.

The Union Minister will review current Covid situation and progress of vaccination drive being run in their respective states to mitigate the spread of the deadly virus which so far has infected 2,43,72,907 people across the country, including 36,73,802 active cases and 2,66,207 deaths.

In a tweet, the Minister informed about his meeting on Covid-19 situation and vaccination drive in these states.

Uttar Pradesh is on top with 13,85,855 Covid cases reported so far in the state followed by Andhra Pradesh (11,75,843), Gujarat (6,09,031) and Madhya Pradesh (6,05,423).

The Health Minister will hold the meeting hours after attending a high-level virtual meeting on Covid-19 situation in the country chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In the past 23 days India's daily Covid tally has plateaued over the three-lakh-mark and over 3,000 casualties for 17 days.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Military Radio and the SAS

BAREC, Bendigo Amateur Radio and Electronics Club are holding their May meeting - 'Military Radio and the SAS' with John Trist VK2MOP. John served as an SAS patrol signaller and instructor and will provide a very informative

presentation on military radio.

For Bendigonians (Bendigo is located in Victoria, Australia) in our audience we suggest you go along. As always, visitors from everywhere else are welcome too.

John's presentation will include information on the ANPRC 64 set which was the patrol set they carried in the SAS and the British PRC 320 Clansman that was in service in the British Army from 1976 to 2010.

The evening commences at 7.30 pm, Friday May 21st at the clubrooms at the Bendigo East Hall, 35 Lansell St. A gold coin donation would be appreciated and tea, coffee and biscuits will be available.

If you can get along you will also have the opportunity to see BAREC headquarters, featuring a large hall, kitchen, radio room, training room and workshop, at an elevated location central to Bendigo.

(VK3GRK and VK3GTV)
New Delhi, May 15 : Aerospace major Boeing has tied-up with state governments along with NGOs to set up field hospitals in India to treat Covid patients.

Accordingly, the aerospace major has been in talks with five state governments to provide such facilities in their jurisdictions.

In the last few days, Boeing India has reached out to UP, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Telangana and Tamil Nadu state governments.

The initiative as part of Boeing's India Covid relief commitment envisages setting up of such facilities in each of five states which are facing the pandemic resurgence.

As part of the programme, the funding, land and utilities, facility, equipment, doctors as well as medicines will be provided through a partnership model by the joint effort of Boeing, the concerned state government and NGO partners, 'Doctors for You' and 'Care USA'.

The state governments will provide the infrastructure and utilities while 'Doctors for You' will provide the medical infrastructure and staff.

The first such facility is expected to come as soon as possible.

"We are in conversations with local and international relief organisations to deploy Boeing's $10-million emergency assistance package to support India's Covid-19 response," said Salil Gupte, president, Boeing India.

"As part of that effort, we're working with medical, government and public health experts across India to provide relief, including medical supplies and emergency health care to communities most impacted." Last month, Boeing announced a $10 million emergency assistance package to support India's Covid-19 response.

At present, Boeing has 3,000 employees in India.

The company develops, manufactures and services commercial airplanes, defence products for customers in domestic civil and military sectors.

Lately, India has been heavily battered by record new daily increases in coronavirus infections, prompting lockdowns and restrictive measures.

The exponential rise in new coronavirus cases in India has been termed as a humanitarian crisis.

(Rohit Vaid can be contacted at rohit.v@ians.in)

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Washington, May 15 : The US city of Columbus has agreed to pay $10 million to the family of Andre Hill, an unarmed African-American man who was shot dead by police in December 2020, local media reported.

The settlement, the largest in the city's history, will move to the Columbus City Council for a vote on May 17, reports Xinhua news agency.

"No amount of money will ever bring Andre Hill back to his family, but we believe this is an important and necessary step in the right direction," City Attorney Zach Klein said in a statement issued on Friday afternoon.

The city in the state of Ohio has also agreed to rename the gym located inside the Brentnell Community Center, which the victim frequented, the Andre Hill Gymnasium, according to local media reports.

Hill's daughter, Karissa, said at a press conference on Friday that the settlement is "one step but it's not full justice".

Hill, 47, was exiting a garage at a home where he was a guest around 2 a.m. on December 22, 2020, when he was shot and killed by then police officer Adam Coy, who was responding to a non-emergency disturbance call about a vehicle turning on and off.

Coy did not have his body camera on at the time of the shooting.

The camera's look-back feature captured 60 seconds of video, but no audio, showing Hill held a cellphone in his hand and began walking toward the officers when he was shot four times by Coy.

Body camera footage from other responding officers showed more than 10 minutes passed before Hill was given any medical aid.

He died about 30 minutes after the shooting at a hospital.

Coy was sacked within a week of the shooting and has since been indicted on charges of murder, felonious assault and reckless homicide.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Kolkata, May 15 : Heavy fighting continued in Mindat town in Myanmar's Chin state on Saturday, as civilian fighters fought the Myanmar military or Tatmadaw, braving heavy artillery barrages.

Two more resistance fighters died on Friday, bringing the death toll to three, said a spokesman of the resistance who called himself "John".

"John" told IANS the Mindat Defense Force were not taking cognisance of a declaration of martial law by the Myanmar military junta.

"We just don't care for such declarations. We will fight on and not allow the Tatmadaw enter our town," said John.

The armed resistance at Mindat marks a dramatic transformation of the pro-democracy movement from a peaceful protest agitation to an armed one, that could dramatically escalate Myanmar's civil war so far restricted to ethnic border regions like Kachin, Karen and Rakhine provinces.

While hundreds of Burmese protesters have fled and joined armed resistance groups like the Federal Army and United Defence Force and are now receiving training at Karen and Kachin rebel bases, the defence by Chin boys and girls armed with just hunting rifles and gunpowder used locally is turning into an epic symbol of the resistance.

The junta describes the Chin resistance fighters as 'armed terrorists'.

John said the Mindat Defense Force is just 300-400 boys and girls with a sprinkling of local police and former Chin insurgents, armed with barely 100 hunting rifles, but adept at using the hill terrain to tie down a demoralised Burmese army.

He said the Tatmadaw is pounding the Mindat town with artillery from a base in Magwe 33 km away.

"They have also brought in snipers who killed two of our fighters," John told IANS.

"We are not able to retrieve the two dead bodies or rescue the wounded since the junta troops are opening fire on anyone who appears on the streets." "The junta troops are trying to enter into the town via both the west and east entrances while we are protecting our town. Fighting at the east side of the town is intensifying. Shootouts also occurred downtown," he added.

The civilian resistance fighters also reportedly seized about six military vehicles from Kyaukhtu that were approaching Mindat during the shootouts.

A viral video on social media shows weapons and provisions on about six vehicles abandoned by the fleeing junta troops being taken by Chin civilian resistance fighters.

Local residents also said that at least five junta troops were reportedly killed during the shootouts on the east side of the town on Friday.

Fighting between junta troops and the Mindat Defense Force resumed on Wednesday night after a ceasefire in late April broke down.

The military regime declared martial law for Mindat on Thursday night after bombarding the town with artillery in response to the residents' week-long resistance.

Under martial law, those who commit one of 23 "offenses" in the town will be tried in military courts and face penalties ranging from death, indefinite jail terms with labor and the maximum possible punishments under existing legislation, said orders signed by the military regime's secretary Lieutenant-General Aung Lin Dwe.

The 23 offenses also include high treason, sedition, obstruction of military personnel and civil servants performing their duties, possession of weapons, ties to unlawful associations and violence.

However, the martial law declaration has had no effect on the town since 60 per cent of Mindat is under the control of its residents, said a member of Mindat's People Administration, who identified himself as "Lian".

"Our people do not accept the marital law. Currently, we are concentrating on the shootouts. We can govern the whole town, except the police station and some places," Lian said.

Since 6 p.m. on Thursday, shootouts started on the Mindat-Matupi highway, which is located on the west edge of the town.

Mindat Defense Force fighters defended the approach to the town against about 11 vehicles carrying 250 junta troops on a probing mission.

Meanwhile shootouts have been happening on the highway connecting Mindat and Magwe region's Kyaukhtu on the east side of the town since Thursday morning.

Civilian resistance fighters there are fighting against about 180 junta troops from Kyaukhtu that are approaching the town.

Also, civilian resistance fighters resisting junta troops at the east side of the town have also been attacked by artillery based in Kyaukhtu, John told IANS.

Mindat Defense Force said in its statement on Friday that the military has used reinforced troops, heavy explosives, artillery, rocket propelled grenades and automatic machine guns in the shootouts with civilian resistance fighters.

In the firefights, most civilian resistance fighters are using traditional percussion lock firearms, a kind of hunting rifle.

The firearm uses technology dating back to the early 19th century.

On Friday, residents were told by the Mindat's People Administration to dig bomb shelters as two military helicopters were hovering over the town.

On Thursday night, shootouts between junta troops and resistance fighters occurred at Mindat's police station near the headquarters of the military's Battalion 274.

After the initial encounters, the Tatmadaw troops opened indiscrminate fire on the town.

In Thursday's encounter, an ethnically Chin teenager was killed and six other members of Chin state's civilian resistance forces were wounded by junta artillery.

Armed resistance by Mindat residents started on April 26 with an attack on the police station after junta forces broke promises to release seven young anti-regime protesters.

On April 26 and 27, the Mindat Defense Force attacked military reinforcements approaching the town using homemade percussion lock firearms, leaving at least 20 junta troops dead.

The military casualties led to talks with residents and a ceasefire in April that broke down this week.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Lisbon, May 15 : The European Union (EU) has already had the right conditions for a "safe reopening" of tourism in summer, European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton said.

"The situation remains difficult. However, I am sure that we finally see light at the end of the tunnel and now we have the tools," he said at the High-Level Forum for Sustainable Tourism held in the Portuguese city of Porto on Friday.

Breton said the considerable increase in the production capacity of vaccines suggested that there will be enough doses to vaccinate 70 per cent of the EU population by mid-July.

As for the "vaccine passport" in Europe, the Commissioner said: "The European Parliament and the Council are now ready to finalize negotiations by the end of May".

Breton added that he is "confident of having it ready for the summer".

Portuguese Economy Minister Pedro Siza Vieira said at the forum that the EU countries need to adopt a common approach for the reopening of tourism with a focus on the immediate recovery of the sector.

The Minister stressed that the tourism sector is fundamental for the recovery of European economies in the face of the Covid-19 crisis.
New York, May 15 : New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced that the city will tap into its stockpile to send Covid-19 test kits, swabs, ventilators, BiPap machines, pulse oximeters, and other medical supplies to India, which is currently battling a devastative second wave of the pandemic.

However, de Blasio didn't disclose the quantity and schedule about the transnational aid, reports Xinhua news agency.

"Now, it is our turn to step up and help India in its moment of crisis. We are sending vital medical equipment to India to send a clear message: nobody is in the fight against COVID-19 alone.

"Together, we can save lives and beat back the pandemic," the Mayor said in a statement issued on Friday.

New York City Health Commissioner Dave A. Chokshi, an Indian-American, said: "Our city, home to thousands of Indian-born New Yorkers, and our country have a moral imperative to demonstrate global solidarity in order to overcome this devastating pandemic." Chokshi appealed to the White House to take further action to waive Covid-19 vaccine patents and said that all research, technology and techniques for producing the jabs should be publicly shared.

"New York's thousands of Indian-Americans are filled with anger and helplessness as they witness the unnecessary tragedy back in the country that shaped each of us as a child," said Harpreet Singh Toor, co-founder and president of South Asians for Global Empowerment.

Toor said it is the right time to call for a full-scale effort to donate vaccines, Covid-19 test kits, swabs, ventilators, pulse oximeters, and every other type of relief possible to India.

The US has delivered six plane-loads of emergency medical supplies to India in fighting against a Covid-19 wave, according to a release by the US Agency for International Development on May 6.

As a devastating wave of infections caught India off guard, more than 10 countries have offered to help India with aid.

The Red Cross Society of China recently donated oxygen concentrators and ventilators to India with delivery on Monday.

Amid the critical situation, India's overall coronavirus caseload and death toll as of Saturday stood at 2,43,72,907 and 2,66,207, respectively.

In the past 23 days, India's daily Covid tally has plateaued over the three-lakh-mark, with more than 3,000 casualties for 17 days.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram, May 15 : The mortal remains of Kerala's Soumya Santhosh, who was killed on Tuesday in a rocket attack in the Israeli city of Ashkelon, where she has been working as a caregiver, reached Delhi on Saturday, said Union Minister V. Muraleedharan.

He said the body was brought on a special aircraft from Israel.

"It was received by me. The Charge De-Affairs at the Israel Embassy in Delhi Rony Yedidia also paid her last respects. The body will now be moved to her home town in Kerala through the Kochi airport," said the MoS External Affairs.

The body will arrive in Kochi, Saturday evening and from there it will reach her home in Idukki, by night and the funeral is scheduled for Sunday.

Soumya, 31, has been working in Israel for the past nine years and she last visited her home in Idukki four years back.

Sources said that the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine has now become a subject of growing concern for the Kerala nurses who work there as caregivers.

Recalling the incident, her husband, Santhosh said they were speaking on a video call and suddenly he heard a huge noise and there was no answer from the other side and later he was informed that she along with a few others were killed.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Johannesburg, May 15 : South African marine law enforcers have arrested four people, suspected of "poaching" lobster and abalones in the Table Mountain National Park, authorities said.

One suspect was arrested for fishing for west coast rock lobsters during the closed season in the Cape of Good Hope Section that lies in the southernmost part of the park in Cape Town, the South African National Parks (SANParks) said in a statement on Friday.

An unspecified number of suspects dumped the west coast rock lobsters into the ocean after being chased by rangers, Xinhua news agency quoted the statement as saying.

Other arrests were made in somewhere else in the park, including one at Miller's Point on Friday for possession of 20 shucks and four whole state abalones.

SANParks is currently working together with its law enforcement partners in the national police and the Cape Town municipality to fight abalone poaching, with measures including daily sea patrols in the park's protected marine areas.

Over the past 17 years, nearly 96 million large sea snails valued at $900 million have been illegally poached off the coast of South Africa and trafficked by organised crime groups, according to the OCCRP, a consortium of investigative centres, media and journalists.
New Delhi, May 15 : The BJP slammed former Union Minister and Congress MP Shashi Tharoor for questioning the progress the country made in recent years. The saffron party leaders said that making fun of the country is Tharoor's favourite pastime.

In a tweet, Tharoor said, "Since the BJP is so obsessed w/our image, reflect: For decades, the world saw India as a land of snake-charmers and fakirs lying on nails. In the last 25 yrs India became the home of doctors and computer geeks. Now we're a land where people drink cow urine and bathe in cow dung. Progress?" Quoting screenshot of Tharoor's tweet, BJP Rajya Sabha member Dr Vinay Sahasrabuddhe said, "Making fun of India's culture, traditions and heritage has been your favourite pass time." In another tweet sharing a news report, Sahasrabuddhe said, "Now you must stop this Shashi Tharoor ji, just in case you have an open mind to listen to your senior party colleague Oscar Fernandes ji." In the report shared by Sahasrabuddhe, former Union Minister and senior Congress leader Fernandes talks about an anecdote about a man in Meerut who claimed to have cured his cancer by drinking cow urine and how by doing 'Vajrasana' he cured his knee pain when doctors had suggested for replacement surgery.

BJP National General Secretary (Organisation) B.L. Santhosh tweeted, "Your tweet shows what you read now a days. By the way India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has two vaccines to its credit ... two medicines for mild infected patients. If you need I can quote another 100 for you." While listing Country's progress in recent time, BJP National Spokesperson, Sanju Verma tweeted, "Under Narendra Modi, this is what happened. Today India is world's second largest steel producer, third largest electricity producer, second largest smartphone market, second largest two-wheeler and third largest automobile producer, seventh biggest stock market, third biggest start-up destination #SenileDown."

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Los Angeles, May 15 : California Governor Gavin Newsom has announced a new measureby adding $30 million to boost the state's film and television tax incentive program.

As part of the $100 billion "California Roars Back" plan, this move would boost the existing $330 million tax credit program by nearly 10 per cent, allowing the state to dole out a total of $360 million annually to qualify film and television projects, Xinhua news agency quoted Newsom as saying on Friday.

According to the Los Angeles City's Economic and Workforce Department, the industry contributed more than $30 billion annually to California and supported more than 200,000 local jobs before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Moreover, Newsom said this measure was designed to show the state's political gesture against those states who passed voter suppression legislation, like Georgia.

"This is an opportunity for those productions, TV and others, in places like Georgia, whose values don't necessarily always align with the production crews to consider coming back to the state of California," Newsom said at a press conference in Sacramento on Friday.

He added "that's what that $30 million intends to do".

In recent days, Newsom announced a number of high-dollar initiatives, including an additional $12 billion for homeless housing, $2 billion to combat wildfires, and $95 million for tourism.
Canberra, May 15 : The first repatriation flight from India landed in Australia on Saturday after the government's controversial travel ban to the Covid-battered country ended.

The Qantas jet carrying approximately 80 Australians, who were stranded in India, touched down at a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base in Darwin earlier in the day, reports Xinhua news agency.

The flight was scheduled to carry about 150 passengers but dozens were blocked from boarding after 40 tested positive for Covid-19 and 30 were deemed close contacts of the positive cases, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Those that were able to board will quarantine for 14 days at the Howard Springs facility outside of Darwin.

They are the first people to enter Australia from India since the federal government made it a criminal offence to do so at the end of April in response to the surging coronavirus crisis in the South Asian nation.

The travel ban was condemned by human rights groups as racist but Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday said it had effectively prevented the hotel quarantine system from being overwhelmed by positive cases.

"That pause has done its job. The number of cases that we had up in Howard Springs at that time was over 50. It's now down to four," he said.

About 10,000 Australians, permanent residents and their immediate family members in India are seeking to return home.

Barry O'Farrell, Australia's High Commissioner to India, told the ABC that he was disappointed that people were blocked from boarding the flight.

"My team has worked hard across India to get them bookings on this flight because they are vulnerable," he said.

"Regrettably those people will have to return home and deal with the COVID that they have, or continue to isolate to prove that they don't have COVID.

"Until such time that they test negative they won't be able to fly on one of these facilitated flights," he added.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
RAC Canada Day Contest: Celebrate Canadas Birthday on the air!

The global pandemic continues and we want to make sure that all participants in the RAC Canada Day Contest on Thursday, July 1 help us to celebrate Canadas birthday safely.

The RAC Contest Committee is therefore asking all participants in the Canada Day Contest 2021 to follow the guidelines provided by the government and health officials in your respective area for any of the multi-op categories enabled within the contest.

If you do carry out an operation in any of the multi-op categories, please advise as part of your log submission that you have followed your locally applicable guidelines for group sizes and social (physical) distancing.

Special thanks to our sponsors for their support of the RAC contests.

We hope to hear you on the air for the July 1, 2021 Canada Day contest (00:00 UTC through 23:59:59 UTC). Dont forget to share your stories with us at tcamag@yahoo.ca and to use #RACCD.

You can read more at this link

https://www.rac.ca/rac-canada-day-contest-celebrate-canadas-birthday-on-the-air/
New Delhi, May 15: Suspicion that the Covid-19 virus could have resulted from a laboratory leak in China refuses to die down, following a fresh demand by a group of eminent scientists for further investigations to determine the origin of the deadly disease.

The call for a further probe by 18 leading scientists follows the discovery of a Chinese military paper, which discusses the leading role of bioweapons in case a third world war was to be fought in the future. The publication of the research paper has raised legitimate doubts that China may have been developing bioweapons, which may have accidentally escaped from the Wuhan Institute of Virology --a stone's throw from the wet market where the virus was apparently found in bats.

Covid-19 emerged in China in late 2019, triggering a global pandemic, which has killed 3.34 million people and cost the world trillions of dollars in lost incomes. The social consequences of the outbreak have been horrendous.

"More investigation is still needed to determine the origin of the pandemic," said the scientists, including Ravindra Gupta, a clinical microbiologist at the University of Cambridge, and Jesse Bloom, who studies the evolution of viruses at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre, Reuters has reported.

"Theories of accidental release from a lab and zoonotic spillover both remain viable," the scientists including David Relman, professor of microbiology at Stanford, said in a letter to the journal Science.

The authors of the letter question the finding of the World Health Organisation (WHO) into the origins of the virus. They said that the WHO had not made a "balanced consideration" of the theory that it may have come from a laboratory incident.

In its final report, written jointly with Chinese scientists, a WHO-led team that spent four weeks in and around Wuhan in January and February said the virus had probably been transmitted from bats to humans through another animal, and that a lab leak was "extremely unlikely" as a cause.

"We must take hypotheses about both natural and laboratory spill overs seriously until we have sufficient data," the scientists said, adding that an intellectually rigorous and dispassionate investigation needed to take place, according to Reuters.

The demands for a more detailed probe follow an investigative report published on May 7 by the Australian newspaper. 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, was the ground zero from where Covid-19 radiated across the globe.

The Chinese military paper titled The 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 Chinese have been responding furiously to any demands for an independent probe into the origins of Covid-19-a position that has started to seriously impact geopolitics in the Indo-Pacific region. Last week, China suspended an economic dialogue with Australia, stepping up a pressure against Canberra, which began after Australia demanded a probe on Covid-19.

Relations between the two countries have plummeted to a new low after China blocked imports of Australian coal, wheat and other goods over the past year. Chinese state media has also threatened Australia with missile strikes if it bonds with Taiwan.

In view of the growing threat from China, the Biden administration has reinforced its support for Australia.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Australian counterpart Marise Payne on Thursday that the U.S. "will not leave Australia alone on the field - or maybe I should say 'alone on the pitch' - in the face of economic coercion by China. That's what allies do." (This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative/

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New Delhi, May 15: With the surge in the second wave of Covid-19 pandemic overwhelming the health facilities in the urban areas, the Government is seized of its spread and affect in the rural areas.

Two pointers recently put the spotlight on the importance of dealing with Coronavirus in the rural areas of India, where the vast majority of the country lives.

Panchayati Raj Ministry's advisory to states The Ministry of Panchayati Raj wrote to all the State Governments to take preventive measures to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic in rural India. It suggested the States to sensitize and facilitate the Panchayats/Rural Local Bodies towards meeting the challenge and provide leadership.

The advisory also asked States to undertake an intensive communication campaign for the awareness of rural communities on the nature of the infection and preventive and mitigation measures. This was necessary to dispel the prevailing false notions and beliefs.

Besides, they were asked to involve frontline volunteers from the local community for the campaign including elected panchayat representatives, teachers, ASHA workers etc. while ensuring necessary protective systems for them like finger oxy-meters, N-95 masks, infrared thermal scanning instruments, sanitizers etc. Medical facilities like ambulances, advanced testing and treatment and multi-speciality care too were to be established for handling emergency situations.

Leveraging of IT infrastructure to provide real-time information on availability of testing/vaccination centres, doctors, hospital beds etc. too has been advised. Besides home quarantine locations, specific isolations centres for the needy and migrant labourers and vaccination drives were to be arranged. In order to provide relief and rehabilitation, like rations, drinking water, sanitation, MGNREGS employment, Central and State Government schemes were to be leveraged.

NCDC cautions against spread Of Covid-19 To rural areas Meanwhile, the National Centre for Disease Control asked the Centre to prioritise testing and vaccination in rural areas as the Covid-19 spread is now moving to semi and peri-urban and rural areas.

The Director of NCDC Dr Sujeet K. Singh as reported in Mint while presenting the epidemiological findings and a granular analysis of the Covid-19 trajectory in the States during a review meeting, cautioned against the spread of the infection to the rural areas, as the health infrastructure in the rural regions of the country is not adequately equipped to deal with the rising number of cases.

Way forward to counter these challenges As grim as the situation may seem, local governance is the only way out. According to a comprehensive study titled "The local governance of Covid-19: Disease prevention and social security in rural India" by Anwesha Dutta and Harry W. Fischer "local governance is likely to be especially important in bridging the gap between policy measures and local realities for the coordination of responses to Covid-19." According to the study local government perform better for a variety of grassroot State functions and thus likely to play an essential role in Covid-19 response.

They are more closely connected to public and are better able to navigate context-specific local conditions. Being far more knowledgeable about local needs they are able to mobilize key local actors, monitor activities at the grassroots, and anticipate and resolve site-specific challenges that arise.

Being embedded within the societies they serve makes them likely be more responsive to the public's urgent needs. It makes them more accessible, more accountable due to formal sanctions like elections and threat of loss of personal reputation.

Moreover, local government are often perceived as more legitimate as they are directly selected by the public and thus tend to reflect citizens' values and aspirations and often their sense of identity.

The study referred above was based on the lockdown in 2020.

In order to urgently control the pandemic and ensuring basic welfare and food security panchayats can work together with frontline health workers like the Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA), Auxiliary Nurse Midwives (ANM), women SHGs, local community members like teachers, and others. A committee for this purpose was formed and these designated variedly as control rooms, rapid response teams or Panchayat Jagruta Sammittee.

ASHA and ANM workers are the frontline functionaries for disease control. Appointed by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and selected by the Gram Panchayat, their function is to work with the village health and sanitation committee to develop a comprehensive village health plan.

Providing information and creating awareness in the community about nutrition, basic sanitation and hygienic practices, health services they also facilitate access to health care institutions, acting as a bridge between marginalized communities and health care systems.

Implementation of social security measures during the Covid-19 pandemic surge can be done efficiently by panchayats. They can undertake household surveys to identify households and individuals in need of social and economic support not registered in existing government schemes. This can help in direct cash transfers to banks and/or door to door cash disbursement by panchayats through ASHA and youth workers.

Role of panchayats in Covid-19 Spread public awareness through loudspeakers, distribution of posters and pamphlets, village meetings, creation of WhatsApp groups.

Set up and run village level quarantine centres.

Register incoming migrant workers from cities and facilitate compulsory quarantine.

Disinfection and sanitization of villages and areas around quarantine centres Ensure maintenance of physical (social) distancing rules in the village.

Distribution of masks and hand sanitizer (if and when available).

Monitor symptoms at household level as well as in quarantine centres.

Monitoring of health in villages.

Referral to district administration of those showing symptoms.

Food support through the Public Distribution System (PDS) and income support under India's Labour Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Run community kitchens and make homemade masks through mobilization of women Self Help Groups (SHGs) Ensure market linkages for procurement and sale of farm produce.

Assure continuance of agricultural and allied services through agricultural inputs, seed and fertilizer distribution.

Mobilize volunteers for preparation and distribution of food to quarantine centres.

The frontline workers' role in containing Covid-19 pandemic Prevent, Control and monitor the spread of infection in the community.

Ensure early detection and referrals through Panchayat level committee.

Pay special attention to pregnant women and the elderly.

Spread information on symptoms of Covid-19 and its spread, and explain physical distancing rules.

Maintain and record travel histories of those coming from outside the village.

Monitor those in isolation and home quarantine (both at home and in designated centres).

Monitor themselves and their colleagues for symptoms.

Maintain hygiene and distance protocols while making door to door visits.

Report to local health centres if symptoms occur.

Never have the local government need to play such a crucial role just as they are expected to in these times with the Coronavirus threat looming large over rural India, the backbone of the nation.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative/

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New Delhi, May 15 : Bharti Airtel has rolled out a range of Covid support initiatives for customers by leveraging its digital platforms.

Airtel has integrated easily accessible bouquet of Covid support resources and related information in the Airtel Thanks app's Explore section.

Accordingly it has now provided Covid SOS resource which aggregates verified and updated contacts for important supplies such as medicines, oxygen, plasma donors, ambulance, hospital beds (regular, O2, ICU), and testing centres.

With a few clicks, the platform connects users to these service providers/resources and tries to ensure that users do not have to waste precious time to access this data, the company said in a statement.

All the information available on Covid SOS is painstakingly verified by their teams. The platform is powered by Airtel IQ, it said.

Also, Airtel Thanks users can also book a vaccination slot for themselves and their loved ones through the app. With the CoWin platform APIs integrated with Airtel Thanks app, information on nearest vaccination centres and available slots is updated on real time basis.

Users need to download the latest version of Airtel Thanks app (iOS, Android), go to the Explore section and click on the Covid support banners to access relevant resources, the company said.

Besides, businesses of all sizes can now set up FREE Covid Helpline for their employees within two minutes with Airtel IQ - a cloud communication platform. Airtel is giving 5000 minutes with each Helpline account so that businesses can stay connected with their employees and organize their efforts.

This feature is particularly useful for medium to small sized companies who can set up a secure helpline instantly without any in-house telco infrastructure, the company said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 15 : Tech Mahindra, a leading provider of digital transformation, consulting and business re-engineering services and solutions, on Saturday announced the appointment of Meghna Hareendran as the 'Wellness Officer', with immediate effect.

In order to address well-being of the workforce amidst the COVID crisis, the new role has been created to institutionalize holistic wellness of all associates, and to ensure the access to medicine, hospitals and other medical supplies, while maintaining the mental well-being of the Tech Mahindra family.

Meghna will work as a central program manager to take care of the healthcare needs of the associates and will also be responsible for managing relationships with Tech Mahindra partners and vendors to ensure a comprehensive suite of wellness offerings to them.

Harshvendra Soin, Global Chief People Officer & Head - Marketing, Tech Mahindra, said, "Guided by our values and culture of driving positive change, celebrating each moment, and empowering all to Rise, we at Tech Mahindra, have always prioritized the well-being of our associates. Meghna is one of our bright young HR leaders who is passionate and already making a positive difference to the lives of many. Her appointment as a 'Wellness Officer' reiterates our belief in 'Wellness before Business' and underscores our commitment towards ensuring holistic wellness of our associates." Tech Mahindra has also collaborated with leading hospitals to convert some of its campuses into COVID care units. Additionally, the company also launched an exclusive COVID-19 vaccination drive for its associates and their dependent family members across India and will also be covering the cost of vaccination for its associates globally and the third-party employees.

Tech Mahindra has also extended its support to Mission Oxygen to set up 50 oxygen plants for charitable and government hospitals across India.

Meghna Hareendran, Wellness Officer, Tech Mahindra, said, "The pandemic has taken a significant toll on lives across the world, and it has created a unique challenge to ensure both physical and mental wellness of people. To combat this, the key is to build a wave of 'collective well-being', with humans and technology at the center. I want to thank Tech Mahindra for recognizing this early on, and for enabling a culture where everyone comes together to ensure each other's well-being." Tech Mahindra has a 360-degree approach to employee well-being with a huge emphasis on mental health and wellness program.

This includes regular outreach to associates which focuses on 8 different aspects of wellness - emotional, physical, financial, occupational, spiritual, environmental, intellectual and social.

The company also has a comprehensive COVID-19 risk screening test, called Mhealthy, to test the presence of anti-bodies along with all the vital health stats for COVID-19 co-morbidities. By generating real-time reports, the solution ensures that every individual stepping into the Tech Mahindra premises is healthy, making it a safe place to work.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Bogota, May 15 : Colombian President Ivan Duque has reiterated that his government is ready to meet and begin formal negotiations with members of the National Strike Committee following 16 days of protests and roadblocks sparked by proposed tax hikes that have since been rescinded.

"We have said with all clarity that we are ready to meet with the members of the Strike Committee to advance in negotiations and forge agreements. That has been a message that has been transmitted in a transparent way," Duque said in a video posted on social media on Friday.

The strike leaders, representing various unions, are demanding the elderly and low-income households receive a basic income for a period of six months of at least the monthly minimum wage, and improvements to the education and healthcare systems, among other demands.

Duque said it was unnecessary to put up roadblocks that have led to shortages of food, fuel and other goods in some cities, especially in the southwest and west-central parts of the country.

"We have to categorically reject the blockades. Here, no one can take away from the Colombian people the right to work and prosper amid this pandemic," said Duque, adding it was necessary to continue the post-pandemic economic recovery.

On Monday, the first exploratory meeting between the parties, held at government headquarters, resulted in no agreements.

Colombia has witnessed violent protests for the past two weeks, including some that turned into riots.

At least 42 people have died and 168 others are missing, according to the latest figures from the national ombudsman's office.
Mumbai, May 15 : TV actor Varun Sharma says that he got to know the people around him better after he became an actor, because he started to constantly observe everyone.

The actor, who will soon be seen playing an ophthalmologist in "Aapki Nazron Ne Samjha", adds that he loves acting as it helps him play different roles.

"As actors, you get to play so many different roles every day, I find it very exciting. As an actor, it's thrilling that you can live so many lives on screen. It also helps you in getting to know yourself better -- like if you are an extrovert but you can play an introvert too on screen and vice versa. I also feel the profession helps you get closer to people around you because you start understanding, observing, and learning from them," he told IANS.

Talking about his role in the show, Varun says the audience will get to see a different kind of chemistry between him and Nandini, essayed by Richa Rathore.

"I play Nandini's childhood best friend who is an ophthalmologist. As Darsh is blind, he will get jealous of my bond with Nandini. I am sure the audience will love it," says the actor, who was last seen in the show "Tujhse Hai Raabta".

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Mumbai, May 15 : As the Cyclone Tauktae whirls towards the Gujarat coast, Maharashtra is preparing to grapple its impact on the coastal Konkan and some interiors which are likely to be affected with heavy rains and gusty winds, officials said here on Saturday.

The entire coastal belt comprising Palghar, Thane, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg besides Mumbai is in a state of high alert with all rescue and relief agencies in full preparedness to tackle any eventualities.

The NDRF has deployed 3 teams in Mumbai, 15 in Pune and one in Goa with Cyclone Tauktae now said to be in the Arabian Sea off north Karnataka-south Maharashtra coasts.

However, officials are optimistic that Maharashtra may escape the fury of the cyclone as it is likely to pass around 250 kms in the Arabian Sea, moving at an average speed of 7 kms/hr.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has reviewed the situation and asked the people and the government machinery to be vigilant, rekindling memories of the devastating Cyclone Nisarga that pounded Raigad-Ratnagiri in June 2020, at the height of the pandemic lockdown.

"In a preparatory meeting regarding Cyclone Tauktae on Friday night, Thackeray has instructed all Divisional Commissioners and district Collectors to be vigilant and well-equipped in coastal areas, especially in Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg," informed an official of the CMO.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Washington, May 15 : US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is scheduled to visit Denmark, Iceland and Greenland next week, a trip that includes a first in-person meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

He will first stop in Copenhagen to meet Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod to discuss, among other things, the fight against the climate crisis, the US State Department said in a newly-announced itinerary on Friday.

Blinken will then attend the Arctic Council ministerial meeting in Iceland, where separate talks are set to take place with Lavrov, dpa news agency reported citing the itinerary as saying.

The focus of attention in the meeting will be whether an agreement will emerge on US President Joe Biden's proposed summit with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Biden had suggested the two meet in a third country at a summit, but it is unclear whether Putin will accept the invitation.

US-Russia ties have nose-dived over Washington's allegations of election interference and cyberattacks, the treatment of jailed opposition figure Alexei Navalny and the conflict in eastern Ukraine. The two sides have imposed a wave of sanctions and counter-sanctions.

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the face-to-face between Lavrov and Blinken was arranged to discuss "key issues of mutual relations and the international agenda".

At the council meeting in Reykjavik, the two-year chairmanship of the main Arctic cooperation forum will pass from Iceland to Russia.

While in Iceland, Blinken will also meet with Icelandic President Gudni Johannesson and Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir.

He will end the three-nation tour in Greenland, that largest island on Earth and which former US President Donald Trump wanted to buy from Denmark just over two years ago.

In Kangerlussuaq, Blinken will meet Greenland's new head of government, Mute B Egede, to discuss bilateral partnership.
New Delhi, May 15 : Covid patients in home isolation will be provided oxygen concentrators at their homes with recommendation of doctors in the national capital. To ensure each Covid patient in home isolation gets oxygen cylinders delivered at home, the Delhi government has set up an 'oxygen concentrator bank' (OCB) for this purpose.

Each 11 districts in the national capital will have an OCB which will ensure that Covid patients are getting oxygen concentrators within two hours. "However, oxygen cylinders will be provided on the recommendation of the doctors only. People in home isolation will be regularly monitored by medical experts and if they need oxygen at home the Delhi government will provide it within two hours. Covid patients, those discharged from the hospitals will also be given oxygen concentrators if they need," Kejriwal said while addressing a press conference on Saturday.

The Chief Minister said that Delhi from today (Saturday) onward will start a very important service - oxygen concentrator banks. "In every district, there will be a bank with 200 oxygen concentrators. It has been seen that Covid patients often need to get admitted to ICUs when they're not given medical oxygen when needed. Many patients sometimes die. We have set up these banks to close these gaps," he added.

Kejriwal stated that if any patient - in home isolation - needs medical oxygen, our teams will reach at their doorstep within two hours. One person - aware of the technical know-how will be a part of the team to help the patient and their families.

Patients who have been discharged but still need medical oxygen can use these oxygen concentrators too. "Our doctors will be in touch with the patients till they recover so that if they need to be hospitalised, timely action can be taken," Kejriwal said, adding that any patient can dial up 1031 to use the service.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Ankara, May 15 : A Turkish government tourism promotion video showing airline and hospitality staff wearing yellow masks with a logo that reads "Enjoy! I am vaccinated" has triggered widespread outrage across the country.

While opposition leaders said it humiliated Turks, civilians slammed the government's tone-deafness as they grapple with a nationwide shutdown, loss of income and baffling rules while waiting to get Covid-19 vaccines, reports dpa news agency.

The video, created by official travel guide Go Turkiye, presented Turkey as a "safe haven" for unmasked foreign tourists.

With sweeping views of top destinations, the English video said: "Sanitized resorts and vaccinated staff. We call it double safety for tourism. Our guests call it peace of mind." While the video was subsequently taken down on Friday, Turks responded in anger, demanding the resignation of Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy and the hashtag #TurkumOzurDilerim (sorry, I'm Turkish) trending on Twitter.

"In the pandemic, you only inflicted suffering and difficulties on our beloved people, and now you've done this without being ashamed. Shame on you," tweeted opposition Iyi Party leader, Meral Aksener.

"Finally, we have a ministry that humiliates its own people," said Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party.

Foreign tourists have been free to roam during the ongoing lockdown of nearly three weeks to stem the spread of coronavirus, which includes the Eid holidays.

Turkey began its vaccination campaign in January, primarily with China's Sinovac and subsequently Pfizer/BioNTech's shots.

The pace of vaccinations slowed while the number of new daily infections crossed an all-time high of more than 60,000 in March, prompting the government to reimpose restrictions and curfews.

According to the Health Ministry, more than 25 million doses have been administered, with more than 10 million people receiving the mandated second jab in the country of 84 million.

The economy has been devastated by the pandemic, as has the crucial tourism industry, with 70-per cent fewer visitors last year than in 2019.

Britain and France are among countries that have put Turkey on their "red list" for travel meaning those returning must go into lengthy mandatory quarantines.

Russia, which sent the highest number of tourists to Turkey last year, suspended flights until the beginning of June.

The country's strictest lockdown since the start of the pandemic is set to end on Monday, following which a period of "controlled normalization" will begin, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.

The details will be announced after a cabinet meeting, but he said that some restrictions will stay in place until the end of May, with a plan to significantly relax measures from June.
Gaborone (Botswana), 15 May 2021 (SPS) - Saharawi Ambassador to Botswana, Mr. Malainin Mohamed, called on Botswana Trade Unions, political parties and civil society actor to firmly support the legitimate struggle of the people of Western Sahara and Palestine for freedom and dignity, in a speech he gave today during the Launch by BOFEPUSU of its Workers Charter at Oasis Hotel, in Gaborone, Botswana.



The event was opened by a welcome remarks and briefing by the President of Botswana Federation of Public Private and Parastatal Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU), Mr. Johannes Tshukudu, and a presentation of the Strategic objectives of BOFEPUSU initiative, presented by its Secretary general.



The Saharawi Ambassador was given the floor as the Guest of Honour on invitation from BOFEPUSU leadership, to brief the participating representatives of political parties, trade Unions and civil society organisations, on the Saharawi issue.



In his speech, the Saharawi Ambassador emphasized the gratitude of the Saharawi people and government to Botswana President, Dr. Mokgweetsi Masisi, to Botswana government and to the people and civil society of Botswana for the honourable and principled position on the Saharawi legitimate struggle for freedom and independence. (SPS)



062/090/thepanafrikanist
Berlin, May 15 : The German government has condemned the recent anti-Israel rallies staged across the country in the wake of ongoing violence in the Gaza Strip, and vowed to ramp up protection for Jewish institutions.

Government spokesperson Steffen Seibert said on Friday that peaceful demonstrations against Israel's policies were allowed in Germany, "but anyone who uses such protests to shout out their hatred of Jews is abusing the right to protest", dpa news agency reported.

"Anti-Semitic rallies will not be tolerated by our democracy," he added.

Those who protest in front of a synagogue and damage Jewish symbols were not criticising a state, but showed "aggression and hatred against a religion and those who belong to it," Seibert stressed.

"We oppose this with all the strength of a democratic constitutional state." In recent days, police have intervened at anti-Israel rallies and boosted their presence at synagogues throughout the country after several instances of vandalism and the burning of Israeli flags.

Seibert said the authorities were working with the utmost commitment to solve the crimes, punish the perpetrators and protect Jewish institutions.

Earlier, the Israeli ambassador to Germany, Jeremy Issacharoff, called on the authorities to ensure the safety of the Jewish community.

The government's anti-Semitism commissioner, Felix Klein, also asked Islamic associations in Germany to stand up against violence.

The head of the Central Council for Muslims in Germany, Aiman Mazyek, ha also strongly criticised anti-Semitic protests in front of synagogues.

In other incidents on Friday, an Israeli flag in front of Dusseldorf city hall was burned.

In Neubrandenburg, an Israeli flag was stolen, while in Nordhausen in Thuringia, three people tried to burn an Israeli flag in front of the town hall.

Later in the day, about 200 people took to Berlin's streets to protest Israel's military action in Gaza, a police spokesperson said.

Participants held Palestinian flags and chanted slogans like "Freedom for Palestine" and "Stop the murder, stop the war".

Police in Berlin said several pro-Palestinian groups were planning more rallies in the city on Saturday.

The police were expecting about 80 to 250 participants.

Meanwhile authorities in Frankfurt have banned a pro-Palestinian demonstration planned for Saturday, citing security concerns.
Paris, May 15 : French President Emmanuel Macron said the murder of teacher Samuel Paty will not be forgotten as he called for democracies to find solutions against online terrorist videos.

"It cannot and will not be forgotten. This cannot and should not happen again," Macron said in remarks via video link at the opening of the Christchurch summit on Friday.

The internet has been abused as a weapon by terrorists to spread their hate-filled ideologies - and sometimes also to actively inspire further attacks, dpa news agency quoted the President as saying.

"It is up to us democracies and defenders of fundamental freedoms to find the right solutions," he said.

Paty was killed in October 2020 near Paris, in a crime that investigators deemed a terror act motivated by Islamism, after anger against him escalated online because he had shown an image of the prophet Mohammed during a lesson.

The attacker also bragged about what he had done online afterwards.

Macron stressed that terrorist content must be banned online but fundamental rights must also be protected, he said.

He said 55 countries now supported the project, including the US, Estonia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Macron and New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern held a first summit on the topic two years ago, after the terrorist attack in Christchurch, New Zealand, that left 51 people dead.

The attacker used a helmet camera to broadcast large parts of the rampage live online via Facebook.

The aim of the summits is to bring governments and internet giants such as Google, Amazon and Facebook to the table.
Jaipur, May 15 : Dungarpur, a small Rajasthan town, has scripted a success story by bringing down the Covid death toll by 50 per cent with the proactive approach of panchs, sarpanchs, ward councillors, ANM, village committees and senior officials.

These custodians of administration worked as a team and ensured each household was visited and everyone with COVID symptoms was identified and medicinal kits were distributed to them.

"Over 52 per cent hospital beds now lie vacant in this district after we started an intensive drive 'My Ward, My Village, My District Covid free campaign' under which Covid patients were identified at preliminary stage and cured with medicines to check the Covid spread at initial stage.

"A team of 30 officials in the last four days made door to door visits in small villages situated on hillocks and identified 13,512 patients with ILI symptoms at the initial stage. A medical kit was given to each of them immediately without delay.

"The campaign helped in bringing down the death rate," said district collector Suresh Kumar Ola adding that in many cases, it was seen that people were hiding the Covid symptoms and did not want to share their ailments or symptoms.

"Eventually, in 4-6 days, they were turning serious and had to be shifted when their oxygen level went down to 40-50.

"Hence we started an innovative campaign to identify such patients at preliminary stage, home quarantined them, monitored them and made them aware of oxygen level etc which worked miracles." "We worked as a team with sarpanch, ward panch, etc and visited 3,01,779 houses and surveyed 16,32,568 members.

A total of 13,512 patients were identified with Covid-19 symptoms, 22,560 medical kits were given, 13,595 people were quarantined and other 800 were brought to health centres.

Proning technique was shared with patients and those under home isolation were motivated. All these initiatives helped in cutting down the mortality rate by 50 per cent.

The results were seen in last four days as on May 8,389 patients had tested positive, however, on Friday, 297 tested positive out of which 235 recovered.

Ola said that over 200 patients were in hospitals in April while now, the number has fallen to around 150.

A total of 155 beds are lying vacant out of 305 beds available in the Covid centres and oxygen is also available for patients who need it, he added.

"Those needing medical help should come to hospital and we shall further follow up on those identified with ILI symptoms, Ola added.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Panaji, May 15 : The Goa government is gearing up for Cyclonic storm Tauktae which is gathering momentum along the country's western coast.

While Goa witnessed thunder, lightning and heavy showers on Friday, the Goa branch of the Indian Meteorological Department has predicted a severe cyclonic storm from May 15 to May 17 with wind speed in the range of 100 to 175 km per hour.

"A National Disaster Response Force team from Pune has arrived in Goa to assess the situation," a state government spokesperson said.

The official also said that police, Fire and Emergency department services personnel have been kept on standby.

"The district administration's disaster management force are also on high alert in view of the cyclone warning."

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Moscow, May 15 : Two girls in Russia set fire to a nearly 200 tonnes of straw, causing extensive damage, while trying to make a TikTok video.

Police said that the fire grew out of control after individual pieces of straw were set ablaze, reports dpa news agency.

Some 195 tonnes of straw were said to have burned in the rural area not far from the city of Perm, about 1,200 km east of Moscow.

The two schoolgirls had run away after their attempts to stop the flame failed.

They admitted to police a short time later that they had been making a TikTok video when the incident occurred.

Authorities told the girls that in addition to causing extensive damage, they had put their lives at risk in trying to make the video.
New Delhi, May 15 : The GST Council will meet for the first time this year on May 28, through video conferencing.

The meeting coming in the backdrop of the fresh and more deadly Covid wave sweeping the country, is expected to announce a few Covid relief measures particularly on compliance matters.

It may also announce a few measures to correct the inverted duty while discuss the compensation cess dues arising in 2021-22 due to a possible shortfall in cess collections.

Two other important items including lowering of GST rates for two wheelers and bringing natural gas into the indirect tax fold may also be included in the agenda for discussion.

"Smt @nsitharaman will chair the 43rd GST Council meeting via video conferencing at 11 AM in New Delhi on 28th May 2021. The meeting will be attended by MOS Shri @ianuragthakur besides Finance Ministers of States & UTs and Senior officers from Union Government & States," the office of the finance minister said in a tweet.

The GST Council has not met since October last year when the panel of finance ministers discussed GST compensation and the borrowing formula offered by the Centre towards compensating states for GST shortfall.

The 43rd meeting of the council is expected to again discuss the compensation issue for the current year but sources said it may also take a few steps to correct inverted duty structure without pursuing any increase in GST rates or move towards converging GST to a three rate structure.

Sources said that the council may at the next meeting also take up two other important items including lowering of GST rates for two wheelers and bringing natural gas into the indirect tax fold.

A top source in the finance ministry said that inverted duty correction, GST cut on two wheelers and inclusion of natural gas into GST fold are on the agenda and hopefully the council will offer some solution that is in the best interest of all stakeholders.

Correction of inverted duty structure, especially in sectors such as fertilizer, steel utensils, solar modules, tractors, tyres, electrical transformers, pharma, textile, fabric, railway locomotives among other goods is required.

Inverted duty refers to tax rates on inputs being higher than those levied on finished products. This results in higher input credit claims by goods besides several administrative and compliance issues.

Currently, while duty on imported tyres is 10 per cent its inputs ie rubber attracts 20 per cent duty. Similarly, solar modules do not attract any duty while its components attract 5-10 per cent duty.

Similarly, the council may also consider lowering of GST rate of 28 per cent on two wheelers to give a boost to its sales affected during the pandemic. With a pickup in rural demand, as seen with increased tractor sales, any cut in rates would help the two wheeler makers to increase sales with competitive pricing.

The Council has in principle agreed to include five petroleum products under GST but has so far deferred its actual inclusion into the indirect as states fear big loss of revenue. But now, the government is considering bringing natural gas under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime to begin with as it would be difficult to bring the entire oil and gas sector immediately under it.

Sources said that natural gas may be included under a three-tier GST structure where rates would vary depending on the usage. So, while piped natural gas (PNG) for homes may be kept at a lower rate of 5 per cent, commercial piped gas may attract the median 18 per cent GST rate and automobile fuel CNG may be kept in the highest bracket of 28 per cent.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Kolkata, May 15 : The banned separatist group, United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) or ULFA(I) has declared a unilateral ceasefire for three months following an appeal by new Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

The ULFA-I chief Paresh Baruah on Saturday made this declaration of a unilateral ceasefire for three months with immediate effect from his hideout on the Sino-Myanmar border.

The ULFA-I Commander-in-Chief in a statement made available to IANS by his spokesperson Rumel Asom said: "With utmost sincerity, we would like to inform the indigenous people of Assam that in view of the Coronavirus-induced situation, the ULFA (I) has decided to suspend all its military operations for the next three months with effect from today." But the Assamese rebel chief alleged that a section of officials of the Indian security forces and Assam police have orchestrated a conspiracy to malign the image of ULFA (I).

This writer had reported in IANS earlier this week of 'backroom parleys' between CM Sarma's close coterie and ULFA go-betweens to facilitate a fresh peace effort.

"Both sides were waiting for Sarma to take charge as CM. Now that he has taken over, the ULFA has reciprocated," one of the go-betweens told IANS.

He is a senior Assamese journalist but wishes not to be identified.

Paresh Barua had given his only on-camera interview so far , in 2016, to Newslive channel owned by CM Sarma's wife .

The Newslive journalist Chayamoni Bhuiyan met Barua in the Chinese town of Ruili , with both risking the wrath of Chinese authorities if discovered.

Barua's previous interviews with other journalists have been in jungle bases with ULFA not allowing videography of them for obvious security reasons.

A former Assam DGP, who wishes not to be identified, says Himanta Biswa Sarma has maintained a discreet link to Paresh Barua and also the surrendered ULFA leaders since his days as a student leader.

"He has waited to activate the contacts for a peace effort once he became sure of getting the top job," the former police boss said.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Sarma is on a day-long visit to Tinsukia to assess the Covid situation in the district.

He visited the Tinsukia Civil Hospital to review the arrangements in the hospital amid the rising number of Covid cases and deaths in Assam. Sarma also visited the Tingrai market in Digboi where two people were killed and two were seriously injured due to a grenade blast in a hardware shop.

The CM also met the family of one of the deceased Surojit Talukdar and announced a Rs 5 lakh one-time financial aid for the families of the two killed in the grenade blast.

While ULFA (I) denied responsibility for the blast, police officials suspect the incident was the handiwork of ULFA (I).

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Mumbai, May 15 : Popular Marathi actress Priya Bapat has donated blood for Covid patients, after recovering from the coronavirus.

"Everyone who can donate should donate. There is no two ways about it. We as a nation are facing the worst crisis ever. We are losing lives like never ever. In times like these everyone has to come together to fight the disease," Priya said.

She added: "We have to follow protocols very strictly and do whatever possible in our capacities to help one another. I pray and wish that we get over the pandemic soon. The news has been unbearable." The actress will be seen in independent filmmaker Aditya Kripalani's upcoming "Father Like".

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Paris, May 15 : Police in Paris have ordered stores near an unauthorised demonstration to close on Saturday, citing "serious risk of disturbances to the public order".

The demonstration is to commemorate Nakba Day, also known as the Palestinian catastrophe, marks the mass displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians after the founding of the state of Israel in 1948, reports dpa news agency.

Authorities in the French capital had banned the demonstration; however, organisers have not taken back their call to protest, and police assume there could be riots, especially as the current tensions in Israel and the Palestinian Territories could draw large crowds to the rally.

The Paris-based Palestinian Association des Palestiniens en Ile-de-France had sharply criticised the ban on the demonstration.

"We have no interest in being violent," Pauline Salingue of the New Anticapitalist Party, which supports the demonstration, told Franceinfo radio.

"We will participate in demonstrations in solidarity with Palestine, whether they are authorized or banned." Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin had ordered the ban on the Paris demonstration on Thursday.

He justified it on the grounds that there had been a massive disturbance of public order in 2014.

Thousands of people had demonstrated seven years ago against the Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip at the time.

During riots, a synagogue and Jewish stores were targeted.
Manila, May 15 : More cases of the coronavirus variant first detected in India have been found in the Philippines, which led to the government to extend a ban on travellers coming from countries where the strain was found in recent days, officials said on Saturday.

The Department of Health said 10 more patients were found to have the B.1.617 strain of Covid-19, bringing to 12 the total number of cases of the more contagious Indian variant in the country, reports dpa news agency.

Nine of the patients were crew members of the cargo ship MV Athens Bridge, which docked in Manila last week to seek medical help for two crew who were in critical condition.

The 10th case was a seafarer who returned home from Belgium via the United Arabs Emirates (UAE) in April, the department added in a statement.

In a bid to contain the entry of the Indian variant, travellers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are not allowed to enter the Philippines until May 31, said Jaime Morente, the bureau's chief commissioner.

The entry ban was also extended to the countries of Oman and the UAE starting Saturday, he added.

The ban was first implemented on April 29 for travellers from India or those who had recently travelled to the South Asian country.

The extension of the ban was imposed after the B.1.617 variant was detected in two overseas Filipino workers who returned to the country in April.

The two patients - a 37-year-old male and a 58-year-old male - have already recovered and had no close contact with family or community members because they were quarantined on arrival, the epartment said.

Three passengers on the 58-year-old patient's flight have tested positive for Covid-19 but have already recovered, said Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire.

None of the three have a variant of concern, she added.

The Philippines' total Covid-19 caseload stood at 1,138,187 on Saturday, after the health department reported 6,739 additional cases. The death toll was up by 93 to 19,051.

Despite thousands of cases reported daily, the government eased restrictions in the capital region of Metro Manila and four surrounding provinces in a bid to boost the country's economy, which has contracted for the fifth straight quarter since last year.

Seating capacities were increased for indoor dining at restaurants, outdoor tourist attractions can resume at 30 per cent capacity, and specialized domestic tours can take place again from Saturday.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
May 15 : While Maharashtra is under lockdown amidst the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bollywood actors are spending their time at home. Akshay Kumar, who was infected with the virus some time back, gets time to respond to his fans. The actor is known for interacting with his fans on social media. On the other hand, Akshays wife and author Twinkle Khanna also shared a glimpse of her weekend activity.

Taking to his Twitter account, Akshay reacted to two of his fans who shared posts tagging the Sooryavanshi actor. A fan of Akshay Kumar shared a video of himself wherein he can be seen nailing a handstand like an actor. Sharing the video clip, the fan wrote that when he first saw Akshay Kumar doing handstand, he practised doing it day and night and finally perfected it.

Reacting to the fans video, Akshay praised him for his efforts and wrote, "Good going Armaan! Glad to know you kept trying, clear example of practice makes perfect."

Good going Armaan! Glad to know you kept trying , clear example of practice makes perfect :) https://t.co/igL3OYbKSI  Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) May 15, 2021

Another fan asked the Bell Bottom actor to wish him on his birthday and the actor gladly obliged. Taking to his Twitter handle, the actor wished the fan on his birthday. Wish you a very happy birthday, may you always be blessed with good health. Love and prayers, Akshay wrote.

Wish you a very happy birthday, may you always be blessed with good health. Love and prayers :) https://t.co/R0meL67ANg  Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) May 15, 2021

On the other hand, actor-turned-auther Twinkle Khanna shared a glimpse of her weekend activity. Twinkle and her daughter Nitara are self-declared bookworms. Twinkle took to her Instagram handle, and shared a glimpse of the book they chose to read during the weekend. Sharing a picture of the childrens book titled, The Adventures of the Kohinoo, Twinkle wrote, The little one and I have picked our next read. Reading aloud, taking turns and answering questions that come up-everything from colonisation to editorial decisions! #catchthemyoung #bookwormsforlife #theadventuresofthekohinoor

Recently, Twinkle shared a picture of Nitara and called her a superhero. In the post, the author wrote how children change things and help to sail through tough times. In the picture, Nitara can be seen wearing a white T-shirt with pink shorts. She is also sporting a quirky mask and a pair of sunglasses while she poses for the camera. The little girl can be seen standing in her balcony, surrounded by plants. Sharing the picture on her Instagram handle, Twinkle wrote, The new normal: The balcony is becoming a forest and all our kids are turning into masked Superheroes! I marvel at how they have adapted to just slipping on a mask as they leave the door, the lack of fuss over their isolation. They give us hope and joy and help us through our toughest times. And also behave like crackpots to make us laugh, like this little one right here. #littleheroes.
Lucknow, May 15 : The UP Government has taken serious note of the shootout in Chitrakoot jail in which at least three undertrials were killed on Friday. On the instructions of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, five personnel including Chitrakoot Jail Superintendent S.P. Tripathi and jailer Mahendra Pal have been suspended.

Director General Jail (DG) Anand Kumar said that five personnel including Jail Superintendent Tripathi and jailer Mahendra Pal have been suspended. A new superintendent and jailor have been posted in their place.

Ashok Kumar Sagar has been appointed as Jail Superintendent and C.P. Tripathi as the new Jailor.

Officials say how the pistol reached the jail is not yet clear. There will be a judicial inquiry into the incident, the process of which has been started.

Chitrakoot police has registered an FIR and a through and detailed investigation will be carried out into the incident.

Among the suspended personnel are the head warder of the jail and a PAC soldier posted in security arrangements. DG Jail Anand Kumar said that investigations will be conducted from all possible angles.

To investigate the incident, a team comprising Commissioner Chitrakoot D.K. Singh, IG Chitrakoot, K. Satyanarayana and DIG Prison Headquarters Sanjeev Tripathi has been constituted. The report will be submitted directly to the Chief Minister.

As per reports, an undertrial Anshul Dixit had opened fire at another gangster Mukeem Kala who died on the spot. In the shootout, another criminal, Mirajuddin, also received gunshot injuries and died.

Mirajuddin is said to be a close confidant of mafia don and Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Mukhtar Ansari.

The police asked Dixit to surrender but he fired at the police who then also opened fire in which Dixit was killed.

Several rounds were fired inside the jail during the incident.
Chandigarh, May 15 : In a heart-wrenching incident, a poor man carried his 11-year-old daughter's body on his shoulders to reach the burial ground in Jalandhar town. She died owing to Covid-19.

The video of the man carrying the body has gone viral on social media.

The man, Dilip, told the media that his daughter died on last Sunday.

He said the video was of Monday when he went to the burial ground with his son for her last rites.

"I am a poor man. Since no one came forward to financially help me in her cremation, I decided to take her body for the cremation on my shoulder," he said.

"Since my daughter was undergoing treatment in Amritsar, after her death the body was handed over to me by wrapping in a bed sheet. I brought the body here (Jalandhar) for cremation. With the help of someone who gave me Rs 1,000, I performed her last rites." A day earlier, a video grab of a man carrying the body of his mother, who too died due to Covid-19, for cremation on his shoulder in Himachal Pradesh was widely shared on social media.

The man belonged to Bhangwar village near Ranital town, some 30 km from Dharamshala in Kangra district.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Hyderabad, May 15 : Ambulance vehicles making their way to Hyderabad with Covid patients from Andhra Pradesh, are being allowed to cross the border into Telangana since Friday night. The development comes in the wake of the Telangana High Court's interim order barring the state government from stopping such vehicles at the border.

On Saturday, Telangana police personnel at the Andhra Pradesh borders, allowed patients not having the required permissions, to cross over after registering their details.

On Friday, two patients from Andhra Pradesh died in the ambulance vehicles they were traveling in, at the inter-state border near Kurnool. Telangana Police did not permit vehicles without valid online permits to cross the border.

At least 40 ambulances from Andhra Pradesh were forced to return back from the Pullur toll plaza since Thursday when they tried to cross the state border on the way to Hyderabad. A similar situation played out at the Ramapuram cross border post near Suryapet.

Telangana officials were claiming that large number of patients arriving from neighbouring states, particularly Andhra Pradesh, is putting pressure on bed availability and medical care in the state capital.

However, the Telangana High Court, on Friday, issued orders staying the state government's guidelines on entry of Covid ambulances from other states.

The Court took up the matter for hearing after a retired IRS officer Venkata Krishna Rao filed a petition on Friday, that ambulances are being stopped or turned back, at the border, by Telangana Police.
New Delhi, May 15 : The Delhi Police said on Saturday that they have arrested one person for selling oxygen cylinders in black and seized four cylinders and a car used for transportation purposes from his possession.

Santosh Kumar Meena, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Dwarka, said, "On Friday, an information was received regarding hoarding of oxygen cylinders by one Mohit, who would arrive near the CNG pump in Sector 23, Dwarka, in an i10 car at about 8:30 pm to sell oxygen cylinders at high rates." The DCP said the information was shared with senior officers who were directed to take immediate action.

Thereafter, a raiding team was formed under the supervision of Inspector Pawan Tomar, in- charge STF, and Anil Dureja, ACP, Dabri.

"A trap was laid at the CNG pump in Sector 23. At about 8:55 pm, a white i-10 car bearing the registration number DL-8CAP-5486 came from Sector 9 side and stopped near the informer. The driver of the vehicle showed him three cylinders that were kept on the rear seat of the car," Meena said.

"Once it was ascertained that the motive of the accused was to sell these cylinders for illicit profit, the police team apprehended him along with the three oxygen-filled cylinders kept in his car," the DCP said.

Meena also said that Mohit's interrogation led to the recovery of one more large oxygen-filled cylinder. It was also revealed that he illegally procured the said cylinders from one Rajesh from Naraina.
Seoul, May 15 : More than six out of every 10 South Koreans support the idea of pardoning Lee Jae-yong, the jailed de facto leader of Samsung Group, a poll showed on Saturday.

According to the joint poll conducted on 1,003 people age 18 or over nationwide from Monday through Wednesday, 64 percent of the respondents said they support granting a pardon for Lee.

Only 27 percent opposed the idea, while the remaining 9 percent said they are undecided on the issue.

Those who support giving clemency to Lee outnumbered those who objected in all age and regional groups, according to the poll.

Among supporters of the liberal ruling Democratic Party, however, the support rate of 47 percent only slightly outweighed the objection rate of 44 percent, reports Yonhap news agency.

With a 92 percent support rate, sympathizers of the main opposition People Power Party overwhelmingly opted for clemency for Lee.

The poll jointly conducted by four Seoul-based pollsters -- Embrain Public, KSTAT Research, Korea Research International Inc. and Hankook Research -- has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points with a 95 percent confidence level.

The poll results came amid growing calls from business and religious leaders as well as politicians to pardon the jailed Lee.

The vice chairman of Samsung Electronics Co. was imprisoned in January over a high-profile corruption scandal that ousted former president Park Geun-hye. He was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison in a retrial by the Seoul High Court for bribing Park and her longtime friend, Choi Soon-sil, to win government support for a smooth father-to-son transfer of managerial power of the conglomerate.

Given the prison time he already has served in course of the judicial process, Lee will be a free man in July 2022, unless he is granted a pardon or commutation. He did not appeal the court ruling.

During a press conference marking the fourth anniversary of his inauguration on Monday, President Moon Jae-in said he would make a decision on the pardon case after listening enough to public opinions.
New Delhi, May 15 : India opener Shikhar Dhawan's gesture of charity was acknowledged by Gurugram Police which tweeted a photograph of several neatly-packed oxygen concentrators, donated by the India limited-overs opener, lying in their office for distribution.

"Taking forward our committed efforts. Grateful to @SDhawan25 for providing Oxygen Concentrators," wrote Gurgaon Police on its twitter handle late on Friday night.

Dhawan, who was enjoying a stellar run in the Indian Premier League (IPL) along with Prithvi Shaw for Delhi Capitals until the tournament was postponed due to bio-bubble breach, tweeted in response, "Grateful to serve my people in this pandemic through this small token of help! Always ready to help my people and society to my best. India shall rise and shine against this pandemic!" While wishing everyone "Eid Mubarak", Dhawan requested everyone to stay safe.

The opener was also the face of the Delhi Capitals' "plasma donation" drive, urging people, who had recovered from Covid-19, to come forward and donate their blood plasma to save the lives of the critically ill.

"I am committed to helping India fight COVID-19. Every rupee we raise through this fundraiser will be doubled by our donor partners. I BREATHE FOR INDIA, do you? The only way to make a difference is -- TOGETHER," Dhawan had tweeted recently.

Latest updates on IPL 2021
May 15 : Director Ram Gopal Varma recently released his gangster film D Company on the streaming service Spark OTT and well within 12 hours there subscription base took an unprecedented jump. The filmmaker just took to his social media and asked for a party from the streaming services.

Gangster drama, titled D Company, stars Ashwat Kanth, Pranay Dixit, Naina Ganguly, and Irra Mor, is the story of how a street gang in Mumbai headed by Dawood Ibrahim rose to become the worlds most dangerous criminal organisation.

The film released digitally on Spark OTT and their subscription base took 1,21,986 jump. Looks like RGVs movie has put the streaming service on the map and he wants a party.

Ram Gopal Varma took to his social media and tweeted, CONGRAATS TO ALL at SPARK OTT, and thanks once again to ALL OUR WELL WISHERS...Hey @SparkSagar1 WHEN IS THE PARTY???

CONGRAATS TO ALL at SPARK OTT and thanks once again to ALL OUR WELL WISHERS ..Hey @SparkSagar1 WHEN IS THE PARTY ??? pic.twitter.com/5mcqoYhlVA  Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) May 15, 2021

D Company has been written and directed by Ram Gopal Varma. The film, produced by Sagar Manchanuru under the banner of Spark Productions, was earlier scheduled to release in theatres in March this year but was delayed due to the second wave of Covid-19 in India.

The film realistically captures both the characters and incidents responsible for the creation of the most powerful criminal organisation ever in India named after its leader Dawood Ibrahim, who along with his protegee Chota Rajan, held Mumbai city in an iron grip for many decades.
Agra, May 15 : The Agra branch of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has constituted a five-member committee to look into the flood of complaints and grievances against private nursing homes and hospitals, accused of over-charging and fleecing the victims of Covid-19.

IMA Agra secretary Anoop Dixit said the grievance cell will be headed by former IMA-Agra president Arun Chaturvedi.

During the pandemic, there have been numerous complaints against doctors, mostly due to misinformation and lack of understanding of the problems associated with hospitalisation and treatment, medical experts said.

One area that has caused maximum heart burning and anguish is the general response of the private nursing homes and hospitals, which have been accused of making money from the unprecedented health disaster.

"The private doctors and their outfits have been squeezing the patients, overcharging for medicines, selling beds to the highest bidders. It's loot and exploitation, but the state government has shown no guts to tackle this issue," charged a widow of a social activist who succumbed to the virus some 10 days ago.

Those who have means and contacts are getting the best facilities, while those who lack them are left at the mercy of government hospitals, where the conditions and attitude of doctors are far from friendly, according to a large number of patients' parties.

Meanwhile, in the vast rural hinterland of Agra, trouble is brewing as the number of deaths is reportedly at an alarmingly high.

"Visit any village, it is the same story of deaths and sufferings, though there is no way to get confirmed figures of deaths in the rural areas. But everywhere you go, the scenario is scary," a village panchayat secretary said.

In Bamrauli Katara village, around 10 km from the Taj city, there have been more than 40 deaths in the past one month. Blame is being attributed to the large public meetings which were held during the recent panchayat elections without following the Covid protocols.

The villagers told IANS that the government health centres rarely open, and no treatment is available for the villagers. "People are thus forced to go to the quacks and 'Jhola Chaaps' who give medicines without tests," a villager rued.

An elderly person, Tula Ram, said that a large number of old men and women had died, as there was no one to take care of them or transport them to the health centres for fear of catching the infection.

To rub salt to the wounds, few dared to perform the last rites of the deceased, as people were scared of touching bodies, added another villager.

"The conditions are pathetic and there is no early hope for respite," said Sonvir Singh, a young activist of the area.

Earlier on Saturday, the district magistrate of Agra visited some villages, including Barauli Ahir, Nainana Jat, Digner, Rohta and Kahrai, with teams of doctors to create awareness and take stock of the situation.

Teams are now visiting other villages as well after alarming reports of deaths are coming in from the rural belt of Agra.

Three-level committees have been set up in the district to look into the matter. According to the District Magistrate P.N. Singh, for the rural areas, the committees would be headed by the SDMs of the tehsils. Anyone with a problem could contact the committees for help, officials pointed out.

"Actually, the Covid-19 containment strategy has so far remained urban centric. No thought was given to the impact of migrants returning home and later the panchayat elections. Now you see the effects in full fury. It's difficult to guess the number of deaths in the past one month. It's a health disaster," added a local leader, Jagan Prasad.

However, the scene is not uniform, as some areas are still unaffected, he clarified.

"The monsoon rains could make the situation worse. Though primary health centres and sub-units of the extension departments are there, but the staff crunch keeps them shut," said another rural activist, Manik Chand.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 15 : The Delhi Police on Saturday arrested a labourer turned cheat from Uttar Pradesh's Sitapur for duping needy persons in lieu of Remdesivir injections.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) South East Delhi R.P. Meena said that the staff of Kalkaji police station arrested Sudhir Kumar Yadav for cheating a woman on the pretext of providing a Remdesivir injection required for the treatment of a Covid patient.

He said that on May 13, the complainant Pooja Gupta went to Kalkaji Police station to register her complaint wherein she alleged that on April 29 her sister-in-law was declared Covid positive and her condition was critical.

In her complaint she said that her sister-in-law was admitted in a hospital and there was an urgent need for a Remdesivir injection for her treatment.

"Through WhatsApp group, I found the number of one person who assured to provide 6 Remdesivir injections for Rs 9,000 each and demanded Rs 20,000 in advance for the same and the remaining Rs 34,000 were to be paid after delivery," Gupta said in her complaint.

Meena said that the complainant transferred Rs 20,000 on May 1 through account transfer to the account number provided by the accused.

He said that Yadav gave the number of his co-accused and told the complainant that he will deliver the injections to her.

"The delivery boy on contacting said his name was Sunny and kept engaging the complainant for two days by stating that he has been stuck in Etawah and will come soon to deliver the injection. After that both switched off their phones and thus cheated the complainant," the DCP said.

Accordingly, a case was registered at PS Kalkaji and an investigation was begin.

Meena said that a team started analyzing the details of the phone numbers of the accused persons.

"The ownership of the phone number of Yadav was found in Lucknow. However, the address proof of the phone number of the delivery boy was found in Haridwar. But through one alternate number given in the ID, police traced the location of the delivery boy in Sitapur," he said.

The DCP said that the team raided the Sitapur location and Yadav was apprehended.

He said that during interrogation, Yadav disclosed that he used to work as a labourer on daily wages with his co-accused in Lucknow before the lockdown but lost his job and his co-accused inveigled him to indulge in fraud during the Covid pandemic.

He obtained one SIM on another person's ID and started talking with the customers who were in urgent need of Remdesivir injection under his pseudonym Sunny at the instance of his co-accused to cheat them of their money. Efforts are being made to nab the co-accused, Meena added.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Patna, May 15 : In a bid to get the anti-corona jab, villagers fought with each other, sparking a massive clash at a primary health centre of Aurangabad's Dev block in Bihar on Saturday.

Eyewitnesses said more than 850 people turned out at a single health centre in the hope of getting the vaccination.

"The villagers of Dev and adjoining areas came to the health centre and formed a long queue outside. Soon, they became out of control in absence of police personnel and began pushing one another. Moreover, a group of people tried to jump into the queue which eventually turned into a massive fight between them," said Sunil Kumar, a villager of Dev.

He said that 12 village panchayats fall under the Dev block and a majority of the villlagers come to the centre to get the vaccine.

"The scare of corona has made people scared and desperate. The villagers kicked and punched each other in a bid to enter the centre in a gross violation of Covid protocols. It was complete chaos at the centre," said Rajeshwar Singh, the village head of Dev.

"The doctors of the hospital informed us about the incident. We immediately sent a police team to the centre and calmed the villagers down. Some of the villagers have been injured in this incident," said a sub-inspector rank officer requesting anonymity.
Mumbai, May 15 : Marking an unprecedented step, Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party's Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis here on Saturday shot off a detailed letter to Congress President Sonia Gandhi highlighting the acts of commission and omission by the state government in dealing with the Covid-19 crisis.

Fadnavis said he felt compelled to pen the letter after Sonia Gandhi's recent letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the reactions of various Congress leaders and since she was not apprised of certain issues pertaining to the same which he sought to highlight.

In the 4-pager letter in Hindi, the BJP leader has targeted the Congress, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the state and sought to defend the Centre and Modi.

Among other things, Fadnavis has stated how Maharashtra continues to account for 22 per cent of the Covid spread, which was earlier over 30 per cent, the state has 31 per cent of the total national death toll, and 14 per cent of all active cases in the country, and 22 per cent of the deaths in the ongoing second wave.

Fadnavis points out that though there is no BJP government in the state, the Centre has been giving full help to Maharashtra by way of 1.80 crore vaccine doses, 800,000-plus Remdesivir injections, 1,750 tonnes of oxygen, and other assistance, but in order to hide their shortcomings, some leaders keep targeting the Modi government.

He also attacked the MVA for allegedly suppressing figures of cases/fatalities, including Mumbai - (whose example was recently praised by the Centre and courts) - and demanded to know whether "hiding 9603 deaths in 2020 was a form of 'Maharashtra Model' practiced here".

The state BJP leader also dwelt on how the state is ignoring the rural hinterland where many requirements are still lacking, rampant blackmarketing of Remdesivir, the lockdown periods have been extended, budget figures are being manipulated in the name of elusive aid packages for the affected sections of the population.

Asking Sonia Gandhi and others to first check the status in her party ruled states before criticizing Modi, Fadnavis claimed that merely criticising the Centre or each other in these times critical times would not help, and he was merely trying to point out certain things without politicking.

Lavishing praise on the PM, he said the whole world is watching how he's handling the Covid crisis in the country, how the world is helping out India and now the Congress should stop indulging in politics since "it's the public, and they know everything".

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Dhaka, May 15 : Top Jamaat-e-Islami leader and listed 1971 war criminal Shahjahan Chowdhury has been arrested by the police for allegedly instigating the violence unleashed by radical outfit Hefazat-e-Islam on March 26 during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Bangladesh, said Abdullah Al Masum, Superintendent of Police (Special Branch), Chittagong. The arrest was made on Friday night.

According to the police, Chowdhury is accused in over 20 criminal cases, including fanning communal tension and for his role in the genocide of 1971.

Chittagong SP Masum confirmed with IANS on Saturday, "We have found evidence of Chowdhury's involvement in the violence that Hefazat-e-Islam unleashed on March 26-28 in Chittagong's Hathazari." The police said the 1971 war criminal will be shown arrested as a provocateur in the case.

Chowdhury is accused in a case filed in connection with the massacre and atrocity unleashed by Hefazat -Jamat-BNP militants at Hathazari in Chattogram. He was arrested following a police raid at his home in the Chhamdar area in Satkania municipality in Chattogram.

Hefazat-BNP and Jamaat militants were involved in extensive violence and vandalism in Hathazari during Narendra Modi's visit in March, including an attack on the local police station. Around 2,500 unidentified persons have been accused in 10 cases in connection with the mayhem.

After the assassination of the father of the nation, Bangabondhu Sheikh Mujibor Rahman, in 1975, Chowdhury reportedly led the mass killings of local freedom fighters by the students of 'Shibir', the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami.

During the Jamaat-BNP regime (2001-2005), underworld don in Chittagong, Ahmadul Huq Chowdhury (locally known as 'Ahmodu' or 'Ahmoidya') left the Jamaat to work for the then ruling party BNP in 2004, after the son of Tareq Zia Khaleda offered him nomination to be a lawmaker, countering Chowdhury .

Ahmodu exposed Chowdhury's mission to kill freedom fighters, pro-liberation forces and open thinkers in Chittagong. Ahmodu said he was forced to kill freedom fighters, as he was blackmailed by Jamaat leader and then Chittagong lawmaker Chowdhury in the name of religion.

Ahmodu had also announced a 90-day ultimatum for Chowdhury, saying "either you or me will be alive after 90 days".

Within a couple of days after making the bold announcement in an exclusive interview with 'Shaptahik 200', Ahmodu was killed along with two of his associates in a cross-fire by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), the elite force of the police, on September 10, 2004.
Chennai, May 15 : Hundreds of relatives of Covid-19 infected persons converged at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here on Saturday to buy the Remdesivir injection.

Their one immediate objective was to get the vial so that their loved ones are saved.

The Tamil Nadu government had shifted the Remdesivir sale venue from Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital to Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium to reduce crowds at the hospital.

"It is total confusion here. No [signage] boards were put up to guide people," a person told reporters.

What was there was just a barricade to make people stand in the queue.

According to the people waiting to get the injection, the police were not properly informed.

With confusion leading to frustration, people started protesting demanding proper arrangements.

One person lamented to the media that the government should have supplied the injection to hospitals directly so that they need not spend hours standing in the queue.

With Covid-19 infection numbers going up in the state and with doctors prescribing Remdesivir injection for the patients, the demand for the injection has gone up.

Though medical experts have said that Remdesivir is not the only injection to cure Covid-19 patients, the demand for the drug has shot up as the doctors are prescribing the same.

The relatives of the patients can buy the injection by showing the doctor's prescription, medical reports, and the Aadhaar card of the patient.

Relatives of Covid-19 patients from outside Chennai came to Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital to get the injection.

Those standing in the queue alleged that they were not able to get the injection despite standing for a long time and the supplies were restricted per day.

At some point, people even started hiring persons to stand in the queuu.

"One had to wait for a couple of days to get the drug from Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital. In the black market the drug was being sold as high as Rs.17,000 per vial," a Covid-19 patient told IANS not wanting to be named.

"I got three bottles for Rs.30,000 from a person who had bought the drug for his son. However, his son had died," the person added.

Later the state government had announced that the injection can be bought from districts and then came the decision to change the sales venue from Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin recently urged the central government to allocate at least 20,000 vials of Remdesivir injection daily up from the current 7,000 vials.

The number of active Covid-19 cases in the state as on Friday was about 1.83 lakh.

On Saturday Stalin said hoarders and black marketers of the injection will be booked under the Goondas Act.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Beijing, May 15 : Ahead of the launch, Chinese smartphone brand POCO has confirmed that it will launch POCO M3 Pro 5G with MediaTek Dimensity 700 and 5000mAh on May 19.

The smartphone will feature a 6.5-inch Full HD+ resolution supporting screen with DotDisplay, the company posted on Twitter.

POCO M3 Pro 5G will offer a 90Hz refresh rate with DynamicSwitch feature, which will allow the device to automatically adjust the refresh rate depending on the content.

Under the hood, the smartphone will feature MediaTek Dimensity 700 chipset.

According to GSMArena, the inclusion of this chipset suggests that it could be debuting as one of the cheapest 5G phones in the market.

Also, it will POCO's first M-series smartphone to carry support for 5G connectivity.

The leaked renders of the smartphone revealed that it will be sporting a two-tone design on the back, the report said.

The black-coloured vertical camera portion has the POCO branding and an LED flash assisted 48MP triple camera system.

The handset is likely to be available in three colors like black, yellow, and blue.

The May 19 event will be streamed live through the company's Twitter, Facebook and YouTube channels.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Guwahati, May 15 : The committee constituted by Assams Wildlife Department on Saturday confirmed that the 18 wild elephants were killed in central Assams Nagaon district on Wednesday after being struck by a massive 'lightning bolt, officials said.

An official statement of the probe panel said that after thorough examinations of the carcasses and based on circumstantial evidence, the team of experts and officials suggested that the cause of death of these elephants, which appeared to be part of a herd, could be due to a lightning strike.

"However, the samples collected after post-mortem by the investigating team are being further examined for microbiological and toxicological aspects in the laboratory.

"This freak natural incident is also being corroborated based on meteorological reports. After these examinations a final report on the incident would be made public," the release said.

A tweet from the Assam Chief Minister's Office (CMO) on Saturday said: "As per direction of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, customary last rites of the dead elephants performed by Environment and Forest Minister Parimal Suklabaidya, Jitu Goswami,MLA." "Burial given by Chief Wildlife Warden M.K. Yadava and other forest officials till late evening. Burial images showed severe burn injuries due to lightning strike." However, many organisations, experts and environmentalists including wildlife expert and former top official of the Assam government Annarwaruddin Choudhary termed the death of 18 elephants as very "mysterious" and demanded thorough probes by independent agencies and experts.

Nagaon district Deputy Commissioner Kavitha Padmanabhan while talking to IANS said that the 18 wild elephants including calves died due to a massive thunderbolt on Wednesday night in the mountainous Kandali Proposed Reserve Forest (PRF).

Assam's Forest (Wildlife) Department on Thursday constituted an 8-member team headed by Deputy Conservator of Forest (Publicity) K.K. Deori to probe the death of the 18 elephants.

Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (WL) and Chief Wildlife Warden M.K. Yadava issued a notification constituting the inquiry committee which was asked to submit a preliminary report within three days and the final report within fifteen days.

The notification said that the investigating officer would undertake detailed investigation of the site including water and salt lick quality, and may engage experts and agencies for the purpose, and carry out detailed fact-finding from fringe communities and first informants.

Local people informed the forest officials that the carcasses of the elephants were scattered at different places in the deep forest area.

Yadava said that cases are often reported of lightning striking animals and five elephants had died due to this in West Bengal recently, but Wednesday's incident in Nagaon is huge and terrible.

According to the latest census, India is home to 27,312 elephants and of them, Assam is home to an estimated 5,719, many of whom constantly come out of the forests in search of food.

Conservationists have been urging the government to properly protect the habitats of the wild elephants and make available sufficient fodder, prevent encroachment of people and establish free corridors for the elephants to move between forests safely.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New Delhi, May 15 : Despite the belligerent rhetoric against the Chinese Communist Party regime across the world, China is likely to enjoy its exorbitant value to the US and the global economy.

Consider this: Even as the war of words between the two countries continued under the newly elected Biden administration, as a legacy from the Trump era, China's trade with the US went up 61.3 per cent with $165 billion in the first quarter of this year. Among all of China's trading partners, this is the highest growth rate, as per China's official data.

While EU-China trade rose 36.4 per cent, ASEAN-China trade increased 26.1 per cent in the same period.

With India, the bilateral trade went up 42.8 per cent even as the two countries clashed with each other at the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh last year.

The overall foreign direct investment (FDI) into the country in the first four months of this year has increased 38.6 per cent, year on year. Though last year most of the world imposed lockdown due to the pandemic, resulting into disruption in the global economy but even in 2019, the FDI had gone up 30.1 per cent in the same period. In the last four months, China received foreign investments to the tune of 61.45 billion USD.

This year's growth in trade happened even as the advanced economies of the world persistently threatened to shift supply chains out of China following the coronavirus pandemic. Many analysts who were hoping that China's loss due to shift in supply chains could be India's gain. But on the ground, not only the EU, but the US remains heavily dependent on China for its manufactured goods. The US is China's third largest trading partner behind the EU and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.

Due to the Biden administration's huge fiscal stimulus plans, an increase in income and consumption have generated a demand in the US market. Industry professionals attributed the sustained upward momentum in foreign investment to the country's solid economic base and consistent opening-up measures, showing foreign investors' confidence in China's economic development.They suggested China should open up further and stabilize foreign investment, given the changes in the external environment.

As a result, the US while playing the anti-China optics, has also been sending mellowed hints to the Xi Jinping regime. In his remarks at the UN Security Council's open virtual debate on multilateralism, the US Secretary of State, Antony J. Blinken last week said that the US believes it is not only possible, it is imperative. "Multilateralism is still our best tool for tackling big global challenges," he said adding the US will work with any country "including those with whom we have serious differences." The stakes, he said, "are too high to let differences stand in the way of our cooperation." Blinken seemed to tacitly acknowledge what President Xi Jinping had told Communist party officials at the beginning of the year that China is invincible. Time and history, he told his colleagues on January 11, are on China's side. "This is where our conviction and resilience lie, and why we are so determined and confident," Xi said in his 12,000 word speech, which was published last week.

Following the US stand on multilateralism, Xi in a phone conversation with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, dismissed it arguing that the world was not genuinely multilateral. "All countries should act in accordance with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, refrain from pursuing unilateralism and hegemonism, and should not use multilateralism as a pretext to form small circles or stir up ideological confrontation," he warned adding that China will continue to uphold genuine multilateralism.

He was implying that China will continue to pursue its stated goals and objectives.

His confidence was stemming from the massive economic costs for the global economy if the US were to decouple itself economically from China.

Beijing senses the pulse in Washington correctly. That is why the CCP's mouthpiece, the Global Times, analyzed the China-US relations fact sheet published by the US Department of State on May 12. Even as the US state department's country fact sheet is generally seen as a routine official document, but the CCP considered it as Washington's factual overview of its China strategy. Reading between the lines, the Global Times said, the fact-sheet's "ambiguity and cliches" showed that the Biden administration is "still confused" about its China strategy.

The US' uncertainty of China policy could also be reflected from the fact sheet in which it said it will address relations with China from a "position of strength," and that it will "suppress China with its strength, but it also needs to rebuild its own strength," the newspaper said quoting an expert.

The Global Times wrote, the US is uncertain about how much help its allies will provide and how strong its own strength is as it has plunged into an unprecedented crisis with pressures of economic recovery and deepened social conflicts. The figures of the trade and foreign direct investments into China seemed to validate Beijing's point of view.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Mumbai, May 15 : Karishma Tanna is literally in the mood to speed back to happier times in the past, going by her Instagram post on Saturday.

A black and white image she put up shows Karishma loading the boot of her car. Dressed in ankle boots, shorts, a casual top and shades, the actress looks all set to go.

"Take me away to better days #travel #vibe #potd," she wrote as caption.

Karishma was last seen in "Lahore Confidential", Kunal Kohli's spy drama that dropped digitally earlier this year. Last year, her dance number "Basanti" comedy release "Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari" became quite popular.
Chennai, May 15 : An expert team from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Saturday visited Vedanta Ltd's copper smelter plant Sterlite Copper and suggested measures to set right the technical snag that halted oxygen production, the company said.

Oxygen production at Sterlite Copper located in Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu was stopped on Friday due to a technical snag.

According to Vedanta, an expert team from ISRO came to the smelter plant to support the ongoing efforts and collaborate with the company's technical team.

"They have suggested some measures to help rectify the production snag. This has helped fastrack the repair process for which we are thankful to the local administration, who was instrumental in facilitating this cooperative effort to recommence our oxygen production," Vedanta said.

On Friday the company said a technical snag had developed in the cold box in the oxygen plant, leading to a temporary pause in production.

"The possibility of minor technical fluctuations was anticipated given that the plant has been unattended for three years," the company said in a statement.

On Thursday the company said one of its oxygen plants commenced production from May 12.

"The first tanker carrying 4.8 tons of liquid oxygen is going to Tirunelveli/Thoothukudi. We will be dispatching two oxygen tankers on a daily basis to begin with, and gradually scale this up as we expand production," Vedanta had said.

Vedanta had earlier said it has about 1,050 ton oxygen plant at Sterlite Copper and it is committed to make the entire capacity available for producing medical grade oxygen.

The company had approached the Supreme Court to allow it to protect and maintain its important assets in the smelter plant and permit it to produce 1,050 tonnes of oxygen and supply freely to nearby hospitals and to other states.

The Tamil Nadu government had ordered the closure of the copper smelter plant in 2018 following a violent protest that led to the death of 13 persons in police firing.

The 400,000 ton Sterlite copper smelter plant that has been operating in Thoothukudi for over 25 years with a cumulative investment of about Rs 3,000 crore.
New Delhi, May 15 : The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) on Saturday said in a statement that no one will be denied vaccine, medicine, hospitalisation or treatment for want of Aadhaar.

The statement has come in the present Covid-19 pandemic situations against certain reports suggesting that vaccination and a few other essential services like hospitalisation were being denied to the residents for want of Aadhaar.

UIDAI said that in the Covid pandemic circumstances, no one shall be denied a service/benefit just because he/she doesn't have an Aadhaar.

If one does not have Aadhaar or if Aadhaar online verification is not successful due to some reason, the concerned agency or department has to provide the service as per Section 7 of Aadhaar Act, 2016 and the Cabinet Secretariat OM dated 19th Dec 2017, UIDAI said in a statement.

UIDAI said that Aadhaar should not be misused as an excuse for denial of any essential service. There is a well established exception handling mechanism (EHM) for Aadhaar and it should be followed to ensure delivery of benefits and services in the absence of Aadhaar.

If a resident does not possess Aadhaar for some or the other reason, she/he must not be denied essential services as per Aadhaar Act.

UIDAI said that Aadhaar is meant to bring transparency and accountability in public service deliveries through effective use of technology and there are exception handling regulations issued by UIDAI vide its circular dated October 24, 2017 to ensure that no beneficiary is denied of benefits/services for the want of Aadhaar.

Also, relevant provisions are there in the Aadhaar Act under Section 7 to ensure that there is no exclusion and no denials.

Further, the Cabinet Secretariat OM dated December 19, 2017 has clearly explained the exception handling mechanism by using alternate means of identification for extending benefits and services to the residents who do not posses Aadhaar or in cases where Aadhaar authentication is not successful due to any reason.

UIDAI advised that in case of any such denial of service/benefit, matter should be brought to the knowledge of the higher authorities of concerned departments

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New Delhi, May 15 : Yoga guru Ramdev's Patanjali Yogpeeth has distributed Coronil kits to 2,500 Covid patients in Haridwar on an appeal made by Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank. Haridwar is also Nishank's Lok Sabha constituency.

The Coronil kits have been given to those Covid patients who are undergoing treatment at home. All patients have been advised to take the Ayurvedic medicines given in the Coronil kit along with ongoing treatment to increase their immunity against the infection.

According to Patanjali Yogpeeth, the use of the Coronil kit increases the immunity of people which will help in fighting Covid-19.

Speaking on the occasion, Nishank said, "All the doctors, scientists and pharmaceutical companies across the country are trying to fight this pandemic in their own way. On the one hand, doctors are constantly looking after and serving the Covid patients while the scientists and pharmaceutical companies have provided great relief by making the vaccine in a very short period of time." Nishank said Covishield and Covaxin manufactured in India have proved to be the most effective vaccines in fighting this pandemic in the whole world. Apart from these two vaccines we should not forget Ayurveda, which has been accepted by the whole world. Baba Ramdev had made Coronil medicine last year only to increase immunity against Covid-19, Nishank added.

"Coronil has given relief to the people so I urged Baba Ramdev to distribute it to Covid victims in Haridwar who are kept in home quarantine so that they can recover as soon as possible. This medicine will be provided free-of-cost to all 2,500 families," the Minister said.

Nishank has given money from his MPLAD fund to four Dedicated Covid Health Centres at Haridwar, including Baba Barfani, Base Hospital, Mela Hospital and Civil Hospital Roorkee identified by the Union Ministry of Health and ICMR.

At the S.P.S. government hospital in Rishikesh, money donated by the Minister provided five ventilators, 50 D-type jumbo cylinders, 20 semi-floor beds, 20 bed side lockers and 20 IV stands.

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New Delhi, May 15 : The Delhi Congress on Saturday slammed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, saying that he is behaving like an "ostrich", as when people are battling with the uncontrolled spread of the mutated variants of Covid-19, the AAP chief has buried his head in the sand to escape from the harsh ground realities.

Addressing a press conference here, Delhi Congress chief Anil Kumar Chaudhary said, "Kejriwal is behaving like an ostrich, as when people are battling with the uncontrolled spread of the mutated variants of coronavirus, and are dying due to the shortage of oxygen, medicines and hospital beds, he has buried his head in sand to escape the harsh ground realities." Chaudhary also said that the Chief Minister had vanished when Covid played havoc with the lives of the people across Delhi, but now that the cases are ebbing, he is back with his unconvincing and hollow promises.

Chaudhary said that it was insensitive on the part of Kejriwal to say that the Delhi government will "bear the cost and responsibility of raising and educating the children who have lost their parents due to Covid", as many families had lost their bread winners during the deadly surge in fatalities between April 20 and May 12, a time when the Chief Minster had resorted to his 'vanishing trick', leaving the embattled people to fend for themselves, at the mercy of god.

The Congress leader said that Kejriwal blamed others for vaccine and oxygen shortage, lack of hospital beds and every other problem plaguing Delhi, though his primary duty should have bing een to address the problems with a hands-on approach, and to save lives, but he let the people down when they needed his help the most.

Chaudhary also said that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader is now making big promises for the future, which he will never fulfil, without addressing the problems being faced by the people.

He said the Chief Minister now boasts of adding more Covid beds after thousands of poor people died for failing to get hospital beds.

The Congress leader said that Delhi Congress had been demanding that the city government should create an "oxygen bank" to serve the needy, which was not heeded to, but now that many people have lost their lives gasping for breath, the Chief Minister is mulling over an oxygen bank.

He said that Delhi Congress had also demanded that the AAP government should float a global tender to ensure a continuous supply of Covid vaccines to complete the vaccination drive in Delhi as fast as possible.

"But the Chief Minister kept his faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and now that the Centre has betrayed Delhi, the government had to shut down over 150 vaccination centres, which is a pity, as it is uncertain when Delhi will get its quota of vaccines," he said.

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Mumbai, May 15 : Actor Himansh Kohli says he has always been close to his parents, and often consults them for advice. Himansh was speaking on the occasion of International Day of Families on Saturday.

"I remember my father used to counsel me and we used to have a talk regarding everything. We used to have even the most awkward conversations, so that I don't make mistakes in the future. It's necessary to open up to your parents, because the advice they give will always be in your favour, and they would also never let you do anything bad," said Himansh.

The actor grew up in a family of four. His parents run a security business while his sister, who is a baker, recently got married. They also have a dog called Donut at their Delhi home.

"Family is like having somebody who loves you unconditionally. Having family around is the basic requirement for any child to survive and thrive. Your family helps build your personality and have a perspective in life. Family makes a home, home," he said.

Having said that, the young actor also asserted that COVID has made everyone realise the importance of their families.

"I went through Covid with family and those were genuinely tough times. I got vaccinated. I request everyone to get vaccinated. We lost so many people in 2020, and it is happening again this year. The fear of losing someone has brought people closer. We have also learnt how home is the only place you'd want to be if everything starts falling apart," he summed up.

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Chennai, May 15 : Tamil Nadu government on Saturday issued a global tender to source 3.5 crore units of Covid-19 vaccine.

As per the tender issued by the state government undertaking Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation, the winning bidder has to supply the vaccine within 180 days progressively from the date of the purchase order.

The shelf life of the vaccines supplied should be not less than six months on the date of receipt at the purchaser's site.

The dosage form could be oral or injectable; liquid or freeze dried with sterile diluent packed separately.

The vaccine storage temperature specification should be "2-8-degree Celsius. Do not freeze", the tender stated.

In the case of the bidder being a vaccine manufacturer, the tender stated that it should have either directly or through any other authorised dealer delivered at least 200 million doses, in any one of the last two years to any country in the world, of which at least 50 million doses should have been supplied in the last one year.

In case the bidder is not a manufacturer, then the bidder as authorised by the manufacturer must have supplied goods similar to the extent of at least 50 million doses in any one of the last two years to any country in the world, of which at least 25 million doses should have been supplied in the last one year.

The technical bids will be opened on June 5, 2021.

As per the tender, the purchaser - Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation - reserves the rights to split the order quantity to more than one responsive bidder at the L1 matched rates at its full discretion, depending on the delivery schedule as time is the essence of the contract and the goods are under life saving category.

The quantity indicated is tentative and will vary as per the actual requirement. The supplier should have no claim against the purchase on the actual quantity of the orders placed.

The purchaser reserves the rights to purchase one or more vaccines at differential prices based on cost, vaccine efficacy and availability during the period of vaccination programme by the government of Tamil Nadu.

On May 13, the Tamil Nadu government had announced its decision to go in for global tender to source Covid-19 vaccines as the allotment by the Central government was insufficient.

A decision to this effect was taken at the meeting chaired by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in which several ministers and officials participated.

According to the state government, the allotment of 13 lakh vaccine doses is insufficient to vaccinate the population in the age group of 18-44 years.

The state government also pointed out that the Union government had asked the states to source the vaccines on its own while supplying the same for those in the 45-plus category.

An official told IANS: "The 18-44 age group population of Tamil Nadu is 3.65 crore. The aim is to cover 70 per cent of this, which is 2.5 crore, which in turn would require 5 crore doses. A total of 1.5 crores doses are being procured by Tamil Nadu through the Union government's allotment from the two Indian manufacturers." "The rest 3.5 crore doses are being tried through the global tender," the official added.

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The Police have bust an illegal unit manufacturing Liquid Medical Oxygen in a garment factory in Sakinaka, Andheri, seized 31 oxygen cylinders, 5 oxygen kits and nabbed two persons. Image Source: IANS News

The Police have bust an illegal unit manufacturing Liquid Medical Oxygen in a garment factory in Sakinaka, Andheri, seized 31 oxygen cylinders, 5 oxygen kits and nabbed two persons. Image Source: IANS News

Mumbai, May 15 : In its ongoing crackdown, the Mumbai Police have busted an illegal unit manufacturing liquid medical oxygen which was being sold at exorbitant rates for Covid treatment, an official said here on Saturday.

Following a tip-off, the Crime Branch Unit 10, along with sleuths of the Food & Drugs Administration and BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation carried out a raid in a garment factory, Bombay Creations, at Sakinaka.

The unit, owned by one Ismail K. Ansari, 38, of Kurla, was found producing liquid medical oxygen on the premises and the raiding team has seized 10 cylinders, five cylinder kits and other articles worth over Rs.2.85 lakhs, said Unit 10 chief Police Inspector Kiran Londhe.

Upon further investigations and interrogation of Ansari, the police recovered another 21 oxygen cylinders and other stuff, which were being used for illegal manufacture and supply in the market at very high prices, exploiting the current shortages and heavy demand from hospitals and Covid patients.

The police arrested Ansari's associate Sachin R. Singh, 38, from Ghatkopar and the duo has been booked under various sections of the IPC, ECA, DSA, and further probe is underway to trace their other accomplices involved in the racket, said Londhe.

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Panaji, May 15 : Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Saturday dodged questions related to the scores of deaths at the Goa Medical College (GMC), even as Dr. Shivanand Bandekar, dean of the apex institute claimed that it was difficult to pinpoint oxygen shortage as the cause of the deaths.

"We cannot put this as a direct answer. People who come to GMC are all referred cases, because we are a tertiary health centre. Their (patients) criticality is high and most of the patients die because of Covid pneumonia, where oxygen is part of the treatment. We cannot directly say that this is the reason why they have died," Bandekar said, adding that several patients who were admitted to the hospital had high CT severity score.

Bandekar also disputed that 75 Covid patients had died in four nights at the facility between 2 am to 6 am, claiming deaths occurred through the day.

"If you see our timings and mortality bulletins that we publish. It is not foolproof to say (that patients died of oxygen shortage). Someone was saying 2 am to 6 am more deaths. I do not believe that. Deaths occurred across 24 hours," the top health official told a press conference in Panaji late on Saturday.

CM Sawant and Health Minister Rane, whose leadership has been questioned both by the ruling as well as opposition MLAs during the crisis, however refused to take questions related to the deaths due to oxygen shortage.

Sawant however said that the high mortality rate in Covid patients in Goa was on account of "100 percent" transparency in reporting of such deaths.The Bombay High Court bench in Goa which has been hearing a bunch of petitions related to mishandling of the Covid crisis, had however pinpointed oxygen shortage as the cause of deaths at the top hospital.

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Panaji, May 15 : Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday said that the state government would be taking over control of admission procedures of 21 private Covid hospitals in Goa, due to their failure to reserve 50 per cent beds for Covid treatment in their facilities.

Addressing a press conference in Panaji, Sawant also said that the decision, which would come into effect from Monday, was taken because the private sector hospitals were constantly stonewalling requests made by the government to reserve 50 per cent of their bed capacity for treating Covid patients, which in turn put a lot of pressure on the government health infrastructure.

"There are 21 private Covid hospitals running in the state. We have repeatedly told them to reserve 50 per cent beds for Covid patients, but they have not. From Monday, the government will take control of the admission procedures at these hospitals," Sawant said.

"The admission to these hospitals will be controlled by the government and patients will be treated free of cost. The government will pay these hospitals the fees as per our schedule," Sawant said, adding that the management of the hospitals will continue to be carried out by the private sector.

"As a result of this every patient will be admitted to hospitals," Sawant said.

The Chief Minister said that the state's top government hospital, the Goa Medical College, was overloaded to almost double its existing capacity due to the steep Covid hike.

Sawant also expressed relief that the state's positivity rate for Saturday had come down to 35 percent from the peak of 51 percent which it had scaled to some days back.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Chandigarh, May 15 : Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Saturday urged the Prime Minister to make the Central government the single agency for procurement and distribution of vaccine for 18-44 age group.

"Vaccination of the entire eligible population, especially in a pandemic situation, is the responsibility of the Central government as any non-inclusion can undermine the rest of the collective effort," the Chief Minister said in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Citing the experience of the past three weeks, when various states "have been making their individual efforts to source the vaccine from domestic producers as well as from abroad," the Chief Minister said the government of India (GoI) should immediately undertake sourcing of all vaccine, as a single agency.

The GoI should ensure vaccine distribution across all states and Union Territories through clinical establishment for proper vaccination of the 18-44 age group.

Amarinder Singh pointed out that he had even earlier suggested that, in view of the modalities of supply chain management, it would be operationally and financially most expedient if the entire procurement and supply of vaccine is done through the Union Government for all age groups, including persons in the 18-44 years group where the states have been allowed by the Centre to directly procure vaccine.
Mumbai, May 15 : The Maharashtra Congress on Saturday hit back at BJPs Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis for his letter to interim Congress President Sonia Gandhi, advising him to show courage and write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for 'turning the country into a crematorium.

In sharp reactions, state Congress President Nana Patole and spokesperson Sachin Sawant labeled Fadnavis as "a liar" for giving misleading statistics on Covid-19 relief supplies, which the Supreme Court and several high courts have also taken note of, and even appointed an oxygen supply task force.

"The Modi government has failed miserably in handling the Covid crisis. Rahul Gandhi had warned way back in February last year of a Corona Tsunami, but BJP leaders like the PM and Fadnavis ignored him, saying they don't take him seriously. The result is more than 4,000 deaths that are taking place daily now. By writing to Sonia Gandhi, Fadnavis is trying to cover up the sins of Modi who has turned the country into a crematorium," Patole said.

He also challenged Fadnavis to display courage and write to the PM or the BJP President on how the 'Namami Gange' has now become a 'Shawami Gange' and ask what happened to the 'hollow package' of Rs 20 lakh crore announced last year by the Centre.

Slamming Fadnavis, Sawant said that over 2,000 bodies are seen in river Ganga in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, and similar scenes are seen in Madhya Pradesh, forcing the world to accuse India of suppressing the figures under the Modi government.

"More people are dying because of lack of oxygen, medicines and ventilators and the true test of a leader is how well he functions in a crisis. What Modi offered during Corona was 'taali, thaali, ghanta, diya and politics', instead of clear planning, strategy or leadership that India needed," Sawant pointed out.

Reiterating that Maharashtra's statistics are transparent, Patole asked Fadnavis to reveal how many Covid tests are being carried out in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat or Bihar, or how many patients get access to oxygen and medicines, and how many deaths are being actually reported by the BJP-ruled states.

Patole pointed out that while Gujarat has had 1,23,871 deaths in just 71 days, the government has revealed only 4,218, as he blamed the ego and greed of the BJP government at the Centre for the mess.

He said even the PM's constituency of Varanasi has no place for cremation which is being shown by the global media, and now that the situation has gone out of hand, the BJP leaders have gone on a rampage.

Challenging Fadnavis' figures, Patole said the Centre did not set up a single oxygen plant in Maharashtra and against the state's daily requirement of 1,750 tonne, 1,200 tonne is produced by the state in which the "Modi government had no contribution and couldn't even supply the extra oxyen needed".

Patole also said that when the world was busy with vaccination, Modi was occupied with election campaigns.

The Centre has no national policy on vaccination, while inoculation centres are being closed due to shortages, he said.

Despite announcing Rs 35,000 crore for inoculation, why does the Centre buy vaccines for Rs 150 when the states have to pay Rs 400 and the individuals are charged Rs 600 per dose, Patole asked.

Sawant alleged that Fadnavis' letter reflects "the RSS training of dichotomy, hypocrisy and double-speak and is an example of the pot calling the kettle black".

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Mumbai, May 15 : Bollywood star Madhuri Dixit Nene celebrated her 54th birthday on Saturday, and industry colleagues took to social media to wish her on her special day.

Among the first to wish was veteran actor Anil Kapoor, Madhuri's co-star in numerous hits including "Tezaab" (1988), "Ram Lakhan" (1989), "Parinda" (1989), "Kishen Kanhaiya" (1990), "Beta" (1992), Pukar (2000) and "Total Dhamaal" (2019).

"Happy Birthday, @MADHURIDIXITNENE! As actors I feel all of us are the happiest on the sets, especially if you are working with friends... so I'm looking forward to being on set with you again! Wishing you all the health and happiness always!!" wrote Anil.

Actress-politician Urmila Matondkar described Madhuri as "graceful" and "gorgeous" while wishing her.

"Wishing a very Happy Birthday to the most gracious, graceful n gorgeous @MadhuriDixit ji.. lots of love n best wishes always," wrote Urmila.

Actress Raveena Tandon wrote: "Happy Birthday Beautiful! @MadhuriDixit loadsa love and happiness!" Actor Abhishek Bachchan tweeted: "@MadhuriDixit wishing you a very happy, healthy and safe birthday. Lots of love and respect." Actor Riteish Deshmukh, who shared screen space with Madhuri in "Total Dhamaal", says working with her was "a dream come true".

"Happy Birthday to the most beautiful @MadhuriDixit mam. Working with you was my absolute dream come true... I wish you happiness, love, best of health and may god fulfil your wish to work with me (again) real soon. Have a great great day," wrote Riteish.

Riteish's wife, actress Genelia, tweeted: "Happy Birthday @MadhuriDixit ji.. Wishing you the best of health and warmest regards." Actress Ena Saha tweeted: "Wishing you a very happy birthday maam! Big time inspiration." Actress Sonali Kulkarni tweeted: "Happy Birthday dear dear @MadhuriDixit. You prove that passion, talent and genuine beauty is absolutely timeless. 365 days of added awe and truck loads of love.. best wishes." Actress Pallavii Shirke tweeted: "Wishing the charming and timeless beauty @MadhuriDixit ma'am a very Happy Birthday! May you always be blessed with good health & happiness. #HappyBirthdayMadhuriDixit"
New Delhi, May 15 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday took a high-level meeting to review the preparedness to deal with the situation arising out of cyclone 'Tauktae'.

The Prime Minister directed senior officers to take every possible measure to ensure that people are safely evacuated by the state governments and to ensure maintenance of all essential services such as power, telecommunications, health, drinking water and are restored immediately in the event of damages caused to them.

The Prime Minister further directed officials to ensure special preparedness on Covid management in hospitals, vaccine cold chain and other medical facilities on power back up and storage of essential medicines and to plan for unhindered movement of oxygen tankers.

He also directed for 24X7 functioning of control rooms. "Special care needs to be taken to ensure that there is least possible disruption in oxygen supply from Jamnagar," the Prime Minister said.

He also spoke about the need to involve the local community for timely sensitisation and relief measures.

In the meeting, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) informed that Cyclone 'Tauktae' is expected to touch the Gujarat coast between Porbandar and Naliya on May 18 afternoon or evening with the wind speed ranging upto 175 kmph.

"It is likely to cause heavy rainfall in the coastal districts of Gujarat, including extremely heavy falls in Junagadh and Gir Somnath and heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few places in the districts of Saurashtra Kutch and Diu namely Gir Somnath, Diu, Junagadh, Porbandar, Devbhoomi Dwarka, Amreli, Rajkot, Jamnagar," the IMD informed.

The IMD also warned of storm surge of about two-three metres above astronomical tide to inundate coastal areas of Morbi, Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts and one-two metres along Porbandar, Junagarh, Diu, Gir Somnath, Amreli, Bhavnagar and 0.5 to one metre over the remaining coastal districts of Gujarat during May 18 afternoon/ evening around the time of landfall. The IMD has been issuing three hourly bulletins since May 13 with the latest forecast to all the concerned States.

In a statement the PMO said, it was discussed that Cabinet Secretary is in continuous touch with Chief Secretaries of all the Coastal States and Central Ministries and Agencies concerned.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is reviewing the situation 24X7 and is in touch with the State Governments/ UTs and the Central Agencies concerned. The MHA has already released the first instalment of SDRF in advance to all States. NDRF has pre-positioned 42 teams which are equipped with boats, tree-cutters, telecom equipment in six States and has kept 26 teams on standby.

The Indian Coast Guard and the Navy have deployed ships and helicopters for relief, search and rescue operations. Air Force and Engineer task force units of the Army, with boats and rescue equipment, are on standby for deployment.

Seven ships with Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Units are on standby along western coast. Surveillance aircraft and helicopters are carrying out serial surveillance along the western coast. Disaster Relief teams (DRTs) and Medical Teams (MTs) are standby at Trivandrum, Kannur and other locations along western coast.

The Ministry of Power has activated emergency response systems and is keeping in readiness transformers, DG sets and equipment etc. for immediate restoration of electricity.

The Ministry of Telecom is keeping all the telecom towers and exchanges under constant watch and is fully geared to restore telecom networks.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has issued an advisory to the States/ UTs, likely to be affected, for health sector preparedness and response on Covid in affected areas. The Health Ministry has also kept 10 Quick response medical teams and 5 Public health response teams ready, with emergency medicines.

The Ministry of Port, Shipping and Waterways has taken measures to secure all shipping vessels and has deployed emergency vessels (Tugs).

The NDRF is assisting the state agencies in their preparedness for evacuating people from the vulnerable locations and is also continuously holding community awareness campaigns on how to deal with the cyclonic situation.

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Imphal, May 15 : The Manipur police have arrested a journalist and a political activist over their Facebook posts reportedly criticising the the ruling BJP leaders, police said on Saturday.

A police official said that Imphal-based journalist Kishorechandra Wangkhem and political activist Erendro Leichombam were arrested on Thursday evening from their homes on the basis of a complaint filed against the duo by Manipur state BJP Vice-President Usham Deban party General Secretary P. Premananda Meetei.

The complaint said that Wangkhem and Leichombam have posted offensive comments referring to the death of state BJP President Saikhom Tikendra Singh, who fell prey to Covid-19 at a hospital in Imphal on Thursday.

Referring to Singh's death, the detainees in Manipuri language had posted comments saying "cow dung and cow urine do not work".

Police said that the duo would remain in custody till May 17.

Wangkhem and Leichombam, both around 40-years, had been arrested twice earlier on charges of sedition and for making various posts on social media against the government.

Leichombam is the founder of the People's Resurgence and Justice Alliance, a political party whose candidate in the 2017 Manipur elections included rights activist Irom Sharmila, who unsuccessfully fought the polls after she broke her 16-year long fast for the repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act from Manipur.

Studied abroad, Leichombam also unsuccessfully contested the Assembly polls in 2017.Rights activists and various Manipur based organisations and elsewhere in the country had criticised the government for "overreacting".
Kathmandu, May 15 : Expressing deep concern over the fast spreading Covid pandemic in Nepal, World Health Organisation's director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said that Nepal has emergency needs.

While addressing a regular media briefing on Covid-19 on Friday in Geneva, Ghebreyesus said that India remains hugely concerning, with several states continuing to see a worrying number of cases, hospitalisations and deaths.

"But it's not only India that has emergency needs," said the UN health agency chief. "Nepal, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Egypt are just some of the countries that are dealing with spikes in cases and hospitalisations." "The coronavirus has grappled the country to a serious situation," said Ghebreyesus underlining the similar kind of situation in India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Egypt. Medical fraternity, civil society, media, opposition parties and government officials have criticized the role of the government for its failure over taking prompt and effective action to handle the pandemic.

Nepal on Saturday reported 8,046 new coronavirus cases, 187 Covid-19-related fatalities in the last 24 hours taking the nationwide infection tally to 447,704 and the death toll has now reached 4,856. The number of active cases stands at 109,740.

The positivity rate is in a declining phase but still stands around 45 percent. After the country witnessed a sharp spike of cases, Nepal is now heading towards an India-like situation. Hospitals are running out of oxygen supplies, several hospitals have stopped taking new Covid patients due to lack of beds, ICU beds, ventilators and the country is seriously grappling with the health infrastructures. Reports are coming across the country that several hospitals that are running out of oxygen supplies have failed to protect the patients.

The government has ramped up to procure oxygen facilities and has mobilized its diplomatic missions. India has resumed the liquid oxygen supplies to Nepal and Nepal is bringing 2,000 oxygen cylinders from China along with other medical facilities. Nepal is also importing oxygen cylinders from Oman, Thailand and Nepali diasporas living abroad are also now extending support to the government of Nepal. Nepal has also imposed prohibitory orders in several parts of the country but the infection rate has not come down significantly, said Nepal's Health Ministry.

We have a similar burden to India, but Nepal has less resources and capacity to cope, UN country director to Nepal, Sara Beyesolow Nayanti, wrote on Twitter mentioning the WHO, the international community should see the vulnerability of Nepal differently from India, she said, Nepal needs help urgently!

In order to get more international support and mobilize the Covid related resources, Nepal's Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali held a virtual meeting with heads of Nepali diplomatic missions based in select 13 capital cities abroad, according to Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Gyawali, while informing the ambassadors about the most recent initiatives taken within the country to address the ongoing crisis of the Covid 19 pandemic, received updates from the respective ambassadors on the efforts made for the mobilization of international cooperation of vaccines, oxygen related items, medicines and other health related supplies.

Minister Gywali instructed the embassies to maximize efforts towards that direction and to explore further avenues of support at the bilateral and multilateral levels as well as through philanthropic organizations, private sector and Nepali diaspora.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 15 : Almost three days after several posters criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi came up in several parts of the national capital, the Delhi Police has arrested over a dozen people in connection with the cases it registered, sources said on Saturday.

The matter relates to black colour posters criticising the Prime Minister for exporting the Covid-19 vaccines to other countries instead of fulfilling the requirements of the people of the country.

The posters were found in several areas of Delhi like Shahdara, Rohini, Rithala, Dwarka and several others.

Budh Vihar ward councillor Gayatri Garg told IANS, "On May 12, we got the information that several posters have been stuck in areas of Budh Vihar, Vijay Vihar and others. Following the information, I along with my husband and several other members got those removed on May 13." A Delhi Police source said that the police has registered over 17 FIRs in connection with the posters against the Prime Minister.

The source said that police has registered two FIRs in Central Delhi and arrested four people, two FIRS have been registered in Rohini and two people arrested, one FIR in East Delhi and four people have been arrested, one FIR in Dwarka and two people have been arrested, one FIR in North East Delhi and three people have been arrested and on the basis of an FIR in Shahdara one person has been arrested.

The source said that the police has also obtained CCTV footage from Shahdara area where people were seen putting up the posters.

The source said that the police is interrogating the person to identify other people.

The source further said that it has also come to notice that for sticking three posters, the people were paid Rs 500 in Shahdara area.

The source said that the police is investigating if there is any involvement of any political party behind the posters in the city.

The posters in several areas of the city came after the Delhi government red flagged the central government over the shortage of Covid vaccines in the city.

Several states across the country have complained of vaccine shortage to the central government.

Several opposition parties have also criticised the Central government for not ordering the vaccines for the people of the country and instead exporting them to other countries.

The national capital has been one of the worst-hit territories in the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic last month with many people struggling to get hospital beds, oxygen cylinders and medicines.

The city also witnessed horrific scenes from hospitals and cremation sites with many deaths due to lack of oxygen supply and people waiting to perform the last rites of their family members.

Meanwhile, the Covid infection numbers have come down in the last few days after thousands of deaths.

India has reported more than 3 lakh infections a day over the past 23 days, overwhelming its healthcare system and leaving many without hospital beds, oxygen and adequate treatment across the country.

The Modi government has faced severe criticism for its move to deal with bad publicity because of the mis-steps rather than solving the crisis.

Even several governments in states like Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh have been accused of trying to hide their casualties as hundreds of bodies have been seen floating in rivers and buried in the sand by the banks.

(Anand Singh can be contacted at anand.s@ians.in)

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
New Delhi, May 15 : The Delhi government on Saturday said that the national capital has received 1,73,760 more doses of Covishield vaccine for those aged above 45 and healthcare workers, which would last for six more days, but it has completely run out of Covaxin for the 18-44 age group.

However, the Covaxin stock for those aged above 45 is only left for three days, while the Covishield for the 18-44 age group is left for eight more days.

"The total doses administered remained at 43,67,243 in Delhi until now and of these, 10,08,620 have been fully vaccinated with both the doses, " said AAP leader Atishi.

"Like always, we are hoping that the Centre will supply a sufficient stock of vaccines at the earliest to Delhi, post resolving the constraints of vaccine supply.

Fortunately, the Covid cases have been declining. However, it does not mean that the cases cannot increase now, or an impending third wave may not arrive in Delhi. We all are aware of the fact that Delhi has been one of the most severely affected states in the pandemic and is still grappling with the virus.

It is my humble appeal to the Centre to supply sufficient vaccines, especially for those between 18-44 age group," she added.
Chennai, May 15 : Due to the lockdown, recovered Covid patients are finding it tough to reach their homes, as the call taxis and auto rickshaws are not plying on the streets citing police threat, said the son of a recovered patient.

"My mother, who had tested positive for Covid-19, was discharged today (Saturday). But call taxis and auto rickshaws were not accepting rides citing police harassment. They said police were levying heavy fines," Narayanan Anand, a private sector employee, told IANS.

According to him, his booking with an Ola cab got cancelled four times, while the same happened with Uber twice.

Finally he managed to get hold of an ambulance service provider who charged about Rs 1,000 per km which came to Rs 3,600 in his case.

The government as part of its lockdown restrictions had clearly said that call taxis and auto rickshaws are permitted if the passengers had to go to hospitals.

"The police should penalise the passengers who travel without any emergency and not the drivers so that the genuine travellers are not affected," Anand added.

His entire family was infected by Covid-19. While his mother was admitted to a hospital, the others, including Anand, were quarantined at home.

"The government appointed contact person to coordinate to meet our needs is not reachable," he added.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Mumbai, May 15 : Salman Khan's Eid 2021 release "Radhe" may have missed its big screen date with most of India, but the film is doing brisk business in parts of the overseas market, particularly the Gulf territory, since its release on Thursday.

"Radhe" collected around $6,00,000 on Friday, its second day of release, after taking home around $6,75,000 abroad on Thursday. This takes the cumulative two-day collection of the film to around $12,75,000, reports boxofficeindia.com.

In the Gulf market, where the film has done its best theatrical business, the film collected $4,75,000 on Thursday and around $4,00,000 on Friday. The post-Eid weekend is expected to take the film's collection past $1 million in the Gulf market, the website added.

In the Gulf territory, the film has released across UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain.

"Radhe" is an action drama where Salman co-stars with Disha Patani, Randeep Hooda and Jackie Shroff. The film is directed by Prabhudeva. This is Salman's third film with Prabhudeva after "Wanted" (2009) and "Dabangg 3" (2019). "Radhe" is based on the 2017 Korean action thriller "The Outlaws".
Thiruvananthapuram, May 15 : A week after the enforcement of lockdown in Kerala, there seems to be little respite when it comes to fresh Covid cases in the southern state, as Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said that 32,680 people turned positive out of the 1,22,628 samples tested in the past 24 hours.

The test positivity rate in state continues to hover in the range of 26 per cent.

Vijayan said the number of active cases in Kerala stood at 4,45,334, while 29,442 were cured of the disease in the last 24 hours, taking the state's total number of recoveries to 16,66,232.

Meanwhile, 96 persons succumbed to the virus in the state in this period, mounting Kerala's overall Covid death toll to 6,339.

Across the state, 10,31,271 people are under observation, including 37,607 at various hospitals.

"From Sunday midnight, four districts which have high number of cases -- Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Malappuram -- will come under triple lockdown and there will be no leniency shown to those flouting the rules," said Vijayan, adding that 10,000 additional police personnel will be put on duty for this.

Vijayan also said that a few cases of black fungus (a rare type of infection in Covid patients) have been reported in the state and the medical professionals are looking into it.

The day also saw around 10,000 cases being registered against people for breaking Covid protocols, besides the collection of fines to the tune of Rs 26 lakh.

The Chief Minister cautioned that with the state receiving heavy rains on account of the predicted cyclonic storm Tauktae, more rains can be expected in the coming day also.

"At present, 68 relief camps are housing 1,934 people. If the authorities decide to move more people from the affected areas, all should cooperate. No one needs to worry, as all Covid protocols will be strictly adhered to in these camps," said Vijayan.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Bengaluru, May 15 : Karnataka Revenue Minister R. Ashoka on Saturday said that in view of cyclone Tauktae eight relief camps have been set up in three coastal districts that can accommodate around 10,000 people, where food and other basic amenities will be made available to them.

Ashoka who had chaired the meeting along with Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai, the state disaster management team and officials, said: "District administrations and police departments are on alert. National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams are also on alert ad will come to the rescue of people." The Minister, who is also Vice-Chairman of Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority, said that a total of about Rs 95 crore is reserved with the district administrations for utilisation to mitigate the situation arising out of the cyclone Tauktae and come to the rescue of people in need.

"Udupi has Rs 23 crore, Uttara Kannada Rs 60 crore and Dakshin Kannada Rs 12 crore," he added.

While Karnataka's Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai said that the cyclone Tauktae is likely to gain intensity by Saturday evening or night in the coastal areas, as a result the three coastal districts - Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Uttara Kannada will likely receive heavy rains.

He said that heavy rains are expected in coastal and neighbouring four to five districts like Chikkamagaluru, Hassan, Shivamogga, Kodagu and the effect of this cyclone is expected to be there till May 18.

The Home Minister also added that all the necessary equipment that were procured recently, boats and vehicles have been deployed to tackle the situation.

"Around 1,000 trained personnel from fire force, police, coastal police, home guards, SDRF have been deployed in the three coastal districts and they will work with coordination in rescue and relief operations.

A total of 434 men are there under SDRF, Bengaluru and Kalaburagi teams are being sent to Udupi and Mangaluru," he added.

Both the Ministers underlined that if the situation warrants, the state has drawn-up elaborate plans to rope in the services of ex-servicemen for rescue operations.

Bommai said that there was need for extra precautionary measures as if the adjoining areas of western ghat region receives heavy to extreme rainfall then there is all possibility of landslides.

"For the last two years, coffee plantation districts - Kodagu and Chikkamagluru have witnesses landslides, therefore we have requested two more additional teams of NDRF to handle these kind of eventualities," he added.
Amaravati, May 15 : The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Saturday struck down a bail petition filed by YSRCP MP Raghu Ramakrishna Raju.

The Andhra Pradesh CID had arrested the disgruntled YSRCP MP from the Narsapur Lok Sabha constituency from his residence in Hyderabad on Friday. He was taken to Guntur for questioning.

Official sources said that through his speeches, Raju was reportedly indulging in a systematic and schematic effort to cause tensions among the communities, besides attacking various government dignitaries in a way that could cause loss of faith in the government which they represent.

After hearing the matter, the high court instructed Raju to approach the sessions court for bail. Instructing the CID officials to produce the MP in a CID court, the high court told Raju's counsel that it should move to the lower courts before approaching it.

The MP was represented by senior lawyer Adinarayana Rao, who argued that arresting the MP without conducting preliminary investigation was wrong. However, the court said that they should first approach the lower court.

The MP had moved a petition in the high court seeking bail on Friday night.

Raju has been at loggerheads with party chief and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy for some time now.
New York, May 15 : Neera Tanden, whose appointment to a cabinet post was blocked in the senate, has been named a senior adviser to President Joe Biden, according to a Democratic Party leader.

While the White House has not publicly announced the appointment, a semi-official confirmation came from senior party leader John Podesta who said in a statement on Friday, "Neera's intellect, tenacity, and political savvy will be an asset to the Biden administration as she assumes a new role as Senior Advisor to the President." Tanden withdrew herself from consideration for the cabinet-level post of the director of the Office of Management and Budget in March after senators from both parties opposed her nomination because of her insulting tweets about Democratic and Republican leaders and her volatile nature.

Unlike cabinet appointments and senior government jobs, the position of a presidential adviser does not require senate approval.

Had she been approved by the senate, she would have been the second Indian American to serve on the US cabinet. The first was Nikki Haley, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump as the US permanent representative to the United Nations with a cabinet rank.

OMB Director is a powerful post with oversight of budget allocations and personnel matters for all departments.

Politico reported that Tanden will be in charge of the review of the US Digital Service, which deals with ensuring that government information technology is easily accessible and secure, a job that assumes importance because of the recent government and corporate security breaches and ransomware attacks on the infrastructure.

She will also be responsible for Obamacare, the universal health insurance programme introduced by Obama that is being challenged before a conservative-dominated Supreme Court.

Podesta, who has been a counsellor to former President Barack Obama and worked with Biden, is the founder of the Centre for American Progress, a think tank, where Tanden was the president.

He said, "Neera's intellect, tenacity, and political savvy will be an asset to the Biden administration as she assumes a new role as senior adviser to the President." When Biden withdrew her nomination, he promised her another position, saying, "I look forward to having her serve in a role in my Administration. She will bring valuable perspective and insight to our work." Tanden was close to Hillary Clinton, who ran unsuccessfully against Donald Trump for president in 2016, and often launched personal attacks on those like Senator Bernie Sanders, a rival for the Democratic Party nomination, whose support she needed in the Senate.

The final straw was Democratic Party Senator Joe Manchin opposing her while calling her statements "toxic".

A Republican senator, Lisa Murkowski, was Biden's last hope for salvaging the nomination, but Tanden had personally attacked her alleging she was "high" and her stands were "garbage".

Defending Clinton against criticism, Tanden had also physically attacked Sander's campaign manager Faiz Shakir, a Pakistani American, when he had worked for her at the Centre for American Progress. She admitted to The New York Times, "I didn't slug him, I pushed him." (Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in)
Rome, May 15 : In a battle between the two best-ranked teenagers on the WTA singles rankings, No.15 seed Iga Swiatek of Poland ousted No. 35 Coco Gauff of the USA, 7-6(3), 6-3, to book a spot in the Italian Open final.

Iga will take on Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova in the final. The world's ninth-ranked player and 2019 champion moved into her third straight Rome final after overcoming world No.25 Petra Martic of Croatia 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 in the other semi-final match.

Iga, 19, started Saturday with a challenging task ahead of her. Her quarter-final match, against Ukraine's Elina Svitolina, which was postponed due to rain on Friday, had not yet started, and the prospect of a semi-final clash -- had she won -- loomed large in the evening.

The reigning French Open champion, however, passed both tests with flying colours, eliminating two-time champion Elina 6-2, 7-5 in the morning before coming back to ease past Coco in a one-hour and 46-minute tilt.

Karolina, the 2019 champion and 2020 runner-up here, claimed her second straight three-set victory. She saved three match points in her quarter-final clash with Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko as she got her first clay-court victory over world No.25 Petra Martic in their three meetings on the surface.
Kolkata, May 15 : More than 250 Burmese troops have perished in a week of fighting with the Karen ethnic rebels in a considerable setback in an area earmarked for regrouping by the Burmese urban rebel recruits.

The fighting has intensified this month after the Myanmar army launched an offensive against the bases of the Karen National Union (KNU) after receiving information that they were training and arming ethnic Burmese volunteers to raise urban insurgent units.

Hundreds have joined these outfits, among them Burmese beauty queen Htar Htet.

Those killed in the fierce fighting included a colonel and a lieutenant colonel of Tatmadaw, the official name of the armed forces of Myanmar.

The clashes escalated in Hpapun, Shwe Kyin and Thaton districts in Karen and Bago regions after the military wing of the KNU, Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) Brigade 5, seized an outpost near the Salween River in Thi Mu Hta held by the military's 349 Light Infantry Division on March 27.

The KNU Brigade 5 also overran a military border post on the banks of the Salween River in Thaw Le Hta, near the border with Thailand's Mae Hong Song Province, on April 27.

From March 27 to early May, 194 soldiers were killed while another 220 soldiers from Myanmar military were wounded in the clashes.

Nine soldiers from the KNLA were also killed and 10 were injured, a spokesperson for the KNU Brigade 5, Lieutenant Colonel Saw Kler Doh, told IANS.

During this one month, the military launched 27 airstrikes into the KNU Brigade 5 area, fired 47 artillery shells, and there were 407 clashes between the two sides, said Lt. Col. Saw Kler Doh.

Moreover, the Brigade 5 recorded that the military fired 575 artillery shells into local villages and farmlands. The air raid killed 14 civilians, wounded 28 people and destroyed 20 houses and two schools.

Currently, the military has been reinforcing its troops in these areas, according to KNU.

Lt. Col Saw Kler Doh told IANS that the KNLA's attacks are to show support for the newly-formed National Unity Government set up by the elected lawmakers from the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government.

Recently, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated that about 40,000 people have fled their homes in Papun District in Karen State and Shwe Kyin, Kyaukkyi and Nyaunglebin townships in Bago Region, following the coup and military airstrikes in the areas.

An estimated 1,000 refugees - mostly the elderly, sick, women and children - have taken refuge in Thailand.

The army is fighting the rebels of the Kachin Independence Army for a month now but has failed to make much headway.

It is also up against a spirited resistance in the Chin Hills, where armed townspeople are resisting the Tatmadaw's advance into the town of Mindat with hunting rifles.
Guntur, May 16 : YSRCP MP K. Raghu Ramakrishna Raju, who was sent to 14-day remand till May 28 by a CID court here, has alleged that he was beaten by the CID police while in custody. His lawyers have approached the Andhra Pradesh High Court with a habeas corpus petition.

The CID on Saturday produced Raju before the Additional Metropolitan Magistrate after the high court struck down his bail petition earlier in the day.

The high court has also constituted a special division bench to look into the beatings that Raju was allegedly subjected to in CID custody.

Taking note of the injuries on his feet, the court ordered a medical examination at two hospitals - a government hospital and thereafter at a private hospital.

The high court has asked for a report on the injury marks visible on Raju's body. The matter is listed for hearing on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Additional Advocate General Sudhakar Reddy alleged that Raju was misleading the court by making false claims of injuries after the high court turned down his bail petition earlier in the day.

Raju, who represents the YSRCP in the Lok Sabha, was arrested from his home in Hyderabad by the Andhra Pradesh CID on Friday.

Raju, who was slapped with sedition charges, has been in the news for his tirades against YSRCP supremo and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Emy LaCroix, Senior Manager, Writing & Chief Branding Editor "Emy has an eye for success that we truly admire, and think will make a great addition to our team. With her help I can see our written content efforts growing exponentially."

Los Angeles-Based marketing agency GR0 has announced that Emy LaCroix will be its new Senior Manager, Writing & Chief Branding Editor. GR0s innovative SEO-first approach helps brands develop organic SEO so that they can own communications with their audience and rank #1 on Google.

LaCroix has six years of editorial experience at various outlets in the LA area including HollywoodLife, TMZ, and American Media. This expertise has had her leading editorial teams, editing work for style and accuracy, and even reporting on Google Trends and SEO research. With her unique skills and management experience she will be able to help GR0 continue to expand its editorial team and help brands generate compelling content.

Most recently she spent over two years with American Media, where she managed a team of 15 staff members who served three brands by conducting research and reporting. LaCroix helped to refine these stories stylistically and grammatically, and also optimized their SEO to help generate engagement and traffic, which she monitored closely.

Emy has an eye for success that we truly admire, and think will make a great addition to our team. With her help I can see our written content efforts growing exponentially, said Kevin Miller, Co-Founder and CEO of GR0. She is a one-of-a-kind writer with a deep understanding of what clients in LA search for and how to best deliver it to them; were glad to have her.

Working with GR0 will give me the agency to excel that I havent had in prior positions, and Im grateful for their trust and faith in me, said LaCroix. I am very excited to start work and help the companys impressive growth continue to trend upward!

LaCroix is a graduate of Emerson College, where she earned a B.S. in Journalism in 2014; she also acted as an on-campus reporter and a member of the Fashion Society.

About GR0:

GR0 is a digital marketing agency focused exclusively on igniting organic growth for direct-to-consumer startups and helping brands rank #1 on Google. GR0 empowers clients to build powerful online brands that deliver incredible value and joy to consumers.

GR0 was co-founded by SEO & marketing experts and long-time best friends Jonathan Zacharias and Kevin Miller, who both have a wealth of online marketing and advertising experience with top D2C and B2B brands.

For more information about GR0 and read reviews related to client and employee feedback, please visit the GR0 Glassdoor, Clutch or Crunchbase.


We commend Health Advocates Network for using certification to strengthen its program structure and management framework, as well as to enhance its staff recruitment and development processes.

Health Advocates Network, Inc. has earned The Joint Commissions Gold Seal of Approval for Health Care Staffing Services Certification by demonstrating continuous compliance with its performance standards. The Gold Seal is a symbol of quality that reflects a health care staffing organizations commitment to providing qualified staff for safe and quality patient care.

Joint Commission standards are developed in consultation with health care experts and providers, measurement experts and patients. Health Care Staffing Services Certification demonstrates Health Advocates Networks efforts to address how qualifications and competencies of staff are determined, placement of staff and how their performance is monitored.

Health Care Staffing Services Certification recognizes health care staffing firms committed to fostering continuous quality improvement in patient safety and quality of care, said Mark Pelletier, RN, MS, chief operating officer, Accreditation and Certification Operations, and chief nursing executive, The Joint Commission. We commend Health Advocates Network for using certification to strengthen its program structure and management framework, as well as to enhance its staff recruitment and development processes.

Health Advocates Network recruits and retains medical professionals to supplement the staffing needs of healthcare facilities nationwide. The company places RNs, LPNs, LVNs, CNAs, and allied and advanced practice healthcare professionals in a variety of facility shifts, including travel, contract, temp-to-perm, and per diem. Health Advocates Network is dedicated to providing quality care and committed to staffing devoted healthcare professionals in a variety of settings, while maintaining its high standard of service.

Our foundation, from the very beginning, has been grounded in a commitment to quality, said Lynne Mathews, RN, Chief Operating Officer at Health Advocates Network. The entire team is honored to have our commitment recognized by achieving The Joint Commissions Gold Seal of Approval for Health Care Staffing Services Certification.

According to The Joint Commission, its Health Care Staffing Services Certification program focuses on a company's ability to provide competent staffing services and evaluates performance, continuing education and training, placement criteria, and other areas.

A critical aspect of The Joint Commission's philosophy is performance measurement and improvement. The Joint Commission expects staffing firms to continuously monitor key quality indicators and take steps to strive for improvement. This philosophy fits directly into Health Advocates Network's core value of continuous improvement.

About The Joint Commission

An independent, not-for-profit organization, The Joint Commission accredits and certifies health care organizations and programs in the United States. Joint Commission accreditation and certification is recognized nationwide as a symbol of quality that reflects an organization's commitment to meeting critical performance standards. More information is available at: http://www.jointcommission.org/.

About Health Advocates Network

Founded in January 2020, a provider of quality staffing solutions to healthcare systems nationwide, Health Advocates Network is led by experienced and respected health care staffing executives driven to propel the organization in becoming one of the most successful staffing companies in the nation. The company is built on a foundation of excellence, guided by its core values of quality and career advocacy. Health Advocates Network is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. For more information, visit http://www.hanstaff.com.


The Arlington Toyota dealership also has two different programs that offer rebates to eligible parties.

Arlington Toyotathe Toyota dealership based in Palatine, Illinoisis currently offering special leasing offers on select new Toyota models. The dealership encourages interested parties to act quickly as these deals are only available for a limited time.

Arlington Toyota has multiple leasing specials on select new Toyota models. The 2021 Toyota RAV4 LE can be leased for $333 per month for up to 36 months with $0 due at signing. The 2021 Toyota Venza LE can be leased for $343 per month for up to 36 months with $0 due at signing. The 2021 Toyota Highlander LE can be leased for $442 per month for up to 36 months with $0 due at signing. The above specials are valid through June 1.

The Arlington Toyota dealership also has two different programs that offer rebates to eligible parties. The first is the $500 Toyota Military Rebate, which is available to eligible U.S. military personnel, household members of eligible U.S. military personnel, U.S. military retirees and U.S. military veterans (within two years of discharge). The second is the $500 College Grad Rebate. It is available to those with proof of graduation within the next 6 months or the past 2 calendar years, as well as proof current employment.

Those interested in taking advantage of these specials can view the entire Arlington Toyota inventory online at toyotaarlington.com. Those with questions about the specials or rebates can call the dealership at 844-474-5287. Arlington Toyota is open Monday through Saturday every week and is located at 2095 N. Rand Road, Palatine.
Law Office of Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP For more information about the lawsuit against Human Bees, Inc. call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

The San Francisco employment law attorneys at Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP, filed a lawsuit against Human Bees, Inc., alleging the company violated California Labor Code. The lawsuit against Human Bees, Inc., is currently pending in the San Joaquin County Superior Court, Case No. STK-CV-UOE-2021-2678. To read a copy of the Complaint, please click here.

According to the lawsuit filed, Human Bees, 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 provide wages when due, and (f) violated the Private Attorneys General Act, 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 2698 and the applicable Wage Order(s), and thereby gives rise to civil penalties as a result of such alleged conduct.

The complaint further alleges Human Bees, 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 by PLAINTIFF and other CALIFORNIA CLASS Members. As a result of DEFENDANTs intentional 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.

For more information about the lawsuit against Human Bees, Inc., 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.

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Law Office of Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP For more information about the lawsuit against Headlands Ventures, LLC, 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 lawsuit against Headlands Ventures, LLC, alleging the company violated California Labor Code. The lawsuit against Headlands Ventures, LLC is currently pending in the Sacramento County Superior Court, Case No. 37-2021-00297290. To read a copy of the Complaint, please click here.

The lawsuit filed against Headlands Ventures, LLC alleges PLAINTIFF and other CALIFORNIA CLASS Members were from time to time unable to take thirty (30) minute off-duty meal breaks and were not fully relieved of duty for their meal periods. California labor laws require an employer to provide an employee required to perform work for more than five (5) hours during a shift with, a thirty (30) minute uninterrupted meal break prior to the end of the employee's fifth (5th) hour of work.

Cal. Lab. Code  226 states that employers must provide each employee "with an accurate itemized wage statement in writing showing, among other things, gross wages earned..." Defendant, allegedly, failed to provide it's employees with wage statements that identified the correct gross and net wages earned, the applicable number of hours worked and rates of pay.

For more information about the lawsuit against Headlands Ventures, LLC, 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.

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Tide Rock Holdings (Tide Rock), a growth-oriented holding company of diverse, economically resilient B2B businesses, has raised $100 million. Tide Rock will use this capital to continue acquiring profitable lower middle market businesses. This fundraising round included institutional investors, investment advisors, and $1B+ family offices.

Tide Rock aims to raise additional capital later this year on the back of this successful raise, its 25th consecutive quarter of equal or greater distributions to investors, recent successful acquisitions, and a rapidly growing deal pipeline.

Ryan Peddycord, CEO of Tide Rock Holdings, is energized by the milestone of raising more than $100 million. We have strong momentum right now. We have our largest and best quality deal flow pipeline to date, as well as a robust investor pipeline to kick off the next round of fundraising. We are on track for 2021 to be our best year so far.

After a great start in the first quarter of 2021, Tide Rock expects to see significant EBITDA growth through the second half of the year.

We are happy that our unique and successful investment model resonates with investors and are excited to have their support as we continue growing Tide Rock and its holdings. Weve invested in building our Growth Team to continue driving top and bottom-line growth, operational excellence, and leadership development in our current and future holdings, said Brooks Kincaid, President of Tide Rock Holdings.

With new capital and a robust investor pipeline, Tide Rock is actively looking for manufacturing, distribution, and business services companies to add to its portfolio.

To learn more about Tide Rock Holdings, please visit http://www.tiderockholdings.com.
The Seminary Co-op, founded by five students in 1961 in the Chicago Theological Seminarys basement as a member-owned cooperative, has become a cultural institution with an impact extending far beyond the Windy City. Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, the Seminary Co-op now comprises two bookstores. The flagship location is the more erudite yet quirky of the two, specializing in scholarly tomes and small and university press titles. 57th Street Books, which opened in 1983 and is two blocks away, provides a more general selection of books for adults and children.

Membership in the Seminary Co-op is free, and members receive 10% discounts on purchases. The approximately 100,000 members represent a broad cross-section of readers and writers from both near and far, ranging from undergrads at the nearby University of Chicago to such luminaries as Barack and Michelle Obama, who still own a home less than a mile from the stores. Michelle launched the promotion for her 2019 memoir, Becoming, at the Seminary Co-op. That book signing for 500 customers was the only event on the tour that took place inside a bookstore rather than at a large venue.

The Seminary Co-op prides itself on its 100,000-title inventory of books, many of which rarely get shelf space elsewhere, including older titles, and soon-to-be classics. Thats why University Press Sales Associates rep Lanora Jennings describes browsing in the flagship store, with its labyrinthine aisles and creaky hardwood floors, as a singular, almost sacrosanct, experience. It is about serendipity and surprise. You are compelled to wander. Each twist and turn reveals a book that instantly intrigues you. You rediscover books youd forgotten. You come across books you didnt know existed, but you absolutely cant live without.

Emphasizing the stores more metaphysical treasures, and its recent shift to not-for-profit status, Princeton University Press director Christie Henry notes, There is a courage that lines the shelves of this store, and the hearts and minds of its staff, like no other I have encountered in 30 years of nonprofit publishing. As it has navigated a rebirth of sorts, it has also become a catalyst of inclusivity on Chicagos South Side. [Director] Jeff Deutsch is a steadfast, compassionate, and creative leader, and has inspired his team, as well as many of us fortunate to be in his universe of the book.

Henry isnt the only observer who credits Deutsch with revitalizing the Seminary Co-op since he became director in 2014. Under his guidance, the stores ramped up their programming and partnered with local cultural institutions, such as the American Writers Museum and the University of Chicago, to present speakers and panels. The 57th Street stores childrens section was enlarged to 30% of its total inventory, with an eye toward diversity to better serve the areas youngest residents. As a result, 57th Street won the prestigious Womens National Book Associations 2019 Pannell Award for childrens bookselling in the general bookstore category.

In 2017, Seminary Co-op overhauled its membership program so that members would need to purchase stock in the business in order to vote. Two years later, it further tweaked its business model, becoming one of the few not-for-profit bookstores in the country. We shifted from a retailing model to a not-for-profit model more in line with cultural and art institutions, Deutsch explains. We use multiple streams of revenue to achieve our mission of creating a world-class browsing experience.

The Seminary Co-ops commitment to operating without regard to fluctuations in the marketplace has been tested during the pandemic, but it has survived by serving its communitys needs while protecting its staff. Though 2020 revenues plummeted by 50% from the previous year, none of the stores 4045 employees, a mix of full-time and part-time, have been laid off. This is in part due to the generosity of those who donated $250,000 to a GoFundMe campaign launched in March 2020.

Both stores have been closed to customer traffic since the beginning of the pandemic; 172 scheduled events were also canceled. Since then, the browsing experience has been replicated to some degree with digital catalogs, and there have been more than 150 virtual events. For the time being, Deutsch explains, the two stores have morphed into an online order fulfillment warehouse, and not a single employee is known to have contracted Covid-19.

During the pandemic, online sales at Seminary Co-op jumped 524%, but it was not enough to offset the loss of in-store sales. The increase was propelled, no doubt, by the stores providing options beyond curbside pickup and mail order: they hand-deliver books to homes in five South Side zip codes.

Where you would previously look for Wittgenstein or Weil, Deutsch notes, youll find our shipping team and a cart full of neatly packed orders bound for either the post office or customer doorsteps.

Return to the main feature.
The power of literature to address the history of the oppression of Indigenous peoples in North America and chart their futures has never been more important. As the U.S. experiences a wave of popular concern about social justice issues, publishers are really just beginning to embrace a growing number of works on such topics as ancestral domains and land rights of Indigenous communities; preservation of their languages, traditions, rituals, and cultural knowledge; and, just as important, the reimagining of their lives through the storytelling of contemporary Indigenous authors.

PW contacted a variety of publishers to find out how their programs serve the needs of Indigenous readers and their communities. We spoke with Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm, publisher and managing editor of Kegedonce Press; Rosemary Brosnan, vice president of editorial at Heartdrum; Catherine Cocks, assistant director and editor-in-chief of Michigan State University Press; Kathie Hanson, managing editor of 7th Generation; Carol Hinz, associate publisher of Millbrook Press; David Levithan, v-p, publisher and editorial director at Scholastic Press; Tyler Mitchell, editor at Salina Bookshelf; Joe Monti, editorial director at Saga Press; Shannon Pennefeather, managing editor of Minnesota Historical Society Press; Kirsten Phillips, director of marketing at HighWater Press; Ann Regan, editor-in-chief of Minnesota Historical Society Press; Olivia Valcarce, associate editor at Scholastic Press; and Margie Wolfe, publisher and president of Second Story Press.

New and forthcoming titles on Indigenous peoples.

Does your program have a history of publishing works on the history and culture of Indigenous peoples?

Phillips: Portage & Main Press has a long history of publishing works by Indigenous authors. It began with the trailblazing title In Search of April Raintree, published more than 25 years ago. This story and its school edition, April Raintree, has inspired generations of readers across Canada and is still appearing on must-read lists today. Recognizing the need for more stories by Indigenous authors, PMP created the HighWater Press imprint in 2009.

Brosnan: HarperCollinss Heartdrum imprint, which was cofounded by distinguished author and teacher Cynthia Leitich Smithwho is a member of the Muscogee Creek Nationand me, launched this January, so we are a new imprint. However, I have published works by Native authors for many years, including those of Cynthia herself. At Heartdrum, we publish in all genres for children and young adults, including picture books, chapter books, fiction for middle graders and young adults, graphic novels, and nonfiction.

Akiwenzie-Damm: Kegedonce Press is a dedicated Indigenous publisher, one of only a handful in Canada. We have been publishing works by Indigenous authors since 1993. We also work with Indigenous editors, artists, illustrators, and photographers in the production of our titles.

Hanson: Book Publishing Company is an independent publisher and Native Voices is its first Native imprint. The imprint, established in 1978, has titles on art, history and culture. In 2007, we added the 7th Generation imprint to publish young adult titles, all with Native American authors. We offer titles on a variety of American Indian nations and First Nations in Canada.

Mitchell: Salina Bookshelf was founded in 1994 with the goal of illuminating Indigenous voices and storytelling in the Southwest. As an independent publisher of multicultural materials, our catalog includes textbooks, childrens picture books, childrens chapter books, informational texts, reference books, audiobooks, and language learning materials, all depicting Navajo and Hopi culture. We specialize in dual-language books in Navajo/English and Hopi/English.

Cocks: Michigan State University Press has been publishing scholarly and creative works by and about Native peoples since the late 1990s. This is an important commitment on our part to provide a forum for Native writers, scholars, and activists.

Hinz: On the school and library side, weve published a number of series about specific tribal nations, as well as grouping Native nations together by U.S. region, tying in with the elementary curriculum. On the trade side, we published the picture book Sacagawea by Lise Erdrich, illustrated by Julia Buffalohead, in 2003, and it remains in print to this day. More recently, we published the anthology Thanku: Poems of Gratitude, edited by Miranda Paul and illustrated by Marlena Myles, who is Spirit Lake Dakota/Mohegan/Muscogee Creek. The book includes Indigenous authors Kimberly Blaeser, Joseph Bruchac, Carole Lindstrom, Cynthia Leitich Smith, and Traci Sorell.

Monti: Id like to think that Saga Press [an imprint of Simon & Schuster] has been at the vanguard of the recent growth in Indigenous speculative fiction. We had the great pleasure of publishing Rebecca Roanhorses debut novel, Trail of Lightning, in 2018. She has since been awarded nearly every major award in the field, continuing with her latest fantasy, Black Sun. We also published Stephen Graham Joness horror novel, The Only Good Indians, which was just awarded the Ray Bradbury Prize from the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes

Regan: The Minnesota Historical Society started publishing books about the Indigenous peoples of this region in the 1850s. For over a century, these books promoted and reflected colonialist viewpoints. In the 1970s, we began to shift, and today most of our Indigenous titles are written by Ojibwe and Dakota people.

Wolfe: Second Story Press has always specialized in titles that focus on women and diverse peoples, human rights and social justice, so in 2007 we started an Indigenous series for young peopleGreat Athletes from Our First Nations, and Great Women from our First Nations. Since then, weve expanded outside of this series to publish picture books, a baby book, a middle grade series, and stand-alone novels.

Levithan: Scholastic has a long history of publishing Indigenous authors and books with Indigenous subject matter, as well as carrying other publishers work in our school channels. That said, we recognize that we need to have a significant commitment to bringing new voices and new perspectives onto our list. Looking to the 20222023 lists, just over 3% of the fiction and memoir weve acquired is by Indigenous creators, and we are certainly looking to increase this percentage before those lists are finalized.

What is your acquisitions strategy?

Cocks: Currently, our acquisitions strategy focuses on the history, language, and culture of the Anishinaabe peopleswhich include the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi peoplesof the Great Lakes region. We also publish scholarly works in philosophy, environmental studies, and literary studies that draw on and examine a wide range of Indigenous intellectual and political traditions.

Akiwenzie-Damm: Kegedonce Press solicits works by First Nations, Inuit, and Metis creators from all regions in Canada. We support the works of emerging authors. The majority of our works have been poetry collections, but we have also published several short story collections and novels, nonfiction, childrens picture and short story books, and in 2020 produced our first graphic novel. Many of our books include sections in Indigenous languages in support of language preservation and education.

Phillips: Staying true to the educational roots of Portage & Main Press, HighWater Press exclusively publishes books written by Indigenous authors, focusing on stories that could be used by teachers and students. Our books cover a variety of topics and formats, including historical fiction, contemporary fiction, speculative fiction, adult nonfiction, childrens picture books, and graphic novels.

Brosnan: Our mission is to publish contemporary stories that center Native and First Nations young people, by Native and First Nations writers and illustrators who are from what are now the United States and Canada. We think of the characters in these books as being contemporary Native heroes. We want our books to showcase the Native and First Nations kids who live in our current world.

Regan: We focus on the Dakota and Ojibwe communitiesthe people living in Minnesota at the time of contactwith an additional interest in the Ho-Chunk, who lived here briefly. This encompasses books on history, activism, traditional and contemporary culture, and language, including childrens picture books as well as books for the adult trade and academic markets.

Mitchell: We are based in Flagstaff, Ariz. Flagstaff is a border town to many Indigenous communities, and most of our stories are about Dine/Navajo people. With a broad range of titles for young readers, many of our writers and illustrators are Dine. We want to provide resources to help Dine people learn their culture and language at any age.

Levithan: Right now, we are very author-driven: finding Indigenous authors and empowering them to tell whatever stories they want to tell. Our recent acquisitions cover a gamut of genres: an intense queer YA love story, a YA that mixes an exploration of grief with both metaphysics and legend, a middle grade fantasy, a memoir, and a middle grade about a girl and a hedgehog. We also have a range of Indigenous communities being depicted, from ones that are U.S.-based to the Aboriginal communities in Australia.

Wolfe: More now we are publishing #OwnVoices and look for stories that directly reflect the contributions, history, experiences, and injustices confronting Indigenous communities. At the same time we want to see Indigenous primary characters in books not necessarily focused on an Indigenous theme or issue. For instance, we have the Mighty Muskrats series, which features four cousins who live at the Windy Lake First Nation and solve mysteries in the tradition of the Hardy Boys.

What principles and goals guide your acquisition of Indigenous titles for young readers?

Phillips: Portage & Main Press seeks to publish good stories that children can see themselves within, as well as stories that contribute to larger conversations. We acquire #OwnVoices stories that will make a lasting impact, as well as stories and perspectives that may not have been published in the past. We also look for titles that fill a need for teachers and students, particularly in elementary and middle schools.

Mitchell: We prefer #OwnVoices stories written by Dine who have a lived experience of the lifestyle they portray. By doing so, we avoid stereotypes and tropes that can be seen as a misrepresentation of an entire peoples. We also want young non-Dine readers to become aware of the cultures history and respectful and welcoming of a diverse community.

Hanson: The goal of our Native Trailblazer Series of biographies of Indigenous people is to give students a look at contemporary Native people and the work they are doing that adds to the fabric of our country. The individuals in the books provide positive role models. The goal of the 23 novels in our Pathfinders collection is to provide teenage reading material, written at a low reading level, with plots Native students can relate to, and Native characters they can identify with.

Pennefeather: We always pair Native-told stories with Native artists for illustrationand have heard from some artists that the assignments have helped deepen their knowledge of and appreciation for these vibrant living traditions.

Brosnan: All authors, illustrators, and jacket artists for our fiction are Indigenous. Native educators write our educator guides. Native voice actors narrate our audiobooks. We publish debut authors and illustrators as well as seasoned contributors who have published before.

Hinz: I look for books by #OwnVoices authors whose work addresses curricular themes in ways that will support educators looking to add to their library or classroom collections and replace outdated, inaccurate material.

Akiwenzie-Damm: As with all our works, we look for submissions that honor Indigenous voices and culture, avoid stereotypical representations of Indigenous peoples, and tell a good story. We look for titles that will allow Indigenous children and youth to see themselves and their cultures represented positively, and to allow non-Indigenous children and youth to learn about Indigenous peoples in their communities.

Wolfe: Our preference always is to marry important content with compelling storytelling. At the same time, it is important that Indigenous readers see themselves not as secondary or tertiary characters but as protagonists that drive the story.

What new topics have you noticed emerging in books about Indigenous communitiesand what are your most successful titles?

Wolfe: Almost everything is new. Many of us grew up on cowboy and Indian stories with dreadful stereotypes, and only in recent years have most of us welcomed Indigenous voices and their understanding of theirand all of ourworlds. Indigenous kids have primarily and historically read about themselves as the bad guys or the ones who need to be led.

Today, we are hearing own voices tell us about their histories, heroines and heroes, struggles, and contributions, and so hopefully taking us all toward a more inclusive society. Some of our most popular and acclaimed titles are The Case of Windy Lake and The Case of the Missing Aunties, both by Michael Hutchinson, and The Train by Jodie Callaghan, illustrated by Georgia Lesley.

Akiwenzie-Damm: Among recent submissions to Kegedonce Press, we have noticed more focus on two-spirit issues and identities, an emphasis on language education and preservation, and on survivance and healing intergenerational trauma. In terms of mainstream success, were proud that Smokii Sumacs poetry collection You Are Enough won the 2019 Indigenous Voices Award in Published Poetry in English.

Our more recent bestseller is The Trail of Nenaboozhoo by Isaac Murdoch, a collection of sacred Anishinaabe creation stories, most of which appear in English and Anishinaabemowin. We are especially excited about Ghost Lake, a short story collection by Nathan Niigan Noodin Adler that reimagines the horror genre from an Indigenous perspective.

Cocks: A key emerging theme is the effort to address climate change by challenging the inimical effects of Western ways of thinking on our relationships with the more-than-human world. Brian Burkharts Indigenizing Philosophy Through the Land is a good example. Another key theme is the reassertion on the global activism of Indigenous nations, as in Famine Pots: The Choctaw-Irish Gift Exchange, 1847Present, edited by LeAnne Howe and Padraig Kirwan. This book took on added relevance during the pandemic, as Irish people donated generously to the Navajo and other Native Nations severely affected by Covid-19 in memory of the Choctaw peoples generosity during the Potato Famine.

Hinz: While in the past most picture books about Indigenous people would be biographies about well-known historical figureslike Sacagawea, Sequoyah, or Sitting Bullwere now seeing books that show Indigenous people in contemporary settings, from We Are Water Protectors to Fry Bread to We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga. Sacagawea by Lise Erdrich, illustrated by Julia Buffalohead, which has been in print for nearly 18 years, is certainly very successful. Were also seeing strong interest in our more recent releases Thanku: Poems of Gratitude, edited by Miranda Paul and illustrated by Marlena Myles, and Classified: The Secret Career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee Aerospace Engineer by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Natasha Donovan.

Regan: Our authors are showing that Ojibwe and Dakota people are still living here, still passing on living cultures, and still recognizable to their ancestors, as author Anton Treuer puts it. In partnership with the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, were publishing a series of monolingual books for Ojibwe language learners. Indigenous authors are working to decolonize the history we live by: using historical sources in new ways, emphasizing oral history, bringing family stories into the telling of history, writing for members of the Native community. Top sellers include Anton Treuers Everything You Wanted to Know About Indians but Were Afraid to Ask and a bilingual Ojibwe/English picture book, Bowwow Powwow by Brenda Child, illustrated by Jonathan Thunderboth of whom are Red Lake Ojibwe.

Monti: Sadly, whats new is the existence of these works at all. Within the framework of speculative fiction, the lack of representation is only recently being countered by the publication and success of new writers like Cherie Dimaline and Darcie Little Badger, and, in childrens and YA, Cynthia Leitch Smiths Heartdrum imprint.

Mitchell: Weve recently published two childrens picture books by Dine authors: Fall in Line, Holden! by Daniel W. Vandever and Becoming Miss Navajo by Jolyana Begay-Kroupa. Both focus on the contemporary Dine lifestyle. The only information most students learn about Indigenous communities is through history textbooks that often misrepresent specific cultures, languages, and history. This often creates a lens that Indigenous communities are a thing of the past rather than communities of people that are currently living and thriving in todays environment. Its important that we shed light on these amazing individuals and their experiences navigating a modern world.

Levithan: I think the kid lit about Indigenous communities is very much in sync with the larger We Need Diverse Books movement, highlighting that young Indigenous readers need to see themselves on the shelves, front and center, with stories that engage with their lives, history, and lore. Our most successful recent titles have been Eric Gansworths If I Ever Get out of Here and Give Me Some Truth, deeply personal YA novels.

Hanson: Books about Native American women. Childrens books written about Native stories and lessons.

Phillips: We are seeing a resurgence in, and a need for, books that include Indigenous languages. Some of our recent titles have been published with this need in mind, such as Stand Like a Cedar, which features words from Salish and Coast Salish languages, and Ispik kaki Ppeyakoyak/When We Were Alone, which is a bilingual Swampy Cree and English edition.

What have you heard from your publishing partnersagents, distributors, retailersabout demand for titles on Indigenous peoples?

Akiwenzie-Damm: Interest in Indigenous literature has increased noticeably over the last several years. Our distributors at the Literary Press Group and their sales teams consistently affirm that there is a demand for such works. We connect with academics in Indigenous studies departments across the country seeking course texts.

The recently established Indigenous Voices Awards and First Nations Communities Read bring national attention to Indigenous works. With the rise of anti-racism in the public consciousness, there has been more demand from non-Indigenous Canadians to learn more about the history, culture, and languages of First Nations, Inuit, and Metis people in Canada.

Levithan: Weve had nothing but enthusiasm for bringing more Indigenous voices onto our list. And at Scholastic, we of course have the added benefit of the support from our Book Clubs and Book Fairs. This is particularly meaningful because they bring these books directly into schoolswhich is where our authors want them to be.

Phillips: HighWater Press has seen strong sales year over year in both Canada and the U.S. A number of titles have been translated into other languages including German and French. Many of our titles have also been recognized as outstanding by IBBY, In the Margins, AICL, and others. Many of our titles explore social justice issues, but at a level appropriate for children. Because of this, we have seen increased interest from teachers who use HWP titles in the classroom alongside our robust teacher guides.

Regan: Our Native American titles sell well nationally, as well as through Minnesotas strong community of independent bookstores, including Louise Erdrichs Birchbark Books and Native Arts in Minneapolis. Among Minnesota Historical Society Presss bestselling titles overall in 2021 thus far, more than half of our top 50 sellers have Indigenous content, and most of those are by Indigenous authors and/or illustrators.

Monti: The way that Rebecca Roanhorse and Stephen Graham Jones have been embraced by readers and critics alike has been heartening. Publishing had a reckoning in summer 2020 that is still reverberating throughout the BIPOC literary community. Part of that is the realization that works by Indigenous authors are not niche; they are mainstream as hell.

What are your plans for acquiring titles in this category in the future?

Wolfe: We have no plans to stop. It would be wrong to think of these books as a trend. We need and want more of them, because the body of literature that reflects the lives of Indigenous kids is so sparse.

Phillips: We continue to acquire Indigenous authors who write compelling stories, and we are heartened by the number of submissions we receive annually. HighWater Press also sets goals for our acquisitions to fill out our list and address gaps in the larger book publishing market. For example, over the last several years, we have been working to publish more graphic novels written by Indigenous women. We are also looking for more Indigenous artists and author/illustrators, as well as LGBTQ2S+ creators.

Valcarce: Im looking to widen the horizons of what our Indigenous publishing looks like: to represent many viewpoints across the wide range of Indigenous experiences, especially contemporary ones.

Cocks: We plan to continue acquiring in Native American and Indigenous studies, with a focus on Anishinaabe history, culture, and language; on Indigenous climate change and other environmental activism; and on tribal governance and sovereignty.

Hinz: Im looking to publish picture books by Indigenous authors writing about a wide variety of topics, both fiction and nonfiction. In addition to picture books, I edit a lot of middle grade nonfiction, and I think theres a huge opportunity to publish work by Indigenous authors writing about science as well as social studies topics.

Regan: We will continue publishing works by Indigenous authors that show Ojibwe and Dakota life, now and in previous yearsbooks that are accessible to, but not written for, white audiences.

Monti: We have several books under contract with Rebecca Roanhorse and Stephen Graham Jonesin fact, both will have multiple publications in 2022, beginning with the sequel to Black Sun in spring of 2022. Im looking forward to acquiring other Indigenous writers works.

Mitchell: Our submission deadline is in June of every year. We often receive manuscripts year-round, and we are excited to see what new stories Dine writers have to share. We hope to continue our pursuit of elevating Dine storytelling, language, history, and culture.

Akiwenzie-Damm: Kegedonce Press will continue to seek and produce works by Indigenous authors and artists across Canada. We believe in the need for Indigenous contributors to work with a publisher that is aware of the pitfalls of colonialist structures, that honors the unique voices and experiences of Indigenous peoples, and that supports other Indigenous contributors throughout the publishing process. Indigenous literatures are not a category or genre; they are world literatures.
After a less-than-two-month review by regulatory authorities, HarperCollinss purchase of the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt trade division was completed May 10. HC parent company News Corp had announced March 29 that it reached an agreement with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt to buy the division for $349 million in cash.

In comments to PW when the deal was announced, HC CEO Brian Murray said HMH trade would benefit from being part of a trade publisher rather than being a division of a learning technology company, and that he was anxious to see how HC would benefit from HMHs ties to the film, TV, and streaming worlds. He reiterated those thoughts in a memo sent to HC employees announcing the completion of the purchase. Like HarperCollins, HMH has a long and storied history of publishing award-winning authors, the memo read. There are many outstanding titlesfrom childrens classics to contemporary fiction and lifestyle worksthat can benefit from our combined experience and global reach. I am especially pleased to be uniting the J.R.R. Tolkien publishing program under one roof and eager to see how we can work together to strengthen our IP and production projects.

In the letter, Murray acknowledged that many decisions need to be made over the coming months about the integration of HMH, but he outlined a temporary organizational plan that will be in place until a permanent structure is developed. Under the temporary structure, Ed Spade, who took over as head of HMH trade following the departure of Ellen Archer last November, will report to Murray. On the editorial side, Deb Brody, v-p and publisher for HMH Adult Trade, will report to Liate Stehlik, president and publisher of the Morrow Group. Cat Onder, senior v-p and publisher of HMH Books for Young Readers, will report to Suzanne Murphy, president and publisher of HarperCollins Childrens Books.

In other appointments, Scott Simpson, HMHs director of distribution, will report to John Reindl, HCs senior v-p of warehouse and fulfillment for North America. The customer experience, global supply, and inventory planning teams will now report to Larry Nevins, HCs executive v-p of operations. The rest of the HMH trade leadership team will continue to report to Spade.

For the time being, former HMH trade employees can be reached using their HMH contact information. HMHs New York City employees have been working remotely since the pandemic hit last year, and the trade offices on Park Avenue were closed earlier this year. HC will not pick up HMHs Boston leases, though the company may retain Boston-area employees. HC is still in the process of determining what type of return-to-work model it will use for all employees who are now working remotely.

The purchase does not include the use of the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt name, which will remain with the learning technology company, and HC will phase out its use. Currently, HMH trade operates under the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers, Clarion, Etch, Green Light Readers, Joseph James Adams Books, Mariner Books, and Versify imprints. Its 7,000-title backlist includes a mix of some of Americas best-known adult and childrens authors, and it has an especially deep picture book backlist that includes The Polar Express, Curious George, and Little Blue Truck. Its author roster also features 10 Nobel Prize winners, 48 Pulitzer Prize winners, and 15 National Book Award winners.

The Houghton name fades from trade publishing

Though the HMH trade division was created only in 2007 (following the acquisition of Harcourt Brace by Houghton Mifflins parent company at the time, Educational Media and Publishing Group), the Houghton name has been associated with trade publishing for more than 150 years. With the completion of the HC purchase, it will fade away.

Originally founded as a Boston printer by Henry Houghton, the company moved into publishing in 1864, when it was known as Hurd & Houghton. In 1868, George Harrison Mifflin joined the company, and with his help, in 1878 H&H bought James R. Osgood & Company (which became Ticknor & Fields), the publisher of such important figures as Harriet Beecher Stowe, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, and Mark Twain. Following the Osgood purchase, H&H was renamed Houghton, Osgood & Company. The publisher became Houghton Mifflin & Company in 1880 and published books by such writers as Henry James and Kate Douglas Wiggins, author of Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. In 1908, after a series of deaths among the firms original partners, Houghton, Mifflin & Company restructured itself, changing from a partnership to a corporation, under the name Houghton Mifflin Company.

Though HM published some educational texts in its early history, it began to emphasize that part of the business in the mid-20th century, and in time that segment came to dwarf the trade operation.
In January, Publishers Weekly announced the launch of an online book fair to fill the void left by the abrupt closure, late last year, of BookExpo. It was not clear then what form the event would take in the midst of a pandemic, but one thing was certain: the industry in the U.S. couldnt go another year without a central place to promote its fall titles. And PW CEO and publisher Cevin Bryerman was convinced that the magazine could bring its leadership, brand, and marketing reach to set the stage for a new virtual fair.

For the inaugural U.S. Book Show, which will run TuesdayThursday, May 2527 (the same late-May time slot previously occupied by BookExpo), both PW and the book industry have stepped up to provide editor and author panels, in-depth programming, and virtual booths intended to inform booksellers and librarians about the fall lists. In addition, all ticket holders will be able to view recordings of the events and visit booths through August 31.

What to look for

The show opens with a keynote talk by Oprah Winfrey (see p. 5 for an excerpt of her new book, What Happened to You?, written with Bruce D. Perry). Additional big-name writers include rock n roller Stevie Van Zandt, who will take the virtual stage to talk about his memoir, Unrequited Infatuations. Ingram head John Ingram will discuss the first 50 years of his company, as highlighted in The Family Business by Keel Hunt. Anthony Doerr will talk about Cloud Cuckoo Land, his first novel since his Pulitzer Prizewinning All the Light We Cannot See. Essayist Ijeoma Oluo (So You Want to Talk About Race and Mediocre) will talk about her newly signed Be a Revolution. And actor Keanu Reeves will preview his debut graphic novel, Brzrkr. He will be in conversation with co-writer Matt Kindt (Folklords, Justice League of America) and artist Ron Garney (Wolverine, Captain America).

In addition, the show will highlight upcoming childrens books and authors. Longtime childrens bestseller Brian Selznick will speak about his latest book, Kaleidoscope; Sen. Elizabeth Warren will discuss her picture book debut, Pinkie Promises, illustrated by Charlene Chua; and Top Chef and Taste the Nation star Padma Lakshmi will talk about her picture book debut, Tomatoes for Neela, illustrated by Juan Martinez-Neal.

Editors from publishers large and small will be on hand to discuss books chosen by PWs reviews editors as likely fall standouts in a variety of categories, including literary fiction, mysteries and thrillers, current affairs, biographies and memoirs, picture books, middle grade, and YA.

Book Buzz sessions, organized in cooperation with publishers, will feature authors discussing upcoming titles for adults and children. And a variety of offerings will be available in the virtual exhibit hall, where companies from Abbeville to Z2 Comics will be present.

Educational panels

The Libraries Are Essential program on Tuesday, May 25, geared to librarians, will include two 90-minute seminars and feature 20 library leaders. That day there will also be four industry panels, among them one on the future of office work and one on building an inclusive work force, as well as educational panels addressing bookseller concernsincluding one on postpandemic selling and another on selling more books online.

The show will also be an awarding experience. Tune in Tuesday afternoon for a live announcement of the winners of PWs longtime Bookstore of the Year and Rep of the Year awards. In addition, the shortlist for the Selfies Book Awards U.S., honoring author-published titles, will be announced. The Selfies were introduced in 2020 by PW and BookLife.

To attend all events, there is no need to hop in a car or jump on a plane or train. Everything, including schedules, is available at the U.S. Book Show website (usbookshow.com).

Supporting Literacy with Boys & Girls Clubs of America

Publishers Weekly is proud to donate a portion of the proceeds of the U.S. Book Show to Boys & Girls Clubs of Americas literacy and academic support programming for youths and teens, including this years Summer Brain Gain, which is designed to counter summer learning loss and foster critical thinking. Local BGCA leaders and members are also invited to attend the show at no cost.

A couple hundred clubs tested a pilot Summer Brain Gain program in 2013, and it officially launched the following year. It offers one-week modules with themed activities for elementary, middle school, and high school students. This years monthlong virtual literacy program is based on superheroes. As BGCAs Lesa Sexton pointed out in a recent post on the groups Club Experience blog, [Superheroes] seem particularly fitting for all that weve gone through over the last year. Living through a pandemic has been a reminder that we have real life superheroes living in our midst.

As part of Summer Brain Gain, the youngest BCGA members, ages six to eight, will read a variety of picture books about superheroes and watch some of Marvels Make Me a Hero digital series celebrating such essential workers as math teachers, postal workers, and nurses by turning them into comic book superheroes. Upper elementary students, ages nine to 11, will read Martin Jensens Almost Super, while middle schoolers and high schoolers, ages 12 to 18, will read about Marvel superhero Kamala Kahn/Ms. Marvel, the subject of a new TV series streaming on Disney+ later this year.

BGCA focuses on other types of literacy as well. MyFutures Digital Literacy Essentials is designed to promote Internet knowledge and safe online habits. Its activities are geared to children and teens ages eight to 16 and enables them to upload digital projects, build a digital portfolio, and earn stars and badges.

Other programs provide different types of learning experiences. DIY STEM offers a hands-on, activity-based STEM curriculum. Power Hour: Making Minutes Count offers homework help and tutoring for young people ages six to 18 and encourages self-directed learning.

Founded nearly 160 years ago, BCGA, headquartered in Atlanta, has more than 4,700 clubs serving more than 4.7 million young people in locations ranging from small towns to large cities, including public housing, as well as on Native lands throughout the country. In addition, it serves military families in BGCA-affiliated youth centers on U.S. military installations worldwide.

Below, more on the U.S. Book Show.

U.S. Book Show: A New Book Show Arrives

Introducing the inaugural U.S. Book Showa different kind of trade show, presented by Publishers Weekly.

U.S. Book Show: Libraries Are Essential

The U.S. Book Shows opening seminar will offer attendees a look at challenges and opportunities for libraries in 2021.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speakers

The inaugural U.S. Book Show will feature keynotes from Oprah Winfrey, Keanu Reeves, Elizabeth Warren, and many more. Take a look at our featured speaker programming here.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: Oprah Winfrey

Oprah kicks off the show on Tuesday, May 25, and weve got an excerpt from the first chapter of her new book, What Happened to You?

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: Ijeoma Oluo

Oluo will be in conversation with Rakesh Satyal, the editor of 'Be a Revolution,' on Wednesday, May 26, 10:1510:45 a.m. ET.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: Keanu Reeves

Keanu Reeves makes his graphic novel debut.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: John Ingram

John Ingram, author Keel Hunt, and PW editorial director Jim Milliot will be in conversation on Tuesday, May 25, 44:30 p.m. ET.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: Anthony Doerr

Doerr will be in conversation with David Varno, a PW reviews editor, on Wednesday, May 26, 1:151:30 p.m. ET.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: Stevie Van Zandt

Van Zandt will be in conversation with Ben Greenman, the editor of 'Unrequited Infatuations,' on Wednesday, May 26, 1:302 p.m. ET.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: Elizabeth Warren

Elizabeth Warren will be in conversation with Laura Godwin, publisher of Godwin Books and the editor of 'Pinkie Promises,' on Thursday, May 27, 1010:30 a.m. ET.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: Padma Lakshmi

Padma Lakshmi, will be in conversation with Tamar Brazis, editorial director of Viking Childrens Books, on Thursday, May 27, 12:301 p.m. ET.

U.S. Book Show Keynote Speaker: Brian Selznick

Padma Lakshmi, will be in conversation with Tamar Brazis, editorial director of Viking Childrens Books, on Thursday, May 27, 12:301 p.m. ET.

U.S. Book Show: Industry and Bookselling Panels

In sessions on topics ranging from hiring to politics, industry leaders discuss the big issues facing publishing and leading booksellers discuss changes to the bookselling landscape.

U.S. Book Show: PW Editors Picks Panels

Our reviews editors put together eight panels, each of which features the editors of several big fall titles in a given category. Here those editors talk about what makes their books special.

U.S. Book Show: PW Bookstore and Sales Rep of the Year Finalists

A look at the finalists for the PW Bookstore of the Year and the PW Sales Rep of the Year awards.

PW Bookstore of the Year Finalist: Charis Books & More

At a time when so many have rallied in support of the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements, Charis Books & More in Decatur, Ga.,is filling a niche in todays bookselling landscape.

PW Bookstore of the Year Finalist: Eso Won Books

Eso Won has long been one of the countrys preeminent Black-owned bookstores and, of course, was indispensable this past year, noted Ellen Adler, publisher of the New Press.

PW Bookstore of the Year Finalist: MahoganyBooks

In the nearly four years since it opened, Mahogany has garnered national recognition for its emphasis that books by Black authors matter.

PW Bookstore of the Year Finalist: Seminary Co-op Bookstores

The Seminary Co-op, founded by five students in 1961 in the Chicago Theological Seminarys basement as a member-owned cooperative, has become a cultural institution with an impact extending far beyond the Windy City.

PW Bookstore of the Year Finalist: Word Up Community Bookshop/ Libreria Comunitaria

For close to a decade, Word Up Community Bookshop/Libreria Comunitaria in New York City has redefined what bookselling can look like.

PW Rep of the Year Finalist: Toi Crockett

Crockett has spent her 15-year publishing career at Simon & Schuster. She is currently field account manager, primarily for accounts in the Western states.

PW Rep of the Year Finalist: Richard McNeace

McNeace, who calls on bookstores in California and New Mexico, as well as key museum accounts, is marking his 32nd year as a rep. He says that he has always considered himself more of a booksellers advocate than a publishers representative.

PW Rep of the Year Finalist: Jason Rice

Jason Rice began his wholesale sales career nearly 16 years ago at Bookazine, where he took phone orders from independent stores in the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions and also called on them to sell titles.

PW Rep of the Year Finalist: Gail Whitten

Como Sales representative Gail Whitten has worked with booksellers and publishers large and small for nearly five decades.

PW Rep of the Year Finalist: Marsha Wood

When a new bookstore opens, Marsha Wood is likely to have had a hand in what books are on the shelf. In her 15 years with Ingram Content Group, she has helped more than 300 independent bookstores.

U.S. Book Show: Around the Booths

Visit more than 100 virtual booths at the U.S Book Show to meet authors and publishers and get swag.
Purdue University President Mitch Daniels made these remarks during the spring commencement May 15, 2021, on the West Lafayette campus.

This year, when I say I am happy to be here, Im not just making small talk. If youre like me, youre happy to be anywhere after the year weve all been through. I wish we were over in Elliott Hall, celebrating your achievements individually as only Purdue does among schools our size. But this beats the virtual version we were forced to in 2020 and marks a long step back on the path to fully normal life.

As weve never done an outdoor commencement before, we may have gotten a few things wrong. For one thing, way out here on the 50-yard line, it feels like weve carried that social distance thing a little far. However well it goes, like everything about your senior year, it will be one for the history books. For all the trouble and downsides, there can be some real value in living through a time like that.

For decades to come, scholars and ordinary citizens alike will look back on your senior year, trying to identify its consequences, and imagine what lives so disrupted were like. As they do so, they will know more than we can now about the results of the choices todays leaders made. They will reach judgments, with the benefit of hindsight, about the wisdom and maturity with which our nation handled the challenge of this particular pandemic. Odds are, not all those judgments will be favorable. Time will tell.

An ability to comprehend and work with complex facts and data has always been part of a Purdue education. At least since the Industrial Age, thats been an essential tool for a useful life of the kind at which Boilermakers excel.

But thats never been nearly so true as today. Massive amounts of information are being collected, intentionally by us and silently by the machines we invent and use in daily life. Interpreting its meaning, and discovering patterns within it, is perhaps the most important skill in the economy of 2021. Our faculty has determined that data analysis, as we now call it, should be as universal a part of a Boilermaker education as English composition.

Youll leave this stadium able to evaluate statistics and whether they are significant or meaningless. Youll know better than to confuse correlation with causation. Youll look at decisions critically, and holistically, understanding that any objective pursued too far eventually yields diminishing returns not worth their cost. That, just as medicines have side effects, almost all actions produce collateral consequences, often collateral damage.

It doesnt stretch a point to say that we wouldnt be meeting here today without those skills. Keeping Purdue open last fall, so that you could stay on schedule and graduate today, required the daily examination of COVID-19 infection rates and patterns of its spread on and around campus. Prior to that, the decision to reopen at all involved a reading of the available data, which showed that people your age were at far less risk from the virus than from a host of other dangers.

Starting soon, the decisions will be yours to make. In businesses you start or join, in causes in which you feel called to enlist, or in that most important of all organizations, the families I hope you will form. Wherever they are, the very essence of your coming leadership roles will lie in making hard choices. After weighing all the options, the competing priorities and the uncertainties that even the biggest databases cannot totally eliminate, others will look to you to choose.

The risk of failure, of a hit to ones reputation, or just that the gains dont outweigh the costs, all these can deter or even paralyze a person out of fulfilling the responsibility someone has entrusted to them. Should I make this investment, or husband my cash? Take that job offer, or stay where Im comfortable? Engage in this debate, or sit silently? Choose this life partner, or play it safe?

This last year, many of your elders failed this fundamental test of leadership. They let their understandable human fear of uncertainty overcome their duty to balance all the interests for which they were responsible. They hid behind the advice of experts in one field but ignored the warnings of experts in other realms that they might do harm beyond the good they hoped to accomplish.

Sometimes they let what might be termed the mad pursuit of zero, in this case zero risk of anyone contracting the virus, block out other competing concerns, like the protection of mental health, the educational needs of small children, or the survival of small businesses. Pursuing one goal to the utter exclusion of all others is not to make a choice but to run from it. Its not leadership; its abdication. I feel confident your Purdue preparation wont let you fall prey to it.

But theres a companion quality youll need to be the leaders you can be. Thats the willingness to take risks. Not reckless ones, but the risks that still remain after all the evidence has been considered.

Great societies before us tended to look backward for their inspiration, to locate their golden ages in the past. Here our eyes have always been forward. Now signs abound of Americans losing that eagerness to move ahead boldly.

Before the virus visited us, there were already troubling signs that fearfulness was beginning to erode the spirit of adventure, the willingness to take considered risks, on which this nations greatness was built and from which all progress originates. Rates of business startups, moving in pursuit of a better job, or the strongest of all bets on the future, having children, all have fallen sharply in recent years. And now there are warnings that the year 2020 may have weakened that spirit further.

As early as April of last year, researchers at the Federal Reserve of St. Louis documented the belief-scarring effects of COVID-19. Psychologists proved a long time ago that we humans tend to overestimate how common terrible events are. Because they are terrible, we are more sure to hear about them, and we trick ourselves into believing that they are far more likely than they really are.

Now we learn that such misconceptions can be long-lasting. The scarring effect is, the Feds economists tell us, a persistent change in beliefs about the probability of an extreme, negative shock producing  long-lived responses to transitory events, especially extreme, unlikely ones.

Fortunately, Boilermakers dont scar easily. If Amelia Earhart had been intimidated by uncertainty, we wouldnt know her name. If our recent board chair Keith Krach had stayed within the safe confines of a giant corporations career ladder, the world would not enjoy the huge efficiency breakthroughs of Ariba and Docusign. If Neil Armstrong, Gus Grissom and more than a score more Purdue astronauts had run from risk, humanitys knowledge of its universe would be far short of its current boundaries.

In the most jarring book of recent years, the Israeli philosopher Yuval Harari predicts that humans your age will live to see the last days of death, when the species we call Homo sapiens becomes godlings and immortal. He sees this happening through one of the same technologies at which this university excels: either biological engineering, or cyborg engineering, of our organic beings, or simply the complete replacement of humans by super intelligent machines.

Immortality sounds good, until Harari points out the implications. One of them would be a total aversion to risk. As the author explains it, if you believe you can live forever, why would you ever take a chance of any kind?

I hope that the experiences of 2020 left you with an attitude not of fearfulness but of confidence. Confidence that we can tackle hard problems, and that hiding from them is rarely the best course. That given a careful examination of the available facts and a thoughtful calculation of relative risks, we can overcome even the biggest obstacles and be the masters of our fates and our futures.

As school started again at her campus, the provost of the University of Kansas sent a message to her students and colleagues that is relevant far beyond the present day or the recent pandemic. In times of high anxiety, she wrote, it is human nature to crave certainty for the safety it provides. The problem with craving certainty is that it is a false hope; it is a craving that can never fully be met. She quoted the astronomer Carl Sagan: The history of science teaches us that the most we can hope for is successive improvement in our understanding, learning from our mistakes  with the proviso that absolute certainty will always elude us.

Maybe the great historian Jacques Barzun summed it up best: The last degree of caution is cowardice.

Certainty is an illusion. Perfect safety is a mirage. Zero is always unattainable, except in the case of absolute zero where, as you remember, all motion and life itself stop.

You are leaving here ready for leadership. Your academic records say so. The history of Purdue graduates says so. The character you demonstrated this last year, when your embrace of the Purdue Pledge enabled this place to stay open at all, clearly says so.

We expect, no, we know, that you will tackle leaderships challenges as they present themselves to you. Youre taking with you the tools to weigh alternatives, balance priorities, assess relative risks. All youll need is the courage to act on the conclusions you reach.

Now take that readiness into a fearful, timid world crying for direction and boldness, where the biggest risk of all is that we stop taking risks at all.

Hail Purdue, and each of you.
NJPW STRONG REPORT: ELIMINATION TAG MATCH AND MORE

We are in Los Angeles, California and your announcers are Shigeki Kiyono and Togi Makabe (in Japanese) or Kevin Kelly and Alex Koslov (in English).

Match Number One: AJZ versus Rocky Romero

They lock up and Romero with waist lock and AJZ with w standing switch and take down. AJZ with another take down and Romero gets to the ropes to force a break. AJZ does some gesticulating to Romero. They go to a Greco Roman Knuckle Lock and Romero with a wrist lock but AJZ picks up Romero and puts him in the corner. Romero with a side head lock.

Romero holds on when AJZ tries to send Romero off the ropes. Romero with a shoulder tackle but AJZ does not go down. AJZ drops down and Romero with a side head lock. AJZ with forearms and a pop up punch followed by more punches on the mat. AJZ runs his forearm across the bridge of the nose a few times. AJZ sends Romero into the turnbuckles and connects with a shoulder. AJZ with punches in the corner. Romero grabs the wrist and comes off the ropes with a knee drop to the arm. AJZ with a kick.

Romero with an Irish whip and AJZ floats over and hits a drop kick for a near fall. AJZ with a cravate. Romero with punches and AJZ with a snap mare and he gets a near fall. Romero with elbows and AJZ with a forearm to the back. Romero with forearms and a chop. Romero with an elbow to the shoulder but AJZ with a jab. AJZ gets Romero on his shoulders but Romero escapes and he sends AJZ into the ropes. AJZ blocks a kick and then he rakes the eyes. AJZ with a slingshot DDT for a near fall. AJZ goes for a suplex and Romero lands on his feet. Romero continues to work on the arm and he puts AJZ in the ropes. Romero with kicks and a missile drop kick to the side of the head for a near fall.

Romero with a kick to the arm and he goes for a an Acid drop but AJZ blocks it. AJZ goes for a pump handle slam and hits it for a near fall. Romero with forearms and AJZ with punches and forearms as well. Romero with a kick to the arm but AJZ with a jumping knee. AJZ pulls down the knee pad and he goes to the apron. AJZ misses a springboard move and Romero with a take down into a cross arm breaker. AJZ escapes with a shot to the leg. AJZ with a kick and a gourdbuster. AJZ gets a near fall.

AJZ gets Romero up but Romero gets to his feet and gets the three count with a back slide.

Winner: Rocky Romero

Match Number Two: Hikuleo and El Phantasmo versus Lio Rush and Fred Rosser

Rosser and Phantasmo start things off even though Rosser wants Hikuleo. Phantasmo decides to tag in Hikuleo to satiate Rosser, but Phantasmo tags back in before anything happens. They lock up and Rosser goes after Hikuleo on the apron. Rosser goes for a back drop driver onto the apron but Hikuleo pulls Rosser off the apron. Rush with a flip dive onto Hikuleo and Phantasmo on the floor.

Rosser with a back breaker to Phantasmo for a near fall. Rush tags in and he kicks Phantasmo and follows with a punch to the ribs. Rush avoids Phantasmo on the ropes and then Rosser tags in and hits a clothesline and DDT. Rosser sends Phantasmo into the turnbuckles. Rosser with chops and clotheslines in the corner. Rosser tosses Phantasmo by the ears. Rosser with a boot to the midsection and then he tags Rush back in. Rush drop kicks Hikuleo off the apron. Rosser and Rush with kicks followed by a seated splash for a near fall.

Rosser with knees to the back. Hikuleo trips Rosser and then Hikuleo comes in and kicks Rosser. Phantasmo chokes Rosser and Hikuleo legally tags in. Hikuleo with forearms and he chokes Rosser in the corner. Rosser with punches but Phantasmo trips Rosser and pulls him into the ring post in an uncomfortable place. Hikuleo gets a near fall and he has some words with the referee. Hikuleo with a boot to the back. Hikuleo with an Irish whip and clothesline followed by a power slam for a near fall. Phantasmo tags in and he rakes the back. Hikuleo with a forearm and he tries to chop Rosser but Rosser moves and Phatasmo is chopped. Rush tags in and he hits a few clotheslines. Rush with strikes to Phantasmo. Rush with a handspring back elbow for a near fall. Rush goes for the rebound cutter but Phantasmo blocks it. Rush hits a Spanish Fly aned then Rosser tags in and he drops Rush onto Phantasmo before getting a near fall. Hikuleo and Rosser exchange punches and they fight to the floor. Rush leaps over Phantasmo and Phantsmo with a knee and he sests for the piledriver but Rush with a jackknife cover. Rush with a rana for a near fall. Phanatsmo with a rake of the eyes while Rosser and Hikuleo fight on the floor. Rush with a slingshot cutter for the three count.

Winners: Lio Rush and Fred Rosser

After the match, Hikuleo and Rosser continue to battle on the floor. Rosser hits Hikuleo with the ring bell. Hikuleo hits Rosser with a chair . Rush tries to help Rosser out as officials finally separate Rosser and Hikuleo. That does not work too well but a second attempt to separate them does work.

We go to the back and Rosser says he has been doing this for 19 years and he has never been so disgusted in his life. He tells Hikuleo he loves his family but you picked a fight against the Suntan Superman, the man who takes no days off. They will go one on one in a No Disqualification Match.

Lio Rush says Rosser is your problem Hikuleo and you have to suffer the consequences. Rush tells El Phantasmo he is not done with him. To be honest, I am sick of you. What more do I have to prove. How many times do I have to beat you to prove that you will be a fluke. You might have beaten me two times, but you had to cheat. When I won, I did it fair and square. When the time comes and the stakes are high, I will do what I have been doing and that is whoop your ass in a New Japan ring. I will be the man in Japan whether you like it or not.

We go to the Cleaning and Disinfection Break.

Match Number Three: Tom Lawlor, JR Kratos, Chris Dickinson, and Danny Limelight versus Clark Connors, Karl Fredericks, TJP, and Brody King in an Elimination Match

Lawlor throws a Gekiochi-kun at Fredericks to mock his participation in the commercial.

They lock up and Lawlor with a waist lock and take down. Lawlor with a waist lock and take down. Lawlor works on the knee but and applies a full nelson. Fredericks with a standing switch and Lawlor with a take down but Fredericks with a head scissors. Lawlor with a head stand to escape and he punches Fredericks. Lawlor with a side head lock and a cross body.

Limelight tags in and so does TJP. TJP with a shoulder tackle and Limelight misses a kick. TJP goes for a heel hook but Limelight escapes. Limelight with a kick. TJP with a drop toe hold and drop kick. Connors tags in and they hit a double hip toss. TJP with a kick and Connors with an elbow drop for a near fall. Limelight and Connors alternate forearms. TJP tags back in and they Irish whip Limelight. Connors with a shoulder in the corner and TJP with an elbow while Connors goes after Team Filthys corner. TJP with a running boot into the corner followed by a slam.

TJP goes up top but he is stopped and that allows Limellight to hit a Frankensteiner. Limelight follows with a boot. Lawlor with a clothesline. Dickinson with a forearm and Kratos with a splash. Limelight with a blockbuster to TJP who is on Kratos shoulder for a near fall. TJP sends Limelight over the top rope but Limelight holds on and he connects with a forearm and back heel kicks. Limelight with a springboard double knee to the back of the head. TJP with a tornado DDT and King tags in. King clotheslines Dickinson and Lawlor while Kratos tags in. King with a back body drop to Limelight. King with a kick to Kratos but Kratos with a punch. King with forearms and kicks followed by a chop. King with a splash into the corner and then Limelight grabs his leg and that allows Kratos to send King over the top rope to the floor.

Brody King Eliminated

Fredericks with forearms to Kratos but Kratos with a forearm to Fredericks. Limelight tags in and Kratos with a forearm in the corner followed by a rolling elbow. Kratos with a suplex and Limelight with an assisted double stomp for a near fall. Limelight goes for a springboard move but Fredericks catches Limelight and sends him over the top rope to the floor to eliminate him.

Danny Limelight Eliminated

Lawlor sends Fredericks to the apron but Fredericks gets back into the ring and connects with a forearm. They go back and forth with forearms. Fredericks with a European uppercut but Lawlor with a back slide and Fredericks rolls through. Lawlor with a rollup on Fredericks for a near fall. Fredericks with a rollup for a near fall. Fredericks counters a suplex with an inside cradle for a near fall. Fredericks with a splash into the corner but Lawlor catches Fredericks and hits a ruanage. Dickinson comes in and Fredericks with a double drop kick. Fredericks sends Lawlor to the apron and Dickinson hits Fredericks from behind. Lawlor holds Fredericks from the apron and Dickinson tries to hit Fredericks but Fredericks moves, almost getting Dickinson to accidentally knock Lawlor off the apron but Dickinson stops short.

Fredericks pushes Dickinson into Lawlor and Lawlor falls onto the apron. Dickinson and Fredericks exchange forearms. Dickinson with the advantage. Lawlor tries to hit Fredericks from behind but Fredericks sees Lawlor coming and he throws Lawlor over the top rope to the floor to eliminate him.

Tom Lawlor Eliminated

Dickinson with a belly-to-back suplex and chops. Dickinson with forearms in the corner followed by more chops. Fredericks with forearms to Dickinson in the corner. Fredericks runs into a boot and Fredericks is sent to the apron. Fredericks with a forearm to Dickinson but Limelight pulls Fredericks to the floor and since the referee did not see the interference, he calls it a good elimination.

Karl Fredericks Eliminated

Kratos tags in and Connors chops Kratos a few times and they have no impact on Kratos. Kratos with a forearm and Connors goes down. Connors with a punch and TJP tags in. TJP with a pop up kick and Connors with a spear to Kratos. TJP tags in and he goes up top. Kratos kicks Connors into the corner and it knocks TJP off the turnbuckles to the floor and TJP is eliminated.

TJP Eliminated

Kratos with a power slam and he tries for a dead lift suplex but Connors gets to his feet. Connors is against the ropes and Kratos charges at him but Connors drops down and Kratos goes over the top rope to the floor to be eliminated.

JR Kratos Eliminated

Dickinson with a knee and then they exchange chops and forearms. Connors throws in a few European uppercuts. Dickinson with a rollup for a near fall. Connors with a rollup for a near fall. Dickinson with another near fall. Dickinson with a back elbow. Dickinson with a brainbuster for a near fall. Dickinson gets Connors on his shoulders but Connor escapes and hits a power slam for a near fall. Connors goes for a belly-to-back suplex but Dickinson lands on his feet. Dickinson with a dragon screw leg whip and an STF. Connors crawls to the ropes to force a break. Dickinson goes for a dead lift German suplex but Connors blocks it. Dickinson holds on to the ropes on a suplex attempt by Connors. Connors with a spear.

Connors goes to the turnbuckles but Dickinson with a chop. Dickinson sets for a superplex but Connors blocks it and he sends Dickinson to the apron. Dickinson kicks Connors but Connors holds on to the ropes. Connors with a shoulder and he tries to suplex Dickinson to the floor but Dickinson lands on the apron. Connors with forearm and then they exchange chops on the apron. They go to forearms and each man holds on to the ropes to avoid elimination but Dickinson with a boot to the head and Connors falls to the floor to be eliminated.

Winners: JR Kratos, Tom Lawlor, Chris Dickinson, and Danny Limelight

After the match, the other members of Team Filthy come out to celebrate their victory. Lawlor wants to raise Dickinsons hand but Dickinson refuses. Limelight tries to talk to Dickinson and Dickinson agrees to join the celebration.

Danny Limelight comes up behind Dickinson while his arms are being raised and he hits Dickinson with a low blow. Limelight with a forearm and Kratos kicks Dickinson. Limelight punches Dickinson until Brody King makes his way into the ring.

King and Dickinson shake hands.

We go to credits.

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While the U.S. military likes to talk about being in an era of great power competition, it acts like there is only one real challenger: China. The armed forces are moving to reorganize and re-equip themselves to meet the specific dictates of potential future crises and conflicts in the Indo-Pacific region. Each is seeking to stake a claim on future resources and the prominence of their roles in countering the advance of China.

Unfortunately, in their rush to make China the more imminent threat, the Pentagon is downplaying the threat from Russia, the actual most likely adversary, at least in the near term. Yes, Russia is a power in decline, with a struggling economy and demographics below the replacement rate, but its military power has improved significantly over the past 15 years. As a result, Moscow is poised to spoil the Pentagons desire to shift its focus to the Indo-Pacific.

It is remarkable how in just a few years, the specter of China has come to dominate thinking in the Department of Defense and the Military Services. The Navy wants more ships and missiles to outgun the rapidly growing Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). The Marine Corps has decided that its central mission is to become the 21st century equivalent of the old coastal artillery, employing land-based ISR and anti-ship missiles to help the U.S. Navy sink its Chinese counterpart. To that end, it is shedding capabilities necessary to seize and control land. Even the Army is looking to frame its modernization priorities to make land operations relevant to a theater consisting mostly of air and water.

The reality is that the Pentagon has been extraordinarily poor at predicting both where and how it will fight the next war. For decades, it planned and prepared for a conflict with a great power rival, the former Soviet Union, on the plains of central Europe, only to find itself sending stealth fightersApache helicopters and even a division of Marinesto the Middle East to defeat Saddam Hussein. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Colin Powell observed that the United States had pretty much run out of enemies, a misreading of history that was the basis for sweeping reductions in the size of the U.S. military as well as the decisions by several administrations to withdraw forces from Europe.

But within a decade, the military was in full occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq and fighting violent extremist organizations on multiple continents. Post-Cold War military planners had anticipated neither of these situations. The military spent tens of billions of dollars buying capabilities such as IED jammers and MRAPS while delaying modernization of platforms and weapons intended for high-end conflict against so-called near-peer competitors.

Now the era of great power competition has returned, and the U.S. military finds itself unprepared largely because neither it nor the countrys political leaders saw the threat coming. Efforts are underway to alter the manning, equipping, and organization of U.S. forces to address the emerging threat posed by great power competitors, primarily China.

The strategy of focusing U.S. military strategy and force modernization primarily on China makes sense in the abstract. But there is a well-known adage in military planning that the enemy gets a vote. This is particularly the case with respect to Russia. With its massive arsenal of theater and strategic nuclear weapons, improved conventional military posture and geographic position near NATOs eastern border, and growing skills in operating within the so-called grey zonethat is, below the threshold that would trigger a Western military responseRussia can pose a threat to the Alliance and other Western strategic interests that cannot be ignored.

Since 2014, when Russia illegally occupied Crimea and invaded eastern Ukraine, Moscow has demonstrated the ability to grab the attention of Western governments, forcing them to reconsider their assumptions about the threat Russia poses. Just last month, Russia again demonstrated its ability to change the strategic calculi of the U.S. and the rest of NATO by conducting a massive military exercise along the Russian border with Ukraine. While the Russian government claims that the exercise is over, there are reports that some 80,000 troops remain in position, capable of exercising a short-notice attack.

Russia is also pressuring Ukraine and countries in southeast Europe, notably NATO allies Romania and Bulgaria, to dominate the security situation in the Black Sea. Former Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, Admiral James Stavridis, warned that the Black Sea could be the flashpoint of a confrontation between NATO and Russia, should the latter seek to impose a naval embargo on Ukraine.

Some of the investments being made that would address the threat posed by China could play well into deterring Russia. The Armys Long-Range Precision Fires programparticularly systems such as the Extended Range cannon artillery and the Precision Strike Missileis relevant to a European scenario. The ability of the candidate aircraft being developed in the Future Vertical Lift Program to fly low and fast will be just as relevant to operations across the vast expanses of Eastern Europe as in the Indo-Pacific region.

But a conflict with Russia will be primarily a land war. Deterring the threat of a conventional conflict with Russia requires both the deployment of additional forces along NATOs eastern frontier and the modernization of conventional forces. The deployment of the Initial Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense (IM-SHORAD) system is an example of a positive step. The U.S. should deploy additional armored brigade combat teams to Eastern Europe along with more air and missile defenses, logistics units and intelligence capabilities.

Washington should also support efforts by allies in the region, such as Poland, to modernize its military. For its part, Warsaw is already acquiring the Patriot air and missile defense system and the F-35 fighter. It would also make sense for the U.S. to offer Poland several hundred excess M1 tanks to replace that countrys obsolescent Soviet-era platforms.

The only way of preventing Russian President Vladimir Putin from using the threat of military action against Ukraine, or even NATO, to bolster his domestic political position is by building up the Alliances conventional military capabilities. Otherwise, Moscow will have the ability to challenge U.S. and NATO security interests whenever it chooses. This means our attention can never be completely focused on China.

Dan Goure, Ph.D., is a vice president at the public-policy research think tank Lexington Institute. Goure has a background in the public sector and U.S. federal government, most recently serving as a member of the 2001 Department of Defense Transition Team. You can follow him on Twitter at @dgoure and the Lexington Institute @LexNextDC. Read his full bio here.
After the wooden walkway over the Guadalhorce estuary, the Gran Senda (great trail), the Caminito del Rey and the Senda Litoral (coastal path), the Diputacion provincial authority is now working on the Corredor Verde (green corridor) which will be the biggest river park in Spain, covering 4.5 million square metres.

It will pass through eight municipalities in the lower Guadalhorce river basin, (Alora, Ardales, Pizarra, Coin, Alhaurin el Grande, Cartama, Alhaurin de la Torre and Malaga city), a 54-kilometre-long trip through the natural beauty spots of the river between Malaga and the Desfiladero de los Gaitanes gorge, below the Caminito del Rey. The plan will include recreation areas and walking routes and footpaths.

This ambitious project will cost 200m euros and will take several years to come to fruition, as it will be carried out in stages, as the president of the provincial authority, Francisco Salado, explained this week.

Salado said this is likely to be the biggest project carried out during this legislature and it would be highly beneficial for the province.

"The main objective is to make the Guadalhorce valley a strategic area in Andalucia for sustainable activities, highlighting the countryside, its rich and varied biodiversity and its historical and cultural heritage," he explained.

He also said the cost would have to be shared by all the authorities. At present the plans are being drawn up for the initial stage of the project which, all being well, is expected to start before the end of this year.
The announcement seemed to catch everyone off guard: Early Thursday afternoon, the government told Americans that if they were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, they did not need to wear a maskindoors or outside, in groups small or large.
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. A German tourist has handed over donations to two charities in Torremolinos after winning the traditional King for a Day prize draw.

Normally held earlier in the year, the draw, among customers of local businesses in the run-up to Christmas, allows the winner to spend 10,000 euros in one day.

This year's winner was Olaf Hofmann, a tourist from Dortmund, who returned to the Costa del Sol with his partner Nicole at the end of April to enjoy the prize.

Their first priority was to donate 1,000 euros to the local Emaus soup kitchen and several hundred to the animal welfare organisation AVORA in Torremolinos.
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Windham County will get another shot at paving the way for the resumption of jury trials in Vermont, with a jury draw set for May 17 in Brattleboro.
South Windsor, Conn. (AP)  Police on Saturday urged members of the public to come forward with any information that might help them narrow their search for Jessica Edwards, a South Windsor mother who was last seen by her husband Monday morning.

We're at a point in time where we need help from the community to move forward with this investigation, South Windsor Police Sgt. Mark Cleverdon said during a news conference. Asked if foul play may be involved in the woman's disappearance, he said police certainly haven't ruled anything out.

We don't want to discuss any specifics but our investigators are looking into every angle, he said. Cleverdon also spoke directly to Edwards, asking her to come forward and let police know she is OK.

Cleverdon said neighborhood canvasses and searches near Edwards' home using police dogs and aerial support have so far turned up no signs of the 30-year-old, married mother of a 7-month-old boy. Cleverdon said police hope to learn from the public about other places where Edwards may have visited.

As far as physical addresses other than her area, we don't have much to go on. So we're looking to see if anyone can put her anywhere else that can help us kind of expand our physical search," he said, noting that a regional digital investigations unit has also been working to establish a digital footprint" for Edwards.

The missing mother had visited her sister and mother last Sunday in nearby East Hartford, police said. The Hartford Courant reported that Edwards's husband told police his wife left their condominium early Monday. Police have said she did not take her own vehicle and her phone is turned off and has not yet been located.

The Manchester Community College student missed a clinical class at Hartford Hospital that morning. The Hartford Courant reported that her sister, Yanique Edwards, said an email was sent to her sister's professor at about 2:20 a.m. on Monday saying she would not be attending the clinical session. But Yanique Edwards said it was strange for her sister not to notify the hospital as well.
It was called the 15-M movement, and its name came from the date that mass anti-austerity protests and sit-ins took place in Madrid and other Spanish cities: 15 May 2011.

It was the consequence of the economic crisis which began in 2008 and a general discontent regarding politics. Those who took part became known as 'indignados', or 'the outraged'. Their slogan was "they do not represent us", and the intention of those who supported the movement was to promote a more participative democracy, far from the two-party PSOE-PP system (which they referred to as the PPSOE), and an authentic division of powers, together with other measures to improve the democratic system and make it more transparent.

Meetings and discussions were held in the streets and squares, as they tried to set the foundations for a new society.

Indignados in the Plaza de la Constitucion in Malaga. / SUR

This movement brought to Europe the model of the protest camp which had been formed in the Arab Spring, and it spread quite rapidly across the continent. In Spain, it also led to the formation of a new political party, called Podemos, which was led by Pablo Iglesias.

That was ten years ago now, and political observers and sociologists still cannot agree on whether 15-M achieved the aims which were supported by millions of people in 2011, whether or not they participated directly in the movement. A survey in June that year showed that 66 per cent of people in Spain felt sympathy for the protesters.

"It was a wake-up call for the political parties, anticipating a change to the two-party system in 2015. There was no direct reaction, but it inspired activists within the parties. That is what happened," says Marc Sanjaume, professor of Political Sciences at the Oberta University of Catalonia.

He believes that what was proposed during the meetings in the city squares was "very ethereal" and sometimes unachievable, so in his opinion "people who took part in those debates shouldn't feel frustrated at how it all turned out".

He points out that the movement did have some successes, such as the work carried out by the anti-eviction platform, which led to Ada Colau becoming the mayor of Barcelona, and initiatives which were successful at a local level. He believes that 15-M changed the way the political parties communicated with the public, and even the Royal Household, after Felipe VI became king in 2014, sought greater transparency in the institution.

Others believe that the protest movement did not have the desired effect. "Ten years on, nobody even remembers 15-M now. It wasn't even anything unusual. Something similar occurred a year earlier in Lisbon. It just gave people a way of capitalising on the protests and getting themselves into the institutions," says Juan Carlos Jimenez Redondo, a professor of History of Thought and Social Movements at the CEU San Pablo university. He says some of the language used by the protesters generated hate against part of the population without offering a real alternative.

Future movements

Neither Sanjaume nor Jimenez believe there will be a repetition of the movements that occurred in 2011, even though the country is immersed in another social crisis because of the coronavirus pandemic.

"I see a possibility of mobilisation more along the lines of those we have seen in the USA with Donald Trump," says Sanjaume. "And social mobilisation is organised more on social media these days."

Jimenez believes it would be ingenuous to think that there will not be tension in the future caused by similar movements from the right, referring to the rise and expansion of Vox during the past five years. He says 15-M was "a moment of evident social anguish, a crisis caused by people's expectations being dashed. Young people thought their future was in danger, and they would be lucky to earn 200 euros a month, if at all. This sentiment of an end to a cycle favoured the existence of anti-systemic alternatives. These either succeed or die, and these ones ended up dying. There isn't the same sentiment now," he says.
Cardinal Systems Inc., a family owned manufacturer of steel wall panels and vinyl pool liners, will expand in North Manheim Township and in Manchester Township, York County, with a $9 million investment that will retain more than 300 jobs and create nearly 60 full-time jobs over three years, Gov. Tom Wolfs office announced Friday in a news release.

The company received a funding proposal from the Department of Community and Economic Development for a $258,000 Pennsylvania First Grant, a $59,000 workforce development grant to help the company train workers and a $3 million Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority loan. The company has committed to investing at least $8.8 million into the project.

Bringing these new, full-time opportunities to Pennsylvanians in our renowned manufacturing industry has never been more important as the state recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, Wolf was quoted in the news release.

The company was established in Schuylkill County in 1976 and also manufacturers thermomoulded and extruded plastic products.

We are excited to embark on this expansion of our manufacturing facility during this unprecedented busy time brought on by the pandemic. As a family owned business, we believe strongly in investing in our people and our operation as a way to provide a solid foundation for our success as an American manufacturer, said Cardinal Systems owner Rachel Bradley.

The company will expand its Schuylkill County headquarters, which will include the construction of new office and warehouse space. The expansion will streamline its shipping operations, repurpose its existing warehouse, reduce truck traffic on Route 61, allow the company to increase capacity on its production floor and create additional office and work space, the governors office reported.

A critical component is upgrading the on-site storm sewer system at the Schuylkill County site, mitigating flooding events for the location while providing increased capacity for additional businesses along Route 61.

The York County portion of the project will include the installation of required data lines, HVAC systems and office space in an existing area of an adjacent building. The work will allow Cardinal to expand its vinyl liner production.

The new warehouse and office space will allow Cardinal to continue to expand and grow our operations and to continue to be an employer of choice in Schuylkill County, said Cardinal System President Deb Haase.

Haase told the Republican Herald for a story in February that since the pandemic hit, everybody wants a pool right now.

She said the company had a backlog at the start of 2021 that was four times what it had at the same time last year.

Thats why were confident this years going to be another record year for us, she said at the time, noting a growth in employees from 150 to 200 at its location near Schuylkill Haven.

We are excited to see the next generation of the Bradley family making such a significant investment in both their facility and their employees which will further enhance their continued growth as one of Schuylkill Countys leading, family-owned manufacturers, said Karen Kenderdine, chairwoman of the Schuylkill Economic Development Corp.

The project was coordinated by the Governors Action Team, a group of economic development professionals who report directly to the governor and work with businesses that are considering locating or expanding in Pennsylvania.
FRACKVILLE  Many people said a new borough community pool could not be done. Others said it would not be done. It was.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony at the entrance to the Frackville Community Pool was held at 3 p.m. Friday to celebrate the pools completion at the Memorial Park Complex.

The ceremony was the prelude to the actual opening, which is tentatively scheduled for Memorial Day weekend, though no date has been set.

The ceremony was moderated by borough council President Ronald Jordan and included local and state dignitaries and some local residents.

People marveled at the pool and the work that had been done. The clear water stood out from the white of the pool.

Lifeguard chairs were placed around the deep end. In the childrens end, there were places where water jets shot up. Though they didnt enter the pool, kids ran through some of the jets.

Jordan said: What an amazing accomplishment.  The Frackville community has a swimming pool once again. Much hard work went into getting this project started and to reach the finish line.

He added that the council appreciates the support for the pool, along with the help from the federal, state and local officials.

Speaking about the project were state Sen. David G. Argall, R-29, Rush Township; retired state Rep. Neal P. Goodman; Nathan Gerace, field representative for U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser, R-9; Spiro Kasapidis, Mid Penn Bank vice president/commercial loan officer; and Director Tom Ford, state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Bureau of Recreation and Conservation.

Cutting the ribbon were Mayor Kim Phillips and members of Frackville Public Spaces  originally named the Frackville Community Pool Committee  that included President Karen Domalakes, Councilwoman Helen Miernicki, Suzanne Domalakes, JoAnne Klemow and Judy A. Ragazinsky.

The old pool, constructed in 1978, hasnt been open since 2014 after an engineering study found major problems.

In September 2019, Premier Pool Renovations, Plymouth Meeting, submitted the low bid of $922,245, which included removing the old pool and building the new one at the same site; installing new perimeter fencing; constructing and outfitting a new filtration building; and installing landscaping.

A second contractor, Heim Construction Co., Orwigsburg, was awarded the contract at $378,156 for the construction of a new bathhouse, which includes changing areas, restrooms, a concession stand and a storage area.

The project received two state grants totaling $942,000.

In addition to the grants, local organizations and individuals donated to the project. The final cost has not been determined.

The plan was to have all work completed in time for the traditional opening last year, but due to COVID-19 restrictions and other delays, the opening was eventually rescheduled for this year.

Butler Township resident Carol Twardzik, wife of state Rep. Tim Twardzik, R-123, attended the event and brought her scrapbook, which included newspaper clippings about the opening of the previous pool.

A lifeguard there at age 16, she also brought along her whistle, which she sounded at the ribbon-cutting.

Thats me, and Joe Huth was the manager, Twardzik said while pointing to a photo. I think the opening of this pool is just as exciting as the last one. This is new beginnings, and it brings the community together.

Miernicki, who is also the chairwoman of the Frackville Economic Development Taskforce, said the Memorial Day weekend opening look good, but it depends on obtaining certifications and having enough lifeguards to comply with state regulations.
During the May 18 Primary Election, you have a say on how long a governor can keep Pennsylvania locked down.

If you are disgusted with the inconsistency and the confusion that Gov. Tom Wolf and his administration have governed this state with over the last 14 months, then I implore you to vote yes on ballot questions 1 and 2 on May 18. Wolf has abused the disaster declaration provisions of the Pennsylvania state constitution. He has used these powers to shut out the General Assembly while unilaterally locking down the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. No one person should have that amount of power over the lives of 13 million free Pennsylvanians. It is contrary to the norms of a constitutional republic.

While lives and livelihoods were lost as the Wolf administration floundered with its COVID-19 approach, the state Senate and House of Representatives, duly elected by you, the people, were left without a say in this process. I worked with my colleagues, in a bipartisan manner, to craft a solution to Wolfs overreach as well as any future governors potential overreach. That solution comes in the form of the two proposed constitutional amendments that will be on the ballot.

I voted yes on House Bill 55 and Senate Bill 2 to place questions 1 and 2 on the ballot. I voted yes to give you, the voters, the final say on deciding how long a governor can unilaterally control our economy, our freedom and our commonwealth. If questions 1 and 2 pass on May 18, then Wolf or any future governor will have 21 days to declare a disaster declaration before having to present his or her case before the General Assembly for an extension of that disaster declaration. This means that the disaster declaration process will involve all branches of government.

It is time to end the endless lockdowns to save the future of Pennsylvania. If you value the balance of power in Harrisburg, then I respectfully ask that you vote yes on questions 1 and 2 on May 18.

(Kerwin represents the state Houses 125th District)
New Delhi, May 15 (PTI) UK's Cairn Energy Plc has brought lawsuit in the US to pierce the corporate veil between the Indian government and its owned flag carrier Air India so as to seize its overseas assets to recover USD 1.7 billion it has been awarded by international arbitration tribunal for being taxed retroactively.

The firm first moved courts in the US, UK, Canada, France, Singapore, the Netherlands and three other countries to register the December 2020 arbitration tribunal ruling that overturned the Indian government's Rs 10,247 crore demand in back taxes and ordered New Delhi to return the value of shares it had sold, dividends seized and tax refunds withheld to recover the tax demand.

Now, the firm has begin bringing lawsuits in the US and other countries to pierce the corporate veil between the Indian government and its owned companies such as in oil and gas, shipping, airline and banking sectors, to seize their overseas assets to recover the money awarded, three sources with direct knowledge of the development said.

In the first instance, it filed a lawsuit on May 14 in the US District court for the Southern District of New York, seeking to make Air India liable for the judgment. The lawsuit argued that Air India as a state-owned company is "legally indistinct from the state itself".

PTI had on March 28, 2021 reported that Cairn will bring lawsuits to pierce the corporate veil to establish that certain state-owned entities are India's alter ego under Bancec for enforcing the arbitration award.

The Bancec guidelines deal with determining when a judgment against a foreign state is enforceable against its agencies.

The lawsuit is similar to the one brought by Crystallex International Corp to attach property of Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A (PDVSA), the state-owned oil company of Venezuela, in Delaware couple of years back after the Latin American country failed to pay the firm USD 1.2 billion that an arbitration tribunal had ordered to pay in lieu of the 2011 seizing gold deposits held and developed by the firm.

Sources in the government said India will take all necessary steps to defend against any such "illegal enforcement action".

It will contest the move on grounds that the government has challenged the arbitration award in the appropriate court in The Hague and it is confident that the award will be set aside.

Sources said the government has also engaged a counsel team which is ready to defend against any enforcement action.

Indian assets across several jurisdictions have been identified that Cairn will be seeking to seize to enforce the award, sources said.

Cairn is pulling out all the stops to recover the damages, including hiring a team of asset recovery experts.

Sources said the assets that can be attached could range from airplanes to ships, to oil and gas cargoes and bank accounts of state-owned entities.

Cairn had previously said the money ultimately belongs to its shareholders -- which include large investors such as BlackRock, Fidelity and Franklin Templeton, and the ramifications of India not honouring the award will "run across the international investment community more widely".

Its management team has held three rounds of face-to-face and one video conferencing discussions with top officials in the finance ministry.

India has appealed against the arbitration award on the grounds that taxation-related matters are not covered in its bilateral investment treaty with the United Kingdom under which the case was filed, and therefore the arbitration tribunal does not have the jurisdiction to rule on the matter, sources said.

However, the appeal in the Dutch court does not bar Cairn from taking action in other jurisdictions to recover the full amount of the arbitral award which totals USD 1.7 billion after including interest and cost as of December 2020.

The company will seek to establish that state-owned entities/firms are India's alter ego under Bancec regulations, that is, to pierce the veil between the Indian government and them.

'Piercing the corporate veil' is a means of imposing liability on an underlying cause of action against a third-party which would not otherwise be liable.

By this, Cairn will seek to pierce the veil in order to shift liability for payment of an existing judgment against the Republic of India to a third-party that is not otherwise liable, that is state-owned firms or banks.

"Government/ PSU has not received any such notice. As and when any such notice is received, the government/concerned organisation shall take all necessary steps to defend against any such illegal enforcement action," a government source said. PTI DP ANZ MKJ

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
As the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc across the world with over 16 crore infections and more than 30 lakh deaths globally, the origins of the pandemic still remains elusive. The origins of COVID-19 which was first detected in Wuhan, China still manages to be a mystery with conspiracy theories floating around that the virus was transmitted from bats to humans in Wuhan's wet market while others claim it to be a man-made virus developed in the Wuhan laboratory.

Although the World Health Organisation has absolved China for the COVID-19 woes the world is facing, yet several countries have taken up against China for being discreet over its handling of the Coronavirus that led to the virus becoming a global-scale catastrophe. Due to the inconclusive investigation of the WHO into the origins of the virus, the world struggles to find closure as to where and how did the virus originate.

The scientific community around the world have questioned the origins of the virus on multiple occasions. Recently, 18 top scientists wrote an open letter to the scientific community at large to remind people that the findings of the WHO investigation were inadequate and that the data gathering was credible and not as per scientific methods.

One of the 18 scientists who wrote the letter, Dr Ravindra Gupta - Professor of Clinical Microbiology from the University of Cambridge has spoken to Republic TV in this regard.

''Speaking on the WHO investigation into COVID origins in China, a number of countries and Head of WHO Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus himself mentioned that the investigation did not meet the acceptable standards,'' said Dr Gupta.

The letter by the 18 scientists says that all the information and data gathering in the WHO investigation was conducted by the Chinese members of the experts' team sent by WHO. The scientific community called for governments across the world to come together and question the origins of the virus as scientists cannot alone dig into the root of the global mess.

"There is a possibility of selection of certain bits of data and exclusion of others. We can't tell. We needed to have records of scientists who were in that (Chinese) research facility, open to scrutiny without any modification so that everybody knows what virus were being manipulated. And to have a proper view of what work was going on there because they were clearly working on Coronaviruses but the team was not able to access freely unrestricted data," Dr Gupta said.

Independent panel calls for more power to WHO to probe pandemic origins

A panel of independent experts who reviewed the World Health Organization's (WHO) response to the Coronavirus pandemic said the world health body should be granted guaranteed access rights in countries across the world to probe the emerging outbreaks of virus and diseases. This assumes significance in light of WHO repeatedly absolving China for its response against the COVID-19 pandemic and on alerting the world about the deadly virus. However, an Associated Press investigation found officials privately criticising China for being discreet about its virus spread and not sharing the vital information which could have been instrumental in world response against the pandemic. The devastating spread of COVID-19 across the globe has dented WHO's credibility owing to its slow response to the pandemic.

China's hesitancy to probe on COVID-19 origins

After the COVID-19 wreaked havoc on almost all the countries across the globe in 2020, more than 120 member nations of the UN called for an independent investigation into the COVID-19 origins in China despite China's objection to the probe. The probe was proposed by Australia, backed by the European Union and later supported by a number of other member nations of the UN. The geopolitical ramifications of the calls for COVID-19 investigation led to the relations of China with the US and Australia stooping to an all-time low with trade wars among others.

Due to China's hesitancy and delay in granting permission to the probe even after immense international pressure, the team of WHO experts visited China in mid-January this year, even as the virus began causing havoc in late 2019. Even as China maintained that the virus originated elsewhere while it was first detected in Wuhan (an argument rejected by the world) China even refused to hand over key data to the WHO team investigating the origins of COVID-19, potentially complicating efforts to understand how the global pandemic began. WHO Chief Tedros Ghebreyesus said his team suffered rejections from China in accessing "raw data on early COVID-19 cases", while adding that more "collaborative studies" are required with "more timely and comprehensive data sharing".
Amid undulating COVID-19 figures on the graph and a medical crisis witnessed by the nation, Kazakhstan has lent a hand of support to India's ongoing Coronavirus battle. An aircraft with a consignment of 105 ventilators, 7,50,000 masks/ respirators, and other medical equipment has arrived in New Delhi during the early hours of May 15.

External Affairs Ministry (EAM) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said this gesture "further deepening our Strategic Partnership." Taking to Twitter, he expressed gratitude to Kazakhstan for their support.



Continuing cooperation with our Strategic Partner. Aircraft arrives carrying consignment of 105 ventilators, 750000 masks/respirators and other medical equipment from Kazakhstan. Grateful to Kazakhstan for the support. pic.twitter.com/L63nAnsQ06  Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) May 15, 2021

Outpouring solidarity in the form of medical aid from several countries

Exponential hike in COVID-19 infections across India since the inception of the second wave has evidently overburdened Indian production sectors, the medical infrastructure, and thousands of frontline medical staff in the country. While COVID-19 management and curbs have been harder for India to attain, countries from across the globe have expressed solidarity.

Previously, Thailand, Qatar, Kuwait, Ukraine, Israel, Netherlands, Romania on behalf of the European Union, United Kingdom, United States, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, China, Singapore, Bhutan amongst few others have come forward in providing assistance to India in procuring tonnes of liquid medical oxygen, transporting mobile oxygen plants, drugs, vaccine and other medical amenities to cater as medical requirements and essential components against the destructive COVID-19 second-wave.

COVID-19 situation in India

3,43,144 people tested positive for the COVID on Friday. With 3,53,299 discharges and 3,890 deaths in the last 24 hours, the country's caseload extended to 2,43,72,907. Active cases were 36,73,802, the death toll stood at 2,66,207. Total discharges have been 2,04,32,898. As per health bulletin updated by the ministry on Saturday morning,
Amid undulating COVID-19 figures on the graph and a medical crisis witnessed by the nation, Kuwait has lent a hand of support to India's ongoing Coronavirus battle.

A Kuwaiti Ship arrived at Nhava Sheva Mumbai. The consignment included 3 semi-trailers of Liquid Medical Oxygen (25 Metric Tonnes each) and 1000 Oxygen cylinders onboard. Official Spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs, Arindam Bagchi acknowledged the reception of this life saving medical equipment and extended his gratitude to His Highness Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah the Amir of the State of Kuwait & the government of Kuwait too. He established via his official Twitter account.



Taking forward historical ties of friendship. Kuwaiti ship arrives at Nhava Sheva Mumbai (India). 3 semi-trailers of LMO (25 MT each) & 1000 O2 cylinders onboard. Grateful to H.H. Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah the Amir of the State of Kuwait & government of Kuwait. pic.twitter.com/NdiJef9Qn9  Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) May 15, 2021

Australia lends support amid COVID-19 crisis in India

The consignment of 25,000 ventilator valves arrived from Australia earlier today. Arindam Bagchi hinted on continued cooperation and extended his gratitude on Twitter.



Our continuing cooperation with Australia. Consignment of 25000 ventilator valves arrives. Appreciate this continuing support from our friend Australia. pic.twitter.com/BMy7bh2fCs  Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) May 15, 2021

Outpouring solidarity from across the globe

Exponential hike in COVID-19 infections across India since the inception of the second wave has evidently overburdened Indian production sectors, the medical infrastructure, and thousands of frontline medical staff in the country. While COVID-19 management and curbs have been harder for India to attain, countries from across the globe have expressed solidarity.

Previously, Thailand, Qatar, Kuwait, Ukraine, Israel, Netherlands, Romania on behalf of the European Union, United Kingdom, United States, Russia, Saudi Arabia, China, Singapore, Bhutan amongst few others have come forward in providing assistance to India in procuring tonnes of liquid medical oxygen, transporting mobile oxygen plants, drugs, vaccine and other medical amenities to cater as medical requirements and essential components against the destructive COVID-19 second-wave.

COVID-19 situation in India

3,43,144 people tested positive for the COVID on Friday. With 3,53,299 discharges and 3,890 deaths in the last 24 hours, the country's caseload extended to 2,43,72,907. Active cases were 36,73,802, the death toll stood at 2,66,207. Total discharges have been 2,04,32,898. As per the health bulletin updated by the ministry on Saturday morning, the total vaccine doses administered so far is 18,04,57,579, whereas, vaccine doses administered in the last 24 hours is 11,03,625.

The country's cumulative COVID-19 recoveries have surpassed the 2 crore mark with 3.53 lakh patients recuperating in a day. This is the fourth time in the last five days that recoveries have surpassed daily case rise. India's COVID-19 tally crossed the 10 million mark on December 19 and in under six months, it has doubled, surpassing the grim milestone of 20 million cases as of May 4 itself.
Amid the rising cases of Mucormycosis or Black Fungus among COVID-19 patients all across the country, the Odisha government on Friday announced that they have constituted a seven-member state-level committee to monitor such cases in the state among those admitted to different hospitals in the state and formulate a guideline for early detection and management. A few days ago, Odisha had reported a total of at least 5 such cases.

An official release read, "In view of the reported rise in the incidence of Mucormycosis (Black Fungus) amongst the COVID-19 patients on Corticosteroids and other immunosuppressive drugs and also amongst patients in the post COVID period in the State, Odisha Government has constituted a State Level Committee."

The Health Department of the state has asked all Government Medical colleges in the state to constitute an expert committee each comprising of members from the Department Of Medicine and {or Pulmonary medicine, Dermatology. ENT. Ophthalmology, and neurology for coordination of diagnosis and management of such cases.

Mucormycosis is a fungal infection that mainly affects people who are on medication for other health problems that reduce their ability to fight environmental pathogens. This infection has been witnessed in cases of uncontrolled diabetes mellitus, immunosuppression by steroids, prolonged ICU stay, and co-morbidities.

COVID situation in Odisha

Odisha on Friday registered its highest single-day spike of 12,390 new COVID-19 cases, which pushed the tally to 5,88,687, while a record number of 22 fatalities raised the toll to 2,273, a senior health department official said. Accordingly, the number of active cases climbed to 1,04,016, the official said. Of the 12,390 new cases, 6,938 were reported from various quarantine centers, and the rest detected during contact tracing, he stated.

Khurda district, of which state capital Bhubaneswar is a part, accounted for 2,201 new cases, followed by Sundergarh at 882, Cuttack at 719, Sambalpur at 677, and Angul at 532.

Taking to Twitter, the health department said, "Regret to inform about the demise of twenty-two Covid positive patients while under treatment in hospitals." Four deaths were recorded in Khurda, three in Angul, and two each in Kalahandi, Kendrapara, Rayagada, and Sundergarh. One each succumbed to the infection in Bolangir, Boudh, Cuttack, Deogarh, Ganjam, Gajapati, and Kandhamal.

(With Agency Inputs)
In a key development on Thursday, Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina congratulated BJP's Himanta Biswa Sarma on taking oath as the Chief Minister of Assam. In a letter addressed to the CM, she exuded confidence in the multi-ethnic, multi-linguistic and multi-faith people of the state progressing towards greater development. Citing the warmth of the bilateral ties between Bangladesh and India, she invited Assam to reap benefits from her country's socio-economic development and growth strategy. Moreover, Hasina pitched collective action across borders for countering the COVID-19 pandemic.

The letter read, "With Bangladesh poised to graduate into a middle-income country, we invite Assam to reap benefits from our socio-economic development and growth trajectory. The Government of Bangladesh remains steadfast in strengthening connectivity for the North-Eastern part of India. Further, given our locational advantage as a connectivity hub between South and South East Asia, we remain supportive of India's 'Act East Policy'."

Reacting to the letter, Sarma stated that he cherishes the good wishes of Hasina. Asserting that Assam is committed to pursuing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of both countries moving forward together, he opined that they will continue to gain mutually. Hasina's gesture assumes significance amid fears that people deemed illegal migrants from Bangladesh owing to NRC may be pushed into the country.

I highly value & cherish good wishes of Hon PM #SheikhHasina. Assam is committed to pursue the vision of Hon PM Sri @narendramodi who recently said while in Bangladesh Let India and Bangladesh move forward together. We shall continue to gain mutually.@BDMOFA @MEAIndia https://t.co/O199fKLqA5  Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) May 14, 2021

NDA retains power in Assam

In a blow for BJP in the lead-up to the 2021 Assembly election, its ally Bodoland People's Front (BPF) decided to join the Congress-led alliance. While BJP is contested 92 seats, it allocated 26 and 8 seats to Asom Gana Parishad and the United People's Party Liberal respectively. On the other hand, Congress has formed a grand alliance with BPF, AGM, AIUDF, CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML), RJD and JPP.

However, the opposition tie-up proved to be no match for NDA as the latter managed to retain power in the state. As part of the ruling alliance, BJP, AGP and UPPL won 60, 9 and 6 seats respectively. As far as Mahajot is concerned, Congress secured 29 seats followed by AIMIM, BPF and CPI(M) whose candidates won in 16, 4 and 1 constituencies respectively. Most of the prominent candidates including CM Sarbananda Sonowal, Himanta Biswa Sarma and AGP president Atul Bora won their seats with a convincing margin. However, Assam Congress chief Ripun Bora suffered a shock defeat in Gohpur.

On May 10, Himanta Biswa Sarma took oath as the state's 15th CM pipping Sonowal to the top post. He was administered the oath of office and secrecy at Guwahati's Sankardev Kalakshetra Auditorium in the presence of BJP president JP Nadda and Chief Ministers of other Northeastern states. Meanwhile, Parimal Shuklabaidya, Chandramohan Patowary, Sanjay Kishan, Ranuj Pegu, Jogen Mohan, Ajanta Neog, Ashok Singhal, Pijush Hazarika, Ranjeet Dass, Keshab Mahanta, Atul Bora and Urkhao Brahma were sworn in as Ministers.
In this week's edition of the Legal Eagle with Rhythm, Senior Supreme Court advocate Saurab Kirpal spoke with Republic Media Network's Executive Editor - Law & Governance Rhythm Anand Bhardwaj, about his dilemmas on choosing a career path between Law and Science and what made him go ahead with Law over Science.

While speaking candidly about his journey, Kirpal said, "I was kind of town between Law on one hand and Science on the other to be a physicist is what I really wanted to do. Law because I came from a legal family. I had seen it all around me. I was six when my father became a judge of the high court. I am now the sixth generation of the lawyer. But my first love was astrophysics and sciences"

'Determined to live in India'

He said he loved the logic in physics and the math that transformed into physics. However, he added that he wanted to be close to the motherland and did not want to leave India hence he decided to do law as choosing physics would have compelled him to shift to an advanced country after completing his graduation in the 90s.

"I was determined to live in India. I wanted to live with my motherland and do everything I could do here. Had I been a physicist, the scope was very limited sciences in India in the early 90s. My love for physics in terms of logic and the application of mathematics to it was something rather similar to what we do in law every day," he added.

Advocate Kripal also spoke about his formative years studying at Oxford and Cambridge which developed him to be the lawyer, his time working with the United Nations in Geneva over a range of cases, followed by working in Mukul Rohatgi's chambers.

"I worked with the United Nations compensation commission. It was an agency that dealt with the Iraq war, the Kuwait invasion by Iraq, a lot of people had lost out everything because of the invasion. A lot of Indians had businesses there, people had to flee and leave everything behind. There was large scale environmental damage. Countries had suffered as they had to evacuate their citizens. They made claims against Iraq and there was a lot of money that had to be distributed to various countries. I was part of the commission to decide and determine as to which person will get how much compensation. It was interesting because it taught me other systems of law," he said.

Speaking of his years with Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, he said he has learnt a lot from him. "To me, he (Mukul Rohatgi) has been a guide, a mentor and now a friend," Kirpal said.

'Judgement is not a magic wand'

Advocate Kirpal spoke candidly of his battle about decriminalising section 377. Speaking highly of the judgement decriminalising section 377, He said, "there has been a tremendous impact of the judgement on the ground. It's not easy changing society. Judgements are not magic wands that one judgement alone is sufficient to change how society thinks. It's a long arduous process. But due to the judgement, I have seen on the ground, a vast number of people becoming confident of their own self and in their own sexuality. So that has really helped the members of the LGBT community."

He said the biggest change the country needs is an anti-discrimination code. Even after seventy years of independence, the country doesn't have a law to comprehensively prohibit all forms of discrimination against all the citizens, Advocate Kirpal said.

Rhythm Anand Bhardwaj is the Executive Editor - Law & Governance at Republic Media Network. She has over a decade's experience in covering courts, and politics. She has covered ICJ hearings at the Hague and extradition hearings at London. She has reported from Kabul. She was also a Supreme Court Lawyer. Reach out to her at @Rhythms22
Tasting success on the red planet, China successfully landed on the surface of Mars on Saturday, according to Xinhua news agency. The Tianwen-1 spacecraft landed on a vast plain known as Utopia Planitia on Mars, making China the second country after the US to step onto Mars. The US' 'Perseverance' rover landed on Mars in February 2020 - marking a first for mankind.

China lands on Mars

Chinese President Xi Jinping issued a message of congratulations to the entire team saying, "You were brave enough for the challenge, pursued excellence and placed our country in the advanced ranks of planetary exploration. Your outstanding achievement will forever be etched in the memories of the motherland and the people".

Xinhua stated that the spacecraft left its parked orbit at about 1700 GMT Friday and the landing module separated from the orbiter three hours later, entering Mars' atmosphere. As per reports, the lander module safely landed on the red planet at 2318 GMT and the rover took more than 17 minutes to unfold its solar panels and antenna and send signals to ground controllers. The named Zhurong, will now survey the landing site before departing from its platform to conduct inspections. Zhurong - named after the mythical Chinese god of fire, has six scientific instruments including a high-resolution topography camera to study the planet's surface soil and atmosphere and look for signs of ancient life, as per reports.

China's Long March 5B crashes into Indian Ocean

Last week, remnants of China's biggest rocket 'Long march 5B' landed in the Indian Ocean on Sunday, with the bulk of its components destroyed upon re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, according to Chinese state media. As per China Manned Space Engineering Office, the point of impact in the ocean has been zeroed at the west of the Maldives archipelago. China has maintained that its out-of-control rocket posed 'very little risk for objects on the ground'.

Chinese state media reported parts of the rocket re-entered the atmosphere at 10:24 a.m. Beijing time (0224 GMT) and landed at a location with the coordinates of longitude 72.47 degrees east and latitude 2.65 degrees north. While several countries were expecting massive debris as Long March 5B blasted off from China's Hainan island on April 29, the China Manned Space Engineering Office said most of the debris was burnt up in the atmosphere. Last year, pieces from the first Long March 5B fell on Ivory Coast, damaging several buildings but no injuries were reported.

(With Agency inputs)
French president Emanuel Macron held talks with New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern on Friday to forge a joint approach to tackling online extremism.

Their online meeting marks two years since they launched their Christchurch Call initiative, named after the New Zealand city where a gunman massacred 51 people at two mosques in 2019, broadcasting his crimes live on Facebook

Participants in the Christchurch Call are asked to pledge to eliminate violent extremist content on social media and other internet platforms.

Tech giants and governments around the world - including the U.S. for the first time - are gathering virtually Friday and Saturday in support of the initiative.

Macron was speaking from at Fort de Bregancon, a medieval fortress on the French Riviera.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Leading scientists from the US and UK including Indian-origin Cambridge University immunology and infectious disease expert Ravindra Gupta, on Friday, demanded profound research to find the origins of the COVID-19 virus. The group of top scientists has also asked for an investigation on Wuhan's accidental lab leak theory. Several countries are going through a deadly phase of COVID-19 for more than one year and almost every part of the world has witnessed a horrifying impact since its outbreak.

The scientists have demanded clarity to determine the source of the virus.

"As scientists with relevant expertise, we agree with the WHO director-general (5), the United States and 13 other countries (6), and the European Union (7) that greater clarity about the origins of this pandemic is necessary and feasible to achieve," said leading scientists from US, and UK.

WHO findings

In March 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) had released the findings of the study conducted in China to find the origin of COVID-19. According to the study, the organization pointed out that it was extremely unlikely for the virus to have leaked from Chinese labs. However, during the beginning of the investigation, the Chinese authorities had delayed the process for which it was also criticized by the WHO.

Now the leading scientists have marked that "the information, data, and samples for the study's first phase were collected and summarized by half of the Chinese team" and analysis for built by the rest of the team.

"Although there were no findings in clear support of either a natural spillover or a lab accident, the team assessed a zoonotic spillover from an intermediate host as likely to very likely, and a laboratory incident as extremely unlikely. Furthermore, the two theories were not given balanced consideration. Only 4 of the 313 pages of the report and its annexes addressed the possibility of a laboratory accident," added the leading scientists in their argument.

There have also been reports of China that tried to use COVID as a new era of genetic weapons". A further investigation on the matter is required however the leak revealed that Chinese officials planned of using a biological weapon for the third world war.
Tensions continued to rise Friday along the Lebanese-Israeli border, as hundreds attended a rally in support of Palestinians. Religious leaders from different factions gathered to show their support. Christian leader Phillip Okla said his congregation was "invited to stand with our family in Occupied Palestine."

Demonstrations in solidarity with the displacement and ethnic cleansing of families from Sheikh Jarrah, Palestine at the Sidon Sea Castle, Lebanon. #SaveSheikhJarrah pic.twitter.com/mYNPOIwjI7  Lebanon (@beautyoflebanon) May 7, 2021

UN calls for Peace

Secretary-General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres on May 14 appealed for cessation of conflict out of respect for Eid which is a religious holiday that marks the end of month-long dawn-to-sunset fasting of Ramadan. Noting that too many civilian casualties have already mounted since the violence began in the region, Guterres said that the ongoing conflict will only elevate the radicalization and extremism in the entire area. Earlier, in a joint statement, Russian President Vladimir Putin and United Nations Secretary-General also called for an end to the conflict.

Image: sahouraxo/Twitter

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STORY: France Pro Palestinian Demo 3 - French police disperse pro Palestinian protesters

LENGTH: 01:59

FIRST RUN: 1606

RESTRICTIONS:

TYPE: Natsound

SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS

STORY NUMBER: 4326021

DATELINE: 15 May 2021 - Paris

SHOTLIST:

RESTRICTION SUMMARY:

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Paris - 15 May 2021

1. Various of French police and demonstrators

2. Various of police water cannons being used to disperse the demonstrators

3. Various of police advancing and demonstrators fleeing water cannon

4. Low ground shot of police

STORYLINE:

French riot police fired tear gas and used water cannons Saturday in Paris as protesters supporting Palestinians in the Gaza Strip defied a ban on marching in the French capital.

Hundreds of people marched peacefully in other cities in France and elsewhere in Europe.

In Paris, protesters scattered and played cat-and-mouse with security forces in the city's northern neighborhoods after their starting point for a planned march was blocked.

Paris police chief Didier Lallement had ordered 4,200 security forces into the streets and closed shops around the kick-off point for the march in a working-class neighborhood after an administrative court confirmed the ban due to fears of violence.

Authorities noted that a banned July 2014 pro-Palestinian protest against an Israeli offensive in Gaza degenerated into violence and running battles with police to justify the order against Saturdays march.

Organizers said they intended to denounce the latest Israeli aggressions and mark the fleeing of Palestinians after Israel declared independence in 1948.

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New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that tech companies need to make more progress on "algorithms" that can help stop extremist violence from spreading online while respecting freedom of expression. Ardern along with France's President Emmanuel Macron is leading a push to rid the world of extremist and terrorist content online. The initiative  known as the "Christchurch Call", was launched in the wake of the Christchurch mosque attacks that killed 51 people in March 2019.

'Christchurch Call'

Ardern, Macron and other leaders from tech giants and governments around the world came together gathered virtually on May 15 to find better ways to stop violence from spreading online. The United States government and four other countries joined the effort for the first time this year. The initiative involves some 50 nations and also tech companies including Google, Facebook, Twitter and Amazon.

The Christchurch attack was live-streamed by the attacker and stored online, raising questions on social media protocols. Similar incidents were also happened on two other occasions, during a 2019 shooting in Halle, Germany and a 2020 attack in Glendale, Arizona. Such incidents called for an immediate action plan to put efforts to de-radicalise online spaces.

Two years after the launch of the #ChristchurchCall in Paris, New Zealand and France gather all the actors involved to tackle online extremism. Listen to President @EmmanuelMacron's opening remarks: pic.twitter.com/992nukHl2n  Elysee (@Elysee) May 14, 2021

On 15 May (NZT), Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern & President Emmanuel Macron will co-chair the leaders meeting on the 2nd anniversary of the #ChristchurchCall.



https://t.co/4yJXgr1hT2 pic.twitter.com/QA69L7qAQH  France in New Zealand (@AmbafranceNZ) May 9, 2021

Ardern said that in order to prevent future atrocities such as the Christchurch mosque attack, the world needs to "work together". It is worth mentioning that a key finding into the Christchurch mosque attacks revealed that the man who carried them out, Australian Brenton Tarrant, was radicalised on YouTube and other online spaces while viewing white supremacist material. Tarrant has been jailed for life without parole.

"The existence of algorithms themselves is not necessarily the problem, it's whether or not they are being ethically used. And so that is probably the biggest focus for the Call community over the next year," Ardern said.

The meeting was aimed at revitalising coordination efforts, notably since President Joe Biden entered office, and getting more tech companies involved. Macron and Ardern welcomed the US decision as a potential catalyst for stronger action. Ardern said part of the solution also came in better equipping a younger generation of internet users to have the skills to deal with radical content or disinformation when they encounter it online.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a prerecorded video that authorities in his country alone had taken down more than 300,000 pieces of terrorist material from the internet over the past decade, which he described as a tsunami of hate. "Terrorist content is like a metastasising tumor within the internet, or series of tumors," Johnson said. "If we fail to excise it, it will inevitably spread into homes and high streets the world over."

Tonight I joined France and New Zealands #ChristchurchCall, in which I outlined the world-leading work the United Kingdom is doing to tackle vile terrorist propaganda online and ensure tech giants remove illegal content faster. pic.twitter.com/GjSZGS5O2n  Priti Patel (@pritipatel) May 14, 2021

The Internet connects & unites us.

We must ensure that it is not misused.



At the #ChristchurchCall summit @EU_Commission, governments, tech companies & civil society take global action to stop terrorist content online.@jacindaardern @EmmanuelMacron



 https://t.co/TSdoMEScYp pic.twitter.com/7Trc9huvuP  Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) May 15, 2021

Today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau participated in the Christchurch Call Second Anniversary virtual leaders Summit. Learn more about the #ChristchurchCall to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online: https://t.co/JNgcATNtuz pic.twitter.com/Y9g2RugjDJ  CanadianPM (@CanadianPM) May 14, 2021

(with inputs from AP)
After an Indian-origin woman was assaulted and racially abused in Singapore for not wearing her face mask properly, Minister for Law and Home Affairs K Shanmugam addressed the Singapore Parliament where he strongly condemned the incident. The Senior Minister warned that Singapore would fail if it allowed racism and xenophobia to become prevalent, adding that racist behaviour could not be justified by the pandemic or isolated cases of Indians behaving badly.

"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," K Shanmugam said.

The Minister for Law and Home Affairs stated that some parties were "deliberately stoking the fears, encouraging racism and xenophobia, and dog-whistling" warning the dangers that this could lead to for the country and its rich Indian community. "First, it will be the expat Indians. Then, it will come to Singaporean Indians," he said.

"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. 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.

K Shanmugam also pointed out the use of certain slurs against the Indian community prevalent on online websites, sharing how these were deliberately fomenting racism 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 racismI invite all here to condemn," he said.

Indian-origin woman racially assaulted in Singapore

The Minister's strong words of criticism came after a 55-year-old Singaporean citizen of Indian origin was attacked by a Chinese man who intercepted her when she was brisk walking and told her to wear her mask properly. After a few exchange of words between the two, the Chinese man uttered an offensive racial remark and kicked her in the chest, causing her to fall to the ground.

The Singapore police have already arrested the 30-year-old Chinese man who could be jailed for up to three months, fined up to USD 1,509, or both. Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has also come down heavily on the incident saying that the COVID-19 pandemic does not justify racist attitudes and actions.
After months of brewing negotiations, the Afghanistan government's negotiating team and the Taliban leadership met in Doha, Qatar on April 14 to deliberate on ascending peace talks.

The Afghan government's peace team explained on Twitter, "Today a meeting was held in Doha between the delegations of both negotiating sides". The parties "emphasised speeding up the peace talks in Doha", it added.

Taliban spokesperson, Suhail Shaheen also confirmed the event via his official Twitter handle.

1/2

Today, some members of the two teams of the intra-Afghan negotiations had a meeting which was also attended by the Deputy-Amir for Political Affairs,IEA and Head of the Political Office, Mullah Bradar Akhund. Besides Eid greetings, the two sides discussed the status quo  Suhail Shaheen.    (@suhailshaheen1) May 14, 2021

In a similar statement posted to Twitter, the Taliban said "both sides agreed to continue the talks after (Eid al-Fitr)", which concludes on Saturday.

Explosion inside a mosque in Kabul despite a three-day ceasefire

After weeks of deadly violence, a three-day ceasefire was agreed upon by the warring sides which came into force on Thursday to mark the Muslim holiday (Eid al-Fitr). However, the tranquillity was disrupted by a blast at a mosque on the outskirts of the Afghan capital. This explosion on Friday afternoon reported the killing of 12 persons including the Imam (one who leads Muslim worshippers in prayer). No group has so far claimed the attack and the Taliban has denied their responsibility too. Ceasefires in the past have largely held, in what is widely thought to be an exercise by the Taliban leadership to prove its reign control over the multitude of factions across Afghanistan which constitute an uncompromising adherence to movement. Afghans had been cautiously rejoicing the rare respite from violence, only the fourth such truce in the two-decades-long conflict.

US and NATO have pledged to withdraw their troops by September 11

Violence has intensified in Afghanistan since the United States missed a May 1 deadline, agreed with the Taliban last year, to withdraw all of its troops. The US and NATO have pledged to withdraw their troops from Afghanistan by September 11 however they have begun their final withdrawal from the country, after 20 years of war. Earlier this week, U.S. troops left southern Kandahar Air Base, where some NATO forces still remain. At the war's peak, more than 30,000 U.S. troops were stationed in Kandahar, the Taliban heartland. The base in Kandahar was the second-largest US base in Afghanistan, after Bagram north of Kabul.

While the Taliban avoided engaging US troops, they have furiously attacked Afghan government forces. Violence has rocked several provinces in recent weeks. The grave attack last week killed over 90 people, many of them pupils leaving a girls school when a powerful car bomb exploded. The Taliban denied involvement and condemned the attack.

Intra- Afghan Peace Talks

Previously, the Istanbul conference was scheduled to take place on the issue of Afghan peace in April end but it was postponed indefinitely after the Taliban declined to attend. Earlier this month, the Governments of the United States of America, the Russian Federation, the Peoples Republic of China, and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan during the Extended Troika held to negotiate and comprehend peaceful settlement in Afghanistan released their joint statements in relevance to rendezvous with representatives of the Islamic Republic negotiating team and of the Taliban. They called on the Afghan Taliban to fulfil its counter-terrorism commitments and to ensure that no terrorist organisations use the Afghan soil to harm any other country. The Troika also called on all the parties in the war-torn country to reduce violence and urged the Taliban to not pursue a spring offensive. It reaffirmed that any peace agreement must include protections for the rights of all Afghans, including women, men, children, victims of war, and minorities, and should respond to the strong desire of all Afghans for economic, social and political development including the rule of law".
Prince Harry, on May 14, joined the chorus of backlash against American podcaster Joe Rogans remarks spreading misinformation against COVID vaccination, arguing that he should have chosen his words more carefully. Appearing at the weekly podcast Armchair Expert, the 36 years old asserted that the present world is battling a misinformation endemic and at times like these, youve got to be careful about what comes out of your mouth. Asking Rogan to "stay out of it", Harry asserted that with every platform comes responsibility.

Late April, Rogan attracted global flak after he said that healthy youth need not get vaccinated against coronavirus. During his podcast The Joe Rogan Experience, he reckoned, "If youre like 21 years old, and you say to me, Should I get vaccinated? Ill go no. If youre a healthy person, and youre exercising all the time, and youre young, and youre eating well, I dont think you need to worry about this.

'Vaccines are safe'

However, later he apologised saying that he wasnt a doctor but an F-king moron. Additionally, Rogan also advocated for vaccine safety highlighting that both his parents have been vaccinated. He also clarified that whatever he said on the show was his personal opinion. White House Chief Medical Adviser Dr Anthony Fauci too slammed Rogan, calling his claims "incorrect". He asserted that people should not think of them as living in a vacuum. "You're worried about yourself in the likelihood that you're not going to get any symptoms. But you can get infected and will get infected if you put yourself at risk," he said.

Meanwhile, the Duke of Sussex also garnered global attention after he compared the royal family to a zoo. In a recent interview, Harry compared his royal experience of being on The Truman Show and "living in a zoo". He further revealed that he contemplated quitting Royal life on several occasions while in his 20s.

Harry said his life felt like the 1998 Jim Carrey film The Truman Show that tells a story about Truman Burbanks life being televised through hidden cameras. The Duke of Sussex appeared on the Armchair Expert podcast on May 13 and spoke candidly with host Dax Shepard about issues he faced while living in the Royal family. Further, he also threw light on keeping his relationship with Meghan Markle a secret and dealing with the UK media scrutiny.

Image: AP
Former US President Donald Trump who in 2020 became the first to lose in his re-election bid in several decades, shifted to his Florida club, Mar-a-Lago. His Mar-a-Lago estate on an island off the coast of Palm Beach in Florida became a permanent home after his tumultuous presidency came to an end at noon on January 20 as his successor Joe Biden took over the White House.

As per reports, the 74-year-old longtime New Yorker purchased the mansion in 1985 for 10 million dollars and converted it into a private club that became his winter home during his time as the US President. The 20-acre estate is inspired by a Moorish-Mediterranean structure, now with at least 128 rooms and was built in 1927 by Post cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post. Now, Florida could become the former US Presidents forever home.

Why Florida could become Trumps forever home?

On May 13, Politico reported that the law officials in Palm Beach County, Florida are preparing for potential indictments and arrests directed at Trump from other states. Further, while talking to MSNBC, Robert Muellers former senior prosecutor and general counsel Andrew Weissmann, Nicole Wallace said that the former US President could be potentially stuck in Florida for the rest of his life if other states decide to file charges against him.

As per the report, Wallace also noted that it happens all the time in foreign countries where people are somehow imprisoned in a country. He added that in the effective scenario, Donald Trump would be imprisoned in Florida because if the former US President went to any other state, he would be under those laws. Therefore, Wallace said, Trump would really have to stay in Florida.

Wallace also told the media outlet that Trump not being able to leave Florida would be an interesting issue because if years down the lane, the former US President decides to run for US presidency again, he would not be inhabiting the White House in that situation because there would be papers seeking his extradition to New York. Meanwhile, Bloomberg columnist Tim OBrien told MSNBC that he thinks a very advanced financial fraud investigation related to Trump is underway.

IMAGE: AP
Critics say the long-ruling strongman is trying to boost the political fortunes of his son, Hun Manet.

Sam Rainsy's Casio watch is shown (left) next to images of the more luxurious watches of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and his wife Bun Rany.

Cambodian political opposition leader Sam Rainsy has launched a campaign to help Cambodians impoverished by government-ordered lockdowns amid rising numbers of COVID-19 infections in the country, raffling his Casio wristwatch valued at $5.00.

The move by the exiled party leader has sparked calls for Prime Minister Hun Sen to sell his own watches, valued at many millions of dollars more.

Sam Rainsys campaign will run for three weeks beginning May 16, with 10,000 tickets expected to be sold and proceedings broadcast live via Zoom.

My watch is worth $5. If you think this is a good deal, please contribute that amount, said acting Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) president Sam Rainsy, who lives in self-imposed exile in Paris to avoid a string of convictions in Cambodian courts widely considered to be politically motivated.

If people want to buy my watch, they can buy a $5 raffle ticket, and if they are lucky, they will be awarded with the watch. People can buy more than one ticket if they like, he added.

Tickets can be purchased through CNRP branches overseas, said Men Vana, an overseas official for the CNRP, which now operates in exile after being dissolved by Cambodias Supreme Court in 2017 in advance of a national election the party was expected to win.

Ticket codes will then be sent to France for a drawing for the final award, Men Vana said.

Matt Vanny, a CNRP supporter living in South Korea, said he supports Sam Rainsys campaign, adding that the money raised will help many people now living in need. It is important to join this campaign in order to help, he said.

Sam Rainsys offer to sell his $5 watch has also prompted calls to Hun Sen to sell his own luxury watches costing millions of dollars more, Cambodian sources say.

We have heard that Hun Sens watch is worth three or four million dollars, so if he sells it, this could help thousands of people, Cambodian social analyst Seng Sary told RFA, while a young Cambodian named Seng Mengbunrong challenged Hun Sen to make the sale.

The leaders watch is worth a few million dollars. He has more than one of these along with other expensive accessories, but he wont dare sell them. He would rather let the people cry, he said.

Charges of corruption

Critics have long targeted Hun Sen, Cambodias ruler since 1985, and his family for their alleged corruption in a country where some hardly have enough food to eat. RFA reported in July last year that the prime minister had been drawing attention for his taste in watches costing more than a million U.S. dollars.

Hun Sens wife Bun Rany has also been criticized for her extravagant lifestyle after several photos of her wearing expensive clothing and accessories surfaced on social media. The photos show Bun Rany, who is president of the Cambodian Red Cross, wearing an expensive dress, a Versace T-shirt, a Hermes belt, and several luxurious watches.

Critics now also point to the familys control of efforts to provide food and other aid to Cambodian citizens suffering under government-ordered COVID-19 lockdowns that have left thousands hungry in so-called red zone areas of Cambodian cities.

Some analysts see nepotism in the appointments of Hun Sen's son, Hun Manet, to head a subcommittee in charge of security in quarantine areas, and Hun Manet's wife, Pich Chanmony, to lead volunteer doctors treating patients with coronavirus.

"It is like the Hun family is preparing a new political strategy, especially regarding the transfer of power from Hun Sen to his son, Hun Manet," said political analyst Kim Sok, who lives in exile in Finland. "This is a way to solidify Huns family and expand their assets during the COVID pandemic."

Sok Eysan, a spokesman for the ruling Cambodia People's Party called the allegations "slanderous and untrue" and politically motivated.

Profiting from food aid

The Commerce Ministry on April 21 announced an online food store for residents in red zones, selling eight items. Several brands are closely linked to top ruling CPP officials, leading to claims of profiteering.

Items provided by the store include Vital bottled water, sold by a company owned by two daughters-in-law of Hun Sen, and Mi Chiet instant noodlesproduced by a company owned by Choeung Sokuntheavy, daughter of tycoon and CPP senator's wife Choeung Sopheap.

Sokuntheavy is business partners with two of prime minister Hun Sen's daughters, and is related by marriage to his son, Hun Manet.

In addition, observers see that many companies or businesses of Huns family members are also wholesalers of food or groceries that do business with government by distributing or supplying foodstuffs to the people during the lockdown. These companies include Hun Mana's Vital Water Company. Soma Group (SOMA Group) under Hun Sen's son-in-law, Sok Puthivuth is in charge of distributing eggs, beef, rice, drinking water and electricity. Hun Sen's family members also have a pharmaceutical company.

In describing them as charity "sold below market value," Sok Eysan was not telling the whole truth in the case of at least one of the products offered through the Ministry of Commerce's shop, however. Mee Chiet noodles are offered through the online shop at a price of 16,000 riel ($4) for a case, the same price that the Mee Chiet company advertised on its website in January, months before the Ministry of Commerce shop was set up.

"When Hun Sen appoints his son to the steering committee and his son-in-law to the health technical committee like that, it becomes even more ineffective (in fighting COVID-19) because the officials in these committees do not dare to say anything against a wrong decision or mismanagement by Hun Sen or Hun Sen's son," said Kim Sok.

"When they speak out, it makes Hun Sen's family angry, so these committees are just a show," he added.

Cambodia ranked 162 out of 198 countries, close to the bottom, in Berlin-based Transparency Internationals 2019 Corruption Perceptions Index.

An investigative series by RFA examining the overseas real estate holdings of Cambodias ruling elite has turned up properties worth $30 million.

In 2016 alone, at least $1.8 billion was laundered out of Cambodia, according to an analysis by U.S. think tank Global Financial Integrity.

Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Richard Finney.
Belarus has sentenced two reporters, including one working for German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle, to 20 days in jail for allegedly participating in an unsanctioned demonstration.



The May 15 ruling is the latest in a series by Belarusian courts aimed at intimidating reporters covering the states brutal crackdown on peaceful demonstrators, critics say



Deutsche Welle freelance reporter Alyaksandr Burakou and independent reporter Uladzimer Laptsevich were detained on May 12 in Mahileu, a town 200 kilometers east of the Belarusian capital, Minsk, where they were waiting to cover the trial of opposition politician Paval Severinets.

Belarusian police charged them with "repeatedly participating in an unsanctioned demonstration within a year."



The reporters rejected the charges. Belarusian human rights group MayDay said there was no mass demonstration on May 12 in front of the court in Mahileu.



Deutsche Welle Director-General Peter Limbourg called on Belarusian officials to free the reporters immediately.



"We strongly protest against the violation of the constitutionally guaranteed press rights in Belarus," Limbourg said in a statement. "This accusation was constructed arbitrarily, and the way [Alyaksandr] Burakou has been treated shows that the regime is taking increasingly ruthless actions against journalists."



Burakou told the court that he had been subject to inhumane treatment in the detention facility. He complained that police guards regularly woke him, hampering his sleep.



He also said they failed to hand him personal care products and warm clothes brought to the detention center by his family.



Belarusian authorities have stepped up their repression of journalists and bloggers ever since the start of mass protests sparked by the August 9 presidential election.



Protesters say the election was rigged in favor of strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka, who has ruled Belarus since 1994.



Dozens of reporters have been temporarily detained or jailed over the ensuing nine months. Burakou was detained right before the election initially on a charge of "transporting counterfeit alcohol."



However, he was later sentenced to 10 days in jail for petty hooliganism in what he said was an attempt to prevent him from covering the election.



German Foreign Ministry spokesman Christofer Burger told Deutsche Welle on May 14 that the repression of journalists was "unacceptable" and "a clear violation of Belarus's international obligations."

With reporting by Deutsche Welle
Tens of thousands of people in Belarus have been swept up in the crackdown launched by Alyaksandr Lukashenka after he was declared winner of a presidential election last August that much of Belarus rejected as rigged. His main challenger, Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya, said she was forced to leave Belarus for Lithuania a day after the August 9 poll amid threats to herself and her family. She is not the only leading Belarusian opposition figure to have faced threats, jail time, or other pressure from Lukashenka and the state.



One of her closest associates, Maryya Kalesnikava, could face 12 years in prison, according to formal charges that came to light on May 13 and were swiftly denounced by the U.S. State Department as "an outrage." Kalesnikava is not the only Belarusian opposition figure to be hounded by Lukashenka. RFE/RL looks at the fate of her and four others who were at the forefront of last year's nascent pro-democracy movement in Belarus.

Maryya Kalesnikava

Kalesnikava headed the presidential campaign of Viktar Babaryka, former chairman of the Russian-owned Belgazprombank, until it was derailed by his June 2020 arrest on embezzlement charges, which he and his supporters contend were fabricated to keep him off the ballot.

Kalesnikava, 38, then teamed up with Tsikhanouskaya and after the disputed election became a senior member of the opposition's Coordination Council.

Kalesnikava was arrested on September 7 in the center of Minsk by masked men and taken to the Ukrainian border the next day along with two associates. Ordered to cross the border, Kalesnikava refused, tearing up her passport instead. She was then taken back to Minsk and jailed.

Kalesnikava was first charged with calling for action aimed at damaging the state. Her associates told RFE/RL on May 13 that, according to official documents, she is now charged with conspiracy to seize power by unconstitutional means, public calls for action against national security, and creating and leading an extremist group. If found guilty, Kalesnikava faces up to 12 years in prison.

U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price called the formal charges "manufactured" and "an outrage." Kalesnikava is a 2021 recipient of the State Department's International Women of Courage award. She and supporters reject all charges as politically motivated.

Viktar Babaryka

For 20 years, Babaryka was chairman of the board of Belgazprombank, an almost entirely Russian-owned commercial bank in Belarus. He stepped down to seek the presidency and was seen as a strong challenger.

Babaryka, 57, lashed out at Lukashenka during the campaign, accusing him of covering up the full scope of the COVID-19 pandemic in Belarus. Lukashenka had refused to institute lockdown measures, dismissing the coronavirus as "mass psychosis."

On June 15, Belarusian authorities seized control of Belgazprombank, and on June 18 they arrested Babaryka, accusing him of masterminding the illegal transfer of millions of dollars to accounts in Latvia. His son Eduard was also taken in by police.

Dzmitry Layeuski, a lawyer for Babaryka, said on January 28 that the country's Supreme Court would hear the case, dashing any hope of filing an appeal. Babaryka and six co-defendants went on trial on February 17.

Babaryka could be sentenced to 15 years in prison if convicted. He and his son are being held in a KGB jail, according to the human rights group Vyasna.

Valer Tsapkala

Like Babaryka, Valer Tsapkala is a successful businessman who sought to challenge Lukashenka but was barred from the presidential race. Tsapkala co-founded a high-tech incubator in Minsk and has political and diplomatic experience as well, having headed Lukashenka's first presidential campaign, in 1994, and later served as ambassador to the United States.

In the early days of the 2020 campaign, Tsapkala, 56, lambasted Lukashenka's government over "low living standards, mass migration, and low salaries," as well as corruption and a lack of political freedoms.

On June 29, the Interior Ministry announced a probe into "illegal activities" allegedly involving Tsapkala. A day later, electoral officials barred him from the presidential race on the grounds that his campaign had submitted forged signatures to get on the ballot, charges it rejected.

Reportedly fearing arrest, Tsapkala fled Belarus with his children sometime in late July and first headed to Russia. He later traveled on to Ukraine and Poland before staying put in Latvia.

Belarusian state TV reported on February 8 that Minsk was seeking his extradition, saying Tsapkala would face corruption and bribery charges. Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics said that no such request had been received and that if one is delivered, it will be rejected.

Veranika Tsapkala

Veranika Tsapkala headed her husband's presidential campaign at first, but after that bid was rejected she moved over to the Tsikhanouskaya team, joining Kalesnikava as a top aide. The trio were a hit on the campaign trail, drawing campaign crowds that grew in size as the August 9 election approached.

Tsikhanouskaya clenching her fist, Kalesnikava making a heart sign, and Tsapkala signaling a V for victory quickly became iconic symbols of the election.

Tsapkala stayed on in Belarus to help the campaign even after her husband and children had fled Belarus. That didn't mean she or her family were safe. Natallya Leanyuk, a sister of Veranika Tsapkala, said on July 30 that she was briefly detained for questioning after she had disappeared, raising fears she had been kidnapped.

After the August 9 vote, Tsapkala ultimately did leave, fleeing Belarus for Poland, where she reunited with her husband and family. On August 19, she told Reuters she would not return to Belarus any time soon as she feared she would be arrested. "I wish I could go back to Belarus as soon as possible but at the same time I understand the chances of me getting to the jail are very, very high," she said.

Syarhey Tsikhanouski

Like Babaryka and Tsapkala, Syarhey Tsikhanouski was viewed as a credible challenger to Lukashenka ahead of the presidential election. Unlike the other two, however, Tsikhanouski, 42, was not a businessman or a former diplomat but a blunt, burly vlogger.

He used his YouTube channel, A Country For Life, to expose graft and other wrongdoing in Belarus, racking up tens of thousands of followers in the process. His campaign rallies drew thousands, many clenching bedtime slippers to symbolically crush the "cockroach," the epithet Tsikhanouski had tarred Lukashenka with.

His presidential bid was rejected by electoral officials on May 15. Five days later, he announced from his hometown of Homel that his wife, Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya, would be stepping in to take his place. He headed out to campaign for her but on May 29 was arrested for a third and last time that month, in Hrodna. He was charged that day with violating public order, although video footage from the rally that day showed no signs of any unrest.

In March 2021, the Belarusian Investigative Committee announced that the formal probe into Tsikhanouski, opposition politician Mikalay Statkevich, who ran for president in 2010 and was imprisoned afterwards, and their associates had been completed.

Tsikhanouski is accused of organizing mass disorder, incitement of social hatred, impeding the Central Election Commission's activities, and organizing activities that disrupt social order. He could face up to 15 years in prison if found guilty. He and supporters vehemently deny the charges as politically motivated.

At the end of April, Tsikhanouski associate Alyaksandr Aranovich was sentenced to six years in prison after being found guilty of plotting mass disorder and organizing activities that violate public order. "The case is fabricated. No evidence was presented. I was not allowed to defend myself. Everything is being done to put me behind bars," Aranovich said at the end of the trial.

The trials of Tsikhanouski and the others targeted in the case are pending, and they remain jailed.
PODGORICA -- Ecological concerns are piling up on a billion-dollar stretch of new highway through a picturesque river canyon at the confluence of competing influences in the Balkans.



The delayed, 42-kilometer section of Montenegro's Bar-to-Boljare motorway is already under intense scrutiny over the cash-strapped Adriatic coast nation's decision seven years ago to hire a Chinese builder and take on nearly $1 billion in debt to construct it.



This week, under public pressure, the China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) requested permission to repair a damaged 500-meter section of riverbank on the UNESCO-protected Tara River traversed by the highway.



The Chinese company's proposal on May 10 reportedly included stabilizing the left bank of the waterway under the alpine Matesevo bridge, near a hub for mountain tourism in the area called Kolasin.



Its previous proposal, with the Montenegrin environmental regulator and environmental groups clamoring for remedies in August, was rejected as too modest.

Critics say the new plan is still laughable.

"Rehabilitation of 500 meters of the riverbed looks like a bad joke, since 6.7 kilometers of river flow and the floodplain's key biodiversity zone were destroyed on the loop and upstream access roads alone," Natasa Kovacevic of the Green Home environmental NGO, told RFE/RL's Balkan Service.



Green Home has fought for years for a suspension of highway and other construction work affecting the Tara River until better monitoring is in place to protect it.



Litmus Test



The clash over damage to a UN-protected river that ecological groups and some ruling coalition loyalists blame on CRBC, which is indirectly controlled by the Chinese state, could have broader political repercussions.



The first of Montenegro's payments on nearly $1 billion in Chinese loans for the highway is due in July, and Podgorica has already pleaded unsuccessfully for EU help to come up with the funds.



Some Balkan governments are said to be watching the Montenegrin appeal on the highway debt as a test of Brussels' appetite for closer engagement and deeper connections to countries of the former Yugoslavia that are still outside the bloc.



Montenegro joined NATO in 2017 and is a candidate for European Union membership.



But many EU member states remain wary of early enlargement to include Montenegro and states like Serbia, North Macedonia, and Kosovo, as well as Albania.



The project -- part of an interstate project to link Serbia to the Adriatic -- could come up on May 17 when leaders of the Western Balkan countries gather at Brdo Castle, in Slovenia, to discuss EU accession prospects for Montenegro and its neighbors.



"Why should the EU step in...and help Montenegro in this concrete project and problem?" Jovana Marovic, executive director of the Politikon Network, a Podgorica-based think tank, asked this week.



"Because in that way the EU will show that it cares about the Western Balkans, that the enlargement process is alive, and that dealing with the most pressing issue they actually are helping Montenegro and the Western Balkans, not leaving them to the potential negative political influences from third parties, China and the rest, of course."

Beijing has made infrastructure projects a key component of its ambitious Belt And Road Initiative (BRI), tying lending and economic projects to political and cultural ties that critics fear will give the Chinese too much influence over indebted governments.



The Balkans, and particularly Serbia, have been a clear target for BRI initiatives even as the European Union contributes hundreds of millions in assistance and diplomatically regards China and Russia as interlopers in the region.



Marovic noted that a previous Montenegrin government -- dominated by President Milo Djukanovic's long-ruling Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) -- signed the deal giving CRBC lead of the highway project in 2014.



The current government, a hash of Serbian nationalists, populists, and environmental and other groups who spent decades in opposition, came to power in December and has tried to distance itself from the deal.



It has also sought to reassure the West that it will maintain pro-EU policies.



"In the end," Marovic said, "this whole project and contract and conditions and everything, which is problematic when it comes to the highway project in Montenegro, that's not the responsibility of the current government but the previous one, and if the EU wants to help the Montenegrin democratization process, they should help the new government in order to be able to focus on democratization."



Chinese Disregard?



The completed section of Montenegrin highway should stretch 165 kilometers from Boljare, on its northern border with Serbia, to Bar on its southernmost coast.



The 42-kilometer stretch currently being built by CRBC was originally slated for completion in 2019 but has been extended several times.



Its current deadline for completion is the end of this year.

The Tara's 80-kilometer canyon is Europe's longest, and along with the surrounding coniferous-filled basin has enjoyed UNESCO World Heritage status since 1980.



It is already under threat from microdams and other small hydropower projects that have proliferated throughout much of the Balkans under sometimes lax enforcement regimes.



Montenegro's Nature and Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) last year accused the Chinese builders of ignoring its recommendations.



It noted last year that the highway construction had "led to turbidity" and deepened a half-kilometer of riverbed, affecting biodiversity in the nationally and internationally protected waterway.

Environmental inspectors have also warned of the danger of landslides from erosion in a loop where the Tara meanders.



In November, the NEPA gave its approval to the idea of CRBC repairing damage to the Tara River.



In its latest remediation proposal this month, CRBC was also said to have committed to an analysis of the state of biodiversity and possible restocking of the Tara after its highway work is completed.

The Tara is among the dwindling natural habitats of the huchen, or Danube salmon, a long-lived freshwater species that can grow to the size of a human. The huchen's numbers continue to plummet despite repeated warnings that the barometer species is in danger from the Bar-to-Boljare highway and other projects.



Ljiljana Jokic, from the ruling Civic Movement United Reform Action, a liberal green party, agreed that the project has created an ecological catastrophe and the Chinese offer is insufficient.



"Remediation of the problem is very necessary, but in the scope offered by CRBC it is definitely not enough," Jokic says. "We're not certain about the quality of rehabilitation in the planned area announced by CRBC, since if they'd done the job properly so far they wouldn't have put the Tara in the condition it's in now."



She says the Chinese company "should be asked for compensation for the destruction of the Tara."



An official from the Ecology Ministry, Tamara Brajovic, says they expect the Chinese company to repair any devastated areas of the Tara.

Written in Prague by Andy Heil based on reporting by Bojana Moskov and Predrag Tomovic
Ukraine has unveiled a synagogue on the site commemorating Babyn Yar, one of the biggest massacres of Jews during World War II.



"The symbolic synagogue is a big step toward restoring the memory of all those who died in this place," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said during a ceremony on May 14.



The wooden synagogue, which is constructed like a pop-up book, is decorated with patterns and texts of prayers that recreate the traditional interiors of ancient synagogues in western Ukraine. The unveiling coincided with commemorations of Ukraine's inaugural Day of Remembrance for Ukrainians who helped save Jews during World War II.



About 34,000 Jewish men, women and children were killed at the Babyn Yar ravine on the outskirts of Kyiv on September 29-30, 1941, soon after the Nazis occupied the city. In the following months more than 100,000 people, including Ukrainian nationalists, Roma, Jews, and Soviet prisoners of war were killed at the site.

After World War II, the site was used as a landfill and lagoon. The unveiling of the synagogue is part of the recent effort to shed more light on the massacre.



A monument was built on the site in the 1970s, but it was dedicated only to Soviet victims. Following the fall of the Soviet Union, a sculpture in the shape of a menorah was erected nearby.



The Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center, which was behind the effort to install the temporary synagogue, has plans to build a major memorial at the site.

Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP
A top Ukrainian official did not exclude the possibility of a prisoner swap with Russia if a Kyiv court convicts a Kremlin-leaning politician of treason.



Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, said in a TV interview that Kyiv would "gladly" hand over lawmaker Viktor Medvedchuk to Moscow in exchange for Ukrainians held in Russian prisons if the opportunity arises.



However, he said such a decision can only be made by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.



Ukrainian Prosecutor-General Iryna Venediktova on May 11 charged Medvedchuk, the leading figure in the Opposition Platform -- For Life party, with three counts of treason.



A Kyiv court placed Medvedchuk under house arrest on May 13 and set the start of his trial for July in what could be the highest-profile political case in Ukraine in years.



He denies the charges and calls them politically motivated.



Medvedchuk promotes closer ties with Russia, which annexed Crimea and backed fighters in eastern Ukraine following the overthrow of Kremlin-leaning President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014.

The war in eastern Ukraine, which continues to this day, has killed more than 13,000 people.



Medvedchuk is accused among other things of concealing his ownership of natural gas assets in Russian-occupied Crimea with the help of the Kremlin.



Ukraine in February sanctioned Medvedchuk and three television stations believed to be owned by him.



Ukraine accuses the stations of promoting Russian disinformation.



The 66-year-old Medvedchuk has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is the godfather of his daughter.

Medvedchuk has frequently traveled to Moscow to discuss with Russian officials, including Putin, peace in eastern Ukraine, prisoner swaps, as well as natural gas deals.



Putin on May 14 accused Ukraine of carrying out "anti-Russian" policies in a possible reference to the charges against his friend Medvedchuk.



Analysts say that Zelenskiy has grown frustrated with the lack of progress in the peace talks with Russia and sees Medvedchuk as a hindrance.



Zelenskiy, a political novice, came to power in May 2019 in part on a promise to end the war in eastern Ukraine and free political prisoners.



He carried out three prisoner swaps with Russia and the Kremlin-backed fighters in eastern Ukraine within his first year but has made no progress since April 2020.



Russia stills holds about 100 Ukrainians -- including many Crimean Tatars -- that Kyiv deems to be political prisoners.



Zelenskiys ratings have tumbled from above 70 percent in 2019 to below 30 percent this year amid disillusionment with his leadership.
KYIV -- Two Ukrainian ministers have reportedly submitted their resignations to parliament while a third minister is expected to be fired as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's cabinet experiences more turnover.



Minister of Economic Development, Trade, and Agriculture Ihor Petrashko and Minister of Infrastructure Vladyslav Krykliy submitted their resignations, Olha Tuniy, the press secretary of Verkhovna Rada Speaker Dmytro Razumkov, said in a May 14 Facebook post.



Tuniy gave no reason for their decision to resign. Neither minister has publicly announced their intention to step down.

Separately, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal asked parliament the same day to fire Health Minister Maksym Stepanov, who has been criticized for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.



The parliament will consider Shmyhals request to dismiss Stepanov at its next meeting on May 18.



Zelenskiys cabinet has experienced significant turnover since the former comic took power in 2019.



He dismissed his first government in March 2020 after just six months despite what Ukraine observers said was significant progress on banking and land reforms.



Parliament last month approved Herman Halushchenko as Ukraines new energy minister.

Halushchenko is the fourth person to hold the position of minister or acting-minster of energy under Zelenskiy.



There have been important changes outside Zelenskiy's cabinet as well over the past 15 months.



The president fired his chief of staff Andriy Bohdan in February 2020 while National Bank head Yakiv Smolii resigned in July 2020 citing political pressure.
Monday 05 September, 2016 Reliable information reaching Biafra writers desk has it that the life of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indi...
Santee is about to be 250 trees richer, thanks to a grant from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the California Urban Forest Council and Anaheim-based West Coast Arborists, Inc.

The city expects to add to its inventory of more than 8,200 trees this fall by being a part of Cool Parks, a tree planting grant funded by Cal Fire. The grant is specific to areas where there are disadvantaged or low-income communities.

The trees are expected to be planted by personnel from the La Mesa hub of West Coast Arborists, Santee city staff and a team of volunteers this fall. West Coast Arborists serves all of San Diego County as well as more than 275 municipalities and public agencies in California and Arizona. The company specializes in tree management including pruning, planting and removal.

Tentative plans show trees heading for Town Center Community Park off Cuyamaca Street and surrounding areas near the Sportsplex and Cameron YMCA, as well as Walker Preserve Trail off Magnolia Avenue.

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Michael Palat of West Coast Arborists said trees could include several types of ashes, oaks, elms and Canary Island Pines.

The grant also specifies that a special tree planting celebration and a tree team workshop has to take place, in which West Coast Arborists will educate people about the urban forest and how to become a tree advocate.

Santee City Councilwoman Laura Koval, in her role as Santee Lakes Director of Park & Recreation, literally helped get the seed planted.

In January, Koval met with West Coast Arborists to evaluate the urban forest at Santee Lakes, which has more than 2,000 trees on site.

Through conversation, I found out West Coast Arborists had been awarded another grant for more trees, Koval said. Instantly, I thought of the Mast Park improvement project. Maybe they could use some trees?

It turned out that Mast Park, which is in the midst of a $10 million renovation, is already covered for trees, but other parts of the city were in need.

West Coast Arborists will provide three years of care and maintenance for the trees.

Santee is hot, Koval said. I cant tell you what a difference it makes at Santee Lakes with the 2,000 we have. It keeps the area cooler, the birds love it and it helps with the watershed.

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The trees will have another benefit, helping with Santees climate action plan, Sustainable Santee.

Palat shared information from the Center for Urban Forest Research that says 100 trees remove 14 tons of carbon dioxide a year as well as pollutants like ozone and particulates from the atmosphere. They also annually catch 75,000 gallons of rainwater.

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karen.pearlman@sduniontribune.com
The mysterious flamingo that flew into Imperial Beach last week is here to stay. At least for now.

Nobody has claimed ownership of the bird that appeared in the South Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Park Ranger Brian Collins hopes it stays that way.

The pink flamingo is just a special visitor, he said. Id prefer not to find out where it came from because we arent going to chase it down and capture it. Its perfectly healthy as far as we can tell.

On Wednesday, Collins led a group of about 20 people visiting San Diego to a tour of the refuge. The flamingo was their main attraction.

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It took him just a couple of minutes to spot the bird in Pond 10A, a salt marsh next to Silver Strand Boulevard. When he did, he quickly turned to the group and gave them a thumbs up.

The group, armed with binoculars and bird guides, flocked to the edge of the marsh to catch a glimpse of the rare sight as it ate lunch  most likely plankton or small crustaceans, according to rangers.

People have been visiting Imperial Beach to look at the flamingo all week, said Mayor Serge Dedina.

I walked out what I call the Flamingo Trail, and there were a lot of people there, he said. People come specifically to see the flamingo and I am really proud that IB is home to it.

Zoos and hotels that keep flamingos usually clip their wings so they dont fly away, according to park rangers. Since the Imperial Beach flamingo has been seen flying from one pond to another, rangers dont believe it came from a zoo, Collins said.

The bird has a tag, which couldve been given to it by a biologist researching wild birds. The search took an international turn this week when Collins reached out to a colleague in La Paz, Mexico, to ask if it belongs to anyone in Baja California.

Flamingos spotted in the wild are considered to be possible escapees from aviaries or zoos, according to the Audubon Society. However, some flamingos from The Caribbean or Mexico have been known to winter to Florida and Texas.

Flamingos spotted in San Diego are usually in Escondidos San Diego Zoo Safari Park, the San Diego Zoo, or hotels like the Marriott in Coronado.

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Capturing the Imperial Beach flamingo could cause undo harm or stress, Collins said. Given the fact that it seems healthy and active, rangers dont plan to get near the flamingo.

Therefore, it is staying in the marshes until it decides to fly away or its owner comes forward.

We hope everyone gets to enjoy a glimpse of the beautiful bird while its still here, said Ranger Lisa Cox. After all, this national wildlife refuge was established to provide habitat for migratory birds so it seems to be serving the flamingo well.

Contact Gustavo Solis via Email or Twitter


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Coelacanths, an extinct fossil that dates back to roughly 420 million years ago, was unexpectedly found in the tropical island-country of Madagascar in East Africa.

A team of South African shark hunters was stunned to rediscover a population of fish that predates dinosaurs that have been, for decades, believed by the scientific community to be extinct.

According to reports from Mongabay News, a nonprofit environmental conservation group coelacanths, the four-legged fossil fish has just been found alive and kicking in the West Indian Ocean just off the coast of Madagascar.

What are Coelacanths?

Coelacanths or Latimeria are carnivorous fish that live up to 60 years and grow as large as 6.5 feet and weigh approximately 198 pounds.

According to National Geographic, these primitive-looking coelacanths are believed to have gone extinct 65 million years ago along with the dinosaurs. However, in 1938, sa South African museum curator ignited a scientific debate on how the unique lobe-finned fish fits into the existing evolutionary timeline of land animals.

Coelacanths are rarely sighted deep-sea creatures that thrived in depths of up to 2,300 feet below the surface.

The uniqueness of the "four-legged living fossil" is its paired lobe fins extending away from its body like human legs alternating pattern similar to a trotting horse.

ALSO READ: Endangered Species: Classification of These Two African Elephant Types Has Now Been Downgraded





Rediscovered "Living Fossil" Off the Coast of Madagascar

The unexpected rediscovery of the "living fossils" was thanks to the shark hunters using gillnets during their expedition. As the hunters targeted sharks for their oil, fins, and various other commercial enterprises, their devices were able to reach deep-sea nets where coelacanths gathered roughly 328-492 feet below the surface.

A recent study published in the journal SA Journal of Science, entitled "Coelacanth discoveries in Madagascar, with recommendations on research and conservation" warns that the "four-legged fossils" may face new species-level threats to their survival due to the uptick in shark hunting that boomed in the 1980s.

The authors of the study wrote that jarifa gillnets that are used to catch sharks are relatively new and believed to be a more deadly innovation because they are large and can be set in deep water.

Researchers fear that the rediscovery of the coelacanths may lead to heightened risks of "exploitation" especially in Madagascar where past sightings have been cited. The team wrote that there is no doubt that the sizeable mesh jarifa gillnets is, as of today, the biggest threat to the coelacanth's survival in Madagascar.

The study goes on further purporting that Madagascar is more than likely to be the "epicenter" of many coelacanth subspecies which is why it is vital that local and international conservation steps be taken to preserve the extraordinary species that has predated the dinosaurs.

Despite the researcher's documented stance on coelacanth hunting, not all researchers agree with recent findings.

Paubert Tsimanaoraty Mahatante, a Madagascan government marine researcher tells Mongabay News that he isn't concerned that the coelacanths would become a hot commodity to hunters. He explains that catching these species is uncommon and people, in some ways, are afraid to lure and catch a species that is uncommon. This leads him to the notion that the "living fossils" aren't going to be deliberately targeted anytime soon.

RELATED ARTICLE: Comprehensive Genome Analysis Reveals Four Known Species of Giraffes

Check out more news and information on Endangered Species on Science Times.
The Times just posted a lengthy article examining the roles of Sheldon Silver and former Met Council head William Rapfogel in stopping redevelopment of the Seward Park urban renewal site for decades.

An excerpt:

Mr. Silver has long characterized his role in plans for the site, known as the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area, or Spura, as limited to insisting that all groups have a voice in the outcome, not promoting a specific plan or developer. The speakers position was always that any development at Spura had to be achieved by consensus among all of the diverse communities that make up the Lower East Side, his spokesman, Michael Whyland, said in a recent written statement. But an extensive review of the archives of four mayors and more than two dozen interviews show Mr. Silver and Mr. Rapfogel diligently working behind the scenes to promote specific plans and favored developers. Mr. Rapfogel made clear that the goal was to maintain the areas Jewish identity, seemingly at the expense of other communities.

You can read the complete story here.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  Days after National Guard members killed four Kent State University students who were protesting the Vietnam War, white police officers marched onto the campus of a historically Black college in Mississippis capital city to violently suppress protests against racism.

Officers shot indiscriminately after someone threw a bottle. The gunfire killed two people, injured 12 and shattered windows of a womens dormitory where officers claimed  falsely  that they had seen a sniper.

Students who earned degrees that year received their diplomas in the mail, if at all.

Now, a lifetime later, Jackson State University is honoring the Class of 1970 in a ceremony delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. Grads are invited back for a salute to their academic achievements, with organizers expecting about 70 of the 400-plus class members for Saturday's ceremony.

James Lap Baker is now retired from a career in urban planning, but he'll be wearing a cap and gown for the bachelors in geography he completed that year.

Baker vividly recalls crawling through the grass the night of the shootings to return unharmed to his off-campus apartment. He believes officers planned the assault on Black students. No officer ever faced criminal charges, and an all-white jury awarded no money to the Black victims' families in a civil lawsuit.

I call it a massacre, Baker told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Uprisings against the Vietnam War happened on many U.S. college campuses in 1970. The National Guard attack on unarmed student protesters at Kent State in Ohio still largely overshadows the bloodshed at Jackson State, where Baker said racist behavior by local white residents was the big issue.

During the '60s and into 1970, white people driving to downtown Jackson would often use a busy street through the campus of what was then Jackson State College, and some would yell racial slurs, throw bottles and endanger Black pedestrians.

Disturbances broke out the nights of May 13 and 14 at Jackson State, according to a report published in September 1970 by the President's Commission on Campus Unrest. Appointed by then-President Richard Nixon, the panel investigated events at Kent State, Jackson State and elsewhere.

Based on interviews with witnesses, the commission reported that on the night of May 14, false rumors spread that Mississippi civil rights leader Charles Evers had been killed. He was elected in 1969 as mayor of Fayette and became the first Black person since Reconstruction to lead a multiracial city in the state. His brother, Mississippi NAACP leader Medgar Evers, was assassinated in Jackson in 1963.

Baker said he doesn't remember hearing that rumor. He recalled Black students were fed up with racist behavior by white people. The commission reported that people on campus had been throwing rocks at white motorists.

Students gathered outside the Alexander Hall women's dormitory and B.F. Roberts dining hall across the street  some protesting, others simply enjoying each other's company as women returned to the dorm before curfew. Officers from the Jackson Police Department and the Mississippi Highway Patrol marched onto campus.

You could hear them marching in  shoom, shoom, shoom, shoom, Baker said, imitating the sound.

After midnight May 15, a Highway Patrol officer using a bullhorn addressed students, Baker said. Someone in the crowd threw a bottle that shattered.

When he stepped out and said, May I have your attention please, thats when the bottle was thrown and all hell broke loose," Baker recalled.

A Jackson TV reporter recorded 28 seconds of gunfire, the commission reported. When it ended, 21-year-old Phillip Gibbs and 17-year-old James Green were dead. Twelve others were bleeding. Windows of Alexander Hall were shattered, and walls were left with pockmarks still visible today.

Gibbs was a Jackson State pre-law student who was married and had one son with another on the way. Green was a high school student who lived near campus, and had been walking home from his job at a convenience store, said Gloria Green McCray, one of his eight siblings. She recalled hearing shots that night.

McCray said her brother, a year older than her, was handsome, funny and kind.

He had the personality of Bill Cosby, the look of Billy Dee Williams, McCray said.

Their mother walked in Green's place when his Jim Hill High School class graduated weeks after he was killed. She said the hardest experience she had was losing her child, McCray said of their mother, who died about five years ago.

Jackson State is awarding posthumous honorary doctorate degrees to Gibbs and Green. Their sisters will accept those  McCray for Green and Nerene Gibbs Wray for Gibbs.

The once-busy street through campus was closed years ago and turned into a pedestrian zone named the Gibbs-Green Memorial Plaza. Saturday's ceremony takes place there. It reclaims the heart of the campus for alumni who built fond memories there, long before the shooting started.

____

Follow Emily Wagster Pettus on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EWagsterPettus.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  A Belarusian military officer on Friday was sentenced to 18 years in prison for leaking a document related to the government's crackdown on protests against the country's authoritarian president.

The officer, Capt. Dzianis Urad, was accused of giving the media a copy of a government directive urging the military to help put down the demonstrations.
WASHINGTON (AP)  When will COVID-19 vaccines be widely available globally?

Experts say it could be 2023 or later before the shots are widely available in some countries.

The United States, Israel and the United Kingdom are among the nations where about half or more of the population has gotten at least one shot. In some countries, including South Africa, Pakistan and Venezuela, less than 1% of people have been vaccinated. In nearly a dozen countries  mostly in Africa  there have been no jabs at all.

The differences reflect a mix of factors including purchasing power, domestic production capacity, access to raw materials and global intellectual property laws.

The U.S. has supported waiving intellectual property protection for the vaccines. But its not clear whether there will be global agreement on the issue and, if so, whether that would help speed up production.

COVAX, a U.N.-backed project to ensure vaccine access globally, has run drastically behind schedule due in part to export bans and stockpiling by some countries.

In April, researchers at Duke University said that, even with assistance from COVAX, many countries would not be able to reach 60% coverage until 2023 or later.

The U.S., European and other wealthy nations long ago pre-ordered nearly all the doses available and now other countries, even with the money to buy, are at the back of line waiting, said Matthew Kavanagh, a global health policy expert at Georgetown University.

China and Russia are among those that have committed to donating vaccines to other nations. Other countries including the U.S. and U.K. arent yet sharing their stockpiles, though they've committed to doing so. Still, global scarcity is expected to continue for years to come.

There is simply not enough vaccine to go around, Kavanagh said.

___

The AP is answering your questions about the coronavirus in this series. Submit them at: FactCheck@AP.org. Read more here:

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Kenneth Gill, age 65, husband of 47 years of Marsha Gill of Lily, Kentucky went home to be with the Lord on Saturday, June 5, 2021 at his residence. He was the father of Kenneth E. Gill, Jr., of Hamilton, Ohio and Jessica Bowman and husband Terry of London, Kentucky; the brother of Vic Gill 
Businessman Paul Belogour is investing heavily in southern Vermont. Locals want to know why
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Katie Gilpatrick, of Epsom, stopped nursing when her now three-year-old was 15 months old. Now, shes trying to relactate  pumping in order to try to restore her breast milk supply in order to pass along antibodies to her son.
Petroleum tanker trucks parked near fuel storage tanks connected to the Colonial Pipeline Co. system in an

industrial area of the Port of Baltimore.
John McGauley, an author and local radio talk-show host, writes from Keene. He can be contacted at johnmcgauley1@gmail.com
A San Francisco Superior Court judge has rejected a request from City Attorney Dennis Herrera to ban four people charged with drug dealing from a roughly 50-square-block area of the Tenderloin.

Judge Ethan Schulman said Friday that although the Tenderloin faces a drug-related health crisis, San Franciscos request was impermissible because it would violate the defendants constitutional rights. He also said there was no precedent and justification to entirely exclude people from an area versus prohibiting them from engaging in particular conduct.

Last year, Herrera sued 28 people with recent Tenderloin drug arrests resulting in charges on their records, citing public nuisance laws in an effort to keep them out of the neighborhood, which is plagued by open-air drug use. Fridays court decision concerned the first four cases. Those defendants, all Oakland residents, have been arrested several times on drug dealing and possession charges in the past two years, court documents said.

The lawsuit stemmed from an escalating drug crisis for which city leaders are desperate to find a solution. Last year, 699 people died of overdoses in San Francisco, a 59% spike from 2019. More than 40% died in the Tenderloin and South of Market. Many of the deaths involved the powerful opioid fentanyl.

The city is increasing enforcement, with San Francisco police seizing more than four times the amount of fentanyl off the streets in 2020 compared with 2019, and the district attorney pursuing funding for a new fentanyl task force to investigate and prosecute dealing.

We respectfully  and strongly  disagree with the view that our injunctions are beyond the courts power to grant, said John Cote, spokesperson for the City Attorneys Office.

Courts have granted much broader injunctions preventing criminal defendants from entering entire cities, including San Francisco, he said.

Cote said the court seems to have ruled that the only remedy is criminal prosecution, which isnt an option for the city attorney.

We are trying to do everything in our power to address the problems in the Tenderloin. Parents should not have to walk their children through an open-air drug market on the way to school. That is never acceptable. We are considering all of our legal options going forward, he said.

Public Defender Mano Raju, who has been outspoken against the lawsuits, said the courts order highlights their reckless and unconstitutional nature.

The banishment orders that the City Attorney has been relentlessly pursuing perpetuate and reinforce the dehumanizing and exclusionary ways in which poor people and people of color have been relegated to nuisances in need of eradication. This 1980s era war on drugs has no place in our City, Raju said in a statement.

The ACLU of Northern California also applauded the courts decision and urged the city to work with community partners for more effective solutions.

We are grateful that the Court rejected the Citys massive overreach and its attempt to scapegoat four individuals for its own policy failures to address real needs in the Tenderloin, Annie Decker, staff attorney for the ACLU of Northern California, said in a statement.

Mallory Moench is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com Twitter:@mallorymoench
A man suspected of sexually assaulting three women in Fremont this month was arrested while allegedly carrying out his third attack in broad daylight, police said in a media release on Friday.

Alexander Lomax, 28, was reportedly naked and sexually assaulting a 67-year-old woman in the front yard of a Fremont home Thursday morning when officers, summoned by witnesses to the alleged attack, rushed to the womans aid and Lomax surrendered.

Police say the victim was transported to a trauma center with multiple broken bones and facial injuries.

The attack occurred less that two hours after a 57-year-old woman was sexually assaulted a mile away. In that attack, police say the victim was walking around Auto Mall Parkway when she was punched in the back of the head and pushed to the ground. Police say the woman bit her attacker on the arm and that the attacker fled when a witness interrupted the assault.

Police say the victim positively identified Lomax as the man who assaulted her.

Police say theyve also connected Lomax to a May 5 incident in which a 75-year-old woman at a grocery store was grabbed from behind and pressed up against by a man she later identified as Lomax.

As a police chief and as a woman, I am completely horrified by this crime, Fremont police Chief Kimberly Petersen said in a statement.

Petersen called the case the departments highest priority and said detectives were trying to ascertain if there were other victims, as well as ensure that all victims receive support services.

Most acts of sexual violence are committed by people known to the victim, not strangers, law enforcement officials and authorities on the subject have found.

In a statement, Fremont Mayor Lily Mei said she was deeply disturbed by the three incidents and urged Alameda County District Attorney Nancy OMalley to hold the suspect accountable for these atrocious crimes.

Lomax is being held without bail in Santa Rita Jail. According to online jail records, he is scheduled to be arraigned Monday at the East County Hall of Justice in Dublin on five felony counts, including kidnapping, sexual battery and assault with an intent to rape.

The California Department of Justice shows that the Fremont Police Department investigated 36 rapes in 2019, the most recent year for which figures were available, and cleared 47.2% of those cases with an arrest or through exceptional means.

Steve Rubenstein is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: srubenstein@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SteveRubeSF
Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

The Alameda County district attorneys office has charged two men with murder in a fatal shooting that occurred last week when they robbed people in their motorhome in Oakland, authorities said Friday.

John Regnold Harrison and Guillermo Antonio Lacayo, Jr. murdered Paul Taj Schrager when Schrager returned to his motorhome to find the pair  along with two others  robbing one of the occupants, according to court documents.
The city of San Francisco is reviving a long-simmering feud with the state over water, filing a lawsuit Friday that charges state regulators with trying to take away the citys coveted Sierra Nevada water supplies.

The suit claims the state water board is demanding the city forfeit too much water from the Tuolumne River as part of a licensing deal for two dams in the faraway basin. State regulators have said the water is needed to maintain proper river flows and support struggling salmon, but city officials contend the demands would leave Bay Area residents and businesses vulnerable to water shortages.

They dont understand what balancing they need to obtain between water for people and water for fish, Michael Carlin, the acting general manager of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, told The Chronicle.

The legal dispute picks up on a decades-old fight over how to apportion Californias limited water supplies, particularly those in the sprawling rivers that run from the mountains to the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The stakes have increased as droughts, like the one now taking hold, intensify with climate change. The debate about whether humans, and which ones, should take more water from diminishing rivers and wildlife is far from settled.

San Franciscos latest challenge centers on the licensing of the Don Pedro Dam and La Grange Diversion Dam. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is responsible for permitting the two facilities because they generate hydropower, but the state can offer terms under which the facilities must operate.

Leah Millis/The Chronicle

The citys lawsuit claims that the states terms, particularly how much water should stay in the river, are unnecessary, onerous and extend beyond their legal purview. The suit, filed in Tuolumne County Superior Court, calls for the State Water Resources Control Board to set aside the conditions dictated in whats called the water quality certifications for the dams, part of the Clean Water Act.

The state water board did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the suit.

The boards conditions require the Tuolumne River dams to trap less water and leave more flowing in the river than what the city and two large irrigation districts that share the supplies have proposed. The required releases, according to regulators, would preserve the health of the river, support activities like rafting and swimming, and provide spawning habitat for chinook salmon. But they would also mean less water for local farmers as well as for the Bay Area, where the flows are piped.

The two dams are owned by the Turlock and Modesto irrigation districts, not San Francisco. However, the city gets 85% of the water it uses or sells to its Bay Area neighbors from the watershed, which include a handful of city-run reservoirs upstream like Hetch Hetchy. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission estimates that roughly half of the additional flows required by the state will end up coming from the citys share of the river water.

The amount of water the state wants left in the river varies with the time of year and how dry any particular year is. While dry times would require less water to be sent downstream, the city calls the sacrifice devastating, and the lawsuit says it would be detrimental to the long-term socioeconomic and environmental impacts of 2.8 million people who rely on the Sierra supplies.

Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

As for the salmon, city officials have said they can provide for the fish and other wildlife without giving up so much water, like by rehabbing the rivers natural conditions.

The states demands are largely based on the Bay Delta Plan. The sweeping policy, adopted three years ago by the state water board, seeks to ensure that flows in the San Joaquin River and its tributaries, including the 149-mile Tuolumne River, wont dry up. The states terms for the dams and water in the river extend for longer periods than in the plan and are considered more burdensome by the city.

The Bay Delta Plan calls for 40% of the natural flow in these rivers to remain in the waterways, allowing 60% to go to cities and farms. As it stands, as much as 90% is sometimes piped from the rivers. The policy, however, hasnt been enforced, as San Francisco and several irrigation districts have criticized it as heavy handed. The water board has been open to making changes to the plan, to win buy-in from critics, but a new deal has been elusive.

Conservation groups and many wildlife biologists have accused the city of turning a blind eye on the environment and looking out only for the water needs of the Bay Area, new development and its booming industries, like tech. San Francisco had an unlikely ally in former President Donald Trump, who had supported increased river draws, though the new administration is likely to be less amenable.

It is deeply disappointing to see San Francisco continue to attack protections for the Tuolumne River, relying on the Trump administrations misguided views of the scope of the Clean Water Act, junk science, and claims that their water rights allow them to continue to degrade and destroy the river and its salmon runs, Doug Obegi, a senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, said in an email.

City officials were equally passionate in their critique of the state.

The states approach is excessive and unfairly targets San Francisco, City Attorney Dennis Herrera, who is overseeing the new legal challange and has been nominated by the mayor to head the city Public Utilities Commission, said in an email. The states Bay Delta Plan is already an overreach that were fighting in court, and these new requirements are even more radical.

Fridays lawsuit is likely to further divide the parties on the Bay Delta Plan and complicate negotiations over resolving the long intractable matter.

Kurtis Alexander is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kalexander@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kurtisalexander
Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden), one of the worlds fastest-growing global mining companies, is celebrating the fifth anniversary of Saudi Arabias Vision 2030.

As a key industry player in the kingdom, Maaden has implemented significant incentive programmes and announced major reforms in the last five years to accelerate the development of the mining industry as a strategic pillar of the Saudi economy.

This includes the recently launched mining investment law aimed at attracting investors and paving the way for the full utilisation of Saudi Arabias mineral resources, which are estimated to be worth more than $1.3 trillion.

This goes in line with the objectives of the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program (NIDLP), one of the most important programs for achieving Vision 2030.

The kingdoms mining champion highlights key achievements since the Vision 2030 launch and plans that reflect its commitment to the kingdoms social and economic development.

Maaden has kept its projects across a range of commodities moving on a strong growth trajectory since 2016.

The company has expanded its investment portfolio, refinanced key projects, and made its first international acquisition, laying the foundation for future growth and new investment opportunities in the Saudi mining industry.

Despite some challenges in 2020 due to Covid-19, Maaden managed to maintain its agility and remained focused on its goal to become a global Saudi mining giant, while adhering to the highest standards of health, safety, and environment.

Located on the east coast of Saudi Arabia, Ras Al Khair Industrial City jumpstarted the mining industry development in Saudi Arabia, leveraging the countrys strategic location in connecting three continents.

In November 2016, Ras Al-Khair Industrial City was further expanded and connected via railway to Maadens bauxite mine in Qassim and phosphate mine in Al Jalamid, making it a cornerstone of the Kingdoms mineral and metal production and export industries.
City College of San Francisco trustees will consider paying their interim chancellor an additional $20,000 on top of his regular $340,000 salary so that hell stay through September while they seek a permanent replacement.

College officials posted the proposed 23.5% monthly bonus three days after the faculty union agreed to take pay cuts of up to 14% to avoid hundreds of layoffs and class cuts, a pay increase that angered many who have spent months fighting the massive downsizing of the college.

Im outraged about this, said Stephanie MacAller, an English instructor. Right after faculty take a pay cut, the chancellor is trying to get a raise?!

Interim Chancellor Rajen Vurdien has been overseeing the effort to close a projected deficit of $35 million at City College, a financial crisis that has caught the attention of the states fiscal watchdogs who warned last month that the college risked insolvency if it didnt rein in spending.

Wynd Kaufmyn, an engineering instructor and former vice-president of the faculty union, said she felt betrayed. City College faculty just accepted huge pay cuts to save classes for students, she said. Now our trustees turn around and give the chancellor a 23.5% raise? Wheres the shared sacrifice they talked about?

The trustees will vote on Thursday. If approved, Vurdiens salary would grow to $35,000 a month  equivalent to $420,000 a year  from $28,333 a month, or $340,000 a year.

Shanell Williams, president of the Board of Trustees, said Vurdien and the trustees recently agreed that he deserved the raise, especially because Vurdien, a former chancellor at Pasadena Community College, came out of retirement in 2020 to take the top spot while City College looked for a permanent leader.

There are still no candidates in the wings, Williams said, although a search firm is working on it. Vurdien has agreed to stay through September.

He is sacrificing to give us additional time, Williams said. He is stepping up for our college.

COVID Resources Coronavirus Map Tracking COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and California.

That explanation gave little comfort to faculty whose pay has been cut, and to students who have spent months protesting the deep class cuts proposed by Vurdien and his staff.

There is no logical argument that could justify the board passing the amendment to this contract, said Vick Chung, the nonvoting student trustee. How can the board approve of any raises when less than a week ago we forced our faculty to make a choice between salary reductions or losing their livelihood?

Vurdien became interim chancellor in spring 2020 after his predecessor, Mark Rocha, was placed on paid leave before resigning. Rochas three years at the helm were troubled, due to his handling of the mounting budget crisis  including a botched effort to secretly double executive salaries in summer 2019. The trustees ultimately approved 10% raises for most administrators.

A report from the state Community College Chancellors office that year found that City College administrators earned 28% more, on average, than their peers at other community colleges  the third highest salaries in the state. The report was included in a January internal audit of City College administrators compensation.

Nanette Asimov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: nasimov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @NanetteAsimov
Half of incarcerated people in California prisons who initially rejected a COVID-19 vaccination later agreed to take at least one dose, a finding that could have implications for vaccine hesitancy in the broader population, Stanford researchers say.

That is an important indication that vaccine hesitancy is not fixed, said Elizabeth Chin, lead author of a report published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The findings also are encouraging for the nations prisons, which have been hothouses for coronavirus outbreaks. Among the worst was at San Quentin State Prison, where a botched transfer from other state prisons sparked an outbreak in spring 2020 in which at least 28 incarcerated people and one staffer died.

Nationwide, more incarcerated people have died of COVID-19 in correctional facilities in the past year than died by capital punishment in the past 70 years, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

Two-thirds of people in Californias 35 state prisons have had at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, according to the newly published report by members of the Stanford-CIDE Coronavirus Modeling Team. That compares favorably with the 62.6% rate among the states vaccine-eligible population and the 46.6% rate nationwide.

We hope that other states and the federal prison system can do the same for the nearly 2 million people in this country who are locked up, Chin said.

Of the 97,779 incarcerated people in California prisons who were offered vaccines, 66.5% eventually accepted at least one dose. Acceptance levels were no different among those who had previously been infected with the coronavirus and those who had not, the study found.

Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, vice dean for population health and health equity at UCSF, who was not involved with the study, said the findings were encouraging, particularly in light of the tragically and unacceptably high numbers of cases and deaths in this system throughout the pandemic.

She said the initial hesitancy was not surprising.

Being cautious or even skeptical, adopting a wait-and-see attitude, or wanting to get more information are all natural responses to a new vaccine, Bibbins-Domingo said. I would expect that reaction perhaps even more in those who have borne the brunt of poor COVID policy choices that previously resulted in prison outbreaks.

Justin Sullivan/TNS

But she added, We see this in many other environments as well. People who may initially decline the vaccine often accept it later, and its important for all of us to continue to find and adapt strategies to get as many people vaccinated as possible. Hesitancy is not a fixed attribute.

Chin said there is no clear reason why the holdouts changed their minds.

As the number of vaccinated people around them climbed, peer pressure may have played a role, she said. So might the reassurance of witnessing no ill effects among other vaccinated people.

Its also possible that seeing the effect of the disease on other incarcerated people may have been a motivating factor, Bibbins-Domingo said.

Having witnessed or experienced firsthand the effects of COVID, one might be more inclined to want to be protected, she said.

Although incarcerated people in California have shown willingness to be vaccinated, its a different story among prison employees. More than half of them have refused to be inoculated.

Some 57% of California prison staff declined free COVID vaccinations offered on the job as of May 10, data collected by the California Department of Correction and Rehabilitation shows.

That means that as California pushes to get everyone inoculated, some 37,000 state prison workers remain unvaccinated. In 30 of 35 prisons, fewer than half of employees are fully vaccinated.

Incarcerated people have much higher levels of acceptance than the staff around them, Chin said. There are no clear reasons why, she said: I think thats a very complex question. To really tackle that is a behavioral psychology question.

Prison employees should get vaccinated not only to prevent introducing infection to the workplace, but to protect a vulnerable population, experts said.

Unfortunately, the lower rate of uptake among prison staff is also something observed in other settings, Bibbins-Domingo said. Prisons remain a high-risk venue for COVID transmission, both for those who live there and for those who work there.

The slowdown in vaccinations nationwide is often attributed to misinformation and mistrust. But Chin said the explanation might have more to do with barriers to access and vaccine education.

It might take persistence, where youre simultaneously building trust and confidence, and increasing access to vaccines when people are ready, she said.

Aidin Vaziri is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: avaziri@sfchronicle.com
A shrill noise briefly filled the air in Oaklands Chinatown just after noon on Saturday as hundreds of people blew bright yellow whistles while rallying against anti-Asian violence.

The plastic whistles, attached to wristbands, were handed out to participants in the Unity Against Hate rally in front of the Pacific Renaissance Center on Ninth Street. Theyre meant for people to blow loudly if theyre being attacked, as an increasing number of Asian Americans  especially elders  have been in Oakland and around the nation.

But the blast of noise wasnt a cry for help so much as a coordinated signal of solidarity against hate crimes around the nation, particularly against Asian Americans.

The rally, organized by the Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce and other community groups, was one of dozens of such events scheduled around the globe. Rallies were also held in Fremont, San Mateo, Sacramento, Fresno, Southern California, Washington, D.C., New York, Houston and Dallas. Cities in Australia and Canada were also scheduled to participate.

Brittany Hosea-Small/Special to The Chronicle

Participants at each event were expected to blow their whistles at roughly the same time.

The piercing chorus followed more than a dozen speeches, including words from state Attorney General Rob Bonta, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and actor Daniel Wu, an East Bay native who graduated from Head-Royce School in Oakland.

Bonta said the California Department of Justice, which he runs, will use its resources to step up the fight against hate crimes, including efforts to ensure better reporting and tracking, and working with the states big city mayors to ensure racial justice.

Brittany Hosea-Small/Special to The Chronicle

I see my job as California attorney general as being the attorney of the people, your attorney, Bonta told those gathered. My job is to make your fights my fights, to have your backs, to fight for you. And right now we are in a full-on state of crisis, a full-on fight against hate. That will be my fight.

The Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, says that more anti-Asian hate crimes are being reported in major U.S. cities during the first quarter of this year than they were through the same period last year. In San Francisco, 12 anti-Asian hate crimes were reported to police through the first three months of 2021, which is already more than the nine incidents that were reported for all of last year.

According to a recent Pew Research poll, 45% of Asian Americans say they have been the victim of an act of bigotry since the pandemic began, and eight in 10 believe the violence against their community is increasing.

The thread that ran through more than an hour of speeches was that Oaklands diversity needs to be leveraged to combat hate crimes and that people in different ethnic communities shouldnt be pitted against each other or fear each other as enemies. Despite some common misconceptions, there is no statistical evidence that points to any ethnic or racial group aside from Caucasians being more likely to perpetrate hate crimes.

Brittany Hosea-Small/Special to The Chronicle

We cant have Black on Black crime, we cant have Black on Asian or brown crime, we cant have Asian and brown on Black crime, said Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson. We have to come together and fight this together. We have to come out of our silos and and talk about our common struggle in this country against the racism that has existed, the institutional racism that affects us all. ... Then we can overcome.

Schaaf also called for unity as the country struggles to emerge from a culture of division sown by former President Donald Trump.

For four long years, Oakland has been the center of resistance, to stand up to the hate coming from the highest levels of government. Now is out turn to be the center of the insistence  that leaders lead with love, with peace, with unity.

Following the speeches, the rally turned into a march up Broadway and around Chinatown, with honking horns of support blending with the whistles echoing through downtown.

Michael Cabanatuan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com; Twitter: @ctuan
When Carina Lieu got home from dropping her son at day care on May 11, she saw nearly 20 officers, some with rifles drawn, surrounding a silver car that had crashed in the middle of the street outside her Oakland apartment.

The man in the drivers seat was unconscious and a gun was in his lap

Lieu leaned out the window and shouted, Please dont hurt him, he needs medical attention. An officer yelled for her to stay away. But Lieu wanted to help. She was scared that the situation would escalate and police would end up shooting the driver.

Lieu called police reform advocates, who brought mental health experts to the scene. Nearly four hours after police first arrived, the man was transported safely to the hospital, the situation facilitated by advocates and officers at the scene who worked with his mother to coax him out of the car.

Now Playing: Oakland police respond to a car crash May 11 in a video provided by Carina Lieu. The driver was unconscious and had a gun in his lap. The man's mother helped police get him out of the car safely without the incident escalating. Video: San Francisco Chronicle

The incident intensified the debate about how to de-escalate dangerous situations with police. For police reform advocates, the role community members played in the mans surrender was a clear indication that alternatives to an elevated police response can prevent potentially deadly situations. Even critics of the reimagining-police process agreed that Tuesdays approach should be standard.

Many people in Lieus position wouldnt have known where to turn to for help, but as Oaklands youth leadership development coordinator, she worked with young people who served on the Reimagine Public Safety Task Force and knew whom to call to get help outside the police. That day, Lieu called the executive director of Youth Together, a group that addresses educational inequities, to get the phone number for Cat Brooks, executive director of the Anti Police-Terror Project. Brooks arrived at the scene along with members of MH First, a hotline launched by the Anti Police-Terror Project that sends counselors, psychologists and social workers to respond to mental health, homelessness and substance abuse calls.

But Lieu said the public might not know whom to call.

We need stuff like this now, Lieu said of the community response. We cant wait.

Brooks said that when she got the call Tuesday, she was immediately reminded of the death of Demouria Hogg. Oakland police shot Hogg in 2015 after they found him unconscious in his car with a handgun in the passenger seat. She said police can often have twitchy fingers and she wanted to avoid a deadly outcome.

Brooks said she called City Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas for help. Bas then contacted Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong to ask if the mans mother, who had just arrived, could help ease the tense situation. Armstrong agreed.

The mother calmly urged her son to get out of his vehicle, and eventually walked him to the ambulance. His family members embraced him before he climbed inside.

Thats the Oakland we are fighting for. Thats what we are trying to build, said Brooks. We know that this will preserve life.

The Police Department said de-escalation and minimizing use of force is a priority. Armstrong, who took over as chief in February, said he is a champion of de-escalation and the department has ramped up its training on these tactics.

Do you need to use force at all? he said. Thats the constant assessment that we want our officers to use.

He said it was a no-brainer to let the mans mother help officers. Brooks said she asked officers to step away from the scene and put their guns away while they waited for the mother to arrive.

Armstrong said time and space are critical.

Nina Riggio/Special to The Chronicle

You are going to have to use more resources, more people. Its going to take a longer period of time to potentially gain compliance, he said. The cost is worth the benefit. The benefit is no one loses their life and no one is injured.

Barry Donelan, the president of the Oakland Police Officers Association, said de-escalation is a tool in getting the ideal outcome. The goal is the outcome where no one is hurt, he said.

The debate over how to change police practices comes as the City Council is looking to adopt some recommendations from the Reimagine Public Safety Task Force, which grew out of last summers protests over George Floyds death and police brutality.

As the council works on the citys next two-year spending plan, its looking to cut the Police Departments budget and instead invest in other services.

The City Council voted earlier this month to prioritize 12 of the task forces recommendations, including a long-term investment in a pilot program to dispatch counselors and paramedics from the Fire Department to mental health crises instead of police officers.

In addition, the priorities include investing in crisis hotlines outside of the 911 emergency system, transferring funds to the citys Department of Violence Prevention, supporting services for domestic violence survivors and moving most traffic enforcement to the citys transportation department.

The council also approved a continuation of the reimagine process in a second phase.

Bas co-sponsored the resolution on the 12 priorities with Councilwoman Carroll Fife and said the intention is to get at the root causes of violence and poverty.

People are more stable in their community and their neighborhoods if they have the stability of a home, a job, education and health care, Bas said. If we can provide those things, we can be much more successful in preventing crime from happening.

Steve Heimoff, president of the Coalition for a Better Oakland, a group of 12 residents who want more police resources, said he would support mental health teams, but we are going to have to wait and see how it works.

He worries that if funding is taken away from the police, then violent crime will surge in the city.

Donelan said he supports funding the services laid out in the councils reimagine priorities, but doesnt think the police budget should be used to fund them.

Dont defund the Police Department and abandon efforts to attack violent crime, Donelan said.

Fife has said in previous meetings that funneling resources into neighborhoods creates safer communities.

Regina Jackson, the chair of the citys police commission, agrees. She said investing in efforts around homelessness, housing and violence prevention will create a safer city. And that factors into de-escalation efforts because it prioritizes life, Jackson said.

We need to be innovating on a regular basis, because we have nuanced problems (and) challenges to deal with, Jackson said.

Bas said the divesting from police will be a slow process  a 50% cut is likely not possible in the citys next budget, but the council has a mandate from the public to reduce the police budget.

The publics views on funding for police are complex. The city surveyed 1,862 randomly selected residents from December to January, during a concerning spike in homicides. The survey found that 78% of respondents said they want the same or more police patrolling their neighborhoods and responding to 911 calls, and nearly 60% supported removing police from nonviolent situations and mental health calls.

Armstrong said he is very open to alternative responses to certain crimes, but he has questions.

What does the program look like? he said. Is that program able to provide the resources and support right now?

Sarah Ravani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani
An eye-catching San Francisco real estate listing offers an unbelievable deal: a 50,000-square-foot lot with expansive bay views for $75,000.

But theres a catch: Its offshore  and underwater  in San Francisco Bay.

Own a piece of San Francisco, says the official real estate listing for 250 Fitzgerald Ave.

The listing goes on to explain that the land is underwater and the street address is fictitious, because theres no network of underwater streets in the area, and no place to put a mailbox.

The property is officially in the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood, sitting about 3 blocks off of Candlestick Point State Recreation Area. Its not clear how far down the land is, which would vary depending on the tide.

Trent Zhu, the Daly City Realtor selling the land, is also its owner. He says hes never donned snorkeling or diving gear to take a look at his property, nor even paddled out to peer down from a boat.

He bought the 50,000-square foot lot for $5,000, along with some adjoining parcels during a foreclosure auction about five years ago. He had no real plans for the land, he said, though he figured it might have some value, since major development is planned at the former home of Candlestick Park.

It was more of a fun thing to buy a piece of land underwater, he said.

A few years ago, he said, his firm sold an underwater piece of land in South San Francisco to a biotech firm. Its still undeveloped.

So what would someone do with a piece of land in the bay? A pier might be a possibility, said Zhu, who said he owns other underwater land, including some smaller parcels, in the area.

San Francisco has more than 40 piers along the waterfront, he said. But there is nothing in this corner on the southeast side of the city.

The land is zoned to allow a single dwelling unit on the lot, though it could also be used for a residential care facility, a child care center, open space for horticulture or recreation, or a public structure, according to city zoning regulations. With city approval, it could also be used for a hospital, a school, a nursery or a public building.

While the listing has only been posted for a few days, a handful of people have inquired about the submerged property, Zhu said.

One man thought he might buy it to anchor his two houseboats instead of continuing to pay rent in Marin. Another wondered about building a slightly offshore restaurant. And others have suggested that it could be the site for a future ferry landing.

Zhu refers all of those questions to the city.

I have no idea, really, he admitted.

His listing ends with a similar admission: Seller is not sure if this land can be developed into a pier or anything at all.

Michael Cabanatuan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan
The University of California has agreed to no longer consider SAT or ACT scores in admissions and scholarship decisions, under a legal settlement with students announced Friday.

The agreement puts to rest the on-again-off-again question of whether UC could use the tests. And it ends a 2019 lawsuit from low-income students of color and students with disabilities who argued that they were at a disadvantage compared with applicants who could afford test prep services or travel easily to exam and class sites.

Todays settlement ensures that the university will not revert to its planned use of the SAT and ACT  which its own regents have admitted are racist metrics, Amanda Savage, a pro bono attorney representing the students, said in a statement.

The UC regents voted in May 2020 to stop requiring both exams, and this falls entering freshmen are the first who did not submit SAT or ACT scores.

However, the regents said at the time that applicants for fall 2021 and 2022 could submit scores voluntarily, after which UC would stop accepting the scores.

But the students lawyers argued that consideration of scores submitted even voluntarily would still be unfair, especially for disabled students who lacked equal access to the tests.

An Alameda County Superior Court judge agreed, and in September issued an injunction barring even voluntary use of the tests.

The university complied with this decision, but it strongly disagreed with the courts decision and filed an appeal, a UC spokesman said in a statement Friday.

UC had argued that even more students would be harmed by preventing them from submitting scores voluntarily.

The First District Court of Appeal in San Francisco upheld the Superior Court decision. But the ruling left open a door for UC to appeal again, and to try to revive using the tests for freshmen entering in 2022.

Instead, UC said it sought a settlement, which will provide certainty for students and their families, counselors, and high schools.

Until this year, UC considered admissions test scores among more than a dozen factors that make up its comprehensive review of applicants. It also used the scores, alongside high school GPA, to determine whether California applicants were among the top 9% of students at each high school that UC automatically admits each year if they satisfy basic UC requirements.

Neither of those uses are allowed under the settlement, which also requires UC to pay more than $1.2 million in legal fees to the students lawyers.

Nationwide, as research has showed that the tests fail to identify all students who do well in college, colleges and universities have increasingly dropped them. A multi-year study of nearly 1 million applicants to 28 four-year institutions in 2018 also showed that many students who had not taken an admissions test were nevertheless successful in college.

More than half of the nations four-year colleges and universities have dropped the SAT and ACT requirement, according to a 2020 report from FairTest, a Massachussetts nonprofit opposed to testing that tracks such data.

Nanette Asimov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: nasimov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @NanetteAsimov
The citys decision about whether to keep JFK Drive car-free after the pandemic is proceeding as slowly and unevenly as a little kid learning how to ride a bike with training wheels on the 1-mile stretch. Well, that might not be fair to little kids learning how to ride bikes because at least they have some forward momentum, and the city has been debating JFK Drive for decades.

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and the Recreation and Park Department acknowledged at Tuesdays Transportation Authority meeting  thats when the Board of Supervisors talks transit  that they should have a plan by the end of the year, but they have no idea what that plan will be.

But what really stuck out during the meeting was when Supervisor Shamann Walton said car-free JFK Drive looks like the 1950s South  doubling down on his previous claims that the street is segregationist and recreational red-lining.

But are his constituents in District 10, which includes Bayview-Hunters Point, really being excluded from the citys largest park because cars cant use a 1-mile stretch of pavement?

According to data from the Recreation and Park Department, theyre not. Each of the citys 11 supervisorial districts is seeing its constituents visit JFK Drive in almost exactly the same proportion as before the pandemic.

The department obtained data from City Dash, which tracks data from cell phones and other devices and sells it to cities to provide accurate information about where people are spending their time. This sounds kind of creepy to me, but the department said all data is made anonymous before its handed over.

No district increased or decreased its proportion of overall visits to JFK Drive by more than 1.5% during the pandemic. The proportion of overall visits stemming from District 10 has dipped just 0.3%. Not surprisingly, its correlated strongly with distance from the park. Visits dropped slightly from Districts Two, Three, Six, Nine, 10 and 11 and rose slightly in Districts One, Four, Five and Seven. District Eight, in the middle of the city, stayed the same.

I shared the data with Walton, and he said he still doesnt think closing the street is equitable. He said he has explained his reason many times and I am missing his point. When I interviewed him in April, he acknowledged he hadnt visited JFK Drive during the pandemic, and he didnt respond when I asked him that question again.

It seems Im not the only person missing his point. Walter Thompson, a Black journalist who lives in the city, tweeted that Walton needs to get his mind right because comparing the closure of JFK Drive to the civil rights abuses of the South in the 1950s is offensive.

He said theres a lot of racism in San Francisco, but car-free JFK Drive isnt an example of it.

When I think about what he says, Im picturing talking to my mother about how she was menaced by German shepherds straining on the leash, snapping at her, trying to get at her because she was marching for civil rights, he said. That was the 1950s South.

By the way, other Recreation and Park Department data shows pedestrian visits to JFK Drive are up 42% since it closed to cars, and bicyclist visits are up 441%. Also, there are 4,700 parking spaces in Golden Gate Park even with the closure of JFK Drive, and disabled parking spaces lost on that stretch are being added back nearby.

Plus, there were 91 injury crashes on JFK Drive from 2014 until the closure of cars. Since the closure? None at all. Now thats a point worth hammering.

San Francisco Chronicle columnist Heather Knight appears Sundays and Wednesdays. Email: hknight@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hknightsf Instagram: @heatherknightsf
The global construction equipment rental market is poised for tremendous growth mainly driven by the robust adoption of technologically integrated equipment in rental fleets in key markets of North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, according to a report by Graphical Research.

Technological innovations, including telematics and driver assistance systems will further propel the business outlook.

With the expanding consumer base of earthmoving & roadbuilding equipment in the US, Canada and Mexico, loaders will witness bullish demand in the region.

The trend for loading materials such as clearing rubble, trucks and digging will bolster the product adoption to move and lift heavy objects. The North America construction equipment rental market share from the loaders subsegment will grow at a significant rate in the next few years, partly attributed to the innate ability of these machines to shift materials from one place to another, stated Graphical Research in its report.

In addition, renting of construction equipment will gain ground owing to maintenance and high purchase cost of new equipment.

End-users will exhibit increased traction for industrial trucks as they can boost productivity and reduce human efforts. Considering the uptake of material handling and cranes, leading companies are poised to up their investments in industrial trucks, said the research team.

Several dynamics such as heavy taxes and expensive equipment insurance will boost the trend for rental equipment. Moreover, burgeoning population and urbanization have expedited investments across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, it added.

According to the World Bank, urban population in China was pegged at 60.3% in 2019, up from 59.1% in the preceding year.

According to an estimate, construction equipment rental market size is forecast to expand at a notable rate by 2026. Robust trends which are likely to have an overarching influence on the global front are delineated below:

*Canada to provide revenue boosting opportunities

Industry participants are expected to focus on expanding footprint in North America, with Canada slated to witness increased demand for construction equipment rental services. So much so that the government is dwelling on boosting investments in the region. To illustrate, the government of Canada earmarked USD 81.2 billion to foster the Canada initiativeemphasizing growth of public and commercial infrastructure.

The current trend alludes to rising prominence of strategic collaboration, mergers & acquisitions and partnerships. Specifically, BakerCorp International Holdings, Inc., was acquired by United Rentals in July 2018 to expand its consumer base across the region. Meanwhile, Ahern Companies partnered with Trackunit in June 2020 for telematics.

*Europe to exhibit traction for concrete equipment

Concrete equipment will be highly desirable in the UK, Germany, Italy, Denmark and Croatia following the demand for advanced concrete machines on construction sites. Demand for asphalt pavers, for instance, will be pronounced in soaring road building activities across the region.

Prominently, Polish government announced the highway development plan in 2014 to expedite the development of more than 1,800 km of new highways by 2021.

Stakeholders are slated to further their investments in earthmoving and road building equipment on the heels of soaring adoption of excavators, backhoe and loaders across the region. These machines will gain prominence for digging trenches, grading soil and removing dirt and rocks. The Europe construction equipment rental market share from the earthmoving and road building equipment in Europe will grow at a robust pace by 2026.

*Italy to witness increased construction activities

Italy is likely to witness increased investments in the backdrop of the demand for equipment rental services in the construction industry. Moreover, favorable government initiatives on infrastructure development will further the global construction equipment rental market outlook. Specifically, Milan Bergamo airport rolled out an investment plan of USD 503.09 million in Italy to be completed through 2030.

Rising demand for residential and commercial spaces in Russia has further triggered investments in the region. Burgeoning urbanization will prompt industry players to infuse funds in the region. According to a study, more than 74% of the Russian population lived in urban areas in 2019.

*Material handling and cranes to thrive in Asia Pacific

With bullish projection of the construction industry in India and China, the trend for material handling and cranes will boost the revenue stream in the region. Rising adoption of material handling equipment in the freight transport sector will bolster rental equipment services.

Earth moving and road building equipment will rise in prominence in the wake of increasing adoption of excavators and backhoes to augment construction activities. Thriving investments in public infrastructure activities, including refurbishment of ageing buildings and road buildings in Japan and China will augur well for the construction equipment rental market size expansion.

*India and China to reign supreme with rising equipment rental services

Even though the Covid-19 pandemic will mar the industry outlook, robust demand for equipment rental goods and services will surge dramatically in the ensuing period. For instance, construction projects such as Navi Mumbai International Airport, Pune Metro Rail and Chenab River Railway Bridge in India have added fillip to the global construction equipment rental industry.

According to experts, leading companies have upped their investments in Asia Pacific to gain a hold in the global front.

For instance, Nishio Rent All Co. Ltd. acquired United Power & Resources in July 2019 to expand its penetration in China. Besides, JP Nelson Equipment and Kanamoto Co. Ltd. joined hands to launch a subsidiary in November 2018 and started operation in Malaysia.
JERUSALEM (AP)  Israel on Thursday said it was massing troops along the Gaza frontier and calling up 9,000 reservists ahead of a possible ground invasion of the Hamas-ruled territory, as the two bitter enemies plunged closer to all-out war. Egyptian mediators rushed to Israel for cease-fire efforts but showed no signs of progress.

The stepped-up fighting came as communal violence in Israel erupted for a fourth night, with Jewish and Arab mobs clashing in the flashpoint town of Lod. The fighting took place despite a bolstered police presence ordered by the nations leaders.

The four-day burst of violence has pushed Israel into uncharted territory  dealing with the most intense fighting it has ever had with Hamas while simultaneously coping with the worst Jewish-Arab violence inside Israel in decades. A late-night barrage of rocket fire from Lebanon that landed in the sea threatened to open a new front along Israels northern border.

Saleh Aruri, an exiled senior Hamas leader, told London-based satellite channel Al Araby early Friday that his group has turned down a proposal for a three-hour lull to allow for more negotiations toward a full cease-fire. He said Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations were leading the truce efforts.

Also early Friday, the Israeli military said air and ground troops struck Gaza in what appeared to be the heaviest attacks yet. Masses of red flames illuminated the skies as the deafening blasts from the outskirts of Gaza City jolted people awake. The strikes were so strong that screams of fear could be heard from people inside the city, several kilometers away.

I said we would extract a very heavy price from Hamas," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a videotaped statement. "We are doing that, and we will continue to do that with heavy force.

The fighting broke out late Monday when Hamas, claiming to be the defender of Jerusalem, fired a barrage of long-range rockets toward the city in response to what it said were Israeli provocations. Israel quickly responded with a series of airstrikes.

Since then, Israel has attacked hundreds of targets in Gaza. The strikes set off scores of earth-shaking explosions across the densely populated territory. Gaza militants have fired nearly 2,000 rockets into Israel, bringing life in the southern part of the country to a standstill. Several barrages targeted the seaside metropolis of Tel Aviv, some 70 kilometers (45 miles) away.

Gazas Health Ministry said the death toll has climbed to 109 Palestinians, including 28 children and 15 women, with 621 people wounded. The Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups have confirmed 20 deaths in their ranks, though Israel says that number is much higher. Seven people have been killed in Israel, including a 6-year-old boy.

In Washington, President Joe Biden said he spoke with Netanyahu about calming the fighting but also backed the Israeli leader by saying there has not been a significant overreaction.

He said the goal now is to get to a point where there is a significant reduction in attacks, particularly rocket attacks that are indiscriminately fired into population centers. He called the effort a a work in progress.

Thursdays visit by Egyptian officials marked an important step in the cease-fire efforts.

Egypt often serves as a mediator between Israel and Hamas, and it has been a key player in ending past rounds of fighting. The officials met first with Hamas leaders in Gaza before holding talks with Israelis in Tel Aviv, two Egyptian intelligence officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. Hamas' exiled leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was also in touch with the Egyptians, the group said.

Despite those efforts, the fighting only intensified. Israeli aircraft pummeled targets in Gaza throughout the day. And late Thursday, Israel fired tank and artillery shells across the border for the first time, sending scores of terrified residents fleeing for safety.

The airstrikes have destroyed scores of buildings, including three high rises. Israel says the buildings housed Hamas militants or facilities, but civilians were inside as well.

In the northern Gaza Strip, Rafat Tanani, his pregnant wife and four children were killed after an Israeli warplane reduced the building to rubble, residents said.

Sadallah Tanani, a relative, said the family was wiped out from the population register without warning. It was a massacre. My feelings are indescribable, he said.

Israel has come under heavy international criticism for civilian casualties in Gaza fighting. It says Hamas is responsible for endangering civilians by hiding and launching rockets from civilian areas.

Late Thursday, Israels Defense Minister Benny Gantz ordered the mobilization of an additional 9,000 reservists.

The chief military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Hidai Zilberman, said troops were massing along the Gaza border for a possible ground operation. He said tanks, armored vehicles and artillery were being prepared for mobilization at any given moment.

Hamas showed no signs of backing down. It launched several intense barrages of rockets throughout the day and fired its most powerful rocket, the Ayyash, nearly 200 kilometers (120 miles) into southern Israel. The rocket landed in the open desert but briefly disrupted flight traffic at the southern Ramon airport. Hamas also launched a drone that Israel said it quickly shot down.

Hamas military spokesman Abu Obeida said the group was not afraid of a ground invasion, saying any invasion would be a chance to increase our catch of dead or captive soldiers.

The fighting cast a pall over the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, normally marked by family gatherings and festive meals. Instead, the streets of Gaza were mostly empty.

Hassan Abu Shaaban tried to lighten the mood by passing out candy to passers-by but acknowledged there is no atmosphere for celebrating. It is all airstrikes, destruction and devastation, he said. May God help everyone.

The current eruption of violence began a month ago in Jerusalem, where heavy-handed Israeli police tactics during Ramadan and the threatened eviction of dozens of Palestinian families by Jewish settlers ignited protests and clashes with police. A focal point of clashes was Jerusalems Al-Aqsa Mosque, built on a hilltop compound that is revered by Jews and Muslims.

Israel regards Jerusalem in its entirety as its capital, while the Palestinians want east Jerusalem to be the capital of their future state.

The violent clashes between Arabs and Jews in Israel resulted in scenes not witnessed in more than two decades.

The confrontations erupted again late Thursday. Jewish and Arab mobs battled in the central city of Lod, the epicenter of the troubles, for a fourth consecutive night, despite a state of emergency and heavy police presence. A Jewish man was shot and seriously wounded, and Israeli media said a second Jewish man was shot.

In the Tel Aviv neighborhood of Jaffa, an Israeli soldier was attacked by a group of Arabs and hospitalized in serious condition.

The fighting deepened a political crisis that has sent Israel careening through four inconclusive elections in just two years. After March elections, Netanyahu failed to form a government coalition. Now his political rivals have three weeks to try to do so.

Those efforts have been greatly complicated by the fighting. His opponents include a broad range of parties that have little in common. They would need the support of an Arab party, whose leader has said he cannot negotiate while Israel is fighting in Gaza.

Naftali Bennett, leader of a small right-wing party, was quoted as saying he did not believe an alternate coalition could be formed in the current atmosphere.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid, who is leading the coalition-building efforts, said the country was facing an existential threat and urged Bennett to join him to help rescue the country.

We are on the brink of the abyss, he said.

___

Akram reported from Gaza City, Gaza Strip. Associated Press writers Ilan Ben Zion in Jerusalem, Samy Magdy in Cairo, Isabel DeBre in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Ashraf Sweilam in al-Arish, Egypt, also contributed to this report.
A federal appeals court upheld $25.2 million in damages Friday for a Bay Area man who contracted cancer after spraying Monsantos Roundup herbicide on his property for more than 26 years, the first federal court trial among thousands of lawsuits against the maker of the worlds most widely used weed killer.

Evidence in Edwin Hardemans case supported the jurys findings that Roundup caused Hardemans cancer, and that Monsanto intentionally downplayed and ignored calls to test Roundups carcinogenic risks, said the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. One member of the three-judge panel issued a partial dissent, saying the damages should be reduced to $10.4 million.

David Wool, a lawyer for Hardeman, called the ruling a win for consumers everywhere. Bayer AG, Monsantos parent company, said it was disappointed, considers its product to be safe, and may seek review in the U.S. Supreme Court.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has found Roundup and its main ingredient, glyphosate, to be safe, and allowed its sale without warning labels. But the International Agency for Research on Cancer, an arm of the World Health Organization, concluded in 2015 that glyphosate was a probable cause of cancer in humans.

Hardeman, now 72, sprayed Roundup on weeds at his home in Gualala and later on poison oak at his 56-acre property in Santa Rosa. He was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, a sometimes-fatal lymph cancer, in 2015. After four years of chemotherapy and other treatment, doctors told him the disease was in remission but that he faced an increased risk of cancer in the future.

After finding that Roundup was a substantial cause of Hardemans cancer, a federal court jury in San Francisco awarded him $5.2 million for economic losses, pain and suffering and emotional distress in July 2019 and also assessed $75 million in punitive damages for selling a product that the manufacturer knew, or should have known, was unsafe. U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria reduced the punitive damages to $20 million, citing Supreme Court rulings limiting those damages to four times the amount of compensation in most cases.

Tens of thousands of similar claims have been filed nationwide  lawyers say the total could reach 125,000  but only a few have gone to trial. The first was in San Francisco Superior Court, where a jury in 2019 awarded nearly $290 million in compensation and punitive damages to Dewayne Lee Johnson of Vallejo, who was diagnosed with terminal cancer after spraying the chemical as a groundskeeper for the Benicia Unified School District. Courts later reduced the damages to $21.5 million, and the state Supreme Court rejected Monsantos appeal last year.

The company is also appealing an Alameda County verdict of $86.2 million in damages to Alva and Alberta Pilliod of Livermore, who developed cancer after spraying Roundup on their properties for 30 years.

Hardemans case was the first to be tried in federal court.

Bayer, which purchased Monsanto for $63 billion in 2018, is trying to settle the remaining claims with an offer of more than $10 billion. For future suits, the settlement would establish a scientific panel that would take up to four years to determine whether glyphosate caused cancer, a conclusion that would be binding on both sides. The settlement requires approval from Chhabria, who has scheduled a hearing next Wednesday.

Majed Nachawati, a Dallas attorney whose firm represents about 4,000 cancer patients with claims against Monsanto, said Fridays ruling should encourage the judge to reject the settlement. Victims should get their day of justice in court and should be allowed to go before a jury, he said

In the ruling, the appeals court said federal law did not prevent a jury from finding the herbicide to be a cause of cancer, despite the EPAs conclusion that it was safe.

Federal law requires products to carry warnings that are necessary and adequate to protect health, Judge Ryan Nelson said. He said EPAs approval did not carry the force of law, and did not preclude a judge or jury from deciding whether Monsanto had violated a California law requiring warnings against risks that are known or knowable.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
Sahina Islam can still recall the day when she heard an elderly Pakistani couple got kicked out of their New York City home by their son-in-law and were sitting near John F. Kennedy International Airport, stranded and with nowhere to go. The incident led Islam and five friends to help the couple find a place to stay and more generosity followed.

The episode sparked a realization among the group  all mothers -- that they can make a difference in their local community, Islam said. They started pooling $20 monthly to donate to charity, and organically, Ummah Giving Circle was born.

Giving circles are groups of people who pool their resources and collectively decide how to spend their money or time. This grassroots, and very democratic, form of philanthropy has exploded in popularity during the past two decades, making it difficult to know how many truly exist, experts say. However, some estimate there are more than 2,000 in the United States alone.

For giving circles that focus on the American Muslim community, Ramadan, which ended this week, is a time when they collect donations, expand their membership, and aid charities they support.

As Muslims mark the end of Ramadan with a celebration of Eid al-Fitr, the American Muslim Community Foundation, which experts say is the only foundation hosting giving circles that focus on the American Muslim community, reached a new record. The group distributed nearly $1.3 million, the largest it has ever raised during Ramadan, to over 150 charities.

Muhi Khwaja, the co-founder of the foundation, notes the foundation saw a bump in donations this year because more families joined giving circles that it hosts or opened donor-advised funds, which are like charitable investment accounts.

The pandemic has influenced the way people want to give, Khwaja said. And giving circles are a part of that.

Most of the donations are coming from donor-advised funds opened by Muslim families, while about $111,000 was raised by two of the giving circles hosted by the foundation: Ummah and Bay Area Collective Giving.

The American Muslim Community Foundation hosts six other giving circles and all of them, except the new American Muslim Womens Giving Circle, existed prior to joining the foundation. The giving circles join the foundation for help vetting the organizations they want to donate to, and other administrative issues. Others, like the Florida-based 200 Muslim Women Who Care, also operate outside of the foundation, which charges a 5% fee for its services.

The California-based foundation, Khwaja says, attempts to make Ramadan central to the giving circles because many Muslim families choose to give Zakat, the mandatory Islamic donation to charity, and Sadaqah, voluntary giving, during the Muslim holy month.

Giving is an integral component and indeed a pillar of Islam, said Khalil Abdur-Rashid, a Muslim chaplain at Harvard University. This is because the well-being of others is tied to our spiritual cultivation. We cannot grow and develop spiritually nor attain the highest level of faith and righteousness unless we engage in giving.

The Muslim holy month of Ramadan offers a chance for various forms of giving so that we are not consumed by consumption and that we allow others to share in the blessings we have received, he added.

For the Bay Area Collective Giving in San Francisco, California, the giving circle was born out of a desire to have greater impact. Since 2018, It has pooled together $5,000 Zakat contributions from local families, who then vote on organizations they want to fund. And the process has shown a clear preference to giving locally or in the state, said Rabea Chaudhry, the founder of the giving circle.

Most of the members of the giving circle are children of immigrants. And while Chaudry says many of their parents focused on supporting organizations abroad with their Zakat, she notes donations are given locally by first-generation Americans, like herself.

According to one report from The Institute for Social Policy and Understanding and Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropys Lake Institute, one of the top issues American Muslims target with their philanthropy is domestic poverty.

This year, Chaudhry says, 21 families pooled together $105,000 in donations to the Tayba Foundation, a Muslim-led nonprofit which serves incarcerated people and their families, and the group Mueed, which will help feed elderly Muslims halal food that adheres to Islamic law. In prior years, the giving circle has given nearly $281,000 to provide COVID-19 relief for California families, support refugees and other causes.

All of these donations are dispersed during the last 10 days of Ramadan, the end of the holy month that is marked by intense worship. Muslims seek to have their prayers answered during Laylat al-Qadr or the Night of Destiny. Its on this night, which falls during the last 10 nights of Ramadan, that Muslims believe God sent the Angel Gabriel to the Prophet Muhammad and revealed the first verses of the Quran.

For new giving circles, like the American Muslim Womens Giving Circle, Ramadan was a great time to recruit members. Its the reason the group decided to officially launch in March, a month before the Muslim holy month.

We know that people tend to be in a more generous mindset, said Afshan Qureshi, the co-chair of the giving circle. The group has been using social media to recruit members across the country and so far, Qureshi says, 22 women have joined and donated nearly $17,000.

The recruitment will go on until the end of June. For Qureshi and the other women involved with the American Muslim Womens Giving Circle, the process has been a special one as they look forward to making their first set of grants to women-led organizations in the fall. (The organizations haven't been picked yet.)

We are basically seeds in something that were growing together, the 31-year old said. That idea has been very, very exciting for all of us. We repeat it every time we meet.

But recruiting isnt only for new giving circles. Ummah, which has distributed nearly $200,000 since its launch in 2018, also has gotten more interest regarding memberships during Ramadan.

We have a WhatsApp group, and usually during a month of Ramadan you see an insane influx of people messaging us and asking to join, Islam said. Its always a welcomed request for the 32-year-old, who has seen the group boom in membership from six to nearly 160 in just three years.

Following the incident with the elderly couple, Islam and other members began fielding calls from community members during their times of need. And in the last three years, she says, they have assisted domestic violence victims, as well as people struggling with hunger and other issues.

Their aid also comes in other forms. Last year, a domestic violence victim with fractures in her eye socket approached the group seeking help. The victim was in need of approximately $15,000 for the eye surgery, but didnt have the money to pay for it. So, Islam said, the group worked through their network to find a volunteer doctor for the surgery, babysitters for the victims children and payment for the victims rent.

After a year, she just messaged us and told us that she finally got her first job on her own and shes standing on her own two feet, Islam said. Now that one victim is looking to give to our group and pay it forward.

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Associated Press writer Mariam Fam contributed to this report.

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The Associated Press receives support from the Lilly Endowment for coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of APs philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.
RIDGEFIELD  Firefighters rescued several animals from a house fire on North Salem Road Friday morning.

Officials said in a post on their Facebook page that a 911 caller reported smoke rising from a neighbors house. Crews dispatched to the home found a kitchen fire burning, the post said. While some firefighters worked to extinguish the flames, others searched the home because it was unclear if anyone was inside, according to officials.

Several dogs were trapped inside the smoke-filled house, according to the post.

They [the dogs] were unresponsive and were removed from the house by firefighters. Once they were out, they were given oxygen and began to respond positively to the life safety measures taken by firefighters, the post read. The dogs were taken to nearby animal hospitals for medical treatment.

Tara Mercado, the homes tenant, said the firefighters saved their [her dogs] lives, but her rescued pigeon, Wilbert, died in the fire. Mercado was driving toward New York City when she received the call about the fire, but no one was able to tell her if her dogs had gotten out safely.

I was panicking, I wanted to know how the dogs were, she said, so she quickly turned around and start racing back to Ridgefield.

Three of the five dogs rescued from the fire suffered carbon monoxide poisoning but were released to Mercado, however, the other two dogs  Goldie and Drake  remain in an intensive care unit at the Cornell animal hospital getting oxygen treatments.

Goldie, a 14-year-old greyhound rescued from a Florida race track, is the most critical. Mercado said she is having trouble getting enough blood flow to her heart and there is evidence of smoke damage in her lungs.

Were hoping that she pulls through in the next couple of hours but its really unsure for the next 24 probably, she said.

Drake, the 8-year-old Saint Bernard is doing slightly better today and Mercado hopes that if he keeps improving, he too will be released to her. Mercado works at a rescue and has medical training, which is why the veterinarians released the animals to her.

Mercado is currently staying with friends and waiting to hear back about when she can pick up some belongings from the home or permanently return to it. Fire Chief Jerry Myers said the fire marshals office is investigating what caused the fire and although the structural damage was limited to the kitchen, the home will need to be restored to a livable condition.

Caitlin Duggan, Mercados friend, created a GoFundMe for Mercado because she said the vet bills, Cornell specialist care and damage to the home, will be a mountain of expenses, that would be difficult for anyone. So far community members and people who know Mercado have raised $8,845 of the $25,000 goal.

Tara would rather die than have something happen to her dogs. Theyre her everything, she said. Tara has never ever given up on an animal.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP)  The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation has announced a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the fatal 2018 shooting of a 19-year-old man in Langston.

The reward, announced Friday, is the second time a reward has been offered in the shooting death of Brandon Dupree.
PHOENIX (AP)  Phoenix police said Saturday that a 14-year-old boy who was involved in a fight with other males at a central Phoenix light rail station had died after being stabbed.

A 30-year-old woman who police said stabbed the boy was arrested and booked her into jail on a second-degree murder charge, Sgt. Andy Williams said.
VIDALIA, La. (AP)  Two finalists remain in the running to lead an east-central Louisiana school district.

The Concordia Parish School Board cut the field of five last week, leaving Montrell Greene and Toyua Watson still being considered to replace Superintendent Whest Shirley whose contract was not renewed last year. Shirley has been working on a month-to-month contract while the search to fill the seat continues.

Both Green and Watson are products of Concordia Parish schools, said board president Fred Butcher

Butcher said the board would make a final decision during a special called school board meeting on Monday, The Natchez Democrat reported.

Greene is a graduate of Natchez High School and went to schools in Vidalia through sixth grade, Butcher said. He works as a minister at Sycamore Street Church of Christ in Greenwood and is the founder and executive director at Empowerment 360 Foundation and Montrell Greene Ministries.

Greene also has taught music in the Natchez Adams School District and served as an assistant principal at Gilmer McLaurin Elementary. He's also served as superintendent at Greenwood, Cleveland and East Jasper school districts.

Watson is a graduate of Ferriday High School and is currently the director of secondary education for Concordia Parish. She's been in the latter post since 2018. She also has more than 10 years of educational experience in teaching, counseling, and special program management.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  A jury in a North Carolina federal civil rights case has awarded $75 million to two Black, intellectually disabled half brothers who spent decades behind bars after being wrongfully convicted in the 1983 rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl.

The eight-person jury on Friday decided Henry McCollum and Leon Brown should received $31 million each in compensatory damages, $1 million for every year spent in prison, The News & Observer reported. The jury also awarded them $13 million in punitive damages.

The first jury to hear all of the evidence  including the wrongly suppressed evidence  found Henry and Leon to be innocent, found them to have been demonstrably and excruciatingly wronged, and has done what the law can do to make it right at this late date, Raleigh attorney Elliot Abrams said after the trial.

Abrams was part of the brothers legal team, which issued a statement saying the decades-long wait for recognition of the grave injustice" inflicted on the two by law enforcement was over. It added that a jury ... has finally given Henry and Leon the ability to close this horrific chapter of their lives. They look forward to a brighter future surrounded by friends, family, and loved ones.

McCollum and Brown have pursued the civil case against law enforcement members since 2015, arguing that their civil rights were violated during the interrogations that led to their convictions.

The two were released from prison in 2014 after DNA evidence that pointed to a convicted murderer exonerated them. They were teenagers when they were accused of the crime, which happened in Red Springs in Robeson County.

Attorneys for the men have said they were scared teenagers who had low IQs when they were questioned by police and coerced into confessing. McCollum was then 19, and Brown was 15. Both were convicted and sentenced to death.

McCollum spent most of his 31 years in prison on death row, becoming North Carolinas longest-serving death row inmate. Brown -- who the newspaper reported suffers from mental health conditions related to his time in prison and requires full-time care -- had his sentence later changed to life in prison.

On Friday, the Robeson County Sheriffs Office, one of the defendants, settled its part of the case for $9 million. The town of Red Springs, originally named in the civil suit, settled in 2017 for $1 million.

Friday's judgement came against former SBI agents Leroy Allen and Kenneth Snead, who were part of the original investigation.

Scott MacLatchie, the lead defense attorney for the SBI agents, attempted during his closing argument to cast doubt on the brothers innocence, the newspaper reported, despite the fact that they had received full pardons of innocence.

Ive got my freedom, McCollum said. Theres still a lot of innocent people in prison today. And they dont deserve to be there.
SEATTLE (AP)  A suburban Seattle man has been arrested and charged with entering the U.S. Capitol with a pro-Trump mob during the Jan. 6 deadly insurrection.

Joseph Elliott Zlab, 51, of Lake Forest Park, was arrested Thursday in Everett, an FBI spokesman told The Seattle Times. Zlab was charged with one count of unauthorized entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds and one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, charging documents show.

Zlab, who runs an Everett construction firm called JMZ Contractors, made an initial appearance in federal court in Seattle on Thursday. He faces up to a year and a half in prison, if convicted.

Neither Zlab nor his federal public defender responded to messages left by the newspaper on Friday.

According to an FBI affidavit, a man matching Zlabs description was seen in widely disseminated photographs and video entering the Capitol with the mob that forced their way into the building while Congress was certifying the 2020 presidential election results.

Ten days later, the FBI received an anonymous tip that Zlab was in the Capitol that day and gave the name of Zlabs business. A federal agent found a picture of Zlab on his business website and called him, the affidavit states.

During the phone call, Zlab confirmed he attended Trump's speech on Jan. 6 and participated in the march to the U.S. Capitol, the statement says. Zlab stated he circled the Capitol building two to three times taking pictures, according to the affidavit.

When the agent asked Zlab if he went inside the Capitol building, Zlab stated that he thought he needed an attorney because he did not want to say anything incriminating, the affidavit states.

After the agent obtained additional photos and footage of Zlab allegedly entering and walking inside the Capitol, the FBI obtained a search warrant April 8 for Zlabs Gmail account and found a folder dated Jan. 6. It contained several photos of the Capitols interior, including one that appears to depict other protesters in a haze-filled corridor, the affidavit says.

The FBI then conducted surveillance outside of Zlabs business and took a photo of Zlab that an agent used to confirm he was the man captured in the Jan. 6 images inside the Capitol, the affidavit states.

Zlab is the sixth Washington resident to be charged in connection with the insurrection.
The State Institute of Culture of Turkmenistan hosted an international online forum titled Historical image of Sultan Sanjar, principles of peacefulness and friendliness inherent in Turkmen peoples mentality.

The forum was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education and the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan. It was attended by Turkmen scientists and historians, as well as their colleagues from more than a dozen countries, including representatives of large scientific centers, museums and universities in Japan, Saudi Arabia, USA, Great Britain, Italy, Kazakhstan and Iraq.

Scientists presented interesting archaeological and manuscript data about the history, economy and culture of the Great Seljuk Empire (11-12 centuries). Some reports covered the specifics of the cultural life in Central Asia during the time of Sultan Sanjar and the Seljuk rulers contribution to the world culture and history.

Other reports talked about the works dedicated to the image of Sultan Sanjar in medieval literature and art, mentions of him in the works by prominent scientists of different eras.

 TURKMENISTAN.RU, 2021
MARIANNA, Fla. (AP)  A former Florida sheriffs deputy on trial for allegedly planting drugs during traffic stops testified that he is innocent, saying he found a stash of narcotics discovered in his patrol car but could not explain why he never reported it.

Fired Jackson County deputy Zachary Wester testified at his trial Friday that he found the methamphetamine, marijuana and syringes inside a box at a park restroom while investigating a report of suspicious activity. According to the Tallahassee Democrat, Wester guessed that it had been placed there to be found by an inmate work crew so it could be smuggled back inside the prison.

Internal affairs investigators found the drugs hidden inside his patrol car in the summer of 2018, shortly before he was suspended. Prosecutors say it was ready-to-plant evidence that Wester used during his traffic stops.

He was charged in 2019 with racketeering, official misconduct, fabricating evidence, false imprisonment, perjury and possession of drugs and paraphernalia in connection with a dozen traffic stops where he arrested drivers and passengers. Prosecutors had to drop charges in nearly 120 cases involving Wester that occurred between 2016 and 2018 because of the accusations that he planted evidence.

Wester, 28, said he wasnt sure how an inmate work crew would get the drugs back inside the prison, but it was extremely uncommon for that to be packaged the way it was and for it to be placed where it was.

He denied ever planting evidence, saying that never crossed my mind.

But during cross-examination by prosecutor Tom Williams, Wester conceded that he never reported finding the drug box, which would have been one of the largest seizures of his career. He said he had gone to two traffic crashes after finding the drugs and was busy processing them when he was confronted and suspended.

Wester also explained why body camera video showed him carrying a bag of methamphetamine before he searched the truck of a woman he had stopped for faulty brake lights. He testified he had found the bag in her door latch, but in his report he said he found it inside the truck in her purse.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP)  Farewell, hangar queen.

Offutt Air Force Bases 45th Reconnaissance Squadron said goodbye last week to one of its most trouble-prone jets, an OC-135B that logged 36,064 flight hours and 6,135 takeoffs and landings in nearly 60 years of military use.

Jets get old, people get old, said Lt. Col. Andrew Tripper Maus, the squadrons commander. Bittersweets probably the best word for it.

The Omaha World-Herald reports the aircraft, tail number 61-2672, spent the last 20 years flying aerial photography missions  primarily over Russia  in carrying out the international Open Skies Treaty. It was no longer needed after the Trump administration pulled out of the 34-nation pact last November.

The second Open Skies jet (tail number 61-2670), which has an equally troubled maintenance history, is slated for retirement June 4. Both will be flown to the Air Forces desert boneyard near Tucson, Arizona, to be stored and, eventually, scrapped.

The squadrons airmen, who call themselves the Wildcats, paid tribute to the venerable aircraft while slyly acknowledging its maddening tendency to break down at inconvenient times, and in inconvenient places.

Six Seven Two has been a loyal  if unreliable, sometimes  member of the 45th fleet, flinging generations of Wildcats haphazardly into the skies of Russia, said Capt. Taylor Pearce, who said he qualified to fly the planes only a few months ago.

The OC-135 is the second of the 45ths nine planes to retire in six months. Last November, the unit held a similar ceremony for an equally cranky WC-135 Constant Phoenix jet that the squadrons chaplain memorably christened Lucifers Chariot because of the havoc it created for air crews and maintenance teams.

Boeing built the plane and delivered it to the Military Air Transport Service April 30, 1962, according to Super Snoopers, a 2020 book detailing the history of the 55th Wings fleet of C-135 type jets. Three years later, it was reconfigured for weather reconnaissance and based in California until it was transferred to the 55th Wing at Offutt. The plane was outfitted with an expensive suite of cameras, called sensors, and for nearly 20 years has been dedicated exclusively to flying Open Skies missions.

Its become kind of a family. You get to go out, you get to be part of a team, away from anyone else  on your own, unafraid, in a place that not many Americans go to, said Lt. Col. Chris Reteneller, a veteran of the squadron.

The aged Open Skies aircraft date to the dawn of the jet age and lack upgraded engines and avionics that have been installed on the RC-135 Rivet Joint and Cobra Ball aircraft that make up most of the 55th Wing reconnaissance fleet at Offutt. In recent years, the OC-135s have had among the worst maintenance records in the Air Force.

Robert Hopkins III, a Gulf War-era 55th Wing pilot who is now a historian of Air Force reconnaissance flights, called them Stone Age.

In July 2016, No. 61-2672 made headlines in Russia and the United States when it had to abort an aerial photography mission after its landing gear failed to fully retract after takeoff and fly three hours across Russia with its gear down. It was at least the fifth in-flight mechanical breakdown for the plane that year.

The current aircraft are old, have bad maintenance rates and are prone to breakdown in Russia, putting our crews in bad situations where they are harassed by Russian authorities, U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, a retired Air Force brigadier general who formerly commanded the 55th Wing, told The World-Herald last year.

The Open Skies Treaty was signed in 1992, and it allowed the signatory nations to conduct supervised surveillance flights over one anothers territory. The treaty was fully implemented and flights began in 2002. The pact enjoyed broad bipartisan support, but that backing has frayed in recent years since Russias 2014 seizure of Crimea and its backing of rebel forces in eastern Ukraine.

At the peak of that crisis, in March 2014, a 45th Reconnaissance Squadron crew flew observers from the U.S., Canada and Estonia on a critical surveillance flight over Ukraine to gather intelligence on Russian troop build-ups.

In recent years, though, a hardline Republican faction has advocated for scrapping the Open Skies Treaty, citing alleged Russian violations. They undermined efforts by Nebraskas all-Republican Congressional delegation to fund new replacement jets for the aged OC-135s. Last year, they persuaded then-President Donald Trump to withdraw from the treaty.

Backers of the Open Skies, including U.S. allies in Europe, tried to persuade President Joe Biden to rejoin the treaty. He has not announced a decision.

This has been a rollercoaster of a last couple of years for the program, Maus said at Fridays retirement ceremony. Well always be ready, standing by, in case our national leaders decide to maybe rejoin a treaty, or join a new one.

The planes last flight was on Feb. 1, when it was the first 55th Wing jet flown to the units temporary operational headquarters at the Lincoln Airport. The Wing is using Lincoln until September 2022 while the runway at Offutt is being rebuilt.

Pearce said he was part of a crew that was supposed fly No. 61-2672 on a training flight March 2 that, perhaps fittingly, had to be scrubbed after the plane suffered what he described as a blessed cornucopia of maintenance problems.

By the end of the day, we were exhausted, maintenance was exhausted, and Six Seven Two was still broken, Pearce said. After that, it was permanently grounded, until its flight to the boneyard next week.

So, thank you, Six Seven Two, Pearce added, for giving me the experience I deserved  even if it was not the one I wanted.
MONTGOMERY, Ala, (AP)  Alabama lawmakers return Monday for the final day of the legislative session with several large and controversial issues before them. The legislative session by law is limited to 30 meeting days and must conclude Monday.

Here is a look at where some key issues stand:

GENERAL FUND

One of the most pressing issues is to give final approval for the general fund budget for next fiscal year. The bill is in conference committee to work out differences between the House of Representatives and Alabama Senate. The $2.4 billion spending plan is up a modest 3.6% over this year. The budget includes a 2% pay raise for state employees.

CURBSIDE VOTING BAN

The bill by Republican Rep. Wes Allen of Troy would explicitly forbid election workers from setting up curbside areas for people to vote as well as forbid the setting up of voting machines outside a polling place. Curbside voting is a voting method that civil rights organizations had sought during the COVID-19 pandemic and have argued that it would make it easier for people to vote, particularly the elderly, disabled and parents with young children. The House approved the bill and it is awaiting a vote in the Senate.

GAMBLING

House leaders are doubtful a gambling bill will return for a House of Representatives vote on the last day. The Senate-passed proposal would allow a state lottery and nine casinos in the state. However, negotiations in the House of Representatives fell apart. Republican Rep. Chris Blackshear, who handled the bill in the House, said he doesnt expect either the gambling bill to make a return in any form. Blackshear said if lawmakers can come to an agreement, he is hopeful Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey will call a special session on the issue later this year.

TRANSGENDER TREATMENT

The bill would make it a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison for a doctor to prescribe puberty-blockers or hormones or perform surgery to aid in the gender transition of people 18 or younger. The Alabama Senate approved the bill in March, and it awaits a vote in the House. Opponents, including parents and trans youth, say such measures interfere with medical decisions and target trans individuals for the sake of politics. Sponsors counter that they are trying to protect children from decisions that should wait until adulthood. Arkansas earlier this year became the first state to enact such a measure.

OPPOSING FEDERAL GUN LAWS

The Alabama Senate approved legislation to make it a crime for local police officers to enforce any new federal gun restrictions, part of a wave of GOP nullification proposals to try to resist any new gun control measures. Senators voted 21-5 for the bill by Republican Sen. Gerald Allen of Tuscaloosa. The bill is awaiting a vote in the House. Republicans in several states are pushing such measures. Opponents of the bill argued that the U.S. Constitution already protects gun rights and that Republican lawmakers are going to get the state embroiled in a costly lawsuit that they will ultimately lose.

THIRD GRADE READING PROMOTION REQUIREMENT

After COVID-19 disrupted two school years, Alabama lawmakers are weighing a pause in an upcoming state requirement for third graders to pass a reading test before moving up to the fourth grade. The Senate-passed bill by Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, would delay the promotion requirement now set to take effect next year. Smitherman and others said it would be unfair to force the requirement on students who were out of the traditional classroom for long stretches during the pandemic. Rep. Terri Collins, who sponsored the original law creating the requirement, said she would prefer to wait until after spring test scores are in before deciding if a delay is needed.

YOGA BAN

The bill by Democratic Rep. Jeremy Gray of Opelika would allow public schools to teach yoga. He says he is weighing whether to accept the changes or go to conference committee and risk running out of time to pass the bill on the busy final legislative day. Gray says he thought some of the Senate changes showed phobias or blatant disrespect to the Hindu culture. Gray is attempting to void a decades-old ban on yoga in public schools. The Alabama Board of Education voted in 1993 to prohibit yoga, hypnosis and meditation in public school classrooms.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP)  A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a $25 million award against agribusiness giant Monsanto Co. in a lawsuit that alleged a California man developed cancer from exposure to its best-selling weed killer, Roundup.

In a 2-1 ruling, a panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Monsanto's appeal of punitive damages awarded in 2019 by a San Francisco jury.

The jurors found that Edwin Hardeman proved Roundups design was defective, it lacked sufficient cancer warnings and its manufacturer was negligent. They initially awarded Hardeman more than $80 million in damages but a judge later reduced the punitive portion of the award, bringing the total to around $25 million.

Hardeman blamed his non-Hodgkin's lymphoma on decades of using Roundup products to treat poison oak, overgrowth and weeds on his San Francisco Bay Area property.

The appellate court ruling said evidence from the case supported a conclusion that Monsanto acted with "indifference to or a reckless disregard of the health or safety of others and thus was liable for punitive damages.

And while the initial punitive award figure was excessive, the reduced amount was legal, the ruling said.

An email to Monsanto representatives seeking comment wasnt immediately returned.

However, Monsanto has long said studies have established that glyphosate, the active ingredient in its widely used weed killer, is safe.

Hardeman's suit was one of many by thousands of people who contend that Monsanto's products caused their cancers.

Monsanto was acquired by the German chemical giant Bayer several years ago. Bayer agreed last year to pay $12 billion to resolve thousands of U.S. lawsuits and deal with future claims.
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP)  Law enforcement agencies rescued nine human trafficking victims and two children during an operation at a Missouri hotel, authorities said Saturday.

The operation Friday night at the Holiday Inn East hotel in Columbia resulted in two suspects also being detained, the Missouri Attorney General's office said in a news release.
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  With the Wisconsin State Fair returning this summer, county fairs around the state are also gearing up to return to in-person events this year.

Tom Barnett is coordinator of the Oneida County Fair. His county was one of many that decided to cancel its fair last year due to concerns about COVID-19. But Barnett said they decided at the start of this year that they would be bringing back the fair no matter what in 2021.

We were counting on the vaccine to come out and people feeling more comfortable, Barnett said. So we decided way back then that one way or another ... that we were going to have a fair.

Barnett said the county fair committee tried to keep some fair traditions alive through social media last year, even hosting a livestream version of their annual Sexiest Mens Legs In a Kilt contest.

He said more community members participated than they expected, but many residents are eager to see the fair return in person, Wisconsin Public Radio reported.

Kathy Ambrosius, administrator of the Brown County Fair, said fair organizers across the state feel the same way.

She said it was emotional and stressful for many organizers to see so many fairs cancel in 2020.

All of the fairs that Im aware of are onboard to have their fair this year, Ambrosius said. We are one big fair family. We all share things back and forth and were very optimistic this will be a great year for all of us.

Brown County was one of the few who hosted a fair last summer, and Ambrosius said theyre planning to follow many of the same safety protocols during this years event.

We bought a lot of equipment like sanitizer stands, those types of items. Thats all brought us into this year, Ambrosius said. Well be using those same safety equipment, the same signage, and still have the hand sanitizers.

Like many local fairs, Ambrosius said Brown County relies on sponsors to help cover event costs. She said they lost a few business sponsors in 2020 due to the economic impact of the pandemic, but others stepped up their donations to cover the losses.

Barnett said losing business sponsorships was one of the major reasons the Oneida County group chose to cancel last years event.

But his fair committee decided to try something new this year, holding a 12-hour livestreamed telethon to raise money for the event. Barnett said they brought in around $7,500 in donations.

The community really came together, Barnett said. We had a lot of just your average citizen donating money. We had businesses stopping in personally with a check. It was just fantastic. They were coming to us and showing that they wanted to continue their support of us.

Barnett said this years fair will look largely the same as previous years, but with increased handwashing stations and sanitizing procedures to try to prevent virus spread.

He said at this point in the pandemic, fair organizers feel its up to individuals to take personal responsibility for following public health recommendations.

We are pretty confident that people are aware of the safety precautions that need to be taken, if there are any at that point, Barnett said.
BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP)  A salvage team on Saturday began assessing damage caused by a fire inside the remains of an overturned cargo ship that is being dismantled along the Georgia coast.

The assessment is likely to take several days, the multiagency command overseeing the demolition of the Golden Ray said in a statement.

The wreckage caught fire Friday as workers used torches to cut into the hull. Crews extinguished the blaze, which burned for several hours and sent up black smoke. No one was injured.

A giant crane being used to dismantle the ship was unhooked Saturday and shifted away from the site to allow for the damage assessments, officials said.

Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Himes, a spokesman for the multiagency command, said it was too early to know how much the fire might further delay efforts to remove roughly one-half of the shipwreck that remains partly submerged in St. Simons Sound.

The South Korean-owned Golden Ray measured 656 feet (199 meters) in length when it overturned on Sept. 8, 2019. A towering crane was brought in to straddle the wreck. It has been cutting the ship into giant chunks using 400 feet (122 meters) of anchor chain to tear through the hull like a blunt-edged saw.

An active 2020 hurricane season and the coronavirus pandemic kept demolition from starting until November. Though the job reached the halfway mark in April, progress has been slower than initially expected.

The Golden Ray had roughly 4,200 vehicles in its cargo decks when it rolled onto its side shortly after leaving the nearby Port of Brunswick. Though four crew members had to be rescued from deep inside the ship, all 24 people on board survived.

A Coast Guard expert concluded the Golden Ray tipped over because unstable loading had left its center of gravity too high. Lt. Ian Oviatt testified at a hearing on the wreck last year that the ship lacked enough water in its ballast tanks, used to add weight at the bottom of a vessel, to offset that of the vehicles in cargo decks above.
MOSCOW (AP)  German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle says one of its freelance correspondents has been sentenced to 20 days in jail in Belarus.

DW said in a statement that Alexander Burakov was sentenced Saturday for taking part in an unauthorized event. It said Burakov was arrested on Wednesday while waiting with other journalists for access to the trial of six people charged with mass unrest.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  My colleagues' shouts awakened me, and the pounding of my heart drowned out the racing of my mind. What was happening? Had someone been injured on the streets of Gaza City, or worse?

It was 1:55 p.m. on Saturday. I had been napping on the upper floor of the two-floor penthouse that served as The Associated Press' offices in Gaza City since 2006. This was not unusual in recent days; since fighting began earlier this month, I had been sleeping in our news bureau until early afternoon, then working through the night.

I hurried downstairs and saw my colleagues donning helmets and protective vests. They were shouting: Evacuation! Evacuation!

The Israeli military, I would learn later, had targeted our building for destruction and offered up a brief advance warning: They had taken out three buildings so far this week, warning residents and occupants sometimes minutes beforehand to get out. Hurriedly, I was told: You have 10 minutes.

What did I need? I grabbed my laptop and a few other pieces of electronics. What else? I looked at the workspace that had been mine for years, brimming with mementos from friends, family and colleagues. I chose just a handful: a decorative plate bearing a picture of my family. A coffee mug given me by my daughter, now living safely in Canada with her sister and my wife since 2017. A certificate marking five years of employment at AP.

I started to leave. Then I looked back at this place that had been my second home for years. I realized this was the last time I might ever see it. It was just after 2 p.m. I looked around. I was the last person there.

I put on my helmet. And I ran.

___

After the most unsettling of days in the community where I was born and raised and now cover the news  in the place where my mother and siblings and cousins and uncles live  I am home now. I wish I could say I am safe here, but I can't. In Gaza, there is no safe place.

On Friday, an airstrike destroyed my family farm on the northern edge of Gaza. And now, my Gaza City office  the place that I thought was sacrosanct and would go untargeted because both AP and al-Jazeera's offices were located on its top floors  is a pile of rubble and girders and dust.

Many Gazans have fared worse. At least 145 of us have been killed since Monday, when Hamas began firing hundreds of rockets into Israel, which has pounded the Gaza Strip with strikes. In Israel, eight people have been killed, including a man killed by a rocket that hit in Ramat Gan, a suburb of Tel Aviv, on Saturday.

In our building, the clock in my head felt deafening as I ran out of the office. I ran down the 11 floors of stairs and into the basement parking garage. Suddenly I realized: My car was the only one there. All others had evacuated. I threw my belongings in the back, jumped in and drove off.

When I felt I was far enough away, I parked the car and got out, making sure I had a view of my building. I found my colleagues nearby. They were watching, waiting for what was next.

Nearby, our building's owner was on the phone with the Israeli military officer who had told him to get the place evacuated. The owner was begging for a bit more time. No, he was told. That won't be possible. Instead, he was told: Go back into the building and make sure everyone's out. You have 10 minutes. You'd better hurry.

I turned toward our building to watch. I was praying that maybe, maybe it wouldn't happen. I thought of the families that lived on the upper five floors of the building, below the media bureaus and above the offices on the lower floors. What would they do? Where would they go?

Other journalists clustered around, just at the edge of safety, steeled for what was next. My intrepid video colleagues tended to their live shot.

Then, in quick succession over the next eight minutes: a small drone airstrike, followed by another and another. And then three powerful airstrikes from F-16s.

At first, it looked like layers of something collapsing. I thought of a bowl of potato chips, and what might happen if you slammed a fist into them. Then the smoke and dust enveloped everything. The sky rumbled. And the building that was home to some people, an office to others and both to me disappeared in a shroud of dust.

In my pocket, I still had a key to a room that no longer existed.

___

Standing with my colleagues about 400 meters (yards) away, I watched for a while and tried to process it all as the rubble started to settle. White smoke was overtaken by thick clouds of black smoke as the structure crumbled. Dust and pieces of cement and shards of glass scattered everywhere. What we knew so well was gone.

I thought of all of my hundreds of mementos that were now in splinters  including the 20-year-old cassette recorder I used when I first became a journalist. If I had had an hour, I would have grabbed everything.

It was one of the most horrible scenes I have ever witnessed. But while I was deeply sad, there was gratitude, too  as far as I knew, no people had been hurt  neither any of my colleagues nor anybody else. That would be confirmed in the coming hours, as more information came out and my bosses at AP condemned an attack that shocked and horrified" them.

I wondered how long I should stay and watch. It was then that my years of instinct kicked in  the instinct of covering so much violence and sadness in the place that is my home.

Our building was gone and would not be coming back. Already, other things were happening that I needed to cover. You must realize: We journalists, we are not the story. The priority for us is not ourselves. It is to tell the stories of other people, those who are living their lives in the communities we cover.

So I spent a few more moments watching the end of the place that shaped so much of my life. And then I began to wake up from this nightmare.

I said to myself: It has been done. Now lets figure out what to do next. Lets keep covering it all. This is history, and there are more stories to tell. And like always, as the world shakes around us, it is up to us to figure out how.

___

Fares Akram is a journalist in Gaza for The Associated Press.
BYROMVILLE, Ga. (AP)  When Sylvester Bembry inherited the family farm in Hawkinsville from his parents, he inherited the debt that came with it. Debt that he doesnt want to pass on to the next generation.

All we can do is pray about it, he said. And hopefully it will work out.

For decades, Black farmers have struggled to overcome financial hardships while the federal agency tasked with aiding them is riddled with discriminatory practices. With a history of racially biased lending programs under the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 17,000 Black farmers indebted to the agency have been driven into foreclosure.

Many of those Black farmers  desperate for help  surrounded the bed of a pickup truck at Jibbs Vineyard in Byromville Tuesday. In a town with a population of a little less than 600, dozens showed up to hear Georgias first Black U.S. senator promise change.

With his election, U.S. Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock has pledged a mission to put long overdue relief into the pockets of the suffering farmers and do his best to tackle larger racial injustices written into the framework of the USDA. Hes made good on the first step of his promise: $5 billion written into the most recent federal COVID-19 relief package specifically to help aid the recovery for farmers of color.

I know youve been waiting a long time, Warnock told the crowd in Byromville. And youve been struggling a long time. But know that were here with you. And for you. And when we help the Black farmers, were not just helping the Black farmers, were helping the agricultural community.

But with the slow trickle down of dollars into farmers pockets and the USDA again being led by Tom Vilsack, who many say fell far short of addressing racial inequities under the Obama administration, Black farmers are wary.

While hopeful of Warnocks promise, some Black farmers say they are not blind to the obstacles in changing a bureaucratic system that has discriminated against them for decades.

The only way these 17,000 Black farmers could get out of this debt is to die, said Eddie Slaughter, a third-generation farmer from Buena Vista. ... A landless people is a helpless people.

In 2017, according to the USDA, only about 49,000 farmers out of 3.4 million across the country were Black  with 2,870 of those in Georgia. The number is down from nearly a million Black farmers a century ago.

But people dont need to look far back in history for evidence of blatant racial discrimination in agriculture, Warnock said. Last year, Black farmers received next to nothing in coronavirus relief.

This discrimination that were talking about is not just historic discrimination, he said. You dont have to go back that far. Last year, Black farmers received one tenth of 1% of the USDA COVID-19 relief. I dont have to go back to Reconstruction or the Civil Rights Movement.

Dr. Dewayne Goldmon, a third-generation farmer from Arkansas and the USDAs first appointed senior advisor for racial equity, recognizes the work to be done. In an effort to build back trust, Goldmon stood with Warnock on the back of the pickup truck and faced skeptical farmers.

Were going to relieve the debt and restore your confidence in USDA in one move. Because you should be able to come back to the door, apply for a loan, and be treated fairly and equitably in the execution of that loan, and be able to do business, Goldmon said. ... The goal is to fix USDA so you will feel welcome coming back in.

Farmers told Warnock and Goldmon stories of pending foreclosures, veterans unable to access USDA resources to start their farms, others who couldnt get loans from the Farm Service Agency. In conversations after the event, many detailed hardships that fueled their distrust in the USDA  trust that, they said, may never be won back.

Weve had such an adversarial relationship over the years. When you walk into the USDA you really walk into a hostile environment, Slaughter said. And because nobody has ever been punished for discriminatory practices they do, everybody feels comfortable doing it.

Despite how badly he needs money for equipment to revive his farming operation, he said, he wont be turning to the USDA for help and others echoed the sentiment.

If you go stick your hand in a hole and a rattlesnake bite it the first time, and you go back the second time, and stick your hand and he bites you again, said Lucious Abrams, a Waynesboro farmer. What do you think hell do the third time?

Warnock clinched the influential position as chair of the Senate subcommittee that oversees agriculture during his first term in office, adding the weight of responsibility to oversee change to fairer treatment of Black farmers in Georgia and nationwide  including cultivating a relationship of trust.

This is something that goes back from generations, for generations, people have experienced discrimination, often at the hands of their own government  at the hands of the USDA, he said. And what I hear and feel as I move around in communities like this is the longevity, and the depth of that pain and disappointments.

Warnock said he expects the coronavirus relief he spearheaded to come to farmers of color in a matter of weeks.

That deep distrust was built over years, it didnt happen overnight, he said. But the best thing we can do right now is to deliver this. I think if we deliver on this commitment, that will go a long way in beginning to rebuild trust.
New Delhi, May 15 (UNI) In wake of impending cyclone Tauktae, the Indian Navy on Saturday said that the relief team from Southern Naval Command has undertaken the rescue operations in the area of Chellanam coast of Kerala.

Three naval diving teams and one Quick Reaction Team from the Southern Naval Command swung into action to provide assistance to flood-hit villages of Malaghapadi, Kampanipadi and Maruvakad in Chellanam, the officials in Navy said.

The teams undertook the provisioning of food and water and shifting of people trapped in houses to the relief camp at the St Mary's High School in Chellanam in harsh weather conditions.
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. (AP)  The former manager of Princess Anne, a town on Marylands Eastern Shore, has been found guilty of stealing from the community.

After a two-day trial this week, jurors found Deborah Hrusko guilty of theft of more than $100,000 and involvement in a theft scheme of more than $100,000, The Daily Times of Salisbury reported.
ATLANTA (AP)  Georgia public universities will once again start requiring standardized test scores for enrollment in 2022.

The University System of Georgia announced Wednesday it will resume requiring test scores beginning with students seeking admission for Spring 2022.

Generally, the minimum test scores required for admission are a 920 on the SAT test or a 17 on the ACT test. However, schools with selective admissions policies such as Georgia Tech can require higher scores.

The average Georgia student scores 21.4 on the ACT and around 1050 on the SAT.

Georgia's public universities and colleges didn't require tests for admissions in spring, summer and fall of 2021 because the COVID-19 pandemic led to many cancelled test dates. The schools did consider scores if an applicant submitted them.

Many other schools, including a number of private institutions in Georgia, have announced they won't require test scores for fall of 2022. Some anti-testing advocates had hoped the pandemic would lead to abandonment of SAT and ACT tests

Schools that waived ACT/SAT score requirements during the pandemic generally saw more applicants, better academically qualified academics, and more diversity of all sorts," Bob Schaeffer, executive director of the National Center for Fair & Open Testing, or FairTest, said last month. "Now, most are extending those policies for at least another year.

Schaeffer cites data showing children from affluent households have an unfair advantage on the tests.

Test scores are required at all the schools classified as universities except Middle Georgia State University. Scores are also not required for Atlanta Metropolitan State College, College of Coastal Georgia, East Georgia State, Georgia Gwinnett College, Georgia Highland College, Gordon State College and South Georgia State College. Test scores are also not required for admission to Georgia Southern University's Liberty campus and Georgia State University's Perimeter College.

Two state colleges, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and Dalton State College also require tests, but seek lower scores than the university minimum.
ATHENS, Greece (AP)  Ioannis Lagos, a Greek far-right member of the European Parliament, was extradited to Greece Saturday to begin serving a 13-year prison sentence.

Authorities said Lagos was to spend his first night in isolation in the high-security prison of Domokos, in central Greece, before being assigned to a regular cell on Sunday.

Lagos request that he be held at a prison in Athens, ostensibly to keep up with his work in the European Parliament, was rejected by authorities.

Lagos had been living in Brussels since a Greek court in October convicted him and 17 other former Greek lawmakers from the extreme-right Golden Dawn party of leading a criminal organization, or being members in it.

Lagos was taken into custody last month after the European Parliament voted to remove his immunity, paving the way for him to be sent to Athens on a European arrest warrant.

Golden Dawn was founded as a Nazi-inspired group in the 1980s. It saw a surge in popularity during Greeces 2010-2018 financial crisis, gaining parliamentary representation between 2012 and 2019. Lagos was a member of Greeces Parliament throughout this period, before being elected to the European Parliament in 2019. He, like other former lawmakers, has now left Golden Dawn.

The five-year trial in Athens was launched following the 2013 murder of rapper and left-wing activist Pavlos Fyssas, who was stabbed to death by a Golden Dawn supporter.

The other convicted Golden Dawn members are already in jail, except for one who escaped arrest and is officially a fugitive.
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP)  Washington state health officials said Saturday that they've identified an E. coli outbreak to PCC Community Market brand yogurt produced by Pure Eire Dairy.

The dairy is working with the state Department of Agriculture to identify and recall all affected products, the state Health Department said in a statement. Officials said anyone with this brand of yogurt should throw it away.

The outbreak now includes 11 confirmed cases, including six children under the age of 10, infected with bacteria that have been genetically linked.

There were eight cases in King County and one each in Benton, Snohomish and Walla Walla counties, officials said.

Seven people have been hospitalized. Three people have developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a serious complication of E. coli infection.
SRINAGAR, India (AP)  Police in Indian-controlled Kashmir said Saturday that 21 people were arrested for disturbing public order by expressing solidarity with Palestinians and holding protests against Israels military offensive in Gaza.

Police said in a statement they were keeping a close watch on elements who are attempting to leverage the unfortunate situation in Palestine to disturb public peace and order in Kashmir. The statement said police were sensitive to public anguish but wouldn't allow those sentiments to "trigger violence, lawlessness and disorder.

The Muslim-majority Himalayan region of Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and claimed by both in its entirety. Kashmiris have long shown strong solidarity with Palestinians and have often staged anti-Israel protests when fighting broke out in Gaza.

Police inspector-general Vijay Kumar told reporters that 20 people were arrested in Srinagar, the regions main city, and one from a village in southern Kashmir.

A police officer, speaking anonymously in line with department policy, said the 21 were arrested for social media posts, taking part in anti-Israel protests and making graffiti in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and Jerusalem.

Some of the arrested could be soon released after counseling and assurances from their parents that they would desist from such acts in future, the officer said.

The officer said the arrested include Sarjan Barkati, a Muslim cleric and a prominent anti-India activist, as well as an artist. The artist was arrested for painting pro-Palestinian graffiti on a bridge in Srinagar on Friday showing a woman wearing a scarf made of a Palestinian flag and a tear tricking from her eye, with the words: WE ARE PALESTINE. The graffiti was later painted over by police.

Since Monday, Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and Palestinian militants have fired hundreds of rockets into Israel. The latest round of fighting between the bitter enemies has already begun to resemble  and even exceed  a devastating 50-day war in 2014.

During that war, large anti-Israel protests erupted in Kashmir, which often morphed into clashes with demands of an end of Indias rule over the region and causing dozens of casualties.

Relations between Hindu-majority India and Israel have long been viewed with suspicion and hostility in Kashmir, and Israel has also emerged as a key arms supplier to India.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP)  The student reporter who gained national acclaim when he interviewed President Barack Obama at the White House in 2009 has died of natural causes, his family says.

Damon Weaver was 23 when he died May 1, his sister, Candace Hardy, told the Palm Beach Post. Further details were not released. He had been studying communications at Albany State University in Georgia.

Weaver was 11 when he interviewed Obama for 10 minutes in the Diplomatic Room on Aug. 13, 2009, asking questions that focused primarily on education. He covered school lunches, bullying, conflict resolution and how to succeed.

Weaver then asked Obama to be his homeboy, saying then-Vice President Joe Biden had already accepted.

Absolutely, a smiling Obama said, shaking the boy's hand.

He used that meeting to later interview Oprah Winfrey and athletes like Dwyane Wade.

He was just a nice person, genuine, very intelligent, Hardy said. Very outspoken, outgoing. He never said no to anybody.

Weaver got his start in fifth grade when he volunteered for the school newscast at K.E. Cunningham/Canal Point Elementary in a farm community on the shores of Lake Okeechobee.

Damon was the kid who ran after me in the hall to tell me he was interested, his teacher, Brian Zimmerman, told the Post in 2016. And right away, I just saw the potential for the way he was on camera. You could see his personality come through. He wasnt nervous being on camera.
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP)  The liberal mayor of Hungary's capital announced Saturday that he will enter an upcoming primary race that will choose a candidate to face nationalist Prime Minster Viktor Orban in closely watched elections next year.

In a video posted to Facebook, Budapest mayor Gergely Karacsony said he would accept the nomination of his party and run in a two-round primary in September and October as part of a six-party opposition coalition that seeks to unseat the governing Fidesz party.

I made this decision because I feel that my homeland is in big trouble, Karacsony said, adding that he believes the biggest problem facing Hungary is polarization dividing the country's citizens. I would like to serve the purpose of reuniting Hungary, he said.

Karacsony, 45, was elected mayor of Budapest in 2019 as part of an effort by six opposition parties to join forces against Orban's right-wing Fidesz, which has firmly governed Hungary with a two-thirds parliamentary majority since 2010.

Those municipal elections led to major losses for Fidesz in many of Hungary's cities, and the same six parties plan a repeat of their unity strategy in national elections next spring, expected to be the most competitive in more than a decade.

The opposition coalition contains Greens, Socialists and centrist liberals, but has also found common cause with the right-wing Jobbik party, which has since 2018 sought to break ties with its radical, antisemitic past and shift to become a center-right people's party.

Fidesz has criticized its liberal opponents for collaborating with Jobbik, whose politicians have in the past made antisemitic and racist remarks.

Critics of Hungary's government accuse Orban of clamping down on media and judicial freedom, unilaterally authoring a new constitution and making unfair changes to election laws. But Orban asserts that Hungary is pursuing an innovative experiment in what he calls illiberal democracy, based on Christian conservatism and a firm rejection of immigration.

An OSCE election monitoring delegation in 2018 found that intimidating and xenophobic rhetoric, media bias and opaque campaign financing had made elections that year unfair, but still characterized the voting process as free.

Hungary's opposition parties argue that electoral changes have meant that coordinating their efforts into a single bloc against Fidesz is the only means to unseat the party. Recent polling finds that Fidesz and the opposition coalition are neck and neck in voter support.

In his video Saturday, Karacsony alluded to allegations of corruption against Fidesz, and vowed to serve the 99 percent if he is elected prime minister, invoking a left-wing populist slogan used by the Occupy movement nearly a decade ago.
BRADDOCK HEIGHTS, Md. (AP)  Flies swarmed around the trunk of Leah DuRants car, and she wondered what could have possibly stirred them up.

Turns out, it was an ominous warning sign for what lied ahead.

Three or four days earlier, DuRant had gone to Costco and, by her son Johns estimate, purchased $200 worth of meat products. But the shopping bags never made it inside her Braddock Heights home.

So, when the trunk popped open nearly 100 hours later, the flies and the maggots were already laying waste to what DuRant had bought as if it were a dead animal along the side of the road. She seemed shocked.

Just the disconnect, John DuRant Jr. remarked. There was no recollection anything was bought. It didnt add up.

For most of the last decade, DuRant Jr. and his father, Leahs primary caretakers today, have watched her mental condition gradually erode.

There was the toast that was left way too long in the microwave and left the stench of burning throughout the house. There were the compulsive purchases on QVC of beauty products that werent in short supply around the house. There was the time she got completely lost while driving to see her doctor in Hagerstown.

Leah DuRant, 75, is one of the 6.2 million Americans who have dementia, a cognitive disorder that impairs ones ability to remember, think, reason and interact socially, and typically develops as people get older. In many cases, it renders familiar faces and normal, everyday life unrecognizable to the afflicted person.

DuRants case is an advanced one and being managed as best as possible by her husband and son  both of whom live with her  and a small team of caregivers.

Still, as John DuRant Jr. put it, they can feel like strangers to her.

Its been a cycle, a gradually progressing disease, he said. I look back at the times, it doesnt feel like that long ago where we were able to have reasonable conversations with her. Now, most of the time, she doesnt recognize me.

RENEWED URGENCY

Developing a cure and better treatments for dementia has taken on renewed urgency since the number of Americans with the disease is on pace to double in the next 30 years, according to the Alzheimers Association.

Worldwide, it more than doubled over the past 30 years, as cases have exploded from an estimated 20.2 million in 1990 to more than 50 million in 2020, according to the World Health Organization, with nearly half of the cases involving people 85 and older.

In 2020, the WHO announced that dementia was one of the top 10 causes for death, with nearly two million deaths attributed to it worldwide in 2019 alone.

Dementia is an umbrella term for a group of diseases associated with cognitive decline. Alzheimers disease is both the most common form and the leading cause of dementia, with more than 70 percent of dementia cases being attributed to Alzheimers.

The coronavirus pandemic has only exacerbated the situation for those who have dementia, isolating them in many cases and denying them social interactions that can be vital for their care. The Alzheimers Association projects that Alzheimers-related deaths have increased by 16 percent during the pandemic.

One in three seniors will die with Alzheimers or another form of dementia, according to the Alzheimers Association.

Point of Rocks resident Rosario Campos, 63, has not been able to visit her 95-year-old father, Manuel, who has the disease, during the pandemic.

Manuel Campos is living by himself and being treated in his native Peru since it was too cost prohibitive for the family to have him treated in his home state of Arizona or near Rosario in Maryland.

So it is difficult for Rosario to assess how he is being cared for since she cant travel to see him due to COVID-19 restrictions. Her interactions with him are presently limited to phone calls, during which he often doesnt recognize that it is his daughter on the other end of the line.

It is terrible, Rosario Campos said. It is very, very hard. I spend every night thinking about him.

There is an ongoing effort to corral some of the costs associated with caring for someone with Alzheimers and dementia.

The Alzheimers Association projects that related care will cost the U.S. $355 billion in 2021. If current trends continue, the figure could grow to $1.1 trillion by 2050, the organization says.

U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md), whose father Christopher died of Alzheimers in 2013, is championing funding that will increase federal resources for treating Alzheimers and work toward finding a cure.

We have a lot of work to do together. But the first step is making sure that people are aware of what is happening, including (treatment) services that are available, Van Hollen recently said at a community forum the Alzheimers Association conducted virtually for residents of Frederick and Washington counties.

Last July, at the Alzheimers Association International Conference, a medical research team presented five discoveries related to Alzheimers treatment. They included multiple drugs that were in various phases of clinical trials in the Food and Drug Administrations approval process, as well as a blood test  hailed as a potential game-changer  that may be able to detect changes in the brain 20 years before Alzheimers symptoms occur.

This is an exciting time in Alzheimers and dementia research, said Megeen White, the program manager for the Alzheimers Associations Greater Maryland Chapter. Yet, we know we cant stop or let up. We know we cant not push for additional funding. The numbers keep going up.

By 2025, there will be 130,000 Maryland residents living with Alzheimers, according to White.

There is always more progress to be made, she said.

AN UNLIKELY CANDIDATE

Even though there was a family history, Leah DuRant seemed like an unlikely candidate for dementia to prey on.

She lived a vibrant, active lifestyle and was dedicated to helping others.

DuRant was a trained nurse after attending Old Dominion University, and she later ran her own business, a fitness club for seniors.

The active lifestyle exacted a price, however, and DuRant underwent hip and back surgeries for wear-and-tear type issues.

The surgeries made her less active physically, and she wasnt seeing the same number of people she normally would. That allowed the dementia to start creeping in, her son believes.

You have a Band-Aid thats a certain size. But then the cut gets bigger and bigger and bigger. The progression is just unstoppable, John DuRant Jr. said of his mothers condition.

To help her cope, DuRant and his father will try and keep the mood in the house light, positive and happy. Theyll indulge in the stories she tells, even if they are repetitive or, in some cases, not true.

Though life can be very frustrating for her now, Leah DuRant still has good days and many positive moments, particularly when she is around other people through activities meant to stimulate her mind. The idea of helping other people still clearly drives her.

My mother is a very empathetic person, John DuRant Jr. said. That comes from her being a nurse.

PROVIDING JOY

One of John DuRant Jr.s favorite stories about treating someone with dementia doesnt involve his mother.

First, a little background: The DuRants are musically inclined. John DuRant Sr. paid for his college education at Old Dominion partly by performing folk music in the bars and clubs around southern Maryland, southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina  the Tidewater region.

He later had a seven-year, award-winning run as a childrens TV host in the 1990s on a local cable channel in Frederick. His show was called The Troubadour.

One day, he set his guitar on the couch and instructed his young son not to touch it. Now, they often share the stage together, regaling audiences at festivals, coffee houses, theaters and pubs with their folksy blend of music.

John DuRant Jr. is a solo artist as well, performing under the moniker, Johnny Strum. He has performed in far-away places  Ireland, France and Russia, among them  and hopes to resume touring once the pandemic ends.

On this particular occasion, he was playing a concert for the memory-care unit at a Frederick nursing home. The song he was playing was Down in the Valley. Everyone was singing along.

Down in the valley, Valley so low. Hang your head over, Hear the wind blow.

Hear the wind blow, love, Hear the wind blow. Hang your head over, Hear the wind blow.

About halfway through the song, DuRant Jr. noticed that everyone in the room had tears streaming down their faces, and he couldnt figure out why.

He looked to the corner of the room, where Mrs. Johnson was singing right along with him, word for word.

For many in the room, it was the first time they had seen her express herself verbally. They were amazed.

That experience changed me, man, DuRant Jr. said. Thats part of why we do what we do.

Similarly, the music the DuRants play can provide therapeutic moments for the woman they love. Leah often attempts to sing along whenever they play around the house.

Music is a different part of the brain. She definitely perks up, DuRant Jr. said.

There, in that moment of song, a sense of normalcy is regained and everything feels like it should, even if its fleeting.

Our hearts beat in unison, DuRant Jr. said. Playing for her is something that brings us closer together. Playing for her is something that brings joy.
BLENDON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP)  A 4-year-old child has died after being accidentally shot with a pellet gun in western Michigans Ottawa County, police said.

The child was shot Friday evening at a home in rural Blendon Township, which is south of Allendale, but Ottawa County Sheriffs Office provided few details.
New Delhi, May 15 (UNI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a crucial meeting on Saturday evening to review the preparedness of various Ministries and agencies to deal with impending Cyclone Tauktae, sources in the Government said.

Union Cabinet Secretary, Home Secretary, officials from the National Disaster Management Authority, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) will attend the meeting, the sources further said.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had said on Friday that the depression in the Arabian Sea is likely to intensify into a "very severe cyclonic storm" on May 17 and cross the Gujarat coast on a day later.

It is very likely to intensify further into a Severe Cyclonic Storm during next 6 hours and into a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm during the subsequent 12 hours. It is very likely to move north northwestwards and cross Gujarat coast between Porbandar and Naliya around May 18 afternoon/evening.

Over 50 teams of the NDRF have been deployed in five states - Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra for evacuation, relief and rescue operation. The respective states have also stationed the SDRF teams at coastal parts in States whereas Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guards have been out on alert.

Red and orange alerts have been sounded in various parts. Low-lying areas of the Islands of Lakshadweep are likely to get flooded.

UNI AKS SB 1416
BILOXI, Miss. (AP)  A Mississippi NAACP chapter is demanding access to reports and videos that show how a 3-month-old baby died after his father was killed in a shootout with police on a highway on May 3. The request follows similar calls from activists with Black Lives Matter Mississippi.

The Biloxi NAACP is calling for a thorough and transparent investigation, the organization said in a statement on Facebook. It is important that local authorities proactively work to increase transparency and grow public trust.
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP)  Arizona Republicans say the voter restrictions they're pushing after President Joe Biden's win in the state last year are designed to strengthen the integrity of future elections.

To some, the changes will make voting more difficult than it already is.

The bills, some signed into law this past week by Gov. Doug Ducey, are worrisome for Native Americans who live in remote areas, other communities of color and voters whose first language isnt English.

One codifies the existing practice of giving voters who didn't sign mail-in ballots until 7 p.m. on Election Day to do so, defying a recently settled lawsuit that would have given voters additional days to provide a signature. Another will result in potentially tens of thousands of people being purged from a list of voters who automatically get a ballot by mail.

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said Ducey's actions belittle tribes and fail to recognize the unique challenges Native Americans face when casting ballots. That includes driving hours to reach polling places, unreliable mail service and the need for more Native language translators.

This is an assault to the election process for people of color throughout this country, he said. Here in Arizona, its pushing back on the voters of tribal communities, and we came out in big numbers to vote our candidate of choice, which is President Biden.

The bills' sponsor, Republican state Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita, said claims of retaliation or voter suppression were outrageous and unfounded." Elections aren't a surprise, she said, and voters want them to be run efficiently with timely results.

Not everything has to do with Biden and Trump, she said. These are important cleanups and fixes. It makes sense.

Arizona is among several states controlled politically by Republicans that are tightening election rules this year, primarily around early and absentee voting. Democrats say the new rules will disproportionately affect minorities and lower-income voters. Florida, Georgia and Iowa already have enacted voting restrictions, and Texas is debating its own set of tighter rules.

In March, Biden issued an executive order creating a Native American Voting Rights Steering Group. It's tasked with consulting with tribes nationwide to address barriers to voting, among other things.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, voter turnout on swaths of tribal land in Arizona surged in 2020 compared with the 2016 presidential election, helping Biden to victory in a state that hadnt supported a Democratic presidential candidate since 1996. Former President Donald Trump and a legion of his supporters have refused to accept his loss in Arizona and other battleground states, resulting in a partisan review of the ballots cast in the state's most populous county.

The Navajo Nation sued the secretary of state and county officials in 2018 to force changes in election procedures for the tribe's voters. The complaint alleged that more than 100 ballots cast by Navajos were rejected because they didn't have signatures on the envelope or they had mismatched signatures.

Secretary of State Katie Hobbs agreed to insert language into the elections manual that would give all mail-in voters up to five days after an election to fix their ballots  the same as voters whose signatures don't match the one on file.

The attorney general and Ducey didn't sign off on the changes. The Democratic Party has since sued seeking a five-day curing period for mailed ballots. A U.S. District Court judge initially agreed, but the decision was challenged. Oral arguments are scheduled for July in federal appeals court.

Nez said the ballot signature measure just signed into law undermines the settlement in the tribe's lawsuit. It is evaluating the language and has not yet decide on its next step.

We have to deal with the federal government on broken promises. Now we have the state breaking promises on a settlement we thought we all agreed upon, Nez said.

The secretary of state doesn't have final say over the elections manual, and Ugenti-Rita said promises shouldn't have been made that couldn't be kept. She said the Navajo Nation's anger is wrongly directed at the Legislature.

Before the pandemic, Native Americans made voting a social event on many reservations. It was one of the few times a year where they'd meet with old friends and chat about the government, community needs and their families. Tribal leaders give voters time off to cast a ballot and help get others to the polls. Campaigns courted voters with traditional food.

Even when they receive mailed ballots, many Native Americans prefer to drop them off on Election Day at their polling site, no matter how distant. Unless poll workers check for a signature on the spot, voters would have no chance to fix it.

Patty Hansen, the recorder in the state's largest county by size, said she's disappointed with the new law because it treats voters differently based on the error they've made.

We were headed in the right direction," she said. "Now it's being reversed."

Submitting mailed ballots earlier without a signature could mean an hours-long trip to make the fix, said Democratic state Rep. Jasmine Blackwater-Nygren, who is Navajo. The new law says county officials have to make a reasonable effort to contact voters. Blackwater-Nygren said that could be problematic if Navajo translators, for example, aren't available.

The other change in Arizona affects the list of voters who automatically receive a mailed ballot. Voters who sit out all elections  municipal, primary and general  for two election cycles will be mailed a notice asking if they want to remain on what had been known as the permanent early voting list.

If they respond, nothing will change. If they dont respond within 90 days, they will be dropped from the list but will remain a registered voter.

They can rejoin what will now be called the active early voting list at any time, request a mailed ballot for a single election or vote in person. But a ballot wont automatically arrive in their mailboxes.

About 75 percent of registered voters in the state are on the early voting list. That includes some 38,000 Indigenous people, most of whom are concentrated in the competitive but Democratic-leaning 1st Congressional District. The district takes in several tribes in the northern and and eastern parts of the state, including the Navajo Nation.

Voter rolls regularly are purged elsewhere, including on the Navajo Nation, but advocates contend the change will result in more people being disenfranchised.

Blackwater-Nygren said she often hears from Republicans that tribal members know what to expect when it comes to voting. Thats true, she said, but the vast distances, spotty phone service and lack of home mail delivery on some reservations also pose challenges not found elsewhere.

Were saying we dont have the same access to polling locations, and that message seems to get lost, she said.
ROSWELL, N.M. (AP)  A New Mexico man stopped his trial and admitted Friday he killed his wife and four daughters in 2016 at their home in Roswell, the local district attorney said.

Juan David Villegas-Hernandez, 39, will face five life-in-prison sentences following his no-contest plea to five counts of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of his 34-year-old wife, Cynthia Villegas, and their four daughters: Yamilen, 14; Cynthia, 10; Abigayl, 7; and Idaleigh, 3.

Scot Key, district attorney for Lincoln and Otero counties, said sentencing is scheduled next Wednesday at the Chaves County Courthouse in Roswell.

At trial, prosecutor RoxeAnne Esquibel said Villegas-Hernandez killed his family and fled to Mexico after discovering Cynthia Villegas planned to divorce him.

Villegas-Hernandezs attorney, Herman Ortiz, had told jurors there would be no testimony from anyone who saw Villegas-Hernandez at the scene of the killings or with a gun.

But Key said a witness testified she spoke with Villegas-Hernandez for more than two hours as he loaded items into his red pickup truck outside the house the afternoon of the slayings.

The woman characterized Villegas-Hernandez's behavior as strange, said he threatened to kill himself, and refused to let her inside the home, Key said in a statement.

The woman contacted family members and notified police, who found the bodies inside.

Esquibel said each had been shot in the head with a .22-caliber rifle or handgun, and Key said several police officers testified they saw writing on a door inside the home admitting to the killings.

Forgive me. I apologize to all. I will kill myself too, it said.

Villegas-Hernandez was arrested several days later in Mexico and returned in custody to the U.S. for trial.
OCRACOKE, N.C. (AP)  The National Park Service has begun a project to evaluate how to repair and whether to relocate the historic lighthouse on North Carolina's Ocracoke Island.

The bright white structure is the second-oldest lighthouse in the nation still operating and has been damaged several times in recent years by hurricanes, The Virginian-Pilot reported Saturday. The lighthouse bricks and mortar are currently deteriorating from moisture trapped by a coat of concrete that was applied to its exterior nearly 70 years ago.
ANKENY, Iowa (AP)  A passenger in a car that crashed off a bridge in Ankeny, Iowa, was critically injured, authorities said.

The driver lost control of the car, went through the bridge railing and into a ditch Friday evening, the Des Moines Register reported.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP)  Beyond a slew of local races on ballots, Pennsylvania's primary election on Tuesday will determine the future of a governor's authority during disaster declarations and a Republican nominee aiming to keep a state Supreme Court seat in GOP hands.

Voters statewide will decide four separate ballot questions, including two that ask voters whether to give state lawmakers much more power over disaster declarations, whether the emergency is another pandemic or a natural disaster.

The ballot questions were penned by Republican lawmakers and emerged from a long-running feud with Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf over the extent of his orders to shutter businesses and schools during the pandemic.

The last time voters rejected a ballot question was in 1993, according to information provided by the state. Since then, voters have approved 19 straight ballot questions, usually bipartisan initiatives to expand borrowing authority or to amend the constitution.

Voters also must decide contested primaries for open seats on the three statewide appellate courts: the Supreme Court, Superior Court and Commonwealth Court. Terms are 10 years.

Meanwhile, voters in four parts of the state will decide contests for open seats in the state Legislature.

If recent turnout patterns hold, fewer than one-fifth of Pennsylvanias registered voters will determine the outcomes. About 820,000 voters had requested a mail-in or absentee ballot, about 70% of whom are registered Democrats, according to the state elections department.

Here is a look at the statewide ballot questions and contests for state offices:

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DISASTER DECLARATIONS

Republican lawmakers across the country have sought to roll back the emergency powers governors wielded during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pennsylvanias vote is the first of its kind since the coronavirus outbreak.

The two questions ask voters to end a governors emergency disaster declaration after 21 days and to give lawmakers the sole authority to extend it or end it at any time with a simple majority vote.

Current law allows a governor to issue an emergency declaration for up to 90 days and extend it without limit. The constitution requires a two-thirds majority vote by lawmakers to end the declaration.

Wolf and his emergency disaster director have called the proposals reckless and a threat to a functioning society if it prevents a fast and wide-ranging response to increasingly complicated disasters.

Republicans have accused Wolf of fear-mongering. The phrasing of the questions that will appear on the ballot was produced by the Wolf administration, although Republicans say the wording is politically slanted, designed to make the questions fail.

The Legislature did not hold hearings on the measures, and they may end up in court if voters approve them because their effect is in dispute.

Republicans claim the governor cannot order shutdowns without a disaster emergency in effect. Wolf disagrees, saying a governors authority during a public health emergency rests on separate public health law and is unaffected by the ballot questions.

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ETHNICITY AND RACE

Voters must decide whether to add a passage to the constitution outlawing discrimination because of someone's race or ethnicity.

If it passes, it would become the constitutions fourth equality provision, added to all men are born equally free and independent, a protection from discrimination in exercising civil rights, and a 1971 amendment that ensures gender equality.

Its believed to be the first time since last summers protests over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis that voters will decide a racial equity issue on a statewide ballot.

Constitutional law professors say it will have little practical effect because courts already consider such discrimination to violate both the state and federal constitutions.

But the lawmaker who originally sponsored the provision, Sen. Vince Hughes, D-Philadelphia, said court cases and judicial decisions will ultimately determine the practical effect of the proposal.

He also said he wants it in place in case federal anti-discrimination case law is reversed by the Republican-majority U.S. Supreme Court or conservative federal judges appointed by former President Donald Trump.

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FIRE DEPARTMENT LOANS

A fourth question will ask whether voters want to allow 22 municipal fire departments in Pennsylvania to have access to a 45-year-old low-interest loan fund that helps some 2,000 volunteer firefighting squads borrow money to pay for trucks, equipment and facilities.

The fund is administered by the office of the state fire commissioner.

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APPELLATE COURT SEATS

The race for an open seat on Pennsylvania's highest court won't tip its balance of power, but the contest does have serious implications for the court's conservative minority.

The retirement of Justice Thomas Saylor, a conservative, will leave the court with just one justice elected as a Republican and five elected as Democrats.

Running to succeed Saylor are three Republicans vying for the party nomination: Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Paula Patrick and two Commonwealth Court judges, Kevin Brobson of Cumberland County and Patricia McCullough of Allegheny County.

Election issues and gun rights have been prominent topics on the campaign trail.

Democrat Maria McLaughlin, a Superior Court judge, is uncontested for her party's nomination.

One seat is open on the Superior Court, which handles criminal and civil appeals from county courts.

Democrats must settle a three-way contest and pick their party's nominee from among Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Timika Lane and two lawyers in private practice, Bryan Neft of suburban Pittsburgh and Jill Beck of Pittsburgh.

Republican Megan Sullivan is uncontested for the nomination.

Two seats are open on the Commonwealth Court, which handles lawsuits and appeals involving state agencies and governmental bodies.

Democratic voters must choose two from among four primary candidates: Common Pleas Court Judge David Lee Spurgeon and lawyer Amanda Green Hawkins of Allegheny County and Common Pleas Court judges Lori Dumas and Sierra Street of Philadelphia.

Republicans Drew Crompton and Stacy Wallace are uncontested in the primary.

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SPECIAL LEGISLATIVE ELECTIONS

Four seats in the state Legislature  two in the Senate and two in the House of Representatives  are vacant and will be filled in special elections Tuesday. The elections will not tip the balance of power in the Legislature, where Republicans control both chambers by comfortable margins.

A Lackawanna County-based Senate seat is expected to remain in the hands of Democrats. A second seat, based in Lebanon County, is expected to remain in GOP hands.

In the House, seats based in Westmoreland and Armstrong counties are likely to remain held by Republicans.

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Associated Press writer Mark Scolforo contributed to this report.

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Follow Marc Levy on Twitter at https://twitter.com/timelywriter.
PHILADELPHIA (AP)  A day after Philadelphia's health commissioner was forced to resign over the cremation of partial remains belonging to victims of a 1985 bombing of the headquarters of a Black organization, the city now says those remains were never actually destroyed.

Mayor Jim Kenney released a statement late Friday saying that the remains of MOVE bombing victims thought to have been cremated in 2017, under orders from Health Commissioner Thomas Farley, were located at the medical examiner's office that afternoon. Among the 11 slain when police bombed MOVE's headquarters, causing a fire that spread to more than 60 row homes, were five children.

I am relieved that these remains were found and not destroyed, however I am also very sorry for the needless pain that this ordeal has caused the Africa family, Kenney said, adding that many unanswered questions surround the case  including why Farley's order wasn't obeyed.

Kenney compelled Farley to resign Thursday, the 36th anniversary of the MOVE bombing, after consulting the victims' family members. At the time, the mayor said Farley's decision to order the cremation and disposal of the remains, without notifying the decedents' family members, lacked empathy.

In a statement released by the mayors office Thursday, Farley said that he was told by the citys medical examiner, Dr. Sam Gulino, that a box had been found containing materials related to MOVE bombing victims autopsies. The box turned out to contain bones and bone fragments.

It is a standard procedure to retain specimens after an autopsy ends and the remains are turned over to the decedents next-of-kin, Farley said  but not wanting to cause more anguish, he ordered their disposal on his own authority, without consulting other top city officials.

After recent reports that local institutions had remains of MOVE bombing victims, Farley said he reconsidered his actions. Kenney said Farley told him about his order late Tuesday, took responsibility and resigned from the $175,000-a-year job hed held for five years.

I profoundly regret making this decision without consulting the family members of the victims and I extend my deepest apologies for the pain this will cause them, Farley wrote Thursday.

Gulino was also placed on leave pending an investigation. Kenney's statement Friday didn't mention Farley or Gulino by name, but promised the investigation would continue with full transparency for the victims' family.

An attorney for the victims' family members, Leon A. Williams, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that city officials, including Kenney, had notified the family Friday.

Kenney's statement said the family members and their representatives were able to ask the medical examiner's office questions and he pledged to turn over the remains once the investigation was complete.

There are also clearly many areas for improvement in procedures used by the Medical Examiners Office, he wrote.

A lawyer who had accompanied MOVE members to a meeting with Kenney prior to Friday's revelations, Michael Coard, had said they were outraged, enraged, incensed, but mostly confused by what was thought to have been the destruction of the remains. He said Thursday that a lawsuit was possible.

Williams did not describe the family's reaction to Friday's news to the Inquirer.

Late Thursday, dressed all in white, MOVE members read a minute-by-minute account of the bombing and the confrontation that led up to it: Philadelphia police, attempting to serve warrants on four members and evict the rest of the Black back-to-nature group, dropped a bomb from a helicopter, igniting fuel for a generator stored on the roof.

Members on Thursday recounted alleged comments from the city emergency officials directing first responders to let the house burn. Fire department leaders later said they were scared their firefighters could face gunfire if they attempted to get to the home in the middle of the block. The fire quickly spread, displacing more than 250 people.

The city appointed a commission to investigate the decisions that led to the bombing, and in 1986 it issued a report calling the decision to bomb an occupied row house unconscionable. MOVE survivors were awarded a $1.5 million judgment in a 1996 civil lawsuit.

City officials claimed at the time that neighbors had filed complaints, saying there were issues with sanitation, vermin and noise at odd hours. But documents gathered by the commission and in the research into the bombing showed city officials, including the mayor, had designated the group as a terrorist organization. Group members maintained they had been targeted since the 1978 eviction attempt where a police officer was killed and called the complaints explanation a lie.

I hope that this latest discovery can give them some level of solace, Kenney said of MOVE members Friday.
ALBERT LEA, Minn. (AP)  Police have blocked off roads in a southeastern Minnesota city after 50 train cars derailed,, authorities said Saturday.

The train left the tracks near Goose Lake in Albert Lea, located 100 miles (160.93 kilometers) south of the Twins Cities, about 1:30 p.m. Saturday, police said in a Facebook post.

Police said a precautionary shelter-in-place order was in effect for nearby homes. Officers say there is nothing airborne at this time, although teams are searching the area.

No further information was immediately available.
The Czech Republic to donate 500 Plasma units to Karnataka

Bengaluru, May 15 (UNI) The Czech Republic has come forward to donate 500 plasma units to Karnataka, according to Hon Consulate C S Prakash.

According to Official sources here, Mr Prakash, who met Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, has said that the plasma units have been stored at Prag Central Military Hospital and the Czech Republic will deliver the same free of cost.

UNI MSP SV 1918
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)  Police say an 89-year-old man died after a gunshot wound sustained during a reported struggle with a relative in a home in Ohio's capital city.

Columbus police were dispatched to the home shortly before 8 p.m. Friday and found the man with an apparent gunshot wound. He was taken to Grant Hospital in critical condition and was pronounced dead about an hour later.
CHICAGO (AP)  The pastor of a Chicago Roman Catholic parish who was asked to step aside following allegations he sexually assaulted a minor 36 years ago was reinstated Friday.

In a letter to members of Christ the King parish, Cardinal Blase Cupich said the Rev. Larry Sullivan has returned to duties because the allegations could not be substantiated.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (AP)  Salt Lake City Police are asking travelers to check carry-on bags before coming to the airport after several guns were found at the security checkpoint.

In April, Transportation Security Agency officers found four guns in travelers bags on a single morning, KUTV reported.
RICHMOND, Texas (AP)  While a Texas man who police allege is the owner of a tiger that frightened residents after it was seen briefly wandering around a Houston neighborhood was ordered back behind bars on Friday, the animals whereabouts remain a mystery.

An all-day court hearing Friday didnt reveal any new information on the tigers whereabouts as Houston police say about 300 tips theyve so far received havent panned out.

Police allege Victor Hugo Cuevas is the owner of the tiger, a 9-month old male named India, and he is facing a charge of evading arrest after authorities allege he fled from Houston officers who responded to a call about a dangerous animal on Sunday night.

After a court hearing in a separate case Cuevas, 26, is facing in neighboring Fort Bend County, his attorney, Michael W. Elliott, reiterated his client doesnt own the tiger. Elliott said he only knew the first name of the owner, that he has been working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to find India and that Cuevas only wants for the animal to be safe.

We want to find India. Somebody knows where India is at. Hopefully the cat is still doing well, Elliott said.

At a separate news conference in Houston earlier Friday, police Cmdr. Ron Borza said some of the tips officers have received on the tigers possible location have been a little bit crazy.

We know the group of people that are involved in the exotic animal trade here in Houston ... We have visited all of them and no luck so far, Borza said.

Investigators believe the tiger has likely been passed around between six and eight different locations in Houston in an effort to hide it but that the animal is probably still in the city, Borza said.

Carole Baskin, from the Netflixs docuseries Tiger King, has offered a $5,000 reward for the tigers safe return.

At the time of his arrest on Monday for allegedly evading Houston police, Cuevas was already out on bond for a murder charge in a 2017 fatal shooting in Fort Bend County. Cuevas has maintained the shooting was self-defense, Elliott said. Cuevas had been released on a separate bond for the evading arrest charge on Wednesday.

During a court hearing Friday, Fort Bend County prosecutor Christopher Baugh asked Cuevas be held without a bond for the murder charge, alleging the incident with the tiger showed Cuevas has a total disregard for the public safety.

State District Judge Frank J. Fraley did not grant the request, but instead revoked Cuevas current $125,000 bond and issued a new bond for $300,000. It was the fifth time that Cuevas bond had been revoked in the murder case.

Borza said that Cuevas and his attorney have not cooperated with Houston police in the search for the tiger but maybe if he goes to jail hed be more cooperative with us. Well see how that goes.

During Fridays court hearing, Waller County Sheriffs Office Deputy Wes Manion testified he lives in the Houston neighborhood and was alerted about the tiger by a neighbor.

Manion testified he interacted with the tiger for about 10 minutes to make sure it didnt go after someone else and that Cuevas came out of his house yelling, Dont kill it and that it was his tiger.

He approached the tiger, grabbed it by the collar, kissed its forehead, Manion said.

The deputy said he identified himself to Cuevas and told him not to leave after he loaded the animal in the back of a white Jeep Cherokee but that Cuevas fled the scene just as Houston police arrived.

During the court hearing, Elliott argued Cuevas was not aware that Houston police wanted to question him and that he only left because he feared for the tigers safety because Manion had been aggressive. Elliott said the tigers release was an accident as it likely jumped a fence.

Elliott also said Cuevas did nothing illegal as Texas has no statewide law forbidding private ownership of tigers and other exotic animals. Tigers are not allowed within Houston city limits under a city ordinance unless the handler, such as a zoo, is licensed to have exotic animals.

After the court hearing, Elliott described the tiger as more of a pet, like a dog, and that Cuevas would occasionally take care of the animal for its owner. Elliott provided copies of pictures that showed Cuevas cuddling with the tiger and kissing it.

Elliott said Cuevas, who is a mixed martial arts fighter and has also worked as a barber, first met the tigers owner after buying a dog from him and that the man later informed him he had other animals, including the tiger.

This (tiger) is loved like a dog. Victors love for this cat ... is real, Elliott said.

Elliott said he did not know if Cuevas would be able to post his new bond but if he is again released, Cuevas will do all he can to find the tiger and have it live the rest of its life in a wildlife preserve.

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Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70
JERUSALEM (AP)  An Israeli airstrike on Saturday destroyed a high-rise building that housed The Associated Press office in the Gaza Strip, despite repeated urgent calls from the news agency to the military to halt the impending attack. AP called the strike shocking and horrifying.

Twelve AP staffers and freelancers were working and resting in the bureau on Saturday afternoon when the Israeli military telephoned a warning, giving occupants of the building one hour to evacuate. Everyone was able to get out, grabbing a few belongings, before three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it into a giant cloud of dust.

Although no one was hurt, the airstrike demolished an office that was like a second home for AP journalists and marked a new chapter in the already rocky relationship between the Israeli military and the international media. Press-freedom groups condemned the attack. They accused the military, which claimed the building housed Hamas military intelligence, of trying to censor coverage of Israel's relentless offensive against Hamas militants.

Ahead of the demolition, the AP placed urgent calls to the Israeli military, foreign minister and prime ministers office but were either ignored or told that there was nothing to be done.

For 15 years, the APs top-floor office and roof terrace were a prime location for covering Israels conflicts with Gazas Hamas rulers, including wars in 2009, 2012 and 2014. The news agencys camera offered 24-hour live shots as militants rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city and its surrounding area this week.

We have had no indication Hamas was in the building or active in the building, AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said in a statement. This is something we actively check to the best of our ability. We would never knowingly put our journalists at risk.

Pruitt described the news agency as "shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing APs bureau and other news organizations in Gaza. He warned: The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today.

This is an incredibly disturbing development. We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life, he said, adding that the AP was seeking information from the Israeli government and was in touch with the U.S. State Department.

The building housed a number of offices, including those of the Arab satellite channel Al-Jazeera. Dozens of residents who lived in apartments on the upper floors were displaced.

A video broadcast by Al-Jazeera showed the buildings owner, Jawwad Mahdi, pleading over the phone with an Israeli intelligence officer to wait 10 minutes to allow journalists to go inside the building to retrieve valuable equipment before it is bombed.

All Im asking is to let four people ... to go inside and get their cameras, he said. We respect your wishes, we will not do it if you dont allow it, but give us 10 minutes. When the officer rejected the request, Mahdi said, You have destroyed our lifes work, memories, life. I will hang up, do what you want. There is a God.

Late Saturday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the building was used by Hamas military intelligence. It was not an innocent building, he said.

Israel routinely cites a Hamas presence as a reason for targeting buildings. It also accused the group of using journalists as human shields.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, refused to provide evidence backing up the army's claims, saying it would compromise intelligence efforts. I think its a legitimate request to see more information, and I will try to provide it, he said.

Conricus said the army is committed both to journalists, their safety and to their free work.

For AP journalists, it was a difficult moment. Most of the AP staff has been sleeping in the bureau, which includes four bedrooms in an upstairs apartment, throughout the current round of fighting, believing that the offices of an international news agency were one of the few safe places in Gaza. In a territory crippled by an Israeli-Egyptian blockade, it was equipped with a generator that offered the rare comforts of electricity, air conditioning and running water.

AP correspondent Fares Akram said he was resting in an upstairs room when he heard panicked screams from colleagues about the evacuation order. Staffers hastily gathered basic equipment, including laptops and cameras before fleeing downstairs.

I am heartbroken, Akram said. You feel like you are at home. Above all, you have your memories, your friends. You spend most of your time there.

Al-Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatars government, broadcast the airstrikes live as the building collapsed.

This channel will not be silenced. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced, Halla Mohieddeen. on-air anchorperson for Al-Jazeera English said, her voice thick with emotion. We can guarantee you that right now.

Early Sunday, Hamas fired a heavy barrage of rockets at the metropolis of Tel Aviv, saying it was revenge for flattening the high-rise building.

President Joe Biden spoke to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the spiraling violence.

He raised concerns about the safety and security of journalists and reinforced the need to ensure their protection, the White House said.

Later Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Pruitt, AP's president, to express concern about the incident. The State Department said Blinken offered his support for independent journalists and noted the indispensability of their reporting in conflict zones. He also expressed relief that the AP team in Gaza was safe.

The Foreign Press Association, which represents some 400 journalists working for international media organizations in Israel and the Palestinian territories, expressed its grave concern and dismay over the attack.

Knowingly causing the destruction of the offices of some of the worlds largest and most influential news organizations raises deeply worrying questions about Israels willingness to interfere with the freedom of the press, it said. The safety of other news bureaus in Gaza is now in question.

Joel Simon, executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, said the attack raises concerns that Israel is targeting the media "to disrupt coverage of the human suffering in Gaza. He demanded detailed and documented justification for the attack.

The International Press Institute, a global network of journalists and media executives, condemned the attack as a gross violation of human rights and internationally agreed norms.

The Israeli military has long had rocky relations with the foreign media, accusing international journalists of being biased against it.

The attack came a day after the Israeli military had fed vague  and in some cases erroneous  information to the media about a possible ground incursion into Gaza. It turned out that there was no ground invasion, and the statement was part of an elaborate ruse aimed at tricking Hamas militants into defensive underground positions that were then destroyed in Israeli airstrikes.

International journalists have accused the army of duping them and turning them into accessories for a military operation. The army said the error was an honest mistake.
UNION, S.C. (AP)  The remains of a U.S. Army soldier killed during the Korean War are being interred in his South Carolina hometown, 70 years after his death.

A funeral for Army Cpl. Ralph S. Boughman will be held Saturday at Lewis Funeral Home in Union, according to the Army. Afterward, Boughman will be buried at Rosemont Cemetery.
PORTLAND, Maine (AP)  Nearly 60 years ago, dozens of soldiers assembled for a top secret mission to Vietnam, three years before President Lyndon Johnson officially sent U.S. combat troops to the country.

They never made it. Their airplane disappeared between Guam and the Philippines, leaving behind no trace.

Ever since, their families have been fighting to get answers about the mission from the Pentagon. They also want their loved ones to be recognized on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.

For the families, it's been heart-wrenching that the soldiers were not properly memorialized like others who died in the war.

I do feel frustrated. Its almost as if they never existed as soldiers. Its almost like they dont matter, that their deaths dont matter, said Dianna Taylor Crumpler, of Olive Branch, Mississippi, whose brother, James Henry Taylor, an Army chaplain, died on the flight.

On Saturday, families of more than 20 of the fallen soldiers were on hand for the unveiling of a memorial in Columbia Falls, Maine, to honor those who perished when the plane disappeared over the Pacific Ocean. Columbia Falls is about 190 miles (305 kilometers) east of Portland, Maine.

Its incredible, said Donna Ellis, of Haslett, Michigan, who was 5 when her father, Melvin Lewis Hatt, died in the crash.

The mission, early in the Vietnam war, is shrouded in mystery.

Soldiers from across the country assembled at Travis Air Force Base in California before boarding a propeller-powered Lockheed Super Constellation operated by the Flying Tiger Line, which chartered flights for the U.S. military.

The 93 U.S. soldiers, three South Vietnamese and 11 crew members aboard Flight 739 never made it to Saigon. It departed from California and made refueling stops in Hawaii, Wake Island and Guam before vanishing on the next leg of the flight to the Philippines on March 16, 1962.

There was a report of a midair explosion witnessed by sailors on a tanker in the area, but no debris from the aircraft was recovered.

The families have spent years seeking answers to no avail. Freedom of Information Act requests by Ellis and others yielded redacted documents with little useful information about the clandestine mission.

It turns into a rat maze, Ellis said.

Because their deaths were not in the combat zone, their names were not allowed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington.

Sen. Gary Peters, a Democrat from Michigan, took up the cause and introduced legislation in 2019 to allow the names to be etched on the memorial, but it never made it to the Senate floor.

It is past time that we properly honor those lost. Thats why I will continue to work with my colleagues and the families of those lives lost on ways we can honor the servicemembers," Peters said.

In Maine, the founder of Wreaths Across America, which places wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery and at veteran gravesites around the world, was moved by the story and decided to create a monument. The granite stone has a marble marker with the names on it.

The unveiling Saturday featured a reading of the names, a rifle salute, the playing of taps and the laying of a wreath.

Phil Waite from the United States of America Vietnam War Commemoration told the group he believes the memorial represents a first step to greater recognition. I think there's more to come, he said.

The event provided an opportunity for families to get together and share stories.

This will be closure for a lot of families, said Susie Linale, of Omaha, Nebraska, part of a contingent of six family members, including her sister and brother. They wore buttons with an image of their father, Albert Francis Williams Jr., who died in the crash.
LEXINGTON, N.C. (AP)  A man and a woman have been charged in the overdose death of a woman whose body was discovered last year in a wooded area behind a Walmart in North Carolina, police said.

Lexington police said Jonathan Alexander Gordon, 30, Heather Michelle Everhart, 34, are each charged with second-degree murder in the death of Eva Marie Beckom, 39, news outlets reported.
Marylands cruise terminal can reopen this weekend. But any Caribbean trips are months away.
UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The U.N. chief said foreign fighters and mercenaries remain in Libya in violation of last Octobers cease-fire agreement and called for their withdrawal and an end to violations of the U.N. arms embargo, saying these are critical elements for lasting peace in the north African country and the region.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a report to the U.N. Security Council obtained Friday by The Associated Press that the smooth transfer of power to a new interim government, which took power in March, brings renewed hope for the reunification of the country and its institutions and for a lasting peace.

But he said progress must continue on the political, economic and security tracks to enable elections to go ahead on Dec. 24.

Libya has been wracked by chaos since a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, and split the oil-rich North African country between a U.N.-supported government in the capital, Tripoli, and rival authorities based in the countrys east, each backed by armed groups and foreign governments.

In April 2019, east-based commander Khalifa Hifter and his forces, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launched an offensive to try and capture Tripoli. His 14-month-long campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support of the U.N.-backed government with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries. An October cease-fire agreement that included a demand for all foreign fighters and mercenaries leave Libya within 90 days led to a deal on the transitional government and December elections.

The U.N. estimated in December that there were at least 20,000 foreign fighters and mercenaries in Libya, including Syrians, Russians, Sudanese and Chadians. But at an informal council meeting in late April, speakers said there were more than 20,000, including 13,000 Syrians and 11,000 Sudanese, according to diplomats.

Guterres said in the new report that while the cease-fire continues to hold, the U.N. political mission in Libya has received reports of fortifications and defensive positions being set up in central Libya on the key route between the strategic city of Sirte, the gateway to the country's major oil fields and export terminals, and Jufra.

Despite the commitments made by the parties, air cargo activities reportedly continued with flights to various air bases in Libyas western and eastern regions, the secretary-general said. Reports indicated that there was no reduction of foreign fighters or of their activities in central Libya.

Guterres said the government of national unity must prioritize security sector reform including filling senior civilian and military appointments, producing a roadmap for reunifying the Libyan army, and addressing the proliferation of armed groups.

Bringing one of the worlds largest uncontrolled stocks of arms and ammunition under state control is vital, he said. I reiterate my call on member states and Libyan national actors to put an end to violations of the arms embargo and to facilitate the withdrawal of foreign fighters and mercenaries from the country.

Last month, the Security Council approved a resolution urging all foreign forces and mercenaries to leave Libya and authorizing a small U.N. team to monitor the cease-fire agreement. In an April 7 letter to the council, Guterres proposed an initial maximum of 60 monitors for a phased deployment as part of the U.N. mission, known as UNSMIL.

In his new report, Guterres said that the monitors deployment to Libya is contingent on the U.N. General Assembly approving the resources to cover security, logistical, medical and operational requirements, which will be submitted in the near future.

He also raised human rights violations, especially the continuing detention of migrants and refugees. According to the International Organization for Migrations most recent report, there are more than 571,000 migrants in Libya. And as of May 2, Guterres said over 4,300 migrants and refugees were being held in detention centers across the country.

Guterres called on Libyan authorities to release migrants and refugees from detention centers on an urgent basis, and put in place measures to protect them from sexual violence.
TEL AVIV - Israeli jets demolished the building housing several international news outlets in Gaza City Saturday, sparking outrage among media groups and concern from the White House as violence continued to engulf Israel and the Palestinian territories.

The conflict raged unabated as the violence moved into its second week. Rockets from Gaza bombarded Israeli cities and communal strife gripped swaths of Israel and the West Bank. Warning sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and parts of southern Israel.

At least 139 people have died in Gaza, according to the health ministry, including eight people, women and children among them, who were killed in a strike within the Shati refugee camp. An Israeli military spokesman said that incident was being investigated and officials would issue a statement shortly.

In Israel, one person died after two rockets fell in Ramat Gan, just east of Tel Aviv, according to emergency rescue services, taking the total death toll in Israel to 10.

The Israeli military said the multistory building in Gaza City that housed the BBC, the Associated Press, Al Jazeera other media outlet was also used by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, including intelligence and research and development offices. The military condemned the militants for using the news agencies as "human shields."

The journalists and others received warning calls from Israeli military operatives giving them about an hour to clear the building. Many offices were closed for the Eid holiday, marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and reporters had no chance to retrieve notes, records and laptops before a midday strike leveled the structure.

The action raised concerns that media would find it more difficult to report on events in Gaza, where the military onslaught threatens a humanitarian disaster and outside reporters are being blocked from entering because checkpoints are closed.

Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto via Getty Images

"The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today," the AP's president and chief executive, Gary Pruitt, said in a statement.

President Joe Biden raised the issue with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a call Saturday. "He raised concerns about the safety and security of journalists and reinforced the need to ensure their protection," the White House said in summary of their conversation. The president also restated his support for Israel to defend itself against more than 2,200 rockets from Gaza and "noted that this current period of conflict has tragically claimed the lives of Israeli and Palestinian civilians, including children."

"Ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility," tweeted White House press secretary Jen Psaki.

Mohammed Ali, a bureau assistant with Al Jazeera, said that he and other staff fled the building when the warning came from the Israelis an hour before the strike. But they went back in to try to retrieve something that was irreplaceable: the bureau's archives.

"There are thousands or hours of videos and photos," he said. "We were able to get some of it out, not even half of it. We tried our best, but in the end we were afraid for our lives," he said. If there was a Hamas office in the building, he wasn't aware of it, he said. There building also contained doctors' and legal offices and residential apartments, he said.

The military strikes came as funerals were held for 11 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in clashes in the West Bank Friday and early Saturday as the area emerged as a new flash point.

In Israel, residents braced for another night of violence between Arab and Jewish citizens. In Jaffa, Israeli police said they were investigating an attack that saw a 12-year-old boy burned reportedly by a molotov cocktail thrown his living room window.

Meanwhile, Israeli Arabs gathered for Nakba Day, an annual event marking the displacement of an estimated 700,000 Palestinians when Israel was founded in 1948. (Nakba means disaster or catastrophe in Arabic). At midday, sirens sounded in central Ramallah, the main West Bank city, to mark the event.

"I think for Palestinians it's less about commemorating Nakba right now and more about commemorating the ongoing Nakba," said Mariam Barghouti, a Palestinian writer and activist in Ramallah. "That's the difference this time."

In Sakhnin, a town in northern Israel, dozens of Palestinian flags flapped over a crowd of about 5,000 gathering for Nakba events. The crowd, many wrapped in black-and-white kaffiyehs, marched from a mosque to the municipal building chanting slogans as families lined the route.

"We are living Nakba," said Kristen Ghnaiem, 25. "It's continuous. We are living another one."

Journalists in Gaza City described a surreal experience of covering the destruction of their own offices.

Al Jazeera broadcast footage of what it said was the building's owner trying to negotiate by phone with an Israeli officer to get an extra 10 minutes of time before the strike to retrieve camera equipment. Those in the building had been given more than an hours warning, but he said journalists had been outside their offices doing broadcasts.

"There's no difference between 3 o'clock and 3:10," he argued, but the voice on the other side was unrelenting: "No one enters the building," it said.

"All the efforts we put into our lives is one with the wind," said the owner. "Our memories, our lives, you forced us to lose."

The exchange is the one of several recorded example of Arabic-speaking Israeli military operatives phoning landlords, managers and tenets of targeted buildings. The Israel military has made calls, issued social media warnings and delivered nonlethal "roof-knocking" strikes to give residents and workers a chance to flee.

The building also housed the Gaza Center for Media Freedom, which trains local journalists and monitors press freedom. The organization's director, Adel Zanoun, said the group had been in the process of moving out of the building anyway, but they hadn't dared to enter the building to retrieve their remaining equipment - 12 laptops and six desktop computers - after the evacuation order came.

"What could we do?" he said. "It's a big risk, it's very, very dangerous."

Zanoun, who also works for the Agence France-Presse news agency, said that the aerial bombardment eclipses anything seen in the later major attacks on Gaza in 2014. "There are airstrikes everywhere," he said. "And very, very strong."

Palestinians say Israeli is showing disregard for civilians safety in the bombardment.

But a senior Israeli Air Force general, who would only speak if not identified by name, said the process of issuing advance warnings was evidence that Israel is doing what it can to minimize civilian casualties as it strikes the military assets Hamas has embedded in crowded neighborhoods.

Mindful of the growing international condemnation of the mounting death toll in Gaza, a senior Israeli air force general, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military issues, said the process of issuing advance warnings was evidence that Israel is doing what it can to minimize civilian casualties as it strikes the military assets Hamas has embedded in crowded neighborhoods.

- - -

Balousha reported from Gaza City, and Berger from Jerusalem. The Washington Post's Shira Rubin in Tel Aviv contributed to this report.
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)

A jury convicted a Concord man in a scheme to firebomb the properties of several people on his "enemies list," Acting United States Attorney Stephanie Hinds announced Friday.

David Jah, 47, conspired with Kristopher Alexis-Clark, 27, of Vallejo, and Dennis Williams, 41, of Fairfield, to firebomb two East Bay residences, prosecutors said.

The list contained the addresses of six individuals Jah believed had wronged him, including two attorneys involved in the sale of his childhood home in San Francisco, an attorney who prosecuted a forcible detainer action to remove him from that home, the purchaser of the home, Jah's former neighbor at that home, and a San Francisco Deputy City Attorney who represented the San Francisco Police Department in an excessive force lawsuit brought by Jah's son, prosecutors said.

The conspiracy began in October of 2018 when Jah met Alexis-Clark, who recruited Williams to join the scheme, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California.

Williams mistakenly firebombed the next-door neighbor of one of the intended victims on the list on Oct. 21, 2018, according to the statement. And Alex-Clark and Williams firebombed the homes of two more victims on Nov. 3, 2018, prosecutors said.

Convicted of one count of conspiring to commit arson, Jah faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and could spend up to 20 years in prison. He also faces a fine of $250,000.

Alexis-Clark and Williams have both pleaded guilty on charges related to the scheme.

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Want to live in a home designed by one of San Francisco's most renowned - but also controversial - architects? This Mission Dolores abode designed by Stanley Saitowitz of Natoma Architects is a classic example of his modern style.

Locals have walked past Saitowitz's designs before: The Yerba Buena Lofts on Folsom Street, for example, or the 8 Octavia building featured on HBO's "Looking." Saitowitz has been both praised and criticized for his "monochromatic" or "machine-like" architecture. In 2008, his design for San Francisco's Beth Sholom Synagogue garnered international praise and awards - as well as heavy local critique.

The 4,665-square-foot rectangular abode at 50 Oakwood is signature Saitowitz, a total remodel of an existing 1926 home in Mission Dolores.

The four-level structure includes multiple impressive features. The main living room centerpiece is a custom 16-foot-long Italian travertine fireplace that appears as if suspended between two giant pieces of stone, there's a 15-foot-long island with a custom quartz countertop in the kitchen, and the capacious "pentroom" on the topmost level offers postcard-ready views.

There's also a fully equipped legal second unit on the ground floor, solar panels and a Tesla battery wall.

It's listed for $7.85 million.
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While addressing a regular media briefing on Covid-19 on Friday in Geneva, Ghebreyesus said that India remains hugely concerning, with several states continuing to see a worrying number of cases, hospitalisations and deaths.

Kathmandu, May 15 (IANS) Expressing deep concern over the fast spreading Covid pandemic in Nepal, World Health Organisation's director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said that Nepal has emergency

"But it's not only India that has emergency needs," said the UN health agency chief. "Nepal, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Egypt are just some of the countries that are dealing with spikes in cases and hospitalisations."

"The coronavirus has grappled the country to a serious situation," said Ghebreyesus underlining the similar kind of situation in India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Egypt. Medical fraternity, civil society, media, opposition parties and government officials have criticized the role of the government for its failure over taking prompt and effective action to handle the pandemic.

Nepal on Saturday reported 8,046 new coronavirus cases, 187 Covid-19-related fatalities in the last 24 hours taking the nationwide infection tally to 447,704 and the death toll has now reached 4,856. The number of active cases stands at 109,740.

The positivity rate is in a declining phase but still stands around 45 percent. After the country witnessed a sharp spike of cases, Nepal is now heading towards an India-like situation. Hospitals are running out of oxygen supplies, several hospitals have stopped taking new Covid patients due to lack of beds, ICU beds, ventilators and the country is seriously grappling with the health infrastructures. Reports are coming across the country that several hospitals that are running out of oxygen supplies have failed to protect the patients.

The government has ramped up to procure oxygen facilities and has mobilized its diplomatic missions. India has resumed the liquid oxygen supplies to Nepal and Nepal is bringing 2,000 oxygen cylinders from China along with other medical facilities. Nepal is also importing oxygen cylinders from Oman, Thailand and Nepali diasporas living abroad are also now extending support to the government of Nepal. Nepal has also imposed prohibitory orders in several parts of the country but the infection rate has not come down significantly, said Nepal's Health Ministry.

We have a similar burden to India, but Nepal has less resources and capacity to cope, UN country director to Nepal, Sara Beyesolow Nayanti, wrote on Twitter mentioning the WHO, the international community should see the vulnerability of Nepal differently from India,

she said, Nepal needs help urgently!

In order to get more international support and mobilize the Covid related resources, Nepal's Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali held a virtual meeting with heads of Nepali diplomatic missions based in select 13 capital cities abroad, according to Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Gyawali, while informing the ambassadors about the most recent initiatives taken within the country to address the ongoing crisis of the Covid 19 pandemic, received updates from the respective ambassadors on the efforts made for the mobilization of international cooperation of vaccines, oxygen related items, medicines and other health related supplies.

Minister Gywali instructed the embassies to maximize efforts towards that direction and to explore further avenues of support at the bilateral and multilateral levels as well as through philanthropic organizations, private sector and Nepali diaspora.

--IANS

str/ash
Singapore, May 16 (ANI): ONE Championship (ONE), Asia's largest global sports media property, returned Saturday with ONE: DANGAL, a tape-delayed event from the Singapore Indoor Stadium that showcased the very best of India.



The event featured the ONE Super Series debut of a Thai striking phenom and four compelling mixed martial arts contests, including a battle for the ONE Heavyweight World Title. In the main event, Arjan "Singh" Bhullar dethroned longtime heavyweight king Brandon "The Truth" Vera to capture the ONE Heavyweight World Title and become the first Indian-origin Mixed Martial Arts World Champion in history.

Bhullar cautiously approached Vera in the first round, looking to string together combinations to set up a takedown. The Indian star stifled Vera with feints and strikes, freezing the Filipino-American on his feet and making him hesitant to engage. Bhullar took Vera down toward the end of the opening frame and controlled him on the mat.

In the second round, Bhullar capitalized on his feints by catching "The Truth" with an overhand right that sent him reeling toward the Circle Wall. A few more right hands compounded the damage, and a debilitating body shot had Vera gasping for air. Once "Singh" was able to close the distance and latch onto the defending World Champion with a body lock, it signalled the beginning of the end. Bhullar brought Vera to the mat and pounded him out for the technical knockout victory.

Muay Thai phenom Tawanchai PK. Saenchai Muaythaigym made his promotional debut in the co-main event and dominated former WBC Muay Thai World Champion Sean "Clubber" Clancy to win by knockout in round three.

Operating behind a furious offensive, Tawanchai attacked with force, showcasing leaping elbows, laser-like punching accuracy, and his signature left kick. A left hand dropped Clancy in the first round, but the Irishman was able to recover. In the third and final frame, a solid left roundhouse kick to the jaw ended the fight abruptly.

In a women's atomweight contest, perennial contender Bi "Killer Bee" Nguyen took home a hard-earned victory over Indian wrestling superstar Ritu Phogat, winning by razor-thin split decision after three close rounds.

Fourth-ranked women's strawweight contender Ayaka Miura made quick work of Rayane Bastos, submitting the Brazilian in the first round of a catchweight contest. Additionally, Indian veteran Gurdarshan "Saint Lion" Mangat overcame a spirited effort from the rising star and compatriot Roshan Mainam to win by unanimous decision. (ANI)


Whats being built here? is a new periodic series the Advance/SILive.com is launching about active construction projects in the community. This is the fourth story in the series.

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The building that formerly housed the 167-year-old St. Simons Episcopal Church in Concord has been demolished by a developer planning to build 19 single-family homes on the site, according to city records.

The property was sold in December 2020 for $6 million, according to Zillow.

City Buildings Department (DOB) records show that the Great Kills-based Oak Developers filed an application for the demolition of the existing church building at 1055 Richmond Rd. on Jan. 13, 2021. The agency granted the demolition permit last month, records show.

The records also show that the developer filed an application to subdivide the existing large lot into 19 smaller lots in October 2020 and plans to build single-family homes on the site. The zoning of the site is R1-2, which allows for as-of-right development of single-family homes.

The building that formerly housed the 167-year-old St. Simons Episcopal Church in Concord has been demolished. According to Zillow, the property was sold in December 2020 for $6 million.

This application for the building permits has yet to be approved by the DOB, agency records show.

Oak Developers didnt return Advance/SILive.com phone calls about the project.

City records show that the developer filed an application to subdivide the existing large lot into 19 smaller lots in October 2020. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)

CHURCH HISTORY

St. Simons Episcopal Church moved from its former building on Clove Road to its home on Richmond Road in Concord on April 3, 1961.

The church was founded in 1854 as St. Simons Free German Chapel of the Protestant Episcopal Church, which served a largely German population in Stapleton, according to nycago.com.

The website said the churchs first services were held in a small building on Targee Street, Stapleton, and later in the First Baptist Church. St. Simons became an independent parish in 1955, according to nycago.com.

This application for the building permits has yet to be approved by the city Buildings Department, agency records show. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)

The church building on Richmond Road was shuttered in July 2019.

At the time the church closed, Nicholas Richardson, director of communications for the Episcopal Diocese of New York, told the Advance/SILive.com: The catalyst [for the church closing] is a steadily aging and diminishing congregation, which has gotten to the state where it simply isnt sustainable anymore.

Pictured is the property that formerly housed St. Simon's Church in Dongan Hills. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)

While the church was open, it was working with several groups that rented space for meetings and other services at the site.

If theres a construction project in your community youd like to learn more about, e-mail porpora@siadvance.com.

Tracey Porpora is the business writer and Sunday manager for SiLive.com/Staten Island Advance.

For more in the series:

New supermarket coming to New Dorp

New 3-story child-care center being built on Staten Island

Repairs to playground at Miller Field almost complete

FOLLOW TRACEY PORPORA ON FACEBOOK and TWITTER
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Heres a look at the top criminal-justice-related headlines across the borough this week.

ARREST IN RECORD STUDIO SLAYING

A New Jersey resident was arraigned Tuesday on murder and other charges stemming from the fatal shooting of a 23-year-old man inside a Stapleton recording studio four months ago.

An indictment against Charles Brooks, 29, was unsealed in state Supreme Court, St. George, in connection with the death of Jahade Chancey on Jan. 16.

Click here for more story details.

ARREST IN SLAYING OF YOUNG MAN GETTING SANDWICH

Joseph Evans, a resident of Tompkinsville, was walking to a nearby deli to pick up a sandwich when he was shot in the arm, back and head, according to police and his family. (Family photo)

Police arrested a man in connection with a fatal shooting last December on a bustling commercial strip in Tompkinsville.

Brandon Rivera, 28, of the 400 block of Van Duzer Street, was apprehended on Monday in connection with the death of Joseph Evans, 22.

Evans was walking in his neighborhood in the vicinity of Cebra Avenue between Victory Boulevard and Rosewood Place at about 4:55 p.m. on Dec. 19 when a male shooter approached on foot.

Click here for more story details.

HES ACCUSED OF SELLING COCAINE IN WEST BRIGHTON

The alleged drug sale occurred at South Street and Broadway in West Brighton. (Google Maps)

A man from Port Richmond was caught by police allegedly selling drugs in the afternoon on the street in West Brighton.

James Hawkins, 41, of Cottage Place, was arrested after he exchanged two twists of cocaine for cash at the intersection of Broadway and South Street on May 7 at about 3:40 p.m., according to the criminal complaint.

Click here for more story details.

TEEN ARRESTED IN N.J. ON GUN CHARGES

A Secaucus, N.J. resident saw something suspicious in his neighborhood early Saturday morning and said something to police.

And that proved to be bad news for a Staten Island teen, who police say they found hiding in some bushes with an illegal gun.

Christian Reyes-Martinez, 18, was arrested on weapons and other charges stemming from the incident.

Click here for more story details

D.A. DETAILS BICYCLISTS HIT-RUN INJURIES

Police officials investigate a crash at Bay Street and Hannah Street in Tompkinsville on Tuesday, April 27, 2021. (Staten Island Advance/Joseph Ostapiuk)

Authorities allege that a 26-year-old man was behind the wheel of a car that knocked a bicyclist to the ground in a hit-and-run crash near Bay Street in Tompkinsville.

The 54-year-old man who fell off the bicycle suffered serious physical injuries, including but not limited to bleeding in the brain, a collapsed lung, a punctured liver, a severed artery in the chest and removal of the spleen requiring surgery, according to the criminal complaint.

Scottie Lopez of Tone Lane in Clifton was arrested on Monday and charged with being behind the wheel of the black, 2007 General Motors Yukon around 12:30 p.m. on April 27 near the intersection of Bay and Hannah streets.

Click here for more story details

WOMAN CHARGED IN SHOPPING-CART BEATING

A 29-year-old woman stands accused in a violent robbery where authorities allege the female victim was pummeled with a shopping cart, kicked, and punched in New Brighton.

Kara Foster was arrested on May 5 in connection with the attack on April 21 at about 6 p.m. on Jersey Street near Benziger Avenue, according to police and the criminal complaint.

Click here for more story details

COPS: RAID NETS DRUGS HIDDEN IN CLOSET

Police found heroin and crack cocaine in a bedroom when they raided the home of a man who previously sold drugs to an undercover officer, authorities allege.

Milton Stilley, 36, was arrested when officers armed with a search warrant stormed his home on Jersey Street near Hendricks Avenue in New Brighton on April 14 at about 6 a.m., according to the criminal complaint and police.

Officers say they seized a variety of illegal items from a bedroom.

Click here for more story details.

MAN SOUGHT FOR QUESTIONING IN STABBING

WANTEDfor an Assault Stabbing inside of 568 Bay St on May 7th. Suspect was seen driving a silver Dodge Charger. Any info contact the 120 precinct Detective Squad 718-981-2714 pic.twitter.com/t1LGpEBxby  NYPD 120th Precinct (@NYPD120Pct) May 11, 2021

The NYPD is asking for the publics help identifying a man sought for questioning in connection with a reported stabbing last 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.

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.

Click here for more story details

BUS DRIVER PUNCHED IN FACE IN GRASMERE

An MTA bus driver was assaulted in an incident reported during the morning rush hour on Monday, May 10, 2021, at Narrows Road South and Fingerboard Road. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)

The driver of an MTA express was beaten by a customer in a dispute over an electric scooter Monday morning in Grasmere, according to police.

The NYPD is investigating the assault that transpired at about 6:20 a.m. on board a SIM10 bus at Narrows Road South and Fingerboard Road, according to spokesmen for the MTA and NYPD.

A 47-year-old male bus driver told police that a verbal dispute regarding the suspect boarding the bus with an electric scooter escalated when the suspect struck the driver with his fist and then fled in an unknown direction, the NYPD spokesman said.

Click here for more story details

HYLAN BLVD. BANK ROBBERIES

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)

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.

Click here for story details
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  For the millions of muggles anticipating the grand opening of the new Harry Potter New York flagship store, there is even more to be excited about now.

For the first time, Butterbeer  the famous drink popularized throughout the Harry Potter series  will be available in the heart of New York City for fans to enjoy.

Customers can choose from draft Butterbeer, Butterbeer ice cream and bottled Butterbeer, as well as range of wizarding-world inspired treats.

The Harry Potter New York store officially opens this summer, on June 3. The location will host a massive collection of original Harry Potter props, set designs, costumes and a volumes of behind the scenes footage from all the Harry Potter films.

Along with tons of fan memorabilia, the New York location announced it will also be home to the Butterbeer Bar: A place to enjoy the famous wizarding world drink.

Once inside the Butterbeer Bar, fans will be greeted by a giant cascade of glowing Butterbeer bottles.

Once inside the Butterbeer Bar, fans will be greeted by a giant cascade of glowing Butterbeer bottles, each completed with a collectible MinaLima label.

The company says nearly 1,000 bottles will rise from the floor and float over the bar as Butterbeer moves magically across the ceiling through copper pipes.

Customers can choose from draft Butterbeer, Butterbeer ice cream and bottled Butterbeer, as well as range of wizarding-world inspired treats.

For those who havent tried Butterbeer yet, heres a breakdown of the famous potion:

Butterbeer is best served chilled and poured straight from the bottle.

The soft drink features a new take on the butterscotch flavor.

The unique blend of top-secret ingredients makes bottled Butterbeer a must-try for any aspiring wizard.

Butterbeer in draft, as well as other Butterbeer-flavor treats, have been available at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Parks & Resorts destinations around the world starting in 2010, where it continued to grow in popularity.

Harry Potter New York will open on June 3, 2021. (Warner Bros. Studio Tour London)

HARRY POTTER STORE DETAILS

The official Harry Potter flagship store will be located in the heart of Manhattan next to the iconic Flatiron building at 935 Broadway. The three-story shop, which will be spread out over more than 20,000 square feet, will greet incoming guests with a huge model of Fawkes the Phoenix gazing down from the ceiling.

This will be the largest dedicated Harry Potter store in the world, and will become a must-visit fan destination where Harry Potter enthusiasts can engage with interactive experiences and numerous photo opportunities as they step into the magic, said Sarah Roots, senior vice president of worldwide tours and retail for Warner Bros. We are very excited to be opening in New York. Its the ideal city in which to launch with so many dedicated Wizarding World fans, a cutting-edge retail environment and a community that embraces innovative experiences.

This will be the largest dedicated Harry Potter store in the world, and will become a must-visit fan destination where Harry Potter enthusiasts can engage with interactive experiences and numerous photo opportunities as they step into the magic, said Sarah Roots, senior vice president of worldwide tours and retail for Warner Bros. (Warner Bros. Studio Tour London)

Merchandise is fully inspired by the Harry Potter series and categorized by the different houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. For years, fans have taken tests to determine which house they belong to in the fictional world.

For more updates on the Harry Potter New York store, visit the companys Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages.
WEST ORANGE, N.J. -- Zoos have always been a popular day activity for people of all ages, especially in warmer weather months. Its also where Lifestyles for the Disabled went for a recent respite trip. Earlier this month, some participants and staff visited Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, New Jersey.

Turtle Back Zoo has been operational since 1962, and was originally supposed to be a seasonal zoo. Since then, the zoo has grown to include more than 250 different species among 20 different exhibits! There is also an impressive visitors center that includes a reptile center and two separate classrooms for additional educational purposes.

- A group of participants and staff members from Lifestyles for the Disabled recently took a respite trip to Turtle Back Zoo in New Jersey. (Life-Wire News/Aaron Bialer) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

One of the exhibits that was visited by the group was the prairie dog exhibit, which also happens to be interactive! Visitors can go into tunnels and pop-up burrows to learn more about the prairie dogs and how they live. While Lifestyles participants were visiting, they got to see the prairie dogs in a close knit group, where two of them even hugged at one point!

- A group of participants and staff members from Lifestyles for the Disabled recently took a respite trip to Turtle Back Zoo in New Jersey. (Life-Wire News/Aaron Bialer) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

In the Great Plains exhibit of the zoo, they got to see two different types of bison grazing on grass. It looks very relaxed, Antonio Pabon said of the small herd. The exhibit has large barrels and logs for the bison to push around, almost like exercise.

- A group of participants and staff members from Lifestyles for the Disabled recently took a respite trip to Turtle Back Zoo in New Jersey. (Life-Wire News/Aaron Bialer) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

- A group of participants and staff members from Lifestyles for the Disabled recently took a respite trip to Turtle Back Zoo in New Jersey. (Life-Wire News/Aaron Bialer) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

The flock of flamingos at Turtle Back Zoo looked especially vibrant! It doesnt look real, it looks like CGI, remarked Anthony DiFato when he saw the colors of the birds.

- A group of participants and staff members from Lifestyles for the Disabled recently took a respite trip to Turtle Back Zoo in New Jersey. (Life-Wire News/Aaron Bialer) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

Turtle Back Zoo has many, many attractions and exhibits for visitors of all ages, which makes for a fun family trip as summer approaches. It was awesome because it was fun and there were a lot of things to look at, Aaron Bialer said.

-- Written collaboratively by Aaron Bialer, Anthony DiFato, Antonio Pabon, and Joseph Padalino for Life-Wire News Service with Brigid Fegeley

Life-Wire News Service provides a voice for people with disabilities through a partnership between the Advance/SILive.com and Lifestyles for the Disabled, an agency serving people with developmental disabilities on Staten Island.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  For more than a year now, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has urged us to follow the science when to comes to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The governor hasnt just urged us to do so, hes hectored us about it over and over again. Let the experts manage things, not the politicians, Cuomo has raged.

So why is Cuomo turning his back on science now?

Because he can.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday said that vaccinated people no longer needed to wear face masks in most indoor settings.

The CDC had previously said that the vaccinated did not need to wear masks outside either.

Coming on the heels of widespread re-openings, loosening of lockdown rules and the elimination of many capacity limitations in public places, it should be a celebratory time.

But not in Cuomos New York. Cuomo on Thursday said that he wasnt ready to lift the states mask mandate quite yet.

In New York, we have always relied on the facts and the science to guide us throughout the worst of this pandemic and in our successful reopening, Cuomo said in a prepared statement.

Except for now, when the facts and science, from the scientists at the CDC, say that mask mandates can be significantly loosed.

Cuomo said that he and state Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker, along with other experts, would study the guidance and make a decision from there.

Great. These are the same people who crafted the policy that shunted COVID-positive patients into nursing homes, leaving a holocaust of death and grief in their wake.

The very least that Cuomo should do is lift the mandate but allow stores and other establishments to decide for themselves if they will require facial coverings.

Then we as customers can decide whether to patronize businesses that go against CDC mask guidance.

Doesnt Cuomo trust the science that tells us of the benefits of vaccination? Or is he one of those vaccine dreaded skeptics?

But Cuomo isnt alone in clinging to the power that allows him to keep pandemic fear percolating.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that lawmakers would have to remain masked on the floor of the House of Representatives despite the CDCs new guidance. This even though it appears that members and staff will be allowed to go without masks in offices and other parts of the U.S. Capitol.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., adjusts her face mask as she speaks to the media, Wednesday Dec. 30, 2020, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)AP

How is that based on science? And how many times have we seen a mere handful of lawmakers present in the House chamber doing business? Under Pelosis rule, theyll have to mask up as if theyre in the mosh pit at Bonnaroo.

Pelosi said that only 75 percent of House members have been vaccinated. Those are actually pretty good numbers compared to other segments of society. I think House members can roll the dice.

Even President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris went without masks at a meeting with lawmakers in the White House on Thursday. First Lady Jill Biden also did without a facial covering during a visit to a high school in West Virginia.

Nope, not good enough for Cuomo.

Now would be a good time for state lawmakers, so eager to carve back Cuomos pandemic powers, to step in and do away with the mask mandate.

It would be a good time for Mayor Bill de Blasio to challenge Cuomo on masks.

Go ahead. Well wait.

We shouldnt be surprised. This is the same Cuomo who didnt follow science when it came to bars and restaurants.

The governors own numbers showed that transmission was low in those settings, but Cuomo still shut the businesses down last fall. And upon reopening kept capacity levels lower in city bars and restaurants than in other parts of the state.

None of it was based on science. It was based on Cuomo fiat.

Its time for the governor to relent.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Police are searching for three men authorities say allegedly beat and robbed a 58-year-old man after he complained about their loud music in Concord.

The NYPD is asking for the publics assistance in identifying the individuals depicted in video and photographs in connection with the robbery that occurred within the confines of the 120 Precinct on Friday, April 30.

The New York City Police Department is asking for the public's assistance in identifying the individuals depicted in photographs in connection to a robbery that occurred within the confines of the 120 Precinct.

At approximately 10:28 p.m., near Weser Avenue and Steuben Street, the three individuals allegedly assaulted the male victim after he complained to them about playing loud music from their vehicles.

The individuals allegedly knocked the victim to the pavement, punching and kicking him in his head and torso, according to police. The victim suffered various injuries, including chipped teeth, a bloody nose and pain to his body, police said.

The New York City Police Department is asking for the public's assistance in identifying the individuals depicted in photographs in connection to a robbery that occurred within the confines of the 120 Precinct.

During the incident, the individuals allegedly took the victims cell phone and wallet, according to police. The males then fled the scene in multiple vehicles, including a gray Infiniti Sport Utility Vehicle, police said.

Police described the men as three dark-skinned, heavy-set males.

Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPDs Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or on Twitter @NYPDTips.

All calls are strictly confidential.
I need to keep my face off of Facebook. My wife thinks so, and now, so do I.

It started off innocently enough. I was engaged in a discussion about Jesus and what He would do (like, would He give out water to people if they were thirsty?). Somebody brought up the homeless shelter thats scheduled to be built just off of Little Victory Boulevard, across from Tompkinsville Park. They stated that, along with feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the imprisoned, comforting the sorrowing and welcoming the stranger, it would behoove us to shelter the homeless.

I should agree with this, no? Ive even stated those exact words here in this column.

But, no, I dont agree with sheltering the homeless. Not at the site thats been suggested. And, heres why.

Do you remember, a couple of years ago, when our not-so-beloved mayor helped clean out Tompkinsville Park? Benches were removed, making it less a space for people to hang out, because some people had been taking unfair advantage of the park facilities. Some of these people might have even been homeless. Regardless, the park was deemed unsafe and in need of a massive clean up.

That park abuts the proposed site for the shelter.

The actual site used to be a KFC/Taco Bell, which closed in 2014 after a slew of sanitary violations led the Health Department to shut down, as our own Pamela Silvestri reported.

My guess is that somebody would like to recoup their losses.

Added to that is involvement of the WIN group. This is what WIN doesit builds buildings to house people. This is its business.

Christine Quinn is the President and CEO. You may remember her as the former Speaker of the City Council. She ran against Michael Bloomberg for mayor and lost.

At the various meetings I attended, several questions were raised and some went unanswered. We were asked for our input, we gave it and, unsurprisingly, it was completely ignored. At a later point, we were informed that, after careful consideration, the mayor decided to build on the first planned site, that the rest of the sites suggested by the community were not as valid and that building would begin as soon as possible, due to the pressing need to confront the issue of homelessness.

That was, I believe, about two years ago. Of course, the pandemic slowed things down, but not entirely. Joan and I walked past the site a few days ago and there were cranes and bulldozers and a big hole in the ground. In short, the fate of almost every project on Staten Island.

The folks who live here, the people of this community, told the mayor and Ms. Quinn and anybody else who would listen again and again that we thought the site was wrong, that it wouldnt be able to sustain the increased traffic, that it was feet away from a park that was once deemed dangerous by the mayor himself, on a site where there had been several health code violations. True, it was near a traffic hub. But, where exactly were the children of the tenants going to school? Was there a hospital nearby in case of emergencies? Would the area be secure? Would there be building police?

We didnt get satisfactory answers to our concerns.

This is the classic bind issue: If people say that the site is unfit, suddenly its a case of NIMN(Not in MY neighborhood) as we saw recently in Westerleigh.

Thats not the case here. Nobody who objected to the site was oblivious to the fact that the shelter needed to be built.

Homelessness is a growing crisis in every city and town in America. Staten Islanders have never failed to step up when action is required. But, the fact is this site is entirely wrong for its suggested purpose. In addition, its an insult to our community to continually ask for our input and then proceed as if nothing was ever said or suggested.

The common good needs to be considered here. What is good for the prospective clients (some who may be from other boroughs), what is good for the existing community and what will improve the quality of life for all involved?

The decision as to whether or not the shelter gets built shouldnt only be based on who is going to walk away richer from the project. Sadly, I fear, that is exactly what is going on here.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments section or at Talk To The Old Guy on Facebook, which I should definitely stay off of.

Hold those grey heads high!
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Selina Grey has been a behind-the-scenes political operative on the North Shore for more almost a decade. Now, she wants to take center stage.

City Councilwoman Debi Rose (D-North Shore) endorsed Grey earlier this year  a significant backing in a crowded field thats been winnowed down to nine candidates.

She ran Roses 2013 and 2017 re-election campaigns along with the unsuccessful campaigns of nurse Patricia Kane for Assembly in 2018, and Public Administrator Edwina Martins bid for Civil Court Judge in 2019.

Grey still volunteers for Roses office, and works as a political and community organizer for the New York State Nurses Association, by which shes been endorsed. Shes also received endorsements from the New York League of Conservation, Teamsters Local 237, and 21 in 21  a political organization that pushes for more women in the City Council.

Of the nine candidates set to be on the ballot, Grey has raised the sixth most money in private funds, according to the latest info available from the New York City Campaign Finance Board.

Given the crowded fields in this years 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 Greys unedited responses:

What will you do to ensure your district fully recovers from the pandemic?

To ensure that the North Shore recovers from the pandemic I think we need to prioritize assisting our small businesses in recovery. This means providing them with the resources they need by passing legislation which will provide it.



What is your top priority outside pandemic recovery?

The pandemic has exacerbated issues that already existed. Infrastructure-we need to address zoning, transportation and environmental justice issues. Healthcare-we need to ensure that we support and strengthen our stand alone hospital, RUMC.

The community deserves healthcare which is equitable and dignified. Education-we need to ensure that parents and community stakeholders are at the table when it comes to our childrens education. Our communitys voice needs to be heard.

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?

We know that the criminal justice system is in need of reform. There is a lack of trust between the community and the NYPD and we need reforms which will help heal the divide. The City Councils reform package was a good start.

What efforts started by Councilwoman Rose would you like to continue and what would you like to do differently?

There are many projects that Councilwoman Rose will not see to fruition. Such as, the closing of the Jersey Street Garage, the building of Cromwell and the continuation of park prominades along the waterfront. I would ensure that those projects are completed. I work closer with all of our elected officials and community.

Selina Grey speaks at an event in Stapleton on Friday, Aug. 21, 2020. (Staten Island Advance/Victoria Ifatusin)

How has your prior work experience prepared you for this position?

I managed Councilwoman Debi Roses 2013 and 2017 re-election campaigns. That was followed by managing the campaigns of two other strong, progressive, highly qualified women candidates: Assembly candidate Patricia Kane and Civil Court Judge candidate and Public Administrator Edwina Martin. I continue to volunteer for CM Rose by representing her at community events.

I also proudly serve as political and community organizer for the New York State Nurses Association. It has been an honor to advocate for health workers whove put their lives on the line for us, especially now, during the COVID-19 crisis.

I am an Executive Board member of the NAACP Staten Island Chapter, President of the Staten Island Political Action Club, member of Citizens Action Staten Island Branch and a member of the Democratic Richmond County Committee.

Do you support any of the current mayoral candidates? If so, which one and why?

As of now, I have not made a decision.

How would you like to see transit improved on the North Shore?

I believe that we need to be forward thinking when it comes to our transportation options. I would advocate for a light rail and explore regional transportation model options.

I know that Staten Island is on track to be part of the 5 borough ferry but I would advocate for another destination other than NYC. We should have a ferry that takes us to Brooklyn and/or the Bronx. We currently have bike lanes but they are not protective. I would advocate and explore additional protective bike lane options.

How will you hope to ensure responsible development on the North Shore with a focus on addressing the areas infrastructure needs?

I would like to see the ULURP process restructured to include more opportunities for community input. Every development project needs to take into account the infrastructure updates required when new development occurs.

We also need the environmental impact study to include the effects any project will have on low income residents. I am in favor of rezoning the North Shore.

Our zoning has gone too long without an update and it has hindered our communities. We are not properly zoned to attract appropriate development or ensure that it is responsible.

Do you hope to reinvigorate some of the more tourist-focused development? If so, how would you hope to do that?

First and foremost we have to make people feel safe returning to the city. Much of this will be accomplished by the upcoming reopenings, the loosening of COVID restrictions, and the continuing efforts by the city to distribute vaccinations.

I am looking forward to working with our Borough President to draw people to Staten Island. Our island has so much to offer and its time we get the recognition we deserve.

What is your position on a public hospital for Staten Island?

One of my main priorities is ensuring access to quality affordable healthcare for Staten Island residents by securing a partnership with H+HC for RUMC or advocating that H+HC accommodates RUMC in their budget.



What is your position on the 44 Victory homeless shelter?

That area is already overburdened by social services, placing another temporary shelter there hampers revitalization of the business corridor. We need to continue to develop Downtown Staten Island as a commercial hub, we need to put more attractions in the area.

When people ride the ferry they should find the area directly outside of the terminal/Empire Outlets inviting so that we can draw them to the smaller local businesses in the area. The 44 Victory homeless shelter directly opposes this goal. I do not support warehousing people. The North Shore needs permanent housing solutions.

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?

In order to address drug addiction across the Island, we need to see funds directed to mental health and social services. The closing of mental health beds on Staten Island has left a vacuum in services and has increased vulnerability.
By Zana CIMILI and Ismet HAJDARI

PRISTINA (AFP) -- The rape of Vasfije Krasniqi-Goodman was one of thousands during Kosovo's 1990s war, but she is still the only victim to have spoken out publicly and now is pushing for a radical shake-up of a society long dominated by men.

Krasniqi-Goodman was part of a record intake of women MPs elected to Kosovo's parliament earlier this year, propelled to power on a wave of anger over domestic violence, lack of economic opportunities and ingrained prejudices.

Europe's youngest democracy also chose a woman president, chiming with a global push for women to be more involved in public life, embodied by the #metoo movement.

But the climb towards broader equality will be tough in a society steeped in patriarchal protocols and long controlled by male leaders, many of them former rebel fighters.

The latest official data available which dates from 2014 showed that just 15 percent of women owned property, while the Kosovo Women's Network NGO reported in 2019 that only 12.6 percent of women had a job.

The NGO said women were expected to stay at home and raise children rather than go out to work.

'Voice of survivors'

In a society where rape is viewed as a stain on the family's honour, Krasniqi-Goodman campaigns against the stigma that keeps many victims from coming forward.

"I am the voice of survivors of sexual violence but the sphere of my fight is widening," she told AFP in an interview before the February election, promising to get involved in all gender and rights issues.

With her family's support, Krasniqi-Goodman first publicly acknowledged her rape in 2017 when she posted an open letter to her rapists on her Facebook page.

She said that at the age of 16 she was taken at gunpoint from her home and raped by two Serbs, one of them a policeman, in 1999.

Official estimates suggest that as many as 20,000 women were raped during the 1998-1999 conflict between ethnic Albanian guerrillas and Serbian forces that led the former Serbian province to declare independence.

Only Krasniqi-Goodman has spoken publicly of the trauma and nobody here or in Serbia has been convicted in her case, or for any other wartime rape in Kosovo.

Now 38, she has spent the past 20 years in the United States but has returned to Pristina to take her seat in parliament.

"I am leaving my life in America to make my contribution to Kosovo," she said, pledging projects for women that will "really improve their lives".

'Dreams can come true'

Krasniqi-Goodman was among 43 women MPs voted into the 120-seat chamber, the highest proportion in Kosovo's short history.

Vjosa Osmani, a 38-year-old law professor, emerged as the most popular politician with some 300,000 votes -- no mean feat in a territory of just 1.8 million people.

She has since become Kosovo's second female president after overcoming resistance from some MPs, and told parliament: "Women have the right to be where they want to be."

Struggling to hold back tears, she added: "Don't stop, don't stop moving forward. All your dreams can come true."

Her election as president shows that politics is "not just the arena of men", gender researcher Luljeta Demolli said.

Almost immediately, however, Osmani was thrust into a sexism controversy when another MP posted on Facebook a description of an Ottoman-era female official as having "a bucket-like belly" and a "swollen red face like a pepper".

Ardian Kastrati, who also works as a politics professor at Pristina University, removed the post after it started generating a backlash and claimed it was not referring to Osmani.

But many did not believe him, with dozens of students calling for him to be sacked from his university post.

'Not one more!'

The fight for equality is made all the more difficult by the dire economic situation in one of the poorest parts of Europe, where the average monthly salary is 500 euros ($600).

"Gender inequality starts from economic inequality," Leonida Molliqaj, a 28-year-old sociologist, told AFP.

"We live in a country that is super poor and where husbands are also victims of poverty, so they develop an oppressive mentality towards those who have even less -- unfortunately that means women."

Even highly qualified women find it hard to get a job that matches their talents.

A business management graduate from Pristina, who did not want to be named, told AFP that she had endured years of bullying at the hands of men while she tried to make it in her chosen profession.

"They were even humiliating me during job interviews," she said.

"Some of them gave me 'friendly advice' not to waste my time, as business management is for men, not women."

The 30-year-old eventually borrowed enough money from her family to start a hairdressing business and has never looked back.

Women are increasingly pushing back in Kosovo, fighting for their rights in the workplace and in the home, where cases of domestic violence are provoking widespread anger.

Crowds came out on to the street to protest earlier this year when a mother of two was shot and killed by her ex-husband, earlier reports of abuse having been ignored by police.

"Not one more!" they chanted, a striking message in a territory where cases of domestic violence reported to the police increased from around 1,500 in 2018 to 2,069 last year.

By most measures, the position of women in Kosovo remains tough, but an increasing willingness to take action is giving heart to many.

"Never before has there been so much activism, never has there been so many young women interested in feminism," said sociologist Molliqaj.
Three and a half years after her first and only WTS podium, 23-year-old Taylor Knibb mustered a surprise knockout punch to take the overall win at WTS Yokohama and earned the second Olympic slot for U.S. women.



Knibb and Maya Kingma of the Netherlands combined to make a smashing bike breakaway that gave the duo a 75 seconds lead on the field at T2. Kingma led Knibb by a few seconds beginning the run, then Knibb took charge to lead Kingma by 35 seconds at the 5k mark. While Summer Rappaport, who won the first U.S. Womens Olympic slot in 2019, ran hard to a race-best 33:24 split that brought her past Kingma for the silver. Knibb held on for the win with a 35:09 split that brought her to the line in 1:54:27 with a 30 seconds margin over Rappaport and 38 seconds on third place finisher Kingma.



There was much drama just behind as Taylor Spivey of the U.S. was charging hard, aiming at a 3rd place finish that would give her the final U.S. Olympic slot. But Spiveys third-best 33:56 run could not quite make up for her big deficit after the bike leg, and she fell 18 seconds short of Kingma and the final U.S. Olympic slot.



In a disappointing day that illustrated the difficulty in maintaining form over the long pandemic hiatus, star U.S. contender and 2019 World Champion Katie Zaferes could only manage a 22nd place finish.



I wasnt really thinking about Tokyo, I just wanted to get to that finish line, an exuberant Knibb explained her strategy to ITU Media. Maya [Kingma] was so good on the technical sections of the bike so I just wanted to pay attention to that and push on the sections where the group was slower. When I started the run, I was just like I gotta run. I knew I just needed second and there wasnt a lot of time for thinking!



This is a favorite place to race and Im so happy to be back here and part of an American one-two, said Rappaport. I was focused on catching Taylor and Maya after only racing twice since the pandemic and today I felt Id found my competitive edge again.



I was prepared to give it everything on the swim and first lap of the bike and hope there was a small group, Kingma told ITU media. Taylor escaped before I was planning to and she was so strong on the straights, and we pulled away. I was just trying to keep her wheel and I saw the gap growing. Two years ago, I was suffering on the bike and today everything felt like it was going well until the final lap and I just wanted to hang on to Summer.



Race recap

Zaferes and Spivey anticipated an all-American duel for the two remaining U.S. Olympic slots  if they both landed on the podium  so they lined up together on the pontoon.



However, Helena Carvalho of Portugal and was soon joined by Rappaport at the front. As an omen of how her day would go, Zaferes trailed by 30 seconds at the final buoy and never found the her usual pace.



Kingma emerged from the water first in 19:33 followed closely by a pack including Amelie Kretz of Canada, Kirsten Kasper of the U.S., Yuko Takahashi of Japan and Sophie Coldwell of Great Britain.



Soon Kingma was caught by a pack of fifteen, with Zaferes a minute back. Within a lap, Knibb and Kingma made their big move, charging to as 10 seconds lead in the first kilometer, then 30 seconds halfway through the 40-kilometer ride. By 7 of 10 laps, Kingma and Knibb had a 75 seconds gap and by T2 they entered the transition after a 58:21 and 58:28 splits that gave them nearly a 2 minutes lead.



After 5km, Knibb had put 35 seconds over Kingma, while Rappaport zoomed into contention on her way to a race-best 33:28 run split. With 2.5 kilometers to go, Knibb had a 1 minute margin on Kingma, who held a 15 seconds cushion on Rappaport, who passed Kingma early on the final lap.

WTS Yokohama

Yokohama, Japan

May 15, 2021



1. Taylor Knibb (USA) S 19:35 T1 00:59 B 58:21 T2 00:25 R 35:09 TOT 1:54:27

2. Summer Rappaport (USA) S 19:29 T1 1:00 B 1:00:41 T2 00:26 R 33:24 TOT 1:54:57

3. Maya Kingma (NED) S 19:33 T1 00:54 B 58:28 T2 00:24 R 35:49 TOT 1:55:05

4. Taylor Spivey (USA) S 19:37 T1 00:58 B 1:00:30 T2 00:25 R 33:56 TOT

5. Julia Hauser (AUT) S 20:10 T1 00:59 B 59:58 T2 00:27 R 33:54 TOT 1:55:26

6. Sophie Coldwell (GBR) S 19:44 T1 00:57 B 1:00:25 T2 00:23 R 34:01 TOT 1:55:28

7. Non-Stanford (GBR) S 20:08 T1 00:58 B 59:58 T2 00:28 R 34:02 TOT 1:55:31

8. Miriam Casillas Garcia (ESP) S 20:09 T1 00:58 B 59:56 T2 00:24 R 34:07 TOT 1:55:32

9. Claire Michel (BEL) S 20:02 T1 00:59 B 1:00:07 T2 00:25 R 34:09 TOT 1:55:39

10. Cassandre Beaugrand (FRA) S 19:46 T1 00:58 B 1:00:19 T1 00:37 R 34:04 TOT 1:55:42

14. Kirsten Kasper (USA) S 19:36 T1 1:04 B 1:00:22 t2 00:25 r 354:01 tot 1:56:25

22. Katie Zaferes (USA) S 19:59 T1 1:00 B 1:00:22 T1 00:25 R 35:28 TOT 1:57:12

45. Renee Tomlin (USA) S 20:38 T1 1:00 B 1:04:09 T2 00:26 R 37:09 TOT 2:03:20

DNF Tamara Gorman (USA)
Kristian Blummenfelt of Norway made a late race surge on the run to pass Jelle Geens of Belgium and finish in 1:42:55 with a 10 seconds margin on Jeens at WTS Yokohama. Perhaps of greater drama, Morgan Pearson of the U.S. came back from 35th place on the 7th lap of the bike leg with a second-fastest 29:30 run to take 3rd place at WTS Yokohama, earning the first Olympic slot for the U.S. men in 2021.



Pearson led all his fellow Americans  Kevin McDowell [11th], Matthew McElroy [24th], and Eli Hemming [DNF].



It was a breakaway pack at the start and I was in the middle and feeling nice, trying to stay relaxed, but with three laps to go [on the 40-kilometer bike leg] the packs came together and I was pushed further back than Id like to be, admitted Pearson after he fell to 35th place on the 7th lap of the bike. I knew I needed a top eight and chasing Alex Yee I knew I couldnt be conservative chasing an Olympic place.



Pearson, who came into the momentous race mourning the death of his brother in March, dedicated the race to his sibling. I had to take a month out in March when my older brother passed away, said Pearson. But I felt he gave me the boost I needed. Hopefully he will come with me to the Olympics will be there with me too.



The Norwegian and the Belgian fought fiercely through the first 9 kilometers of the run before Blummenfelt drew away to win by 10 seconds over Geens and 17 seconds ahead of Pearson.



It felt good to be racing again, Blummenfelt told ITU media regarding the pandemic hiatus. There were some nerves on the start line up against those guys, but it was a great result here in Yokohama.



Blummenfelt rose to the occasion with a race-best 29:26 10k run split  12 seconds better than Geens and he drew much confidence from his performance. Starting an Olympic year with a good performance is great, but this is the soft test for what will be tougher conditions coming up in the summer. I didnt know where I was off the bike [4th place], or if the other guys were struggling. But I felt like I had control throughout the run and it was really nice to take my second WTS series win.



Geens was exuberant with his silver medal finish. "This is a step better for me, he told ITU media. Its been more than six months since the last race so it has been a long but good training period. Im super happy with second but also a bit disappointed as I felt I did all the work and Kristian was struggling early in the run. But now I know that wasnt the case and just what Kristian can do. I had to mentally recover from a bad start of the swim [over 50th place and 59 seconds behind the leader] and I have to thank [fellow Norwegian] Gustav Iden for helping us close the gap on the bike quite quickly. That first 200m almost screwed up my race but Im sure that wont happen again.



Pearsons finish was his first WTS podium and it was hard earned against tough opposition. Behind the American were several stars  two-time WTS World Champion Vincent Luis [6th], Great Britains Alex Yee [4th] Marten Van Riel [7th], Leo Bergere [8th], Gustav Iden [9th], Jonathan Brownlee (23rd] and Henri Schoeman [5th].



The second and perhaps the third U.S. Mens Olympic slots will be chosen by the USA Triathlon Athlete Selection Committee which may nominate at their discretion up to two athletes.

WTS Yokohama

Yokohama, Japan

May 15, 2021

S 1.5k B 40k / R 10k



1. Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) S 18:16 T1 00:55 B 53:58 T2 00:22 R 29:26 TOT 1:42:55

2. Jelle Geens (BEL) S 18:54 T2 00:54 B 53:21 T2 00:20 R 29:38 TOT 1:43:05

3. Morgan Pearson (USA) S 18:18 T1 00:55 B 54:09 T2 00:28 R 29:30 TOT 1:43:12

4. Alex Yee (GBR) S 18:27 T1 00:57 B 53:45 T2 00:21 R 29:49 TOT 1:43:17

5. Henri Schoeman (RSA) S 18:27 T1 00:53 B 54:01 T2 00:26 R 29:51 TOT 1:43:26

6. Vincent Luis (FRA) S 18:00 T1 00:58 B 54:12 T2 00:21 R 30:06 TOT 1:43:35

7. Marten Van Riel (BEL) S 18:01 T1 00:59 B 54:10 T2 00:24 R 30:04 TOT 1:43:37

8. Leo Bergere (FRA) S 18:19 T1 00:54 B 53:55 T2 00:24 R 30:10 TOT 1:43:37

9. Gustav Iden (NOR) S 18:47 T1 00:55 B 53:25 T2 00:25 R 30:08 TOT 1:43:39

10. Jonas Schomburg (GER) S 18:05 T1 00:55 B 54:09 T2 00:20 R 30:13 TOT 1:43:40

11. Kevin McDowell (USA) S 18:31 T1 00:56 B 53:43 T2 00:23 R 30:09 TOT 1:43:41

24. Matthew McElroy (USA) S 18:312 T1 00:57 B 53:46 T2 00:23 R 32:05 TOT 1:45:41

37. Ben Kanute (USA) S 18:15 T1 00:53 B 543:10 T2 00:24 R 34:14 TOT 1:47:53

DNF Eli Hemming (USA)
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Daniels Appears in Court on Drug, Gun Charges

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - A man facing multiple charges from a March arrest was in court on Friday.The McCracken Circuit Court Clerk said 31-year-old Demario Daniels appeared before Judge Tony Kitchen and scheduled a bond reduction hearing for May 27.Authorities said Daniels had escaped from a Class D facility at the McCracken County Jail in April 2020. At the jail, detectives say Daniels attempted to use another person's name to avoid detection, although jail personnel recognized him.Daniels was arrested March 19 along with 30-year-old Luther Robinson as part of an undercover drug investigation. Detectives said Robinson had agreed to sell them methamphetamine. When they approached, Daniels ran and reportedly knocked down a woman as he fled.Daniels faces charges of fleeing or evading police second degree, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct second degree, wanton endangerment second degree, identity theft, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, and was wanted on multiple warrants, including escape second degree.A recording of Robinson's arrest was later released on social media, along with allegations that a detective used a racial slur while speaking to him.On the Net:
Hell hath no fury like an army of rich parents and it seems one of Sydneys most prestigious private boys schools has a lot of explaining to do.

Last week, parents at Cranbrook junior school were issued a health alert that a pupil had contracted impetigo, a highly contagious bacterial infection.

In a community-wide email seen by Emerald City, a junior school nurse urged families to reduce the chance of infection by keeping their childrens fingernails trimmed and to seek medical advice if children showed any symptoms.

The email was addressed Dear Parents/Caregivers, and then included the name of a high-profile eastern suburbs parent and their personal email address, which led some families to suspect that parents child was the unlucky impetigo sufferer. Emerald City has chosen not to reveal the parents identity.
Theyre stone cold crazy for having allowed some of the conduct to go on for as long as it has, and to not take action in ways that will crack this, Schiffer says. I know theyre attempting to do it, but theyre baby steps and thats going to be perceived as a con job at this point. There needs to be significant change. Mark Ruffalo: Now is the time to step up and right the wrongs of the past. Credit:Getty While this is not the first scandal to engulf the HFPA, it is by a long measure the worst. In addition to questioning the groups diversity record, the Los Angeles Times report accused the non-profit of self-dealing by spending more than US$1 million annually paying its own members to perform various tasks, including serving on committees. In the wake of that burst of blistering reportage, the HFPA struggled to respond. It promised to expand its membership, initially by adding 13 new members but now it is saying it will add 20 members this year, and increase total membership by 50 per cent in the next 18 months. The group also hired Shaun Harper, executive director of the USC Race and Equity Centre, as a diversity consultant. Harper quit after only a month, saying he no longer [had] confidence in our ability to collaboratively deliver the transformational change that the industry ... are demanding.

Since then a larger wound has opened, exacerbated by a series of missteps by the organisation itself, including a damaging internal email from former HFPA president Phil Berk in which he referred to #BlackLivesMatter as a racist hate movement, and which resulted in his expulsion. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Those events brought to the surface long-held misgivings Hollywoods PR machine has with the HFPA: that too few of its members write regularly or for high-profile publications, and that too many leverage their access to talent to benefit themselves. WarnerMedia, who with Netflix and Amazon, have said they will no longer deal with the HFPA, issued a blistering statement: For far too long, demands for perks, special favours and unprofessional requests have been made to our teams and to others across the industry, WarnerMedia said. We regret that as an industry, we have complained, but largely tolerated this behaviour until now. Perhaps unsurprisingly, too, this is not the first time in the organisations 78-year history that its legitimacy has been questioned. In 1958 the associations own president Henry Gris resigned claiming that certain awards are being given more or less as favours.

And in 1968 the Federal Communications Commission claimed the telecast misled the public as to how the winners were determined; essentially that they were determined by lobbying, and not by blind polling. In response NBC did not air the awards again until 1974. In 1982 the actor Pia Zadora won new star of the year after her husband, multimillionaire Meshulam Riklis, courted the groups membership. Zadora was not a convincing actress, according to the New York Times, and the win was ridiculed widely. In the 1990s, when the telecast moved from cable back to a major network, and with the rise of heavyweight film producer Harvey Weinstein, the power of the Globes amplified substantially. Studios followed the Weinstein lead and hired PR firms specifically to handle the HFPA, with bonuses - up to $20,000 for a nomination and US$30,000 for a win - paid on completion of campaigns. Scarlett Johansson: Unless there is necessary fundamental reform within the [HFPA] I believe it is time that we take a step back. Credit:Invision Then in 2011, a former HFPA publicist Michael Russell sued for US$2 million claiming the members abuse their positions and engage in unethical and potentially unlawful deals and arrangements. It was a disgruntled former consulting firm, the HFPA said in reply; the case was settled in 2013. And in 2017 one member, Munawar Hosain, was accused of selling tickets to the invite-only Globes gala for US$39,000.

In isolation each scandal is embarrassing. Seen collectively they speak to a deeper cultural problem in the organisation. There is no question that among the various factions of the HFPAs membership there is a group of legitimate journalists working for mainstream publications. But they are just one of several factions. Loading The significance of the current scandal is that it features a chorus of voices: the actors on whom the HFPAs power pivots, the publicists who serve as gate-keepers to those actors and the broadcaster NBC, whose $60 million per year cheque for broadcast rights to the Golden Globes underwrites the HFPA, including its philanthropy. (Since 1987 the HFPA has disbursed US$44.5 million to charities and other non-profits.) Acutely damaging, says Shiffer, was Cruises decision to return his three trophies. Action always speaks louder than words, Schiffer says. In crisis management, action gets more traction. In making a principled statement, the same holds. Tom Cruise is adhering to a well-entrenched strategy and sending the strongest possible message. Powerful publicists are body-slamming [the HFPA] through their talent, in part for frustrations that have been incurred over the years, Schiffer says. Were likely to see the beginning of the end of the organisation unless they make a seismic shift. This is recoverable but its going to require a restart, with new leadership.

Pete Hammond, the chief film critic and awards editor for the Hollywood trade publication Deadline, says the HFPA has been strangled by its own by-laws, such as a requirement that member candidates are sponsored by existing members of the HFPA, a rule which has kept the groups membership intentionally exclusive. They created all of this, within that group, their own individual agendas, rather than operating as an organisation where everyone has the same goals, Hammond says. We still cant say how many of them are really selling stories to foreign publications [and] they have American members representing foreign countries. Hammond says the HFPA should have wiped its slate clean at the outset of the scandal, requiring its existing members to reapply and opening its membership widely. They didnt do that, and because they didnt do that, this is what you get, he says. Nicole Kidman at the 2018 Golden Globes after winning best actress for Big Little Lies. Credit:Invision In the last few weeks the sense that the scandal might, like most, blow over with some steps towards reform from the HFPA and forgiveness by the studios, publicists and stars, has been overtaken by a sense that the organisation, and its awards, are at an existential crossroads.

The HFPA is now promising to approve a new code of conduct in consultation with publicists and studios, appoint a new leadership team including a diversity, equity and inclusion officer, and search for new member candidates. We invite our partners in the industry to the table to work with us on the systemic reform, the organisation said. Its going to be tough, but I do think its recoverable depending on what they do, Hammond says. But expanding the HFPAs membership may be challenging because quite frankly, who wants to walk into this landmine right now? he says. Loading Then, Hammond adds, if they can get it together for 2023 for NBC to put them back on the air, they have to pass the ratings test. Thats a tough ask in a broadcast ratings economy where the general trend for awards shows is already down. Year-on-year the 2021 Globes dipped a sharp 60 per cent. When you become the story, rather than a bunch of stars getting drunk and getting awards, thats problematic because then the public out there becomes savvy to it, Hammond says. And that makes it a difficult mountain to climb.
When Korey Baruta was 10, a ballet teacher told her she could never be a dancer beause of her body shape. Credit:Joe Armao Ms Bird said it was mainly high schools, though Butterfly did work with children from grade 5 and up, and primary schools were sharing some issues they were seeing with their students. Primary schools say that there is a lot of appearance-based teasing going on, Ms Bird said. Boys are maybe mentioning girls around their weight or their body hair or changes to do with puberty. Weve also heard about one primary school where the girls were weighing themselves in the evening and texting and sharing their weights with each other. Journalist Madonna King, the author of Ten-Ager: What Your Daughter Needs You to Know about the Transition from Child to Teen, said 10 was the new start of adolescence and her research confirmed eating disorders, and also self harm, were emerging in younger and younger children. King said it was now common for 10-year-olds to have a smartphone - especially after the pandemic lockdown - but they mostly did not have the critical thinking skills to see beyond the perfect images on the screens.

If I had to tell you the most common two words from my research among 10-year-olds, its fitting in, King said. They tend to be tolerant of their friends but brutally judgmental about themselves. Seeing this photo of herself on a family holiday prompted Korey Baruta to feel intense dislike for her body, at just six years old. Mia Findlay, 33, from Centennial Park in Sydney developed anorexia and bulimia at 19 but her body image issues started much younger. She said that as a child she was a healthy weight but tall, and says she always felt uncomfortable when people made comments about her height or size. By the age of 10 this had developed into intense dissatisfaction and distress, and she started dieting - running every day on the treadmill, throwing out her lunches and becoming a very picky eater. A defining moment came at age 15 when she went to the beach with her mother and some teenage boys started oinking at her and calling her a pig and a Christmas ham. When she lost weight, she was complimented by well-meaning people who didnt know they were cheering on the early stages of her eating disorder.

Ms Findlay said that at age 10 she was influenced by her family and friends, but knew from her work as an advocate and educator that 10-year-olds today had additional pressures. Now they have access to Instagram where you have unqualified individuals posting dietary advice and what they eat in a day, which is pretty restrictive, and thats just confusing them and influencing them negatively more and more, she said. Korey Baruta, 23, from Research in Melbourne remembers being dissatisfied with her body from the age of five, despite being a healthy weight. She did dance classes from the age of three to 18 and her body image issues were fuelled by the norms of the dance world. Being constantly in front of mirrors was like a breeding ground for self comparison, she said. When I was 10 years old I was told by one of my ballet teachers that I could never be a dancer with my body shape and this really rattled me. She developed anorexia in her late teens, culminating in hospitalisation, and has been recovered for three years.

Ms Baruta said she did not have social media when she was growing up but photos were common and seeing herself in group photos always triggered self-loathing. Loading Ms Baruta downloaded TikTok to entertain herself during the pandemic and soon noticed that many of the trends and viral videos were based around physical appearance and often glamorised restrictive eating and eating disorders. It landed in her feed without her asking for it, often popping up unexpectedly. I fear if someone was already restricting their diet, these social platforms have the ability to exacerbate this and ultimately lead to an eating disorder, she said. Butterfly National Helpline on 1800 33 4673 (1800 ED HOPE) or support@butterfly.org.au

 Eating Disorders Victoria Helpline on 1300 550 23
In 2007, Hoff and I had been together for four years, and my life bore very little resemblance to the one Id been living before we met. It was then that I was offered a job as the internal events manager at a top-tier law firm based in Melbourne, and just as I was hitting my professional stride, so too was Hoff. Now well into the new season, the Melbourne Storm boys had shot out of the blocks and were enjoying another successful year.

As for me, I loved my new job from the moment I set foot in the shiny foyer of the building. The best thing about it was that I could see a feasible career path. I could see a time in the future where I might work my way up the ladder in my department, or where I could move laterally to expand my professional horizons into another department.

Mel Hoffman: It must have seemed as if I was as dedicated to his career as I was to my own. Sometimes, maybe, I was. Credit:Hilary Walker

Critically, the firm had offices in both Sydney and Brisbane, the two other cities I figured wed most likely end up in if Hoffs career meant we ever had to leave Melbourne. The job was also challenging enough to distract me from the trials of supporting Hoff as we waited nervously to see if the State of Origin selectors would give him a second chance.

State of Origin had always been a bit of a mystery to me, but it seemed super important to Hoff. He had finally been selected to play for his native NSW in game two that year, and it had been cause for immense celebration. Just as not all little boys who dream of being NRL players get to grow up to be NRL players, not all NRL players who dream of playing State of Origin get to play State of Origin. Hoff was officially amongst the elite of the elite. I had gone along to that game dutifully, but unfortunately NSW had lost the match, and therefore that years series.
Last weeks federal budget calculations assumed the vaccine rollout would be completed by the end of the year and that borders would reopen by mid-2022. But the government has not committed to those targets. The indefinite border ban, first introduced in March 2020, has prompted her and her ex-husband, a British-Australian, to both quit the country. Cristina Williams, third from left, with her blended family in Arizona earlier this year. Hes finally said to me lets get out, the UK is going to open up a lot sooner than Australia, the world will be back to a new normal and Australia will be still trying to figure out what a post-pandemic plan looks like, she says, speaking from hotel quarantine via Zoom after returning from a three-month visit to the US with her boys. The trip cost them $50,000 in cancelled and rebooked flights and quarantine. We didnt do the trip because we felt like a change of scenery, we did it because were desperate, she said.

When it was one month or two months, well OK, maybe it wasnt urgent for you to see your husband, when its two months and your kids havent seen their brothers - suck it up. When its going on its second year, now its a crisis. She says not going would have meant a total of three years with the brothers not seeing each other and out of her marriage: Thats a prison term. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video She says she regularly writes to Health Minister Greg Hunt asking for a plan for when the borders will reopen but receives a proforma response saying how well Australia has managed the pandemic. There isnt a plan for this to end for Australia, if they actually said when everyone is vaccinated well reopen the border and it will be in stages - if they actually just showed some kind of a plan then we could plan our life and wed make an assessment about whether that year they said is manageable or not.

Adding to the sense of alienation from her home country is the lack of empathy from many Australians for her need to travel. She likens the abuse shes received  accusing her of being irresponsible and spreading coronavirus  to a toxic relationship. (She was fully vaccinated in the US.) It feels like a break-up with Australia and it feels like [Australia] is the arsehole but everybody else thinks [its] the hero. Williams is not alone in feeling this way. Molly Fleck and her husband came to work in Australia four years ago, she at a leading university in Sydney and he in finance for a US-based firm. They are booked on a flight to Chicago next week. Taking flight: Molly Fleck with 14-month-old son TJ in Surry Hills on Saturday. The family will relocate to the US because of Australias travel ban. Credit:Sam Mooy The 34-year-old gave birth to their first child  TJ  in March last year and has not been able to introduce him to his grandparents.

Loading She is frustrated that travel during the pandemic has been equated with holidays, rather than the urgent need to reconnect with loved ones. The uncertainty of not knowing when the borders are even potentially going to reopen [has] been really challenging for us to make any sort of plan for our life, Fleck says. The federal budget predicts the loss of 174,000 people by mid-2022 as a result of the border bans, a dramatic increase from the 93,200 it estimated just six months ago. Employers say the border closures are contributing to a serious labour shortage.

Loading Fleck says the governments ongoing bans have shown professional migrants like her that Australia is no longer just a flight away. While shell greatly miss her job, her friends and Sydneys beauty, she says the country can be an unwelcoming place for migrants  something that has been amplified by the pandemic. I definitely feel that it has grown in the pandemic and that its given people permission to voice things that they previously would have kept silent about. She hesitates when asked if shed recommend Australia as a place to relocate to when she returns home to the US.

Loading Its a hard question because I love Australia. Im very sad to be leaving but the Australian government has a short-term mindset when it comes to excluding migrants, she says. The damage thats being done with particularly keeping out international students is something thats going to haunt Australia for a decade. She says Australia is depriving itself of global talent in its continued pursuit of COVID-19 elimination because it is unsustainable, even if popular with the public. I dont much agree with ScoMo [Prime Minister Scott Morrison] but he was right at the very beginning when he said we will have to learn to live what his virus.
Thousands of Palestine supporters have rallied in Sydney to condemn Israel and the escalating military offensive in the Gaza Strip, as deadly hostilities in the territory threaten to escalate into an all-out war.

A rally at Sydneys Town Hall drew a large crowd objecting to the decades-long Israeli occupation of historical Palestinian territories and the week of escalating airstrikes targeting Hamas, the Islamist militant group in control of Gaza.

Pro-Palestine protestors gathered in the Sydney CBD to condemn the situation in Gaza. Credit:Mehreen Faruqi/Twitter

Israeli airstrikes in recent days have killed 126 Palestinians, including 31 children, and wounded more than 930 in densely populated Gaza, according to local officials. Hamas rockets fired into southern Israel have killed at least eight Israelis.

Bearing Palestinian flags and the symbolic chequered keffiyeh scarf, attendees at the rally in the Sydney CBD gathered to mark what Arabs call the Nakba  the catastrophe associated with the creation of Israel and the mass exodus of Palestinians in 1948.
Thank you, Latika Bourke (Australia is a beacon of multiculturalism. How did it lose its humanity?, May 9). I agree with nearly everything you wrote, as must any thinking Australian, with the exception of your support for the egregious Ruby Princess NSW Premier and government.

The majority of the blame for the alarming deterioration in the empathy of a large portion of Australians lies with the idiocy shown by these same Australians, when, in May 2019, as at previous general elections, the palpably dysfunctional, insensitive, uncaring Coalition government was re-elected on the basis of the unearned largesse falsely promised to so many.

So who is responsible for the parlous state in which Australia finds itself? Its the majority of Australians who voted for the Coalition and brought this disastrous mess we laughingly call a government down on the heads of all. We called destruction upon our own heads.

Ian Usman Lewis, Kentucky

A sensible solution

Has Australia now come full circle? Are we once again the worlds largest open-air prison (We will have a long way to go, May 9)? Perhaps it is time to look at the approach of other countries. Romes Fiumicino airport has the following COVID-19 procedure in place for US flights: 48 hours before entry you require a negative test; at the airport, you get a 20 euro ($31) rapid response test. For so many Australians who are denied international travel, this could work while we wait for vaccinations.

Gary Rowe, Wyoming

Copycat policies
A woman has died, another is in hospital in a critical condition, and a child suffered leg fractures after a head-on crash between a school bus and a car in regional Queensland.

Police said initial investigations indicate just after 3pm on Friday the vehicles collided head-on along the Warrego Highway around 50km east of Roma, near Wallumbilla.

The school bus amid multiple ambulances at Roma Hospital. Credit:Queensland Ambulance Service

A 30-year-old Chinchilla woman, who was a passenger in the car died at the scene, while the 37-year-old driver, also from the Western Downs was taken to hospital in a critical condition with a head injury.

Emergency services responded to the scene, where they found 16 children on board, including a child with leg fractures, who was considered to be in a serious condition.
Gaza City: Israel slammed the Gaza Strip with airstrikes on Saturday, in a dramatic escalation that included bombing the home of a senior Hamas leader, killing a family of 10 in a refugee camp  most of them children  and pulverising a high-rise that housed The Associated Press and other media.

The Hamas militant group continued a stream of rocket volleys into Israel, including a late-night barrage on Tel Aviv. One man was killed when a rocket hit his home in a suburb of the seaside metropolis.

With a US envoy on the ground, calls increased for a ceasefire after five days of mayhem that have left at least 145 Palestinians dead in Gaza  including 41 children and 23 women  and eight dead on the Israeli side, all but one of them civilians, including a five-year-old child. US President Joe Biden, who has called for a de-escalation but has backed Israels campaign, spoke separately by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

A ball of fire erupts from a building housing various international media, including The Associated Press, after an Israeli airstrike on Saturday, May 15, 2021 in Gaza City. Credit:AP

Still, Israel stepped up its assault, vowing to shatter the capabilities of Gazas Hamas rulers. The week of deadly violence, set off by a Hamas rocket Monday, came after weeks of mounting tensions and heavy-handed Israeli measures in contested Jerusalem.
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Emery, Gaines Appear in Court on Drug Charges

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - Two Paducah residents facing drug charges following an investigation into a noise complaint were in court Friday.Twenty-eight-year-old Chelsea Emery and 28-year-old Robert Gaines, appeared for a pretrial conference. The McCracken Circuit Court Clerk said the hearing was continued to July 19.On September 8, McCracken County deputies responded to a home on Happy Hollow Drive regarding a noise complaint. As deputies approached the home, Emery allegedly tried to conceal a bag of marijuana and methamphetamine, leading to her arrest.Gaines was arrested after deputies allegedly saw drugs and drug paraphernalia lying in plain view inside of the home. Deputies say Gaines was also in possession of methamphetamine.They are both facing charges of possession of meth and possession of drug paraphernalia. Emery is additionally charged with possession of marijuana and tampering with physical evidence.On the Net:
William Douglas "Doug" Gadberry, 62, of Stanford, passed away Tuesday, June 8, 2021 at the St. Joseph Hospital of Lexington. He was born May 27, 1959; son of the late Wesley and Ida Wesley Gadberry of Stanford, Kentucky. He is survived by two sisters, Brinda & (Ron) Cook of Winter Haven,
Gene Kritsky, a professor at the College of Mount St. Joseph, took this photo of the bright eyes of an adult periodical 17-year cicada in 2004.
South Bend Tribune

South Bend Tribune

SOUTH BEND  Police are saying a road-rage incident appears to have been the cause of a shooting Friday night in a hotel parking lot just south of Darden Road and Indiana 933.

St. Joseph County Sheriff William Redman said the victim was found in the parking lot just before 9 p.m. with multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to Memorial Hospital and is in stable condition.

The suspect apparently fled south on Indiana 933 in a black SUV.

Redman said Saturday the owner of that vehicle has turned himself in for questioning, but no arrests have been made. There were multiple people in the vehicle, the sheriff said, adding that there were multiple witnesses to the altercation.
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Lyons Appears in Court on Sex Abuse Charges

By West Kentucky Star Staff

MCCRACKEN COUNTY - A Paducah man charged with the sexual abuse of a minor was in court Friday.Kenneth Lyons, Jr appeared for a pretrial conference. The McCracken Circuit Court Clerk said the hearing was continued to July 19.Lyons was arrested following a month-long investigation, including a search of his Facebook page, into allegations that he had sexual contact with a minor under the age of 12.He was charged with two counts of first-degree unlawful transaction with a minor and two counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a victim under 12.On the Net:
The Handmaids Tale The Crossing was written by Bruce Miller and was directed by none other than Elisabeth Moss (June)  doing double duty again! This was a truly horrific episode both for the torture that June undergoes and for the high body count of all those we lose in this episode. Moss throws in some wonderful homages to horror films and also incorporates a number of images that resonate with previous episodes.

As the episode opens, all we hear is Junes breathing. Then we get a close up of her face  and all we can see are her eyes as shes in the gag weve seen before on Handmaids before  perfect for filming during Covid! Shes in the back of a truck, chained by her neck and feet in place. We get the usual aerial shot and see that shes being taken to a large facility, well out in the country. The truck stops, and Nick (Max Minghella) gets in.

He leans in close, seeming to drink in her presence and scent. He proceeds to unlock her chains. He tells her that Esther is safe in custody, but the other Handmaids are still at large. I loved the way his face is shown in closeup, going in and out of focus. June doesnt know whether to trust him. Is he tormenting her with this information or trying to ease the torment of not knowing. He tells her that he cant help her if she doesnt tell them where the next safehouse is. He asks her twice  adding Please to let me help you. She looks like shes almost about to believe him when Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) shows up with two Guardians. June shuts her eyes. She knows whats coming now.

Aunt Lydia thanks Nick for bringing June and tells him shes there as Junes advocate! HA! He should think of her as Junes Guardian Angel  omg Nick tells her to be strong with the Lord and the strength of His might. June just stares at Nick. They both know what hes turning her over to. June is lead through concrete halls, bathed in red, with torture rooms open until shes dumped in her own cell by the Guardians. Its beautifully shot like something out of Saw or Hostel.

As soon as Lydia is alone with her, she smashes June across the face, berating her as a wicked girl for taking all the children from their homes. June, however, goes from terrified to furious as soon as Lydia touches her. Lydia asks if she thought about how their poor parents would feel  and how SHE would feel! Its not long before we see that Lydias true concern has always been herself  and her power.

Four Guardians come in and strap June to a metal table. A Lieutenant (Reed Birney) comes in, and Lydia tells her that he has questions, and shes sure June can help. He takes off the gag and tells her that she doesnt need to be afraid  blessed be the fruit. He asks Ofjoseph where the other Handmaids are, and Lydia tells her to answer while Gods light still shines upon you. I loved the way this scene was set up. The room is lit only on one side  the side where Junes feet are, so her head is bathed in darkness as she says There is no light here. God has forsaken this place.

The Lieutenant responds by punching her viciously in the stomach. He asks her again. She remains silent. He asks if shes sure she doesnt want to answer, and Lydia tells him Ofjoseph is always sure  she wants to be sure that June is tortured. The Lieutenant prays before beginning to waterboard June. He smiles  clearly he likes his work  as he puts the cloth  with a cross on it  over her face. Outside the door, Lydia actually looks troubled as she hears June within, but she sits down and begins working on her needlepoint anyway. Does she actually feel anything like sympathy? Shes been tortured herself, and she keeps saying these are her girls  but does she really care about them past the power they give her? Weve seen glimpses of it before with Janine (Madeline Brewer), but I dont trust it.

In Toronto, Luke (O-T Fagbenle) tries to get news about June at the American Consulate. Rachel (Krista Morin) confirms that June has been captured and is alive, but doesnt think theyll get much more information. There might be a trial, but it wont be public  no verdict or sentencing will likely ever be forthcoming. Rachel tells him that her Grandmother used to bury a green persimmon in the backyard for luck  for what its worth.

June  sopping wet  is taken to a room and placed, hands tied on a chair. Aunt Lydia comes in. She looks concerned and tells June that the Lieutenant is very determined. Lydia tells her its going to get a lot worse. She points out that the other Handmaids are wanted fugitives and in danger because of her. June needs to bring them home. June points out that this isnt their home. Lydia insists that they have a life of service and meaning in Gilead. June responds that the only meaning there is violence.

June tells Lydia that she told the girls that if they followed the rules, theyd be ok, and then she sent them out to be raped and beaten and humiliated  over and over. Lydia looks troubled, but when June tells Lydia that she failed them, Lydia hits her and pushes her off the chair. Lydia calls for the Guards and puts June back on the chair. June calls her Lydia  no Aunt  and that really pisses Lydia off. And then June enjoys really driving the knife in. She tells her that Lydias precious Janine was easy and turned on Lydia in a second. That one clearly hits home.

The Lieutenant comes back in. June looks defiant still, and Lydia doesnt leave this time. He gets out a pair of pliers, takes her hand, and is about to start ripping out her nails. He tells her that she can stop it any time. June looks like shes breaking, and she suddenly sounds completely submissive, she calls for Aunt Lydia. She tells them that they went to Vermont. Lydia looks confused. June has at least bought herself some time.

It looks like Luke and Moira (Samira Wiley) now have a house. Luke is on the porch, which is festooned with lights, with Nicole as Moira fills the car with signs. Theres going to be a march  and prayer vigil  for June. Luke tells her its early, but Moira says its going to be crowded. She offers to wait for him. It doesnt seem like hes even intending to come when he says hes going to bath Nicole and get her to bed early. He points out that June is in prison and theyre lighting candles. Moira points out that theyre doing everything they can. Luke tells her not to rub it in.

Luke asks if June chose this. Moira is adamant in saying no. Shes been subjected to Gilead. She knows that there are no choices there. But Luke points out that she chose to stay behind, knowing shed likely be caught. Moira says maybe. Die trying to do something again. Luke cant get over that June had to make the choice not to ever see him  or Nicole again. He has to respect it. He cant ask God for something she didnt want. I loved the contrast of them being outside, in a well lit space, while June is in dark, sterile concrete.

Back with June, we get shots very reminiscent of the first episode. June is on her chair, the door opens and the chair is framed in the doorway. Lydia appears directly behind her bathed in red light. Lydia walks up behind her and says poor choice. June says shell never tell, and Lydia says brave words  but just words. June is taken from the room. She looks at Lydia  does she really think there will ever be help there? Shes put on an elevator and taken up to the roof where its pouring rain.

Handcuffed and beaten, Beth (Kristen Gutoskie) and Sienna (Sugenja Sri) are standing on the wall at the edge of the roof. This is beautifully shot  and Im assuming some really magnificent CGI. June is shaking her head. Beth is stoic, but Sienna is crying. The Lieutenant quotes scripture, laughs and asks again where the Handmaids are. Beth tells her not to tell them anything, and the Lieutenant simply pushes Beth over. He takes June to Sienna and tells her that she can save Sienna. June and Sienna join hands and press their foreheads together. They pull apart and smile. It looks like June is about to tell, and Sienna says June before the Lieutenant pushed Sienna over and tells June not to lie to him again. They take her back to another room and put her in a very small metal box. I was so happy to see Beth  and devastated when they killed her. This was punishment for telling a lie - there was no way for June to save them, even by telling the truth.

Nick goes to see Joseph (Bradley Whitford). They sit before his fire, drinking whiskey. Joseph points out that June isnt stupid, but she is stubborn. Nick tells Joseph that he owes him, and Joseph tells him that he cant save her, and shes never coming back to Nick. He knows  he just wants her to stay alive. Joseph says its nice to want things, and Nick points out that Joseph used to want things  like change. He points out that June changed Gilead. Nick points out she also changed them  and Joseph says perhaps shes fulfilled her purpose and its time to move on. Its hard to reconcile this Joseph with the one who was so devoted to his wife. Nick says he cant move on. Joseph says he wishes he could help him.

The room is dark, but their faces are lit by the fire. Nick points out that Joseph has gotten very comfortable in his house. He tells him that he could help him get back to the top. He could help him stay in the house  its a very veiled threat. Joseph can help him, and Nick will help to get him back to the top, get his power back, or Joseph doesnt help, and Nick will see him kicked out of the house and ruined, with no chance to get power back.

June is singing to herself  Heaven is a Place On Earth  ironic. But the song is also about love making Earth like Heaven. Is this an ode to Nick to help her? As she sings, we see Luke sitting on the porch with Nicole. Could this be Junes ultimate Heaven? Luke takes Nicole into the yard and they bury a green persimmon.

Junes box pops open and she crawls painfully from it, unbending herself to lie on the floor. Guardians come in sit her up and put a bag over her face. When they remove the bag, shes sitting at the end of a dining table with Joseph at the other end. He tells her that shes looked better. He then tells her to eat. No one will hurt her there. She takes a few mouthfuls of soup.

Shes surprised to see him. He tells her that they need him, especially now, and we finally find out what happened at the Club  six Commanders dead and nine in the hospital. Joseph tells her that he has to tell her where the Handmaids are. Junes face hardens and she puts down her spoon. She shakes her head. He tells her that if she doesnt tell, they will hurt Hannah. I loved the extreme closeups in this episode. We get Josephs face  just his eye from the side. We are really digging into the core of him.

He knows how to hurt June the most  and hes also, apparently, willing to hurt a child in the name of his own power. June doesnt believe that Gilead would hurt a child. And Joseph is really talking about himself when he says that Gilead doesnt care about children. Gilead cares about power  though its true of Gilead too. All of the values in Gilead were just a means to an end. June reminds him that he was going to clean up his mess. He tells her that he cant do that from the end of the world, and this is where they are. June tells him to go fuck yourself. Joseph tells her that motherhood has always been an evolutionary puzzle to him. He seems truly upset that the has to actually put his plan in motion.

June is lead out. Lydia is there  and also looks sorry. She pats Junes shoulder. Hannah (Jordana Blake) is in a huge glass box in the middle of a concrete atrium. June walks up to the glass, smiling and puts her hand out. When Hannah turns and sees her, she screams and rushes to the other side of the box. June walks slowly around so shes sitting by her on the other side of the glass, telling her its ok. When the Lieutenant shows up, June tells him where to find the Handmaids. Lydia is clearly relieved when June tells  because Hannah has been spared or because shes getting her Handmaids back? Lydia drags June away, telling her that Hannah is safe.

The Handmaids are asleep in a basement storage room. Janine hears the dogs barking and then flashlights are seen. The women huddle together. Theres no escape  only one door in and one out. They crouch in a corner, but when its clear that theyve been found, Alma (Nina Kiri) is the first to stand. Better to die on your feet remember.

June is sitting in the corner of her cell. Lydia comes in with a chair and tells her that all of the girls have been taken. June moves onto her knees in front of Lydia and tells her that shes ready  for it all to be over. She tells Lydia, Please. Just kill me. Lydia tells her that none of them will be executed because with all the children gone, they cant spare even one Handmaid. June cant believe it  theyre getting new postings? Lydia tells her in a manner of speaking. They will all be going to a Magdalene Colony. There, they will do hard labor, and when its their time of the month, the Commanders and their wives will visit them there. Its like a Jezebels only worse  no sitting about reading and smoking during the day! Lydia says she had her doubts about the innovation but can see the value for certain temperaments. Lydia tells her to remember that everything thats happened to June, the Handmaids, those poor Marthas is all a result of Junes actions  its all her fault.

Theres a beautiful shot of June being hosed off. Shes sitting and in the long shot her body looks like an hourglass. In close up, we see bruises, and her bullet wound. All that shes suffered to get her. Lydia redresses her in the Handmaids outfit again.

We get another aerial shot of a truck moving through the country. June is let out. Guardians flank her as she walks down a path toward a bridge. Nick is waiting on the bridge. He tells her that Hannah is back home and safe. He apologizes and says he had to do whatever he did to keep her alive. June tells him to stop. The real horror was that Hannah was scared of her  not them. She didnt know her. Nick tells her that Hannah loves her and that he loves her. The Handmaid truck is waiting for her. The two press foreheads together. June goes to get the truck but turns back and rushes into Nicks arms, kissing him. The two press their foreheads together. She turns and goes to the truck without looking back. Will she ever see him again?

The rest of the Handmaids sit with their hats on their laps. Janine is humming. Lydia is also there. Alma just looks at June. They are stopped at a rail crossing. The driver tells them theyll be a while and hes going to take care of the necessaries. Lydia tells them Its so wonderful being altogether again, isnt it? She gets no response. Its clear that the others are waiting for June to do something  and she does. She grabs Lydias cow prod and holds her down. Alma tells her to come on as the others are already out. Shes going to hit Lydia  but Alma stops her. And that is there undoing. Lydia is able to call the driver  who comes and starts shooting. Two of the Handmaids are shot. The others race with their cloaks and heavy boots, hands still cuffed to beat the train and get it between them and pursuit. June and Janine get across, but the train runs down Alma and Brianna (Bahia Watson). Janine doesnt want to leave, and we get another scene of June with her forehead pressed to Janines forehead. And after giving her strength, the turn and run.

The final scene takes us back to the Red Center. Its night, and in their beds, after the Aunts have left, the women hold out their hands to each other and tell each other their names silently. Its a requiem to all we lost  though at least June, Moira, and Janine are still alive.

This was a really powerful episode. All that June sacrificed is definitely going to haunt her. I think that Nick is definitely going to regret helping Joseph. What did you think of the episode? Let me know in the comments below!




NAXOS, Greece (AP)  In her kitchen, Kyriaki Kapri has enough food to feed an army. Piles of squid for frying, lemons to be quartered, thumb-thick potato wedges to make oregano-sprinkled French fries, and seafood for the dishes famous on the Greek island of Naxos.

Shes done everything she can think of to prepare for tourists at her Naxos beachside restaurant Gorgona  Greek for Mermaid  but customers are still a rare sight.

Greece launched its tourism season Friday amid a competitive scramble across the Mediterranean to lure vacationers emerging from lockdowns.

Were all vaccinated, the tables are outside and spread out, with hand sanitizers on each one. Were ready. Now we wait, Kapri said, standing beside large display cabinets with fresh fish on beds of crushed ice. During a six-month lockdown, Gorgona closed for the first time in its 50-year history, a pattern seen across Greece including the nearby island of Mykonos and Santorini.

The European Union has yet to roll out its cellphone-friendly travel pass system. But southern member-states, driven deeper into debt by the pandemic and highly dependent on tourism revenues, are not waiting.

Croatia has already reopened, as has Cyprus, joined Friday by Greece where residents were allowed to leave home without an electronic permit for the first time in six months.

Last year, the number of visitors to Greece plummeted by 78.2% to 7.4 million  from a record 34 million in 2019  according to official data, with a corresponding drop in tourism revenues.

Greece is hoping to claw back half the 2019 visitor level. Its vowed to finish vaccinating its entire island population over the next six weeks and will even waive test requirements for tourists who have received vaccines made in Russia and China that are not approved for use domestically.

Other Mediterranean countries are also looking for an edge.

Malta is promising visitors vouchers to go diving and cash rebates to high-end hotel customers.

In Turkey, visitors from abroad have been exempt from stay-at-home orders applying to Turks, thus enjoying an empty Istanbul, and little-populated beach resorts. Starting Monday, travelers from China, Britain, Australia, and 13 other countries will be allowed in without even having to present a negative COVID-19 test.

Portugal is the only southern European country to so far make Britains so-called Green List of quarantine-free destinations. Travelers in the UK pounced on the news, according to Emma Coulthurst from holiday price comparison site TravelSupermarket.

Week-on-week, if you compare all package holiday price comparison searches via TravelSupermarket, the site has seen an 865% increase in searches for package holidays to Portugal, Coulthurst said.

Tourism industry officials in Portugal reported a surge in bookings and inquiries from Britain, and the government confirmed Friday that existing entry restrictions would be lifted before the updated U.K. travel list takes effect Monday, ending days of uncertainty.

In neighboring Spain, Trade and Tourism Minister Reyes Maroto said her government was in constant consultations with Britain to try to have its travel status upgraded. Some 18 million U.K. holidaymakers traveled to Spain in 2019.

Italy is dropping a five-day quarantine requirement for travelers from the EU, Britain and Israel starting Sunday, but many in the hospitality industry are still bracing for another tough year.

I think (tourism) is going to increase but very slowly. For this year we have to accept whatever comes, said Elisabetta Menardi, manager of the Ca Foscolo apartment hotel in Venice.

Just a short walk from the famed Rialto bridge, the hotel is usually fully booked year-round but is currently running at 20% occupancy.

Normally in January we already get a lot of reservations for the summer. That has stopped. So we dont know whats coming now, Menardi said. People make reservations, then they cancel. Its kind of a dance. ___ Derek Gatopoulos reported from Athens, Greece. Zeynep Bilginsoy in Istanbul, Turkey, Barry Hatton in Lisbon, Portugal, Karl Ritter in Rome and Joe Wilson in Barcelona, Spain contributed.

___

Follow all of APs pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
The power of IronArchs People First focus is felt through remote work environment

IronArch Technology has been named to Inc. magazines annual list of the Best Workplaces for 2021. Hitting newsstands May 18 in the May/June 2021 issue, and as part of a prominent Inc.com feature, the list is the result of a wide-ranging and comprehensive measurement of American companies that have created exceptional workplaces and company culture whether teams are operating in person or remotely.

IronArch Technology, a verified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), partners with clients to develop agile solutions that improve clients strategic and operational performance. The company provides cloud strategy and implementation, platform solution development, software engineering, and financial management support to a variety of government customers in the Department of Defense (DoD), Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Collecting data from thousands of submissions, Inc. singled out 429 honorees this year. Each nominated company took part in an employee survey, conducted by Quantum Workplace, on topics including management effectiveness, perks, and fostering employee growth. The organizations benefits were also audited to determine the companys overall score and ranking.

Weve always had a people first focus and in 2020 and 2021 it showed how critical that was in ensuring we transitioned smoothly to remote work without missing a beat, commented Joe Punaro, CEO of IronArch. This recognition on a national stage validates our work to date and is humbling since it is a result of our employees direct feedback regarding their experience at IronArch.

In response to questions about the experience working for IronArch employees cited authenticity of leadership, commitment to people first culture in actions (not just words), meaningful work, and clear visibility into career path as contributors to their satisfaction at work.

The definition of a positive workplace has changed drastically over the past year, says Inc. magazine editor-in-chief Scott Omelianuk. Stocked fridges and nap pods were no longer perks many companies could rely on once work went remote. So, this years list is even more important as it reveals organizations that continue to enrich the lives of its employees amid a pandemic.

About IronArch

A five time Best Place to Work Winner (Washington Business Journal and Inc. Magazine) and recognized by the Inc 5000 and the Association for Corporate Growth for being one of the fastest growing businesses in the United States, IronArch is a federal consulting firm with the people, processes, and infrastructure to help clients accelerate change and transform their organizations. A Service-Disabled, Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), we are routinely called upon by clients to assist them with cloud strategy and implementation, platform solution development, software engineering, and financial management challenges. Learn more at http://www.ironarchtechnology.com.

About Inc. Media

The worlds most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community to build great companies. Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including websites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print. Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. The global recognition that comes with inclusion in the 5000 gives the founders of the best businesses an opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and the credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent. The associated Inc. 5000 Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit http://www.inc.com.

About Quantum Workplace

Quantum Workplace, based in Omaha, Nebraska, is an HR technology company that serves organizations through employee-engagement surveys, action-planning tools, exit surveys, peer-to-peer recognition, performance evaluations, goal tracking, and leadership assessment. For more information, visit http://www.QuantumWorkplace.com.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: https://www.prweb.com/releases/ironarch_technology_ranks_among_highest_scoring_businesses_on_inc_magazines_annual_list_of_best_workplaces_for_2021/prweb17933824.htm
STAMFORD  After 60 years in the business, Ed Greenberg is ready to pack up his bag.

Greenberg and his family decided to shut down Wagners Fine Luggage and Gifts, the store hes helped run since 1961. And while more than half a century of business warrants celebration enough, the shops long history dates back to the 1850s. A German immigrant named Herman A. Wagner started selling buggy whips and ox collars in Rye, N.Y.

We think its the oldest luggage store in the country, Greenberg said.

Though Wagners first found a home for his store south of the Connecticut border, Wagners Fine Luggage posted up on Greenwich Avenue thanks to the Wolfe family. Greenberg married into the clan, and hes been in on the family business ever since.

Since its provincial origins a few miles south, Wagners has changed with the times. The shop sold leather saddles at the turn of the century, then moved to fine ashtrays and pipes in the 1950s. In more recent years, they pivoted to cell phone cases and other phone accessories.

But no matter the product, Greenberg put service at the heart of his business strategy. Its what he thinks has kept customers coming back for so long.

You just got to do that little extra mile. You go the mile, and your customers appreciate it, Greenberg said. Our customers go the mile for us too.

If anything, working in retail for so long has only strengthened his faith in humanity, he said. A truck driver once drove an hour back to the store to return a tiny box of merchandise tucked inside a suitcase he purchased. Another woman forgot to hand Greenberg a check for more than 500 dollars worth of luggage but returned a few hours later to make sure he got paid.

It doesnt hurt that Greenberg is a natural-born salesman. He knows the merchandise at Wagners like the back of his hand and could sell even the most skeptical customer on the merits of a well-designed bag. In his hands, a sturdy, green piece of luggage tucked in the back of the store can become the latest, hottest luxury good. The old suitcases tucked away in your closet that get rolled out annually for family vacation seem like relics from the past after one of his sales pitches.

Greenberg believes in the products his store carries, too. He knows quality when he sees it, and so does his son, Robert, who took over the store several years ago.

Hes probably one of the most knowledgeable people in this industry, and customers love him, Greenberg said.

But that expert touch is becoming rarer and rarer, he said. First, big-box retailers started crowding out mom-and-pop shops. Once upon a time, Wagners ran another location on Bedford Street, but it couldnt compete with the massive Bloomingdales. Years later, even that department store would go out of business. The University of Connecticut Stamford campus now sits on its former location.

Online retailers only worsened the picture. And for many small businesses, the pandemic served a final blow. Opportunity Insights  a research and policy center run by Harvard University that focuses on economic mobility  found that 37 percent of small businesses in Connecticut closed during 2020.

Theres a certain level of expertise that comes along with running a small business, according to Greenberg, and its something that online reviews and internet shopping cannot replicate. When someone comes into the shop, staff can walk them through all the options, can show off the mechanics of the products, can let customers feel a products quality in their own hands.

Amazon cant do that, he said.

Greenberg maintains that the COVID-19 pandemic didnt drive them out of Stamford. While it didnt make business easier, he thinks it was just time to go.

Its our choice, he said, And we just felt the time was right now.

Marsha Greenberg, Eds wife, said she feels strange leaving behind the business shes spent so long managing. Their children have worked at the store on and off for decades. Even their grandson, Max, was helping out at the store as old customers came in to take advantage of the final sale offers.

But Ed and Marsha Greenberg are ready to keep busy after formally retiring, which they expect to do sometime in June. In fact, they have decades worth of memories with customers and family to keep them company.

The best part was really the customers, Greenberg said. Im not saying this just to say, but I learned so much from our customers. The most important thing that I can say about the customers is that there are more good people out there than bad people.

veronica.delvalle@hearstmediact.com
WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden's lone Cabinet choice who was rebuffed by Congress has landed a job as a White House senior adviser.

Neera Tanden had been Biden's pick to lead the Office of Management and Budget but withdrew her nomination in March after it was clear that she would not garner enough Republican support to be confirmed. Several GOP senators objected to her previous tweeted criticisms of her political rivals.

Tanden will now be a senior advisor to Biden, the White House said Friday. She will launch a review of the US Digital Service and begin planning for possible policy changes that could result from the forthcoming Supreme Court decision on GOP legal challenges to the Affordable Care Act. Tanden worked in former President Barack Obamas administration as the act was designed and implemented.

Tanden, a close ally of White House chief of staff Ron Klain, will depart the think tank Center for American Progress. Its founder, John Podesta, said that Neeras intellect, tenacity, and political savvy will be an asset to the Biden administration.

Tanden's hire was first reported by CNN.
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

James L. Gelvin, University of California, Los Angeles

(THE CONVERSATION) The images and reports coming from Israel, Jerusalem and Gaza in recent days are shocking. They are also surprising to those who thought the 2020 Abraham Accords and subsequent agreements to normalize relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan would place the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians permanently on the backburner.

As someone who has been writing and teaching about the Middle East for more than 30 years, I had no such illusions. The reason for this is that at its heart, the so-called Arab-Israeli conflict has always been about Israelis and Palestinians. And no matter how many treaties Israel signs with Arab states, it will remain so.

In a phone call on May 12, President Joe Biden assured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of his unwavering support for Israels security and for Israels legitimate right to defend itself and its people. Biden was referencing the rocket attacks on Israel launched by Hamas, the Islamist group that governs Gaza. By targeting civilians, Hamas is committing a war crime. In all probability, so is Israel, by bombing and shelling Gaza.

Despite the carnage the Hamas rocket attacks and Israeli retaliation inflicts on Israelis and Gazans, the Biden administration is focusing on a sideshow, not the main event.

That main event is an unprecedented conflict taking place on the streets of Jerusalem, Haifa, Lod and elsewhere. Its what scholars call an intercommunal conflict, pitting elements of Israels Jewish population against elements of Israels Palestinian population who have had enough and have taken to the streets.

Hamas could not maintain its credibility as a movement if it sat by while Palestinians in Israel battled Jewish Israelis there. The reality is that Israel is having its Black Lives Matter moment.

As in the United States, a brutalized minority group, facing systemic racism and discriminatory acts, has taken to the streets. And, as in the United States, the only way out starts with serious soul-searching on the part of the majority.

But after the spate of Palestinian suicide bombings in the early 2000s that horrified Israelis and hardened their attitudes toward Palestinians, this is unlikely to occur.

Many reasons, one source

Palestinian anger can be attributed to multiple issues. In April, Israel attempted to impede accessto Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem for Palestinians living in the West Bank. Israeli police then raided the Muslim holy site, reportedly after Palestinians threw stones at them, injuring 330. At the beginning of May, Mahmoud Abbas, the current president of the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank, cancelled the first Palestinian legislative elections in 15 years. Finally, when the current conflict spilled over into the West Bank, the Israeli occupation and continued colonization of Palestinian territory were thrown into the mix.

These significant issues explain Palestinian anger. However, the intercommunal nature of the ongoing conflagration is due to two other issues.

First, Jewish settlers attempted to evict eight Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Jerusalem. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency had settled the families in the neighborhood during the 1950s.

Jewish settlers filed suit in 1972 claiming their right to the homes where those families lived. They argued that Jews had owned the Palestinians homes before the division of the city in the aftermath of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. By right, they argue, the homes belong to their community.

Jewish neighborhoods housing more than 215,000 encircle the predominantly Palestinian eastern part of Jerusalem, where Sheikh Jarrah is located. For Palestinians, the attempt to evict the families is representative of Israels overall policy of pushing them out of the city. It is not only a reminder that in a Jewish state Palestinians are second-class citizens, but a reenactment of the central tragedy in the Palestinian national memory: the Nakba of 1948, when 720,000 Palestinians fled their homes in what would become the state of Israel, becoming refugees.

Growing anti-Arab racism

The second reason for the intercommunal nature of the current conflict is the emboldening of Israels extreme right-wing politicians and their followers. Among them are latter-day Kahanists, the followers of the late Meir Kahane. Kahane was an American rabbi who moved to Israel. Kahanes anti-Arab racism was so extreme that the United States listed the party he founded as a terrorist group. Kahane proposed paying Israels Palestinian population $40,000 each to leave Israel. If they refused, Israel should expel them, he argued.

Kahanism and like-minded movements are on the rise in Israel. A Kahanist was recently elected to the Israeli Knesset, or parliament, and Netanyahu courted his support when the prime minister was attempting to form a government in February, 2019. Kahanists and other ultranationalist thugs  the Proud Boys of Israel  march through Palestinian-Israeli neighborhoods chanting Death to Arabs and assault them.

The current crisis began on May 6, 2021. Pro-Palestinian protesters in Sheikh Jarrah had been breaking the Ramadan fast together each night of the holiday, a custom called iftar. On this particular night, Israeli settlers set up a table opposite them. In the settlers group was Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Kahanist deputy. Rocks and other objects began to fly. Then the violence spread.

In the coastal city of Bat Yam, a Jewish mob marched down the street busting up Palestinian businesses, while another mob attempted to lynch a Palestinian driver. The same scene was replayed in Acre, only this time it was a Palestinian mob that assaulted a Jewish man. Another Palestinian mob burned a police station to the ground in the same city. And in a Tel Aviv suburb, a man presumed to be a Palestinian was pulled from his car and beaten.

[Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversations newsletter to understand the world. Sign up today.]

Lod is a city south of Tel Aviv with a mixed Palestinian and Jewish population. Not only was it the site of a Hamas missile strike that killed two Palestinians, it was where heavy fighting took place between Palestinian and Jewish mobs.

The fighting began after a funeral of a Palestinian man who was killed by an assailant presumed to be Jewish. It was so heavy at times that the Israeli government brought in border guards from the West Bank to quell the unrest. The mayor characterized what was happening in his town as a civil war.

The mayor also reminded the residents of Lod, The day after, we still have to live here together.

He did not explain how this was to happen.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/as-the-palestinian-minority-takes-to-the-streets-israel-is-having-its-own-black-lives-matter-moment-160958.
To see why so many conversations about race get sidelined, look no further than discussions around Senate Bill 1024, An Act Concerning Zoning Authority, Certain Design Guidelines, Qualifications of Zoning Enforcement Officers and Certain Sewage Disposal Systems.

Unwieldy title aside, the bill, now being considered in the waning days of Connecticuts legislative session, is a giant step toward updating the states archaic zoning laws. Over the years, those laws - which are mostly unique to every burg -- have been as effective as moats in keeping a certain character about our towns.

And what means character? Mostly, the word is a stand-in for racist words we dont use in polite company but that are nevertheless steeped in tradition and rigid as a deacons hairstyle.

An online public hearing in March stretched for an entire day, and while nearly three-quarters of the people spoke in favor of the bill, the opposition voiced concerns that covered three main areas. Namely, they worried that uniformity in our zoning laws and a focus on much-needed affordable housing in the state amounts to state overreach, and they worried that changing the way we zone will lower our property values, and increase crime, wink, wink.

Those tropes that surround affordable housing have been long-since discounted in the most studied affordable housing case in the country in Mount Laurel, N.J. There, after a contentious battle over affordable housing ended with said housing being built, anyway, traffic didnt increase. Crime stayed the same. And property values didnt drop.

Meanwhile, Connecticut is stalled. Between 2010 and 2020, Connecticut had the fourth lowest population growth in the nation - and the lowest in the Northeast -- according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Countless teachers and firefighters cannot afford to live in the towns in which they serve. You can find affordable housing in, say, Bridgeport, but good luck in places such as Goshen or Killingworth. According to state Department of Housing 2020 figures, Goshens residential stock includes just .42% affordable housing, while Killingworth includes just .89%.

Last year, as the pandemic stripped back everything, nearly 70 organizations joined under the banner of Desegregate CT to focus on creating more housing options throughout the state, among other goals. Members of the group, which was founded by Sara C. Bronin, came from sectors that dont always sit on the same side of the table to lobby for SB 1024. Bronin is a much-published attorney and an architect, whose husband is Hartfords mayor, Luke Bronin.

This legislation could be the most significant step forward for housing in the state, ever.

We can continue to do things the way weve always done, with predictable results. Or we can try something a little bolder and a whole lot holier, and that may start with the white majority abandoning their go-to defensive crouch.

A few months after Desegregate CT organized, the East Haddam planning and zoning commission met to discuss comments made by Theresa Govert, a town selectwoman who at an earlier event had the temerity to talk about the connection between zoning and segregation.

In her remarks, Govert mentioned no particular P&Z, but in her town, the meeting erupted, wrote Colleen Shaddox, in a piece for CT Mirror, in bleated pleas (my words) that East Haddam is not racist, and how dare any one suggest otherwise. From the video of the meeting, one commissioner said hed never seen a single, solitary word in the town zoning laws that excludes any one - no matter their race - from living in East Haddam. I know everyone is searching for racism behind every tree in town, said another long-time commissioner. I dont know what the hell youre talking about.

Boom. There it is. The deeper conversation gets sidelined while we must stop to attend to hurt feelings. Yet our zoning laws are the blueprint for our towns, and they have served - up to now -- as codified segregation - racial and economic -- that leaves so many of our villages, towns and neighborhoods lily-white.

On a recent Saturday, Shaddox was among 100 or so people standing outside Deep Rivers historic town hall at a rally organized by Desegregate CT. The crowd was mostly white, which reflects the demographics of the old river town. They hoisted signs that said things like Black Kids Matter and Housing justice for all. Shaddox brought her two children, and they intended to have a Mothers Day picnic later.

Also in the crowd was Ann Faust, executive director of the Coalition on Housing + Homelessness, which works to end homelessness in Middlesex County, Wallingford, and Meriden. Faust, who has worked for decades to increase the states housing options, said she was cautiously optimistic.

The crowd listened to the likes of Bronin; Rep. Christine Palm, D-Chester; Evonne Klein, the former state housing commissioner and current interim CEO of Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness, and Jah-Marley Wright, a Colchester activist/rapper. They all spoke about the need to meet the states crying need for inclusivity.

And it really is a crying need. In Centerbrook, just down the road from the rally, 170 people applied for a spot in a 17-unit mixed income development, The Lofts at Spencers Corner, said Jim Crawford, of HOPE Partnership, the non-profit organization responsible for the development. One hundred people remain on the waiting list. Another development, scheduled for completion in 2022, is in the works in Madison. It cant open soon enough.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP)  Leaders in the Minneapolis suburb where a police officer fatally shot Daunte Wright during a traffic stop in April are expected to vote Saturday on a resolution that would put the city on track to major changes to its policing practices.

The resolution, backed by Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott, would create new divisions of unarmed civilian employees to handle non-moving traffic violations and respond to mental health crises. It would also limit situations in which officers can make arrests.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota called the proposed changes an important first move" in changing policing. But several police groups raised concerns, saying parts of the resolution conflict with state law and will put public safety at risk.

The city attorney said in a Friday memo to City Council members that adopting the resolution wouldn't be a final action, but would commit the city to change.

Elliott introduced the resolution last week, less than a month after then-Brooklyn Center Officer Kim Potter, who is white, fatally shot Wright, a 20-year-old Black motorist, setting off protests in the city. The citys police chief, who has since stepped down, said at the time he believed Potter meant to use her Taser on Wright during the April 11 stop instead of her handgun. Shes charged with second-degree manslaughter and has also resigned.

Some City Council members in Minneapolis failed last year to overhaul that city's police department in the wake of George Floyd's death, and are mounting another effort this year. The move in Brooklyn Center, an inner-ring suburb of just 30,000 people, echoes some of the ideas in the Minneapolis plan.

On Twitter last week, Elliott called the plan a common sense approach to public safety that would make police not the only option when our community is in need.

Wright's death came after he was pulled over for what police said was expired tags  the kind of traffic stop that many community members say often unfairly targets people of color. It escalated when, according to police, they realized Wright was wanted on a gross misdemeanor warrant.

The Brooklyn Center resolution would put enforcement of non-moving traffic violations  such as Wright's expired tags  in the hands of unarmed civilians.

It would also create a department of unarmed workers trained to respond to medical and mental health calls, addressing another frequent criticism that 911 calls can end in the death of someone in crisis when confronted by armed officers.

And it would create a new Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention to oversee efforts on community health and public safety, led by a director with public health expertise.

The resolution would also require more de-escalation efforts by police before using deadly force; ban deadly force in some situations, such as firing on moving cars; and bar arrests or searches of people during non-moving traffic violations, non-felony offenses or warrants.

The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association, the Law Enforcement Labor Services, the Minnesota Sheriffs Association and the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association wrote to the City Council urging them to reject the resolution, saying parts of it conflict with several state statutes. And they said it would be dangerous to have civilians take over certain policing situations, both for the public and the civilian workers, and would likely lead to criminals fleeing.

The resolution is named for Wright and Kobe Dimock-Heisler, a 21-year-old man with autism and mental illness who was fatally shot by officers in June. Officers in that incident were not charged.

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Find APs full coverage of the death of Daunte Wright at: https://apnews.com/hub/death-of-daunte-wright

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This story was first published on May 15, 2021. It was updated on May 17, 2021, to correct that the warrant for Wright was for a gross misdemeanor, not a felony.
Ballard County 'Cops and Bobbers' Today

By West Kentucky Star Staff

KEVIL - The Ballard County Sheriff's Department is hosting their 2nd annual "Cops and Bobbers" fishing event on Saturday.Sheriff Ronnie Giles invites children 5-15 years old to participate. Everyone will gather at 8225 Conway Road in Kevil, and the event is from 8 am until 1 pm. Children must be accompanied by an adult.Hamburgers and hot dogs will be provided for lunch, and prizes and trophies will be presented in various categories.Contact the sheriff's department for more information.
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  New Mexico has adopted guidance on face masks from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that says fully vaccinated Americans no longer need to wear masks indoors or outside in most cases, under a revised public health order issued Friday.

The state Department of Health announced that masks are no longer required of fully vaccinated people in many public settings, though businesses and workplaces may still make face coverings a requirement for all regardless.

Individuals, including those who are fully vaccinated, should continue to wear well-fitted masks where required by localities, tribal entities, and individual businesses, the agency said.

Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller said it's important to keep a mask on hand, but he also sounded a celebratory note. I cant tell you how much Im looking forward to seeing the smiles of friends and neighbors across our city again, he said in a statement.

New Mexico is among more than a dozen states to quickly embrace new federal guidelines on masks. Schools will continue to require staff, teachers and students to wear masks at all times except when eating or drinking, the Public Education Department announced separately.

The mask requirement is unchanged for school settings for now due to the potential spread of COVID-19 among unvaccinated students, the agency said in a statement.

The state has been gradually relaxing aggressive restrictions on gatherings in public, workplaces and recreational facilities based on each county's coronavirus infection statistics.

A broad economic reopening has been linked to a 60% statewide vaccination rate among eligible residents ages 16 and over, a goal state health officials hope to reach before the end of June. As of Thursday, 51% of eligible residents have been fully vaccinated, not including youths under 16.

Getting vaccinated is the ticket to a safe and healthy COVID-free future, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said in a statement. We are close and getting closer. But that all depends on New Mexicans continuing to protect themselves and their community by getting vaccinated."

Masks are still required regardless of vaccination status in health care settings and at correctional facilities, homeless shelters and on public transportation.

The state's revised public health order still says that all New Mexicans should be staying at their homes for all but the most essential activities and services.

Health officials say fully vaccinated status comes two weeks after the final shot of a single- or double-dose vaccine.
Despite the scheduled May 19 reopening of bars and restaurants, the State Capitol in Hartford will remain closed for at least the remainder of the legislative session, which ends at midnight on June 9.

Majority Democratic leaders of the House and Senate said Friday that there is no screening process for the public, and no public health assurances for lawmakers, who have been running committee meetings online and legislative sessions mostly masked, with social distancing and many lawmakers voting from their offices in th Capitol complex.

But Republicans think its time to ease restrictions, in the last three weeks of the budget-setting session.

There are 1,000 people at Walmart, so I cant see why we cant have people in the Capitol, House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, said Friday. Obviously, I think as everything else is opening-up, we need to open-up too, in a policy way. As we see the vaccines working, we need to show that we believe in science.

Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney, D-New Haven, and Speaker of the House Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, believe that lawmakers shouldnt tamper with the system that has gotten the 2021 General Assembly to the last few weeks without infections.

CDC guidance changed for the fully vaccinated and there is no realistic mechanism to ensure that only vaccinated people enter the Capitol complex, said Todd Murphy, communications director for Ritter, on Friday. It is critical we get through the legislative session and pass a state budget. That means taking extra care through June 9.

Looney agrees, stressing that the bipartisan pre-session plan must stay in place, because there is a lot at-stake.

We have to stay there, Looney said in a Friday afternoon phone interview. We have to be aware that if we have a situation where somebody tests positive, wed have to shut down and quarantine, which could derail the remainder of the session. We have to be careful. Every day between now and June 9 is precious.

Hundreds of bills await action in the House and Senate.

On Thursday, in announcing the CDCs loosening up of mask restrictions, Gov. Ned Lamont said that since the General Assembly is in charge of the 14-acre Capitol complex, including the Legislative Office Building, its up to its leaders to decide on reopening protocols.

Lamont said that on June 1, state agencies that have direct contact with the public, including the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Department of Labor and the Department of Social Services, will reopen fully. On July 1, about 50 percent of the rest of the state labor force will return to offices, while agency heads try to reconfigure work spaces.

Looney said he and Ritter will soon discuss the return of legislative employees who have also mostly been working remotely for the last 14 months. There wont be any change during the month of June, Looney said.

Senate Minority Leader Kevin Kelly, R-Stratford, said that keeping the Capitol closed is doing the taxpayers a disservice.

Its not consistent to have the governor opening up Connecticut, saying were one of the most-vaccinated states in the country, Kelly said in a phone interview Friday night. Were doing well handling the pandemic, yet when you walk under that Capitol dome, its like May 2020. The peoples voice needs to be at the table.

kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter: @KenDixonCT
Coronavirus developments across New England:

CONNECTICUT

Yale University is requiring its faculty and staff to get coronavirus vaccinations before the fall term, extending a requirement already imposed for students.

The private university announced the new requirement Friday. It said faculty members, staffers and academic trainees must be fully inoculated by Aug. 1, though there are provisions for exemptions for reasons based on medical conditions or religious or strongly held personal beliefs.

Many Yale staffers are in unions. The university said it was discussing the implementation of the policy with them.

As a leading global research university, we have a responsibility to demonstrate to others the importance of taking actions based on evidence, and theres plenty of it showing the vaccines are safe and effective at preventing the viruss spread, Yale President Peter Salovey and Provost Scott Strobel wrote in a letter to the Yale community.

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MAINE

A state senator in Maine wants to create a grant program to help theaters in the state stay in operation after struggling through the coronavirus pandemic.

Sen. Mattie Daughtry of Brunswick has introduced a bill that would provide the grants to performing and cinematic arts venues.

The program would be part of the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development and it would provide money to the venues to bridge the gap between now and when they can operate in a normal fashion. The grants would help businesses in the arts that have suffered due to closure from the COVID-19 crisis and help keep businesses afloat, Daughtry said in a statement.

Daughtry said the proposal would help make sure venues for theater, film and music can stay viable in Maine. The proposal has been subject to a public hearing and would face more consideration in legislative committee.

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MASSACHUSETTS Six Flags New England has reopened, with safety precautions in place because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The state on Monday allowed amusement parks, outdoor water parks and theme parks to reopen at half capacity. Six Flags, in Agawam, opened Friday night.

Rides are now open! See you at the park! Six Flags said Saturday on Facebook.

Reservations are required, and visitors must wear masks, have their temperatures checked and attest to having been healthy for the prior two weeks.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE

Fans of the New Hampshire Fisher Cats no longer have to wear masks at the Manchester stadium if they have been vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Fisher Cats President Mike Ramshaw says fans who are not fully vaccinated will be asked to wear masks, and some sections at Delta Dental Stadium will be reserved for socially-distanced seating.

Seating is currently at half-capacity, but officials plan to expand to full capacity next month.

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VERMONT

The state of Vermont has moved to phase three of its reopening plan two weeks earlier than had been planned.

The state moved to phase three Friday rather than June 1 because it has already exceeded the goal of having of having more than 60% of the population with at least one dose of a vaccine against COVID-19.

The new guidance removes the testing requirement for travel and decreases event and gathering restrictions.

The new gathering sizes will allow for one unvaccinated person per 50-square feet, up to 300 people, plus any number of vaccinated people for indoor events; and 900 people, plus any number of vaccinated people, outdoors.

On Friday the state also lifted its mask mandate in line with guidance issued by federal officials.

Masks are still required in schools, on public transportation, in healthcare settings, long term care facilities and prisons. The mandate remains in place for those who are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, including children who are not yet eligible for a vaccine.

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Follow APs coverage of the pandemic at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
Rep. Richard Heath's Legislative Update

By Representative Richard Heath

MAYFIELD -Last week, I joined fellow members of the House Majority Caucus in supporting Sunrise Childrens Services in a contract disagreement with Governor Beshear. Specifically, we asked the administration to continue the longstanding practice of offering an accommodation that would allow Sunrise to continue providing quality care to children in state care while preserving the organizations religious rights.Without this accommodation, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services is in danger of losing an incredible partner in providing care for neglected and abused children. The administrations stance not only violates the fundamental right of religious liberty, but also the Executive Branch Budget (HB 192) that we approved this past session. HB 192 was amended in free conference committee to include the following provision: Children's Services Contractors: Notwithstanding KRS Chapter 45A, no contracts awarded for the use and benefit of the Department for Community Based Services shall interfere with the contractors freedom of religion as set forth in KRS 446.350. Any such contracts shall contain a provision allowing a contractor to allow a substitute contractor who is also licensed or approved by the Cabinet to deliver the contracted services if the contractor cannot perform a contracted service because of religiously held beliefs as outlined in KRS 446.350.The budget clearly ensures that the state cannot discriminate against a provider because of that organizations religious convictions.The administrations issue with Sunrise has nothing to do with quality of care. In fact, Sunrise holds the Gold Seal of Approval from its accreditation agency and is the largest private residential childcare provider in Kentucky. Frankly, Sunrise cared for our most vulnerable and neglected children before the government did, and they have continued to do so for generations.Sunrise dates back to 1859 and played a significant part in caring for those orphaned by the Civil War less than a decade later. The organization began contracting with the state in the 1970s. To end this relationship risks the well-being of thousands of children and adults who would directly benefit from quality care, particularly since the state has no obvious plan for the placement of the 600 children currently under the care of Sunrise.However, the administration clearly has another agenda. The Governor takes issue with the deeply held religious beliefs of the Kentucky Baptist Convention, which Sunrise is affiliated with, and how they apply to the organizations hiring practices and approach to foster parent applicants. This runs contrary to not only the language we included in the budget, but the basic tenets and constitutional right to religious liberty.The First Amendment protects religious observers against unequal treatment and there are many in the legal community who can tell you that the Supreme Court of the United States has repeatedly affirmed this. For example, last year the court ruled in a Montana case that students from Christian schools could not be excluded from a publicly funded scholarship program.Sunrise is a proven partner in our states efforts to improve the quality of life for Kentucky children. It is time for the Governor to stop playing politics with the lives of these children and recognize the rule of law.Thanks for taking the time to read this weeks update. If you have any questions or comments, I can be reached through the toll-free message line in Frankfort at 1-800-372-7181 or by email at Richard.Heath@lrc.ky.gov. If you would like more information about any of these bills or legislative actions, you can also visit the Legislative Research Commission website at legislature.ky.gov.
Since Gov. Ned Lamont announced Thursday that people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can stop wearing masks indoors next week, David Lewis has been slammed with phone calls.

Lewis is CEO of Norwalk-based Operations Inc., which he describes as one of the largest human consultant practices in the country. Lewis said hes been fielding calls from employers, asking what the changes mean, and wondering how they should proceed.

The initial reaction were seeing is a mix of euphoria by some, confusion by others and fear, he said. The euphoria side is, Finally, we dont have to wear masks anymore. The confusion piece is that (the new guidelines clear) a major hurdle, but its one of those things that you get an answer to a major question and you realize you have nine more questions as a result.

Lamonts announcement came on the heels of new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which announced Thursday that fully vaccinated people can resume activities without wearing a mask or physically distancing, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance.

What that means for children under 12, who are too young to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, remained uncertain on Friday. A spokesperson for the state Department of Public Health said the agency is working to incorporate the CDCs guidance into Connecticuts existing rules.

We anticipate that guidance and orders will be generally consistent with what the CDC released (Thursday), with a few local modifications that will be announced shortly, DPH spokesperson Maura Fitzgerald said.

In an email, Fitzgerald noted that while the CDC recommends vaccinated people do not need to wear a mask in most indoor settings, everyone should continue to wear masks in health care settings, (including the dentists office), public transportation and transportation hubs, and some other congregate settings. People who have not yet been vaccinated should continue to wear a mask, she added.

The shift comes as Connecticuts COVID numbers appear to be improving each day. On Friday, the state announced there were 365 new cases out of 32,583 people tested for a daily positivity rate of 1.12 percent.

There were 198 patients hospitalized with COVID  24 fewer than the previous day. There were five more COVID-related deaths recorded Friday, increasing the states official death toll to 8,173.

Though many see the change in mask regulations as a positive step, there are still plenty of questions. Lewis said one of the biggest unknowns is how to determine if someone is vaccinated.

As an employer, in particular, what am I supposed to now do? Lewis said. Do I just go ahead and assume employees are acting in good faith? Or do I go the route that colleges have and say, You cant come back into the office unless youre vaccinated and can prove it.

Lewis isnt alone in trying to process a potentially huge change in COVID-19 protocols. Other business leaders, as well as medical experts, said it will take time to identify the best way to proceed.

I think its going to be a process, said Dr. Zane Saul, chief of infectious disease at Bridgeport Hospital. Were going to have to inch our way through based on comfort level.

Like Lewis, he said, the big question is the unknown  how do you know who is vaccinated and who isnt?

Businesses have been told they can establish their own protocols when the mask restrictions are lifted on Wednesday. Lewis said hes advising employers not to rush into major changes, and at least one major area retailer is following that advice.

Stew Leonards  with stores in Norwalk, Danbury and Newington, as well as in New York and New Jersey  announced Friday it will still require shoppers to wear masks when the restriction is lifted.

Stew Leonards was among the first leaders to ask our customers and team members to wear masks last year, but now we are going to be laggers, Stew Leonard Jr., the chains president and CEO, said in a statement. We are going to monitor our customers to see what they say. If you want to share your opinion on this topic, we have a poll posted on our Twitter page. My family and I would love to hear from you.

Other chains taking a wait-and-see approach to their mask policy include CVS. In a statement issued by CVS Health, the company said it is reevaluating its position on masks given the CDCs new guidance.

Until that evaluation is complete, the existing company policies on face coverings and maintaining social distance in stores and clinics remain in effect, the company statement said. The safety of our employees, customers and vendors will continue to guide our decision-making process.

Stop & Shop also confirmed there are no changes to the companys mask mandate at this time.

However, Walmart announced Friday that shoppers and employees who have been fully vaccinated will not have to wear a mask. The retail giant is also offering its U.S. associates an extra $75 in their paycheck if they get vaccinated.

Scott Dolch, executive director of the Connecticut Restaurant Association, said hes been fielding questions and opinions from his members. Some members, he said, want to keep their masking requirements, as young children are not yet able to be vaccinated.

Others think relaxing mask requirements could motivate back-of-the-house workers, such as line cooks, to get vaccinated so they dont have to wear masks while working in the kitchen, which can be hot and uncomfortable.

First and foremost, its great news that the CDC feels fully vaccinated people dont need a mask inside or outside, Dolch said. But then youve got to take a step back and say, OK, what does that mean for our state?

Dr. Daniel Gottschall, vice president of medical affairs for the Fairfield region of Hartford HealthCare and St. Vincents Medical Center in Bridgeport, said he realizes some people could be apprehensive about mask requirements being lifted and are not ready to go without a face covering.

I think thats their right, he said.

Saul agreed.

I think everybody has to do what theyre comfortable with, he said. I think people are still going to be urged to be cautious.
The Rev. Walter Williams has been serving the Lord since he graduated from seminary in 1966. He currently resides in McAlisterville. To comment on his column, send a letter to Standard Journal, 21 N. Arch St., Milton, Pa. 17847 or e-mail newsroom@standard-journal.com.


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Trigg County Man Killed When Backhoe Overturns

By West Kentucky Star Staff

TRIGG COUNTY - A Trigg County man was killed when the backhoe he was operating overturned Friday afternoon.Officials identified the man as 58-year-old William Wadlington. Emergency personnel said they were called to Crisp Road where they found Wadlington trapped underneath the backhoe.WKDZ reported that Wadlington was pronounced dead at the scene by the Trigg County Coroners office.On the Net:
GENEVA [emdash] A Memorial Service for Janet "Betty" Elizabeth Woodworth, 92, of Geneva, who died July 11, 2020, will be 2:30 pm Friday June 18, 2021 at Madison Seventh Day Adventist Church, 725 East Main St. in Madison followed by a reception. Final resting place will be at Alexander Harper
Flags Half-Staff Today For Pearl Harbor Veteran

By West Kentucky Star Staff

FRANKFORT - Governor Andy Beshear has directed that flags at all state office buildings be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Saturday in honor of a Kentucky sailor who was killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor.Navy Fireman 2nd Class Martin D. Young of Hawesville, Kentucky, died in the attack on December 7, 1941. Young will be interred in Lewisport on Saturday.All businesses, organizations, government agencies, and individuals are encouraged to join in this tribute of lowering the flag to honor Fireman Young.You can learn more by clicking link here.
Norwegian shipping company Wilhelmsen Group is working on the latter project with partners to build a "roll-on/roll-off" ship that will be able to transport liquid hydrogen by way of containers or trailers that are driven onboard, said Per Brinchmann, the company's vice president of special projects.

The ship is expected to be operational in the first half of 2024, he added.

"We believe once we have this demonstration vessel operational the intention will be to build up bunkering hubs on the west coast (of Norway)," Brinchmann said, referring to the filling stations.

Other companies are exploring a different route to avoid the cold conundrum and what may happen when hydrogen atoms interact with metal.

Canada's Ballard Power Systems and Australia's Global Energy Ventures, for example, are working together to develop a ship to transport compressed hydrogen in gas form.

"The earliest timeframe would be 2025/26," said Nicolas Pocard, vice president marketing and strategic partnerships with Ballard.

The advantage of this gas approach is that it does not require any extreme temperatures. But the downside is that less hydrogen can be transported in a cargo than liquid hydrogen, which is why some of the early movers are opting for the latter.
ST. CHARLES COUNTY  St. Charles County prosecutors this week charged an O'Fallon, Missouri, man in three separate cases with stealing a Jeep, trucks, lawn mowers and landscaping equipment over the course of about three weeks in St. Charles County.

Brandon K. Gee, 32, faces two counts of stealing items worth $25,000 or more, three counts of stealing items worth $750 or more and one count of motor vehicle theft in a county that recently announced a plan to crack down on auto thefts following a surge in such cases.

Police believe the first theft came April 23 when the St. Charles County Police Department responded to the St. Andrews Mini Mart for a report of two stolen U-Haul trucks.

Video surveillance footage showed a "white male with the same characteristics as Brandon Gee" walking into the mini mart and grabbing two sets of keys off the wall and walking out, according to court documents.

On May 2, police say Gee went to Four Seasons Landscaping on Laura Hill Road in St. Peters and stole a Ford F-450 full of lawn and landscaping tools.
Scott said the systems numbers could also be affected by a more engaged security presence and said overall crime is not out of the ordinary.

The perception is Metro Transit is dangerous, and that is not the case, Scott said. Do we have incidents on the system? Absolutely. But if you take a look at the rate of incidents that we have, its not out of norm to other agencies across the country.

Still, not everyone is convinced the change in approach has led to more visible security on the trains.

I laughed when they said they added more security, said Ronald Meyer, who rides every day to his own security job downtown from the Belleville area.

Heading home from work Tuesday, security guards came through to check fares at the East Riverfront station as the train crossed into Illinois.

First time in probably a month, Meyer said after displaying his pass.

Reynolds said security staffing is data-driven and will respond to different parts of the system based on recent trends. Asked about the Illinois commuters comments, Roach said there has been a recent increase in security presence on the red line in St. Louis County and there will be shifts based on crime trends.
ALPHARETTA, Ga. (AP)  In a once reliably Republican Georgia congressional district that has turned into a swing district held by a Democrat, a GOP congressional convention on Saturday showed activists consumed by the unproven belief that Donald Trump had been cheated out of the 2020 presidential election.

We cant move on, said delegate Rich Kaye, who mounted an unsuccessful challenge for district chair in the 6th Congressional District of suburban Atlanta. Weve got to find out what happened, why it happened and what we are going to do to stop it.

It's unclear if that focus will spark a Republican comeback in a seat that was once the heartland of the state party, a swath of affluent suburbs once represented by Newt Gingrich. Democrats battered down the gate of the GOP bastion when Trump was in office, with Democrat Lucy McBath narrowly winning election in 2018 and then cruising to re-election in 2020.
Asked on CNN whether House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California would have let Congress formally certify Joe Biden's presidential election had he been speaker, she said that was a legitimate concern." McCarthy helped engineer Cheney's ouster.

She told CNN she would have voted for Roy, not Stefanik, to replace her because the party needs conservative leaders who are committed to the Constitution. And she said in an interview to be broadcast Sunday on ABC News This Week that she regretted voting for Trump in last year's election.

Cheney was among 10 House Republicans who voted in January for Trumps second impeachment for inciting his supporters Capitol attack.

Stefanik has told colleagues shell serve in leadership only through next year, then try taking the top GOP spot on the influential House Education and Labor Committee. Her plans were described last week by a Republican lawmaker and an aide who discussed them only on condition of anonymity.

Besides support from Trump, Stefanik was backed by McCarthy and two of the chamber's most influential conservatives: No. 2 leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana and Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio.
Dartmouth freshman Anais Zhang, 18, never gave Asian American studies much thought until she was assigned to write about it for the school newspaper after the Atlanta-area massage business shootings. In her research, Zhang learned of all the attempts to start a program that ultimately went nowhere. It left her frustrated.

I talked to a lot of my friends about the article and my shock at how we really dont have an institutionalized program and just my reaction learning about how previous students had put so much effort in petitioning the college and hiring professors ... only to have this support trickle away and have all this progress undone in the subsequent years," Zhang said.

A lot of times fledgling ethnic studies programs decline because junior professors who aren't full time or permanent have to carry them, according to Dhingra.

It's just creating extra labor for faculty that burns people out and it isnt able to grow because it wasnt created with enough infrastructure in the first place, Dhingra said.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)  The family of Andre Hill, a Black man who was fatally shot by a white Ohio police officer in December, will receive a $10 million settlement from the city of Columbus.

Hill, 47, was fatally shot by officer Adam Coy on Dec. 22 as Hill emerged from a garage holding up a cellphone. Coy was fired and has pleaded not guilty to murder and reckless homicide charges.

Some settlements in police killings are kept private. Often a settlement includes money but specifies there was no admission of guilt. Some such lawsuits end up in court where a jury can award massive settlements that are reduced on appeal.

Here is a look at other high-profile cases of police killings of Black and brown people and the settlements:

In March, the city of Minneapolis agreed to pay $27 million in what the attorney for George Floyds family said was the largest pretrial civil rights settlement ever.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration's focus is on de-escalation and working with allies in the region on that goal.

Efforts at international diplomacy so far appear to have stalled. A UN Security Council meeting on the violence will take place Sunday morning; the US blocked previous Security Council efforts to meet, preferring direct diplomacy on the conflict rather than discussion in an international forum.

'We lost everything'

A CNN producer inside Gaza reported heavy incoming artillery fire from Israeli ground forces near the border as well as dozens of airstrikes.

CNN also spoke by phone Friday with Tariq Al Hillo, 27, from Beit Lahia in Gaza, who described a "terrifying" scene overnight as the buildings around his own block -- which is home to six families -- were destroyed.

"I can't even describe it, I don't know where to start and I'm losing my sanity," he told CNN. "All the buildings around us were totally destroyed yesterday, we saw shreds everywhere. I can still see them until now, I can still hear women screaming and men crying loudly."
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP)  Two years after a white supremacist in New Zealand livestreamed the slaughter of 51 Muslim worshippers on Facebook, French President Emmanuel Macron says the internet continues to be be used by terrorists as a weapon to propagate hate.

Macron and other leaders from tech giants and governments around the world  including the U.S. for the first time  gathered virtually on Saturday to find better ways to stop extremist violence from spreading online, while also respecting freedom of expression.

It was part of a global effort started by Macron and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern after deadly attacks in their countries were streamed or shared on social networks.

The U.S. government and four other countries joined the effort, known as the Christchurch Call, for the first time this year. It involves some 50 nations plus tech companies including Google, Facebook, Twitter and Amazon, and is named for the New Zealand city where the slaughter at the two mosques took place.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a prerecorded video that authorities in his country alone had taken down more than 300,000 pieces of terrorist material from the internet over the past decade, which he described as a tsunami of hate.
Today, we are a little less broken.

On Thursday, the Missouri Legislature passed Senate Bill 53, a bipartisan law with a provision to let prosecutors obtain a hearing in front of a judge when they discover that they have convicted an innocent person.

This sounds like the biggest no-brainer in the criminal justice process. Innocent people should not sit in prison. Period. And yet, until now, a prosecutor had no way to present evidence of innocence to a court.

If witnesses admitted that their testimony was false, there was nothing the prosecutor could do. If DNA evidence exonerated a defendant, there was nothing the prosecutor could do. If a confession was coerced, if evidence was hidden from the defense, if the conviction was based on now-discredited science: nothing, nothing, nothing.

This made Missouri an embarrassing outlier. Such statutes have been passed around the country or have been permitted under existing legal authority in deep red Texas and Utah, in deep blue Maryland, and in purple Michigan and Virginia.
River Traffic Resumes Under Cracked I-40 Bridge

By The Associated Press

MEMPHIS - River traffic has reopened on the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee, three days after it was closed when a crack was discovered in the Interstate 40 bridge that connects Tennessee and Arkansas, the U.S. Coast Guard said Friday.The Arkansas Department of Transportation, meanwhile, said a video taken by an inspector two years ago found significant rust and the beginning of a crack" in the same area as the fracture that prompted the bridge's shutdown this week.More than 60 towboats hauling more than 1,000 barges were in line Friday to cross under the Hernando De Soto Bridge, the Coast Guard said.Economic development officials had been concerned that an extended closure of river traffic could hurt the region's economy and have ripple effects on the nations supply chain.The bridge itself will remain closed to vehicles indefinitely, with road traffic rerouted to Interstate 55 and the 71-year-old Memphis & Arkansas Bridge, about 3 miles south.River traffic under the six-lane bridge was shut down Tuesday after inspectors found a significant fracture in one of two 900-foot horizontal steel beams that are crucial for the bridges integrity, said Lorie Tudor, director of the Arkansas Department of Transportation.Engineers wanted to ensure the bridge could stand on its own before reopening river traffic.Based on information provided to us by the Tennessee Department of Transportation, the Coast Guard has determined that transit under the I-40 bridge is safe for maritime traffic, Coast Guard Capt. Ryan Rhodes, captain of the Port of Memphis, said in a statement.The Arkansas Department of Transportation on Friday said an image captured by an inspector's drone video in May 2019 showed evidence of damage on the lower side of the bridge, the same area as the crack that was discovered this week.DOT spokesman Dave Parker said the damage was found by a consulting firm that was inspecting the bridge's cables that year.ARDOT is now investigating to see if that damage was noted in a September 2019 inspection report and, if so, what actions were taken," the agency said in a statement.The bridge remained closed as negotiations intensified between the White House and a group of Republican senators over a potential infrastructure package. Democrats have said the shutdown highlights the urgent need for more infrastructure funding.Republicans have called for a infrastructure plan with a smaller price tag than President Joe Biden's and with a narrower definition of public works.The Arkansas Trucking Association on Friday estimated the closure would cost the trucking industry at least $2.4 million a day because of the longer routes to cross the river. The group used data provided by the American Transportation Research Institute.Arkansas Trucking Association President Shannon Newton said the trip on the I-40 bridge between the two states averaged eight minutes. Since the I-40 bridge closure, trips on the I-55 bridge being used as the closest alternate route have averaged 84 minutes.Even if youre looking at 6-8 weeks, that's an incredible expenditure that the industry cant simply absorb," Newton said.Tennessee's transportation department said there's no indication the bridge is continuing to deteriorate and said designers were working on an interim repair plan that would rely on steel rods that would be attached to the bridge and span over the fractured section. Designers were also looking at the possibility of installing a steel plate to beef up the fractured section.The interim plan would allow time for a new bridge component to be fabricated to replace the damaged section, the agency said.In an inspection for the 2020 National Bridge Inventory report, the Federal Highway Administration said the I-40 bridge checked out in fair condition overall, with all primary structure elements sound and only some minor cracks and chips in the overall structure. Its structural evaluation checked out somewhat better than minimum adequacy to tolerate being left in place as is.However, height and width clearances for oversize vehicles were basically intolerable requiring high priority of corrective action, the inspectors found. Tennessee recommended bridge deck replacement with only incidental widening.Arkansas transportation officials said the crack did not appear in the last inspection of the bridge, which occurred in September 2020. The bridge opened in 1973 and carries an average of about 50,000 vehicles a day, with about a quarter being trucks, Tennessee transportation officials said.Towboats pushing barges could be seen passing under the bridge shortly after the Coast Guard's announcement Friday. Some onlookers came to a riverside park to get a glimpse of the vessels.
Missouri voters patience finally reached its limit last year. They passed a referendum ordering the state to expand Medicaid. But, incredibly, the Legislature this session refused to allocate the states portion of the funding for it, effectively turning down the far greater federal portion and thumbing a nose at the voters by unlawfully ignoring the referendum. Parson  a Republican who, like his party, has long opposed expanding Medicaid  nonetheless began setting up the expansion process in what appeared to be a principled bow to the voters and a challenge to legislative Republicans, earning him editorial kudos from us on Wednesday. Boy, were we wrong.

Parsons principled stand lasted all of one day. On Thursday , Parson fell back in line with the petulant cruelty of his party and announced he was scuttling the Medicaid expansion plans because the funding wasnt approved. Kudos revoked. The suffering people of Parsons state will see him in court.

Its not the first time Parson seems to have been briefly gripped by an impulse to do the right thing, only to be reminded by his party that hes not allowed to. In 2019, he met several times with St. Louis leaders regarding gun violence and appeared open to giving the city some flexibility to impose reasonable restrictions here. City leaders have long asked the state to grant an exception to the obtuse state law that allows concealed weapons virtually anywhere in public with no permit required and no way for police to ascertain if the carriers are felons barred from possessing firearms. Yet this legislative session, as usual, the self-described law-and-order crowd in the General Assembly sided with the criminals and did exactly nothing to help law enforcers stop the bloodshed.
As we walked, Campbell schools me on the characteristics of karst topography, not just rock bridges and sinkholes, but underground streams and caves, two on this trail. Devils Icebox Cave is closed to protect endangered gray bats roosting inside, but the 166-foot-long Connors Cave can be explored. Helmets, waterproof shoes and flashlights come highly recommended. The rare Pink Planarian Troglodyte lives in these dark recesses, said Campbell. The odd, inch-long creatures have both male and female sex organs and eat amphipods and isopods  tiny crustaceans  by squeezing them, boa constrictor-style. Something to chew on during my picnic lunch.

Ha Ha Tonka State Park

1491 State Road D, Camdenton, Missouri; 573-346-2986; mostateparks.com/park/ha-ha-tonka-state-park

More karst geology awaited me farther south in the Ozarks at Ha Ha Tonka, an Osage Indian phrase roughly translated as laughing waters for the gushing spring there. While such natural features certainly appeal, a manmade one sets this state park apart: the ruins of a castle.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HydroGraph Clean Power Inc. ("HydroGraph" or the "Company"), is pleased to announce that it has closed a private placement for gross proceeds of $6,505,000 led by PowerOne Capital Markets Limited and Haywood Securities Inc. (the Financing). HydroGraph is in the process of pursuing a direct listing on the Canadian Securities Exchange.



HydroGraph is actively commercializing their proprietary and patented detonation process to manufacture the highest quality graphene, hydrogen and other strategic materials at the most competitive price points with the lowest environmental footprint within the hydrogen and graphene industries. HydroGraph is the owner of the worldwide exclusive license from Kansas State University (KSU) to produce valuable clean energy and nanotechnology products through their patented detonation process. This innovative production method produces the most consistent, high quality and cost-effective hydrogen and graphene available.

The proceeds of the Financing will enable HydroGraph to commercialize its patented hydrogen and graphene manufacturing technology and market the end products. The Company is building a new commercial manufacturing facility which will be able to mass-produce HydroGraphs competitive, high quality, green products.

Hydrogen and graphene are expected to be two of the key materials in the global shift towards clean energy. Hydrogen could meet up to 24% of global energy need by 2050, representing an annual market size of $700 billion (Bloomberg). Graphene demand is growing rapidly at a 38% CAGR as its applications are expanded, expected to be a $2.8 billion market by 2027 (Fortune Business Insights).

"We are thrilled with today's announcement as it advances our initiative to disrupt the hydrogen and graphene industries by giving the world a brand new, energy efficient, highly controllable process for creating valuable products, stated Harold Davidson, Chief Executive Officer of HydroGraph. We are grateful for the hard work and support of the many exceptional scientists and engineers at KSU, who have collectively scaled this innovative technology to a daily production of 2kg of high-grade graphene per canister per day using automated manufacturing processes, and the continued support of our strategic shareholders. The capital raised will allow us to further scale production towards commercialization. Our R&D efforts will continue at KSU, focused on synthesizing other valuable nanotechnology products, and further automation of our current production technologies."

The Companys new commercial manufacturing facility will be located in Manhattan, KS in close proximity to the Companys R&D facility at the KSU campus. HydroGraph is also in the process of establishing a Canadian R&D operation in London, ON. Canadian R&D operations will focus on using graphene for new battery technologies and supercapacitors, due to the exemplary electrical conductivity of graphene.

Financing Terms

The Financing consisted of a private placement of 26,020,000 subscription receipts (the Subscription Receipts) at a price of $0.25 per Subscription Receipt. Each Subscription Receipt will automatically convert into one subordinate voting common share and one share purchase warrant of the Company. Each warrant will be exercisable for a period of 2 years from the date of conversion to purchase an additional subordinate voting common share at a price of $0.75 per share. The Subscription Receipts will automatically convert upon the Company receiving a final receipt for a prospectus qualifying the issuance of the shares and warrants on conversion and the Company obtaining conditional listing approval on the Canadian Securities Exchange. The proceeds of the Subscription Receipts offering will be held in escrow pending these conversion conditions being met.

About HydroGraph Clean Power Inc.

HydroGraph Clean Power is a private company that was formed in 2017 to fund and commercialize green, cost-effective processes to manufacture graphene, hydrogen and other strategic materials in bulk, and to create customized graphene solutions for specific applications. HydroGraph owns an exclusive worldwide license to commercialize their patented detonation process to produce graphene and hydrogen. The Company has invested heavily into digitizing, automating and commercializing this production technology. Hydrograph is currently pursuing a direct listing on the Canadian Securities Exchange. For more information on HydroGraph and the Companys unique technology please visit https://www.hydrograph.com/.

About PowerOne Capital Markets

PowerOne is a fully integrated merchant bank and a long-term investor focused on providing early stage capital and advisory services to emerging growth companies. Since inception in 2003, PowerOne has assisted private and public companies across an array of sectors globally. Through a strong reputation in the investment community, broad network within the global markets, a unique "Partnership Approach" to assisting clients and a dedicated group of experienced professionals, PowerOne has been able to offer its clients exceptional advantages. PowerOne is an Exempt Market Dealer and is registered in Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Quebec.

About Haywood Securities Inc.

Founded in 1981, Haywood is a 100 per cent employee-owned investment dealer with more than 275 employees in its Canadian offices in Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto. Haywood Securities Inc. is a member of the Toronto Stock Exchange, the TSX Venture Exchange, the Montreal Exchange (MEX), the Canadian National Stock Exchange (CNSX), the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF), and the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC). In addition, Haywood Securities (USA) Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, is a broker-dealer registered to transact securities business in the United States and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). For more information please Visit: www.haywood.com.

For Further info Contact:

Kjirstin Breure, Chief Operating Officer

HydroGraph Clean Power Inc.

Email: kjirstin@hydrograph.com

Phone: (604) 220-3120

The forgoing contains forward looking statements which are based on managements best estimates which are subject to uncertainties in particular there is no assurance that the Company will be able to establish its proposed production facilities without requiring additional debt or equity financing which may be dilutive to shareholders. Establishment of manufacturing facilities requires meeting a myriad of zoning, health and safety regulations all of which is uncertain. Acceptance of the Companys products is subject to acceptance by end users and other manufacturers, which cannot be assured particularly with new and advanced technological products.
TORONTO, May 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IBI Group Inc. ("IBI" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the detailed voting results for the 2021 Annual and Special Meeting (the "Meeting") of Shareholders held on May 14, 2021 in Toronto, ON.

The following seven nominees were elected as Directors of the Corporation to serve until the next annual meeting of shareholders of the Corporation, or until their successors are elected or appointed. The results of the vote are as follows:

Name of Nominee Votes "For" % For Votes "Withheld" % Withheld Scott Stewart 25,400,327 99.89% 29,333 0.11% David Thom 25,415,737 99.95% 13,823 0.05% Michael Nobrega 25,400,177 99.88% 29,383 0.12% John Reid 25,400,127 99.89% 28,483 0.11% Claudia Krywiak 25,401,177 99.89% 28,383 0.11% Paula Sinclair 25,386,627 99.83% 42,933 0.17% Sharon Ranson 25,122,595 98.79% 306,965 1.21%

KPMG LLP, Chartered Accountants, were reappointed as auditors of the Corporation to hold office until the next annual meeting, and the Directors were authorized to fix their remuneration. The results were as follows:

Votes "For" % For Votes "Withheld" % Withheld 25,513,899 99.84% 40,387 0.26%

The Corporation's approach to executive compensation (say on pay), as described in the Corporation's Management Information Circular, was accepted. The results were as follows:

Votes "For" % For Votes "Against" % Against 25,360,332 99.73% 69,228 0.27%

About IBI Group Inc.

IBI Group Inc. (TSX: IBG) is a technology-driven design firm with global architecture, engineering, planning, and technology expertise spanning over 60 offices and 3,100 professionals around the world. For nearly 50 years, its dedicated professionals have helped clients create livable, sustainable, and advanced urban environments. IBI Group believes that cities thrive when designed with intelligent systems, sustainable buildings, efficient infrastructure, and a human touch. Follow IBI Group on Twitter @ibigroup and Instagram @ibi_group.

For additional information, please contact:

Stephen Taylor, CFOIBI Group Inc. 55 St. Clair Avenue WestToronto, ON M5V 2Y7 Tel: 1-416-596-1930www.ibigroup.com

Media:

Julia HarperIBI Group Inc.Tel: 416-596-1930julia.harper@ibigroup.com

Source: IBI Group, Inc.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 13, 2021) - Precipitate Gold Corp. (TSXV: PRG) (OTCQB: PREIF) (the "Company" or "Precipitate") is pleased to announce Barrick Gold Corporation ("Barrick") has reported the completion of its first phase of exploration drilling at the Company's Pueblo Grande Project as part of its earn-in agreement (the "Agreement") whereby Barrick has the right to earn a 70% interest in the Pueblo Grande Project located immediately adjacent to Barrick's Pueblo Viejo gold-silver mine in the Dominican Republic.

Barrick reported the completion of 10 diamond drill holes for 2,514 metres ("m") with depths ranging from 90m to 300m. Six of the 10 drill holes were drilled in the southeast and central east portion of the Lithocap Zone, testing multiple targets previously contemplated by Precipitate prior to the execution of the Agreement. Four holes were drilled in the northeast part of the Lithocap Zone. The Company has been advised that core samples have been shipped for laboratory analysis and results will be reported as they become available to Precipitate.

At the Company's 100% owned Ponton Project, drilling remains on hold as the Company continues to address certain local community concerns related to mineral exploration and mining. Concurrently, the country is in the midst of a broader national dialogue on facilitating the potential growth of the mineral resource sector while ensuring responsible environmental practices and meaningful community engagement. The Company continues to monitor the situation and will advise on the status of future work at such time as more clarity is attained.

The Company wishes to reiterate all necessary government permits and licenses from both the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Energy & Mines have been obtained and all necessary surface access authorizations required from relevant local private surface rights landholders to conduct the drill program have been secured. The federal and provincial levels of government are liaising with the Company to support its efforts in local engagement.

As previously reported, the Company completed two holes of a planned ten-hole drill program at the Ponton Project. The completed holes were drilled at the south end of the lower-priority North Zone geochemical anomaly. Drilling was paused before crews were able to test the more prospective central part of the North Zone and highly prospective South Anomaly where multiple higher grade gold surface outcrop rock samples were identified coincident with a strong magnetic low anomaly. Analytical results from the two completed holes yielded results with highs of 1.53m of 0.72 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold ("Au") (from 4.57m below surface) in CH21-01 and 1.40m of 0.24 g/t Au (from 5.0m below surface). Drilling bisected two separate and parallel intervals of strong 'massive' silica alteration + weak to moderate argillic alteration with a low pyrite concentration (

At such time as drilling at Ponton resumes, the Company plans to adequately test the remaining prospective targets within the two main anomalies.

This news release has been reviewed by Michael Moore, Vice President, Exploration of Precipitate Gold Corporation, the Qualified Person for the technical information in this news release under NI 43-101 standards.

About Precipitate Gold:

Precipitate Gold Corp. is a mineral exploration company focused on exploring and advancing its mineral property interests in the Pueblo Viejo Mining Camp and Tireo Gold Trend of the Dominican Republic. The Company is actively exploring its 100% owned Ponton and Juan de Herrera projects. The Company has entered into an Earn-In Agreement with Barrick Gold Corporation, whereby Barrick can earn a 70% interest in the Company's Pueblo Grande Project by incurring US$10M within six years and producing a qualifying Pre-feasibility Study. Precipitate is also actively evaluating additional high-impact property acquisitions with the potential to expand the Company's portfolio and increase shareholder value, in the Dominican Republic and other favourable jurisdictions.

Additional information can be viewed at the Company's website www.precipitategold.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors of Precipitate Gold Corp.,

"Jeffrey Wilson"

President & CEO

For further information, please contact:

Tel: 604-558-0335

Toll Free: 855-558-0335

investor@precipitategold.com

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.

This press release may contain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward looking information. Generally, forward-looking information may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "proposed", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases, or by the use of words or phrases which state that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, or might occur or be achieved. This forward-looking information reflects Precipitate Gold Corp.'s ("Precipitate" or the "Company") current beliefs and is based on information currently available to Company and on assumptions it believes are reasonable. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Precipitate to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: the exploration concessions may not be granted on terms acceptable to the Company, or at all; general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; the concessions acquired by the Company may not have attributes similar to those of surrounding properties; delay or failure to receive governmental or regulatory approvals; changes in legislation, including environmental legislation affecting mining; timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; conclusions of economic evaluations; and lack of qualified, skilled labour or loss of key individuals. Although Precipitate has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Precipitate 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/83983
WASHINGTON, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Hamilton Pacific Chamberlain (HPC), a service disabled veteran owned small business (SDVOSB) headquartered in Waldorf, MD, has announced the acquisition of multiple million-dollar federal contracts spanning various VA Medical Centers in Maryland and Washington, DC, as well as government buildings in and around the DC Metropolitan area.

In Perry Point, MD, HPC has been contracted to upgrade the fire alarm system for the entire VA Medical Center campus. HPC will also be renovating the Catheterization Lab at the Baltimore VA Medical Center, upgrading the space for enhanced safety and comfort during veteran care.

HPC will be conducting various roofing projects and upgrades at the USDA Agricultural Research Center in Beltsville, MD. The federal project is slated to begin this year and will provide much needed infrastructure support to federal researchers.

Of the recent project acquisitions, Paul Hamilton, HPC's Executive Vice President said, "We're pleased to be working with the federal government to update veteran medical centers and other federal buildings during this very difficult time. These updates will no doubt aid in the safe care of vets."

These acquisitions come as HPC has announced multiple job completions including two renovation projects aimed at upgrading spaces to adapt to COVID-19 safety precautions and to enhance clinic experiences for veterans attending VA Medical Centers. The Dental Clinic entrances in both Perry Point, MD and Baltimore, MD were completed in late April.

In addition to these projects, HPC is working extensively with multiple national cemeteries across the country including cemeteries in California, Wisconsin, and Nebraska. To learn more about HPC's work with the national cemeteries, visit www.hpcvet.com.

Hamilton Pacific Chamberlain is a Federal Government contractor headquartered in Waldorf, Maryland. HPC focuses on renovations, demolition, and new construction of government and military structures. To learn more about Hamilton Pacific Chamberlain and its work with government and military structures, visit www.hpcvet.com.

This press release was issued through 24-7PressRelease.com. For further information, visit http://www.24-7pressrelease.com.

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/federal-contractor-announces-multi-million-dollar-va-projects-301291493.html

SOURCE Hamilton Pacific Chamberlain
BEIJING, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- RYB Education, Inc. ("RYB" or the "Company") (NYSE: RYB), a leading early childhood education service provider in China, today announced it has filed its annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC").

The annual report is available on the Company's investor relations website at http://ir.rybbaby.com/ and on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. The Company will provide a hard copy of the annual report containing the audited consolidated financial statements, free of charge, to its shareholders and ADS holders upon request. Requests should be submitted to ir@rybbaby.com.

About RYB Education, Inc.

Founded on the core values of "Care" and "Responsibility," "Inspire" and "Innovate," RYB Education, Inc. is a leading early childhood education service provider in China. Since opening its first play-and-learn center in 1998, the Company has grown and flourished with the mission to provide high-quality, individualized and age-appropriate care and education to nurture and inspire each child for his or her betterment in life. During its two decades of operating history, the Company has built "RYB" into a well-recognized education brand and helped bring about many new educational practices in China's early childhood education industry. RYB's comprehensive early childhood education solutions meet the needs of children from infancy to 6 years old through structured courses at kindergartens and play-and-learn centers, as well as at-home educational products and services.

For more information, please visit http://ir.rybbaby.com.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:RYB Education, Inc.Investor RelationsE-mail: ir@rybbaby.com

The Piacente Group, Inc.Yang SongTel: +86 (10) 6508-0677E-mail: ryb@tpg-ir.com

In the United States:The Piacente Group, Inc. Brandi PiacenteTel: +1-212-481-2050E-mail: ryb@tpg-ir.com

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ryb-education-inc-files-its-annual-report-on-form-20-f-301291948.html

SOURCE RYB Education, Inc.
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.
A campaign aiming to give teachers the tools and support to identify, confront and dismantle racism has been backed in the Bay of Plenty.

The Unteach Racism initiative has been launched by the Teaching Council this week and has backing from internationally renowned film-maker Taika Waititi.

Developed for teachers and education leaders, the opt-in campaign tries to acknowledge a teachers position to lead change and make a difference for children and young people facing prejudice and bias based on ethnicity.

The programme is being backed by Ripeka Lessels, principal of Te Whata Tau o Putauaki in Kawerau.

The initiative is a long time coming, says Ripeka.

The Unteach Racism concept is not about naming and shaming, but about exploring how insidious racism has become in normal everyday practice and helps the user to identify this and suggests tools that may help dismantle the practice.

Teaching Council chief executive Lesley Hoskin says addressing racism is a journey the entire country is on.

This isnt new ground for teachers, says Lesley.

Many teachers are already doing so much to celebrate diversity and ensure children and young people feel they belong and are valued, crucial factors for success. Unteach Racism builds on, and supports, this work.

The campaign supports teachers to continue to grow in their Code of Professional Responsibility Nga Tikanga Matatika commitments to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, social justice, respecting diversity of learners, affirming Maori learners as tangata whenua, and promoting and protecting principles of human rights.

Ripeka believes it is a timely exercise considering the global climate of discussion surrounding race relations and, more specifically in New Zealand, regarding colonial history.

Some parts of the world have moved on from their colonial ties, but others have only just realised that the impact of racism on a society has produced such inequitable outcomes for the minority.

In Aotearoa's case, tangata whenua, have suffered from this inequity.

Unteach Racism is built on the Human Rights Commissions Give Nothing to Racism campaign and features Thor: Ragnarok director Taika, who is also featured in the nation-wide Give Nothing to Racism campaign.

Taika invites teachers to unteach racism in a video where he tells the story of his own experiences with prejudice at the age of eight.

Young Taika was accused of sniffing glue, stealing lunches with low expectations of his academic ability, particularly in English language, but it was two teachers who convinced him society was wrong.

As teachers you have the real-life ability to make a difference for kids in the face of racism, he says in a video.

You have the power to unteach racism. Will you?

Having such a prominent figure attached to the initiative is a big boost, Ripeka believes, especially given the Raukokore-born stars regional ties.

Taika is the most appropriate person to be fronting this Unteach Racism concept, says Ripeka.

He is not just New Zealand renowned, but world renowned and from the little old Bay of Plenty.

This is his story of how racism impacted his life. His story is one of success despite the racism he faced as a child.

Some might feel confronted by him, but the concept of Unteach Racism may help people explore those feelings further. He is authentically Aotearoa, and unapologetically Maori.

An app and a website with online resources is available to support teachers and education leaders to grow their own knowledge and understanding of racism. It includes advice for teachers to self-reflect and gives advice for having frank, open conversations about racism with colleagues.

For Ripeka, the enterprise is seen as a positive way to impact the next generation of New Zealanders to understand the history of Aotearoa.

Children should know that they can have an authentically New Zealand identity with Maori based on the truth about New Zealand's colonial past, says Ripeka.

This is needed before welcoming any other ethnicity to our shared Aotearoa. Embracing this will help them embrace everyone else.
Two Lotto players will be celebrating after each winning $500,000 with Lotto First Division in last nights live Lotto draw.

The winning tickets were sold at Pak N Save Richmond in Nelson and on MyLotto to a player from Gore.

Powerball was not struck last night and has rolled over to Wednesday night, where the jackpot will be $6 million.

Strike Four has also rolled over last night and will be $600,000 on Wednesday night.

Thirteen Lotto players will be celebrating after each winning $18,637 with Lotto Second Division in Saturday nights live Lotto draw.

One lucky player also won Powerball Second Division, taking their total winnings to $33,457. The winning Powerball Second Division ticket was sold at Countdown Tikipunga in Whangarei.

The winning Second Division tickets were sold at the following stores:

Store Location Countdown Tikipunga (+PB) Whangarei Pak N Save Whangarei Whangarei Tony's Stationery & Lotto Maungaturoto Cascade Superette Auckland New World Westend Rotorua Foxton Beach Four Square Foxton Countdown Upper Hutt Upper Hutt Hutt City New World Lower Hutt MyLotto Lower Hutt Countdown Ashburton South Ashburton Fresh Choice Barrington Christchurch MyLotto Central Otago New World Gore Gore

With 100 per cent of Lotto NZs profits supporting thousands of great causes each year, every time you play one of Lotto NZs games, youre a Kiwi helping other Kiwis.

Anyone who bought their ticket from Pak N Save Richmond should write their name on the back of the ticket and check it at any Lotto NZ outlet, online at mylotto.co.nz or through the Lotto NZ App.

New Zealand is currently at Alert Level 1. Lotto NZ counters across the country are open and will continue to follow the Governments health and safety guidelines. For more information, please visit: https://mylotto.co.nz/covid-19
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Walmart and some other businesses say they will no longer require masks for customers and employees if theyre fully vaccinated against Covid-19, but New York still requires face coverings.

Walmart announced Friday that Walmart and Sams Club customers will not need to wear mask in stores, effective immediately, unless one is required by state or local laws. Employees who have received the coronavirus vaccine can stop wearing a mask while in stores, offices or other facilities starting Tuesday.

According to the New York Post, Walmart staffers will still be subject to a daily health assessment, which includes questions about whether or not they have been vaccinated. The nations largest retailer is also encouraging all of its associates to get the Covid vaccine with $75 bonuses when they show their vaccination cards.

Unvaccinated customers and workers, meanwhile, will still need to wear masks in all states.

Other businesses that said they would drop mask requirements for vaccinated customers include Trader Joes and Costco  at stores in states without a mask mandate. According to Business Insider, both retailers will not require proof of vaccination, but Costco says face masks will still be required in healthcare sections like its pharmacy, optical, and hearing aid divisions.

Target, Home Depot, Starbucks, and Kroger will continue requiring masks, according to CNN.

CVS, Walgreens, Ulta and the Gap are reviewing their mask policies, representatives told Business Insider.

The safety of our employees and customers will continue to guide our decision-making process, CVS said in a statement to Business Insider.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its mask guidance Thursday, saying full vaccinated people can stop wearing face masks outdoors and inside most places. The new guidance still calls for wearing face coverings in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters.

A person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving their final dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. According to the CDC, 46% of U.S. adults have been fully vaccinated and 59% have received at least one dose.

New York state, however, still requires masks in all places where social distancing is not possible. That means youll still need to wear a mask inside Walmart, Trader Joes and Costco locations in the Empire State.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday that state health officials are reviewing the CDCs new guidance.

In New York, we have always relied on the facts and the science to guide us throughout the worst of this pandemic and in our successful reopening, Cuomo said. We have received the newly revised guidance from the CDC regarding mask wearing and social distancing for those with vaccinations and are reviewing them in consultation with Dr. Zucker and our partners and health experts in surrounding states.

The Associated Press reports other states, including Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island and California, also still have mask mandates in place. Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Kentucky, Washington and Kansas announced plans to follow the new CDC guidance either immediately or in the coming weeks.

This is a heck of a benefit, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said. People who have been annoyed by this mask ... that shot is a ticket to freedom from masks.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Syracuse University students told to keep masks on until NY says otherwise

What Onondaga Countys top health officer will, and wont, do under new mask rules

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Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com
In 1871, a new book, Love on the Wing, written by Charles March, created a sensation in the town of Skaneateles.

Nearly every resident wanted a copy of it, not because it was very good, or even told an interesting story, but because the townspeople could easily identify themselves and their neighbors as the books characters.

The book was well read in Skaneateles, the Syracuse Herald would later write in 1899, for out of the long list of characters in it every one of the village recognized a great many personal friends.

Its title page included the line, Truth is stranger than fiction, but, to those who read it, the book had little mystery.

The title page of Brainard Munn's first novel, "Love on the Wing." It was published in 1871 under a pseudonym, "Charles March." Courtesy of the Skaneateles Historical Society archivesCourtesy of the Skaneateles Hist

The action of the story passed in Skaneateles and the writer called the place in Skaneateles in his book, the Herald said. More than that, he located the men and women in his book so definitely that, although he had the good sense to invent names for them, of the characters which inspired them there was no question.

Nor was there really any question to who had written the book.

Everyone seemed to know that Charles March was instead a local character, Brainard Munn, the Hermit Author of Skaneateles.

His sad story of love and isolation became part of Skaneateles lore following his death in 1916.

Munn was born in 1838 in the far-off Sandwich Islands, which today are known as Hawaii. His parents, Bethuel and Louisa Munn, were missionaries, who came to the islands to teach at Molokais Kaluaaha mission.

His mother died in 1841, and his family returned to the United States. His father remarried and the new family settled near Clyde, N.Y.

More deaths followed.

His brother died in 1846 at just 6 years old. Then he lost a stepbrother. His father died in 1849.

Despite the tragedies, Brainard received a good education.

When he was 21 years old, he moved to Skaneateles and was working odd jobs when he became employed at the community farm owned by George Earll, who was then one of the most prosperous members of the village.

The 1899 Herald profile of Munn described him this way when he started working there:

Munn was a large, bodied man, strong and a good worker, and as a hired man on the farm he was, when he pleased to be, a success. But his ambitions were for more than farm labor.

When Brainard Munn was arrested in Syracuse for vagrancy in 1899, the Syracuse Herald sent a reporter to interview him for a profile. The article included a series of sketches of Munn's life. This one was called "As a farm hand," and showed a young Munn while he was working on the Earll farm. This sketch, titled "Disappointment in Love," shows the a devastated Munn after he was rejected by Kate Ryan. Courtesy of World ArchivesCourtesy of World Archives

Munn was said to be good-looking but eccentric.

He read a great deal and carefully studied his friends on the farm for possible use as characters in the stories which were swirling in his mind.

One of them was a beautiful housekeeper at the Earll farm, Kate Ryan, who had Munn smitten.

But his affections were not returned, and when Ryan married John OLeary, a well-to-do businessman from western New York, Munn had a hard time coping with the rejection.

The eccentric farm hand grew more eccentric, the Herald wrote.

He left the farm in 1862 and built a small cabin for himself about a half-mile west of the village.

It would be his home for the next 15 years. He lived alone and avoided much of society.

He must have been able to earn some kind of a living because, in 1863, he was drafted into the Union Army during the Civil War but was able to afford a substitute to serve in his place.

When Brainard Munn was arrested in Syracuse for vagrancy in 1899, the Syracuse Herald sent a reporter to interview him for a profile. The article included a series of sketches of Munn's life. This one was called "As a farm hand," and showed a young Munn while he was working on the Earll farm. "The Literary Hermit" toiled away in a his small cabin, surrounded by books. Courtesy of World ArchivesCourtesy of World Archives

In his solitude, Munn began to write.

Surrounded by 200 books of classical literature, the few people who visited Munn at his cabin would find him furiously writing, with finished pages all around him.

Locals called him the Hermit Poet and the Hermit Author of Skaneateles.

Of the work he was doing he said nothing, the Herald reported, but in due time his visitors looked for the evidence in print, and they were not disappointed.

When his Love on the Wing was published in 1871, it did not receive good reviews.

This is a decidedly commonplace book, written apparently by an inexperienced author, wrote a critic in the New York Herald on May 21, 1871. There is nothing particularly remarkable about the fiction, unless it may be its tediousness.

Skaneateles readers would have quickly recognized the village, the lake, the churches, Legg Hall, and other landmarks.

It was how he described the books characters that made it a sensation.

His sketches of his characters, all of them recognized at once by the people of Skaneateles, could not fail to arouse not only interest but a good deal of indignation, the Herald would write.

A 320-pound character named Old Ki was clearly Hezekiah Earll, George Earlls father.

Charles Spencer was modeled after Ben Porter, Skaneateles greatest Civil War hero.

A female character named Bridget OConnor was obviously Kate Ryan, the woman who had broken his heart, and his viciousness with which he describes her makes it clear that he had not forgiven her for rejecting him.

He wrote:

She is a miserable representative of our mother Eve. No blacker guilt can be added to her already surcharged wickedness. You may take all the wickedness the world has ever seen and simmer it down into small compass and breathe into the unsightly mass the breath of life and then name it Bridget OConnor and you have her complete. Hell knows no better friend and heaven no greater foe.

An Auburn newspaper review wrote that the books main characters ended up miserable.

The male character ended up a miserable old bachelor while Bridget was unhappy while married to a drunken spendthrift.

Munns 436-page tome sold well enough to be deemed a success.

He continued writing.

In 1877, he published his second novel, La Petite Belle: The Life of an Adventurer. This was a flop.

He became disillusioned with writing and donated his collection of books to the Skaneateles Library. He was made a life member for his generosity.

Brainard Munn's second book, "La Petite Belle" was a flop. Courtesy of the Skaneateles Historical Society archivesCourtesy of the Skaneateles Hist

In 1880, he moved to Syracuse and became a carpenter.

He said he built the first schoolhouse in Solvay and several homes in Syracuse but would later complain that because he was not a union man he was denied work.

An 1890 contract dispute over the building of a Geddes schoolhouse would find the authors writing, and his lawsuit, literally laughed out of court.

When the defendants attorney asked Munn if he understood the use of English and the meaning of words, the former author became indignant.

He had written two published works of fiction he said,

What is the title of one of them, the judge asked.

Love of the Wing, Munn replied.

This announcement created some amusement in the court room, the Syracuse Standard reported on Feb. 12, 1890.

When he told the judge that his second novel was La Petite Belle, the room exploded in laughter.

In 1899, he was arrested for vagrancy.

Given the choice between paying a $2 fine or 60 days in jail, Munn took the prison term.

He was 61 years old.

From his prison cell, the Hermit Author of Skaneateles reflected back on his sad life:

When Brainard Munn was arrested in Syracuse for vagrancy in 1899, the Syracuse Herald sent a reporter to interview him for a profile. The article included a series of sketches of Munn's life. This one was called "As a farm hand," and showed a young Munn while he was working on the Earll farm. This is what Munn looked like when was imprisoned. Courtesy of World ArchivesCourtesy of World Archives

When I was a boy in school, we used to have jumping contests. I always, like other boys, jumped as far as I could the first time. I have jumped as far as I could the first time ever since. I took a long jump when I landed here.

After jail, he was sent to the Onondaga County Home, the countys poorhouse.

He kept to himself and rarely spoke with the other residents there. He did not divulge anything of his past.

In the spring of 1916, now 77 years old, Munn became more and more despondent, and according to the Herald and the Post-Standard, mentioned a disappointing love affair which had ended with him becoming a hermit.

On April 29, 1916, his body was found in the reservoir of the County Home. Nobody claimed his body and it was sent to the Syracuse Medical College.

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1891-1924: Too short to join the fire department, an Auburn man starts his own, joined by his pony, Thelma

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This feature is a part of CNY Nostalgia, a section on syracuse.com. Send your ideas and curiosities to Johnathan Croyle at jcroyle@syracuse.com or call 315-427-3958.
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 
Florida Department of Health has ended its daily reports of COVID-19 activity and has shuttered its dashboard that had provided a visual account of cases, deaths, testing and other information since March 2020.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, convenes a symposium on advancing the high-quality follow-up development of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, in Nanyang, central China's Henan Province, May 14, 2021. [Xinhua/Ju Peng]

NANYANG, Henan, May 14 (Xinhua)  President Xi Jinping on Friday convened a symposium on advancing the high-quality follow-up development of China's mega water diversion project.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, stressed the need to analyze the new situation and tasks facing the South-to-North Water Diversion Project and push for the scientific planning and construction of the project to promote the effective and economical use of water resources.

The symposium was held in the city of Nanyang, central China's Henan Province.

Speaking at the symposium, Xi said strong support of water resources is needed in the country's efforts to shape a nationwide unified market, boost smooth domestic circulation, and promote the coordinated development of the southern and northern regions.

Noting the extremely unbalanced distribution of water resources in China, Xi said the South-to-North Water Diversion Project is a backbone project for the allocation of the resources across different river basins and regions.

The project has transferred over 40 billion cubic meters of water, directly benefiting about 120 million people and playing important roles in economic and social development and environmental protection.

Xi highlighted the valuable experience drawn for constructing major water diversion projects: coordinating resources across the nation, concentrating all efforts to get big things done, respecting objective laws, as well as good planning, water conservation, pollution control, and precision in diverting water.

Xi said water diversion must continue in a scientific manner and attention must be given to strengthening water conservation to better manage supply and demand.

He stressed the importance of strengthening eco-environment protection, particularly pollution prevention and control in areas along the water transmission routes and in water-receiving regions.

He also stressed accelerating the construction of a national water network, urging efforts to enhance connectivity, thus speeding up the building of the network's main structure.

Xi called for attention to the water problems such as the sharp decrease of sediment inflows in northern China's main rivers, especially the Yellow River, and the over-extraction of groundwater.

He called for planning and design programs that can stand the test of time.

Vice Premier Han Zheng, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, attended the symposium and called for implementing Xi's speech and instructions.

Before the symposium, Xi visited the county of Xichuan on Thursday afternoon to inspect the construction, management and operation of the middle route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, as well as the resettlement of people relocated because of the project.

At the Taocha Canal Head, he stressed the ecological conservation of the water-source region, while at the village of Zouzhuang, he pledged to continue to support the relocated people.

Noting that the Party's 100-year history is one of dedication to people's well-being, Xi asked local Party organizations and members to unite and lead the people in striving towards common prosperity.

During the inspection, Xi stopped by a wheat field to check on crop growth and called for efforts to achieve breakthroughs in cultivating high-quality seeds.

"We should rely on Chinese seeds to ensure China's food security," Xi said.

On Wednesday, Xi visited a memorial facility dedicated to Zhang Zhongjing, a famous Chinese pharmacologist and physician of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220).

Noting that traditional Chinese medicine is a great creation of the Chinese nation, Xi urged efforts to ensure its preservation and development.

Xi then went to a park exhibiting the Rosa Chinensis  or the Chinese rose  and a local company producing mugwort products.

Stressing that local specialty industries have vast potential, Xi called for creating more jobs for the farmers and sharing with them the benefits.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, convenes a symposium on advancing the high-quality follow-up development of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, in Nanyang, central China's Henan Province, May 14, 2021. [Xinhua/Wang Ye]

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, inspects the Taocha Canal Head before a symposium, in Xichuan County, Nanyang, central China's Henan Province, May 13, 2021. Xi Jinping on Friday convened the symposium on advancing the high-quality follow-up development of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. [Xinhua/Ju Peng]
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-13 04:34:16|Editor: huaxia

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A medical worker prepares a shot of "Abdala", a homemade COVID-19 vaccine, at a vaccination site in Havana, Cuba, on May 14, 2021. Cuba on Wednesday began a mass vaccination campaign against COVID-19 in the country's capital of Havana as part of an intervention study of homemade vaccine candidates. At present, phase 3 clinical trials for Cuban COVID-19 vaccine candidates Soberana-02 and Abdala are underway, so are intervention studies involving frontline workers from across the country. (Photo by Joaquin Hernandez/Xinhua)

HAVANA, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Cuba's Ministry of Public Health began on Wednesday a mass vaccination campaign against COVID-19 with the country's vaccine candidate Abdala in Havana, the capital and epicenter of the pandemic on the island.

A meeting of Provincial Defense Council in Havana on Tuesday detailed the immunization process with Abdala that will cover health workers and students.

The plan will include four of Havana's 15 municipalities and some 400,000 people, and will cover a similar number of people in several other provinces later in the month.

Public Health Minister Jose Angel Portal said a few days ago that immunization will be extended to the rest of Havana's municipalities in the near future, but with Soberana-02, another vaccine candidate developed on the island.

The minister also explained that the decision was made to carry out the immunization on a temporary basis until the Center for State Control of Medicines, Equipment and Medical Devices (CEDMED) can issue the authorization for the mass use of the Cuban vaccine candidates.

CEDMED could grant the authorization by June, Portal said, as the ministry expects to immunize 70 percent of the Cuban population by August.

In addition, the island has three other vaccine candidates, Soberana-01 and Plus, as well as Mambisa, in different stages of clinical trials. Enditem
Changes to The Messenger'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.
Ada, OK (74820)

Today

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 71F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 71F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-14 22:03:17|Editor: huaxia

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Precious Kaniki, a resident of Lusaka living with HIV, poses for a photo in Lusaka, Zambia, on May 10, 2021. As the world works to end AIDS, more and more Zambian young people who are HIV positive begin to openly talk about their status. (Photo by Lillian Banda/Xinhua)

LUSAKA, May 14 (Xinhua) -- As the world works to end AIDS, more and more Zambian young people who are HIV positive begin to openly talk about their status.

It is an effort to discourage populations from discriminating people living with HIV as well as encourage those infected to seek help without feeling ashamed.

One of the Zambians who have come out to publicly state that they are HIV positive is 29-year-old Precious Kaniki, a resident of Zambia's capital Lusaka.

Kaniki who tested positive for HIV about 14 years ago explained that she had challenges accepting her condition because of what society perceived people living with the virus.

She explained that some young people have been dumped by their partners after they revealed their HIV status. There are also individuals living with HIV who are discriminated against by their own family members whereby in a home set up, one is forced to use separate cutlery.

"These are some of the things that compelled me to begin to talk openly about my status," kaniki said.

She added that confronting issues head on has greatly helped many youths in Zambia and beyond to take positive action towards the further spread of HIV as evidenced from media reports.

"It is good that many young people living with HIV have taken the step to speak about their status publicly. This has greatly helped to dispel misinformation around the topic," Kaniki further added.

And according to a youth rights advocate, many more HIV positive youths are openly talking about their status because they have realized that doing so encourages other members of society to appreciate the fact that having HIV is not a death sentence.

Those skeleton-like images of people with AIDS from the 1980s and early 1990s do not exist today because people living with HIV are living much longer, and healthier lives, thanks to antiretroviral therapy, said Oswald Chisenga, director at Phenomenal Positive Youths Zambia, an entity that advances the needs of youths living with HIV in Zambia.

Thirty-two-year-old Chisenga who is HIV positive said it is encouraging to see many young people talking freely about being HIV positive noting that this has greatly helped to reduce stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS.

He revealed youths from a number of countries in southern as well as East African regions are openly talking about their HIV status through the various media platforms run by Phenomenal Positive Youths Zambia.

These young people are helping change the narrative of HIV/AIDS and letting populations see that HIV positive people have a lot to offer society, he said.

Chisenga was, however, quick to state that while Phenomenal Positive Youths Zambia supports those who choose to go public about their status, it does not compel them to do so.

"It is a choice that one has to make on their own after much consideration. Our job is to give them the necessary support," he said.

Chisenga further stressed that his organization is working to ensure that youths who are HIV negative maintain their negative status so as to ensure the realization of the global goal of ending AIDS by 2030.

According to UNAIDS data 2019, there are about 1.2 million people living with HIV in Zambia. Enditem
Customers grabbing pastries at the Cupcake Junkie can choose to wear masks or not now that national and state mandates have been loosened for people who are fully vaccinated for the coronavirus.

Factoring into the owner's flexibility at the Coursey Boulevard bakery is the knowledge that four workers are either fully or partially vaccinated, even if customers aren't.

Gov. John Bel Edwards: If you're fully vaccinated in Louisiana, masks not required indoors Following recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Gov. John Bel Edwards on Friday said those who are fully v

Some people are coming in with masks, and thats fine. Some others are not wearing masks, and thats OK," said owner Robyn Selders. "Were not telling anyone what they can and cant do because theres no way to know whether customers are fully vaccinated, Selders said. The best thing is our staff is protected and theyre wearing masks.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday said fully vaccinated people don't need to wear masks in most indoor settings, putting the mask-wearing decision on state and local governments and on individual businesses. Gov. John Bel Edwards announced Friday that in light of the CDC guidance fully vaccinated people in Louisiana no longer have to wear masks indoors or in state government buildings  except in certain situations, such as schools, public transit, jails and prisons, and health care facilities as regulated by the Louisiana Department of Health.

The Cupcake Junkie is among tens of thousands of businesses in Baton Rouge and many more statewide now weighing their options between chipping in during a public health crisis and recognizing that as individuals get vaccinated the coronavirus pandemic is less deadly for many and the economy must trudge on.

"I am leaning towards not wearing a mask because almost all my employees and myself have been vaccinated," said Dr. Emily Taylor, owner of Capital Heights Veterinary Clinic. "I am asking clients to wear a mask if they have not been vaccinated for more than two weeks."

Taylor offered her employees a financial incentive to get the COVID-19 vaccine and nearly all of them did as lockdown restrictions loosened.

"I just hope the CDC knows what they are doing," she said of the loosened mask rules.

CDC says fully vaccinated people can stop wearing masks indoors in most cases WASHINGTON (AP)  In a move to send the country back toward pre-pandemic life, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday ease

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana said the new CDC guidelines are welcome news because everyone is looking to resume normal routines after more than a year of dealing with the pandemic. However, the company said it will still require employees to wear masks when they are in the office. The majority of the insurers' 1,800 local employees are continuing to work remotely and the offices remain closed to visitors.

"We will factor the new CDC guidance into our future plans for how we fully reopen our offices and what our workplace guidance will be when more employees and visitors are in the office," the company said in a statement.

Will Edwards, who owns Kolache Kitchen, said he will still require customers and employees wear masks in his four Baton Rouge and New Orleans restaurants. Edwards said while hes pleased the guidelines have changed, COVID-19 remains a pressing issue. Were going to stick with wearing masks for another 30 days, he said.

Many national businesses have made decisions or are still processing Thursday's surprise CDC announcement.

Trader Joe's said it was no longer requiring customers to wear masks. Walmart said fully vaccinated shoppers and employees don't need to wear masks. The retail giant is offering $75 bonuses to workers that provide proof of vaccination.

Target, CVS, Macys and Gap Inc. said theyre reviewing company mask policies in light of the new guidelines. The National Restaurant Association is also looking at the recommendations and is evaluating its COVID-19 operating guidance and best practices for restaurants.

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Our Views: The vaccinated can go maskless, but the unvaccinated need to step up. Oh what a relief that the vaccinated among us can go without masks in many situations. But for hospitals and health centers, public transporta

Walgreens, Home Depot and the parent company of TJ Maxx, Marshalls and Home Goods said they dont immediately plan to change their policies advising face coverings be worn inside their stores.

Regions Financial Corp. will continue to have employees wear masks in its offices and its branches. It will request customers do the same.

Along Florida Boulevard, community-based Theatre Baton Rouge expects to still require masks for audience members.

"We are actually going to still be requiring masks for the time being, according with the state and local guidelines. In order for us to operate at full capacity the entire audience must be masked," said Jenny Ballard, spokesperson at Theatre Baton Rouge. "If this changes we will reevaluate our mask mandate."

For businesses that require close personal contact, some are taking a more conservative approach.

At The Massage Emporium in downtown Baton Rouge, General Manager Piper Ferguson and a team of nearly a dozen regular massage therapists have worked collaboratively to establish guidelines based on the latest scientific advice.

"We can see the light at the end of the tunnel," Ferguson said. "We specialize in touch so we are in very close proximity to other people and care about the safety of everyone who comes in and out of our doors."

Demand for massage therapy services is exponential and the business could accommodate nearly double its current staff, but many therapists have been wary of the stability of an industry that had evaporated during the global health pandemic.

"We kept our mask mandate in check for clients or staff and everyone does get their temperature scanned at the door," she said. "You do have to wear a mask unless you show your completed vaccination card. We don't take a copy; we just need to see it to verify. We are going to fully support any PPE (personal protective equipment) our therapists feel comfortable wearing during the session."

Event venues are navigating an ever-changing path in terms of rules in Louisiana.

The latest state Fire Marshal guidance is that event venues, such as the Lake House Reception Center on Old Hammond Highway, are still restricted in terms of capacity depending on how many guests wear a mask.

"We are still not able to be at 100% (capacity) unless everybody is wearing a mask," said Lauren Marino, the director of operations of Lake House Reception Center, a seven-acre property.

If not everyone wears a mask, then the venue can only have 75% capacity. Staff are still required to wear a mask.

"I think we are going to do this forever anyway so it doesn't really affect us," Marino said about wearing masks at work. "We all wear little buttons that say, 'I got my COVID vaccine' so customers don't worry."
Louisianas powerful gun lobby is opposing legislation that would make it easier for domestic violence victims to obtain protective orders barring abusers from possessing firearms.

Instead, lobbyists are pushing a proposal to reopen the so-called boyfriend loophole, which would allow some abusive partners to keep their guns.

What began as a bipartisan effort to streamline Louisianas definition of domestic abuse has devolved into a fight over gun rights, pitting the National Rifle Association against victims advocates  and state Rep. Malinda White.

Theyre dealing with the wrong woman, said White, a domestic abuse survivor, enthusiastic gunowner and Bogalusa Democrat whos sponsoring the bill. I believe in 2nd Amendment rights and I stand with them on almost everything. But when it comes to domestic abuse, they shouldnt be at the table  and they shouldnt try to control the conversation.

Louisiana domestic violence bill gets unexpected pushback from gun lobby: 'I'm confused and concerned' A legislative proposal that would make it easier for victims of domestic violence to apply for a temporary restraining order has come under fi

House Bill 159 would expand the definition of domestic abuse to include some forms of non-physical, emotional abuse such as coercion, control and intimidation  but only when its used to prevent a victim from escaping a relationship or contacting law enforcement.

Experts argue the language better reflects the realities of domestic abuse and will help victims obtain protective orders before their circumstances escalate to physical violence.

But after sailing through a House floor vote with unanimous support, the states influential gun lobby began raising objections. They say the definition is too broad and will result in gunowners losing their firearms more often.

It includes stuff that I wouldnt do to a partner, and I certainly wouldnt want a partner to do to me, but its not violence, Louisiana Shooting Association President Dan Zelenka said.

Domestic abuse, in most cases, doesnt begin with violence, said Andrea Carroll, an LSU law professor who spent nearly four years crafting the new definition with experts at the Louisiana State Law Institute, a nonpartisan arm of the Legislature

Instead, the abuse starts with controlling behaviors, Carroll said.

But to obtain a protective order, a victim typically has to demonstrate theyve already been physically or sexually abused. Often, that protection comes too late  one reason, experts say, Louisiana routinely leads the nation in domestic abuse fatalities.

Were telling victims leave, leave, leave, yet we wont provide any protection for you to leave until it escalates into physical violence, said Mariah Wineski, executive director at the Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Its absurd that we would let it get that far.

The definition proposed is actually quite narrow, Carroll argued. Its not just any form of coercion, control and punishment, its behavior that prevents victims from reporting to law enforcement or escaping a relationship.

This allows a court to intervene at an earlier stage, before physical violence takes place, Carroll said.

Still, Louisianas gun lobby calls the definition too far-reaching, saying it would result in more protective orders, which under existing state law, require gunowners to forfeit their firearms. In Louisiana, those orders can only be issued after a due process hearing before a judge.

The bill adopts the widest imaginable definition of domestic abuse, which, as we often say, includes conduct that is neither domestic nor what we would traditionally consider abuse, Matthew Herriman, the NRAs state director, wrote in an email to White.

The gun lobby isn't only targeting the new definition.

Herriman, who declined to comment for this article, suggested amending HB159 to allow abusive dating partners who dont live with their victims to keep their guns  reinstating the so-called boyfriend-loophole in federal law.

Digital tools critical for violence-against-women prevention groups amid COVID-19, LSU study says An LSU study found that the internet, particularly social media, has been a key resource for Louisiana groups working to prevent violence agai

White said shes not budging on the definition  and wont let them re-open the loophole. She said shes tired of the NRA thinking it can bully the state Legislature. On Twitter, she posted about being locked, cocked and ready to rock for Tuesday when HB159 comes before a Senate Judiciary Committee.

For White, the issue is personal. When she was younger, she said, she was trapped in a controlling relationship.

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I know what it feels like to be isolated from the world, she said. Coercion and control is where it starts.

White doesnt shy away from supporting gun rights, either. She's an avid hunter and was one of a handful of Democratic lawmakers this session to vote for legislation allowing people to carry concealed handguns without a permit.

Weve got more guns than grass in Washington Parish, White said. I know how to shoot a gun and I never miss.

When it comes to issues of domestic violence, however, White said the gun lobby has no place in the debate. She said the NRA should stand with victims of domestic abuse instead of supporting terrorist abusers.

Im all about the 2nd Amendment, but I'm also about protecting life, White said. The blood is on [the gun lobby's] hands if people die because they're not trying to protect life."

Louisiana has the fifth highest rate of women murdered by men in the nation  nearly twice the national average, according to the Violence Policy Center  while homicide is among the leading causes of death for pregnant women in the state, according to researchers at Tulane and LSU.

Wineski, executive director at the Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence, said if the state wants to prevent those homicides, it needs to recognize that domestic abuse doesn't start with violence. She said domestic abuse is widely understood to be a pattern of behavior that often starts with coercion and control.

I dont think were inherently a more violent state," Wineski said. But we obviously have some systemic issues where offenders are not being held accountable early enough.

Judge Lisa Woodruff-White, of the East Baton Rouge Parish Family Court, said one of the worst cases of domestic violence she tried in her 13 years on the bench involved no physical violence at all.

The facts in the case all pertained to the husbands exercise of complete power and control over his wife such that she was deprived of any resources and imprisoned in their home, Woodruff-White, who helped craft the bill, wrote in a letter to White.

A history of physical violence is not necessary for there to be a risk of abuse or death and the weapons prohibition is an important part of that protection, Woodruff-White added.

Kim Sport, an attorney and longtime advocate for domestic violence victims, said the gun lobby lacks clear understanding of the issue.

This bill would allow sexual assault victims to end their leases early in Louisiana A bill to allow survivors of sexual assault to terminate housing leases early moved forward Wednesday.

Sport said Zelenka, with the Louisiana Shooting Association, joked to her that the proposed legislation could be used to take firearms away from sugar daddies who take credit cards away from their girlfriends.

This is beyond insulting, and shows a disturbing level of ignorance of the dangerous situations victims of domestic abuse find themselves in, Sport said.

Zelenka said his comment was meant as hyperbole to show how broadly the new definition could be interpreted.

Carroll said, My controlling my spouses finances is not going to qualify as domestic abuse unless Im doing it for the purpose of preventing him from calling the police or preventing him from getting help or preventing him from escaping the relationship.

The bill, in some ways, offers a narrower definition for domestic abuse than existing law, Carroll noted.

Domestic abuse as defined in the existing statute includes but is not limited to physical or sexual abuse. The beginning of that definition  includes but is not limited to  gives the judge discretion to consider other factors, like emotional abuse. But given its vagueness, few judges take that leap.

Carroll noted that the proposed legislation, which was crafted with judges who will end up interpreting the law, removes that open-ended clause and spells out the other circumstances concretely.

Wineski said when it comes to defining issues of domestic abuse, the gun lobby shouldnt take precedent over those who know the issue best.

This bill is about defining domestic abuse, and that definition isnt up to the gun lobby," she said. "That definition should come from subject matter experts. It should come from survivors. It should come from the people who have been doing the work to address domestic violence for decades."
Nailing lawyers who represent injured people against business and insurance companies was a main theme of last years legislative session and a secondary melody in the past few annual gatherings.

Though no studies show even a casual connection between advertising and the number of lawsuits filed, legislators spent much of their time trying to rid the air of broadcast commercials and highway billboards of lawyers seeking clients who had car wrecks. In fact, clipping attorney ads was about all they talked about, at least at first, recalled a participant on the task force that drafted the 2020 legislation that changed Louisianas legal system.

About a half dozen bills were filed to substantially end lawyer advertising, two of which landed on the governors desk.

They were kind of companions to the sweeping legislation  pushed by the insurance industry  that limits litigation by injured Louisiana residents on the theory that fewer lawsuits would lower the cost of the more expensive automobile insurance policies, which it hasnt.

Mark Ballard: Louisiana TV lawyers are at the heart of the debate over car insurance costs In his spirited attempt to pass legislation that he says will lower auto insurance prices by 25%, Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon has taken

One of the attorney advertising bills that reached the governors desk was vetoed. The other was signed but its enforcement was postponed by the Louisiana Supreme Court because its the high court that tells the legal profession what to do, not the legislative branch.

A third instrument, however, will end up making significant changes.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 57 of the 2020 Regular Legislative Session asked the high court to consider a lawyer advertisement review recognition program, please.

Asked nicely, the high court last week issued a set of new guidelines.

Louisiana Supreme Court order on lawyer advertising Order Amending LA Professional Rules of Conduct- Attorney Advertising Rules.

Its good enough for Slidell Sen. Sharon Hewitt, who sponsored the less confrontational resolution than the bills her Republican colleagues had pursued.

Im very pleased with what the Supreme Court did, Hewitt said last week. One ramification of the high courts orders is that lawyers will know what you can and cannot do in commercials, she added.

Hewitt did start out looking to tightly restrict lawyer advertising, like her Republican colleagues. She ran into a U.S. Supreme Court decision issued back when the now retired oilfield engineer was in high school.

In the early 1970s, John R. Bates and Van OSteen formed a law firm in Phoenix to represent people of modest means. Their business model required them to find clients through advertising. The State Bar of Arizona said no. The U.S. Supreme Court said yes.

Garey Forster: Avalanche of lawsuits and lawyer ads hurts Louisiana businesses Its that time of year when youre thinking holidays and presents under the tree. But business is thinking the annual "Judicial Hellholes" report.

Most lawyers see themselves as Atticus Finch, fighting for the greater good and receiving nothing more than the grateful people in the balcony standing as they pass. But the law, like most things, is really a business that cant run on the periodic delivery of hickory nuts.

Agreed, the gleeful faces of car wreck victims with big money judgments do seem a little too celebratory. But dealing with recalcitrant insurers, who dont often act like good neighbors in times of need, and doctors who want to be paid up front, maybe a little jubilee isnt unwarranted.

Its not like advertising hasnt relied for years on overly optimistic pictures.

For instance, what is adult ulcerative colitis? The commercials make it seem like the malady is an avenue to get a drug that opens the doors to a fun-filled social life with very pretty and ethnically diverse people.

That kind of ad does not really explain anything about a complex medical condition.

Hewitts resolution set in motion a system where the Louisiana State Bar will make it easy for consumers to vet the claims of lawyers, starting Jan. 1, 2022.

Lawyer ads in Louisiana were supposed to change in 2021; here's why the rules won't be enforced He looks like a regular guy. Hes unnamed as they usually are in any one of the dozens of commercials for personal injury lawyers that show up

The high court ordered up a searchable database of all attorney advertisements. This newly-implemented searchable public database, along with the additionally enacted rule changes, will offer the ability to review compliance with rules governing attorney advertising in Louisiana, and will provide a safeguard against false or misleading advertising for the public, Louisiana Supreme Court Chief Justice John L. Weimer said in a prepared statement.

Additionally, all the lawyer ads, starting Jan. 1, will have to include a disclaimer such as Results May Vary or Past Results are not a Guarantee of Future Success.

The new rules wont prescribe what language a lawyer uses but makes it easier to check the claims.

Hewitt acknowledges that it wont get lawyers from standing on top big rigs, but the new rules will allow consumers the ability to tell which ads have been vetted and approved and which claims havent, she said.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 01:22:07|Editor: huaxia

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A protester hurls stones with a slingshot at members of Israeli border police and Israeli soldiers during an anti-Israel protest in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, May 14, 2021. A total of seven Palestinians were killed and dozens injured in clashes between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli soldiers in the West Bank on Friday, the Palestinian health ministry said. (Photo by Luay Sababa/Xinhua)

RAMALLAH, May 14 (Xinhua) -- A total of seven Palestinians were killed and dozens injured in clashes between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli soldiers in the West Bank on Friday, the Palestinian health ministry said.

According to a ministry press statement, five of them were killed in clashes with Israeli soldiers in different places, and a sixth was killed during an attempt to stab an Israeli soldier.

The seventh was a prosecutor and lawyer, who was seriously injured by Israeli soldiers during demonstrations in support of Gaza and Jerusalem in the northern West Bank city of Nablus and died later in a nearby medical center.

Palestinian sources said clashes broke out on Friday in several towns and villages in the West Bank when Israeli soldiers fired tear gas canisters, rubber bullets and gunshots to disperse the Palestinian demonstrators. Enditem
Last month, Netflix officially launched its new Play Something feature, a program shuffle aimed at bypassing the indecisive endless scroll that plagues so many users who log on, spend hours searching for something to watch, and then log off without viewing a thing.

In an age of viewer fatigue and a debilitating abundance of choice, its a nifty idea. Press the Play Something button and the Netflix algorithm will instantly start a show it thinks youll enjoy based on your viewing history. But does it work?

Netflixs BBC cop show Line of Duty.

My experiment with the button promised an instant problem that may plague many users: up until recently I was (allegedly) sharing my password with my parents, which has done irrevocable damage to my algorithm. Netflix now thinks Im obsessed with Spanish-language telenovelas and shows about Argentinian BBQ, rather than my true passion: heartwarming sitcoms.

Similarly, my personal profile is shared with my partner, my kids, and the Victorian ghosts who live in the attic and come out when were asleep. My algorithm is severely tainted. Netflixs recommender faced an uphill battle to satisfy me.
Property industry leaders have criticised planned hikes on stamp duty and land tax in this weeks Victorian state budget as short-term gain for long-term pain that would worsen housing affordability, as Treasurer Tim Pallas insisted it was fair to ask those who had benefited from surging values contributed more to repairing public finances.

The Victorian government announced its plan to lift property taxes in Thursdays state budget on Friday night as a way to raise $2.4 billion for the state over the next four years. The move sparked an immediate and sharp response from the property industry.

Developers and land speculators who reap windfall gains when their property is rezoned will be hit with a 50 per cent tax if the gain is worth $500,000.

The brunt of the new tax increases would be worn by landlords, with the states land tax haul to lift by more than 10 per cent, and stamp duty to raise $761 million by adding a premium to stamp duty payments for property transactions valued at more than $2 million.
Conway, AR (72032)

Today

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to partly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 72F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to partly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 72F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 02:52:54|Editor: huaxia

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BEIRUT, May 14 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese President Michel Aoun condemned on Friday Israeli attacks against Lebanese demonstrators on the border that killed a Lebanese man and injured three others.

The president ordered caretaker Foreign Minister Charbel Wehbe to submit a complaint to the United Nations over Israel's aggressive actions, in preparation for taking necessary measures in this regard, according to a statement released by Lebanon's Presidency.

Meanwhile, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said the UNIFIL has opened an investigation into the incident.

Tenenti said the UNIFIL urges everybody to remain calm and avoid further escalation.

The Lebanese man was shot and killed by Israeli army when he and other demonstrators in support of Palestinians tried to break through the border fence between the two countries.

Tension between Israel and the Hamas-led militants has been flaring up since Monday, leaving 122 Palestinians and nine Israelis killed. Enditem
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 05:54:23|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, May 14 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called for a unified Security Council over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and regretted the lack of multilateralism.

Asked what the secretary-general expects from Sunday's emergency meeting of the Security Council on the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian escalation, Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric said: "What we would like to see is ... a strong, unified voice for de-escalation, for a cessation of hostilities and a push to get the parties back on track to find a political solution to this conflict that has been going on and on and on."

Asked for the secretary-general's comment on the fact that one single Security Council member blocked the proposal for a Friday meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, just days after all council members pledged support for multilateralism, Dujarric said Guterres is concerned about the state of multilateralism "as we've seen it during the pandemic and as we've seen it in other aspects."

"We would like to see member states put to action the ideals that we all have to live up to within this organization," he added.

With regard to the Security Council, he said the more unified the council is, the stronger its voice and the stronger its impact.

The Security Council on May 7 held a high-level debate on the need to uphold multilateralism and all council members came out in support of it. Yet days later, the United States, an ally of Israel, blocked the proposal for a Friday Security Council meeting, according to diplomats. The Security Council later agreed on such a meeting on Sunday. Enditem
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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
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 09:17:40|Editor: huaxia

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The lander carrying China's first Mars rover has touched down on the red planet, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) confirmed on May 15, 2021. (Xinhua/Lu Zhe)

BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The lander carrying China's first Mars rover has successfully touched down on the red planet early Saturday morning Beijing Time.

It is the first time China has landed a probe on a planet other than Earth.

Tianwen-1, consisting of an orbiter, a lander and a rover, was launched from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site on the coast of southern China's island province of Hainan on July 23, 2020. It was the first step in China's planetary exploration of the solar system, with the aim of completing orbiting, landing and roving on the red planet in one mission.

The name Tianwen, meaning Questions to Heaven, comes from a poem written by the ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan (about 340-278 BC). China's first Mars rover is named Zhurong after the god of fire in ancient Chinese mythology, which echoes with the Chinese name of the red planet: Huoxing (the planet of fire).

The spacecraft entered the Mars orbit in February after a journey of nearly seven months through space, and spent more than two months surveying potential landing sites.

In the early hours of Saturday, the spacecraft began to descend from its parking orbit, and the entry capsule enclosing the lander and rover separated from the orbiter at about 4 a.m.

After flying for approximately three hours, the entry capsule hurtled toward the red planet and entered the Mars atmosphere at an altitude of 125 km, initiating the riskiest phase of the whole mission.

First, the specially designed aerodynamic shape of the entry capsule decelerated with the friction of the Martian atmosphere. When the velocity of the spacecraft was lowered from 4.8 km per second to about 460 meters per second, a huge parachute covering an area of about 200 square meters was unfurled to continue reducing the velocity to less than 100 meters per second.

The parachute and the outer shield of the spacecraft were then jettisoned, exposing the lander and rover, and the retrorocket on the lander was fired to further slow the speed of the craft to almost zero.

At about 100 meters above the Martian surface, the craft hovered to identify obstacles and measured the slopes of the surface. Avoiding the obstacles, it selected a relatively flat area and descended slowly, touching down safely with its four buffer legs.

The craft's plummet through the Martian atmosphere, lasting about nine minutes, was extremely complicated with no ground control, and had to be performed by the spacecraft autonomously, said Geng Yan, an official at the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the CNSA.

"Each step had only one chance, and the actions were closely linked. If there had been any flaw, the landing would have failed," said Geng. Enditem
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State

AP

Gas crunch from cyberattack intensifies in nation's capital

Manuel Balce Ceneta - staff, AP A gas pump at a gas station in Silver Spring, Md., is out of service, notifying customers they are out of fuel, late Thursday, May 13, 2021. Motorists found gas pumps shrouded in plastic bags at tapped-out service stations across more than a dozen U.S. states Thursday while the operator of the nation's largest gasoline pipeline reported making "substantial progress" in resolving the computer hack-induced shutdown responsible for the empty tanks.

Gas shortages at the pumps have spread from the South, all but emptying stations in Washington, D.C., following a ransomware cyberattack that forced a shutdown of the nations largest gasoline pipeline. Though the pipeline operator paid a ransom, restoring service was taking time.

As Georgia-based Colonial Pipeline reported making substantial progress in restoring full service, two people briefed on the matter confirmed that the company had paid the criminals a ransom of about $5 million in cryptocurrency for the software decryption key required to unscramble their data network. The people spoke on condition they not be further identified because they were not authorized to divulge the information. Bloomberg first reported the payment.

President Joe Biden, when asked by a reporter on Thursday if he had been briefed about the ransom payment, said I have no comment on that.

Biden also said that his administration will try to disrupt the hackers' ability to operate.

The tracking service GasBuddy.com on Friday showed that 88% of gas stations were out of fuel in the nation's capital, 45% were out in Virginia and 39% of Maryland stations were dry. About 65% of stations were without gas in North Carolina, and nearly half were tapped out in Georgia and South Carolina.

Colonial said Thursday that operations had restarted and gasoline deliveries were being made in all of its markets, but it would take several days to return to normal, and some areas may experience intermittent service interruptions during this start-up period.

Our current expectation based on the conversations between the company and experts at the Department of Energy is that the vast majority of markets and affected regions are receiving fuel at gas stations for consumers, and will continue to receive more fuel throughout the weekend and into early next week, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said at a Friday briefing. Hence, getting us closer to return us back to normal.

A gas station owner in Virginia said panic buying is the problem.

Its like a frenzy, Barry Rieger, who owns a gas station in Burke, Virginia, told WJLA-TV.

In North Carolina, at least five school systems canceled in-person learning on Friday as the gasoline supply crisis continued. Wake County, with the largest school system in North Carolina, emailed parents citing the impact of the gas shortage on staffing availability and student transportation.

Businesses were also feeling the sting.

At Dixie Speedway in Woodstock, Georgia, maintenance and safety vehicles have to be filled up, but all the gas stations close to use -- within a mile of us -- are out of gas, said Mia Green, the tracks general manager. Shes heard of racetracks that canceled this weekend's races because crews might not be able to get there due to gas shortages.

Many authorities are warning of the dangers of hoarding gas.

In South Carolina, a woman was severely burned after flipping a car that a deputy tried to pull over for a suspected stolen license plate Thursday night. The fire touched off multiple explosions due to fuel that she was hoarding in the trunk of the vehicle," a Pickens County sheriffs statement said.

In Florida, a 2004 Hummer was destroyed by fire Wednesday shortly after the driver had filled up four 5-gallon (18-liter) gas containers in Homosassa, according to Citrus County Fire Rescue spokeswoman Cortney Marsh. Firefighters doused the blaze and found the melted gas containers. One man was injured, but refused medical treatment, she said.

A cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them hit the pipeline on May 7. The hackers didn't take control of the pipelines operations, but Colonial shut it down to prevent the malware from impacting its industrial control systems.

Biden said U.S. officials do not believe the Russian government was involved, but said we do have strong reason to believe that the criminals who did the attack are living in Russia. Thats where it came from.

Biden has promised aggressive action against DarkSide, the Russian-speaking ransomware syndicate responsible for the attack. The syndicate's public-facing darknet site went offline on Thursday and its administrator said in a cybercriminal forum post that the group had lost access to it.

This does not necessarily mean U.S. or allied cyberjockeys knocked it offline. Cybersecurity experts said that DarkSide, which rents out its ransomware to partners to carry out the actual attacks, could have taken it down to prevent Western law enforcement from tracking down the rest of its infrastructure.

And just because DarkSides public-facing structure is offline doesnt mean its backend operations have been impacted, said Alex Holden, the founder of Hold Security, who closely monitors the cybercriminal underground.

"DarkSides main servers are alive, said analyst Yelisey Boguslavskiy of the cybersecurity firm Advanced Intelligence. While the servers are hidden, encrypted traffic to and from them is being monitored by threat hunters, he said.

DarkSide stole information from Colonial's network prior to locking up the data on Friday. It's not known how long the cybercriminals were inside the network. DarkSide is among the ransomware gangs that employ double extortion, threatening to dump online sensitive data they steal before activating the ransomware. In Colonial's case, that could potentially include data on contracts with suppliers that would be of keen interest to stock and commodities traders.

DarkSide, in fact, recently offered to share data stolen from victims with inside traders.

It would not be surprising if DarkSide were to disappear, experts noted. Ransomware gangs have dissolved and rebranded under different names in the past when the heat was on.

The Colonial Pipeline system stretches from Texas to New Jersey and delivers about 45% of the gasoline consumed on the East Coast.

We are not out of the woods yet, but the trees are thinning out, Richard Joswick, global head of oil analytics at S&P Global Platts, said.

Gas stations should be back to normal next week if the pipeline restart goes as planned and consumers are convinced they no longer need to panic-buy fuel, Joswick said. Full recovery would take several more weeks, he estimated.

-

Bajak reported from Boston, Martin from Marietta, Ga., and Merchant in Washington. Freida Frisaro in Miami also contributed.
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News

Attorney announces bid to oppose prosecutor

Ted Bell Krinn Evans

FOREST CITY  An attorney, who judges had previously recused themselves from presiding over his cases, announced his intention to file for the office of district attorney amid hopes of ousting the incumbent.

More than six months away from filing for the 2022 elections and candidates have already begun throwing their hats in the ring. Defense attorney Krinn Evans announced his intention to oppose incumbent District Attorney Ted Bell, serving District 29A for Rutherford and McDowell counties.

Last August, three judges serving the district recused themselves from hearing any of Evans cases. Evans and the judges have since resolved the issue as of February. However, the effects of matter prompted Evans to pursue the job as prosecutor.

Although Evans did not specifically reveal why the judges targeted him and Rutherfordton attorney Andrew LaBreche for the recusals, he said the meetings of the Judicial Council, namely the lack of its transparency and accountability, raise concerns. Evans specifically objects to the meetings including Bell and not anyone from the private sector. Neither do the meetings include minutes for the publics review. He suggests Bells involvement in the Judicial Council is a conflict of interest and compromises the publics trust of the District Attorneys Office.

Professional representation must be first and foremost as the district attorney, Evans said. No longer can we afford a district attorney whose aim is to protect those in power who prey upon the average citizen, in my administration every citizen will be valued regardless of whether they voted for me or not. I will not hesitate to charge and prosecute any individual who has committed a crime, regardless of their station or background.

The Judicial Council is a program developed and implemented by the UNC School of Government approximately 14 years ago, and it is currently in place in many judicial districts across the state. The programs objective was for leaders in the various departments of the local court system to come together to address management and administration issues.

Fourteen years ago, the resident Superior Court judge, the district trial court administrator, the two clerks of court, the District Court judges, a representative from the District Attorneys Office, and a defense attorney selected by the District Bar attended a three-day training course at the UNC School of Government. Then with guidance from the School of Government, this program was implemented within District 29A.

The School of Government still supports and encourages this program, and up until the COVID shutdown, the School of Government continued to support and encourage the program while offering the three-day training course annually.

Bell defended the Judicial Council program as well as the meetings after-hours time slots and random venues.

Because of the daily court schedule, the clerks schedules, demands during business hours, and the geographic distance between personnel in multiple courthouses, the School of Government recommends these meetings be held after hours, Bell said. To further foster a collegial working relationship, it was also recommended by the School of Government to promote a relaxed and social atmosphere at the meetings. Within our district, the Judicial Council consists of nine individuals: the resident Superior Court judge, the District Court judges, the two clerks of court, the public defender, and the district attorney. This group meets over dinner at the home of one of the members two to three times a year.

Bell further contends the meetings are above board, designed to improve courthouse efficiency.

The only items discussed at these meetings are administrative and operational in nature, Bell said. Some examples include the scheduling of the courtrooms, an IT (information technology) upgrade being planned by one of the counties, the potential impact of courthouse renovations on court operations, and planning and implementing mandatory COVID restrictions. The Council has never discussed individual cases or defendants. As public servants within the court system, we have a duty and obligation to ensure that the court system is being run in the most efficient and productive manner possible.

Evans counters that there are no safeguards in place to ensure the public that the meetings are as benign as advertised. In addition to the meetings absence of an attorney from the private sector or minutes from the meetings, Evans questions the transparency of the gatherings. He said if the meetings include such things as conversations about bonds for defendants, defense attorneys and the general public have a right to know. Moreover, he said the district attorney has a legal duty to make the information public.

Its a duty, Evans said, he plans to honor, if elected.

Accountability is just as important as professionalism, Evans said. Accountability comes in the form of reporting to my fellow citizens the results of the taxes spent under my leadership, and records keeping with an eye on reporting back to citizens that elected me to office. Accountability also requires a strict following of the North Carolina Rules of Professional Conduct and my oath as your district attorney, and which I will spend every day earning your trust in my performance.

Evans further hinted that Bell has also become too cozy with those with suspect character, referring to allegations of misconduct regarding former Judge Randy Pool.

There are some ongoing questions about whether Judge Pool should have been charged, Evans said.

Evans also expressed concern about the prevailing drug problem and drug-related deaths in the district, areas he vows to address if elected.

Bell said he has stayed the course with his values since he was first elected as district attorney.

When I was elected in 2014 to be the district attorney, I told our staff that our mission was to do the right thing at the right time for the right reason,  Bell said. That has been our guiding principle ever since, and I am proud of our service to the people of Rutherford and McDowell counties. We have worked hard to fight crime and particularly the drug problem in our county  by sending drug traffickers and dealers to prison and by prosecuting the first ever drug ring conspiracy cases in our district. At the same time, we have worked with community leaders and treatment providers in the county to develop a treatment program for substance abusers who end up in court. We have been aggressive in prosecuting property crimes and taken a zero-tolerance approach to the crime of breaking-and-entering, demanding an active sentence for anyone who breaks into a persons home.

Bell also touts his office as accessible to the public.

So far, no Democrat challengers have expressed an interest in filing for district attorney.

If the race remains between Bell and Evans, the contest between the two Republicans could decide the next district attorney in the March 8, 2022 GOP primary, just as it was in the 2018 election when Bell defeated Garland Byers, Jr.

Filing for the office begins Dec. 6, 2021 through Dec. 17, 2021, according to the Board of Elections.
22-Month-Olds Lungs Collapsed After He Was Born With Cystsbut Thanks to Health Workers, Hes Thriving

Will and Erin Caffreys 22-month-old son Charlie suffers from a potentially fatal lung condition. He was still in his mothers womb when they learned of the cysts that were in his lungs.

The couple, from the UK, were heartbroken, yet with the help of healthcare workers, Charlie is now looking forward to his second birthday.

We didnt know anything about CCAM at the time, it was scary not knowing what the outcome would be, Erin told The Epoch Times, referencing the condition known as congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation (or CCAM).

The disease causes abnormal, nonfunctioning masses of tissue, or cysts, in the lungs, which can lead to cancer and be fatal.

Married for about three years, the Newcastle-based couple met in school and fell in love.

They learned of Charlies condition during Erins pregnancy but had their doctors assurance that all was safe. However, things worsened once Charlie entered the world.

When Charlie was born his lung collapsedI held him for around 30 seconds before he was rushed into SCBU (special care baby unit/NICU), said Erin.

There they did an X-ray and saw there was air around his lung so they inserted a chest drain into him to drain the air.

Charlie underwent several CT scans, blood tests, and a bronchoscopy to gauge his health and find the right treatment for him. He was then prepped for surgery in December.

Now almost 2 years old, Charlie is doing much better. He enjoys life like most kids his age, despite having CCAM.

Even when the majority of his left lung was taken up by cysts hes always been such a well baby considering the circumstancesthats why the need for surgery and the results of his CT scan last December were such a shock to us and his consultant, explained the mother.

As Charlie continues growing, hes also becoming more aware of his surroundings; he doesnt like to lie down for X-rays or checkups, which makes treatment more difficult.

Nor is treatment entirely over yet for the little man.

We cant explain how happy and relieved we were to find out that his cysts werent cancerousand were in fact just aggressive CCAM and bruised lymph nodes, said Erin.

However there is a slim chance that we could go through this all over again and be told for the 3rd time they think Charlie may have cancerous cysts due to the fact that there are still some cysts left in his upper left lung (only the lower lobe was removed).

Glad to see their son recovering all the same, the couple are hopeful that he will continue showing improvement.

Meanwhile, Erin also took the opportunity to thank the National Health Service (NHS) workers for their service in helping her son.

We also just want to say how grateful we are for our amazing NHS, she said. Every single person who has cared for Charlie during his numerous hospital admissions and visits has been fantastic.

We [couldnt] have asked for a better, more dedicated consultant, and the PICU team that looked after Charlie after his surgery were honestly so amazing, they never stopped.

To repay the medical professionals who helped treat their child, the couple started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for the NHS, and have already raised 2,155 pounds (approx. US$3,038)a little more than their 2,000-pound (approx. US$2,820) goal.

Share your stories with us at emg.inspired@epochtimes.com, and continue to get your daily dose of inspiration by signing up for the Epoch Inspired newsletter at TheEpochTimes.com/newsletter
An Israeli artillery unit fires toward targets in the Gaza Strip, at the Israel-Gaza border, on May 15, 2021. (Ariel Schalit/AP Photo)

Israel Bombs Home of Top Hamas Leader

Israel pummeled Gaza with air strikes and Palestinian terrorists launched rocket barrages at Israel on Saturday, with no sign yet of an end to the worst escalation in years after six days of conflict and amid a rising death toll.

Israel on Saturday bombed the home of Khalil al-Hayeh, a top leader of Gazas ruling Hamas terrorist group.

The Israeli military said Al-Hayehs home served as part of what it said was the groups terrorist infrastructure. Al-Hayeh is a senior figure in the Hamas political leadership in Gaza. His fate after the strike was not immediately known.

Israels military also brought down a 12-story block in Gaza City that housed the Associated Press and Qatar-based Al Jazeera media operations, as well as other offices and apartments.

Israel gave advance warning of the strike so it could be evacuated. The Israeli military said later the building was a legitimate military target because it contained military assets of Hamas.

The strike was condemned by the AP and Al Jazeera. The United States told Israel that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told U.S. President Joe Biden in a phone call that Israel is doing everything to avoid harming non-combatants in its fighting with Hamas and other groups in Gaza.

Netanyahu said proof of this was that during recent Israeli strikes on multi-story towers in which terrorist targets were attacked by the IDF (military), the non-combatants were evacuated, a summary of the phone call released by Netanyahus office said.

Biden also spoke directly with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday, Abbas office said, the first time the two leaders have spoken since Biden took office in January.

Streaks of light are seen from Ashkelon as Israels Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, on May 15, 2021. (Amir Cohen/Reuters)

Diplomacy has so far failed to quell the worst escalation in fighting between Israel and Palestinians since 2014.

Israel said on Saturday about 2,300 rockets had been fired from Gaza at Israel since Monday, with about 1,000 intercepted by missile defenses and 380 falling into the Gaza Strip.

Palestinians say at least 140 people, including 39 children, have been killed in Gaza since the conflict erupted on Monday. Israel has reported 10 dead, including two children.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report
California District Attorney Warns of Anti-Cop and Anti-Victim Agenda | District Attorney Todd Spitzer

Los Angeles and San Francisco are taking a relaxed approach to crimes, and California is reducing the sentences of over 70,000 inmates. My guest is Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer, who also served as the chair of the California Assembly Committee on Prison Construction and Operations.

He discusses a group of Californias district attorneys who do not agree with Californias major cities approach to crime and the impacts of these policies on the state.

California Insider is an 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.
Guards walk near a Tesla stand during the 19th Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition in Shanghai on April 19, 2021. (Photo by Hector RETAMAL / AFP) (Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images)

China Lawyer Says Tesla Protest Is Designed to Please the CCP

Following her protest against Tesla at the Shanghai Auto Show last month, a woman surnamed Zhang, owner of a Tesla electric vehicle from Anyang, Henan Province, filed a lawsuit on May 6 with Beiguan Court against Tesla China and its Vice President Tao Lin for defamation. She is demanding a public apology and about $7,800 in compensation for moral damages from Tesla. Tesla said that it would respond to the lawsuit.

Zhang staged her protest on April 19, the first day of the Shanghai Auto Show by standing atop a Tesla car and yelling Teslas brakes failed before she was dragged away. She claimed a failure of her Model 3 Teslas brakes almost killed four of her family members in the car, while Tesla said her vehicle data showed her car was traveling at 74 mph and the brakes were functioning properly.

Zhangs Lawsuit

On the evening of May 6, Zhang released a statement on her lawsuit, claiming that Tesla and Tao had repeatedly made statements that created an image of the car owner as a professional troublemaker.

She said these inaccurate remarks have damaged her image and caused serious disturbance to her life and that of her family. The plaintiff (Zhang) was subjected to a daily barrage of online attacks and verbal abuse, according to her litigation.

This is only Episode One, after which [well] bring a lawsuit against the brake failure, [and well] make it into a serialized drama, Zhangs husband said in an interview with Chinese media later that day.

Beijings Changing Its Attitude Toward Tesla

Zhang and her husband are using the right timing to stage their protests against Tesla.

In 2018, amidst the trade war between Beijing and Washington, Tesla was being welcomed by two Chinese megacities: Shanghai and Guangzhou. Shanghai finally won over Tesla by offering more favorable policies to Tesla, which signed the cooperation contract with Shanghai in that year, as reported by BJNews.com in July 2018, a state-run news outlet under the administration of the Beijing Publicity Department.

The construction of Teslas Shanghai production facility was completed in 10 months, a construction speed hailed by the CCPs mouthpiece Xinhua news agency as Shanghai speed.

On Jan. 9, 2020, Li Keqiang, Chinese Prime Minister, met Elon Musk at Zhongnanhai, the headquarters of the CCP and its State Council. Three Tesla models were parked outside of the premises for Lis inspection.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk (L) speaks as Chinese Premier Li Keqiang listens during a meeting at the Zhongnanhai leadership compound in Beijing on Jan. 9, 2019. (Mark Schiefelbein/AFP via Getty Images)

I hope that Tesla will become a participant in Chinas deepening reform and opening up, and a driving force in the stable development of Sino-US relations, Li told Teslas CEO at the meeting, according to a press release from the CCPs State Council. Musk replied that Tesla would strive to make the Shanghai plant one of the most advanced in the world.

Teslas honeymoon period with Beijing did not last long, as there are increasing critics from the Chinese regime on Tesla starting from 2019.

As Business Insider Australia noted, bubbling up complaints about Teslas customer service and safety appeared on Chinas social media.

The outlet also noted that Beijing is using state-controlled media to criticize Tesla.

Chinese regime regulators acted as well. Chinas State Administration for Market Regulation said in a social media post its officials, along with those from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Emergency Management, Cyberspace Administration and Ministry of Transportation had met Tesla, reported Reuters in February.

On April 8, 2021, cnBeta, a Chinese real-time tech news site, published an article that mentioned the meeting of the CCPs regulating bodies with Tesla on Feb. 8 this year. The article especially pointed out that the appearance of the Central Cyberspace Administration among the five ministries triggered widespread discussions. It also quotes a comment from Xinhua as saying, (People from) Tesla should understand that the privacy involved in the car is not something you want to collect, you can then collect!

The cnBeta report revealed that the Chinese regime began to ban its military personnel and employees of major state-owned enterprises from using Teslas cars, and it quoted sources from Tesla confirming that it was true Chinese military quarters do not allow Teslas to approach or enter in fear of Tesla collecting relevant data.

The CCPs Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) released a notice on its website on April 7, 2021, inviting public comments on its Guideline for Governance of Intelligent and Connected Vehicle Production Enterprises and Products (Draft for Public Comments). Article 3 of the Guideline requires that Personal information and important data collected and generated in the operation within the borders of the Peoples Republic of China should be stored in the territory in accordance with the relevant provisions. Data that must be provided overseas due to business needs is to be reported to the relevant supervising industry departments.

According to the cnBeta report, experts predicted that Tesla and other overseas vehicle manufactures would probably be required to set up their data storage centers in China, as Apple has set up its data center in Guizhou Province, China.

Tesla has recently paid back in full the $614 million loan for the construction of its Shanghai plant, triggering speculation and rumor that Tesla is preparing to exit China.

China Lawyer: Zhangs Goal Is to Please the CCP

Under the pseudonym Liu for safety concerns, a Beijing lawyer told the Chinese edition of The Epoch Times in an interview that Zhangs purpose of the lawsuit is to curry favor with CCP (Chinese Communist Party) authorities and that her current behavior is completely evasive and nonsensical.

Liu said that since Zhang wants to defend her rights, she should focus on the specific cause of the accident and investigations should be made to find out whether the accident occurred due to excessive speed, what the time of braking was, and if the driver was driving correctly.

According to Liu, from a legal point of view, defamation is a crime in which a violator must take the initiative to infringe the reputation of another. But so far he has not seen Tesla making any other comments on the issue of Zhangs reputation that are not related to the car accident. Zhang is now suing Tesla for reputation infringement, which is completely nonsensical, Liu said.

In regards to Zhang saying that she was under online attacks and verbal abuse, Liu said that the netizens were commenting on her inappropriate, excessive, and unreasonable behavior and that it was not Tesla releasing the pre-accident driving data that caused her to be accused by netizens. Lie said: There is no way to establish a causal relationship between Zhang being accused and Teslas objective and truthful release of technical data. So what is the point of [Zhang] continuing with such a lawsuit?

Liu said that it did not bear scrutiny that Zhang climbed atop a Tesla at Shanghai Auto Show, claiming that she was pregnant. An experienced person knows at a glance that she isnt really defending her rights, Liu said.

He said that Zhang and her husbands performance also showed some people in mainland China only care about making money, even if its through illegal or shameless methods, and that they had become indifferent to right or wrong, civil justice, values, or a positive outlook of life.

As long as she thinks that her behavior is what the authorities are happy to see and in line with the needs of the authorities, she is emboldened to conduct this shameless behavior to the very end, said Liu.

Tesla Responds to the Lawsuit

On May 7, Tesla China responded to Chinese media that it believes the law will give a fair and just verdict on the lawsuit filed by Zhang.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk gestures during the Tesla China-made Model 3 Delivery Ceremony in Shanghai on Jan. 7, 2020. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Tesla said that they have been focusing on product quality issues and have been working hard for the vehicles to be tested by third-party authoritative organizations under the designation or supervision of the relevant departments. However, up to now, Zhang has not agreed to accept qualified third-party testing under the designation or supervision of the relevant departments.

According to a report on finance.sina, The driver was Zhangs father at the time of the accident, but her father himself did not come forward to explain the driving situation. Zhang said she was playing with her cell phone in the car at the time of the accident. To date, the allegations of Teslas brake failure are only Zhangs verbal descriptions, and there is no valid data from a third party.

Tesla also said that for nearly two months, Tesla has been actively communicating with Zhang, hoping to help her solve the problem. But though Tesla has endeavored multiple efforts, Zhang still has not agreed to analyze the EDR (Event Data Recording System) data on the vehicle to find out the truth, says the report.

We will continue to make every effort to promote the vehicle inspection and give an explanation to all the public who are concerned about the incident, Tesla was quoted as saying so by the Chinese medium.

Heated Online Discussion on the Incident by Chinese Netizens

The incident has aroused widespread public attention and heated comments on the Internet in China.

A netizen called A Kindergarten Kid says: You (Zhang, the Tesla car owner) are wasting public resources every day. Go get a test. You were complaining about the brakes. Get a test then. The data has been provided to you. You should analyze it and find evidence to nail Tesla. So many days are gone, and still, you havent any evidence.

Netizen Victory Village Maya says: Cant someone see it clearly now? The car owner just wants the farce to get more attention and to extort money. As to the quality of the brakes, neither do they care nor do they want to make it public. 

Netizen jianj09 says: Why not sue (Tesla) for the quality issue of the car? Why (the incident) all of sudden has become an issue of reputation?

Netizen Shengjian replied to the post: (Its) very obvious that, to the Henan owner of the car, that (quality of the car) is not of top priority.

Netizen Zhelirensheng (literally Life in hometown of Zhengjiang) says: (the car owner) has no sense of shame at all.

Netizen LeviBuzzard says: If you say theres no team (to back up), it is an insult to (my) IQ.

A Replay of the Protest

On April 19, wearing a white T-shirt printed with a Tesla logo and Chinese characters meaning brake failure, Zhang stood atop a display car inside Teslas booth at Shanghai Auto Show and yelled: Teslas brakes failed! She said that in February a Model 3 Tesla that she was driving had a failure with its brakes, causing her to collide with two cars, and that four of her family members in the car nearly got killed in the car crash.

Zhang demanded high compensation from Tesla China, which responded twice that it would not compromise with unreasonable demands. Tao Lin, Vice President of Tesla China, said in an interview with Chinese media that she felt Zhang was acting professionally and that there could be (someone) backing (Zhang).

It triggered criticisms from the CCPs various media outlets.

The next day, consecutive articles denouncing Tesla were published by the CCPs official media Xinhua News Agency and the media affiliated with the CCPs Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, a CCP body that oversees the countrys legal apparatus. Tesla was forced to apologize.

On April 23, the CCPs mouthpiece Economic Daily called the relevant (Chinese) authorities to order Tesla to immediately suspend production and sales for rectification in its report.

On April 25, the CCPs party organ CCTV claimed that Tesla was out of control.

Tesla, besides making public apologies, released on April 22 the driving data of the vehicle before the accident, which indicated that the car was driving at high speed before the accident and that Teslas automatic braking system slowed it down considerably.

On April 28, Tesla published a statement on its official Weibo (a popular microblog platform in China) account, disclosing that on the day of the accident, it was Zhangs father who was driving the car and that Zhang was playing with her cell phone in the passenger seat when she felt the car was going too fast and caused the crash. Later at night, the traffic police ruled that Zhangs father was fully responsible for the accident because he failed to keep a safe distance from the car in front of him.

Tesla also said in the statement that in March, Zhangs husband made it clear that he had a team from Beijing helping him, and that they had to do as they were told because they had got help from these people through cooperation. Tesla also revealed that on April 19, Zhang claimed herself to be three months pregnant, but that the police later confirmed she was not pregnant.

As previously reported by The Epoch Times, mainlanders believe that the incident had government support at the back and that the Chinese regime is using Tesla to promote its domestic smart car brand.
Chinese Mother of Man Imprisoned, Tortured Over Posts About Chinese Leaders Daughter Fears for Her Own Safety

The mother of an imprisoned 21-year-old man in China sought help through social media when police knocked on her door. Coco (pseudonym) said in a recent interview with the Chinese Epoch Times that she feared losing her own life, so she didnt open the door.

This is Tengyus mother. Hurry! Theyre knocking on the door outside, she pleaded in a recording of her whispering voice. The recorded message in Chinese circulated on Twitter Wednesday morning.

A policemans voice heard in the background shouts, Police visiting; open the door!

Cocos son, Niu Tengyu, has been in prison since 2019 and repeatedly beaten for allegedly posting photos and identification numbers of Xi Mingze, Chinese leader Xi Jinpings daughter.

Niu Tengyus mother in an undated photo. (Provided to The Epoch Times)

Niu was arrested in July 2019 and sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for picking quarrels and provoking trouble by Maoming Maonan District Peoples Court in Chinas southern Guangdong Province last December.

While being detained, he was given the code name MM20, Coco said.

Nius current defense lawyer issued a letter of complaint against authorities for torturing Niu to extract a confession, detailing tactics such as locking him in a small black room, hanging and whipping him with only his toes on the ground, dripping hot wax on his skin, stripping him naked and taking photos, forcing him to kowtow to police, humiliating punishments, beatings, and burning his private parts with a lighter.

On May 5, after meeting with her son at the local Maoming No. 1 Detention Center, Coco went to Luocun Hospital in Guangzhou, where Niu was admitted for serious injury, to investigate the truth about the torture.

A person from the hospital told her, When this young man [Niu] was carried in, he was pop-eyed. His breathing was quite difficult. He could not speak, only nodding and shaking his head while being asked questions  gasping for breath.

Other staff told Coco they had been informed by hospital leaders that talking to investigators about MM20s case would result in serious consequences.

Coco believes that her visit to the hospital was unsettling to the authorities, who are afraid of the truth coming to light, because she had never before experienced intimidation from the police.

The police officers kept shouting and knocking on her door for around four hours, she said, starting at 8 a.m on Wednesday, then restarting at around 1 p.m.

Since Tuesday night (May 11), her SIM card has been disconnected from the network, and she cant make purchases through her account on Taobao, a Chinese online shopping platform.

Nius sentence caused an unacknowledged blow to his grandparents, who eventually passed away one after the other. This chain of events has brought about great mental anguish for Coco and her physical health took a sharp turn for the worse. She has become nearly blind and injured her legs in a fall.

She wondered whether she would be released alive if she gets arrested.

Meanwhile, the scared mother insisted that Niu had no involvement in the doxxing, as the information of Xis family had first appeared on two other similar sites based overseas.

She appealed to the outside world to pay attention to her safety. If Im arrested, I hope that everyone will continue to seek justice for my child, she said.

Hong Ning contributed to this report.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 10:58:11|Editor: huaxia

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The graphic simulated image taken on May 15, 2021 shows China's probe landing on Mars. The lander carrying China's first Mars rover has touched down on the red planet, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) confirmed on Saturday morning. It is the first time China has landed a probe on a planet other than Earth. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The lander carrying China's first Mars rover has touched down on the red planet, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) confirmed on Saturday morning.

It is the first time China has landed a probe on a planet other than Earth.

"The Mars exploration mission has been a total success," Zhang Kejian, head of the CNSA, announced at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center.

After the success was confirmed, the control center in Beijing was filled with cheers and applause.

"It's another important milestone for China's space exploration," he said.

The Tianwen-1 probe touched down at its pre-selected landing area in the southern part of Utopia Planitia, a vast plain on the northern hemisphere of Mars, at 7:18 a.m. (Beijing Time), the CNSA announced.

It took ground controllers more than an hour to establish the success of the pre-programmed landing. They had to wait for the rover to autonomously unfold its solar panels and antenna to send the signals after landing, and there was a time delay of more than 17 minutes due to the 320-million-km distance between Earth and Mars.

Tianwen-1, consisting of an orbiter, a lander and a rover, was launched from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site on the coast of southern China's island province of Hainan on July 23, 2020. It was the first step in China's planetary exploration of the solar system, with the aim of completing orbiting, landing and roving on the red planet in one mission.

The name Tianwen, meaning Questions to Heaven, comes from a poem written by the ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan (about 340-278 BC). China's first Mars rover is named Zhurong after the god of fire in ancient Chinese mythology, which echoes with the Chinese name of the red planet: Huoxing (the planet of fire).

The spacecraft entered the Mars orbit in February after a journey of nearly seven months through space, and spent more than two months surveying potential landing sites.

In the early hours of Saturday, the spacecraft began to descend from its parking orbit, and the entry capsule enclosing the lander and rover separated from the orbiter at about 4 a.m.

After flying for approximately three hours, the entry capsule hurtled toward the red planet and entered the Mars atmosphere at an altitude of 125 km, initiating the riskiest phase of the whole mission.

First, the specially designed aerodynamic shape of the entry capsule decelerated with the friction of the Martian atmosphere. When the velocity of the spacecraft was lowered from 4.8 km per second to about 460 meters per second, a huge parachute covering an area of about 200 square meters was unfurled to continue reducing the velocity to less than 100 meters per second.

The parachute and the outer shield of the spacecraft were then jettisoned, exposing the lander and rover, and the retrorocket on the lander was fired to further slow the speed of the craft to almost zero.

At about 100 meters above the Martian surface, the craft hovered to identify obstacles and measured the slopes of the surface. Avoiding the obstacles, it selected a relatively flat area and descended slowly, touching down safely with its four buffer legs.

The craft's plummet through the Martian atmosphere, lasting about nine minutes, was extremely complicated with no ground control, and had to be performed by the spacecraft autonomously, said Geng Yan, an official at the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the CNSA.

"Each step had only one chance, and the actions were closely linked. If there had been any flaw, the landing would have failed," said Geng.

After separating from the entry capsule, the orbiter, with a designed lifespan of one Martian year (about 687 days on Earth), was lifted to return to its parking orbit and helped relay communications between the landing vehicle and Earth.

The rover Zhurong will take a further seven to eight days to detect the surrounding environment and conduct self checks before moving down from the lander to the Martian surface, according to Geng.

The six-wheeled solar-powered Zhurong rover, resembling a blue butterfly and with a mass of 240 kg, has an expected lifespan of at least 90 Martian days (about three months on Earth).

China has constructed Asia's largest steerable radio telescope with an antenna 70 meters in diameter in Wuqing District of northern China's Tianjin to receive data from the Mars exploration mission.

"According to the images sent back from the orbiter earlier, we've found a large crater with a diameter of about 620 meters close to the landing area of the probe," said Zhao Shu, a senior engineer at the National Astronomical Observatories under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The camera on the orbiter has taken detailed images at a resolution of about 0.7 meters, revealing the pre-selected landing area has complicated terrain with many rocks and more craters than previously expected, said Wang Chuang, one of the designers of the probe from the China Academy of Space Technology.

"But we believe the design of our probe is capable of landing in and exploring the region," said Wang. Enditem
Court Declares Missing German Billionaire Dead After 3 Years

BERLINA German court on Friday officially declared billionaire Karl-Erivan Haub dead, more than three years after the head of retail group Tengelmann went missing in the Swiss Alps.

Haub, who was 58, was training for a ski mountaineering race when he disappeared under Switzerlands famous Matterhorn peak, located on the southern border with Italy.

He was last seen on the morning of April 7, 2018, as he headed up a mountain lift with skis and a daypack, and was reported missing to police the following morning after he failed to show up at his hotel in the Swiss resort of Zermatt.

Haubs family gave up hope of finding him alive after a week and the search for him was officially called off in October 2018.

The district court in Cologne, where Haub lived, said Friday it has now formally declared him dead, giving the time of death as midnight on April 7, 2018. Haub was born on March 2, 1960 in Tacoma, Washington, and was a German-U.S. dual citizen.

Haubs brothers, company, and wife had applied to have him officially declared dead. The court said it was satisfied by the evidence.

His younger brother, Christian Haub, was named as Tengelmanns sole CEO after the disappearance. The two had run Tengelmann together since 2000.
Democrat Seeks to Censure 3 GOP Congress Members Who Dangerously Mischaracterized Jan. 6

Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) is seeking to censure three Republican colleagues who he claims downplayed what happened on Jan. 6 when people breached the U.S. Capitol in Washington.

The Democrat is looking for co-sponsors for a resolution that would censure Reps. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.), Jody Hice (R-Ga.), and Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) for comments they made during a recent congressional hearing.

As members of Congress, we have a responsibility to our constituents, the country, and the Constitution to be truthful about facts even when it is inconvenient and uncomfortable, Cicilline wrote in a letter to other House members. These members cannot be allowed to rewrite history at their convenience by disrespecting the sacrifices made by Capitol police officers and downplaying the violent, destructive intent that rioters carried into this sacred building.

He said during an appearance on MSNBC: Its very dangerous. It really emboldens others who might consider doing the same thing if it can be explained away.

Colleagues were told to fill out a form if they want to co-sponsor the resolution, which has yet to be released.

At issue are remarks the three Republican members made during a House Oversight Committee hearing on May 12.

Clyde, at one point, told the hearing that what happened on Jan. 6 was not an insurrection because, he argued, they were not trying to defeat the government. He described the participants as an undisciplined mob, some of whom committed acts of vandalism.

No one who participated in the breach has been charged with insurrection.

Clyde also said that people who entered Statuary Hall were orderly, saying, If you didnt know the TV footage was a video from January the 6th, you would actually think it was a normal tourist visit.

Gosar questioned a former Department of Justice official about the death of Ashli Babbitt, an unarmed Air Force veteran who was fatally shot by a U.S. Capitol Police officer when she reportedly tried to climb through a broken window into the Speakers Lobby, adjacent to the House chamber.

As the death certificate says, it was a homicide. Who executed Ashli? Gosar asked.

Former Acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen said he didnt want to talk about individual cases.

The Department of Justice cleared the officer, who has never been identified publicly, last month, saying an investigation determined that there was insufficient evidence to support a criminal prosecution.

Hice, who is running for Georgia secretary of state, noted that media reports initially claimed that the mob killed Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, although an autopsy concluded the officer died on Jan. 7 from natural causes. He also emphasized that former President Donald Trump told supporters at The Ellipse on Jan. 6 that they should remain peaceful after recommending they march to the Capitol.

Democrats hold a slim majority in the House, enabling them to censure or remove members from committees with no minority support. Democrats in February removed Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) from two committee posts over her past comments and actions.

The offices of Clyde and Hice didnt immediately respond to requests by The Epoch Times for comment.

Gosar told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement: I will continue to seek the truth and I wont hesitate to point out exaggerations, misrepresentations, or outright lies about the January 6th riot. That some people dont want these questions answered is inexplicable to rational people.
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm attends the inaugural meeting of the Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment, in Vice President Kamala Harris' ceremonial office, in Washington on May 13, 2021. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo)

Energy Secretary Predicts Normal Service at Gas Pumps by Late Sunday

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm believes normal service at gas stations across the eastern U.S. will be back to normal by late Sunday after a spate of shortages and long lines driven by a cyber attack on a major pipeline.

The problems peaked on Thursday night and outages were down as of Friday afternoon by about 12 percent, with about 200 stations getting gas per hour, Granholm told the Associated Press.

Its still going to work its way through the system over the next few days, but we should be back to normal fairly soon, she said.

The number of shortages steadily grew after Colonial Pipeline revealed its network was compromised by hackers identified by U.S. authorities as DarkSide, a cybercriminal ring. Over 15,000 gas stations were out of fuel nationwide on May 13.

As of Friday night, outages had dropped in some of the worst-hit states, according to data from the availability and pricing app GasBuddy. But 67 percent of North Carolina stations remained without gas, as did 49 percent of stations in South Carolina, 46 percent of stations in Georgia, 43 percent of stations in Virginia, 39 percent of stations in Maryland, and around a quarter of stations in Florida and Tennessee.

Washington was struggling the most, with nearly nine out of 10 stations out of fuel.

Granholm has urged calm, telling Americans that they dont need to hoard and that regular supply would be restored soon. Colonial, which took the pipeline offline as a defensive measure in the wake of the attack, restored the operation on Thursday and began delivering to every market it serves, including Charlotte, North Carolina, and Baltimore, Maryland.

Really, the gasoline is coming, Granholm told the AP. If you take more than what you need, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy in terms of the shortages. Lets share a little bit with our neighbors and everybody should know that its going to be okay in the next few days.

A couple fills up multiple 5 gallon gas tanks at a Wawa gas station in Tampa, Fla., on May 12, 2021. (Octavio Jones/Reuters)

Patrick De Haan, an analyst with GasBuddy, told followers on Twitter on Friday that the choke point is too many stations needing fuel while there is a lack of fuel truck drivers and capacity at the rack.

He said not to expect a solid downward trend in shortages until the weekend and that drivers in some states could see shortages through May 27.

The American Automobile Association said Thursday that pumps would be full of fuel in several days.

The restart of the pipeline is very positive news for motorists, Jeanette McGee, a spokeswoman for the group, said. This is an especially good update ahead of the Memorial Day holiday.
Large solar panels are seen in a solar power plant in Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, on May 8, 2013. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Forced Uyghur Labor Behind Worlds Solar Panels, Investigation Finds

British researchers say the worlds production of solar panels is being fueled by forced labor from Uyghur Muslims in the Chinese province of Xinjiang.

An investigation by Sheffield Hallam University says some 45 percent of the worlds supply of a key component in the panelspolysiliconcomes from Xinjiang and is obtained through a vast system of coercion involving the Uyghur ethnic minority.

In Broad Daylight, the report from the universitys Helena Kennedy Center for International Justice, says the worlds four biggest panel manufacturers use polysilicon tainted by forced labor, and urges producers to source the substance from elsewhere.

It cited an official Chinese government report published in November which documented the placement of 2.6 million minoritized citizens in jobs in farms and factories in Xinjiang and elsewhere in the country through state-sponsored surplus labor and labor transfer initiatives.

The (Chinese) government claims that these programs are in accordance with PRC (Peoples Republic of China) law and that workers are engaged voluntarily, in a concerted government-supported effort to alleviate poverty, the report says.

However, significant evidencelargely drawn from government and corporate sourcesreveals that labor transfers are deployed in the Uyghur Region within an environment of unprecedented coercion, undergirded by the constant threat of re-education and internment.

Many indigenous workers are unable to refuse or walk away from these jobs, and thus the programs are tantamount to forcible transfer of populations and enslavement.

The report said the issue was exacerbated by the fact 95 percent of all solar modules relied on solar-grade polysilicon, which is extracted from mined quartz.

It said all polysilicon manufacturers in the Uyghur region had reported their participation in labor transfer programs and/or are supplied by raw materials companies that have.

The reports authors said they had investigated the entire solar module supply chain from quartz to panel to better understand the extent to which forced labor in Xinjiang affected international solar panel supply chains, in order to provide stakeholders with the evidence base upon which to judge risk of exposure to forced labor.

China has drawn increasing international condemnation over its treatment of Uyghur Muslims, including allegations of mass detentions and human rights abuses including forced labor and the forcible sterilization of women.

In March, the UK, the United States, Canada, and the European Union placed sanctions on Chinese officials deemed to be responsible for human rights abuses in Xinjiang.

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the abuse of the Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang was one of the worst human rights crises of our time and the international community cannot simply look the other way.

By Trevor Marshallsea
A sign for the Department of Justice, in Washington, on Jan. 12, 2021. (Sarah Silbiger-Pool/Getty Images)

Former Professor Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison for Using Federal Grants to Aid Chinas Medical Research

A biomedical professor has been sentenced to 37 months in prison for carrying out a scheme to use millions of dollars in federal grant money to advance research in China, according to the Justice Department.

Zheng Songguo, a former professor at Ohio State University (OSU), pleaded guilty in November to lying on National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant applications in order to use $4.1 million in research grants to develop the fields of rheumatology and immunology for China, the department (DOJ) said.

He was arrested last May in Anchorage, Alaska, as he was preparing to board a charter flight to China in an attempt to flee the United States, the DOJ said. When taken into custody, he was carrying multiple items, including two laptops, three cell phones, several USB drives, several bars of silver, expired Chinese passports for his family, and deeds for property in China, prosecutors said.

The judge also ordered Zheng to pay more than $3.4 million in restitution to the NIH and about $413,000 to OSU.

For years, the defendant concealed his participation in Chinese government talent recruitment programs, hiding his affiliations with at least five research institutions in China, Assistant Director Alan E. Kohler Jr. of the FBIs Counterintelligence Division said in a statement.

The case is among a string of federal actions targeting academics who collaborate with Chinese institutions while receiving research funding from U.S. taxpayers. Many of these cases involve researchers who allegedly hid their participation in Chinese state-backed recruitment programs, such as the Thousand Talents Plan, which U.S. officials say serves as a vehicle for the transfer of U.S. research and know-how to China.

American research funding is provided by the American taxpayer for the benefit of American societynot as an illicit gift to the Chinese government, said Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers for the DOJs National Security Division.

Zheng admitted to making false statements in his NIH grant applications, hiding his participation in Chinese state-sponsored talent plans, and masking his collaboration with a Chinese university, prosecutors said.

The former professor led a team conducting autoimmune research at OSU and Pennsylvania State University. According to court documents, while employed at OSU, Zheng was also working at the Third Affiliated Hospital at Sun Yat-Sen University, a state-controlled school in southern Chinas Guangdong Province. The universitys homepage named him as an expert under the Thousand Talents Plan, court documents said. The website is no longer accessible.

Prosecutors said that Zheng had been participating in a Chinese talent plan since 2013. Since then, he used research conducted in the United States to benefit the Chinese regime.

According to court documents, at times, Zheng was receiving money from both the NIH and Chinas National Natural Science Foundation of China, which is managed by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Zheng didnt disclose these conflicts of interest to his U.S. employers or the NIH.

Last June, a former chair of Harvard Universitys chemistry department was indicted on charges of making false statements about funding he received from the Thousand Talents Plan while working on sensitive U.S. research. He has pleaded not guilty.
Former Trump Administration Official Casey Wardynski Announces Campaign for Congress

Casey Wardynski, who served as assistant secretary of the Army under former President Donald Trump, has announced that hes running for the Republican nomination for Alabamas 5th Congressional District in the 2022 election.

Im running for Congress to continue the work that President Trump started, Wardynski told The Epoch Times in an email.

We need leaders in D.C. that put America First, not weak Republicans that will cave to pressure from the radical left. Americans are tired of seeing weak Republicans abandon their campaign promises and not support a strong America First agenda.

Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.), who currently represents the district, says hes decided to seek the U.S. Senate seat thats coming open because of the retirement of Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.). Brooks has been endorsed by Trump.

At least two other Republicans have declared their candidacies for the seat being vacated by Brooks.

Andy Blalock, a middle-school science teacher who describes himself as conservative on fiscal policy and a moderate on social issues, and Dale Strong, a businessman who says he was an early supporter of Trump and would work on enacting many Trump-endorsed policies, are running.

Wardynski told The Epoch Times that hes an outsider like Trump, as opposed to a career politician.

I have a proven record as a tough, results-oriented leader. For example, President Trump asked the Army to build the wall. As the Assistant Secretary of the Army, my office revamped policy to quickly put the right people on the ground at the border. When I found out that West Point was teaching cadets critical race theory as a belief system, I shut it down, he said.

As Superintendent of a large urban school system, I turned a $19 million deficit into a surpluswithout raising taxes and while raising graduation rates by a third! Many candidates talk a great talk, but few fight to get the job done right.

Wardynski said the United States must finish the southern border wall, bring back Trumps foreign policy posture, and stop caving to Iran and China.

He also called to cancel the cancel culture and end the teaching of critical race theory in our schools and government agencies.

At least one other former Trump administration official is also running for Congress. Catalina Lauf is challenging Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), a fierce Trump critic, in Illinoiss 16th Congressional District.

This is a very Trump Republican district. So now hes in a fight, because were coming in, we have the resources and then we have the groundswell of support to be challenging him, she told The Epoch Times in March.
In an aerial view, fuel holding tanks are seen at Colonial Pipeline's Dorsey Junction Station in Washington on May 13, 2021. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Fuel Shortages Ease as Colonial Pipeline Resumes Normal Operations

A major fuel pipeline in the Eastern United States has resumed normal operations, its operator announced on May 15.

We have returned the system to normal operations, delivering millions of gallons per hour to the markets we serve, Colonial Pipeline said in a statement.

The Georgia-based firm initiated the restart of the approximately 5,500-mile pipeline, which stretches from Houston, Texas, to Linden, New Jersey, on May 12, but indicated at the time that it would take several days for operations to fully resume.

Markets served by the pipeline include Louisiana, Georgia, and Maryland.

About 13,450 stations were out of fuel on May 15, a drop from the 16,315 stations that were unable to serve customers two days prior, according to GasBuddy.

Shortages eased in some of the hardest-hit states, including North Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia. Some 4 out of 5 stations remained out of fuel in Washington, with about half remaining without gas in Georgia and North Carolina, as of May 15.

Data from GasBuddy showed U.S. gas demand dropping by 12.6 percent from May 7 to May 14, Patrick DeHaan, an analyst with the company, said on Twitter.

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm predicted normal service would resume at gas pumps by late into May 16.

Colonial suffered a so-called ransomware attack. A cybercriminal group infiltrated Colonials network and stole data, which it then held hostage in return for payment.

Colonial reportedly paid $5 million to the group. According to Tom Robinson of Elliptic, Colonial paid 75 bitcoina cryptocurrency currently worth over $48,000 eachon May 8.

A representative for the company declined to comment on whether the company paid a ransom.

Colonial took portions of its network offline when dealing with the attack, which led to the pipeline shutting down.

Americans rushed to stations to fill tanks after the company disclosed the attack and its response, leading to gas shortages and a spike in gas prices.

The average price per gallon was up to $3.04 on May 15, breaching $3 for the first time since 2014, according to the American Automobile Association. That was up from $2.96 a week ago and $2.86 a month ago.

Since this incident began, we have been clear that our focus was on the safe and efficient restoration of service to our pipeline system. That is what we have achieved through the commitment and dedication of the many Colonial team members, Colonial said on Saturday.

The firm said it has invested in IT and cybersecurity and will continue to put safety and system integrity first and will invest the required resources to maintain safe and reliable operations of our pipeline.
Media mogul Jimmy Lai Chee-ying arrives at West Kowloon Courts to face charges related to an illegal vigil assembly commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown in Hong Kong, on Oct.15, 2020. (Tyrone Siu/ Reuters)

Hong Kong Freezes Listed Shares of Media Tycoon Jimmy Lai Under Security Law

HONG KONGHong Kong authorities on Friday froze assets belonging to jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai, including all shares in his company, Next Digitalthe first time a listed firm has been targeted by national security laws in the financial hub.

Also among assets targeted were the local bank accounts of three companies owned by him, Hong Kongs Secretary for Security John Lee said in a government statement.

The statement, issued after the market close, said Lee had issued notices in writing to freeze all the shares of Next Digital Limited held by (Jimmy) Lai Chee-ying, and the property in the local bank accounts of three companies owned by him.

Lai was sentenced to 14 months in prison for taking part in unauthorized assemblies during pro-democracy protests in 2019.

He faces three alleged charges under a sweeping new national security law imposed by Beijing, including collusion with a foreign country.

The move against his assets was also made under the security law, which criminalizes acts including subversion, sedition, collusion with foreign forces, and secession with possible life imprisonment.

The decision by authorities to use the laws powers for the first time to target a Hong Kong listed company could have repercussions for investor sentiment.

There have been signs of capital flight since the law was imposed last June, to foreign countries including Canada, according to government agencies, bankers, and lawyers.

Clampdown

Beijing said it imposed the law on the former British colony to restore order after months of pro-democracy, anti-China protests in 2019.

However, critics say the law has been used by Chinas communist leaders to suppress freedoms and pro-democracy campaignersscores of whom have been arrested and jailed, or have fled into exile.

The chief executive officer of Next Digital, Cheung Kim-hung, told the Apple Daily that Lais frozen assets had nothing to do with the bank accounts of Next Digital, and that their operations and finances would not be affected.

The firms employees pledged to continue to uphold their duty and keep reporting, in a statement posted on the Facebook page of Next Digitals trade union.

Under Hong Kong stock exchange filings, Lai is Next Digitals major shareholder and holds 71.26 percent of shares that were worth around HK$350 million ($45 million) based on Fridays closing share price.

The value of the other property assets frozen by the authorities was not immediately clear.

Next Digital runs the Apple Daily, Hong Kongs most influential pro-democracy newspaper that has long been a thorn in the side of Hong Kong and Chinese authorities.

Senior Hong Kong officials have recently warned Apple Daily about its coverage and have spoken of the possible introduction of a fake news law. Critics say this is all part of an ongoing crackdown on the citys media.

The Taiwan arm of Apple Daily said on Friday it would stop publishing its print version, blaming declining advertising revenue and more difficult business conditions in Hong Kong linked to politics.

By Twinnie Siu and Jessie Pang
The American Red Cross Orange County Chapter in Santa Ana, Calif., on May 14, 2021. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Humanitarian Efforts in Orange County Recognized by Red Cross

Orange Countys everyday heroes were recognized May 14 for their self-sacrifices in making the community a better place.

The American Red Cross of Orange County honored the good Samaritans during a 2021 Heroes Award virtual luncheon.

Gift of Life

Jackie and Victor Miller are known for being regular platelet donors every other Sunday at 7 a.m., the Red Cross said. These blood donations are essential for those fighting cancer, diseases, and other injuries, it said.

Donating platelets has been important to us, Jackie Miller said. Its part of what we do to volunteer, and we know how important it is to help save lives.

According to the Red Cross, the couple has donated more than 1,000 units and never misses an appointment.

The couple was bestowed with a gift of life heros award.

Good Samaritan

Michael White was recognized for founding Wound Walk OC, a nonprofit that helps care for the homeless. He was this years recipient of the Red Crosss good Samaritan award.

Hes a real hero in the sense that he doesnt look for recognition, nominator Vicky Schulte said. He doesnt look for anything in return, and just works out there and serves others, and to me, thats the definition of a true hero.

The organization works to bring medical supplies, hygiene products, and food to the homeless. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Wright and his group of volunteers also provided the homeless with masks, sanitation, and hygiene products, food, and wound care, the Red Cross said.

Disaster Service

The Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) was awarded for its work fighting the Silverado Fire, Bond, and Blue Ridge fires.

Fire crews from Orange County Fire Authority began exhaustive and heroic measures to protect homes and slow the path of the [fires], the Red Cross said in a video played during the award ceremony. Fire authority firefighters have shown true heroism, strength, and compassion during these unpredictable and perilous times.

The OCFA has also responded to the pandemic by playing an important role in administering COVID-19 vaccine doses, the Red Cross said.

First Responder Hero Award

A newly formed Orange County care facility was spotlighted for its efforts to save lives through infection prevention.

The Long Term Care Facility Team was created in May 2020 by Dr. Helene Calvet, a retired deputy medical director of epidemiology, and was joined by Expert Stewardship, to help prevent infection to those living in nursing homes, the Red Cross said.

Calvet gathered a group of nurses to form a long-term care facility COVID-19 response team.

Corporate Hero Award

Wahoos Fish Taco co-founder extended a helping hand by delivering hundreds of meals to first responders and blood drives during the pandemic, the Red Cross said.

Wing Lams charitable act turned into a collaboration among 82 businesses, supporters, and volunteers called California Love Drop.

Its a privilege to serve others, particularly at a time when we all feel the stress and strain of the hardships brought about by the pandemic, Lam said. We are so fortunate to have such a dedicated group focused on something so much bigger than ourselves.

The organization has delivered 17,500 meals to frontliners during the pandemic.

Youth Hero Award

High school student Nithin Parthasarathy began making a difference in his community when he began running his own nonprofit, Zero Waste Initiative.

Parthasarathys nonprofit strives to reduce food waste and insecurity by taking unsold consumables from local food shops and delivering them to food banks, the Red Cross said.

Theres so many more people that really need food, Parthasarathy said. Every day, we go and drop off the bagels that we picked up at those organizations, and many of them serve abused women and children, people in need.  We also served firefighters as well during the Silverado fire.

Animal Welfare Hero Award

OC Animal Care was highlighted for its work in December 2019, when it received a report of 300 rabbits at a Fullerton residence, the Red Cross said.

Animal control officers addressed the issue, and within two days fully examined the condition of the rabbits and took them into care and treated them for injuries, the Red Cross stated, adding that after several months, all the rabbits were given a clean bill of health and new lease on life thanks to the team at OC Animal Care.

Armed Forces Hero

Jodie Merkles passion to serve the military and their families began in 2015 when she started to notice the impact of deployments and high suicide rates in veteran communities.

Merkle and her husband Christopher Merkle founded the Orange County chapter of Team Red White and Blue to address the mental and physical health of veterans and their families, the Red Cross said.

When you have a spouse that has seen war, they come back changed whether you want to admit it, Jodie said. Our goal with Team Red White and Blue is to enrich the lives of American veterans. We do that by connecting them to the community through physical and social activity.
Qantas flight QF112 touches down at RAAF Base Darwin in Darwin, Australia on May 15, 2021. (Steven Hoare/Getty Images)

India Repatriation Flight Lands in Darwin

After carrying life-saving oxygen equipment to India on Friday, a Qantas plane has returned on Saturday carrying Australians home from the CCP virus-ravaged country.

The 75-80 repatriated citizens, residents, and their families arrived in Darwin on QF 112 at 9.25 a.m. on Saturday and boarded busses to quarantine at the Howard Springs facility in the Northern Territory.

Passengers from flight QF112 are transported to the Howard Springs Quarantine Facility in Darwin, Australia on May 15, 2021. (Steven Hoare/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, around 40 people, along with 30 of their close contacts, were barred from boarding in India after they tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.

All passengers underwent PCR and rapid antigen testing before the eight-and-a-half hour flight, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said in a statement.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the controversial weeks-long pause in travel from India had worked, with active cases in hotel quarantine dropping more than 40 percent over the past few weeks.

Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne holds a joint press availability with US Secretary Antony Blinken at the US State Department in Washington, DC on May 13, 2021. (Leah Millis/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Foreign Minister Marise Payne said the temporary pause on flights ensured the countrys quarantine system was able to receive further flights.

These government-facilitated flights will be focused on returning Australian citizens, residents and families who have registered with our High Commission and consular offices within India and will prioritise the most vulnerable people, Payne said on Friday before the flight left Sydney for New Delhi.

Saturdays flight marks the 39th government-facilitated commercial repatriation flight from India. Since March 2020, over 6,400 Australians have been returned via this scheme.

More than 9,000 Australians remain in India registered as wanting to return, about 900 of them said to be desperate or vulnerable.

Fridays flight to New Delhi marked the second flight carrying essential medical supplies to support Indias health response under the Morrison governments $37.1 million support package.

A health worker refills empty oxygen cylinders at a COVID-19 care centre established by District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMA) in Srinagar, India, on May 6, 2021. (Abid Bhat/AFP via Getty Images)

Australia joined countries around the world in sending aid to India following the severe rate of CCP virus infections. Australia has now delivered over 15 tonnes of medical supplies, including over 2,000 ventilators and more than 100 oxygen concentrators, DFAT said.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said, The Australian government is committed to doing all it can to support the Indian governments response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The arrival of returnees from India comes after the former deputy chief medical officer, Dr Nick Coatsworth, warned that Australians have to come to terms with the fact the nation cannot ride out the pandemic in an eliminationist bunker.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Coatsworth told the Australasian College of Surgeons on Thursday morning that once a significant majority of the community is vaccinated, there will be pressure to open borders without resistance.

Relatives carry the body of a person who died of COVID-19 as multiple pyres of other COVID-19 victims burn at a crematorium in New Delhi, India on May 1, 2021. (Amit Sharma/AP Photo)

Meanwhile, Australias High Commissioner to India Barry OFarrell is disappointed those who tested positive werent allowed to get on the flight.

My team has worked hard across India to get them bookings on this flight because they are vulnerable, he told the ABC.

Regrettably those people will have to return home and deal with the COVID that they have, or continue to isolate to prove that they dont have COVID.

Until such time that they test negative they wont be able to fly on one of these facilitated flights, he said.

The next government-facilitated flight from India is expected into Darwin on May 23.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 15:00:49|Editor: huaxia

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Wang Yang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, attends the political advisors' lecture forum in Beijing, capital of China, May 14, 2021. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei)

BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- China's top political advisor Wang Yang has called for developing lecture forums of political advisors into a platform to publicize the Party's policies and decisions and build consensus.

Wang Yang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, made the call while attending the political advisors' lecture forum in Beijing on Friday.

Wu Degang, a member of the CPPCC National Committee, delivered a report on the century-old history of the CPC at the lecture forum.

After listening to the report, Wang said that the lecture on the study of Party history not only helped spread consensus to society but also improved political advisors' capability to conduct self-learning.

The lectures should be delivered in a way that political advisors in various sectors can understand, Wang said, urging efforts to promote the lectures through online and offline channels to maximize the influence. Enditem


Medical staff wait for Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines to be drawn up at the Hexham Mart Vaccination Centre in Hexham, England, on May 13, 2021. (Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)

Indian COVID-19 Variant Out-Competing Kent Variant: UK Expert

A CCP virus variant first detected in India has been out-competing the Kent variant in some areas in the UK, a British medical expert has said.

Paul Hunter, professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia, said the Indian COVID-19 variant of concern clearly has been out-competing the Kent variant, also known as the UK variant, in a number of areas around the UK.

According to data from Public Health England (PHE), cases of the variant nearly doubled from 520 to 1,313 this week in the UK. Four people have now died from the variant as of May 12.

Indeed its now in most regions of the UK, with the possible exception of Yorkshire and Humber in the Northeast, which seem to have very few cases so far, Hunter told BBC Radio 4s Today programme on Friday.

He said the Indian variant, also known as B1617.2, seems to be a little bit more resistant than the Kent variant, though it appears to be not as resistant as the South African variant.

It is currently infecting mostly younger people who have not been vaccinated, he said. When you look at the numbers of cases that were seeing, it is predominantly increasing in those people who are of an age that wont really have had much access to vaccines so far.

Hunter said that even vaccinated people are still getting infected with the Indian variant, but their symptoms are much less severe.

Theres some evidence indeed in the UK that once youve had the vaccine you may well still get COVID but itll be substantially less severe generally than it would have been otherwise.

He suggested that the governments plan to lift all COVID-19 restrictions on June 21 could be in doubt if the Indian variant causes increases in cases in elderly people and a rise in people needing hospital care.

If the Indian variant of the epidemic continues to increase at the same rate as it has over recent weeks, were going to have a huge number of cases by June.

At the moment, the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus variant seems to be spreading in unvaccinated younger people and not yet resulting in increasing hospital admissions, he said.

But he said the governments lockdown exit plan would be in doubt if the Indian variant spreads more among the elderly starts to increase hospitalisations, putting pressure on the National Health Service.

PA contributed to this report.
Then opposition leader Matteo Salvini speaks at the end of the debate at the Italian Senate on whether to allow him to be prosecuted, as he demands to be, for alleging holding migrants hostage for days aboard coast guard ship Gregoretti instead of letting them immediately disembark in Sicily, while he was interior minister, in Rome, Feb. 12, 2020. (Andrew Medichini, file/AP Photo)

Judge Dismisses Migrant Case Against Italys Matteo Salvini

MILANA judge in Sicily has dismissed a case against right-wing leader Matteo Salvini for keeping rescued migrants on board a coast guard ship in 2019, saying no crime had been committed.

Salvini had faced a possible indictment in the Sicilian port of Catania on charges of kidnapping for not allowing the migrants to disembark for five days that summer while he was interior minister.

Prosecutors had earlier recommended against ordering a trial, saying Salvini was carrying out government policy. Salvini defended his actions, adamant that other European Union nations must accept migrants who are trying to reach Europe and brought to Italian shores by rescue ships, and not leave Italy to manage on its own.

Salvini welcomed the decision, thanking supporters.

It is a beautiful day, not only for me and my family, but for all Italians who want a controlled, regulated, and positive immigration, and not thousands of arrivals that in this post-COVID summer we cannot permit, Salvini said on Italian private radio.

While the Catania case was dismissed, the leader of the right-wing League will face trial in the Sicilian capital of Palermo on kidnapping charges for failure to let a Spanish migrant rescue ship dock in 2019. The rescue ship, Open Arms, was kept at sea for days with 147 people saved in the central Mediterranean Sea. Trial is set to begin Sept. 15.

Italy this month is again seeing high numbers of arrivals on its southernmost island of Lampedusa. More than 2,100 people arrived over the weekend alone, as human traffickers took advantage of calm seas to launch often unseaworthy boats packed with migrants toward Italy.

By Colleen Barry
Thousands of participants take part in a memorial vigil in Victoria Park on June 4, 2020 in Hong Kong, China to honor the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. (Sung Pi-lung/The Epoch Times)

June 4 Vigil Organizer Says Candles Will Be Lit in Hong Kongs Victoria Park, Defying Beijing

June 4 this year will mark the 32nd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, and it will be the first year since the Chinese regime implemented the national security law in Hong Kong. While a number of democracy activists were given jail terms for participating in last years peaceful Tiananmen memorial rally, one organization vowed to hold a candlelight vigil in Victoria Park next month, despite pressure from Beijing authorities.

Hang Tung Chow, a Hong Kong barrister and vice-president of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (the Alliance) said that candles in Victoria Park will be lit as usual regardless of whether or not they get permission from the authorities.

Chow told the press at a street stall event on May 9 that the Alliance has notified the police of the June 4 commemorative activities, but has yet to receive a reply.

According to Apple Daily, Richard Tsoi, secretary of the Alliance, said that the organization will meet with the police on May 20 to try to get permission for a candlelight vigil on June 4. Due to the current political situation, the Alliance says they have to be careful and work more cautiously within the legal framework.

On May 4, the Alliance received a notification from the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, which states that the department has suspended the processing of venue bookings in response to the pandemic. This means that the Victoria Park venue will not be approved.

Despite that, Chow said, the Alliance still plans to enter Victoria Park, as the rally will be legal since the police have not opposed it.

We have our own bottom line, which is not to be crushed by their red line at will, said Chow.

Even if the police object to the rally, she said, They cannot oppose me going out with a candle, they cannot oppose me going anywhere with a candle. We insist on having a candlelight vigil in Victoria Park.

Chow said that in the coming days, the Alliance will work with different organizations to put up street stalls and distribute candles to the public.

Activists hold a candlelit remembrance in Victoria Park in Hong Kong on June 4, 2020, after an annual vigil that traditionally takes place in the park to mark the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre was banned on public health grounds because of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images)

She also pointed out that under the current environment, the national security law shouldnt hold people back from observing the June 4 incident. She hopes that more people can be motivated to help organizations set up street stalls, so that on June 4, many people can take the candles with them to places they can go. The Alliance will also launch an online campaign so that people from different places can participate, Chow added.

The Alliance was founded in May 1989, during the student-led democracy protests in Beijing, with Szeto Wah, one of the founding fathers of Hong Kongs democratic movement, as its first chairman.

Participants of Last Years June 4 Rally Sentenced

On June 4 last year, although the Hong Kong government banned the rally in Victoria Park on the pretext of the pandemic, tens of thousands of people still entered the park to light candles. The police did not stop the public from entering, and participants left peacefully after the memorial ceremony.

However, 26 pro-democracy activists, who participated in the rally, were charged with taking part in an unauthorized assembly. Among them, Joshua Wong, Lester Shum, Tiffany Yuen Ka-wai, and Jannelle Rosalynne Leung were sentenced to four to 10 months in prison on May 6.

Although the rally was peaceful, Judge Stanley Chan said in his ruling: I cannot disregard the fact that Hong Kong was and is still suffering from the volatility of public order and political turmoil in 2019. Emotion can run high and unruly elements can take advantage of any opportunity to incite and encourage violence. That is especially the case when the event was held on a special day. This is a potential risk factor that cannot be underestimated or ignored.

After the verdict was handed down, Chow told the press outside the courthouse that the court has now obliterated the line between violent and peaceful assembly, and that the message of the courts verdict was that all political expression and assembly must be nipped in the bud, according to a report by Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK).

She also wrote on her Facebook account: Nazi massacres, communist totalitarianism, racial segregation, how many evils have been carried out in the name of the law and in an orderly manner?

Among the 26 activists charged, 20 have pleaded not guilty. Nathan Law Kwun-chung fled from Hong Kong due to security reasons, and Sunny Cheung also left the city to avoid arrest.

The case will be brought back to court on June 11.

Thousands of participants take part in a memorial vigil to honor the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre in Victoria Park in Hong Kong on June 4, 2020. (Sung Pi-lung/The Epoch Times)

The Hong Kong national security law was implemented by Beijing in June last year, following the withdrawal of an extradition bill in October 2019, which once triggered nearly 2 million people to take to the streets on June 16 that year. The security law was drafted behind closed doors by members of Chinas rubber-stamp legislature, bypassing Hong Kongs Legislative Council. Many people feared the draconian measures could be used to override existing legal processes and erode the citys civil and political freedoms.

Two high-profile figures of the Alliance have already been sentenced. Lee Cheuk-yan, the chairman of the organization, was sentenced to 14 months in prison for his role in a peaceful anti-extradition bill protest in August 2019 and is currently serving his sentence.

The vice-chairman of the Alliance, Albert Ho, was sentenced to 12 months in prison and two years probation for his involvement in the August 2019 protest.

Be More Flexible or Uphold Promises?

Richard Tsoi, secretary of the Alliance, told The Epoch Times that in the face of severe legal and political risks, a flexible approach to commemorate the June 4 incident should be considered.

He said, compared to one year ago, the national security law has come into effect. The political environment is worse, and legal risks are higher.

I think we have to think about how to be more flexible and preserve our strength while sticking to our principles, he said.

However, Chow disagrees with him.

Right now, it is not a question of how much strength we want to preserve for ourselves, it is how much strength the government wants to eliminate. Unless you dont fight for democracy, unless you give up this fight, some things cannot be avoided, she said.

Chow added that people in mainland China were sentenced to three, four, or even 10 years for commemorating the Tiananmen Square massacre, and the people of Hong Kong should uphold their promises to the victims, the Tiananmen Mothers (pdf), the exiled and imprisoned brothers, sisters, and friends who have fought for democracy.

The Tiananmen Square protests, a youth-led movement advocating for democratic reforms, have become a taboo subject in China. The Chinese regime wont disclose the number or names of those killed in the clampdown. Death toll estimates from human rights groups and witnesses range from several hundred to several thousand.

Thousands of participants take part in a memorial vigil to honor the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre in Victoria Park in Hong Kong, China, on June 4, 2020. (Sung Pi-lung/The Epoch Times)

From 1989 to 2019: Hong Kongs Involvement in Chinas Pro-democracy Movement

Although the 1989 pro-democracy movement was centered in Beijing, the people of Hong Kong were also deeply involved.

After the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) declared martial law in Beijing on May 19, 1989, more than 40,000 Hongkongers took to the streets on the following day, despite the typhoon, to oppose the crackdown.

On May 21, over 1 million Hongkongers held a protest, accounting for about one-fifth of Hong Kongs population.

On June 4 that year, Hongkongers were horrified by the CCPs massacre in Beijing, where at least 10,000 protesters were killed, according to British and U.S. sources. Soon after, the Alliance launched Operation Yellowbird and has helped a large number of student leaders and participants in the pro-democracy movement to flee from China.

Since then, for 31 consecutive years, the Alliance has held a candlelight memorial service at Victoria Park on June 4. The maximum number of participants was 180,000 in 2012, 2014, and 2019 respectively.

The two events in 1989 and 2019 [anti-extradition bill protests] should not be forgotten, especially because so many Hong Kong people have participated in the 1989 pro-democracy movement. Whether it will be in Victoria Park or not, we can all express our mourning, condolences, and memories in different ways, Raphael Wong, chairman of the League of Social Democrats, told The Epoch Times.
Afghans stand near to mosque after a bomb explosion in Shakar Dara district of Kabul, Afghanistan, on May 14, 2021. (Rahmat Gul/AP Photo)

Kabul Mosque Bombing Kills 12 Worshippers: Afghan Police

KABUL, AfghanistanA bomb ripped through a mosque in northern Kabul during Friday prayers, killing 12 worshippers, and wounding 15, Afghan police said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing, the latest in a surge in violence as U.S. and NATO troops have begun their final withdrawal from the country, after 20 years of war.

According to Afghan police spokesman, Ferdaws Faramarz, the bomb exploded as prayers had begun. The mosques imam, Mofti Noman, was among the dead, the spokesman said and added that the initial police investigation suggests the imam may have been the target.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied any insurgent connection to the mosque attack, condemning it and accusing Afghanistans intelligence agency of being behind the explosion.

Afghan journalist take photos and film inside a mosque after a bomb explosion in Shakar Dara district of Kabul, Afghanistan, on May 14, 2021. (Rahmat Gul/AP Photo)

Afghans stand near to mosque after a bomb explosion in Shakar Dara district of Kabul, Afghanistan, on May 14, 2021. (Rahmat Gul/AP Photo)

Both the Taliban and government routinely blame each other for attacks. The attackers are rarely identified, and the public is seldom informed of the results of investigations into the many attacks in the capital.

One worshipper, Muhibullah Sahebzada, said he had just stepped into the building when the explosion went off. Stunned, he heard the sound of screams, including those of children, as smoke filled the mosque.

Sahebzada said he saw several bodies on the floor, and at least one child was among the wounded. It appeared the explosive device had been hidden inside the pulpit at the front of the mosque, he added.

I was afraid of a second explosion so I came immediately to my home he said.

An image circulating on social media shows three bodies lying on the floor of the mosque.

A Religious student cry inside a mosque after a bomb explosion in Shakar Dara district of Kabul, Afghanistan, on May 14, 2021. (Rahmat Gul/AP Photo)

The explosion comes on the second day of a three-day cease-fire announced by the Taliban for the Muslim holiday this week of Eid al-Fitr, which follows the fasting month of Ramadan. The Afghan government has also said it would abide by a truce during the holiday.

So far, many of the attacks in Kabul have been claimed by the ISIS terrorist groups local affiliate, though the Taliban and government routinely trade blame.

Last week, a powerful car bombing attack in Kabul killed over 90 people, many of them students leaving a girls school. The Taliban denied involvement and condemned the attack.

Earlier this week, U.S. troops left southern Kandahar Air Base, where some NATO forces still remain. At the wars peak, more than 30,000 U.S. troops were stationed in Kandahar, the Taliban heartland. The base in Kandahar was the second largest U.S. base in Afghanistan, after Bagram north of Kabul.

By Tameem Akhgar
A guard wears protective gear as he stands at the entrance to the Hubei provincial center for disease control and prevention while members of the World Health Organization (WHO) team investigating the origins of COVID-19 visit the center in Wuhan, China, on Feb. 1, 2021. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)

Leading Scientists Call for Proper Investigation of CCP Virus Lab Origin Theory

A group of international researchers are pushing for a proper investigation into the origins of COVID-19, including examining the lab accident theory that was all but dismissed in a World Health Organization (WHO) investigation.

The WHO-led mission in Wuhan, China, which released its findings in late March, didnt offer balanced consideration to the theory that the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus came from a laboratory accident, rather giving more weight to the natural zoonotic spillover hypothesisthat the virus spread to humans through an animal host, the scientists argued in a letter published May 14 in Science, a peer-reviewed academic journal.

The letter was signed by 18 medical experts in virology, biology, immunology, and epidemiology.

The WHO team assessed the animal origin theory as likely to very likely and the other as extremely unlikely, despite having no findings in clear support of either, they wrote, noting that of 313 pages total, the report only dedicated four pages to addressing a possible lab accident.

We must take hypotheses about both natural and laboratory spillovers seriously until we have sufficient data, the authors said. A proper investigation should be transparent, objective, data-driven  and responsibly managed to minimize the impact of conflicts of interest.

Security personnel stand guard outside the Wuhan Institute of Virology as members of a World Health Organization (WHO) team investigating the origins of COVID-19 visit the facility in Wuhan, China, on Feb. 3, 2021. (Hector Retamal /AFP via Getty Images)

The letter adds to the growing efforts seeking a full inquiry into the origins of the CCP virus, which causes COVID-19; critics have said the WHO investigation lacked independence and allowed Beijing to be less than fully transparent.

The United States, the European Union, and more than a dozen other nations have raised concerns about the WHO study, pointing to the reports significant delay and Chinas refusal to share crucial raw data.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has also noted the difficulties in accessing data from China. He said the laboratory-leak possibility requires further investigation, adding that all hypotheses remain on the table.

In this time of unfortunate anti-Asian sentiment in some countries, we note that at the beginning of the pandemic, it was Chinese doctors, scientists, journalists, and citizens who shared with the world crucial information about the spread of the virusoften at great personal cost, the authors of the May 14 letter said. We should show the same determination in promoting a dispassionate science-based discourse on this difficult but important issue.

Lab Escape Theory

Officials in the United States and elsewhere have cast attention on the lab accident theory despite Beijings effort to disassociate such links.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Robert Redfield, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and former lead COVID-19 investigator David Asher have suggested the virus most likely came from a lab in Wuhan, where the first virus clusters surfaced.

The P4 laboratory (L) at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in Wuhan, China, on April 17, 2020. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)

A fact sheet from the State Department, released during the last days of the Trump Administration, suggested that several researchers in the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) fell ill in autumn 2019 with symptoms similar to COVID-19.

Theres enormous evidence that thats where this began, Pompeo said of the lab on ABCs This Week on May 1. We have said from the beginning that this was a virus that originated in Wuhan, China. We took a lot of grief for that from the outset. But I think the whole world can see now.

Pompeo noted that the Chinese regime has a history of running sub-standard laboratories.

These are not the first times that we have had the world exposed to viruses as a result of failures in a Chinese lab, he said. He declined to say whether he believes the virus was intentionally released.

WIV houses Chinas only P4 lab, the highest level of biosafety; it has worked for years with Chinese military leaders on state-funded projects.

Years before the pandemic, Chinese military scientists had discussed plans to unleash a bioengineered SARS coronavirus to advance Beijings goals.
Preparations are made at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland for the departure of outgoing President Donald Trump in Prince George's County, Md., on Jan. 20, 2021. (Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images)

Man in Custody After Making Bomb Threat Hoax at Joint Base Andrews Gate

A civilian man with no military affiliation is in custody after making a bomb threat that turned out to be a hoax at Joint Base Andrews on Friday.

An individual in a vehicle drove up to the main gate of Joint Base Andrews around 4:45 p.m. and told base security forces that he had a bomb in his vehicle, Zack Baddorf, a spokesperson for Air Forces 316th Wing, which operates the base, told The Epoch Times in an email.

After the man was taken into custody, bomb-sniffing dogs did an initial sweep of the vehicle but did not find anything relevant, Baddorf said. Then a U.S. Air Force Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team deployed an EOD robot that checked the tan-colored sedan for an explosive device. This check was subsequently followed up by an EOD team member who investigated the vehicle wearing a protective suit.

Baddorf confirmed in an updated email statement on Friday night that no explosive device was found in the vehicle. Security forces have given the all clear in response to the situation, he said.

We take every threat seriously, said Col. Tyler Schaff, commander of Joint Base Andrews and the 316th Wing. Our team took every precaution to keep our airmen and their families safe.

Earlier, the bases main gate was shut down and the man taken into custody and questioned by base security forces and partner law enforcement agencies, Baddorf said. The rest of the base, which is home to Air Force One, the aircraft that carries the president, remained operational.

Our first responders responded exceptionally well to todays incident. I am very proud of their efforts to resolve the situation and to keep our base safe and secure, Schaff said. Im also thankful for the exemplary support that we received from our off-base partners, including federal law enforcement.

Partner law enforcement agencies from Prince George County shut down traffic on Allentown Road outside the main gate to assist with the incident. Prince George County police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations and base security forces are jointly looking into the situation, Baddorf said.

Earlier this year, an intruder gained access to Joint Base Andrews on Feb. 4, walked around for several hours and accessed military aircraft, WUSA9 reported. On that occasion, a sharp-eyed airmen reported the individual, who was reportedly wearing a bright red or pink cap, because he didnt seem to fit.

To be frank, Im just being honest, we had no idea we had an unauthorized civilian on the base, Sami Said, the Air Force inspector general, told reporters at the time. He could have roamed around for a lot longer had it not been for that particular airman that figured out he doesnt quite fit.
A boat hauling barges down the Mississippi River moves toward the Interstate 40 bridge linking Tennessee and Arkansas in Memphis, Tenn., on May 14, 2021. (Adrian Sainz/AP Photo)

Mississippi River Traffic Resumes Under Damaged Bridge

MEMPHIS, Tenn.River traffic has reopened on the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee, three days after it was closed when a crack was discovered in the Interstate 40 bridge that connects Tennessee and Arkansas, the U.S. Coast Guard said Friday.

The Arkansas Department of Transportation, meanwhile, said a video taken by an inspector two years ago found significant rust and the beginning of a crack in the same area as the fracture that prompted the bridges shutdown this week.

More than 60 tugboats hauling more than 1,000 barges were in line Friday to cross under the Hernando De Soto Bridge, the Coast Guard said.

Economic development officials had been concerned that an extended closure of river traffic could hurt the regions economy and have ripple effects on the nations supply chain.

This undated image shows a crack is in a steel beam on the Interstate 40 bridge, near Memphis, Tenn. (Tennessee Department of Transportation via AP)

The bridge itself will remain closed to vehicles indefinitely, with road traffic rerouted to Interstate 55 and the 71-year-old Memphis & Arkansas Bridge, about 3 miles (5 kilometers) south.

River traffic under the six-lane bridge was shut down Tuesday after inspectors found a significant fracture in one of two 900-foot (274-meter) horizontal steel beams that are crucial for the bridges integrity, said Lorie Tudor, director of the Arkansas Department of Transportation.

Engineers wanted to ensure the bridge could stand on its own before reopening river traffic.

Based on the information provided to us by the Tennessee Department of Transportation, the Coast Guard has determined that transit under the I-40 bridge is safe for maritime traffic, Coast Guard Capt. Ryan Rhodes, captain of the Port of Memphis, said in a statement.

The Arkansas Department of Transportation on Friday said an image captured by an inspectors drone video in May 2019 showed evidence of damage on the lower side of the bridge, the same area as the crack that was discovered this week.

DOT spokesman Dave Parker said the damage was found by a consulting firm that was inspecting the bridges cables that year.

ARDOT is now investigating to see if that damage was noted in a September 2019 inspection report and, if so, what actions were taken, the agency said in a statement.

The bridge remained closed as negotiations intensified between the White House and a group of Republican senators over a potential infrastructure package. Democrats have said the shutdown highlights the urgent need for more infrastructure funding.

Republicans have called for an infrastructure plan with a smaller price tag than President Joe Bidens and with a narrower definition of public works.

The Arkansas Trucking Association on Friday estimated the closure would cost the trucking industry at least $2.4 million a day because of the longer routes to cross the river. The group used data provided by the American Transportation Research Institute.

Arkansas Trucking Association President Shannon Newton said the trip on the I-40 bridge between the two states averaged eight minutes. Since the I-40 bridge closure, trips on the I-55 bridge being used as the closest alternate route have averaged 84 minutes.

Even if youre looking at 6-8 weeks, thats an incredible expenditure that the industry cant simply absorb, Newton said.

A tugboat with a barge attached sits near a boat ramp at Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park in Millington, Tenn., on May 12, 2021. (Adrian Sainz/AP Photo)

Tennessees transportation department said theres no indication the bridge is continuing to deteriorate and said designers were working on an interim repair plan that would rely on steel rods that would be attached to the bridge and span over the fractured section. Designers were also looking at the possibility of installing a steel plate to beef up the fractured section.

The interim plan would allow time for a new bridge component to be fabricated to replace the damaged section, the agency said.

In an inspection for the 2020 National Bridge Inventory report, the Federal Highway Administration said the I-40 bridge checked out in fair condition overall, with all primary structure elements sound and only some minor cracks and chips in the overall structure. Its structural evaluation checked out somewhat better than minimum adequacy to tolerate being left in place as is.

However, height and width clearances for oversize vehicles were basically intolerable requiring high priority of corrective action, the inspectors found. Tennessee recommended bridge deck replacement with only incidental widening.

Arkansas transportation officials said the crack did not appear in the last inspection of the bridge, which occurred in September 2020. The bridge opened in 1973 and carries an average of about 50,000 vehicles a day, with about a quarter being trucks, Tennessee transportation officials said.

Tugboats pushing barges could be seen passing under the bridge shortly after the Coast Guards announcement Friday. Some onlookers came to a riverside park to get a glimpse of the vessels.

By Adrian Sainz and Andrew Demillo
Staff open a ballot box to count for the local elections at the count centre at Olympia London in west London on May 7, 2021. (Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)

New UK Election Law to Ban Postal Vote Harvesting

The UK government said on Friday it plans to boost election integrity by stopping postal vote harvesting, limiting proxy voting, and clamping down on voter intimidation.

This follows the announcement earlier this week that voters will be required to show photographic ID before being issued ballots at a polling station.

Under new measures announced on Friday, postal vote harvesting will be stopped by limiting the number of postal votes that a person may hand in on behalf of others.

Currently, anyone is able to collect postal votes from any number of electors and hand them in at a polling station, which the government said presents a risk of postal votes being appropriated and stolen, or voters completing postal ballot papers under duress.

The new law will also ban party campaigners from handling postal votes altogether, making it a criminal offence.

The new rules will extend the secrecy provisions to absentee voting by making it an offence for a person to attempt to find out or reveal who a postal voter has chosen to vote for.

While registration for postal votes is currently valid indefinitely, the new rules will require postal voters to reaffirm their identities by re-applying every three years.

New restrictions will also be imposed on proxy voting, which, under current rules, opens up the possibility that someone could be coerced into appointing a proxyparticularly by close relatives.

To prevent abuse, the government plans to limit the total number of people for whom someone can act as a proxy to four, regardless of their relationship.

Current laws already ban undue influence over voters, but the government said the outdated legislation needs to be modernised by, among other measures, explicitly listing intimidation of voters as a form of undue influence.

Chloe Smith, UK government minister for the constitution and devolution, said: Stealing someones vote is stealing their voice. We must go further to protect and modernise our precious democracy.

Our robust package of measures will stamp out the space for such damage to take place in our elections again and give the public confidence that their vote is theirs and theirs aloneno matter how they choose to cast it.

The government also publicised more details on the requirement for voter ID when voters cast ballots in polling stations.

Under the new legislation, local authorities must provide a voter card free of charge to anyone who needs it.

A broad range of approved documents will be acceptednot just UK passports and driving licences, but also various concessionary travel passes and parking permits.

According to government data, 99 percent of ethnic minorities already have a form of identification that would be accepted under the proposals, as do 98 percent of people who identify as white.
NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 14)

Israel is going on a military offensive after the Hamas terrorist group launched thousands of rockets at the nation.

Congresswoman Elise Stefanik thanks former President Donald Trump in her new role as GOP conference chair.

Over 40,000 Chinese illegal immigrants await deportation in the United States.
Officer Flagged Down by Frantic Parents Saves 9-Day-Old Babys Life Who Stopped Breathing

A routine patrol became a lifesaving mission for a Pennsylvania police officer when she was flagged down by frantic parents. The officer is now being hailed a hero after she ended up saving the life of their 9-day-old baby, who wasnt breathing.

Officer Kristin Mitrisin claims she was just doing her job that day. You know, God put me at that place at that time, she told KDKA. Im just thankful that I was there to help them.

Baby Olivia with her parents and brother. (Courtesy of Jodi Schleicher)

While driving along Route 51 in the Pittsburg suburb of Pleasant Hills on April 24, Mitrisin noticed Joe and Jodi Schleicher several cars away, beeping and waving for her attention. Mitrisin, herself a mom of two, pulled over in her pickup.

The Schleichers baby girl, Olivia, had stopped breathing.

Joe later told WPXI that he and his wife had decided to drive to the hospital when something seemed wrong with Olivia that morning as she was being fussy. Stopping at a red light, they noticed Olivia had stopped breathing and removed her from her car seat.

Pleasant Hills Officer Kristin Mitrisin. (Courtesy of Kristin Mitrisin via Pleasant Hills Police Department)

The frantic parents asked Mitrisin for help. Olivia, by then, was blue in her face and nose. The officer took the baby from Joes arms and rushed to her pickup truck to perform CPR. Due to her specialized training, she knew how to perform the delicate procedure on an infant, using just two fingers and applying pressure down.

Later, a corrections officer pulled over to assist the rescue effort with a defibrillator, but luckily, it wasnt needed. The baby took a breath, then another long breath, which was followed by a few shallow breaths, and finally, she began to cry.

Olivias wails, said Mitrisin, were the best sound to hear.

Having saved her life, Mitrisin rushed Olivia directly to nearby AHN Brentwood Neighborhood Hospital.

Olivia was diagnosed with a heart condition, but Jodi told KDKA she believes her daughter wouldnt be alive if it werent for Mitrisin.

Olivia had her first heart surgery on April 29, and will likely need more. A family friend has set up a GoFundMe page to help cover mounting medical bills, raising almost $25,000 to date. Mom, Dad, and baby have a long road ahead for Olivias recovery, they said in a post.

Joe claimed that he and Jodi would like to reunite Mitrisin with Olivia in the future if the officer is interested. I feel like she may feel as proud as we are knowing that she saved the baby, he said.

Share your stories with us at emg.inspired@epochtimes.com, and continue to get your daily dose of inspiration by signing up for the Epoch Inspired Newsletter at TheEpochTimes.com/newsletter
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 15:14:16|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Some U.S. politicians recently trotted out tired cliches over Xinjiang, but lies repeated a thousand times are still groundless shameless lies, and deserve to be thrown into the dustbin of history.

U.S. hyped-up allegations such as "forced labor" and "genocide" in Xinjiang and smearing of the Chinese region as an "open-air prison" are pretexts for Washington to create turbulence to contain China, and the world sees clearly the sinister intention.

The so-called political elites in Washington have turned a blind eye to basic facts about Xinjiang. They accused China of "genocide" without providing proof, but data shows that the Uygur population in Xinjiang has doubled from 5.55 million to over 12 million in the past four decades.

They claimed that there is widespread "forced labor," ignoring the fact that some 70 percent of cotton in Xinjiang is harvested by machine, and that jobs in the cotton industry are well-paid and competitive.

The politicians also pointed to so-called "religious repression" of Uygurs, paying no attention to more than 24,000 mosques in the region, which is over 10 times the number in the United States.

Meanwhile, these U.S. officials have turned a deaf ear to voices of reason. Even though the Chinese government, including officials from Xinjiang, has given thorough introduction about Xinjiang's development on multiple occasions, while many observers worldwide have criticized the U.S. rumor-mongering, these China-bashers are continuing their smear campaign.

It is strange that the United States, who has killed a large number of Muslims in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, is keen on voicing "concerns" over the human rights of Muslims in Xinjiang.

Even more ridiculously, some politicians claimed that they "care very much" about China's internal affairs, but turned a blind eye to such problems as the deep-rooted discrimination, the devastating gun violence and the terrible response to the COVID-19 pandemic in their homeland.

Their smear campaign against China has gone far beyong Xinjiang-related issues. For quite some time, they have been obsessed with distorting facts and manufacturing disinformation when it comes to China. Based on the presumption of guilt, they have turned more crazy and reckless in twisting the truth and peddling lies.

Those anti-China U.S. politicians are indulging in the illusion that they are able to manipulate the public opinion, create a mess in China and disrupt the country's development by repeating lies again and again.

However, their ill-intentioned acts fool no clear minds around the world. In recent times, there is a growing number of think-tanks, media and scholars telling the world what is really happening in Xinjiang based on their independent researches and personal experiences.

At the 46th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council earlier this year, China's policy and position on Xinjiang received support from more than 80 countries across the world, including the vast Muslim countries.

Washington and some of its politicians are advised to stop their anti-China clamors and hypocritical political shows, and pay more attention to their messy backyard before pointing accusing fingers at others. Enditem
Portland Police Union President Says City Is On the Precipice of a Gang War

The president of Portland, Oregons police union said that the city is on the brink of war in a blistering new statement.

We need to talk about the elephant in the room: gun violence. We are on the precipice of a gang war, Daryl Turner, head of the Portland Police Association, said.

The police force in the states largest city has responded to 357 shootings as of May 9, an increase of over 100 percent from the same time span last year.

Portland dealt with a jump in violence in 2020, with both shootings and murders skyrocketing, along with near-nightly riots that regularly diverted attention from 911 calls.

City officials have tried addressing both matters, escalating the response to rioting and approving $6 million to combat shootings.

But the city hasnt brought back the Gun Violence Reduction Team (GVRT), and none of the new funding went to the citys police department. Thats on top of the Portland City Council cutting money for the police force in 2020.

Turner said that commissioners only use data when it serves their political agendas and called what he sees as a continued ignorance of statistics and shifting of blame unacceptable.

The GVRT proactively policed with a holistic approach, building partnerships and relationships to get illegal guns off the street. Its obvious to everyone except for City Council that more guns and increased gang activity mean more violence, he said in the new statement.

City council members are now focused on making additional cuts to the Portland Police Bureaus budget, which wont address the gun violence epidemic, according to Turner.

The answer is that our community deserves a fully staffed police force with a minimum of 1,000 officers and a full-budget commitment to addressing gun violence, and our community deserves adequate social service resources. Forcing us to choose one over the other is short-sighted. Social services and alternatives resources are not a replacement for police officers and common-sense public safety infrastructure, he said.

A spokesman for Mayor Ted Wheelera Democrat who also serves as police commissioner and sits on the councildeclined to comment, referring The Epoch Times to Portlands Office of Violence Prevention (OVP). That office did not respond to resulting inquiries.

Nike Green, director of the OVP, called the jump in shootings a public health crisis in a statement released on April 28. Green said the office was using data, research, and evidence-based practices to prioritize partnerships designed to interrupt cycles of gun violence, such as programs with violence interrupters, who seek to stop shootings before they happen.

The other city commissioners didnt respond to requests for comment.

The council approved a 2021 budget that included a $3 million cut to the police bureau on May 13, local media reported.

City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, a Democrat, said in a statement that she appreciated that the budget didnt add ongoing funds back into the Portland Police Bureau after [the] council reallocated money from the bureau into the Portland Street Response and other community investments last year.
Pregnant Nurses Prompt California Board for Changes

When 34-year-old Brittney went into labor on April 7, she faced a tough decision: take a required random drug test, or go to the hospital and jeopardize her nursing career.

Brittney (a pseudonym) was on probation in the California Board of Registered Nurses (BRN) Enforcement Program for a previous driving under the influence (DUI) offenseand if she failed to complete one test, she could permanently lose her nursing license.

Since enrolling in the program, Brittney had complied with a list of 19 conditions as part of her accreditation, including random drug tests. Probationers have no control over the location of the test, must pay for each test out-of-pocket, and have to submit as many as three per week.

At the same time Brittney went into labor, she was selected for a drug test in Calimesa, about 25 minutes from the hospital. Overwhelmed, she contacted her probation officer.

She basically texted me back and told me that this is a violation, Brittney told The Epoch Times. She didnt even acknowledge the labor part; she just said, This is a violation. You need to get it done.

I probably could have just went straight to the hospital, but  I was scared. I felt like I had to do it. Im gonna lose my job.

By the time Brittney took the blood testat a cost of $110and rushed to the hospital, she was so close to giving birth that she was no longer eligible to receive an epidural shot to kill the pain.

It was just painful. I felt everything, she said. It was something that was supposed to be really joyous, [but] I felt humiliated and ashamedlike something was just taken away from me.

The experience prompted her to call for changes to the way pregnant nurses are treated by the BRN, and attracted the attention of regional lawmakers.

Unchecked Power

Stories like Brittneys are common among nurses who become ensnared in the BRNs probation program as a result of drug- or alcohol-related crimes.

I worry for the day I am called to drug test while in active labor, Joei Bianca, who is currently in her third trimester, told The Epoch Times. I worry about the gory, degrading, and humiliating experiences that lie ahead for me.  Where does the power of the BRN end?

In 2008, when she was 18, Bianca was arrested at a drive-thru for DUI. The charges were eventually dismissed when video footage from the scene proved she wasnt the driver, but within a year, Bianca became homeless and began using heroin.

In 2009, she was charged for being under the influence of a controlled substance; later that year, she was arrested for petty theft after stealing a box of cereal at a supermarket. Five days later, she was charged with heroin possession.

It took nearly a decade for Bianca to turn her life around.

After graduating from the nursing program at Mt. San Jacinto College in 2019, she applied to the BRN for her license, with a packet that included 40 letters of recommendation, six months worth of third-party drug testing, a certificate of rehabilitation from past drug charges, verification of rehabilitation completion, proof all drug charges had been expunged, documentation of 135 hours of community service, and performance evaluations from her supervisor at Hemet Valley Medical Center, where she worked for over four years.

The Board had warned Bianca: if she didnt disclose all relevant information about her background, she risked losing her license for good. When Bianca offered details of her 2008 arrest, the BRN put her on probation.

Her lawyer asked the Board why they were citing a charge that doesnt appear on Biancas record.

The Board said that they couldnt unsee it, Bianca said. If I hadnt disclosed it, and they had found out about it, I risked losing my license forever. So its kind of a catch-22.

Michelle M. Cave, the public information officer for the BRNs Department of Consumer Affairs, told The Epoch Times that all individuals are evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

In general, the BRN has authority to assert various causes for discipline against licensees, including for unprofessional conduct, Cave said via email.

In instances where an individual has an arrest that does not result in a conviction, the Board may consider whether the acts underlying the conduct that was the subject of the arrest were in violation of the Boards statutes and regulations.

How Much More Do I Need to Do?

Assembly Bill 2138 (AB 2138) prohibits the BRN from placing new licensees on probation for nonviolent convictions more than seven years old. The bill was signed into law in 2018, but did not go into effect until July 2020a year after Bianca submitted her application.

Bianca was informed she could not be grandfathered into the new law, and would have to serve a full probationary period of three years.

The cost of compliance, she estimates, runs upward of $700 per month. All the while, she must maintain active employment as a registered nurse and acquire monthly performance evaluations to submit to her probation monitor.

Though she found the situation stressful, Bianca said everything was manageableuntil the urgent care centers where shes required to drug test began operating on limited hours.

This was bad news for me, because my work schedule as a COVID nurse was 7 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., she said. When selected for a drug test, it would cut into her shift during a time when they were severely short-staffed, she added.

In Februarytwo months after she learned she was pregnantshe contracted COVID on the job. She didnt come back to work until March 1. The following day, she was selected for a drug test during her shift.

That was the last straw for my employer. On March 9, after fighting for my patients lives all through the pandemic, I was let go from my job  because the BRN was not willing to make accommodations for probationary nurses working [during] COVID.

Cave said there were other options available. There are hundreds of test sites across California, and many with extended hours to allow an RN flexibility with their testing schedule, she said.

Five months into her pregnancy, Bianca found herself unemployedbut was still required to follow all the stipulations of her probation. Now, she fears her future employment prospects are grim.

The BRN states that their job is to protect the public, but their measures are far more punitive for someone like me rather than having the best interest of the public, she said.

How much more do I need to do to prove I am not the same person I was over a decade ago? Every person makes mistakes. I got caught, paid my dues  and I am still suffering tremendously due to an unforgiving board.

Management Is Unreceptive

Lashonda Shannon, a BRN Enforcement Program analyst, told The Epoch Times she had heard about this issue from several nurses.

The public needs to know about this as it is a matter of public concern. The livelihood of Registered Nurses is being negatively affected by the Boards actions, she said via email.

Shannon said she does not represent the BRN, the Department of Consumer Affairs, or the State of California in any capacity. But she detailed numerous internal problems with the BRNs Enforcement Programincluding lack of management oversight, inconsistencies between requirements and expectations among probationary nurses, and inexperienced probation managers who repeatedly issued incorrect information to staff members.

She also mentioned a lack of a formal training program for the BRNs enforcement staffa failure cited in a 2016 report by the State Auditor.

Shannon shared an example of how the programs process has declined. Originally, after a BRN analyst determined whether or not probation was successfully completed, management would review the decision.

Now, staff are reviewing their own work  through peer reviews with no oversight,  she said. There have been instances in which it was deemed a probationary nurse completed the terms of their probation when the nurse had not.

As a result, false information has been displayed online, and users of the Department of Consumer Affairs license verification system are none the wiser.

Probation analysts regularly propose new, innovative policies and ideas to improve program effectiveness  but management is unreceptive, Shannon said. She noted that the BRNs Disciplinary Guidelines havent been revised since 2002.

Bianca has teamed up with a fellow nurse, Elisabeth Sims, to change that.

Demand for Changes

Sims received a DUI in 2018 and reported the charge to the BRN, which took into account a separate DUI from 2009 to justify a full probationary term. On May 15, Sims completed a year of probation, wherein she complied with all of the guidelines without an infraction.

But Sims, like Bianca, is pregnant.

I am scared of what I will face once going into labor, she told The Epoch Times. I worry for the day I am called to a drug test while in active labor.

Among the list of policy changes, Sims and Bianca want to see all probationers grandfathered into AB 2138, if applicable. They want the Board to stop treating arrests that dont result in convictions in the same manner as convictions. And once a woman is in active labor, theyre asking the BRN not to subject them to drug testing for eight weeks.

When Bianca brought this issue to the attention of Sen. Melissa Melendez (R-Lake Elsinore), the lawmaker helped arrange a May 7 Zoom meeting with Bianca; Shannon Johnson, an enforcement deputy chief at the BRN; and Nicki Taylor, a field representative for Melendez, to discuss Biancas concerns.

[Johnson] agreed a lot of the stuff thats been taking place actually shouldnt even be happening to people on probation. Specifically, the pregnancy-related stuff, Bianca said.

Johnson confirmed there are currently no regulations in place for pregnant women on probation and was disheartened to hear how pregnancies like Brittneys were being handled.

Brittney, who is currently on disability, is still responsible for drug testing, Alcoholics Anonymous classes, and attending support groups as part of her probation. She hopes to return to work in July, at which point her probation will start over againessentially cancelling out the testing and meetings shes complied with thus farbecause the minimum six months have to be consecutive.

Thats kind of sad, she said. I was pregnant, [but] I had to go off. I worked as long as I could.

The BRN does not plan to reopen disciplinary decisions that were entered prior to the effective date of AB 2138, according to Cave. But with regard to pregnant nurses, she said, The Board would not require a probationary nurse to test should there be a medical reason. If the RN provides documentation to their probation monitor, the testing would be excused.

If the BRN doesnt implement changes, Melendezs office will continue to monitor the processes to see if a legislative solution is possible or required, or if it can be taken care of internally through other means, according to her representatives.

But any changes that are made will arrive too late for Bianca.

[Johnson] agreed I should not have been put on probation to begin with, but  theres nothing that they can do about it, Bianca said. I made it very clear to her a lot of the issues that take place dont just take place for me; its not something that I want to see just changed for me. I want to see a change for everybody, but that requires some regulation change. And she [said] it could take years.

Bianca said Melendezs office would be contacting her in the upcoming weeks.

Overall, I felt like it was a very good meeting and informative, but I dont 100 percent feel like much got accomplished, she said. Im just gonna continue fighting for those things.
Proposed Bill Could Ban Offshore Drilling Off California Coast

Prohibiting any new leasing for the exploration, development, or production of oil or gas along the coast of Southern California is the subject of a new bill proposed by U.S. Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.).

If passed, the American Coasts and Oceans Protection Act would prohibit offshore activities from San Diego to the northern border of San Luis Obispo County.

The House Natural Resources Committee held a hearing on Levins bill and other offshore drilling legislation on May 13.

Oil spills from offshore drilling have done devastating damage to our coastline before, Levin said in a statement. This is why Californians overwhelmingly support a ban on new drilling activity along our coast. My bill to ban new offshore drilling leases recognizes that its time to put our environment and our coastal economy first, not the fossil fuel companies that profit while polluting our coastline.

Its estimated that the ocean economy accounts for approximately $7.7 billion dollars in economic activity in Orange and San Diego counties and sustains more than 140,000 jobs in coastal tourism, recreation, and fishing, Levin said in a statement.

In 2015, a ruptured pipeline unleashed more than 100,000 gallons of crude oil at Refugio State Beach in Goleta, California.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA), field teams who investigated the spill documented hundreds of dead fish, invertebrates, birds, and marine mammals in the oil-ravaged waters.

The 2015 spill resulted from a ruptured pipeline owned and operated by Plains All American Pipeline, which ran down a storm drain, into a ravine and then the ocean.

The spill also closed fisheries as well as multiple beaches, negatively impacting recreational uses such as camping, non-commercial fishing, and beach visits.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) speaks before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Oct. 13, 2020. (Samuel Corum/AFP via Getty Images)

Sen. Blackburn Introduces Legislation to Reinstate Trumps Remain in Mexico Policy

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) introduced legislation that would reinstate former President Donald Trumps Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) policy to curb the recent surge of illegal immigrants at the border.

The bill, called Make the Migrant Protection Protocols Mandatory Act, would require migrants who cross the southern border without proper documentation to remain in Mexico until their case is heard.

President Joe Biden has been facing criticism from more than a dozen Republican governors, as well as attorneys general in several U.S. states, for reversing the Trump-era policy by signing an executive order on Jan. 21, hours after his inauguration, that would cease adding individuals into the [MPP] program.

President Bidens failed immigration policies have created a crisis at our southern border, Blackburn said in a statement obtained by Fox News.

Over half a million illegal aliens have poured across our southern border since Biden decided to repeal President Trumps successful policy that forced migrants to remain in Mexico while seeking asylum, she said. My legislation will stop Bidens decision to catch and release migrants into our communities and reinstate President Trumps Remain in Mexico program.

Families of migrants registered under the Migrant Protection Protocols cross into the United States accompanied by staff from the United Nations International Organization for Migration, through the Paso del Norte-Santa Fe international bridge in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state, Mexico, on Feb. 26, 2021. (Herika Martinez/AFP via Getty Images)

Blackburns bill would, in addition to restoring the MPP program, also tighten restrictions on asylum-seekers and mandate an end to the catch and release policya practice where illegal immigrants are released while they await their immigration court hearings.

The MPP program was created by the Trump administration in January 2019 to help stem the flow of meritless asylum claims that were clogging up the system by the hundreds of thousands.

The program, commonly referred to as the Remain in Mexico policy, forced asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico while their cases were adjudicated. Prior to its implementation, thousands of illegal immigrants were released into the United States to await their cases, most failing to appear in court, and with illegal aliens often disappearing into the country never to be seen again.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection released operational statistics in a press release on May 11 that indicated that border agents encountered more than 178,000 illegal aliens attempting to cross the southern border last month, representing a 3 percent increase over the previous month and the highest one-month total in two decades, and an increase of more than 900 percent compared to a year earlier.

A group of illegal immigrants with Border Patrol after crossing the U.S.Mexico border in La Joya, Texas, on April 10, 2021. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Blackburn is among a number of Republican lawmakers who have argued that Bidens move to weaken or reverse Trump-era immigration policies prompted the current crisis at the southern border.

On May 11, 20 Republican governors called on 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 to illegally cross into the country.

Li Hai contributed to this report.

From NTD News
A nurse administers a COVID-19 vaccine to a woman at Tableau restaurant in the French Quarter of New Orleans, La., on April 13, 2021. (Chris Granger/The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate via AP)

Stores, States Drop Mask Mandates in Wake of CDCs Updated Guidance

States and stores on Friday said they were largely dropping their mask requirements after a top U.S. health agency advised that people fully vaccinated against the virus that causes COVID-19 could stop donning face coverings.

The governors of at least 10 states and officials at a slew of retail giants, like Walmart, announced they would no longer require masks, at least for those fully vaccinated against the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.

Delawares governor, Democrat John Carney, said effective May 21 residents will not be forced to wear masks anytime they are indoors with people they do not live with.

Its clear that the COVID-19 vaccines are extremely safe and protective against infection and serious illness, he said in a statement.

Delawareans who are fully vaccinated have significant protection against this virus and can feel comfortable getting back to the things they loved to do before this pandemic. For our neighbors who arent vaccinated, the message is clear. The COVID-19 vaccine is the best protection we have against the virus. Getting vaccinated is the best way to protect you and those you love. In the meantime, Delawareans who are unvaccinated, including children, should continue to wear masks in public places, he added.

Kentucky, Louisiana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Vermont, and Virginia also relaxed or eliminated masking requirements. Some also eased or rescinded social distancing mandates.

Today is the day that so many of us have been waiting for and working toward. We finally do clearly see the light at the end of that tunnel. Our long, hard-fought battle against the worst global pandemic in more than a century is finally nearing an end, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, told a press conference.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced Thursday that it was rolling back its strict masking guidance. People who are fully vaccinated against the CCP virus no longer have to wear masks indoors, its director said.

Fully vaccinated means a person has received the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine or both doses of vaccines from Moderna or Pfizer, and two weeks have elapsed.

The CDC guidance is not binding but is followed closely by many states across the nation, though some governors had relaxed masking and similar COVID-fueled restrictions earlier, citing the steep drop in COVID-19 cases and other metrics and the rise in the number of vaccinated.

Over 120 million Americans, or 36 percent of the population, have been fully vaccinated against the CCP virus as of May 14.

President Joe Biden in March called rescinding mask mandates Neanderthal thinking and top health officials like Dr. Anthony Fauci condemned the easing by governors like Greg Abbott of Texas. But the states that relaxed or removed restrictions saw a drop in cases, befuddling Fauci.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters in Washington on Friday that Biden has been listening to the guidance of our health and medical experts and teams, and thats exactly what were doing in this case when asked about his earlier criticism of removing mask mandates.

The CDCs experts were the ones who determined what this guidance would be, based on their own data, and what the timeline would be, she added.

People with no masks pose for photos in Times Square in the Manhattan borough of New York City on May 14, 2021. (Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky was on television just one day before the updated recommendations defending guidance that had fully vaccinated people wear masks both indoors and in some situations outdoors.

New research on the efficacy of the vaccines and the severity of COVID-19 in so-called breakthrough cases, or cases among the fully vaccinated, compelled the change, officials say.

Large retailers followed the CDCs lead.

Walmart, Costco, Sams Club, Publix, and Trader Joes all announced that they would not force customers who are fully vaccinated to wear masks in states that do not require the coverings.

Costco, in a similar update to the other retailers, said that they will not check for proof of vaccination but hope that customers abide by the revised policy.

Walmart told associates in a note that they would also not need to wear masks unless they are not vaccinated.

Other businesses, like Target, CVS, Kroger, and Walgreens, said their requirements are staying the same for now.

A handful of governors are not altering masking mandates as of now.

We have received the newly revised guidance from the CDC regarding mask wearing and social distancing for those with vaccinations and are reviewing them, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, said in a statement.
Taiwan Health Official: China Blocking Taiwan From the World Health Assembly is Blocking the Health Rights of the Whole World

This week, one of Taiwans top public health officials addressed the issue of China blocking Taiwan from attending the World Health Assemblythe decision-making body for the World Health Organizationstating, If you block Taiwan, you are not blocking Taiwanese health rights, you are blocking the health rights of the whole world.

Dr. Shiing Jer Twu, the Chairman of Taiwans Development Center for Biotechnology and former Health Minister of Taiwan, sat down with The Epoch Times at the iconic Grand Hotel in Taipei for an exclusive, in-depth interview.

Adam Molon (L) and Dr. Twu (R) after the interview at the Grand Hotel in Taipei, Taiwan, on May 11, 2021. (Courtesy of Adam Molon)

Taiwan has been blocked by China from attending the WHA since 2016, after Taiwans democratically elected President Tsai Ing-wen took office. This years WHA begins on May 24 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Citing Taiwans successful management of the COVID-19 pandemic, with fewer than 15 deaths from COVID-19 in Taiwan to date, Dr. Twuwho holds a Ph.D. in public health from the University of California, Los Angeles, and degrees in medicine and public health from National Taiwan Universitysaid that Taiwan can help a lot, with respect to the worlds management of the pandemic.

Before, we tried to mention that if Taiwan cannot go into the WHO or the WHA, the meeting, its not good for Taiwanese people. Our right to health was broken. Its not equal, not good, Dr. Twu said. But this year, we changed  Now, Taiwan is not going in asking for help. Now, Taiwan is going to help other countries. This is what I told our Department of Foreign Affairs. We are not for us only, we are for the whole world.

Earlier this month, the Group of Seven (G7)which includes the United States, Canada, Japan, the UK, France, Germany, and Italyissued a joint communique in support of Taiwans bid to participate in the World Health Assembly, stating that the international community should be able to benefit from the experience of all partners, including Taiwans successful contribution to the tackling of the COVID-19 pandemic. U.S. Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), a ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also issued a statement: Given Taiwans remarkable success in handling the COVID-19 pandemic and active role in helping other countries, the World Health Organization (WHO)  should allow Taiwan the opportunity to participate in the upcoming World Health Assembly from May 24 to June 1  Let Taiwan help, and we will all be better for it.

Taiwan has not yet received an invitation from the World Health Assembly to attend its annual meeting, but Dr. Twu pointed out that the WHA can change their mind  they can still change before May 24.

Dr. Twu stated that it is important that the democratic nation of Taiwan be represented as Taiwan, to which authoritarian Chinawhich has continuously threatened to invade and subjugate Taiwanvehemently objects. We must go into the WHA with the name of Taiwan. Only Taiwan, Dr. Twu said. If we want to go in as Taiwan, China, many, many years ago we couldve gone in already. This is the problem. Because we dont want to be a part of China.

Elaborating on Chinas opposition to Taiwans participation in the WHA, Dr. Twu said, They are not happy because Tsai Ing-wen, our president, does not want to become a part of China, and they are so angry. I think they are so unconfident.

Addressing authoritarian Chinas aspirational claim of democratic Taiwan as its territory, Dr. Twu stated, China says you belong to us. How come Taiwan belongs to you? You were only set up in 1949, and you have never ruled Taiwan or set up anything in Taiwan. We have never paid any tax to you. In Taiwan, we have our army, we have our military, we have our parliament, we have our president, we have everything. Dr. Twu added, Taiwan is an independent country. Thats the truth.

In addition to its lack of representation in the World Health Assembly, Dr. Twu noted that democratic Taiwan, with 24 million citizens, has also been continuously blocked by authoritarian China from becoming a member of the World Health Organization and the United Nations.

We want to go into the United Nations. We want to go into the WHO, Dr. Twu said. We just want to go into [the U.N. and the WHO] just like other countries. More than 130 countries became members of the United Nations after World War II. So, we want to be one of them. We want to go in too.
Taiwan Health Official on Successful COVID-19 Management: Taiwan Knows That Communist China Always Tells Lies

Not trusting the propaganda of authoritarian China and restricting travel to and from China early in the CCP virus pandemic have been key factors in Taiwans successful management of the pandemic, one of Taiwans top public health officials told The Epoch Times last week.

In an interview at Taipeis iconic Grand Hotel, Dr. Twu Shiing-jerchairman of Taiwans Development Center for Biotechnology, former health minister of Taiwan, and former director-general of Taiwans Centers for Disease Control and Preventionshared insights into how Taiwan has been able to keep deaths due to COVID-19 below a total of 15 since the beginning of the pandemic.

Twu, who holds a Ph.D. in public health from the University of CaliforniaLos Angeles, and degrees in medicine and public health from National Taiwan University, stated that an objective skepticism of authoritarian China and its propaganda has helped democratic Taiwan defend against the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, which causes the disease COVID-19.

Taiwan knows that communist China always tells lies, Twu said. When they publish something, even if the World Health Organization says something that is according to mainland China, communist China, we dont believe it. We just see the truth. [Regarding] if this is true or this is not true, what should we do? We just do it scientifically and not believe what they say.

Twu, who was Taiwans Minister of Health in 2002 and 2003during the SARS pandemic that originated in Guangdong, Chinastated that the time that Taiwan took to effectively manage the SARS pandemic was the shortest in the whole world and that Taiwans experience in managing SARS became the basis of success against COVID-19 now.

He cited two slogans, in Mandarin, that he coined during the SARS pandemic as foundational for Taiwans COVID-19 management.

We say, first, Quick and expert epidemic prevention. The government is very fast, [and has] respected experts. And then, All citizens move to safeguard public health, Dr. Twu said. This means that our average people were activated to protect themselves and protect others. This is scientific. This is democracy. But in democracy, it is very difficult to ask people to cooperate with the government to do everything.  But Taiwanese people, almost everyone follows the regulations and government requirements, to put on masks, everything. From kindergarten to very old people.

Twu said that decreased travel from authoritarian China to democratic Taiwan, stemming from increased political tension between China and Taiwan following the election of Taiwans President Tsai Ing-wen, also unexpectedly contributed to Taiwans successful defense against COVID-19 after the virus first appeared in Wuhan, China.

China doesnt like Taiwan, so they say that they prohibit Chinese people from going to Taiwan for tourism.  Because Tsai Ing-wen became the president [of Taiwan], they are not happy. They say, Our people cannot go to Taiwan. We said, Oh, thank you, fortunately, you dont come here.  And after COVID-19 cases [appeared], we very quickly stopped our people from going to China, Twu said.

Our communications stopped very quickly because of this, so our epidemic is not so serious.

Twu said that because China continues to block Taiwan, a democratic nation of 24 million people, from participating in the World Health Organization (WHO), Taiwan has become a particularly self-reliant nation when it comes to public health.

Because we are not a member of the WHO, we always depend on ourselves only, and we know what is communist China. They all tell lies, he said.

Authoritarian China also continues to block Taiwan from participating in the annual meeting of the World Health Assembly (WHA)the decision-making body for the World Health Organization. This years WHA meeting is scheduled to begin later this month.

Twu stated that Taiwan should be allowed to join both the WHA and the WHO, and that Taiwan can help the world by sharing its expertise on pandemic management with other countries.

Before, we tried to mention that if Taiwan cannot go into the WHO or the WHA, the meeting, its not good for Taiwanese people. Our right to health was broken. Its not equal, not good, he said. But this year, we changed. Now, if you block Taiwan, you are not blocking Taiwanese health rights, you are blocking the health rights of the whole world. Now, Taiwan is not going in asking for help. Now, Taiwan is going to help other countries.

This is what I told our Department of Foreign Affairs. We are not for us only, we are for the whole world.
Teachers Union Presidents Support Full Return to In-person Schooling in Fall

The president of one of the largest teachers unions in the country announced Thursday that the union wants all schools to reopen for in-person schooling in the fall.

The United States will not be fully back, until we are fully back in school. And my union is all in, Randi Weingarten, head of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), said in an announcement.

Unions like AFT have been a major obstacle to districts trying to return to in-person learning, claiming that the risk of teachers contracting COVID-19 was too high in many locales and attempting to force safety measures that critics say were unreasonable.

But circumstances have recently changed, with an increasing number of school employees receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, Weingarten said. Union data shows nearly nine out of 10 members have been vaccinated or have expressed a desire to get a shot.

We can and we must reopen schools in the fall for in-person teaching, learning, and support. And keep them open. Fully and safely, five days a week, she said, pledging to commit $5 million to helping do so.

Danger from the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus still exists but can be managed by following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance, she added.

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona in a tweet praised Weingarten and the 1.7 million AFT members for supporting getting back to schools safely & quickly, though advisers to President Joe Biden have said hes not certain that schools can reopen fully in the fall.

The National Education Association, another large union, said in a statement that it supports schools reopening in the fall.

Educators will continue to lead in making sure each school has what it needs to fully reopen in a safe and just way, and to ensure the resources exist to meet the academic, social, and emotional needs of all students, Becky Pringle, the unions president, said in a statement.

A YMCA staff member assists a child as they attend online classes at a learning hub inside the Crenshaw Family YMCA, as schools remain closed to in-person instruction, in Los Angeles, Calif., on Feb. 17, 2021. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)

Schools nationwide shut down in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even as the body of research grew showing in-person learning was safe, many states and counties kept schools closed, or resorted to hybrid learning, which saw students alternate days in the classroom and at home.

Many schools began reopening in the fall and more have since joined.

According to data from Burbio, nearly 68 percent of U.S. K-12 students were attending school in-person every day as of May 9. Another 29 percent were attending hybrid schools and nearly 3 percent were attending schools that remain virtual-only.

The Return to Learn tracker pegs about half of the school districts as letting students attend school every day with another 48 percent hybrid.

Weingartens announcement drew fierce criticism. The Wall Street Journal editorial board said she and other unions have held children and parents hostage to obtain more money from Washington for higher salaries and pensions.

These comments by Randi Weingarten just amuse me. Here they are saying we want the students back in the fall fulltime, Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) said during an appearance on Newsmax. I think she realizes that train has left already and they better try to grab onto it because the American people want the children back in school and the unions have been the ones that have been keeping them out of school.

Internal communications recently made public showed the AFT influenced the CDCs school reopening guidance that was released in February. Critics said the guidance was too strict, delaying many districts from fully reopening.

Weingarten told The Epoch Times via email that the union represents people on the front lines during the pandemic, such as teachers, and has been in regular touch with the agencies setting policy that affect their work and lives, including the CDC.

The CDC did not return a request for comment.

Congressional Republicans have pressed the agency on how much the AFT and other groups impacted the guidance, asking for communications between it and the union.

President Biden promised to re-open schools within 100 days of his Administration. He also promised to follow the science regarding COVID-19. Your political obedience to Democrat-aligned special interest groups ahead of our Nations children breaks both of these promises, Foxx, the ranking member on the House Education and Labor Committee, and two other top Republicans wrote in a May 12 letter.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announces the reopening of more Texas businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic at a press conference at the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, on May 18, 2020. (Lynda M. Gonzalez-Pool/Getty Images)

Texas Governor Expected to Sign Bill Banning Abortions When Fetal Heartbeat Is Detected

Texas Gov. Greg Abbot is expected to sign into law a bill that bans abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which can occur as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.

Texas Senate Bill 8, also known as the Texas Heartbeat Act or heartbeat bill was passed in the state Senate 18-12 on Thursday, and awaits Abbotts signature. The Republican governor has indicated that he will sign the bill on the same day.

The Texas Legislature PASSES the heartbeat bill, Abbot wrote on Twitter. Its now on its way to my desk for signing.

State Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr., one of two Democrats who voted in support of the bill, told The Dallas Morning News: I hope that we can continue to do our best to make sure that those soon to be born babies have an opportunity to be born and live in our world.

The Texas legislation differs from the other states heartbeat law in that the state of Texas is forbidden from enforcing the ban on abortion. Instead, private citizensexcept for the individual who impregnated the woman through rape or incestmay file lawsuits against doctors, clinics, and anyone who knowingly engages in conduct that aids or abets the performance or inducement of an abortion, including paying for or reimbursing the costs of an abortion through insurance or otherwise, if the abortion is performed or induced in violation of this chapter, regardless of whether the person knew or should have known that the abortion would be performed or induced in violation of this chapter.

The bill does not include an exception for rape or incest besides in cases where the womans life is endangered.

The Texas Heartbeat Act is novel in approach, allowing for citizens to hold abortionists accountable through private lawsuits, pro-life group Texas Right to Life said in a statement, adding that the bill did not punish women who obtain abortions.

A sign is displayed at Planned Parenthood in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Aug. 21, 2019. (Rick Bowmer/AP Photo)

Planned Parenthood said that it will challenge the bill if it becomes law. The one billion dollar organization continued to operate as an essential business during the pandemic offering abortion and other services.

We want to make one thing clear: Planned Parenthood will continue to fight for the RIGHT to abortion access, no matter what, the organization said in a tweet.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Texas also said that it will fight the bill.

Texas lawmakers have passed extreme legislation that would ban abortion as early as 6 weeks, the group said. But lets be clear: this dangerous bill is unconstitutional, abortion in Texas is still legal, and we will keep fighting.

There has been misinformation spread from some opponents of the bill, including the ACLU, which said that the bill allowed anyone to sue.

This bill is so extreme it would allow anyone in the countrywherever they areto bring a lawsuit in Texas for violating the law. This means a rapist who impregnates a teenager seeking an abortion in Texas, could sue the doctor who performs it, the organization said in a statement.

The bill states the opposite of what opponents claim, notwithstanding any other law, a civil action under this section may not be brought by a person who impregnated the abortion patient through an act of rape, sexual assault, incest, or any other act prohibited by Sections 22.011, 22.021, or 25.02, Penal Code.

The bill will take effect on Sept. 1 if signed into law.

States Tightening Abortion Restrictions

According to the pro-choice research and policy organization Guttmacher Institute, 61 abortion restrictions have passed in 13 states since Jan. 1. Within four days between April 26-29, about 28 abortion restrictions were signed into law in seven states, accounting for 46 percent of all legislation passed this year.

In Montana, three bills were signed by Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte on April 26 banning abortion beginning at 20 weeks, requiring the abortion provider to inform patients of the opportunity to view an ultrasound and hear a fetal heartbeat of the unborn child before potentially having an abortion, and regulating how abortion-inducing drugs are administered.

A doctor performs an ultrasound scan on a pregnant woman at a hospital in Chicago, Ill. on Aug. 7, 2018. (Teresa Crawford/AP Photo)

While in Oklahoma, Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, also signed three bills into law that go into effect on Nov. 1. The bills signed into law on April 27 prohibits an abortion if a fetal heartbeat is detected except when the womans life is in danger, requiring abortions to be performed only by a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist, and suspending a doctors license for at least one year if they perform abortions in violation under certain circumstances.

On April 29, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed House Bill 177 that requires abortion providers to inform patients that they may discontinue the abortion-inducing drug after they had taken the first of the two pills procedure. The law goes into effect in July.

In Idaho, Gov. Brad Little, also a Republican, signed House Bill 366 (pdf) into law on April 27, banning abortion after the fetal heartbeat is detected, except in the case of a medical emergency or the pregnancy resulted from rape or incest.

Also on April 27, Republican Gov. Doug Ducey of Arizona signed Senate Bill 1457 (pdf) that bans abortions of an unborn child with a genetic abnormality, prohibits mail delivery of the abortion-inducing drug, and prohibits state funds to go toward organizations that provide abortion unless an abortion is necessary to save the life of the woman having the abortion.

At the beginning of April, Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon, a Republican, signed the Born Alive Infant-Means of Care (SF34) bill that ensures any baby born alive following a failed abortion receives similar care as any other infant born alive. The law takes effect on July 1.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks during a news conference where he provided an update to Texas's response to COVID-19 in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 17, 2020. (Eric Gay/AP Photo)

Texas Gov. Abbott Says Intercepted Fentanyl at US Border Saw 800 Percent Increase

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott stated on May 14 that the amount of fentanyl U.S. border agents intercepted on the TexasMexico border increased by 800 percent in April compared to the same month last year.

I gotta tell you, theres a new dynamic about whats going on at the border that Americans need to know about, and that is increased apprehension of fentanyl coming across the border, Abbott said during an interview with Fox News. Yes, there may be people coming across, but there are dangerous drugs coming across the border.

We had almost an 800 percent increase April over April of the amount of fentanyl that has been apprehended by the Texas Department of Public Safety.

The governor also noted that the amount of fentanyl intercepted is enough to kill every single person in the state of New York.

I deployed @TxDPS & @TexasGuard to secure the border. Theyve apprehended over 30K migrants & 900 criminals. With the increase in dangerous drugs coming into TX  theyve apprehended enough fentanyl to kill every person in the state of NY. TX is responding to this crisis. pic.twitter.com/vCsAL6eTwR  Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) May 14, 2021

Abbott, a Republican, also criticized the Biden administration for appearing clueless about the severity of the crisis, as border agents recently released operational statistics saying they experienced a large increase in encounters with illegal immigrants last month compared to a year earlier.

On the national level, with regard to the Border Patrol, they apprehended last monthin the month of Aprilmore than 170,000 people, the governor said. That is a tenfold increase over the prior April, where they apprehended about 17,000 people.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection released statistics in a May 11 statement that showed border agents had encountered 178,622 illegal aliens attempting to cross the southern border last month, representing a 3 percent increase over the previous month and the highest one-month total in two decades.

Fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine, according to the FDA, and local law enforcement agencies are confiscating illegal shipments of the drug in record numbers.

Stock image of Bags of heroin, some laced with fentanyl. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

The powerful opioid began as a synthetic opiate originally developed and prescribed for the pain management of cancer patients, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency. But because of the drugs powerful painkilling properties and inexpensive cost to produce, it was soon diverted into the illegal drug trade.

According to the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse, some drug dealers are mixing fentanyl with other drugsincluding heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and MDMAalso known as ecstasy or mollybecause it takes so little to produce a high, making it a cheaper option. Two milligrams of the drug are potentially lethal5,000 milligrams fit into a teaspoon.

Jack Bradley contributed to this report.

From NTD News
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 16:09:28|Editor: huaxia

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Children have fun in "Dove Lane" in the old town Tuancheng of Hotan City, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, May 27, 2020. (Xinhua/Sadat)

"Forced labor" and "genocide" in Xinjiang?

Come on, the world sees clearly the sinister intention of U.S. hyped-up allegations -- to create turbulence to contain China.

It's time for Washington to stop creating mess using Xinjiang.

BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Some U.S. politicians recently trotted out tired cliches over Xinjiang, but lies repeated a thousand times are still groundless shameless lies, and deserve to be thrown into the dustbin of history.

U.S. hyped-up allegations such as "forced labor" and "genocide" in Xinjiang and smearing of the Chinese region as an "open-air prison" are pretexts for Washington to create turbulence to contain China, and the world sees clearly the sinister intention.

The so-called political elites in Washington have turned a blind eye to basic facts about Xinjiang. They accused China of "genocide" without providing proof, but data shows that the Uygur population in Xinjiang has doubled from 5.55 million to over 12 million in the past four decades.

Photo taken on Oct. 17, 2020 shows a machine harvesting cotton in a field in Wenjiazhuang Village, Manasi County of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

They claimed that there is widespread "forced labor," ignoring the fact that some 70 percent of cotton in Xinjiang is harvested by machine, and that jobs in the cotton industry are well-paid and competitive.

The politicians also pointed to so-called "religious repression" of Uygurs, paying no attention to more than 24,000 mosques in the region, which is over 10 times the number in the United States.

Worshippers pray in the Ak Mosque in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, April 13, 2021. (Xinhua/Sun Shaoxiong)

Meanwhile, these U.S. officials have turned a deaf ear to voices of reason. Even though the Chinese government, including officials from Xinjiang, has given thorough introduction about Xinjiang's development on multiple occasions, while many observers worldwide have criticized the U.S. rumor-mongering, these China-bashers are continuing their smear campaign.

It is strange that the United States, who has killed a large number of Muslims in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, is keen on voicing "concerns" over the human rights of Muslims in Xinjiang.

Even more ridiculously, some politicians claimed that they "care very much" about China's internal affairs, but turned a blind eye to such problems as the deep-rooted discrimination, the devastating gun violence and the terrible response to the COVID-19 pandemic in their homeland.

Their smear campaign against China has gone far beyond Xinjiang-related issues. For quite some time, they have been obsessed with distorting facts and manufacturing disinformation when it comes to China. Based on the presumption of guilt, they have turned more crazy and reckless in twisting the truth and peddling lies.

A villager shows harvested pomegranates in Piyalma Township of Pishan County in Hotan Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Nov. 21, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge)

Those anti-China U.S. politicians are indulging in the illusion that they are able to manipulate the public opinion, create a mess in China and disrupt the country's development by repeating lies again and again.

However, their ill-intentioned acts fool no clear minds around the world. In recent times, there is a growing number of think-tanks, media and scholars telling the world what is really happening in Xinjiang based on their independent researches and personal experiences.

At the 46th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council earlier this year, China's policy and position on Xinjiang received support from more than 80 countries across the world, including the vast Muslim countries.

Washington and some of its politicians are advised to stop their anti-China clamors and hypocritical political shows, and pay more attention to their messy backyard before pointing accusing fingers at others. 
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)

The Imprisoned Chinese Billionaires

Commentary

On April 15, 2021, in testimony (pdf) before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission Hearing on An Assessment of the CCPs (Chinese Communist Party) Economic Ambitions, Plans, and Metrics of Success, Miles Yu, the former China policy adviser to former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, spoke about the Chinese economy and the CCPs strict control over financial resources, which ultimately endangers successful entrepreneurs.

In the past 15 years alone, no fewer than 27 Chinese billionaires have been arrestedthe charges range from the bizarre to the absurd, Yu said.

Indeed, Sun Dawu, a well-known private entrepreneur in Hebei Province, is the latest billionaire to be arrested by the CCP.

Sun Dawu May Be Guilty of Words

On April 21, Sun was formally arrested and charged with eight crimes including illegally taking public deposits, gathering crowds to attack state agencies, and illegally occupying agricultural land.

In the early morning of Nov. 11, 2020, the police arrested a total of 28 executives of Dawu Group and its subsidiaries. Nearly all of Suns family membershis wife, two sons, and two daughters-in-lawwere arrested. The groups 28 subsidiaries were officially taken over, and almost all of the companys assets were frozen.

Sun, 66, founded Dawu Group in 1985. The company started with 1,000 chickens and 50 pigs, and by 1995 had become one of the 500 largest private enterprises in China. Dawu Group has more than 9,000 employees, $312 million (2 billion yuan) in fixed assets, and an annual output valued at more than $467 million (3 billion yuan).

Prior to his arrest this year, Sun was sentenced by a CCP court in 2003 to three years in prison, four years of probation, and fined $15,500 (100,000 yuan) for illegally taking public deposits. Dawu Group was fined $46,500 (300,000 yuan).

The real reason for Suns arrest this time may be that he made some comments that were offensive to the CCP. For example, in May last year, Sun expressed his admiration online for rights-defense lawyers such as Xu Zhiyong. Sun posted on social media in May 2020, that these lawyers had shown the victims a little bright light, let them maintain a little faith in the law, and lit up their hope of survival, according to Voice of Americas Chinese edition.

Xu Zhiyong, one of the founders of Gongmeng, or Open Constitution Initiative, and a Chinese civil rights activist and lawyer, had been arrested in February 2020 for publishing a letter urging Xi Jinping to abdicate and was accused of subversion of state power.

Secret Execution of Zeng Chengjie

Zeng Chengjie, a Hunan Province entrepreneur, was the founder of Hunan Sanguan Property Development Company. He was arrested on Nov. 11, 2008, for allegedly illegally taking public deposits, and was secretly executed on July 12, 2013. Neither his lawyer nor his family were notified about the execution.

On May 27, 2013, Zengs lawyer Wang Shaoguang met with him at the detention center. This would become their last meeting. Zeng said, Lawyer Wang, I feel my case will not possibly win, because there are very powerful forces behind the scenes that are controlling the ruling of the case. Even if you can get me a reprieve, they will want me dead anyway.

Zeng was executed on July 12, 2013. The next day, Wang issued an urgent statement and declared that he would take legal responsibility for any falsehood in his statement.

According to Wangs statement, private financing in western Hunan was supported by the local governments, and 90 percent of local families had participated in the financing. He said that Zengs financing agreements were actually notarized by the notary office.

Wang also said that Zengs assets, before his arrest, were worth $367 million (2.4 billion yuan), while the unreturned financing was only $31 million (202 million yuan). However, the local government forcibly sold Zengs assets for only $58 million (380 million yuan) to Caixin, an asset management company wholly owned by the local government.

Wang said that Zhou Qiang, president of the CCPs Supreme Court, was governor of Hunan at the time of the case. Zhou was also Party Secretary of the provincial party committee when the Hunan High Court sentenced Zeng to death. The Hunan High Court issued its second instance verdict on Feb. 19, 2012, but it was not approved by the Supreme Court until after Zhou was promoted to president of the court in March 2013, and then the verdict was approved in less than three months.

Based on Wangs statement, its fair to say Zengs case was a big injustice. Zhou is the principal person who should be held accountable for Zengs murder.

Chongqing Entrepreneur Li Jun Forced to Flee China

Li Jun was the chairman of a large property company, Junfeng Group, with net assets of over $617 million (4 billion yuan) until the company was taken by CCP cadres.

Zhou Yongkang (L), Secretary of the Chinese Communist Partys Central Political and Legislative Committee, in 2007, and Bo Xilai in March 2011. (Left to Right: Teh Eng Koon/AFP/Getty Images, Feng Li/Getty Images)

From 2007 to 2012, Bo Xilai, then-secretary of the CCPs party committee of Chongqing, a major metropolitan city in southwestern China, was launching a campaign in the city called singing red songs and striking the black society. During this massive Mao-style campaign, Bo arrested a number of private entrepreneurs and confiscated hundreds of billions of assets from them. Li Jun was one of the entrepreneurs who was arrested.

On Dec. 9, 2011, 20 people in the Junfeng Group received guilty verdicts. Lis older brother was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment and a fine of over $30 million (200 million yuan) for five crimes including organizing and leading organizations like the black society. The other 19 people were sentenced to terms of imprisonment from 14 months up to 13 years.

The overall verdict says in part: The property and its proceeds amassed by the triad-like organization as well as the tools used to commit the crimes shall be recovered, confiscated, and handed over to the state treasury. This means that the Junfeng Group, which Li had worked hard to build for more than 20 years, had been taken away under the guise of cracking down on criminal organizations.

Li himself had been arrested in 2009 and was acquitted. On Oct. 23, 2010, one day before he was to be arrested for the second time, he fled to Hong Kong.

Jiang Weiping, a veteran Chinese media professional now living in Canada, wrote on his own webpage on Feb. 13, 2013, that Li contacted him and sent him copies of his evidence. After Jiang and his friend, a Canadian lawyer, studied and assessed the materials, Jiang believed that this was an unjust case set up by Bo Xilai, then-party chief of Chongqing, and Wang Lijun, then head of Chongqing Public Security Bureau and chief commander of the striking the black society campaign.

A Group of Imprisoned Billionaires

Some say that billionaires in China are either imprisoned or headed for jail. Overstated though it might sound, it does reflect an objective fact that Chinese billionaires are in a perilous situation. There have been cases with ample proof.

In January 2008, Gu Chujun, former chairman of Guangdong Kelon Electrical Holdings, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment based on three charges, including falsifying corporate reports. Gu was deprived of tens of billions of dollars in assets and several listed companies.

Lan Shili, former China East Star Group chairman, was ranked by Forbes magazine in 2005 as the 70th richest man in China. On April 8, 2010, Lan was sentenced to 4 years in prison for tax evasion. Lans company, worth $311 million, was forcibly purchased by the CCP at the extremely low price of $13 million.

Peng Zhimin, the former richest man in Chongqing, Sichuan Province, and the former chairman of Qinglong Property Development, was sentenced to life imprisonment for organizing a mafia-style gang and many other offenses. According to Chongqing Public Security Bureau official Wang Zhi, Pengs property value reached $726 million and the actual market value was over $1.5 billion due to land value appreciation.

Yang Zongyi, the former richest man in the megacity of Nanjing and the major shareholder of Fuxin Company, was detained on Nov. 17, 2020, for illegally taking public funds. Yang had made it to the Hurun Rich List (a ranking of the wealthiest individuals in China) from 2015 to 2018 with a net worth of about $622 million.

Reasons for Chinese Billionaires Imprisonments

First: The CCPs plunder of private property.

Karl Marx, the CCPs primogenitor, strongly advocated for common ownership and opposed private ownership. Marxs theory is seen as the ideology of the proletariat (the propertyless class). When the proletariat attempts to seize power and hold the authority without capital, the stratagem that they resort to, judging from the CCPs history, can be described in a wordplunder.

The initial stage of the CCPs Peasant Movement was under the banner of an attack on the despotic landowners and the distribution of their land to the poor peasants. Frankly speaking, it was the looting of landowners property. After the CCP came into power, it first implemented an initiative of public-private partnershipcollaborating with capitalistsand then instituted the socialist transformation of capitalist industry and commerce. Put simply, it deprived capitalists of their assets, which eventually left China with state ownership of the economy and collective economy but not the private ownership economy. By the end of the 10-year-long Cultural Revolution in 1976, Chinas economy was on the brink of collapse.

Jack Ma, founder and executive chairman of Chinas Alibaba Group, speaks during a news conference in Chiba, Japan, on June 18, 2015. (Yuya Shino/Reuters)

In December 1978, the CCP launched the policy of Reform and Openness to tackle the crisis of political authority. It ramped up private economy development, not only in cities but also in rural areas, allowing privately-owned companies to survive the dominance of the state ownership economy and collective economy.

The private ownership economy has thrived for thousands of years, proving itself a dynamic economy. The CCP limits the expansion of the private economy, with fewer restrictions in some sectors, yet the private economy has shown significant short-term growth and generated a positive influence. As reported by the South China Morning Post, Chinas private economy can be recapitulated by 56789contributing 50 percent of tax revenue, 60 percent of gross domestic product, 70 percent of industrial upgrades and innovation, 80 percent of total employment, and 90 percent of the total number of enterprises.

Nevertheless, the ideology of the CCP under the guidance of Marxism remains. It ostensibly promotes the idea of safeguarding private ownership, but the actual action is otherwise. When necessary, it pockets private property arbitrarily, switching the ownership from private to state for the sake of capital shortage and political concern.

Second: The CCPs supremacy in the economy.

The bedrock of the CCPs economic development was built by control over a gun (military) and a knife (politics and law). Private entrepreneurs in China, despite their great wealth, become vulnerable and powerless when faced with the military-backed CCP that is wielding a gun and a knife.

In countries with market economies, a consumer market (which acts as an invisible force) plays the dominant role. Whereas in China, there is no market economy, but rather a visible forcethe CCPs power to rule. The Party leader Xi Jinping has publicly stressed, The Party exercises overall leadership over all areas of endeavor in every part of the country. The Party exercises its supremacy in the economy by monopolizing financial sectors, including banking, the stock market, and currency market; resources such as land, minerals, water, taxes, fees, and many others. Private entrepreneurs have to observe the Partys rules. If they dont play by the book, they are subject to a great loss of bank loans, land ownership, mining rights, power and water supplies, and tremendous stress from sundry taxes and increased fees imposed by the CCP.

If private entrepreneurs do not meet the CCPs requirements, it will find any excuse to rob them.

Third: The exacerbation of the CCPs robberies.

Since 1989, the CCP dictator Jiang Zemin held power in Zhongnanhai, the central headquarters for the CCP, and abused his power. For one thing, Jiang indulged his son, Jiang Mianheng, to take official posts and engage in business. For another thing, he promoted a number of seriously corrupt individuals. The convergence of these two turbulent events led to the malignant development of the CCPs corruption, turning officialdom into a platform for trading power and money.

To this day, the unspoken rule for promotion and making a fortune in the CCPs official system is to bribe superior officials. Where does the money come from? Plundering private entrepreneurs is the best solution.

Tong Zhiwei, a professor at the East China University of Political Science and Law, wrote a report on Chongqings crackdown on gangs. Tong pointed out that the major targets of the crackdown campaign are private entrepreneurs. Beijing-based defense lawyer Li Zhuang stated that the judgments of the anti-gang crackdowns in Chongqing that he had scrutinized had identical verdictsconfiscation of property.

Fourth: The CCPs fear of private entrepreneurs rebellion.

Did the CCP subvert Chinas sovereignty over the Republic of China by fair means or foul? For 72 years, the CCP has never held an election and gained the mandate of the people. It has been practicing strong-arm and deceptive tactics for fear that its illegitimate political power will be overthrown. Accordingly, private entrepreneurs are most likely seen as a potential force to instigate a subversion of state power because of their strong financial standing.

Wang Youqun graduated with a Ph.D. in Law from the Renmin University of China. He once worked as an aide and copywriter for Wei Jianxing (19312015), a member of the CCP Politburo Standing Committee from 1997 to 2002.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
The True Victory of Holy Devotion: The Martyrdom of St. Denis

Reaching Within: What traditional art offers the heart

I came across a painting by the 19-century French academic painter Leon Bonnat titled The Martyrdom of St. Denis. At my first glance, this painting was a gruesome representation of a beheading. As I looked longer, however, I became morally inspired.

Who Was Saint Denis?

As legend has it, Saint Denis (Dionysius) was converted to Christianity under the Apostle Paul. After Pauls death, Pope Clement I sent Dionysius with several other bishops to Gaul to convert pagans to Christianity. However, the bishops were arrested in France by the Roman emperor, who was set on persecuting Christians.

Soldiers were instructed to take the captured bishops and behead them on the slopes of Montmartre. The soldiers followed the orders and decapitated the prisoners in their custody.

When they got to Dionysius, however, his faith was so great and so deep that he stayed alive after he was beheaded. Dionysius picked up his severed head, which continued to recite psalms, and walked for two miles to his final resting place.

The Martyrdom of St. Denis, 1885, by Leon Bonnat. Pantheon, Paris, France. (Public Domain)

The Martyrdom of St. Denis

Saint Denis is shown in the middle of the lower half of the composition. He has just been beheaded. But instead of lying on the ground lifeless, he bends over to pick his head up from the ground. A halo surrounds his head, and light shines where his head used to be.

The executioner is shown to the right of Saint Denis. He has dropped his bloodied ax and leans back in surprise. Another figure behind Saint Denis throws his hands up in disbelief.

The executioner has had a busy day: On the bloodied steps lie two decapitated bodies at the right and left edges of the composition. A second decapitated head, at the bottom right of the design, has a halo around it, suggesting that it most likely belonged to one of the bishops.

An angel coming down on a cloud can be seen at the top right. The angel carries a palm branch and laurel crown, which represent Saint Deniss victory over death.

The True Victory of Holy Devotion

First, I find it necessary to ask, What does the head represent? The head can represent consciousness, wisdom, ego, intelligence, rationality, and so on. Having the saints head separated from his body suggests that the things his head represents are also separated from his body.

What, then, does the body represent? The body is often associated with carnal desires and pleasures. The mind tries to control the body, but often the body distracts the mind.

Is it the case that this depiction of Saint Denis may provide us with the moral lesson that the mind must separate itself from the carnal distractions of the body? Is this what is necessary to lead a holy life?

Lets take a closer look at the head itself. There are two decapitated heads: Saint-Deniss and anothers at the bottom right. The head at the bottom right is grayer in color, making it look more lifeless, and it has a thin halo. In contrast, Saint-Deniss head has more color and even looks at his body, and the halo around his head is completely filled with golden light.

The fullness of the halo likely represents a greater dedication to the holy life; otherwise, why paint the two halos and heads differently? If this is the case, then a greater commitment to the holy life provides life where there would otherwise be death.

As the legend says, even after decapitation Saint Deniss head recited divine words. His devotion completely influenced his consciousness, wisdom, ego, intelligence, rationality, and so on. He was so committed to holiness while alive that his dedication continued after his head was separated from his body.

Interestingly enough, his dedication to the holy life also seems to influence his body. Bonnat depicts the moment that Saint Deniss body reaches down to pick up his head. A light shines where his head once was. How does his body know where his head is?

Is it his devotion to the divine that harmonizes and somehow connects his body and mind, the two things that, above, we suggest are separate? And does the light that shines where his head used to be represent his devotion? Does this light guide his spirit, his soul?

Is it this type of devotion that brings true victory, represented by the angel? Saint Denis could have fought back, argued, and pleaded for his life. None of these would have guaranteed him success.

In reciting the psalms, he is genuinely focused on God, and death doesnt concern him. He is unafraid of death, and this fearlessness in God is what brings him true victory.

The result of Saint Deniss holy devotion astonishes his executioner. How might we use our faith to astonish those who wish us harm?

The traditional arts often contain spiritual representations and symbols the meanings of which can be lost to our modern minds. In our series Reaching Within: What Traditional Art Offers the Heart, we interpret visual arts in ways that may be morally insightful for us today. We do not assume to provide absolute answers to questions generations have wrestled with, but hope that our questions will inspire a reflective journey toward our becoming more authentic, compassionate, and courageous human beings.

Eric Bess is a practicing representational artist and is a doctoral candidate at the Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts (IDSVA).
UK Fraud Agency Probes Liberty Steel Owners Greensill Links

LONDONThe business empire of Liberty Steel owner Sanjeev Gupta, including its financing arrangements with bankrupt Greensill Capital UK, is being investigated by Britains Serious Fraud Office, the agency said Friday.

The SFO said in a statement that it is investigating suspected fraud, fraudulent trading, and money laundering within Gupta Family Group Alliance, including links to Greensill, the supply chain finance firm that went bankrupt earlier this year. Because this is an active investigation, the agency said it wont be providing any further comment on its probe.

Guptas companies were among the main clients of Greensill before its collapse in March. Their reliance on Greensill stoked concerns over their financial health when it went under. Liberty Steel, which employs 5,000 people, has sought a government bailout in the wake of Greensills collapse.

Greensills model worked by positioning itself between businesses and their suppliers. It would immediately pay invoices that suppliers gave to their customers, for a fee. In effect, it gave suppliers certainty by ensuring that they didnt have to wait for months for payment.

The relationship between Guptas companies and Greensill has been in the spotlight over the past few weeks. Former British Prime Minister David Cameron, who acted as an adviser to Greensill that involved him lobbying his contacts in government and in the civil service, has been caught up in the fallout of the firms bankruptcy,

On Thursday, Cameron testified before lawmakers on his activities for Greensill, which he insisted was motivated by a desire to help support British workers and businesses in the economic turmoil caused by COVID and not by the prospect of making millions from his Greensill shares.

Opposition parties are calling for tougher rules on contacts between business representatives and government officials, saying Britains laxly enforced lobbying regulations leave the door open to corruption.

The Financial Conduct Authority, Britains financial regulatory body, has already announced a formal investigation into Greensills collapse after receiving allegations that it said were potentially criminal in nature.

The Financial Times newspaper has previously reported that Guptas companies handed suspicious invoices to Greensill, which the finance company paid for. In response, GFG Alliance said the invoices were for products it expected to perhaps sell in the future.

By Pan Pylas
UK troops have battled a sandstorm to seize a cache of weapons hidden by terrorists in Mali. (Ministry of Defence/PA)

UK Troops Seize Weapons Cache Hidden by Islamic Terrorists in Mali

UK troops have battled a sandstorm to seize a cache of weapons hidden by terrorists in Mali, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said on Saturday.

Around 100 soldiers from the Light Dragoons and Royal Anglian Regiment found AK47 rifles, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, camouflage clothing, radios, mobile phones, and hundreds of litres of fuel during the operation.

The mission took place in early May, shortly after suspected fighters of the so-called Islamic State in the Greater Sahel (ISGS) fled by swimming across the River Niger.

Terrorists had been intimidating locals, extorting money, and assaulting people who refused to comply with their demandsmeaning UK forces were able to respond to protect them under the U.N.s peacekeeping mandate, the MoD said.

Clothing and weapons seized by UK troops in Mali. (Ministry of Defence/PA)

The mission, which was executed in a village near the border of Niger, was the first cordon and search operation, acting on intelligence proactively gathered, carried out by U.N. forces in Mali.

Minister for the Armed Forces James Heappey said: This was the first operation of its kind by U.N. forces in Mali, demonstrating how UK personnel have made a significant contribution to the mission during their first six months in the country.

Removing the weapons and disrupting the terrorist operation will make a real difference to the local community and importantly the intelligence collected will help develop our understanding and help to prevent the threat from armed groups in the future.

Clothing and weapons seized by UK troops in Mali. (Ministry of Defence/PA)

The MoD said the operation, which was supported by a specialist Royal Engineers search team, took place during incredibly challenging conditions, including a sandstorm that reduced visibility to 30 metres, over 50C heat and soldiers carrying up to 45kg of equipment.

Lieutenant Colonel Tom Robinson, commanding officer of the Light Dragoons, said: This operation is a tangible example of how UK soldiers, as part of the U.N. Force, are making a real difference to protect the people of Mali who are living in one of the most vulnerable regions in the world.

Using intelligence gathered during our patrols, we focussed on where terrorist groups were intimidating local people and were then able to find and seize the weapons and supplies, disrupting their harmful influence on local communities, and gathering more information that will help interrupt further extremist activity.

Clothing and weapons seized by UK troops in Mali. (Ministry of Defence/PA)

The 300-strong UK Task Group deployed to Mali in December 2020 to support the U.N. mission, which is made up of more than 13,000 peacekeepers from 56 different countries.

The weapons and intelligence collected have been passed to the U.N. Mine Action Service, U.N. Police, and Malian authorities, who will eventually destroy the materials.

Swedish Colonel Markus Hook, commanding officer of the U.N. Missions Mobile Task Forceof which the UK troops are a part, said: This Cordon and Search Operation was the first of its kind in a long period.

It was based on information which suggested that a specific location within a village was being used for weapon storage by non-compliant armed groups which were harassing the local population.

The operation was a direct and timely response to intelligence, and it serves as a telling example of how we are proactively fulfilling our mandate to protect civilians.

By Josh Payne
Trailers for the homeless are set up in south Los Angeles on Feb. 13, 2020. (Courtesy of Gov. Gavin Newsom's Office)

Unused Trailers for LAs Homeless Sit Empty

When the state of California gifted 1,300 travel trailers throughout the state last year to temporarily house the homeless during the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak, there was hope that some of the 66,000 people experiencing homelessness in Los Angeles County would have shelter.

But a year later, many of the trailers in Los Angeles sit empty and unused in parking lots next to the Los Angeles Zoo and Dodger Stadium, according to a local news report.

Its upsetting to see all of those trailers sitting there in parking lots empty, when you know you have a humanitarian crisis playing out on the streets, Daniel Conway, an adviser for the LA Alliance for Human Rights, told The Epoch Times. Its just hard to kind of make sense of it.

The trailers were bought from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)and cost taxpayers $50 millionto provide temporary shelter for the homeless in cities that need them the most. More than 100 parked and unused trailers were confirmed in an investigative report by CBS Los Angeles earlier this month, which said they cost more than $40,000 each.

According to Conway, L.A. city officials said the trailers failed due to their expensive nature: They require connection to sewage lines and need constant maintenance.

But he added that the officials seem to kind of be inconsistent about thatbecause at the same time, they build affordable housing projects where they can cost $700,000 a unit, referring to how the citys Proposition HHH funds are being spent to build permanent supportive housing units.

Conway said L.A. County is not good at producing housing because its done very slowly and very expensively.

So for a decade plus now, weve had this commitment to permanent supportive housing as kind of the answer to homelessness. But weve never actually been able to figure out how to turn that into like an actual operational scalable model, he said.

Soledad Ursua is chairwoman of the Venice Beach Neighborhood Council, a community organization dealing with a significant homeless problem on its residential streets. She said she took a wrong turn while driving in L.A. recently and saw the trailers locked up in a yard next to the Griffith Park Observatory.

Its just very frustrating to see that theres trailers empty and we have, you know, thousands of unhoused homeless people on the streets, she said.

Conway said he thinks the city should give the trailers back to the state so they can be used in other communities. However, its not clear if anyone would want them.

The states trailer program also suffered setbacks in Northern California. In San Jose, local news reported that some trailers sat unused in the city, costing $1.3 million. Only 37 trailers were usedwith each unit costing $54,000 per personbefore the city rescinded the program, citing increasingly high costs for upkeep.

Trucks deliver trailers for the homeless in Los Angeles on Feb. 13, 2020. (Courtesy of Gov. Gavin Newsoms Office)

Financially Negligent

The LA Alliance for Human Rights includes business owners, social workers, and Skid Row residents. Last year, the group filed a federal lawsuit against the city and county to require them to take responsibility for their legal obligations to maintain a safe and healthy environment for allhoused and unhoused.

Earlier this month, U.S. District Court Judge David O. Carter, who is overseeing the case, rejected the countys bid to be dismissed from the lawsuit. The county argued it should be immune from the lawsuit because Skid Row is within the citys limits; Carter determined the countys pleas dont apply to some of the plaintiffs allegations.

Ursua has been a vocal critic of the citys handling of the homelessness crisis in Venice Beach. She said the trailer situation is a great example of why the legal system should be brought into play.

We need Judge Carter involved, because he could be somebody to manage the assets, she said.

Ursua said she thinks the county is acting in a financially negligent manner with the resources they have. Judge Carter needs to step in and work it out, to oversee everything, she said.

Last month, Carter ordered the city of Los Angeles to place $1 billion in escrow for homeless funding, and ordered the city and county to offer shelter to the homeless people living on Skid Row within six months.

During Mayor Eric Garcettis State of the City address last month, he announced he would dedicate $1 billion to address the homelessness crisis in the city. But Conway said its difficult to reconcile Garcettis proposed budget, when so much has already been spent on trailers that are not being used.

When contacted for comment, Gov. Gavin Newsoms Office referred The Epoch Times to Los Angeles County officials.

The County provided legal documents to The Epoch Times, detailing its request to stay Judge Carters order requiring that all homeless individuals on Skid Row downtown be housed in temporary facilities within six months and stating the filing reflects the Countys position on the case.

According to the filing, the County is committed to addressing and improving the lives of people experiencing homelessness, and cites efforts taken on their behalf to provide services, housing, and shelter.

On May 10, Carter denied the request to dismiss the order.

We are disappointed but not surprised that the District Court has denied the Countys motion to dismiss. Meanwhile, we will continue to pursue our appeal to the Ninth Circuit of the District Courts preliminary injunction order, Skip Miller, the countys outside counsel in the lawsuit, told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement.

A few days later, on May 13, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay on the judges injunction until June 15, following a hearing on the case that will begin May 27.
Students walk through the campus of Yale University in New Haven, Conn., on Sept. 27, 2018. (Yana Paskova/Getty Images)

US Agents Arrest Man Accused of Killing Yale Student

Federal agents in Alabama on Friday arrested a Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate student accused of killing a Yale University student in February, ending a months-long nationwide hunt, local media reported.

The U.S. Marshals Service said it took Qinxuan Pan into custody in Alabama, an ABC news affiliate in New Haven, Connecticut, reported.

Pan was wanted in the Feb. 6 killing of Kevin Jiang, a 26-year-old graduate student at the Yale School of the Environment, located in New Haven, about 80 miles northeast of New York City.

Jiang was shot to death outside his car, a murder that rattled the prestigious Ivy League schools campus.

On March 1, U.S. Marshals began a nationwide hunt for Pan, offering $10,000 for information leading to his arrest.

At the time, the agency said Pan was last seen in the early morning hours on Feb. 11 driving with family members in Brookhaven or Duluth, Georgia.

The U.S. Marshals Service was unavailable for comment on Friday.

Pan was enrolled in the electrical engineering and computer science department at MIT, itself an elite school not far from the suspects last known address in Malden, Massachusetts.

Police have not disclosed a suspected motive in the killing.

The murder took place near the apartment of Jiangs fiancee, Zion Perry, also a Yale graduate student, the New Haven Independent reported on Feb. 11.

Perry and Pan had crossed paths at MIT, where she earned her undergraduate degree, according to the newspaper, which published a photo of the two at a social gathering in March 2020.

There was no evidence to suggest Perry and Pan had a romantic relationship, the Independent said.

By Brendan OBrien in Chicago
A Russian flag flies next to the U.S. embassy building in Moscow on July 31, 2017. (Mladen Antonov/AFP via Getty Images)

US Embassy in Moscow Temporarily Resumes Halted Services

MOSCOWThe U.S. Embassy in Moscow said Friday it will temporarily resume some of the consular services it had halted earlier due to a Russian ban on hiring local residents.

The embassy said last month that the ban forced it to reduce its consular workforce by 75 percent and starting May 12, it would only provide emergency U.S. citizen services and a very limited number of immigrant visas in case of life-or-death emergencies.

It said non-immigrant visa processing for non-diplomatic travel would cease and it would stop offering routine notarial services, consular reports of births abroad, and passport renewal services for the foreseeable future.

On Friday, however, the embassy announced that it will resume routine U.S. citizen services, including passport services, consular reports of birth abroad, and limited notarial services, as well as immigrant visa processing for priority and urgent cases, through July 16 after the Russian government informed it of the intent to postpone the hiring ban.

Later Friday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the United States has until Aug. 1 to comply with the ban. This matter is fully and irreversibly closed, she said.

Halting consular services leaves Russian businessmen, exchange students, and romantic partners adrift because they wont be able to obtain visas in Russia.

Moscow has moved to ban the U.S. Embassy and consular offices from hiring Russian and third-country nationals as part of its retaliation to a set of new U.S. sanctions imposed over Russian interference in the 2020 U.S. presidential election and involvement in the SolarWind hack of U.S. federal agenciesactivities that Russia has denied.

The United States ordered 10 Russian diplomats out, targeted dozens of companies and people, and imposed new curbs on Russias ability to borrow money. Russia quickly retaliated by ordering 10 U.S. diplomats to leave, blacklisting eight current and former U.S. officials, and tightening requirements for U.S. Embassy operations.
Falun Gong practitioners take part in a grand march calling for an end to the persecution of Falun Gong in China, in Washington on June 20, 2018. (Edward Dye/The Epoch Times)

US State Department Spotlights Persecution of Countless Falun Gong Practitioners in China

The U.S. State Department on May 13 highlighted the ongoing persecution of Falun Gong practitioners at the hands of the Chinese communist regime.

On World Falun Dafa Day, we recognize the countless Falun Gong practitioners the PRC [Peoples Republic of China] harasses & abuses simply for their beliefs, the departments Office of International Religious Freedom wrote in a tweet on Wednesday.

The message came a day after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced sanctions against Yu Hui, a Chinese official, over his involvement in the arbitrary detention of Falun Gong adherents. A Chinese police chief was similarly sanctioned by the United States in December.

Adherents of Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, have been victims of a sweeping campaign of repression by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for more than two decades. The practice, which includes meditative exercises and a set of moral teachings centered around the tenets truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance, gained traction in China during the 1990s with up to 100 million learning the discipline by the end of the decade, according to official estimates at the time. Deeming this popularity a threat to its totalitarian control, the CCP launched a fierce crackdown in an attempt to eliminate the practice in July 1999.

Since then, millions of practitioners have been detained in prisons, detention centers, and other facilities, while hundreds of thousands have suffered torture in a bid to have them give up their faith, according to the Falun Dafa Information Center. Detained practitioners have also been killed for their organs to supply the lucrative transplant market. Those that are not detained are subject to heavy surveillance and harassment.

In 2020, more than 15,000 adherents experienced arrests or harassment, with more than 600 people sentenced to jail, according to Minghui, a U.S.-based website that serves as a clearinghouse for the persecution in China. The oldest person among those who were sentenced was 88. While Minghui has verified more than 4,000 deaths as a result of the persecution, the true number is likely to many times greater due to the CCPs efforts to suppress information about its abuses.

Several U.S. lawmakers, at the federal and state level, as well as governors, also voiced support for Falun Gong adherents on World Falun Dafa Day on May 13a day celebrated by practitioners around the world.

I am writing to recognize this important day in our community, wrote U.S. Rep. Robert Wittman (R-Va.) in a letter. On this day, we remember the religious persecution that began in 1999 and those who continue to choose to stand up against it with non-violent resistance.

Eva Fu and Frank Fang contributed to this report.
NORWALK  The Federal Emergency Management Association mobile COVID-19 vaccination unit visited South Norwalk on Friday and plans to return Saturday, providing a minimum of 250 vaccinations each day, including first-dose Pfizer vaccines to children aged 12 to 17.

The clinic, held in the parking lot of 50 Washington St. in SoNo, offered Pfizer and single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccines, city spokesperson Josh Morgan said. While the J&J vaccine was only available for residents 18 and older, adults chose between receiving the Pfizer or the J&J vaccine.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 17:03:48|Editor: huaxia

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-- Conflict in East Jerusalem during the past four weeks between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli police has ignited the current wave of violence. The outrage reached its climax when Israel decided to evict Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in the city.

-- Analysts have warned that it could trigger an all-out war with high cost and sink the world, already besieged by a ravaging pandemic and sluggish economy, into greater instability and vulnerability.

-- Tala Oukal, a Gaza-based political analyst, told Xinhua that there is "no doubt that Israel is to be blamed for causing the current escalation because it attacked worshippers during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and forced Palestinian families to evacuate their homes."

by Saud Abu Ramadan, Emad Drimly

GAZA, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Over the past six days, armed conflict between Israel and the Hamas-led militant groups has kept flaring up, marking the fiercest fighting between the two sides since 2014 that has killed more than 120 Palestinians and nearly 10 Israelis.

The two sides continue a tit-for-tat exchange of fire and keep trading threats of escalation, while regional and international mediation efforts have produced little effect to defuse the spiraling tensions.

Photo taken on May 14, 2021 shows explosions following Israeli air strikes on a bank that belongs to Hamas in Gaza City. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

At present, the international community remains gravely concerned about whether Israel will launch a ground offensive against the Islamic Hamas movement, which is in control of the Gaza Strip.

Analysts have warned that it could trigger an all-out war with high cost and sink the world, already besieged by a ravaging pandemic and sluggish economy, into greater instability and vulnerability.

SPIRAL OF ARMED VIOLENCE

On Saturday, Israel deployed more tanks and ground forces on the borders with the Gaza Strip, after Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz ordered a redeployment of more reinforcements to the border areas.

Conflict in East Jerusalem during the past four weeks between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli police has ignited the current wave of violence. The outrage reached its climax when Israel decided to evict Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in the city.

The sharp escalation began at 6 p.m. local time (1500 GMT) on May 10, 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 with Israeli police earlier that day.

Palestinians inspect the rubble of a house destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, on May 14, 2021. (Photo by Yasser Qudih/Xinhua)

Overnight and at predawn on Friday, Israeli fighter jets kept striking the Gaza Strip and bombarded a five-storey building in western Gaza City, which included a branch of a Hamas bank, according to an Israeli military spokesperson.

The Israeli army also said the Israeli forces had intensively attacked posts that belong to Hamas, adding that 160 war jets, artillery, and tanks participated in the military operation.

It added that 150 targets were hit overnight and on Friday morning, and many of the targets were underground. The Israeli army will also continue its strikes on the militants who fire rockets at Israel, it said.

Three rockets were fired on Friday night from Syria toward northern Israel, said the Israeli military, adding one rocket fell short within Syria and the other two fell in an open field, causing no damage or injury.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants have also announced that their militants have fired more barrages of rockets into Israel.

Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing, claimed responsibility for launching 100 rockets at the Israeli city of Ashkelon, in response to Israel's "targeting of civilians" in the enclave.

Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, also said that its militants carried out intensive rocket strikes at Israeli cities in southern and central Israel.

UN URGES UNIFIED MEDIATION

United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called for a unified Security Council over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and regretted the lack of multilateralism.

Asked what the secretary-general expects from Sunday's emergency meeting of the Security Council on the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian escalation, Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric said: "What we would like to see is ... a strong, unified voice for de-escalation, for a cessation of hostilities and a push to get the parties back on track to find a political solution to this conflict that has been going on and on and on."

Asked for Guterres' comment on the fact that one single Security Council member blocked the proposal for a Friday meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, just days after all council members pledged support for multilateralism, Dujarric said Guterres is concerned about the state of multilateralism "as we've seen it during the pandemic and as we've seen it in other aspects."

A burnt car is seen after a rocket from the Gaza Strip landed in southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, on May 11, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg/JINI via Xinhua)

China on Friday slammed the United States for compelling the UN Security Council to postpone a meeting on the Palestine-Israel issue that was originally scheduled to open on Friday.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing that on Monday, the United States expressed opposition to the adoption of a Security Council presidential statement on the Palestine-Israel issue, and it also blocked the issuance of a statement from the UN Security Council on Wednesday expressing concern about the situation in Palestine.

Hua said that the United States has taken a position against the international community, and she asked the country to explain why it is doing this.

Hua noted that, in the face of the current serious situation, all sides must make every effort to cool the situation, protect the safety, rights and interests of ordinary people, and prevent the crisis from escalating and getting out of control.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and his Jordanian counterpart Ayman Safadi discussed on Friday the deteriorating conflict in the Palestinian territories and stressed the necessity to resume the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

During a phone conversation, both ministers stressed the importance of continuing the work on an immediate means to stop the conflict in the Gaza Strip and prevent any Israeli provocations in Jerusalem, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday also called on Israelis and Palestinians to stop hostilities and agree on a ceasefire.

"The spiral of violence in the Middle East must stop," Macron tweeted. "I strongly call for a ceasefire and for dialogue. I call for calm and peace."

HIGH COST OF GROUND OFFENSIVE

Adnan Abu Aamer, a Gaza political science professor who specializes in Israeli affairs, told Xinhua that the cost of launching an Israeli ground operation will be high for both Israel and the Palestinians.

"The ground operation will drag the two sides into a comprehensive war," said Abu Aamer. "I believe the Israeli threats to wage a ground operation against the Gaza Strip are part of a psychological war... It is only for show."

"The Israeli army knows well that a ground offensive would put its soldiers before three main options: first is to get killed; second is to get back home with physical disability, and third is to get captive in the hands of militants, which will be the hardest for Israel," he noted.

Photo taken on May 11, 2021 from the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis shows rockets being fired toward Israel. (Photo by Yasser Qudih/Xinhua)

Echoing those perspectives, Husam al-Dajjani, a political analyst from Gaza, told Xinhua he ruled out that Israel would wage a massive ground military operation in the Gaza Strip, "because Israel will not be able to bear the cost of that in terms of human losses."

"Israel is boosting its military presence on the borders with Gaza to protect its towns and settlements adjacent to the Gaza Strip from possible Palestinian infiltration attacks," he said, adding that deploying more forces on the borders is meant to pressure the Palestinian factions for a ceasefire.

Al-Dajjani also said the Palestinian factions, including Hamas, are ready to reach a ceasefire and don't want to get involved in a large-scale confrontation with Israel.

Tala Oukal, a Gaza-based political analyst, told Xinhua that there is "no doubt that Israel is to be blamed for causing the current escalation because it attacked worshippers during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and forced Palestinian families to evacuate their homes."

"Israel made a mistake when it believed Hamas and other factions would keep silent and stand watching the Israeli violations against al-Aqsa Mosque and the Muslim worshippers," Oukal said. "Hamas is ready to cease fire, but it wants to stop Israel from carrying out more violations in Jerusalem." (Video reporters: Xiong Sihao, Sanaa Kamal, Khader Abu Kwik; Video editors: Zhao Yuchao, Luo Chen)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  Iran's judiciary chief, a hard-line cleric linked to mass executions in 1988, registered on Saturday to run in the Islamic Republics presidential election next month, a vote that comes as negotiators struggle to resuscitate Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers.

The cleric, Ebrahim Raisi, is among the more prominent hopefuls  he garnered nearly 16 million votes in the 2017 election. He lost that race to Iran's relatively moderate President Hassan Rouhani, whose administration struck the atomic accord.

Raisi's close ties to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his popularity  due partly to his televised anti-corruption campaign  could make him a favorite in the election. Analysts already believe that hard-liners enjoy an edge as Rouhani is term limited from running again. The public has widely grown disenchanted with Rouhani's administration after 2018, when then-President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the nuclear deal.

Raisi, wearing a black turban that identifies him in Shiite tradition as a direct descendant of Islams Prophet Muhammad, offered fiery remarks to journalists at the Interior Ministry as he registered. He vowed that if he wins the June 18 vote, corruption will be dried up.

Those who founded and partnered with the current situation cant claim they can change it, Raisi said. People are complaining about the current situation. They are upset. Their disappointment is on the rise. This should be stopped.

The 60-year-old sought to strike a populist note, urging the public to donate to his campaign and turn their homes into election headquarters as he wasn't wealthy.

We need individuals who believe in change, he said.

Raisi had been named as a possible successor to Irans 82-year-old supreme leader, leading some to suggest he wouldnt run in the race. His entry immediately saw some hard-liners announce they would withdraw, raising Raisi's prominence further among the candidates.

A February telephone survey conducted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and the Toronto-based organization IranPoll found 27% of respondents said they wished Raisi would become Iran's next president, the highest among named candidates. The survey found 35% undecided; the poll interviewed 1,006 Iranians and had a margin of error of 3.09%.

I think hes someone that the system trusts, particularly Khamenei, said Sanam Vakil, the deputy director of Chatham Houses Middle East and North Africa Program. If you look at Raisis biography and background, it reads quite similar to that of the supreme leaders.

"If Khamenei is thinking about his legacy, he would probably be looking for someone who is similar to him and ideologically aligned with him and looking to protect what Khamenei has done over the last 30 years, Vakil added.

Activists hold a jaded view of Raisi. As the head of the judiciary, he oversees a justice system in Iran that remains one of the world's top executioners. United Nations experts and others have criticized Iran for detaining dual nationals and those with ties abroad to be used as bargaining chips in negotiations with the West.

Then there's the 1988 mass executions that came at the end of Irans long war with Iraq. After Irans then-Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini accepted a U.N.-brokered cease-fire, members of the Iranian opposition group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, heavily armed by Saddam Hussein, stormed across the Iranian border in a surprise attack.

Iran ultimately blunted their assault, but the attack set the stage for the sham retrials of political prisoners, militants and others that would become known as death commissions. Some who appeared were asked to identify themselves. Those who responded mujahedeen were sent to their deaths, while others were questioned about their willingness to clear minefields for the army of the Islamic Republic, according to a 1990 Amnesty International report.

International rights groups estimate that as many as 5,000 people were executed, while the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq puts the number at 30,000. Iran has never fully acknowledged the executions, apparently carried out on Khomeinis orders, though some argue that other top officials were effectively in charge in the months before his 1989 death.

Raisi, then a deputy prosecutor in Tehran, took part in some of the panels at Evin and Gohardasht prisons. A tape of a meeting of Raisi and his boss meeting prominent Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri leaked out in 2016, with Montazeri describing the executions as the biggest crime in the history of the Islamic Republic.

Raisi never publicly acknowledged his role in the executions while campaigning for president in 2017. After his loss, Khamenei appointed him as head of the judiciary in 2019.

Raisi previously ran the Imam Reza charity foundation, which manages a vast conglomerate of businesses and endowments in Iran believed to be worth tens of billions of dollars. It is one of many bonyads, or charitable foundations, fueled by donations or assets seized after Irans 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Analysts have speculated that Khamenei could be grooming Raisi as a possible candidate to be Irans third-ever supreme leader, who has final say on all state matters and serves as the countrys commander-in-chief.

Within Iran, candidates exist on a political spectrum that broadly includes hard-liners who want to expand Irans nuclear program, 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 Khameneis watch.

Other candidates who registered on Saturday, the last day of the registration, include Ali Larijani, a prominent conservative voice and former parliament speaker who later allied himself with Rouhani. Another hopeful is Mohsen Hashemi Rafsanjani, the eldest son of the late former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and a prominent reformist on Tehran's city council.

Rouhani's senior Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri also registered, as did Central Bank chief Abdolanasser Hemmati.

Several of the hopefuls have prominent backgrounds in the Revolutionary Guard, a paramilitary force answerable only to Khamenei. Irans former hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad registered Wednesday.

The Guardian Council will announce a final list of candidates by May 27, and a 20-day campaign season begins the following day.

___

Associated Press writer Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.
Editors Note: In recognition of National Historic Preservation Month, local historian Cindy Reinhardt tells the stories behind some of Edwardsvilles historic buildings in a series of eight articles in the Month of May.

The charming Victorian cottage at 905 St. Louis Street was built circa 1895 for a retiring minister and his wife. The Rev. William E. Ravenscroft and his wife, Anne, came to Edwardsville in their later years when he accepted a call to St. Johns Methodist Church. They took out a mortgage in 1891 to pay for two lots on St. Louis Street but had no need to build a house immediately because they lived in the church parsonage. A few years later, they obtained another mortgage to build a house on one of their lots while selling the other at a modest profit, which provided additional funds for the new house.

William Ravenscroft was born in England in 1824, the son of another minister, Stephen Ravenscroft. Throughout his entire career he worked in the Indiana and Illinois Districts of the Methodist church. In 1849, he married Anna Catherine Jackson, who was born in 1824 in Pennsylvania, but by the time of her marriage had moved to Indiana. The couple had six children, a son and five daughters.

The work of the church in those days was not an easy life. William spent many hours traveling from one congregation to another through areas that didnt yet have good roads.

William and Anna came to Edwardsville in 1890 from Plainview, Illinois. Not long after arriving, in 1892, William came down with a severe case of cholera, so bad that at one time they were uncertain if he would survive. He came through and resumed his duties at St. Johns until 1895 when he retired, but not completely as is often the case with ministers. He still performed weddings, often from the new house on St. Louis Street, and he was the Presiding Elder of the Alton District of the Methodist Episcopal Church for many years. Two years after retiring from St. Johns, in 1897, he again accepted a call to Plainfield, but remained a resident of Edwardsville, commuting to Macoupin County for Sunday services.

In 1900, due to Annas ill health, the couple moved away from Edwardsville to live with one of their daughters. Anna died in 1902 and William in 1903 at the age of 79. His obituary in an Olney, Illinois newspaper said, Brother Ravenscroft was cheerful in disposition and dignified in bearing. His appearance was always that of a neat, careful, Christian gentleman. In the pulpit he was careful in speech, reverent in manner and sound in theology.

After the Ravenscrofts, there was a series of short-term owners: George and Isabella Kalbfleisch, originally from Collinsville, lived there from 1900-1903. George was a well-known banker.

A widow, Mary J. Kienle occupied the house from 1903-1907. Mary was the daughter of James Olive for whom Olive Township is named. She moved to Edwardsville after her husband died, but then returned to the rural area of northeastern Madison County where she was from originally.

John Archie Bishop and his wife Ida bought the house from Mrs. Kienle in 1907. They were Hamel area farmers before moving to St. Louis St. for just a few years before returning to farming in 1911.

In 1911, the house was purchased by a family that would stay for decades, Dr. Howard Eliphalet Wharff and his wife, Mary, known as Mae.

Howard E. was one of three children born to Dr. Howard Thomas Wharff and his wife, Mary. Howard T. was a Civil War veteran, originally from Maine, who after the war studied medicine in St. Louis and

under several local doctors, as was the custom then. He was a general physician and surgeon with a practice in Alhambra when his son, Howard E., was born in 1878.

After graduation from St. Louis University in 1906, Howard E. worked as an assistant in the universitys eye, ear, nose and throat division for four years, then moved to Edwardsville and joined his fathers practice until 1916 when he became physician for the county hospital in Edwardsville. He officially held that position until 1919, although his father had to substitute for him during the 15 months that he served in the U. S. Medical Corps during WW I. Many area doctors were pulled into service during WW I, most of them serving stateside, but Wharff was one of the few sent overseas. While in France, after the war, he took additional training in his specialty at Montpellier and had the opportunity to travel.

In 1908, Howard E. was engaged to marry Mary Mae Steele of St. Louis. A month prior to the wedding, when their parents were out of town, they eloped. They hoped to keep the marriage a secret, but friends and family found out, when the St. Louis newspapers printed the usual list of marriage licenses. Once the secret was out it resulted in news articles in both St. Louis and Edwardsville newspapers.

The couple had one son, Duncan, born before Howard left for service in World War I. Shortly after he returned, they divorced and Mae returned to St. Louis where she and Duncan made a home with Maes mother. As was common in those days, when divorce was considered a great stigma, Mae listed herself as a widow on census records and other documents the rest of her life.

In 1922, Howard remarried. Florence Zimmer, the daughter of German immigrants, was from Granite City. She made the news shortly after their marriage when she was allowed to vote from home. She was unable to leave the house due to illness, so she contacted the county clerk. He brought a ballot to her home, observed her filling it out, sealed it in an envelope and delivered it to her polling place. The Intelligencer reported, It is one of the rare occasions of its kind in Illinois and the vote was cast under special legal provisions.

Dr. Wharff was 71 when he died suddenly at his Main St. office in 1949. His widow, Florence, continued to live at their St. Louis St. home until her death in 1966. After Florences death, the house was divided into two small apartments that were often leased by widows or retirees. The house was beautifully restored several years ago. It has retained much of its charming original detail, including decorative brackets in the front gable, turned porch posts and decorative siding details, although the original windows have been replaced. It has also been returned to a single-family home as originally intended. If the Ravenscrofts could return, they would have no trouble recognizing their old home.

Sources for this article include materials from the Madison County Archival Library and the Recorder of Deeds Office, and articles from past issues of the Edwardsville Intelligencer. If you have questions about this article, please contact Cindy Reinhardt at cynreinhardt@yahoo.com or 618-656-1294.
A handful of local educators are being recognized as MiSTEM Network STEM Stars for their hard work, dedication and contributions to education in science, technology, engineering and math.

Each year, Saginaw Valley State University and the MiSTEM Network  East Central Michigan Region recognize K-12 educators as STEM Stars. Each recipient receives a $250 award to benefit STEM education in his or her classroom or program, as well as a 3D printed keepsake. Award winners this year were selected from a pool of 49 nominees.

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One of the winners includes Joseph Trommater, a Science, Data and Special Project Consultant for the Clare-Gladwin Regional Education Service District.

Joes MISTEM connections and efforts have resulted in benefits for Clare, Gladwin and Midland County school districts in several ways," one of the nominators said of Trommater. "Joe led the work with colleagues to create STEM Saturdays in Clare, Gladwin and Midland Counties to increase fun STEM-related learning options for area students and families.

Another winner was Carrie Carncross who is a STEM teacher at Farwell Elementary and Middle Schools.

Carrie is not afraid to try something new, different or unusual in the name of education," one of the nominators said of Carncross. "Even when her students were virtual, she was preparing STEM activities for her students to try at home with readily available materials. Carrie is helping to inspire the next generation to be creative and think outside the box.

Chad Donahue, a science teacher at Gladwin High School, was another winner.

Chad has single-handedly changed the life science programs here at Gladwin High school," one of the nominators said of Donahue. "He used his botany class to turn our (at the time) rarely-used greenhouse into a community tradition where numerous flowers and vegetables are sold every spring to raise money to enrich and continue the program.

Thomas Pashak, principal and teacher of alternative education and adult education at Clare Pioneer High School, was the final honored educator.

Tom is the driving force behind multiple STEM-related programs at Pioneer High School, including introducing a greenhouse in which students grow some of their own food, aquaponics & hydroponics programs and integrating technology throughout our district," one of the nominators said of Pashak said. "His efforts have led to a very motivated population of adult and alternative education students who are project and outcome-focused.

For more information, cgresd.net.

+2 Harrison woman marks 50th year taking Valentine's to kids For 50 years, the Harrison Womens Club has been delivering Valentines Day sweets to the students at the Clare-Gladwin Area School.

Mids skilled trades programs offer safe, fast track options Recent events, from the COVID-19 pandemic to flooding throughout the central Michigan region, have highlighted how essential skilled trades professionals are to the economic wellbeing and rebuilding of our communities.

RESD request supported 2-1; MMC millage defeat comes amid heavy GOP turnout There was one area of near unanimous agreement during Tuesday's election, that the request by the Gratiot-Isabella RESD to rollback property t

MARSP Donates to C-G RESD Imagination Library Clare-Gladwin RESD has permitted the Clare County Chapter of Michigan Association of Retired Personnel to hold its monthly meetings at their f
Central Michigan District Health Department has canceled a public health order related to public gatherings issued during the CMU return-to-campus outbreak of August and September last year.

The health department announced Friday that as of Friday, it rescinded the order that prohibited outdoor gatherings of more than 25 people in residential and non-residential venues in Mt. Pleasant and Union Township.

At the time, CMU students returning to campus were responsible for what at the time was the largest outbreak of COVID-19 in Isabella County.

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It was directly responsible for more than 300 cases in Isabella County, either among students or people with direct interaction with students. No COVID-19 deaths were believed attributed to cases stemming from the outbreak.

The order was issued due to large, largely outdoor gatherings at student apartment complexes in the city and south and west of it in student housing.

CMU's spring semester ended with graduation last Saturday.

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Late-night crash leaves Shepherd railroad crossing sign inoperable Getting trains through Shepherd is going to take a little extra time for the foreseeable future.

David Patterson retires after 30 years at the Isabella County Sheriff's Office More than 30 years after being hired at the Isabella County Sheriff's Office and spots on two national true crime television shows, Detective Sgt. David Patterson has turned in his badge.

+2 CDC: Fully vaccinated people can largely ditch masks indoors WASHINGTON (AP)  In a major step toward returning to pre-pandemic life, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people on Thursday, allowing them to stop wearing masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings.

COVID cases continue to increase fastest among children While the latest surge in COVID-19 cases continues to show signs of abating, the cases being counted continue to grow fastest among children, 
Fewer than one-third of eligible Isabella County residents are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the day before Michigan's mask mandate largely expires for everyone two weeks after their second shot.

That is almost 10 percent behind the state as a whole. Clare and Gratiot counties are also behind, just not as far.

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Just 32.81 percent of Isabella County's eligible residents are completely vaccinated against COVID-19, according to state data. In Clare County, it is 37.41 percent; in Gratiot County, it is 34.97 percent.

Across the state, the rate is 41.6 percent, or 3.5 million of 8.6 total eligible residents.

That number is lower than it has been in the past, including last week when the state touted its percentage of people vaccinated at 55 percent.

The reason for that is because earlier this week, the Food and Drug Administration granted emergency use authorization for the two-shot Pfizer vaccine in people 12 years old and older. Previously, it was just for people 16 and older.

That created a large number of people suddenly eligible for the vaccine, but none of which had received any doses.

That dragged down the percentage of people who've received one shot to 49.7 percent across Michigan. In Clare County, it is 41.6 percent; in Gratiot County, it is 40.67 percent; in Isabella County, it is 39.91 percent.

A single shot of COVID-19 is believed to confer some immune benefit, but it takes two weeks until the second shot is administered to reach peak immune response.

Two additional deaths were reported across Isabella, Gratiot and Clare counties on Friday, as well as 22 additional confirmed cases.

One death was reported each in Isabella and Clare counties, bringing their respective totals to 87 and 77, respectively. In Gratiot County, 110 people have died from COVID-19.

Most of the new cases were in Isabella County. Sixteen were reported there, bringing the county's cumulative total to 5,244. Five cases were reported in Clare County, bringing its cumulative total to 1,996.

One new case was reported in Gratiot County, bringing its cumulative total to 3,144.

Elsewhere in mid-Michigan, three new deaths were reported over the weekend, with new and cumulative cases and deaths as follows:

In Gladwin County, two new deaths were reported for a total of 53 and an additional eight cases were reported for a cumulative total of 1,880;

In Mecosta County, an additional 10 cases were reported for a cumulative total of 2,937, with 30 deaths;

In Midland County, one new death was reported for a total of 80 and an additional 22 cases for a cumulative total of 6,635; and,

In Montcalm County, an additional 20 cases were reported for a cumulative total of 5,201, with 104 deaths.

Statewide, 34 new deaths were reported Wednesday for a total of 18,500 and another 1,766 cases were reported for a cumulative total of 873,335.

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David Patterson retires after 30 years at the Isabella County Sheriff's Office More than 30 years after being hired at the Isabella County Sheriff's Office and spots on two national true crime television shows, Detective Sgt. David Patterson has turned in his badge.

+2 Mt. Pleasant High School moves performing arts performances outdoors Mt. Pleasant High School (MPHS) will be putting on their spring play at the Arts Pavilion in Island Park.

Breckenridge students take top honors in United Way contest Two Breckenridge High School students have taken top honors in a contest sponsored by the United Way of Gratiot and Isabella Counties.

Deerfield Village shooting suspect prelim moved to late July A hearing to determine whether a Farmington Hills man charged with shooting two Central Michigan University students will stand trial was move
Christoph Cunningham, of Detroit, said he's fully vaccinated but wore a mask Friday, May 14, 2021, on his way to lunch at a bar. He said he agrees with the new federal and state mask policies. "I have confidence in the science behind it all," said Cunningham, who works in the culinary field. "I'll eventually take my mask off more and more. I might take it off to make other people comfortable. ... If you don't feel comfortable not wearing a mask, I think you should be able to keep it on. Don't beat anyone down." (AP Photo/Ed White)
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 17:27:51|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- An article by Chinese President Xi Jinping on utilizing revolutionary resources and passing on revolutionary traditions will be published Sunday.

The article by Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, will be carried by this year's 10th issue of the Qiushi Journal.

The article calls revolutionary museums and memorials, museums of Party history, and martyrs' cemeteries pools of revolutionary traditions.

Such resources offer vivid teaching materials to consolidate revolutionary ideals and convictions, the article notes, urging efforts to strengthen education on revolutionary traditions and patriotism and improve ideological and moral education for the young people.

"Every time I go to revolutionary base areas for inspections, I would visit local revolutionary memorial sites to demonstrate that the CPC always holds high the banner of revolution, remains committed to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics and continues to advance the undertaking pioneered by revolutionary forefathers," Xi said in the article.

Noting that the establishment of the political power of the CPC, the People's Republic of China and socialism with Chinese characteristics are all hard-earned achievements, the article calls for paying tribute to the revolutionary martyrs, remembering them and passing on their revolutionary legacy. Enditem
While many of us welcome the warmer weather this time of year, we must remind ourselves that some of our loved ones may find themselves in an 
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1. The Anambra State Government salutes the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, CFR, mni, as he today (Friday, May 14, 2021) attains 80 years. Igwe Achebe is the chairman of both the Anambra State Council of Traditional Rulers and the Southeast Council of Traditional Rulers. He has been discharging both duties with aplomb.

2. Igwe Achebe has brought to bear on his duties his very rich experience as an alumnus of Sanford University, California, and Columbia University, New York, as well as the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, near Jos, Plateau State. Nigeria has benefitted from his rich experience as a director of the Royal Dutch Shell company and International Breweries Nigeria Ltd, in addition to his being Pro-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University at Zaria in Kaduna State, after serving as Pro- Chancellor of the Kogi State University. He has also been chairman of Unilever plc and the defunct Diamond Bank plc.

3. Igwe Achebe takes every assignment seriously, leading from the front and displaying remarkable personal example. For example, he has attended every meeting of the Anambra State Action Committee on COVID-19 headed by Governor Willie Obiano since its inauguration early last year. He has at every meeting made a profound contribution. He has played a huge role in the prevention and containment of the highly infectious disease in Onitsha, the Anambra States commercial centre. COVID-19 protocols have been observed in Onitsha among the indigenes perhaps better than any other town in the state. In consideration of the current state of the country and the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic, Igwe Achebe is not celebrating the attainment of a milestone in his sojourn on earth with pomp and pageantry. The rather stoic marking of the 80th birthday is a lesson to all.

4. The Government and people of Anambra State salute Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, a proud son of Anambra State and our worthy ambassador. Governor Obiano has already spoken to him to wish him many more years of good health, wisdom and excellent service to God and society.

Signed

C. Don Adinuba

Commissioner for Information & Public Enlightenment.
While other hunters aim for deer, quail and similar critters, Oakland Township resident Linda Eaton prefers to hunt for rocks. Eaton has amassed an impressive collection of pebbles, stones and other types of miscellaneous pellets that she has picked up in parking lots, parks and other places.

Eaton crafts these ordinary rocks into jewelry through the practice of lapidary, which is the art of shaping stone or minerals into decorative items. Eaton is a regular lapidarist at the Rochester Older Persons Commission (OPC), where she will utilize various machines to shift and shine her stones into beautiful cabochons, faceted designs and engraved gems.

You can make all kinds of neat stuff, she said. I make necklaces, earrings, rings, bracelets really anything.

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At the OPC, members utilize an assortment of motorized lapping tools to grind, sand, cut, and further design a stone. After they achieve their desired piece, some will attach bezels or wire in order to fashion the stone into wearable jewelry. Petoskey stones are popular to utilize, although members will use almost any stone that catches their attention.

This is a rock I picked up in the parking lot, said Rochester Hills resident Valerie Lauer. I thought it was pretty so I kept it and now Im going to turn it into a necklace.

While some lapidarists opt to sell their pieces, Tony DeFinis of Rochester Hills, chooses to give his away. He has fashioned everything from jewelry for his wife to crosses for family and friends. DeFinis has come up with some clever designs by utilizing unique materials, such as rainbow-colored auto factory car paint that had conglomerated into a stone shape, and even cut pieces of bowling ball.

You never know what you will find with a stone. You can take a stone, start something and turn it into something entirely different, DeFinis said.

Make the most of springtime outdoor activities for mental health Spring is full of new beginnings and a great time to reconnect with outdoor activities. Here are some ways to make the most of spring activiti

+3 Memorial Day events and ceremonies happening in Oakland County Memorial Day is Monday, May 31, honoring those who lost their lives serving in the military. Many Memorial Day parades and ceremonies in Oakla

+2 COVID vaccine provides protection for 12-15 year olds, peace of mind for parents Nearly 1,000 Michigan kids in the 12-15 age group took advantage of the first day of being eligible to receive the COVID-19 Pfizer vaccine on 
A few weeks ago, Jane Cruz of Commerce Township was driving down I-696 on her way to pick up her granddaughter when she got a text alert from her home security system that sent her into a panic.

And for good reason.

There was a fire at her house.

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Adding to her horror was knowing the fur babies  rescue cats that she and her husband, Tony Cruz, love like their own kids  were in the home by themselves.

I was frantic  I was beside myself, she said, explaining that she immediately veered onto the roadways shoulder and called Tony. Fortunately, he was working on a construction site just a minute or so from their place, located in the Commerce Meadows manufactured housing community.

Tony dropped everything and sped home. The first thing I thought of was the cats, he said.

He arrived just ahead of a crew from the Commerce Township Fire Department who was able to quickly spot and extinguish a fire coming from beneath the Cruzess dishwasher.

And because of that, the cats  Allie and Blake  were safe.

Understandably freaked out from the alarms sounding and flurry of activity, but safe.

The Cruzes credit their home security system  theirs is an ADT  with averting a possible tragedy, losing Allie and Blake in a house fire. Had they simply relied on the smoke and fire detectors in their home, theres a good chance the fire would have quickly spread and done a lot more damage before a neighbor or passerby noticed it and called the fire department.

There could even have been an explosion  spreading damage far beyond the home  as the Cruzes found out a couple weeks later that they had a gas leak from an air conditioner hook-up that has since been replaced.

But with their home security system, when smoke or fire are detected, a company dispatcher gets an alert and contacts the residents and the fire department right away.

So very thankful

This was potentially a horrific incident sparked by a dishwasher that couldve taken down the whole house and two cats inside, said Bob Tucker, director of corporate affairs for ADT. Tucker, along with several other ADT employees and Commerce Township Fire Chief Jim Dundas, gathered with the Cruzes on May 12 to recall what couldve been a tragedy without the couples home security system.

Were so very thankful to the ADT team and the fire department for saving our home and our fur babies  our kids, Jane said. Were very, very thankful to everyone involved.

ADT presented Dundas a $5,000 check for the fire department  which Dundas said will be used for new equipment  and a box of window decals to alert firefighters about pets inside a home. Residents can pick up the stickers at Commerces fire stations.

Dundas said the good outcome at the Cruzes is a good example of everything working the way it was supposed to.

Detection, contacting 911 early and quick response...small fires turn into big fires (if not attended to), Dundas said.

Added Tucker: Its all about seconds, especially with mobile homes which can go up (in flames) quickly. Every second counts.

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Overheated elevator equipment sparks fire at Beaumont Hospital Overheated elevator equipment reportedly caused a fire at Beaumont Hospital in Troy on Wednesday, with smoke spotted in a patient discharge area.

+2 Motorcycle club murder case scheduled for retrial Barring further delays due to COVID-19 restrictions, a date is scheduled for the retrial of a Pontiac man charged in a fatal shooting at a mot

+2 Trial date scheduled for Detroit man charged with murdering Oak Park woman, bond lowered Trial has been scheduled for a felon from Detroit charged in the murder of an Oak Park woman last year.

Pontiac woman charged in grandfather's stabbing, accused of stealing car with toddler inside in January A Pontiac woman accused of repeatedly stabbing her grandfather who had been sleeping is facing a charge of assault with intent to murder in th

+3 Oakland County man enters plea for mother's murder An Orion Township man charged with killing his mother and assaulting his uncle has made a plea deal with the Oakland County Prosecutors Offic

Sheriff: Gunshot victim says he cant ID person who fired at him on Pontiac street A 39-year-old man is in stable condition at McLaren Oakland Hospital after being shot twice while reportedly sitting in his vehicle in a vacan

Learn about expunging marijuana crimes from record at MRA workshop The Marijuana Regulatory Agency will hold a business resource workshop May 20 on expungement of convictions for marijuana crimes.
New coronavirus cases continued to trend downward in Michigan for the second day in a row on Saturday, when under 1,300 cases were reported, according to the state's website.

There were 1,289 new cases of coronavirus and 107 new deaths reported, putting the state at 874,624 cases and 18,607 deaths in total since the pandemic began last March.

At least 91 of the 107 new confirmed deaths on Thursday were identified during a vital records review, which are conducted regularly by the state.

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Friday had 1,766 new cases and 34 new deaths, down from Thursday's 2,057 new cases and 112 new deaths.

These counts exclude probable cases and deaths linked to COVID-19 and include only confirmed cases and deaths.

Health officials have also been tracking results of statewide testing. So far, 13,375,978 diagnostic tests have been conducted.

As of Friday, a total of 755,119 Michiganders have recovered from COVID-19 (30 days out from onset of illness), a total which is updated by the state every Saturday.

The Associated Press said the new totals came the same day that a new order took effect under which those who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 dont need to wear a mask and people who arent vaccinated dont have to wear one outdoors in Michigan.

That change was announced Friday by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people.

According to the state of Michigan, at least 42.1 percent of the state's population had been fully vaccinated as of Saturday, or 3,622,082 residents.

And, at least 49.9 percent of the population had received their first dose, or 4,292,525 residents.

Macomb County had 373,761 residents vaccinated, Oakland had 649,164, Wayne had 511,239 and the city of Detroit had 175,847.

There were also 7,666,660 vaccine doses administered, in total, in the state as of Saturday.

Pfizer vaccines make up 4,221,980 of that total, Moderna vaccines account for 3,188,455 and Johnson and Johnson vaccines are about 256,255.

In Oakland County, 1,153,509 vaccine doses have been administered, in Macomb County, 658,762 and in Wayne County, 899,825. The city of Detroit also had 301,488 doses administered.

The state's coronavirus vaccine section on its webpage explains the coronavirus vaccine and displays a dashboard to give an overview on vaccine distribution in Michigan.

The dashboard now outlines a "Michigan Vacc to Normal" plan, which details a reopening plan for the state, which begins at 55 percent of the state getting vaccinated at step one and ends at step 4, when 70 percent of residents get vaccinated.

According to Johns Hopkins University, worldwide on Saturday, the number of global cases reached over 162 million with deaths at over 3.36 million.

In the United States, over 32.9 million cases have been reported with over 585,000 deaths tied to the disease.

John Hopkins recently updated its map to include vaccinations, currently at over 1.43 billion people vaccinated globally.

Oakland County led Southeast Michigan with the most new cases on Saturday with 150 and 10 new deaths, totaling a milestone of over 100,000 cases, with 100,132 cases, and 2,175 deaths.

Macomb County followed with 102 new cases and 19 new deaths, making 90,278 cases and 2,243 deaths in total.

Wayne County was next with 97 cases and 7 deaths, putting the county at 99,727 total cases and 2,449 total deaths.

The city of Detroit was last with 85 new cases and 17 new deaths, creating 49,711 cases and 2,140 deaths total.

Mid-Michigan had 19 new cases and no new deaths in Isabella County, totaling 5,277 cases and 88 deaths.

Gratiot County also reported 3,158 cases and 110 deaths in total, after 7 new cases and no new deaths were cited.

Clare County quoted 2 cases and 1 new death, making 2,001 cases and 78 deaths total.

The Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) reported 25,967 cases and 147 deaths, after 4 new cases and no new deaths were reported.

Kent County also had 123 new cases and 6 new deaths. Its totals are now 66,742 cases and 750 deaths.

New COVID-19 infections in Michigan drop below 2,000 With many relieved at the lifting of face mask rules for those who have been vaccinated, the state has continued to see a downward trend in co

+2 CDC: Fully vaccinated people can largely ditch masks indoors WASHINGTON (AP)  In a major step toward returning to pre-pandemic life, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased mask-wearing gui

Michigan mask mandates lifted for fully vaccinated indoors and outdoors Michiganders who have been fully vaccinated will no longer be required to wear masks indoors or outdoors. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer made the annou

Let's face it: Washington adjusts to new mask guidance WASHINGTON (AP)  Jill Biden says finally going mask-free feels like "we're moving forward." A Republican senator says going unmasked "certain

+2 COVID vaccine provides protection for 12-15 year olds, peace of mind for parents Nearly 1,000 Michigan kids in the 12-15 age group took advantage of the first day of being eligible to receive the COVID-19 Pfizer vaccine on 
Anutin, Phiphat arrive in Phuket, assure July 1 reopening

PHUKET: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul and Tourism & Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn in Phuket today (May 15) delivered a message of support from Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha confirming that Phuket will open to fully vaccinated international tourists from July 1.

COVID-19CoronavirusVaccinehealthtourismeconomics

By The Phuket News

Saturday 15 May 2021, 04:06PM

Speaking at a special meeting convened at Phuket Provincial Hall early this afternoon to prepare for the opening of the Phuket Sandbox 1 July policy, Mr Anutin brought good tidings from Prime Minister Prayut, who did not attend today, despite the announcement yesterday evening.

Present to receive the message at Provincial Hall today were Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew, the islands three Vice Governors, President of the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation (PPAO, or OrBorJor) Rewat Areerob along with a hos tof officials from relevant government departments on the island as well as representatives from Phukets private sector.

All stakeholders who are frontline warriors working to solve the problem of the COVID-19 epidemic situation have earned the goodwill and concern from General Prayut Chan-o-cha, who also believes that Phuket is ready to prepare for the opening of the Phuket Tourism Sandbox on July 1 for sure, Mr Anutin said.

Phuket will be a pilot province that will bring the economy back up. In the past, Phuket Province generated several hundreds of billions of baht of income for the country per year and Thailand relies heavily on tourism income.

Phuket is therefore an outpost to revive the economy for whatever country the government can support [in receiving international tourists from]. The government is ready to act as soon as possible. This has been clearly proved, such as by the large number of vaccine doses that Phuket has been allocated to vaccinate the people in the area to cover all groups and be as safe as possible as the Phuket Model, he added.

Mr Anutin reiterated that all people should be patient and persevere, saying that he believed that through vaccines it will be game over.

When the economy is good, everyone gets better, so use patience to believe that good things will follow, he said.

As part of his visit, Mr Anutin is to hand over 100,000 doses of the Sinovac vaccine CoronaVac to Phuket officials in order to continue the mass-vaccination campaign on the island.

Another 100,000 doses are to arrive in Phuket on May 18, Vachira Phuket Hospital Director Dr Chalermpong Sukontapol explained yesterday (May 14).

Phuket officials are to receive the first delivery of AstraZeneca vaccine doses early next month, to be used to vaccinate people over 60 years of age and those suffering from serious medical conditions.

The mass-vaccination campaign will continue with the Sinovac and AstraZeneca vaccinations throughout May and June, inoculating some 440,000 people on the island in time for Phuket to reopen to selected international tourists from July 1, he said.
Governor urges cooperation as COVID cases continue to climb

PHUKET: Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew has made a special appeal to the people of Phuket to do their best to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 across the island as the number of daily new infections remains in double-digits.

COVID-19Coronavirushealthtourismeconomics

By The Phuket News

Saturday 15 May 2021, 10:12AM

Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew has made a special appeal for people across the island to cooperate with the anti-COVID measures to help stop the spread of infections. Screenshot: PR Phuket

In a video posted online last night (May 14), Governor Narong stressed the importance of reducing the number of daily new cases of infection so that Phuket could re-open to receiving fully vaccinated international tourists from July 1.

He also pointed out that people gathering together for a party, and especially to drink alcohol together, was now prohibited throughout the province.

Governor Narong also called for people to register to be vaccinated through the governments mass-vaccination campaign.

Phuket brothers and sisters, if you have not yet registered to be vaccinated, please go and register. It is very important for yourself, and for the province, he said.

The Governors appeal came as the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office (PPHO) reported 11 new cases of people infected with COVID just yesterday, bringing the total number of people in Phuket infected with COVID-19 since Apr 3 to 598.

A further six people infected with COVID were in the province, but were infected outside of Phuket and brought to the island for treatment, the report noted.

Of those, 416 have already been discharged from medical care, while 188 remain under medical supervision and treatment, the report added.

Phuket has suffered one death during the current Third Wave of infections, that of a 71-year-old man who was already suffering from emphysema.

The report, issued last night, dated May 14 and marked as accurate as of 6pm yesterday, marked the location of COVID infections across the island as follows:
Jab-booking app for foreigners coming soon

BANGKOK: The government is developing a vaccination registration app especially for foreign residents, who will also be eligible for walk-in service as soon as it is available, a spokesman said on Saturday (May 15).

COVID-19Coronavirushealth

By Bangkok Post

Saturday 15 May 2021, 04:29PM

A woman receives a coronavirus jab at MedPark Hospital, which offered free shots to more than 2,000 medical staff working in private clinics in Bangkok on Friday. Photo: Pornprom Satrabhaya / Bangkok Post

Mass vaccinations could begin as soon as next week as supplies have arrived earlier than anticipated, said Natapanu Nopakun, the deputy spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in his daily English-language briefing on the coronavirus response, reports the Bangkok Post.

He did not specify which vaccine brands were available or the quantities delivered. However, the programme would move ahead quickly once supplies were available, he indicated.

The efficiency of vaccine jabs is not an issue for Thailand, he said. We can give doses very fast once we have the vaccines in hand.

The government has said that all residents of Thailand  including expats, migrant workers and other foreigners  would be eligible for free vaccinations. However, there has been confusion about the registration process.

The current Mor Prom (doctors ready) mobile app and Line account is in Thai only, and a Thai ID number is required to register. However, some expats who hold so-called pink ID cards, which come with a Thai ID number, reported being able to book vaccination times.

The Ministry of Public Health subsequently said the app was not intended to be used by foreigners.

Mr Natapanu clarified on Saturday that a new app especially for foreigners was in development.

As soon as the Mor Prom application is ready for foreign nationals, we will let you know, he said.

Even if they do not make bookings using an app, foreigners will be eligible to use walk-in vaccination services as soon as they are officially opened, he added.

For walk-in vaccination services, any provinces that are ready to provide the vaccines can commence operations immediately.

However, authorities would like to make services to foreigners available in English and other languages if possible. To ensure official facilitation and prevent any language miscommunication, separate facilities for foreign nationals are being discussed, he said.

As of Friday, the spokesman said, authorities had delivered 2.2 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine, including 800,000 second doses.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 17:33:29|Editor: huaxia

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Vehicles to be assembled are seen at the assembly line of FAW Jiefang Truck in Changchun, northeast China's Jilin Province, Feb. 2, 2021. (Xinhua/Zhang Nan)

CHANGCHUN, May 15 (Xinhua) -- FAW Jiefang, a truck subsidiary of China's leading automaker FAW Group, sold 248,922 trucks in the first four months of this year, up 41.41 percent year on year, the company said.

Of the total, 213,846 heavy-duty trucks were sold during the period, up 45.17 percent year on year.

Since the first Jiefang truck rolled off the assembly line in 1956, the brand has expanded its presence to some 80 countries and regions.

Founded in 1953 and headquartered in the northeastern province of Jilin, the state-owned FAW Group is known as the cradle of China's auto industry. 
Narrow escape for motorbike rider as car hits power pole, brings down high-voltage lines

PHUKET: A 35-year-old man escaped serious injuries as the car he was driving slammed into a power pole north of Phuket Town this afternoon (May 15), as did a young man who leapt to safety as downed power lines came crashing down onto his motorbike while he was riding past.

accidentstransportSafety

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Saturday 15 May 2021, 05:28PM

Phuket City Police officers and Kusoldharm rescue workers were called to the scene, near the Ministry of Finance office on Trang Rd in Rassada, at 2:10pm.

The officers arrived to find a white Nissan Juke sedan crunched into a power pole by the side of the road.

The power pole had snapped from the force of the impact, bringing down nine other power poles connected to it.

The broken section of the power pole and high-voltage cables still connected to it were strewn across the bonnet and roof of the car.

The power supply had to be shut off before the driver, Rassada resident Apichet Kandit, 35, could be safely removed from the car. He was confirmed to have suffered no serious injuries.

Nearby was an orange-and-black motorbike, smothered by high-voltage cables.

The rider of the motorbike, a young adult male, told rescue workers that he heard a loud noise and saw the power pole and cables coming down, and literally jumped off the motorbike to safety.

A local woman selling noodles nearby also narrowly escaped having the power cables coming down on her stall.

At last report, no serious injuries were suffered by any people at the scene.

Police have yet to confirm what charges, if any, Mr Apichat will face for the accident.
Southern Pines, NC (28387)

Today

Mainly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Mainly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 70F. Winds light and variable.
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has made it clear he is taking a different view of justice, and wants to cut the number of people in prison.
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP)  The remains of an overturned cargo ship being dismantled along the Georgia coast caught fire Friday as workers used torches to cut into the hull, sending up black smoke and causing loud bangs that sounded like explosions.

The multiagency command overseeing demolition of the Golden Ray said in a statement late Friday that crews had put out the fire, which burned for several hours, and would remain on the scene overnight in case the blaze flared up again.

Susan Inman of the Altamaha Riverkeeper conservation group told The Associated Press she could see flames shooting from the open ends and the top of the Golden Ray on Friday afternoon as she watched from a boat about 300 yards (275 meters) away near St. Simons Island. She also heard several loud popping sounds from the shipwreck.

Several hours later, the fire was being sprayed with hoses from the towering crane being used to dismantle the ship as well as at least two boats equipped with water cannons.

Its kind of like a roller coaster where it seems to die down for about 20 minutes or half an hour, and then it picks back up again," Inman said.

No injuries were reported and all demolition crew members near the shipwreck were safely evacuated, said Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Himes, a spokesman for the multiagency command in charge of the demolition.

Himes said it was too early to know how much the blaze might further delay efforts to remove roughly one-half of the shipwreck that remains partly submerged in St. Simons Sound. Once it's safe for workers to return to the wreck, he said, an engineering analysis will be performed to determine the extent of the fire damage.

The South Korean-owned Golden Ray measured 656 feet (199 meters) long when it overturned on Sept. 8, 2019. A towering crane that straddles the wreck is cutting the ship into giant chunks using 400 feet (122 meters) of anchor chain to tear through the hull like a blunt-edged saw.

An active 2020 hurricane season and the coronavirus pandemic kept demolition from starting until November. Though the job reached the halfway mark in April, progress has been slower than initially expected.

Himes said flames flared up inside the wreck Friday afternoon as workers used torches to make cuts along the ship's hull to serve as a guide path for the cutting chain.

It is considerable at this time. It picked up very quickly," Himes said of the blaze. The good news is, because we planned for fires and we planned for the need to evacuate in the case of those fires, all of our crews are accounted for.

Himes said the fire was likely sparked by one of the cutting torches, even though crews were pumping sea water onto the ship as a fire suppression measure. He didn't know what was fueling the blaze, but said it's possibly residual fuel still aboard the ship as well as cars that remain inside its cargo decks.

The Golden Ray had roughly 4,200 vehicles in its cargo decks when it rolled onto its side shortly after leaving the nearby Port of Brunswick. Though four crew members had to be rescued from deep inside the ship, all 24 people on board survived.

A Coast Guard expert concluded the Golden Ray tipped over because unstable loading had left its center of gravity too high. Lt. Ian Oviatt testified at a hearing on the wreck last year that the ship lacked enough water in its ballast tanks, used to add weight at the bottom of a vessel, to offset that of the vehicles in its cargo decks above.
HAMDEN  Hamden firefighters and an animal control officer managed to free a woodchuck that became trapped inside a stove pipe Friday.

Firefighters met with the animal control officer, and found the animal with its head stuck in a stove pipe, a post on the Hamden Fire Departments Facebook page said.

Authorities disassembled the stove pipe and peeled it apart to free the woodchuck, the post said. The animal was then released.

Firefighters did not say where the incident occurred.

Woodchucks natural habitat is in forest openings, which has led the animals to adapt to forest edges and fields as humans have cleared woodland, according to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. The rodents are the largest member of the squirrel family in the state. Their range extends as far north as Alaska, and as far south as northern Georgia.

The question how much wood could a wood chuck chuck? isnt really accurate. Their English name possibly derives from the Algonquin word wuchak, according to DEEP.
Gov. Ned Lamont on Friday highlighted the states credit rating boost from three independent agencies this week, but said Connecticuts continued financial recovery is dependent on not taking on large-scale spending projects or tax increases.

On Thursday, S&P Global announced it was upgrading Connecticuts bond rating to A-plus. Kroll announced that same day it would bump the states bond rating to AA. And on Friday, Fitch announce it was upgrading the states bond rating to AA-minus.

The news came six weeks after Moodys Investors Service announced it was upgrading Connecticuts bond rating from A1 rating to Aa3 the first time the states credit rating had improved in 20 years.

In a statement Friday afternoon, the governor called the announcements validations that our administration is putting Connecticut on the right track.

Despite negative headlines around the states financial position, he said the ratings were even more proof that we are seeing sustained progress by addressing the sins of the past and investing in the future of this great state.

He also highlighted the states approach to the COVID-19 pandemic, citing common-sense measures he said kept residents safe while keeping the states economy running.

But Lamont also indicated a lack of appetite for large spending projects or tax increases. Now is not the time to disrupt the fragile economic and financial environment by levying large-scale tax increases or creating massive new spending programs, he said. He emphasized paying down the states long-term debt and foster(ing) growth.

In a statement released alongside the governors, Office of Policy and Management Secretary Melissa McCaw said the new ratings show we are moving in the right direction.

She also emphasized paying down the states long-term debt obligations and keeping new debt in check.

It is a reminder that in order for us to move ahead, we must keep our focus on investment and sustainability in the years and decades to come, her statement said.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Jill Biden says finally going mask-free feels like we're moving forward. A Republican senator says going unmasked "certainly helps the flow of conversation.

But the conversation on the House floor on Friday approached sniping as lawmakers objected to being required to keep masking up until all 435 of them get their COVID-19 shots.

Across Washington, the government is adjusting to new federal guidance easing up on when masks should be worn.

So much for following the science, Rep. Greg Murphy, R-N.C., a urologist, said after complaining that he'd have to put his mask back on after his House floor speech despite being fully vaccinated.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that fully vaccinated people  those who are two weeks past their last required dose of a COVID-19 vaccine  can stop wearing masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings. Partially vaccinated or unvaccinated people should keep wearing masks, the guidance says.

But on Capitol Hill, lawmakers have to keep wearing masks on the House floor, according to a memo from the Office of the Attending Physician, Dr. Brian Monahan.

"The present mask requirement and other guidelines remain unchanged until all Members and Floor staff are fully vaccinated," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a memo to her Democratic colleagues. Returning the Capitol to the welcoming and safe venue that it has been requires us to not only secure it physically but to make it safe from the virus.

Recent surveys suggest that about 1 in 4 House lawmakers are not fully vaccinated.

Lawmakers can remove their masks while on the House floor to make speeches, but must mask up after they finish. They are, however, free to resume pre-pandemic activities elsewhere in the House complex of office buildings and public spaces.

In the Senate, Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Joni Ernst of Iowa were among senators who didn't hesitate to remove their masks as soon as they heard the news. They were seen entering the Senate chamber Thursday marveling at being mask-free and calling out, Freedom!

Senate leadership has not commented on the updated mask guidance, which came down as Biden and a group of Republican senators discussed infrastructure in the Oval Office.

So we all looked at each other ... we took all of our masks off, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., told Fox News on Friday. "It felt very freeing, and we had a great discussion after that. We all felt good about it, and it certainly helps the flow of conversation.

It was a much different scene Friday at the White House.

Reporters caught up with President Joe Biden as he made an unannounced appearance on the White House driveway to pose for photos with a departing staff member. Asked if he was enjoying his first workday without a mask, Biden replied yes as he reentered the West Wing.

For the first time in about a year, reporters went barefaced as they questioned White House press secretary Jen Psaki at the daily briefing.

After the CDC guidance went out, Psaki said, staff were immediately notified by email that they could stop wearing masks, including in meetings with Biden. Similar guidance was issued to the White House Correspondents' Association, which dropped its mask requirement for journalists on the premises.

Psaki said it may take a few days to put the new guidelines in place across government and figure out whether it means additional staff  many of whom have been working remotely  will be allowed onto the White House campus.

Were eager to get back to a version of normal, but we need a little bit of time to implement it and also to review additional steps, Psaki said.

Some government departments didn't need any time figuring it out.

The Pentagon announced Friday that fully vaccinated Defense Department personnel no longer need to wear masks indoors or outdoors at DOD facilities.

Updated guidance from the Department of Health and Human Services said fully vaccinated federal employees, fully vaccinated onsite contractors and fully vaccinated visitors to federal buildings are no longer required to wear masks.

Mask-wearing remained in force at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture as it reopened Friday. Jill Biden stopped in to greet the staff and said the relaxed mask guidance feels as though inch by inch we're moving forward" against the pandemic.

The Smithsonian said it would keep mask requirements in place for anyone over age 2 while it reviews the new guidance.

During a House Republican caucus leadership vote, most members didnt wear masks, and several reporters removed them as well following guidance from the Capitol physician that said vaccinated people dont have to wear them in the hallways.

Some Republicans addressed the issue from the House floor.

Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, criticized Democrats for having argued that Republicans weren't following the science. He said it's Democrats who now are guilty of that.

The House of Representatives has leadership who are claiming that we need to follow the science, refuses to do so, Gohmert said, seeming to refer to Pelosi. "But were hoping well eventually get people here, at least the majority, to follow the science.

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Associated Press writers Jonathan Lemire, Lisa Mascaro, Mary Clare Jalonick, Kevin Freking and Brian Slodysko contributed to this report.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 19:54:34|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on May 12, 2021 shows Zhou Wenqing at a library of Nanjing Normal University of Special Education in Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu Province. Zhou Wenqing, a blind student from Nanjing Normal University of Special Education, recently received a tentative offer from Renmin University of China to pursue a master's degree in Applied Psychology. Born in 1998, Zhou Wenqing left hometown at the age of eight to pursue study opportunities alone. In 2017, she was admitted to Nanjing Normal University of Special Education to study Applied Psychology. Confronting the challenges that ordinary students could not imagine, Zhou still made her four-year college life rich and colorful. She passed through CET-6 exam, won the National Scholarship, the National Inspirational Scholarship and so on. Academically, she has kept being on the top of the list. After class, Zhou Wenqing studied broadcasting and has hosted for several times. Knowledge lights up the night sky. Zhou Wenqing uses her knowledge and warm heart to enlighten more hearts. She presided over a provincial key entrepreneurial project, developing a learning APP and a series of courses for disabled people. She also volunteered to be a teaching assistant at "Voice Dream" program, helping blind students practice Mandarin. "Along the way, I am grateful to the teachers for their tireless teaching, to my family and friends for walking with me." Zhou said. (Xinhua/Ji Chunpeng)
The strike of thousands of nursing home workers is off, but the standoff continues even with the crisis eased.

The states largest health care union has reached a deal with just one of the nine nursing home companies targeted. The union is prepared to take that deal to the remaining operators to get them to agree to new four-year contracts that include significant wage increases and enhanced benefits for workers.

Until then, Service Employees International Union District 1199 New England is not declaring victory.

The reason why reaching an agreement with iCare is critical for the strike is that now we expect every operator to follow that contract to the letter, Pedro Zayas, spokesman for District 1199, said by phone Friday, referring to iCare Health Network, the company that agreed to the contract.

The strike had been set for 6 a.m. Friday but the union called off the picket lines Thursday evening, just hours before the work stoppage was to begin, as a sweeteened deal brokered by Gov. Ned Lamonts top aides made it possible for both parties to get back to the table.

Now the union, the workers, the companies involved and state officials are looking back at a strike threat that raised awareness of the plight of workers and nursing home operators coming out of the pandemic  and looking ahead at solutions they hope are lasting.

The workers really wanted a victory, Zayas said. They really wanted to make a statement and they feel they have done so.

But its not final yet, he added.

New strike notices were issued for 26 nursing home facilities and 2,800 workers for June 7 - a place holder to make sure we get everything in writing with every operator, Zayas said.

And more than 1,200 workers at 13 nursing homes issued strike notices for May 28, which remain in effect, bringing the total potential strike threat to 4,000 frontline workers at 39 homes, the union said.

iCare Health Network, which operates 11 of the homes, became the first company to reach agreement with District 1199. The union announced the agreement late Thursday evening, saying the new four-year contract would set historic minimum wages of $20 per hour for certified nursing assistants and $30 per hour for licensed practical nurses.

Low-wage workers would also see their rates increased, Zayas said, a major demand from the union to help attract more people to work in the industry and address long-standing staffing shortages. We have CNAs whove been working for 20 years who are not making $20 per hour yet, he said.

The agreement with iCare also includes a meaningful victory for racial and economic justice for the workers, who are predominately black and brown women, Zayas said, as it declares June 19, known as Juneteenth, which marks the announcement of abolition of slavery in Texas, as an employee holiday.

iCare said through a spokesman Friday that the final details of the deal are still being worked out.

We are very pleased that the Lamont administration saw the value in joining with us and investing in our dedicated workforce and a in vision for long term care over the next four years, David Skoczulek, vice president of business development for iCare, said by email Friday. Were still crafting the final details of the deal at this point and so we are working from a postponement of the strike date.

Industry representatives also applauded the news.

In a statement released Thursday evening, Matt Barrett, president and CEO of the Connecticut Association of Healthcare Facilities, singled out Lamont and his leadership team for providing a policy and budgetary framework of wage and benefits enhancements and pandemic-related increased support financial support that jumpstarted the discussions that led to the strike being averted.

The $267 million offer from the state, which initially proposed spending $280 million, includes a 10 percent boost to the Medicaid reimbursement, worth $86 million, which would last from July until next March, to help the nursing home industry recover financially from pandemic-related occupancy declines and increased costs.

Thats in addition to wage and benefits increases financed by Medicaid: 4.5 percent in the first fiscal year, starting July 1, and 6.2 percent in the following year. It also includes a 10 percent boost to the Medicaid reimbursement, worth $86 million, which would last from July until next March, to help the nursing home industry recover financially from pandemic-related occupancy declines and increased costs.

While not a direct party to the negotiations, the state got involved as the major payer to the nursing homes through the state-federal Medicaid system.

While the deal averted Fridays strike, at least temporarily, it did not stop millions of dollars from being spent on strike contingency costs. The nursing home companies had hired replacement workers, many coming from out of state, and made other arrangements  much of which is billable to state and federal taxpayers through Medicaid.

And more strike threats are still on the horizon. In total, workers at 51 nursing homes are working under expired contracts, Zayas said.

julia.bergman@hearstmediact.com
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP)  Lawmakers in the Democrat-controlled Vermont Legislature and Republican Gov. Phil Scott have different visions of how the state should spend about $1 billion from the American Rescue Plan.

Its unclear how those differences will play out as the Legislature wraps up its work and prepares to adjourn for the year, possibly next week, but it's possible Scott could veto the budget.

The governor wants to spend the federal money on housing, economic recovery initiatives, water and sewer, universal broadband, and climate change initiatives.

He says the state has to begin using that money now.

I feel strongly that we cant squander this opportunity, that we need to utilize this to transform Vermont, Scott said this week.

The legislature agrees with many of Scotts goals, but they also want to use some of the funding to prop up the state colleges, workforce development, and mental health. They say the state has four years to spend the money so there is no rush.

We dont want Vermonters to feel like were going to lose an opportunity. We have time to get this right, Senate President Pro Tem Becca Balint, a Democrat from Windham County, tells WCAX-TV.

Federal officials this week released new guidelines of how the money can be spent and legislative economists are analyzing how that could affect their spending plans.

Democratic House Speaker Jill Krowinski, of Burlington, said they are hoping for the best.

If that doesnt happen and it ends with a veto, then were going to have to end with a veto override or a compromise to get us to a shared goal to get us through this crisis, she said.
A year after she finished her masters degree in social work, alumna Mary Guiton walked across the graduation stage Friday. She said it was an exciting and easy experience.

I'm really excited because I had twins, and so I started when they were two months old, Guiton said. Now I'm done. So, I'm really excited to be able to walk across the stage and show them that I did it for us.

Thursday marked the first time UTA held in-person commencement ceremonies since December 2019 and the first time at Globe Life Field. The pandemic pushed back all 2020 graduation ceremonies as COVID-19 cases remained high.

Cheers, whistles and noisemakers were heard throughout the venue as graduates walked across the stage. Families were spread out in pods for social distancing purposes, and hand sanitizer was accessible. The ceremony was displayed on screens around the venue including in elevators.

Accelerated vaccination rates, good compliance with masks and other safety protocols, and the availability of a large venue made it possible to hold in-person commencement ceremonies, according to previous Shorthorn reporting.

I just remember last year before this time, there was just a lot of disappointment, said Stephanie McAlpine, director of communications, planning and operations for the Division of Student Success and chairperson for UTAs commencement committee.

Guiton said she was disappointed when she found out she would not have an in-person graduation ceremony and couldnt walk last year because of the pandemic. But now, walking on the stage for graduation felt good.

Each ceremony had a maximum of 15,000 guests. The university expected 12,000 guests at most ceremonies as of Wednesday.

Guiton and her family traveled from Houston on Thursday for the ceremony. About nine individuals, including her parents and twin children, wore neon matching shirts to celebrate her graduation.

Being a single mom, a full time worker, doing an internship and school all at the same time was hard, she said. But the people that you see here with me were the help for me, because without them I couldn't have done it.

Her father Kemond Guiton said between having twins and being a single mother, his daughter persevered through a lot while obtaining her masters degree.

She put her mind to it and stayed to it, Kemond said. So I'm proud as can be.

The ceremonies have been long awaited, McAlpine said, and the committee wanted to ensure they were better than any commencement ceremony before for the graduates and their guests.

I really feel like  looking back on the journey  that we made the right decision at the right time for our students, McAlpine said.

The university implemented a face mask requirement, social distancing, contactless ceremony tickets and reduced capacity. Tickets were also provided to graduates in pods of two or eight. Another change included the removal of shaking hands with the dignitaries.

Graduates were required to wear masks but could take them off when walking across the stage.

Mary compared the experience to her undergraduate degree ceremony where she felt she was rushed through it.

Today, I didn't feel rushed. I didn't feel like Oh, just walk across. Like I'm trying to get more people out the way like come on. she said. But today I felt at ease and it was smooth and [an] accomplishment for me.

She said she couldnt have done it without the support of her family.

Its an incredible feeling when one of your children accomplishes what they set out to do, Kemond said. It's not just a day or two thing but something they really had to put their minds to everything. And it makes you so proud to see them go through it.

A virtual ceremony will also be held at 5 p.m. Sunday via the commencement website for graduates who did not want to attend the in-person ceremonies.

Livestreams are available an hour prior to each ceremony at go.uta.edu/commencement.

@Angie_Perez99

news-editor.shorthorn@uta.edu
Media Content Creator

Ian Ostroff is a writer/reporter who resides in Montreal. He is passionate about getting to know the people and places that make his hometown so great. In his spare time, you can find him at the gym, eating ice cream, or working on his novel(s).
ALTON  Its been in the works for a while, but StoryCorps kept a tight lid on it until now  when the faces of Alton neighbors and friends are displayed in large-format portraits in storefront windows along the Broadway corridor.

Commissioned portraits include works from professional photographers Cedric Parker of Alton and Bishoppe Kamusinga, with design by Tyrone Stevenson.

StoryCorps  at its simplest a holder of the oral tradition  is a Brooklyn, New York-based nonprofit organization that partnered with Jacoby Arts Center to create a free Downtown Alton Visual Listening Tour. Collaborators include Great Rivers and Routes of Southwestern Illinois Tourism Bureau, Alton Main Street, Hayner Public Library and All Town, USA.

More Information If you go: What: Untold Black Stories: A Downtown Alton Visual Listening Tour Where: Alton's Broadway corridor When: Through Sunday, July 11 Info: The free guided audio tour is available at https://explore.riversandroutes.com, and instantly delivered via text and email with no app to download. Conversational 5-minute excerpts can be heard. The full 40-minute original StoryCorps recordings are at www.jacobyartscenter.org/untoldblackstories.  Upcoming events related to the project include:  The Untold Black Stories of Alton Visual Listening Tour Exhibit Opening: 6 p.m. Friday, June 4, at Jacoby Arts Center, 627 E. Broadway, Alton. Meet and celebrate participants and artists of the Untold Black Stories in Contemporary Art Exhibition; participate in the Collaborative Community Art Installation.  Collaborative Community Art Installation: Through July 1. Visual artists will invite people to create individual visual art "stories," both at JAC and Alton area public events.  The Untold Black Stories in Contemporary Art Exhibition: June 2-July 11. Visual artists nationwide will be invited to submit works for a showcase. Selected pieces will be displayed in a JAC exhibition at its Main Gallery. See More Collapse

The exhibit is designed to catalyze diversity, inclusivity and equity within the Downtown Alton historic district and engage the community with these Untold Black Stories of Alton.

Through Sunday, July 11, 15 portraits are displayed in the storefront windows of eight buildings along Broadway. The one-mile walkable route takes pedestrians on a visual listening tour to My Just Desserts, Madison County Urban League, former Karens Crafts, Williams Office Products, Alton School Districts office, former Alton Refrigeration, The Conservatory and JAC. Scan the QR code at any location to receive a map and audio excerpts for the tour.

StoryCorps has spent at least the last year recording conversations for Untold Black Stories of Alton. The recordings accompany large-format portraits of more than 30 Alton residents. Alton residents recorded for the project include Aaron Atkins, Ariyah Smith, Courteney Wilson, Nana Becoat, Nancy Becoat, Leah Becoat, Faye Taylor, Wanda Walker, Tracey Northern, Eric Walker, Rosetta Brown, Lee Barham, Amiah Williams, Antione Williams, George Terry, Diane Ingram, Carson Ingram, Jason Harrison, Willie Franklin, Bryden Barnes, Norman Barnes, J. Eric Robinson, Stephanie Young, Gregory Harrison, Jason Harrison, Autumn Brown, Jasmine Hardimon, Steve Potter, Lloyd Johnson, Yvonne Campbell and Evelyn Campbell.

It was really a positive experience, Potter said. Id never met Loyd until he came to my home to record, and he was so gracious, honest, and sincere. I felt privileged to help him tell his story and its a beautiful one at that.

Potter said Johnson is a third- or fourth-generation black farmer who lives on same family farm as his ancestors.

He had career off the farm, but was the only sibling to stay there. So he grew up in the country as a black former outside of Alton, Potter said. We talked about his life on the farm, his familys history there, what it was like as a black family here when he was young.

The guided audio tour, available at https://explore.riversandroutes.com, is instantly delivered via text and email with no app to download. Conversational 5-minute excerpts can be heard there; the full 40-minute original StoryCorps recordings can be found at www.jacobyartscenter.org/untoldblackstories. The project will evolve with the opportunity for more residents to record stories; sign up at the site.

StoryCorps conversations will be archived at Hayner Public Library as well as the Library of Congress. The printing of the portraits is sponsored by The Mythic Mississippi Project, a public engagement venture of the University of Illinois.

Personal stories include those of family devotion, faith, dedication to hard work, friendship, honor and reciprocity, filled with laughter, humility and respect.

The project was made possible by support from Illinois Humanities, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Illinois General Assembly.
JERUSALEM (AP)  Israel and Hamas know that a fourth Gaza war, like the three before, would be as inconclusive as it is devastating for the impoverished territory's 2 million Palestinians. But in the days or weeks before an inevitable truce, each will aim for something it can call a victory.

For Israel, that might mean assassinating a top Hamas commander, or destroying enough tunnels, rocket launchers and other infrastructure to say it mowed the lawn"  a phrase widely used by Israelis to describe the temporary suppression of militants before the next confrontation.

For Hamas, the biggest prize would be capturing Israeli soldiers it could later trade for imprisoned Palestinians. A close second would be scoring a few more long-range rocket hits on Israeli cities to display the Palestinian organization's military prowess in confronting a much stronger enemy.

Of course, the assassination of a Hamas kingpin or the capture of an Israeli soldier would trigger a major escalation, likely resulting in the deaths of large numbers of Gaza civilians. But neither side assumes it can use military means to secure its larger goals. Both expect the same eventual resolution - an internationally brokered informal truce like the ones that ended Hamas-Israeli wars in 2009, 2012 and 2014.

To overthrow Hamas, Israel would need to reoccupy Gaza in a prolonged and bloody operation that would provoke international condemnation. Not even the most hawkish Israelis are suggesting that course. By the same token, Hamas has no expectation of lifting the Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed on Gaza when it seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007.

The rockets Hamas has fired into Israel have brought waves of Israeli airstrikes, and about a fourth of the Palestinian projectiles have fallen short, landing in Gaza. At least 126 Gazans have been killed, including 31 children and 20 women, while at least 900 people have been injured and homes and businesses left in ruins, deepening the misery in the isolated territory. The rockets have killed seven Israelis and sown panic as far away as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

But in the cruel calculations governing so much of the Middle East conflict, the ability to fire or not fire rockets gives Hamas leverage it can use to attain more limited goals. The militant group in recent years observed a shaky, informal cease-fire with Israel, trading calm for an easing of the blockade and hundreds of millions of dollars in aid from Qatar that was delivered regularly through Israels Erez crossing.

The death and destruction from the air raids are horrific," said Tareq Baconi, an analyst with the Crisis Group, an international think tank. But for Hamas, "that kind of suffering is inevitable when Palestinians are resisting Israeli occupation.

The rockets also allow Hamas to rally support by portraying itself as a liberation movement fighting for Palestinian rights and defending claims to Jerusalem, the emotional center of the decades-old conflict.

Hamas banners now hang outside Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, where heavy clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters earlier this month  along with efforts by Jewish settlers to evict Palestinian families  triggered the latest violence.

Hamas can also revel in the outbreak of Arab-Jewish violence inside Israel, which in some ways resembles the kind of Palestinian uprising the militant group has long called for.

My sense is that both sides would like to end this and go home, Amos Harel, a longtime military correspondent for Israel's Haaretz newspaper, said.

Hamas achieved more than it dreamed" by launching long-range rockets at Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and helping to ignite violence in Israeli cities, Harel said. If they continue, then they will risk more casualties, more damage and hardship to Gaza.

Ron Ben-Yishai, a veteran Israeli war correspondent, also thinks Israel is unlikely to send in ground forces unless Hamas carries out a catastrophic attack.

If, for example, they send a big missile and this missile hits a kindergarten in Israel, there would be a ground attack," Yishai said.

Hamas has also scored a major win against its rivals in the increasingly unpopular and autocratic Palestinian Authority, whose authority is confined to parts of the occupied West Bank, and which has little to show for years of close security ties with Israel and billions of dollars in international aid.

Last month, President Mahmoud Abbas called off the first Palestinian elections in 15 years amid signs his splintering Fatah party would suffer an embarrassing defeat to Hamas. The militant group's stature has only grown since then, with Abbas largely sidelined by the conflict.

Israel, meanwhile, derives certain advantages from maintaining the status quo that prevailed in Gaza before the latest fighting.

It routinely blames the failure of the peace process on Hamas, which does not recognize the country's right to exist and is considered a terrorist group by Israel and Western nations.

But Harel says that for many Israelis, Hamas is the preferred enemy because it rejects a two-state solution. That allows Israel to isolate Gaza from the larger conflict while consolidating its control over east Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank  with little if any resistance from the docile Palestinian Authority.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has never said it publicly, "but one would suspect he is actually quite comfortable with Hamas," Harel said.

Israel captured east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza in a 1967 war, territories the Palestinians want for their future state. It withdrew soldiers and settlers from Gaza in 2005.

But the Palestinians and much of the international community still view Gaza as occupied territory that should be part of an eventual Palestinian state. More than half of Gaza's population are the descendants of refugees from what is now Israel, which controls the territory's airspace, territorial waters, population registry and commercial crossings.

Any larger resolution to the conflict appears further out of reach than ever.

There have been no substantive peace talks in more than a decade, and Israel's expansion of settlements and its plans to eventually annex parts of the West Bank has recently led two well-known human rights groups to accuse it of practicing apartheid. Israel rejects those allegations.

Either way, there seems no end in sight to Hamas' rule in Gaza or the blockade Israel says is needed to contain it.

Ground offensive or no ground offensive, ultimately it does not matter," analyst Baconi said.

The broader strategy is going to remain one which Israelis call mowing the lawn, he said. That means maintaining the status quo, and every time Gaza becomes a bit too powerful, hit it.

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Associated Press writers Karin Laub in the West Bank and Laurie Kellman in Tel Aviv, Israel contributed.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 20:04:56|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on May 15, 2021 shows a store directly hit by a rocket fired from the Gaza strip in central Israeli city of Ramat Gan. (Gideon Markowicz/JINI via Xinhua)

JERUSALEM, May 15 (Xinhua) -- An Israeli was killed in a rocket attack on central Israel on Saturday, Israeli authorities said.

Carmel Shama-Ha'Cohen, mayor of Ramat Gan city outside Tel Aviv, told reporters that a 50-year-old man died after a rocket hit a road outside his residential building in Ramat Gan.

Dozens of rockets were fired toward the Tel Aviv area, the Ben Gurion Airport, and southern Israel, the Israeli military said in a statement.

It said that its anti-rocket Iron Dome system was activated, intercepting most of the rockets.

Hamas, an Islamist Palestinian group that runs the Gaza Strip, said in a statement that the barrages were "a revenge" for the killing of 10 Palestinians, mostly children, in Israeli strikes early on Saturday.

Since Monday, Israel has pounded Gaza with hundreds of air strikes and shells, killing at least 139 people, including 39 children and 22 women. Rockets fired by militant groups in Gaza killed 10 people.

The violence was the worst escalation between Israel and the besieged Palestinian enclave since 2014. Enditem
SANTA FE, N.M. -- New Mexico has adopted guidance on facemasks from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that says fully vaccinated Americans no longer need to wear masks indoors or outside in most cases.

Under revisions Friday to the states emergency public health order, masks are no longer required of fully vaccinated people in many public settings, though businesses and workplaces may still make face coverings a requirement for all.

Public schools are still bound by universal mask requirements with allowances for meals, as the state gradually relaxes aggressive restrictions on public gatherings and some business operations.

Dustin Safranek/AP

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said that getting vaccinated is crucial to a safe future, with the statewide vaccination rate recently surpassing 50% for eligible residents 16 and over.

We are close and getting closer. But that all depends on New Mexicans continuing to protect themselves and their community by getting vaccinated, she said in a statement.

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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

 States, business sort out what new CDC mask guidance means

 Delta Airlines will require new hires get vaccinated against virus

 UK jubilant as lockdown restrictions to be lifted next week

 Disney CEO says more people allowed into parks

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 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:

JUNEAU, Alaska  Alaska legislative leaders have voted to make mask-wearing optional at the state Capitol and then shed their own face coverings after the vote.

The decision by the Legislative Council followed new guidelines the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The council is composed of House and Senate leaders.

Under the new policy, masks are optional in legislative facilities, with some exceptions. For example, lawmakers can require masks in their respective offices.

The policy also further eases testing rules.

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BATON ROUGE, La. --Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has further eased the states mask requirements.

Edwards largely dropped the state mask mandate on April 27, but there were exceptions. Fridays order drops the requirement for entry into state office buildings for people who are fully vaccinated.

Masking is still required by the state in educational facilities from early childhood classes to universities, and at state correctional facilities and health care facilities.

New Orleans, which had a tougher mask mandate than the states, also did away with the mask mandate for fully vaccinated people Friday, with similar exceptions.

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Word from federal health officials that vaccinated people dont have to wear masks in most situations may be leading to confusion among travelers.

Masks are still required under a Transportation Security Administration rule that will run into mid-September unless it is revoked before then. The Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates airlines, felt the need to remind passengers of the TSA rule.

It issued a statement late Friday to remind the traveling public that at this time if you travel, you are still required to wear a mask on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling into, within, or out of the United States, and in U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations.

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NEW YORK  Walmart, the worlds largest retailer, said Friday that it wont require vaccinated shoppers or workers to wear a mask in its U.S. stores, unless state or local laws say otherwise.

Vaccinated shoppers can go maskless immediately, the company said. Vaccinated workers can stop wearing them on May 18. As an incentive, Walmart said it is offering workers $75 if they prove theyve been vaccinated.

Walmart said it wont ask shoppers if theyve been vaccinated. Workers, however, will need to tell the company if theyve been vaccinated in order to go maskless.

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JUNEAU, Alaska  The acting mayor of Anchorage says Alaskas largest city is revoking its mask mandate, starting May 21.

Acting Mayor Austin Quinn-Davidsons office says masks no longer will be required in indoor or outdoor settings but that people who are not vaccinated against COVID-19 are encouraged to wear masks.

The decision follows guidance released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday for people who are vaccinated.

Quinn-Davidsons office says applying a mask mandate only to those who are not vaccinated in Anchorage would have created enforcement challenges and issues for businesses.

Meanwhile, in Juneau, city officials ease mask wearing rules for people who are fully vaccinated.

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LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  Arkansas capital city is dropping its requirement to wear a mask to combat the coronavirus following loosened federal guidance and a new state law that will ban local mandates, Little Rock Mayor Frank Scott said Friday.

Scott said the citys mask mandate will end Saturday, though private entities, hospitals and churches can still enforce their own requirements on employees and patrons. People entering City of Little Rock indoor facilities will still be required to wear a mask, the mayor said.

We strongly encourage residents to continue wearing face coverings in public until we reach the desired vaccination rate in our city, as outlined by healthcare professionals, Scott said in a statement.

The decision comes a day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, allowing them to stop wearing masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings.

Arkansas dropped its mask mandate in March, but the governor allowed local governments to enforce their own. A new state law, however, takes effect in July that will ban any state or local mandates.

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ATLANTA  Georgias 26 public universities and colleges do not currently plan to require students, faculty or staff to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in the fall, according to guidance issued by the University System of Georgia.

The 340,000-student university system in March asked all campuses to plan for resuming normal operations for the Fall 2021 semester. Thursdays guidance says fully vaccinated people wont have to socially distance or wear masks, while unvaccinated people are strongly encouraged to continue socially distancing and wearing a mask inside.

The universities are supposed to make sure vaccinations are available, but schools wont be responsible for assessing current COVID-19 vaccination rates for their institution.

The university system said it had made the decisions in concert with the state Department of Public Health and that they were subject to change.

The Board of Regents insisted on at least some in-person instruction in the fall and spring semesters. Those moves came despite resistance from some employees.

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ATLANTA  Georgias 26 public universities and colleges do not currently plan to require students, faculty or staff to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in the fall, according to guidance issued by the University System of Georgia.

The 340,000-student university system in March asked all campuses to plan for resuming normal operations for the Fall 2021 semester. Thursdays guidance says fully vaccinated people wont have to socially distance or wear masks, while unvaccinated people are strongly encouraged to continue socially distancing and wearing a mask inside.

The universities are supposed to make sure vaccinations are available, but schools wont be responsible for assessing current COVID-19 vaccination rates for their institution.

The university system said it had made the decisions in concert with the state Department of Public Health and that they were subject to change.

The Board of Regents insisted on at least some in-person instruction in the fall and spring semesters. Those moves came despite resistance from some employees.

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ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Maryland is ending its statewide mask mandate this weekend, following guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Gov. Larry Hogan announced Friday.

The mask mandate will end effective Saturday, the Republican governor said at a news conference.

In alignment with CDC guidance, face coverings will still be required on public transportation, and in schools, child care and health care settings, Hogan said.

The Maryland Department of Health has issued a public health advisory strongly recommending that all non-vaccinated individuals over the age of 2 continue to wear face coverings in all indoor settings and in outdoor settings where physical distancing cannot be maintained.

Private businesses and workplaces can put in place their own policies. Local jurisdictions may continue to use their own emergency powers on these matters.

Earlier this week, the governor announced the lifting of restrictions on indoor and outdoor venues, including restaurants, that also will take effect on Saturday.

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NEW ORLEANS -- People fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can take off their masks in most of New Orleans. And they can celebrate by dancing.

Mayor LaToya Cantrell announced the easing of the city mask mandate Friday following this weeks new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In New Orleans, masks will still be required in city government buildings, hospitals and K-12 schools, as well as on public transportation.

City health director Jennifer Avegno said more than half of city residents who are eligible have received the required number of vaccine shots.

Avegno also announced easing of another city restriction, saying vaccinated people can now dance at public venues.

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DOVER, Del.  Democratic Gov. John Carney said Friday that he will lift Delawares mask-wearing mandate effective May 21 after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said people who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 do not need to wear masks or practice social distancing.

The move comes after the CDC issued new guidance Thursday saying that people who have been vaccinated can resume activities without wearing a mask or social distancing. The relaxed guidance does not apply to health care settings, prisons and homeless shelters, and it still calls for wearing masks while using public transportation.

The announcement prompted governors of several states, including North Carolina, to relax state mandates on mask wearing.

The lifting of Delawares mask mandate coincides with the easing of other COVID-19 restrictions effective next Friday that Carney formalized in an order he signed Wednesday. That order eliminated most business capacity restrictions and lifted a distancing requirement on school buses, while stilling requiring masks indoors.

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LONDON  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says second doses of coronavirus vaccines will be accelerated in response to the rise of the virus variant first identified in India.

Johnson says people over age 50 can receive their second COVID-19 shot eight weeks after their first, rather than the previous 12 weeks. Current vaccines are expected to be effective against the virus variant known as B.1.617.2.

I believe we should trust in our vaccines to protect the public whilst monitoring the situation as it develops very closely, because the race between our vaccination program and the virus may be about to become a great deal tighter, Johnson said. And its more important than ever, therefore, that people get the additional protection of a second dose.

On Monday, Britain will ease lockdown measures for pubs and restaurants. Johnson couldnt say for sure whether the final easing of all measures on June 21 will go ahead as planned.

Scottish authorities say Glasgow and the island of Moray wont engage in the reopening on Monday because of higher infection levels.

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CINCINNATI  National grocery store chain Kroger says it will continue to require masks in its stores.

The Cincinnati-based company operates some 2,760 stores nationwide, including under other banners such as Ralphs, Dillons, Frys and King Soopers.

Spokesperson Sheila Regehr says in an email: As we have throughout the pandemic, we are reviewing current safety practices, the CDCs latest guidance, and soliciting feedback from associates to guide the next phase of our policy. Kroger offers its workers $100 to get vaccinated.

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ATLANTA  Delta Air Lines will require new employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 starting on Monday.

The airline wont impose the same requirement on current employees, of whom more than 60% are vaccinated, a spokesman said Friday. The airline says the policy for new hires is designed to protect other employees and passengers as travel demand recovers from last years pandemic low levels.

Meanwhile, some airline stocks rose after the CDCs new guidance for people who are fully vaccinated. United Airlines was up 4% in early Friday trading, and other U.S. airlines rose by smaller amounts.

The federal requirement for wearing face masks on planes remains in place. A spokesman for trade group Airlines for America says carriers will continue to enforce the rule.

The Transportation Security Administration announced 1.74 million people passed through U.S. airports on Thursday, a new pandemic-era high. However, those airport crowds were still 33% smaller than on the comparable day in 2019.

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BERLIN  Germany is putting the Britain back on a list of risk areas because of the emergence there of cases of a coronavirus variant first detected in India.

Britain currently has a lower rate of coronavirus infections than Germany. But Germanys disease control center, the Robert Koch Institute, says the United Kingdom is going back on the list effective Sunday because of the at least limited appearance of the variant known as B.1.617.2.

The institute says Spains Canary Islands, a popular tourist destination, and the Spanish exclave of Ceuta in North Africa were being removed from the list of risk areas, the lowest of three levels of risk classification.

Under new rules this week, fully vaccinated people dont need a test to enter Germany or to go into quarantine -- unless theyre coming from somewhere designated as a virus variant area such as India or Brazil. Others coming from a risk area can avoid a mandatory 10-day quarantine by showing a negative test result.

___

BOSTON  Neither Massachusetts nor Rhode Island made any immediate changes to their mask regulations after the CDCs decision Thursday suggesting fully vaccinated Americans no longer need to wear masks or practice social distancing in most settings.

A spokesperson for Republican Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said he welcomes the new CDC guidance and will be updating Massachusetts COVID restrictions in the near future. In the meantime, the current mask order remains in place. Massachusetts requires people to cover their faces while in indoor public places and outdoors if they are unable to maintain 6 feet of distance from others.

We are going to review the CDCs updated guidance on social distancing and masking and determine what the best approach is for Rhode Island, state Health Department spokesperson Joseph Wendelken said.

Currently, the state requires people to wear masks in indoor public places, and outdoors when within 3 feet of others not in their immediate circle.
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP)  Two years after a white supremacist in New Zealand livestreamed the slaughter of 51 Muslim worshippers on Facebook, French President Emmanuel Macron says the internet continues to be be used by terrorists as a weapon to propagate hate.

Macron and other leaders from tech giants and governments around the world  including the U.S. for the first time  gathered virtually on Saturday to find better ways to stop extremist violence from spreading online, while also respecting freedom of expression.

It was part of a global effort started by Macron and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern after deadly attacks in their countries were streamed or shared on social networks.

The U.S. government and four other countries joined the effort, known as the Christchurch Call, for the first time this year. It involves some 50 nations plus tech companies including Google, Facebook, Twitter and Amazon, and is named for the New Zealand city where the slaughter at the two mosques took place.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a prerecorded video that authorities in his country alone had taken down more than 300,000 pieces of terrorist material from the internet over the past decade, which he described as a tsunami of hate.

Terrorist content is like a metastasizing tumor within the internet, or series of tumors," Johnson said. If we fail to excise it, it will inevitably spread into homes and high streets the world over.

Since its launch, governments and tech companies have cooperated in some cases in identifying violent extremist content online. Ardern, however, said more tangible progress is needed to stop it from proliferating.

The meeting was aimed at revitalizing coordination efforts, notably since President Joe Biden entered office, and getting more tech companies involved. Macron and Ardern welcomed the U.S. decision as a potential catalyst for stronger action.

Macron said the internet had continued to be used as a tool in recent attacks in the U.S., Vienna, Germany and elsewhere. He said it cannot happen again, and that new European regulations against extremist content would help.

Ardern said that two years after the Christchurch Call was launched, momentum was strong. But she acknowledged the challenge in essentially playing whac-a-mole with different countries, internet platforms and algorithms that can foster extremist content.

The existence of algorithms themselves is not necessarily the problem, it's whether or not they are being ethically used, Ardern said. And so that is probably the biggest focus for the Call community over the next year."

She said part of the solution also came in better equipping a younger generation of internet users to have the skills to deal with radical content or disinformation when they encounter it online.

Although the U.S. only officially joined the Christchurch Call this year, it had been consistently contributing to the effort, Ardern said.

Countering the use of the internet by terrorists and violent extremists to radicalize and recruit is a significant priority for the United States, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement. She also stressed the importance of protecting freedom of expression and reasonable expectations of privacy.
President Joe Biden endorsed state Rep. Marty Flynn for Lackawanna County's vacant state Senate seat Friday, Flynn's campaign announced.

A retired professional boxer, Flynn, a Scranton Democrat, has represented the 113th state House District since 2012. He seeks the 22nd Senate District seat against Lackawanna County Commissioner Chris Chermak, a Republican; Marlene Sebastianelli, a Green; and Nathan Covington, a Libertarian.

Marty Flynn will be a fighter for the people of Scranton in the Pennsylvania Senate, Biden said in a Flynn campaign news release. Building back better starts in the states. We need to elect more leaders like Marty to state legislatures across the country, so that we can work together to build a stronger future. Im pleased to endorse him in this important race.

Flynn said he is honored at the endorsement "from one of Scrantons favorite sons."

The seat is vacant because John Blake resigned to take a job with U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-8, Moosic.
Do you have a grumpy dog? It might have some hidden talents.

In a recent study in Hungary, researchers found that dogs with personality characteristics they had grouped under the grumpy heading were better able to learn from a stranger than more easygoing dogs.

This is admittedly a limited skill, but owners of grumpy dogs may be pleased with good news of any sort.

Consider some of the characteristics that the researchers put in the grumpy category: quick to bark, snarls or snaps when disturbed, doesnt come when called, guards food to keep it from other dogs or people, active and restless. This is the dog that pet shelters say needs a very special owner. This is the dog that very special owners are forever having to explain to friends. Thats Fluffys chair, they say. Thats Fluffys rug. Actually, this is Fluffys house, all of it. Lets go to a coffee shop.

Peter Pongracz, whose specialty at Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest is the study of dog-human interactions, reported the recent findings in the journal Animals, under a long title that begins Grumpy dogs are smart learners.

(A small warning to potential dog owners: The study does not say anything about which breeds are grumpier. The scientists looked at differences in individual dogs, all of them pets.)

Pongracz conducted the experiments because he had noticed in earlier research that dominant and submissive dogs in households that had more than one dog showed differences in learning styles.

In both studies, the dogs task remained the same. Pongracz and his colleagues placed a favorite treat or toy in plain view behind a V-shaped wire fence. Instinctively, dogs would try to go straight toward the treat, which, sadly, doesnt work. They had to begin by going farther away from the treat to get around the fence to get close to it. To the dog mind, this is a very strange idea. The wonderful-smelling treat is right there. Why would you go away from it?

Its quite a difficult task for a dog when they are on their own, Pongracz said.

Dogs are social learners, meaning they can see what another (dog or person) does and then learn to do the same. In the earlier work, dogs that occupied a dominant position in a multi-dog home were hopeless at learning by watching other dogs while the more submissive dogs, perhaps practiced at keeping an eye on what other dogs were up to, did very well. But when a person demonstrated the solution, all the dogs performed the same.

Pongracz decided that in the recent experiment he would look at the relationship between dogs and owners. Owners filled out a questionnaire. And the dogs themselves did some tests as well. After conducting a statistical analysis of the results, from both the survey of owners and the dog tests, researchers concluded that a set of dog characteristics ranging from high levels of activity to snapping or snarling all belonged in the same category.

Labeling this particular group was difficult, Pongracz said, because these dogs are not exactly aggressive but they have this grumpy attitude.

Grumpy fit best.

For the recent experiment, dogs had to retrieve the object placed behind a V-shaped fence. The grumps and agreeable dogs performed the same when they had to figure out the problem by themselves, or if their owners showed them the way to get the treat.

But the grumpy dogs did noticeably better when a stranger demonstrated the way to get the object.

They were more attentive, Pongracz said. Why is a question that remains to be answered.

Not everyone agrees

Monique Udell, director of the Human-Animal Interaction Laboratory at Oregon State University, who was not involved in the research, said it showed, as has a growing body of other work, that individuality of dogs and lifetime experience influence performance and all sorts of tasks.

But, she said, the characteristics grouped under the grumpy category seemed to go in two directions.

A dog trainer as well as a researcher, Udell said that trainers have long recognized that dogs that seem too energetic and even hyperactive as family pets may excel at tasks like herding, obedience or guard dog work.

The unwillingness to come back when called fits with that kind of dog, as does less inhibition, she said. The other characteristics listed in the studys grumpy category related to aggression, like food guarding, didnt match her experience.

So she wondered whether something other than grumpiness might be underlying all the behavioral tendencies tucked into that category.

Cynthia Otto, director of the Penn Vet Working Dog Center, at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, who wasnt involved in the study, said the latest paper lacked detail about the dogs life history and nature of the training they had experienced. There are so many variables that go into our relationships, she said.

Granted, the variability of dog personalities and suitability to different tasks was undeniable, she noted.

At the Working Dog Center, we allow dogs to choose their careers and its based on their personalities and on their interactions and on their relationships, she said. She emphasized that breeds were not always a reliable guide to personality, because of individual differences.

Pongracz has four dogs, all from the same breed of the Hungarian herding dog, Mudi, and each has a distinct personality.

But all of them bark quite a bit, he said. They are noisy.
May 15, 1931

City man nabbed in Baltimore custom raid

U.S. Commissioner J. Frank Supplee of Baltimore granted hearings to 14 men who were taken into custody by federal customs and prohibition agents following a raid on the operation of the Chesapeake Bay Run Ring.

One of the 14 men was Thomas Krutell, of Scranton, who was employed as a driver for the wholesale fruit dealer Lustig-Burgerhoff of Scranton. All 14 men were being held on $35,000 bail each.

The raid took place in Cambridge, Maryland. In addition to the arrests, the agents confiscated liquor, trucks and motor boats that had an estimated value of $300,000 to $500,000.

Ephesus Day to be celebrated locally

The areas three Catholic colleges  St. Thomas, Marywood College and College Misericordia  announced they would be conducting an observance of Ephesus Day on May 22.

Each school would conduct its own program on the day that marked the 1,500th anniversary of the Council of Ephesus.

At St. Thomas College, students would hear lectures on the Councils of Ephesus and Chalcedon and the divinity of Jesus Christ. At Marywood, the student body would participate in a May Crowning ceremony. At College Misericordia, the students would attend Mass, pray the rosary and listen to a presentation on the history of the Council of Ephesus.

The first Council of Ephesus was held in 430 to settle a religious teaching dispute over the refusal of the Patriarch Nestorius of Constantinople to call the Virgin Mary the Mother of God.

Out & about

At the movies: Man of the World at the Granada, Cracked Nuts at the State, Beyond Victory at the Capitol, City Streets at the Strand and Daybreak at the Riviera.

At the Ritz Theater: An evening of vaudeville. The shows included Mat Shelveys Dance Novelties of 1931 with Wally Jackson, the red-headed mad-cap Nell Kelly, duo Harry Anger & Mary Fair and Mills, Shea & Howe.

For those staying in: WQAN, Scranton Times Radio, presented an evening of dance music performed by several local bands. Kicking off the show was Tadonios Orchestra, followed by Johnsons Serenaders, Schubert String Trio and Eddie Kanes Lake Winola Dance Orchestra.
SCRANTON  Historically overlooked, the citys Black population now has a landmark no one can ignore.

With a building donation from PNC Bank valued at over $250,000, the Black Scranton Project Center for Arts and Culture has a home in the prominent three-story former bank that anchors Providence Square in North Scranton.

People are ready to work towards change, are ready to learn and are ready to make communities that work for everybody, said Glynis Johns, project founder and CEO. I want people to know this space isnt only for Black people. ... Its for the entire community, but its centered around Blackness and theres nothing wrong with that.

For more than a year, Johns contemplated renting or purchasing space for the nonprofit project she began in 2018.

With the Black Lives Matter movement that kicked off in June, we started to get a lot more community support which opened up the realm for a lot more community donations and sponsorships and support, she said. I knew we were at that level where we could purchase a property.

She would go after spaces, often in downtown Scranton, and watched them be swiped up. She noticed the former bank, at 1902 N. Main Ave., put on the market in 2016, was still for sale.

PNC is a strong supporter of the Black Scranton Project and would often ask Johns what can they do to help. She created a glossy and vibrant proposal full of photos of events and letters of support from local leaders that also detailed past initiatives and the future of the project to ask the bank to take their support to the next level and donate the building, which was built in 1926.

Were in a time where things like this really make a difference, she said. They make a difference for communities, for kids, next generations, businesses around. I showed them all the other conversations and partnerships and ways we could get neighbors and other businesses involved.

She learned in December the bank would go through with the donation and by March it was all but finalized.

An American Pan-African flag now hangs from the partial second floor which features a walnut-lined executive office  now Johnss office  and boardroom with mid-century modern features.

Donating the former PNC Bank branch to the Black Scranton Project was the right thing to do for our community, said Jaime Ryan, the banks vice president, Community Development Banking for Northeast Pennsylvania. Ryan said PNC is a Main Street bank committed to serving its people and communities and has a history of investing in the arts.

We understand the economic, social and civic impacts that a thriving arts and culture community have in revitalizing our city, he said. There are few better ways to support our community, at a time when its never been more necessary, than by advancing the arts, coming together to learn about our cultural heritage and celebrate the transformation of the new home of the Black Scranton Project.

Johns, who grew up in North Scranton, plans to keep the historic features of the bank  including its brass metal workings from Tiffany and Co. around the teller boxes where Johns would grab lollipops in her youth, and the African black and gold marble on the buildings main floor that she would jump from square to square as a kid.

The first major renovations will be a community kitchen and food pantry behind the 22-ton steel vault and making sure the building is ADA-accessible. The center will eventually feature a library, exhibit space, design lab, game room, computer lab, library, recording studio and zen lounge.

She wants everyone to feel like he or she belongs in the space, and that the center is a safe place for all.

She plans to officially open the building to the public in February, Black History Month, and hold a series of fundraisers for the center, which sits on a quarter acre with 22 parking spots.

Juneteenth celebrates the ending of slavery in the United States, and this year the Black Scranton Project will host its celebration in the parking lot, which Parks plans to pave before the event. Black Scranton will also host an In the Vault fundraiser using the banks historic vault, marveled as having the most perfect burglar and fire-proof prevention known today, according to a 1926 Scranton Republican article. Donors can buy keys to the safety deposit boxes within the vault and receive a prize or gift. Donor and support tags, which will permanently stay on the safety deposit boxes, will also be available for a donation.

The Black Scranton Project grew out of Johns masters thesis, But youre Black? The Overlooked Community of Scranton, Pennsylvania, which examined local Black history and identified stereotypes and stigmas that make people see the Black community as transient. Johns became inspired by the Black figures she discovered in the citys history including Louise Tanner Brown, a successful Black business owner, and Dr. James E. Foster, Scrantons first Black doctor who had a track record of keeping patients alive during the last pandemic in 1918.

Those are the type of people I believe should have monuments, should have street signs, should have plaques, should be taught in schools, because thats so empowering, she said, standing in the sunlit empty lobby of the center. I want people to know about these figures and I want people to come here and learn about them and honor them and add to them.

While writing that masters thesis in sociology for St. Johns University in New York, Johns never imagined herself back in Scranton.

This called me back and I feel like its a once-in-a-generation thing and I feel like my ancestors were like we want you to do this and were going to reward you if you go after this hard, she said.

To donate or for more details on upcoming events, visit www.blackscranton.org.
The old guard Democrats, as Scranton Mayor Paige Gebhardt Cognetti derisively calls them, detest her.

Theyre sure that Cognetti, an Oregon native who moved here only in 2016, is just passing through. They see an outsider who ran for the mayors job only as a step along the road toward higher office.

They see a spotlight-seeking opportunist, an outsider who trades on a well-known local name that she gained by marriage.

Cognetti stepped into local politics as a Scranton school director by appointment in 2017, not election. The old guard sees someone who gave that up a year later for a job writing policy for the state auditor generals office, then gave up the security of that for a lesser-paying job as Scranton mayor.

In their minds, why would anyone do that without thinking bigger?

Represented most clearly by Lackawanna County Commissioner Jerry Notarianni, the old guard has its roots in city Democratic politics dating to the days of the late Packy Cummings and Joe Corcoran, who actually governed well as a county commissioner.

As they came up through Democratic politics, you waited your turn and if your turn never arrived, well, thats what the party wanted and you need to respect that.

By the way, this line of thinking contributed to Republicans electing the first woman commissioner, Laureen Cummings, and the first woman county judge, Trish Corbett, instead of Democrats in a county full of well-qualified Democratic women.

Cognetti, the first woman Scranton mayor, doesnt like waiting, especially because she sees, as many do, a city filled with wonderful people struggling to right itself decade after decade after decade. She wants to do something about it.

To the old guard, her original sin is acting like a Democrat after usurping traditional wait-your-turn local Democratic politics by switching to independent to run for mayor in 2019 against an endorsed Democrat, Chris Cullen, whom, ironically, the old guard mostly cant stand. She even aligned herself with the regions best-known Republican, Bill Scranton.

In January, Cognetti switched back to the Democrats because, truth be told, she had a better chance to win reelection that way.

See? the old guard says, ignoring that Cognetti spent last year supporting hometown boy Joe Biden for president and Biden rewarded her by naming her an elector when she was still a registered independent.

The old guard mayor candidate is City Controller John Murray, a former city Democratic chairman. To them, hes everything shes not, a lifelong Democrat and a Scranton native. His TV commercial says exactly what the old guard thinks about Cognettis political aspirations.

Democratic primaries in Scranton can produce the unexpected. Just ask the last Democratic mayor who tried to shake things up at City Hall, Chris Doherty. Doherty almost lost his first re-election bid to Councilman Gary DiBileo in the 2005 primary, but rallied to a comfortable win in the fall.

Doherty at least ran in Democratic primaries. Cognetti never has. She ran in the 2019 mayoral special election when Republicans and independents could vote for her. Her six opponents totaled far more votes combined than she did.

All that casts doubt on her chances against Murray, despite the well-funded, professional campaign she has run and the early poll that had her up more than 50 percentage points.

Im in it to win it, Murray says.

Well find out if he really was.

Notarianni says he advised Murray against running, but the old guard may think that if Murray cant beat Cognetti now, at least hell look like the obvious replacement when she resigns to runs for state office.

Cognetti has registered the internet domain name, paigeforpa.com, but says she did that in 2019 to prevent opponents from buying and using it against her, a common strategy in well-run campaigns.

She doesnt rule out running for higher office someday, but points out that she couldnt realistically run next year because of all the people already running for governor and U.S. Senate. In 2024, state voters will choose an auditor general and treasurer, but thats three years away.

She wont be the only one interested then, either, but lets say she does run for state office in 2024.

So what?

No local Democrat cared when Scrantons Bob Casey ran for state treasurer and won in 2004, when everyone suspected that was only a steppingstone to higher office.

Of course, hes really from Scranton, but the next time you start thinking Cognetti just wants a higher office, think about this, too.

Besides Bob Casey, name the local Democrat with a real shot at winning a statewide office.

Only a few local major-party candidates have even tried. Kathleen Granahan Kane, a Democrat, won the attorney generals office, but ended up in jail. Ditto Ernie Preate Jr., a Republican, the former attorney general who lost a 1994 bid for governor. The other past ones who immediately come to mind are Joe Peters, who ran unsuccessfully for auditor general in 2004, and Chuck Volpe, who unsuccessfully sought the 1994 Democratic gubernatorial nomination and who, by the way, donated $2,500 to Murrays campaign.

Cognetti could be the next one.

She says all the time shes out to end the days of government benefiting a few well-connected people. Shes only had the job for 16 months, but she clearly rankled the old guard while trying to govern during a pandemic.

The old guard finally found their candidate, she said of Murray in a Feb. 26 email appeal for fundraising and petition signatures. Were building a movement to make Scranton work for everyone. We cant afford to go back to the days of machine politics, patronage jobs, and worse.

Former county Commissioner Jim Wansacz lost a Democratic primary election in 2015 when entrenched interests and their voters turned against him, but he came off as far less likable than Cognetti.

Two years ago, Cognetti won an election open to all registered voters that clearly signaled a desire for profound change in a Scranton government still reeling from ex-Mayor Bill Courtrights corruption. She took office and got smacked with a pandemic. She hasnt screwed up, at least not dramatically, which raises doubts about Murrays chances.

On Tuesday, with Republicans, independents and third-party voters sidelined from voting for her or Murray, we will find out if the change Cognetti offers matches the change city Democratic voters want.

BORYS KRAWCZENIUK, The Times-Tribune politics reporter, writes Random Notes.
Ever since U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser supported a preposterous lawsuit to disenfranchise millions of Pennsylvania voters, and tried to disenfranchise them again by voting not to accept the certified results of the commonwealths presidential election, he has engaged in rhetorical acrobatics to try to explain away his willingness to betray his own constituents in favor of the cult of Donald Trump.

Now, he might have to see an orthopedic specialist after twisting himself into a pretzel to explain his vote to oust Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming from the Republican Caucus leadership. Cheney had offended the Trump cult that used to be the GOP by rejecting the lie that Democrats stole the election, and by voting in favor of Trumps second impeachment.

I went around and said to everyone, This will be terrible for us to exclude Liz from leadership, because of her vote,  he told Borys Krawczeniuk of The Times-Tribune. ... That would show were only the party of Donald Trump. No, were not ... Were much broader than that. ... I like being a big tent, not look to cancel or ban Donald Trump and his supporters from the party. I think thats ridiculous. And thats why I dont think that shes correct in continuing this push to basically ban the president from the Republican Party.

So, Trump isnt an autocrat who refused to cooperate in the smooth transfer of power after Joe Biden was elected president. And the question isnt his cancellation of anyone who doesnt bow to him, but that he is a victim of Cheneys effort to exclude him from the big tent.

The lesson of Cheneys expulsion is that lying now is the litmus test for congressional Republicans to ascend to leadership, and that cannot be explained away.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 20:11:24|Editor: huaxia

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JERUSALEM, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Israel's army said on Saturday that its troops thwarted an attempted attack near the border fence with Lebanon.

The incident took place late on Friday night, it said.

Israeli troops spotted several persons approaching the border fence and then digging into the ground and cutting the fence, according to a statement issued by the army.

"The soldiers operated to stop the suspects according to standard procedures, including by firing towards their legs," the statement read, adding that following the fire the suspects retreated back to Lebanon.

The army said that initial investigations and searches in the area indicated that the action had been planned in advance and the group was apparently armed with explosives.

They "acted in a way which indicates that they intended to infiltrate into Israeli territory" and carry out an attack in the area of Metula, a city in northern Israel.

The army said the Lebanese government should be held responsible for such incidents and warned "it will bear the consequences for any attempts to harm Israeli civilians."

According to the statement, Israeli troops "are prepared in the area and ready to operate with determination as necessary in response to any attempt to violate Israeli sovereignty."

The incident came a day after dozens of people from Lebanon briefly crossed the fence into Israeli territory. Israeli tanks fired toward them, injuring and killing a man. Enditem
Editor: Every day when a police officer suits up for work, he never knows what lies ahead.

Officers spouses and children worry about their safety and anxiously await the sound of the car in the driveway after every shift. Under normal circumstances, it takes uncommon courage to serve as a police officer. But during the past year, it has required extraordinary courage.

As we celebrate National Police Week this week, we need to recognize the service of our police officers during the COVID-19 pandemic. On every call or traffic stop, police officers never know what kind of danger awaits. During the pandemic, officers faced not only assailants they could see, but one they couldnt  the coronavirus, an assailant every bit as dangerous and deadly as one with a gun.

Yet every day police officers in Lackawanna County went to work to protect and serve our communities. Early in the pandemic, many officers worked with limited protective equipment. Upon learning of an impending shortage of personal protective equipment, my office obtained a grant and procured loads of N-95 masks, gloves, respirators, hand sanitizer, protective suits and other equipment to help our police officers stay safe on the job.

Of the 264 police officers who died in the line of duty in the United States in 2020, more than half died of COVID-19. Although some officers in Lackawanna County contracted COVID-19, none died from the virus, thankfully.

During National Police Week, we should thank and applaud police officers for putting their lives on the line to keep our communities safe. Now more than ever, the men and women in blue are truly American heroes.

MARK POWELL

LACKAWANNA COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY

Editor: Freedom does not mean doing whatever it is you want, which is licentiousness.

Freedom means having the choice to do what is morally right. Choose what is morally right on primary election day, May 18.

Never has it been a more dangerous time for the unborn. The Biden administration issued a statement celebrating the 48th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Keeping this celebratory spirit going, President Biden overturned the Mexico City policy, releasing millions of tax dollars to support pro-choice groups overseas; rewrote the Title X federal family planning program, which provides tax dollars for Planned Parenthood, and overturned a law that prevented aborted baby parts and organs from being used for research. What destruction of human life in the name of freedom.

Following in the example of our president and Gov. Tom Wolf is Rep. Marty Flynn, a state Senate candidate. Flynn voted against the pain capable/dismemberment bill and against House Bill 2050, which would have protected unborn Down syndrome babies from abortion due to disability. Both these bills passed overwhelmingly in the state House and Senate. Wolf, collaborating with Flynn, vetoed both bills.

On Tuesday vote for Chris Chermak, for state Senate. He is endorsed by the Pennsylvania Pro-life Federation and the right choice for true freedom.

MICHAEL J. ODONNELL, M.D.

SOUTH ABINGTON TWP.

Editor: Scranton School District taxpayers pay more in taxes each year yet receive fewer services.

Last year, the board raised taxes during a pandemic. A recent proposal to the board would allow an annual tax increase of 4.6% starting in 2022. The district saved money over the last year. By being fully remote, the district saved in salaries, transportation expenses and benefits.

The district received about $57 million in COVID-19 relief funds and the 2020 report showed a surprise surplus. By reducing special education aides, the district saves. Programs have been reduced or eliminated. There has been a reduction of art, music, library and industrial arts, with fewer support staff. Multiple buildings are scheduled to close.

The successful pre-K program was eliminated. When the board speaks to the public, it is with threats of receivership that would render the board powerless. Board majority members sit silent and act powerless  never questioning the destruction or proposing alternatives. Why is there a board if members do not use their voices?

The truth is our elected officials fail us. Holding our leaders accountable is not bullying. Accountability is taking responsibility and assuming ownership of actions or votes. It is easier to claim that you are being bullied than to take responsibility for poor decisions that negatively impact the public.

As a parent of a child in the district, a taxpayer, graduate of Scranton public schools and candidate for Scranton School Board, my position is that the public is not being adequately represented by our elected officials. Please vote wisely on Tuesday. You can vote for the continuation of this destruction or vote for people who want to save the district.

DANIELLE CHESEK

SCRANTON

Editor: I chose Scranton in 2007.

Ive watched Scranton grow and I am a proud property owner. I began a small business, love our arts and culture community and the diversity of our citys population. Throughout my time here, I have been dismayed by one very strange notion: Scranton cant get better.

It can and it has. We face a steep uphill climb. I see potential everywhere. Community revitalization, public funding, tireless volunteer efforts  everything that inspires and indicates a city on the rise. But we can do better. The foundation and future of our city lies with our children. Education is fundamental to building a better Scranton and a better world. Our kids deserve to strive for greatness.

We need to work together as a community, communicate and understand the serious issues at stake. Its important to properly represent the boundaries and consequences of recovery and receivership.

Every decision we make affects our communities. This city glows with opportunity and we must keep our community in control of our future. Recovery is a process with difficult and sometimes unfortunate decisions, but state control under receivership would be far worse. We simply cannot lose our district to receivership .

I care about our community, our people and most important, providing our children with education of the highest quality.

We need to face objective reality. Educating our children is not a joke. I want to see our kids shine brightly as the best possible version of themselves. Lets strive for unity and communication instead of throwing away our district.

TUCKER HOTTES

SCRANTON
Natalie Mary Brier peacefully passed away in Tempe, Ariz., on Friday, April 30, 2021.

Natalie was born Oct. 15, 1932, in Scranton to Robert and Loretta Pantle. She met her future husband, James (Jim/Jimmy), when they were in the seventh grade and were sometimes caught passing notes in the hallways. Natalie recalled their first date when they went to see The Bells of St. Mary with her mother keeping a close watch from the seat directly behind the both of them! Jim had frequently noted that he paid a whopping 8 cents to get each of them into the movie and 5 cents each for popcorn. He concluded that he would now have to marry her since he had made such a substantial investment.

Natalie graduated from Technical High School in 1951. She and Jim were married Aug. 8, 1953, at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church in Scranton. On the day following their wedding, they traveled by bus to Richmond, Va., and the University of Richmond in order for Jim to complete his final year of college. Their marriage spanned 65 years before she lost the love of her life Sept. 14, 2018.

Natalie was a resilient Army wife and a mother of two. During one of Jims three tours to Vietnam, Natalie challenged herself and went back to school and became a licensed practical nurse (LPN). She worked in various positions at several Veterans Administration and military hospitals. Their military adventures saw them move 27 times in 32 years!

Natalie retired from her nursing career in 1993 at what used to be the Williams Air Force Base in Mesa, Ariz. We were fairly certain that it was she who turned out the lights when the base and hospital closed. She then began a part-time job as a cashier and greeter at a local Target store. She loved the people with whom she worked and met along the way; she was a champion at talking customers into opening up a credit card account and bought so many Target treasures for all of us and our friends!

Natalie and Jim were the proud parents of a son, Jeffrey, who left us all too soon at the age of 14 after an 18-month battle with childhood leukemia, and a daughter, Susan who lives nearby in Mesa. Susan and her husband, Alan and their three offspring moved to Mesa from Honolulu, Hawaii, specifically so that the grandchildren, Jeff (married to Sedjenane), Jason (married to Kate) and Paige (married to Conor) could better know and grow up closer to their mainland grandparents. She also has five great-grandsons, Aiden and Rylan Chang, Asher and Jackson Chang and Tatum McLaughlin.

Natalie was a loving mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. She was always finding special treats and fun experiences for her grandkids. She once saved a large, winter snowball in her freezer in Wilmington, Del., to share with her first grandson Jeff, who lived in Hawaii at the time and who had never seen snow until then (the following summer)! Jason remembers Grandma as the provider of otter pops, water guns and an endless supply of Life Savers. Paige cherished Saturday morning weddings at the church near them (neither of them knew the brides or grooms but attended so that they could dress up!). Natalie was fiercely proud of all of them!

Natalie enjoyed the simple things in life. She loved spending time with her family and playing bingo at any of the Arizona casinos or Canyon Winds Assisted Living. She traveled the world as a military wife for over three decades and made a loving home in each of those 27 different locations (both inside and outside the continental U.S.). Natalie and Jims final move was to Mesa in 1986, where they both continued working, making many friends and contributing to their new community.

Natalies final resting place will be at Arlington National Cemetery (Virginia) alongside her husband of 65 years (the date is yet to be determined).

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Hospice of the Valley (www.hov.org) where she received loving care and support during her final days.
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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Anyone tuning into David Cameron's less than riveting testimony before the Treasury Select Committee might have concluded that Greensill Capital was a brilliant supply chain finance firm providing technology and innovation to Britain's top companies and Whitehall.

As part of his 'due diligence', the former prime minister repeatedly trotted out the blue-chip names of Astrazeneca and Vodafone as good reasons to believe in his Aussie mate Lex Greensill. In seeking to big up Greensill's fintech credentials, he invoked online banks Revolut and Monzo.

Just because a company goes into administration, Cameron assured MPs, 'it doesn't mean the whole thing was a giant fraud'.

Making a point: Throughout David Cameron's testimony to MPs, the names of Sanjeev Gupta (pictured), Liberty Steel and GFG barely passed his lips

Throughout his testimony, the names of Sanjeev Gupta, Liberty Steel and GFG barely passed his lips.

This, despite the fact that the empire run by Gupta was Greensill's biggest client and at the core of everything which subsequently went wrong. Cameron may be confident that Greensill's failure was just a bankruptcy like any other, but enforcers take a different view.

The Serious Fraud Office reveals it is looking at suspected fraud and money launder ing, conduct of the business of companies within the GFG Alliance, including financing arrangements with Greensill. That's a long list of areas of interest.

In addition to the SFO intervention, City regulator the Financial Conduct Authority is pressing ahead with its probes into Greensill Capital UK, Greensill Capital Securities and the oversight of the latter by its 'principal' Mirabella Advisers.

Given the allegations, and the number of inquiries now going on into Greensill and its labyrinthine relationship with Liberty and GFG, a former prime minister might have been more circumspect in his assurances of the bona fides of his former associates. The SFO decision to launch an investigation into GFG, and by implication Liberty, will almost certainly speed the impending collapse of firms in the Gupta constellation. It will hasten a race by creditors to gain control of physical assets. Wind-up orders are already before the UK courts. In Australia, Citibank, Credit Suisse and Softbank are among those who have gone to the bench in an effort to protect their interests.

There is nothing simple about any of this. In Britain, Liberty tends to be thought of as a coherent group. It actually consists of a loose confederation of as many as 24 firms linked by common ownership and the thread of Greensill financing.

Uncertain ownership, a lack coherence and governance at the group are the core reasons for the decision by Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng to refuse an emergency taxpayer loan of 170m.

That should not be taken as a sign that HMG is disinterested. Kwarteng's knowledge of the complexities of command, control and credit arrangements within the ramshackle Gupta realm makes intervention tricky. His approach is likely to be piecemeal stepping in if steel capacity is in danger.

Main concern would be a collapse of the Stocksbridge plant near to Rotherham. The factory is seen as critical to the Government's levelling up agenda, and it likes the green credentials. If it ends up in the hands of the Official Receiver, as seems likely, Kwarteng would likely support jobs and production pending a rescue. This was the procedure used to keep the British Steel plant at Scunthorpe alive before it was sold to China's Jingye in January 2020.

What is most remarkable about the whole Greensill-Gupta scandal is how little attention was paid by Cameron and regulators to warnings flashing red. Auditor of Greensill in the UK was the modest firm of Saffery Champness. Yet the collapsed bank was the fulcrum of a complex set-up that stretched across several Continents, requiring huge skills to audit. In this it had something in common with GFG companies, many of which were audited by the micro firm of King & King, based in a Wembley shopping centre. Having the top four or five audit firms on board offers no guarantee of safety. But reaching right down the ladder, where capacity is limited, offers even less.

In recent high-profile cases the SFO has chosen to reach Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs) with the corporations concerned, before going after individuals.

That is not the likely approach to the implosion of Liberty where the financial resources for a negotiated settlement don't exist.
Ever since he became Prime Minister, Boris Johnson has been determined to improve Britain's infrastructure.

The Queen's Speech underlined his commitment to 'build back better', investing not just in transport and housing but also in the internet and the plumbing behind it.

The number of people using the internet has doubled over the past decade but online traffic has soared 12-fold, as consumers and businesses spend increasing amounts of time ordering goods, communicating with customers or friends and watching TV and films on their phones, laptops and computers.

Looking ahead: The number of people using the internet has doubled over the past decade but online traffic has soared 12-fold

That traffic is expected to double again over the next two years while the amount of data produced and consumed is likely to increase at an even faster rate.

All this activity depends on digital infrastructure  subsea cables to transmit data around the world, centres to store and protect that data, underground cables to bring it to homes and offices, and wi-fi transmitters so we can stay online wherever we happen to be.

Digital 9 Infrastructure was established to develop and operate these types of assets, broadening internet access, increasing connection speeds and aiming to deliver 10 per cent annual returns to investors, via attractive dividends and share price growth.

The company listed on the stock exchange in March, the shares are 1.12 and should increase steadily as the business expands and dividends rise. Digital 9's top team provides a layer of confidence too.

The group is chaired by Jack Waters, a big cheese at US fibre and data centre specialist Zayo Group, until it was sold for $14.3billion (10.2billion) in 2020. Day-to-day management of the company falls to Thor Johnsen, who has spent more than 15 years in the digital infrastructure sector and has a long history of delivering double-digit returns for his investors.

Having raised 300million on flotation, Waters and Johnsen immediately spent 160million on Irish subsea cabling specialist, Aqua Comms.

Subsea fibre cables are described as the backbone of the internet, responsible for 98 per cent of all internet traffic. Demand for new cables is growing at a rate of knots and reliable experts are in short supply.

Aqua Comms is one such business. It owns and operates around 12,000 miles of subsea cables, stretching from New Jersey to the Nordic countries and from New York to the UK and Ireland.

Customers include Google, Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft and Netflix, as well as big telecoms companies such as ATT in America and BT over here.

Many of these firms take out cable rental contracts of around 20 years or more and there are maintenance deals too, stretching out for decades.

Digital 9 has big ambitions for this newly acquired business  intending to add new subsea networks and almost double its profits over the next four years.

Such projects are complex and costly but Digital 9 works in partnership with the big tech companies, which contribute to funding and agree to long leases once the cables are laid.

The process means that Digital 9 knows where future income is coming from and where demand for data centres will be greatest  at either end of the cable networks.

This gives the company a big advantage when it comes to acquiring and developing centres in the right places. Johnsen has already pledged to obtain eight sites over the next 12 months and is in active discussions on a number of deals, with news expected soon.

The company has two further potential strings to its bow  wi-fi connectivity in towns and underground fibre-optic cables in under-served areas. The vast majority of people access the internet via mobile phones and tablets these days and huge investment is needed to make sure they can go online easily and effectively.

Johnsen has first refusal on the acquisition of a business that enhances urban wi-fi connectivity via so-called 'small cells'  boxes that sit on lamp-posts and will help secure super-fast 5G access for people on the move.

Digital 9 also intends to move into the terrestrial fibre business. Only 15 per cent of the country has access to high-speed fibre cables, the Government is keen to take this to 85 per cent and Johnsen wants to play his part, particularly in rural areas and social housing estates, where connectivity is typically patchy or non-existent.

This is part of Digital 9's overarching desire to make the world a better place, even as it delivers returns to investors.

The group takes its name from the ninth UN sustainability goal  to build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation.

On the financial front, a 6p dividend is promised for this year, putting the stock on a 5.3 per cent yield, with more attractive payouts expected in the years to come.

Traded on: Main market Ticker: DGI9 Contact: d9infrastructure.com or 020 7201 8989

Midas verdict: Digital 9 operates in a fast-growing industry that governments around the world are keen to promote. At 1.12, this is an appealing investment for ethically minded and income-hungry investors alike.
Serco's shares took a walloping last year after the Ministry of Defence took back direct control of the country's nuclear weapons early.

The outsourcer, along with majority shareholder Lockheed Martin and Jacobs Engineering, was stripped of the mandate to run the Atomic Weapons Establishment, which maintains the warheads for the Trident submarine-based nuclear deterrent, after years of delays and safety concerns.

The trio are due to hand over the operation on July 1, but senior sources say the switch has been far from simple.

Writing on the wall: The outsourcer was stripped of the mandate to run the Atomic Weapons Establishment

One commented: 'In reality, seven months was too short a notice period and it will take a couple of years to do a proper job.

'Even shifting the dial towards public sector procurement regulations in an operation that size is an enormous challenge.'

All three partners could still receive revenues with staff retained for years, sources claim.

AWE said a 'small number' of staff will be 'seconded to support a stable transition'.

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Annual results from troubled property titan Land Securities should throw up some fascinating nuggets.

The landlord's share price is down nearly 30 per cent since the pandemic struck, and investors will be keen to assess the outlook for its retail and office assets.

The firm's vacancy rate was 2.4 per cent last year. That's considerably better than the 5.9 per cent it hit after the 2008-9 financial crisis.

But with physical stores falling out of favour and office occupants paring back space, the direction of travel for this figure will be crucial.

Analysts will also be keen to see if the firm reckons next month's lifting of the ban on evicting commercial tenants will see occupants cough up more rent or leave premises.

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Ryanair's annual results tomorrow will put the prospects for battered airline stocks back in focus.

Analysts reckon Covid still has the sector on the ropes, but that the London-listed carrier is better placed than others to bounce back due to its focus on short-haul.

The shares changed hands for 16.64 last week, but Davy Research has a target price of 18 on the stock. Bullish.

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The ink on Asda chief Roger Burnley's resignation letter is barely dry but chatter about his replacement is in full flow.

First with talk of M&S food boss Stuart Machin and Morrisons' second-in-command Trevor Strain  as reported here a couple of months ago.

Now we hear the names of Tesco's Andrew Yaxley, who runs its giant wholesale division Booker, and UK boss Jason Tarry have been thrown in the hat.

Any of those would be a big win for Asda's new owners, billionaire brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa.

But working for two relative unknowns will mean a generous incentive package is required.
The British steel industry was plunged deeper into crisis after the launch of a fraud investigation into Sanjeev Gupta's GFG Alliance.

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said it was scrutinising suspected 'fraud, fraudulent trading and money laundering' at companies in the GFG group.

This, the SFO said, includes 'its financing arrangements with Greensill Capital UK'.

Under scrutiny: Sanjeev Gupta was hailed as the 'saviour of UK steel' after he snapped up a plant in Newport in 2013 and later went on a spending spree

The dramatic development puts 5,000 UK jobs on the line  including nearly 3,000 at Liberty Steel, which operates a dozen sites in Britain.

Gupta was hailed as the 'saviour of UK steel' after he snapped up a plant in Newport in 2013 and later went on a spending spree that saw him take over factories in Rotherham, Scunthorpe, and Stocksbridge in South Yorkshire, among others.

But his empire has been in crisis since its biggest lender Greensill Capital  run by Australian financier Lex Greensill and advised by David Cameron  collapsed at the start of March. Liberty Steel has been teetering on the brink since then and Gupta has been racing to secure alternative funding. The 49-year-old tycoon had been hoping to secure a 200m lifeline from San Francisco-based White Oak Global Advisors to prop up Liberty Steel's UK operations. But White Oak said last night it had ended all talks.

A spokesman said: 'As with any regulated financial institution, we are not in a position to continue discussions with any company that is under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office for money laundering.'

The SFO probe is likely to make it difficult for Gupta to strike deals with any potential backers. Ministers are understood to be ready to step in to save Liberty's jobs and factories  but not any of Gupta's companies.

In March, Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng flatly rejected a request for a 170m bailout, saying he could not be sure whether it would stay in the UK because of GFG's complex structure and opaque accounting. Preparations are being made in case Liberty needs to be put under the control of the Official Receiver  as happened when British Steel collapsed in 2019.

But this could rack up a huge bill for taxpayers. It cost an estimated 1m a day for the Government to keep British Steel's operations going while it sought a new buyer.

The Government wants to save as many jobs as possible  and many are also in so-called 'Red Wall' areas, where the Conservatives have taken seats in traditional Labour heartlands. Of particular concern is Liberty's Speciality Steel business, which has plants in South Yorkshire. The Speciality Steel business makes parts for the aerospace sector, including customers such as Rolls-Royce.

But it has been hammered by a downturn brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

The GFG Alliance is not a single legal entity, but is a loose collection of businesses that are connected to Gupta and his family. It has sales of 15billion and around 35,000 employees worldwide, it says. Greensill's collapse was connected to its close ties with Gupta  which it provided with a complex type of funding called supply-chain financing  which caused alarm among its insurers.

Banks including Credit Suisse lost billions when Greensill went bust.

Aside from steel, GFG works in a number of other industries such as manufacturing, renewable and aluminium.

Gupta's deal to buy Scotland's only aluminium smelter made Gupta one of the UK's biggest landowners because it included thousands of acres of land, including the foothills of Ben Nevis.

A spokesman for the Community steel union said: 'This is a concerning development and we await the findings of the investigation. However, this must not detract from the complete focus of all parties on securing our members' jobs and protecting these crucial strategic businesses.'

Grant Thornton, which is handling the administration of Greensill Capital UK, declined to comment last night.

But a spokesman for GFG said it 'will cooperate fully with the investigation' adding: 'As these matters are the subject of an SFO investigation we cannot make any further comment.'

The spokesman added: 'GFG Alliance continues to serve its customers around the world and is making progress in the refinancing of its operations which are benefiting from the operational improvements it has made and the very strong steel, aluminium and iron ore markets.'

Accountants under fire

The Serious Fraud Office investigation into Sanjeev Gupta's GFG Alliance will raise more questions about the accounting firm that signed off the books of dozens of the group's companies.

King & King audited around 60 of Gupta's firms in the UK. The revenue generated by these groups  some of which are related to Liberty Steel  is estimated at around 2.5billion.

The two-partner firm is led by Milan Patel, a 58-year-old chartered accountant, and is relatively unknown even in the UK accounting world. It is unusual for such a small firm to handle such a sprawling set of accounts.

King & King has two small offices in London. Its audits were crucial to collapsed financing house Greensill lending money to GFG companies.

King & King has few other big-name clients, but has handled accounting for a UK entity controlled by Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty, the Indian founder of Middle East hospital operator NMC Health and finance group Finablr, which previously owned Travelex. NMC and Finablr have both been accused of fraud.

The SFO has not said which GFG entities it is investigating. This means it is not clear if any were audited by King & King, which has not been accused of any wrongdoing. King & King was contacted for comment.

Agency in the spotlight

The investigation into Sanjeev Gupta throws the spotlight onto the Serious Fraud Office and its director Lisa Osofsky.

The SFO has failed in recent years to land any notable blows and as a result has faced repeated calls to be disbanded or reformed.

Last month the trial of two former executives at outsourcer Serco collapsed after the SFO failed to disclose evidence to the defendants in a blow to the agency.

Allegations were that executives Simon Marshall and Nicholas Woods hid millions of profits made from a prison tag contract with the Ministry of Justice between 2011 and 2013. The probe lasted eight years but due to blunders the judge said the trial could not 'safely and fairly proceed'.

This week Marshall said the SFO did not have 'anything to do with justice' and should be shut down. In March 2020 three ex-Barclays bankers  Roger Jenkins, Richard Boath and Tom Kalaris  accused of fraud walked free from the Old Bailey amid further bungled evidence gathering.

The year before that the agency dropped two high-profile probes into Rolls-Royce and Glaxosmithkline.

The failures have put serious pressure on SFO director Osofsky, the former FBI lawyer who took over in 2018 amid a blaze of publicity. She promised to shake up the organisation, but instead conviction rates have fallen to record lows.

Under her tenure Osofsky has frequently taken aim at UK law as the reason for the SFO's many failures and complained about being underfunded and underpowered.
Private Equity hawks are circling yet another London-listed company as Britain's pandemic plundering continues.

Sanne Group received a 1.3billion offer from Cinven earlier this month, which it quietly rejected on Wednesday.

Revealing its approach to the stock market yesterday, London-based Cinven said it was now 'considering its position'.

Standing firm: Sanne Group received a 1.3billion offer from Cinven, which it quietly rejected

Cinven's pursuit of Sanne, which provides administrative services to the likes of fund managers and hedge funds, marks the fourth approach by a private equity firm for a major British company in less than a fortnight.

UDG Healthcare revealed this week that it had agreed a deal with US firm Clayton Dubilier & Rice, which will pay 2.6billion for the FTSE 250.

Property developer St Modwen received a 1.2billion offer from US giant Blackstone last week, which it said the board would be 'willing to recommend' to shareholders if the bid was formalised. And John Laing saw its shares surge after confirming that it was in early stage talks with private equity titan KKR.

Cinven, which is now taking stock before it makes its next move for Sanne, could decide to raise its offer from the 830p per share price it initially suggested  or walk away altogether.

But Nicholas Hyett, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said Cinven's approach for Sanne was a sign that the UK could turn into a feeding frenzy of private equity deals.

He added: 'There have been rumblings that the UK could be on the brink of a deal-making wave for a while, with uncertainty around Brexit lifting and valuations still depressed compared to American peers.

'The offer from Cinven represents a healthy 38 per cent premium to the closing price on Thursday night, and might usually have been seen as pretty tempting. However, the shares were trading at that price on the market four years ago and the board clearly thinks the business is worth more.'

But investors were less sure  shares were trading below the offer price yesterday, at 731p, meaning some are still worried that Cinven might walk away.

Private equity firms specialise in buying businesses and selling them on after five to 10 years for a profit.

The latest offers follow a surge of activity during the pandemic. TDR Capital and I Squared Capital won enough shareholder support to go ahead with their 2.3billion takeover of temporary power generator firm Aggreko.

And Allied Universal, the North American security business backed by private equity firm Warburg Pincus, clinched the 3.8billion takeover of G4S.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 20:19:15|Editor: huaxia

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MOGADISHU -- Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Roble on Saturday urged the youth to take part in the reconstruction and democratization of the country.

In a statement issued in Mogadishu to mark the 78th anniversary of the Somali Youth Day, Roble called on the youth to build on the legacy of the Somali Youth League (SYL) that spearheaded the struggle for a united and independent Somalia in the 1940s and 1950s.

"Somali youth are at the heart of our country, and they make up more than 70 percent of the population, which means our country is a young country," said Roble.

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BOGOTA -- Colombian President Ivan Duque on Friday reiterated that his administration is ready to meet and begin formal negotiations with members of the National Strike Committee following 16 days of protests and roadblocks sparked by proposed tax hikes that have since been rescinded.

"We have said with all clarity that we are ready to meet with the members of the Strike Committee to advance in negotiations and forge agreements. That has been a message that has been transmitted in a transparent way," Duque said in a video posted on social media.

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LONDON -- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Friday that the country plans to accelerate its coronavirus vaccination program for priority groups amid concerns over the spread of the India-related variant.

Speaking at a press conference at Downing Street, Johnson said those aged over 50 and those considered clinically vulnerable will be able to get a second vaccine dose after eight weeks.

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UNITED NATIONS -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called on all parties to immediately cease the fighting in Gaza and Israel, said his spokesman.

"The ongoing military escalation has caused great suffering and destruction. It has claimed scores of civilian lives, including, tragically, many children. The fighting has the potential to unleash an uncontainable security and humanitarian crisis and to further foster extremism, not only in the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel, but in the region as a whole," said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman, in a statement. Enditem
Wannabe first-time buyers who watched in dismay last year as high loan-to-value mortgages all but disappeared now have something to celebrate.

Last year's famine has turned into a relative feast, with more than 100 high loan-to-value mortgages now available  and more being launched every week.

The lack of such 90 and 95 per cent mortgages last year meant first-time home sales  as a proportion of the market  reached their lowest level since 2016, according to online estate agent Zoopla. But since the turn of the year, first-time buyer numbers have been steadily increasing.

Celebrating: Last year's famine has turned into a relative feast, with more than 100 high loan-to-value mortgages now available  and more being launched every week

Those looking to take their first step on the property ladder received a further boost last month when the Government's mortgage guarantee scheme launched  enabling borrowers to get a mortgage with just a five per cent deposit.

But a combination of high demand, soaring prices and affordability issues mean that many first-time buyers still have their work cut out getting on the property ladder. Experts advise borrowers to keep a clear head. 'The market is positively frenzied at the moment, so it's important to be clear about what you can afford and what you're prepared to pay,' says Sarah Coles, personal finance analyst at wealth manager Hargreaves Lansdown. 'It might seem like an ideal first home, but if it overstretches your finances you could end up bitterly regretting it.'

Jemma Smith and her musician partner Josh finally bought their first home  a three-bedroom cottage in Oxfordshire  just a few weeks ago after two years of property-hunting. During that time the pair, who were renting in the area, put offers on a number of houses but always lost out.

'During the first lockdown, we'd phone up the morning after a viewing to make an offer only to be told the house was already sold,' says Jemma, 29, founder of online tuition company The Education Hotel. 'It seemed that everyone was moving out of London to Oxfordshire.'

Jemma and Josh finally found their dream home, a 'shell' of a house in the next village to where they were renting. Having patiently saved for years, the pair were able to purchase the property with a relatively low loan-to-value mortgage and will now spend the summer doing everything from knocking down walls to redoing the plumbing and electrics. 'It needs a bit of love,' says Jemma diplomatically.

With rising prices and soaring demand, life isn't easy for first-time buyers, but at least there is now the option of 'only' having to provide a 5 or 10 per cent deposit.

David Hollingworth, of broker L&C Mortgages, says: 'Last summer, everyone was wondering where the 90 per cent mortgages were, let alone the 95 per cent ones.

'For a while, lenders were making mortgages available, only to withdraw them when they were overwhelmed, adding to homebuyers' stress.'

He adds: 'Now things are more stable with a good range of 90 and 95 per cent deals on offer.'

Kevin Roberts, director of Legal & General Mortgage Club, agrees: 'The current low-interest climate means that the growing range of products on offer presents borrowers with great value and there has rarely been a more affordable time to borrow. The pandemic undoubtedly had an adverse impact on the choice available to first-time buyers, but we are now entering an exciting stage where a growing number of options are popping up.'

Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest, Barclays, HSBC and Virgin Money are all offering high loan-to-value mortgages to first-time buyers, but Hollingworth says: 'They won't be the solution for everyone given mortgage rates tend to be higher.'

The market-leading 95 per cent mortgage is currently priced at 3.73 per cent while at 90 and 85 per cent the best rates are priced at 2.99 per cent and 2.43 per cent respectively. Says Hollingworth: 'Even if someone has a five per cent deposit they might choose to keep on saving until they qualify for a lower mortgage rate. Or they could buy and remortgage after a couple of years when they've paid some of the mortgage off and hopefully the property has increased in value, though that's not guaranteed,'

With many lenders still cautious about lending at 95 per cent loan-to-value, some are only likely to accept those with strong credit histories.

Others might find that even if they have the required five per cent deposit they might not meet the lender's affordability checks.

While borrowers might be able to prove they can afford their home loan, they also need to pass an affordability test at 3 per cent over the standard variable rate, which currently stands at 3.6 per cent. This means they have to prove they can afford a mortgage priced at 6.6 per cent.
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NORRISTOWN  The pavement of a street in downtown Norristown will never be the same after a mural was painted with a strong message: Black Lives Matter.

We hope it starts here, and goes into households because theres a lot of uncomfortable conversations that we need to have, and what a great opportunity for that to start here, said artist Drew Montemayor, a Conshohocken native who now lives in Philadelphia.

Fellow artist Jeleata Nicole, of Charleston, South Carolina, who's originally from Norristown, agreed. She said she hoped that this mural could be an artistic vehicle for a greater path forward.

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Be the change, one paint brush at a time, Nicole said.

Monetemayor and Nicole Artists Drew Montemayor and Jeleata Nicole pose for a photo while working on painting a Black Lives Matter mural on the pavement along Swede S

Along with the projects creators, municipal and Montgomery County leaders were present during the murals unveiling Friday afternoon on the street in front of the Montgomery County Courthouse.

The reveal of the street mural was months in the making.

Members of the Norristown Municipal Council initially approved the implementation of an art installation last August, but it was not without some controversy. The meeting's public comment portion brought differing opinions on the matter.

Theres a lot of people out there that are a little upset with the fact that were putting Black Lives Matter, but were doing more than that  a lot of the Black community thats hurting right now, but in order for us to move forward, we have to do it as a team, Nicole told MediaNews Group.

Montemayor and Nicole later presented a concept in February, which was endorsed by local officials.

Initially inspired by the Black Lives Matter mural in Cincinnati, Ohio, Montemayor and Nicole included the faces of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. , John Lewis and George Floyd.

Black Lives Matter mural A group of volunteers work on painting a Black Lives Matter mural Tuesday morning May 11 2021 on the street in front of One Montgomery Plaza i

Themes of unity and equality were present throughout the murals overall design.

Montemayor referenced the murals letter V, which showcased two hands joining as one.

All of our lives are together, Montemayor said. If one community is struggling, and having a difficult time, then its part of the entire community as a whole so we have to stand together for each other.

Black Lives Matter mural Work continues on a Black Lives Matter mural along a stretch of Swede Street in downtown Norristown.

More than three months later, the duo got to work in sketching out the letters along the 400 block of Swede Street. They stressed the importance of community involvement in the creation of the mural.

We have to do this with the youth, because youth is our future, and we also have to have all the nationalities coming together as one where we can shout from the rooftops as loud as we want, Nicole said. But until we come together as a team nothing is going to change.

Black Lives Mural Norristown Artist Drew Montemayor prepares to paint a portion of a Black Lives Matter mural Tuesday morning in downtown Norristown with a group of ninth 

They opened painting up to volunteers starting on May 9, and continued throughout the week.

Especially with COVID, [it felt] ... so good to have people surrounding us, and were doing it all together, Montemayor said.

Day after day, area residents, students, activists, elected officials, and representatives from the NAACPs Norristown branch showed up to leave their mark with a stroke of a paint brush.

Montemayor and Nicole held sessions for volunteers to paint in the mornings and afternoon. Participants were assigned a certain portion of the mural, using acrylic-based paint. The process was repeated until the mural was completed.

Students work on Mural Cristo Rey Philadelphia High School ninth grade students Richard Compres-Taveras, right, and Josiah Smith, left, paint a Black Lives Matter mu

A group of ninth graders from Cristo Rey Philadelphia High School ventured from the City of Brotherly Love to the county seat on Tuesday morning to help out.

It gives a sense of unity after all weve been through with the pandemic, and the Black Lives Matter, and the George Floyd thing, said Taylor Smith, 14. It just gives a sense of unity and togetherness that we all need in the world.

When people see this, I just want them to have a great impact on their lives, and how they treat other people, said Richard Compres-Taveras, 14.

Black Lives Matter mural Elkins Park resident Bill Chandler, poses for a photo May 11 as he works on painting a $20 bill on the letter "K" of a Black Lives Matter stre

Elkins Park resident Bill Chandler, a bus driver for the Philadelphia private school, added that the initiative is a very good idea as he painstakingly worked on painting a $20 bill on the murals letter K in Black Lives Matter.

As Nicole reflected on the journey, she hoped community members would gain a sense of peace, a sense of unity and healing from the finished work of art.

We all want to be a part of it, Nicole said. We all have something to say, but to actually actively come together and continue to do something; its inspiring.
KINGSPORT  Twenty-one roses, each one representing an officer or deputy who died in the line of duty, were placed at the base of the Kingsport Police Departments Law Enforcement Memorial on Friday afternoon.

The names of the fallen were read and with each one a bell tolled. Some of their family members were in attendance, seated and surrounded by dozens of law enforcement officers, firefighters and supporters of first responders.

A wreath stood near the memorial, flags flew at half-staff, and a giant American flag hung from a ladder truck. Prayers were spoken and taps sounded to conclude the 30-minute ceremony.

Kingsport Police Chief Dale Phipps said the event marked a special day in law enforcement.

Its a moment in time each year when we stop and pause and reflect on those lives of the officers that have paid the ultimate sacrifice to protect our country, Phipps said.

Sullivan County Sheriff Jeff Cassidy, the keynote speaker, said each year 120 to 160 officers lose their lives in line of duty. In 2020, Cassidy said, that number more than doubled to 362 deaths, with 234 attributed to COVID-19.

These heroes will never be forgotten. The tragedies these families faced, we face with you, Cassidy said. This is a profession thats becoming more dangerous daily. Im grateful there are still men and women willing to serve their communities despite the dangers.

HISTORICAL INFORMATION

In 1962, President John F. Kennedy proclaimed May 15 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day and the calendar week in which May 15 falls as National Police Week. Established by a joint resolution of Congress that year, 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.

The local Fraternal Order of Police (F.O.P.) Burgess-Mills Lodge #11 is named in honor of two of the Kingsport Police Departments fallen officers: Patrolman Ira H. Burgess and Patrolman John E. Mills, who were shot and killed in the line of duty in 1950 and 1940 respectively.

For more information about Kingsport's fallen officers, visit www.KingsportTN.gov/Police-Department/Our-Fallen-Officers.

Police memorial 6.JPG Police memorial 1.JPEG Police memorial 2.JPEG Police memorial 3.JPG Police memorial 4.JPG Police memorial 5.JPG Police memorial 7.JPG Police memorial 8.JPG Police memorial 9.JPG Police memorial 10.JPG Police memorial 11.JPG Police memorial 12

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 20:20:38|Editor: huaxia

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-- A Chinese spacecraft streaked down through the Martian sky on Saturday, becoming the country's first probe to land on a planet other than Earth.

-- It is the first time in the world that orbiting and landing on Mars is completed in one launch mission.

-- After flying for approximately three hours, the entry capsule hurtled toward the red planet and entered the Mars atmosphere at an altitude of 125 km, initiating the riskiest phase of the whole mission.

-- It will take a further seven to eight days for the rover to detect the surrounding environment and conduct self checks before moving down from the lander to the Martian surface.

by Xinhua writers Yu Fei, Quan Xiaoshu and Li Mi

BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese spacecraft streaked down through the Martian sky on Saturday, becoming the country's first probe to land on a planet other than Earth.

The lander, carrying a Mars rover, touched down at its pre-selected landing area in the southern part of Utopia Planitia, a vast plain on the northern hemisphere of Mars, at 7:18 a.m. (Beijing Time), the China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced.

The graphic simulated image taken on May 15, 2021 shows China's probe landing on Mars. The lander carrying China's first Mars rover has touched down on the red planet, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) confirmed on Saturday morning. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

It took ground controllers more than an hour to establish the success of the pre-programmed landing. They had to wait for the rover to autonomously unfold its solar panels and antenna to send the signals after landing, and there was a time delay of more than 17 minutes due to the 320-million-km distance between Earth and Mars.

"The Mars landing of the Tianwen-1 mission has been a total success," Zhang Kejian, head of the CNSA, announced at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center.

A large screen in the center showed that the probe landed on the Martian surface at 25.1 degrees north latitude and 109.9 degrees east longitude.

Technical personnel celebrate after China's Tianwen-1 probe successfully landed on Mars at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China, May 15, 2021. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

After the success was confirmed, space engineers and scientists at the control center hugged each other amid cheers and applause.

Zhang Rongqiao, chief designer of China's first Mars exploration mission, said that the landing had been a textbook case of accuracy. "Today's success is hard-won," he noted.

Zhang Rongqiao, chief designer of China's first Mars exploration mission, speaks at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China, May 15, 2021. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

More than 40 Mars missions have been launched since the 1960s, but only about half have succeeded. The success rate for landing is even lower.

The landing marks an important step in China's interstellar exploration and a leap from the exploration of the Earth-Moon system to interplanetary exploration, said Chinese President Xi Jinping in a congratulatory message.

"The landing left a Chinese mark on Mars for the first time. It is another landmark progress in China's space industry development," said Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission.

It is the first time in the world that orbiting and landing on Mars is completed in one launch mission, and China has come to the forefront of Mars exploration in the world, said Ye Peijian, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

BREATHTAKING LANDING

Tianwen-1, consisting of an orbiter, a lander and a rover, was launched from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site on the coast of southern China's island province of Hainan on July 23, 2020. It was the first step in China's planetary exploration of the solar system, with the aim of completing orbiting, landing and roving on the red planet in one mission.

Tianwen-1 is launched on a Long March-5 rocket from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in south China's Hainan Province, July 23, 2020. (Xinhua/Guo Cheng)

The name Tianwen, meaning Questions to Heaven, comes from a poem written by the ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan (circa 340-278 BC). China's first Mars rover is named Zhurong after the god of fire in ancient Chinese mythology, which echoes with the Chinese name of the red planet: Huoxing (the planet of fire).

The spacecraft entered the Mars orbit in February after a journey of nearly seven months through space, and spent about three months surveying potential landing sites.

The CNSA releases mid-flight images of Mars probe Tianwen-1 on Oct. 1, 2020. It is the first time that Tianwen-1 took selfies. (CNSA/Handout via Xinhua)

In the early hours of Saturday, the spacecraft began to descend from its parking orbit, and the entry capsule enclosing the lander and the rover separated from the orbiter at about 4 a.m.

After flying for approximately three hours, the entry capsule hurtled toward the red planet and entered the Mars atmosphere at an altitude of 125 km, initiating the riskiest phase of the whole mission.

First, the specially designed aerodynamic shape of the entry capsule decelerated with the friction of the Martian atmosphere. When the velocity of the spacecraft was lowered from 4.8 km per second to about 460 meters per second, a huge parachute covering an area of about 200 square meters was unfurled to continue reducing the velocity to less than 100 meters per second.

The parachute and the outer shield of the spacecraft were then jettisoned, exposing the lander and rover, and the retrorocket on the lander was fired to further slow the speed of the craft to almost zero.

At about 100 meters above the Martian surface, the craft hovered to identify obstacles and measured the slopes of the surface. Avoiding the obstacles, it selected a relatively flat area and descended slowly, touching down safely with its four buffer legs.

The craft's plummet through the Martian atmosphere, lasting about nine minutes, was extremely complicated with no ground control, and had to be performed by the spacecraft autonomously, said Geng Yan, an official at the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the CNSA.

"Each step had only one chance, and the actions were closely linked. If there had been any flaw, the landing would have failed," said Geng.

After separating from the entry capsule, the orbiter, with a designed lifespan of one Martian year (about 687 days on Earth), was lifted to return to its parking orbit and helped relay communications between the landing vehicle and Earth.

EXPLORING RED PLANET

Wu Yanhua, deputy director of the CNSA, said the Mars rover Zhurong is expected to drive to the surface of Mars and make more scientific discoveries.

Geng said it will take a further seven to eight days for the rover to detect the surrounding environment and conduct self checks before moving down from the lander to the Martian surface.

Picture released on Aug. 23, 2016 by the CNSA shows the concept portraying what the Mars rover and lander would look like. (Xinhua)

The six-wheeled solar-powered rover, resembling a blue butterfly and with a mass of 240 kg, has an expected lifespan of at least 90 Martian days (about three months on Earth).

China has constructed Asia's largest steerable radio telescope with an antenna 70 meters in diameter in Wuqing District of northern China's Tianjin to receive data from the Mars exploration mission.

"According to the images sent back from the orbiter earlier, we've found a large crater with a diameter of about 620 meters close to the landing area of the probe," said Zhao Shu, a senior engineer at the National Astronomical Observatories under the CAS.

The camera on the orbiter has taken detailed images at a resolution of about 0.7 meters, revealing the pre-selected landing area has complicated terrain with many rocks and more craters than previously expected, said Wang Chuang, one of the designers of the probe from the China Academy of Space Technology.

"But we believe the design of our probe is capable of landing in and exploring the region," said Wang.

File photo released on March 4, 2021 by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) shows a high-resolution image of Mars captured by the country's Tianwen-1 probe. (CNSA/Handout via Xinhua)

Earlier research showed the landing site could be the edge of an ancient ocean or lake in the early history of Mars. Chinese scientists are looking forward to finding more evidence of water ice.

"We selected this location as it has both the conditions for a safe landing and scientific research value. The location has not been investigated by other countries, so the scientific data can be shared with other countries to enrich human beings' understanding of Mars," said Geng.

The Tianwen-1 mission will map the morphology and geological structure of Mars, investigate the surface soil characteristics and water ice distribution, analyze the material composition of the surface, measure the ionosphere and the characteristics of the Martian climate and surface environment, and perceive the physical fields and internal structure of Mars.

The orbiter is equipped with remote-sensing camera, Mars-orbiting subsurface exploration radar, mineralogy spectrometer, magnetometer, ion and neutral particle analyzer, and energetic particle analyzer.

The rover Zhurong carries the terrain camera, multispectral camera, subsurface exploration radar, surface composition detector, magnetic field detector and meteorology monitor.

The exploration of Mars will not only investigate whether there is or was life on Mars but will also help shed light on the history of evolution and the future development trends of Earth, as well as search for potential living space for human beings, said Li Chunlai, deputy chief designer of China's first Mars exploration mission.

Technical personnel work at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China, May 15, 2021. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

China is a latecomer to planetary exploration. Chinese space experts believe that their Mars exploration does not necessarily repeat the paths of other countries.

"We hope the mission will be innovative and help push forward scientific and technological development," said Geng.

China is considering the possibility of collecting and bringing back samples for its next Mars mission, as well as exploring asteroids and the Jovian system.

Extensive international cooperation has been carried out during the Tianwen-1 mission.

China is working with the European Space Agency and Argentina for the mission's measurement and control, and with France and Austria for the calibration of multiple payloads and data analysis. 

(Liu Xin, Yang Lu and Chen Gang also contributed to the story. Video reporters: Yang Zhigang, Hu Zhe. Video editor: Zhu Cong)


Going to Trader Joe's? If you're fully vaccinated, you may not need to wear your mask as you pick up your Two-Buck Chuck.

Trader Joe's is the first major grocery store to eliminate the mask requirement, following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's guidance yesterday that those who are fully vaccinated are not required to wear masks in most situations.

"We encourage customers to follow the guidance of health officials, including, as appropriate, CDC guidelines that advise customers who are fully vaccinated are not required to wear masks while shopping," the grocery store writes on its COVID-19 page.

Earlier this week, Trader Joe's also quietly ended another pandemic policy: senior hours reserved for those 60 and older, as well as customers with disabilities and others who were more at-risk from the COVID-19 virus. With the first hour of the day designated for those shoppers, the policy was meant to aid at-risk shoppers in lessening their exposure to COVID-19.

Most Bay Area locations no longer have senior hours, though some in Southern California still do.

However, for now, most major retailers like Target and Walgreens are continuing to require masks for shoppers, though many are reviewing their policies with the new CDC guidance, USA Today reported.

"Target will continue to require all of our coronavirus safety measures in all stores, including masks and social distancing, while we review updated guidance from the CDC and re-evaluate the guidance we offer our team and guests," Target spokesperson Brian Harper-Tibaldo told USA Today.

California is reviewing mask guidelines in light of the CDC's announcement. Previously, Gov. Gavin Newsom said that by June 15, when the state is expected to fully reopen, the outdoor mask mandate will be lifted, though certain indoor activities may still require them.
New York Sen. Todd Kaminsky recently introduced a bill that would require schools to teach seventh through 12th graders that certain symbols, including Nazi swastikas and lynching ropes, are symbols of hatred.

Kaminsky told the Times Union that hes met 15, 16, 17-year-olds who get caught putting swastika graffiti on walls who were filled with remorse when they learned the symbols connection to anti-Semitism and Nazism.

The bills goal was to educate teens about World War II, the Holocaust and anti-Semitism and promote tolerance and respect for other cultures.

But after heartfelt conversations with New Yorks Hindu and Buddhist communities, Kaminsky has withdrawn the proposal out of respect for their religious beliefs.

For Hindu, Buddhist and Jain believers, the angular emblem in the center of Nazi flags is not their swastika. The ancient symbol of good fortune, peace and protection from evil that is their swastika is normally curvier, more sinuous. But the context is everything. Swastikas have been found on centuries-old Buddhist temples and bronze jewelry unearthed across Asia, Africa and parts of the Middle East and decorating Navajo artifacts meant to bring joy and unity to the household.

The way in which anti-Semitic fascists hijacked the swastika has been a source of heartbreak for Hindus, Buddhists and Jains.

The Coalition of Hindus of North America leaders met with Kaminsky and his staff, members of the New York Board of Rabbis and interfaith organizations. They asked that language be added to his bill that would explain the swastikas benevolent meaning in Hinduism and Buddhism and other faiths. Albanys Hindu Temple Society of the Capital District, NY updated worshippers about the legislation via its e-newsletter.

Kaminsky understood their concerns. He still wants to put together a bill that mandates education for New York middle and high schoolers about what constitutes a symbol of hate or racism. And he believes such an initiative could also teach them the swastikas older religious significance.

Its back to the drawing board, said Kaminsky.

When the Times Union recently asked CoHNA's president, Nikunj Trivedi, how crucial the swastika was to Hindu worship, he compared it to asking if the cross was critical to Christian worship.

The swastika, what it represents, is central to Hindus, Buddhists and Jains, Trivedi said.

Once a hate group co-opts a symbol, it can be agonizingly hard to reclaim. U.S. graphic designer and art historian Steven Heller examined that trajectory in his book: The Swastika: Symbol Beyond Redemption? As late as the 1920s, swastikas were emblematic of happiness and great luck. Heller found swastikas decorating poker and bridge players cards and adorning Britains experimental RAF planes. In a promotion, Coca-Cola gave away swastika-shaped key fobs, thinking them better lucky charms for animal lovers than a rabbits foot.

Adolf Hitler wrote in Mein Kampf about designing the Nazi flag.He never used the word swastika, Trivedi observes. He used the German for hooked cross.

Hitlers many biographers note that Hitler often saw the hooked crosses decorating the Benedictine monastery where he had his choir practice. The word swastika finally appears in the 1939 English translation by former Irish priest James Murphy. Historians are still debating whether Murphy made a deliberate error because he was under pressure from Catholic leaders who didnt want Christianity linked to Nazism.

Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis, met with CoHNA leaders. Although, he cant tell the difference between the swastika and hooked cross, (I need the context of how its being used, he explained), he favors educational material for students that includes the swastikas meaning for other faiths.

And he hopes that education begins sooner rather than later. For him, the urgent question is how to ensure schools are teaching teenagers enough about fascism, bigotry and the Holocaust. Hes marched in solidarity with Christians, Hindus and Buddhists to protest increasing racist violence against Asian Americans. This year, hes going to try to review history textbooks to find out whether what students are learning helps them understand why Nazism and fascism still terrify those whove witnessed the movements. He wants to unite people of all faiths in the effort.

Hate spreads like a contagion, we have to unite against it Potasnik said. He sees that todays fascism, like that during World War II, wont simply co-opt a symbol; fascism can absorb entire countries and cultures.
Veterans in the Capital Region say they feel torn over President Joseph R. Biden's plan to fully withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, ending America's longest war.

The decision evokes a sense of unease for those who served in Afghanistan and leaves the families of soldiers who died overseas now wondering what their loved one's sacrifice was worth.

"On the one hand, why did my son die?" said Carrie Farley, president of the Capital Region chapter of American Gold Star Mothers. "In World War II, we won. We came home, we had the parades, we welcomed our soldiers, we rebuilt with our soldiers."

After nearly two decades of U.S. military presence in the Central Asian country, there is a new generation that doesn't recall the Sept. 11 terror attacks that triggered a combined two decades of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, Farley said.

Paul Buckowski

Farley's son Staff Sgt. Derek Farley, who would have been 35 this year, was a sophomore in high school when a pair of hijacked airplanes rammed into the twin towers killing thousands of Americans on U.S. soil.

The soldier from Nassau died trying to defuse a roadside bomb in Afghanistan on Aug. 17, 2010, just two weeks before he was set to return home.

Like many of his generation, Derek was swept up in the surge of patriotism that followed the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, his mother said.

Derek loved being a soldier and saved many lives, but after two decades, it's clear democracy has failed to take hold in the region, Farley said.

"As a mother, it's time" for American troops to come home, she said.

Lori Van Buren/Albany Times Union

The U.S. military effort in Afghanistan began in 2001 with a mission to topple its Taliban government, which had granted sanctuary to al Qaeda, the perpetrators of the 9/11 attacks.

A relatively brief and targeted combat mission was followed by a years-long "nation-building" effort seen by many foreign policy experts as a failure.

U.S. soldiers worked with Afghan locals to establish schools and provide humanitarian aid while helping the Afghan army fight off insurgent groups.

A deadly attack on a girls' school in Kabul over the weekend has some veterans anxious about the potential consequences of a full military withdrawal during such a tenuous time.

"That happened on our watch," said Paul Fanning, a retired lieutenant colonel and former state public affairs officer for the New York Army National Guard. "I pray for these people, I really do ... I hope we are still in a position to provide emergency help down the line. "

Still, Fanning said, "We always knew, back in the day, that Afghanistan would have to come up with its own solution to its challenges. And it's got to be an Afghan solution, not a U.S. one."

The 9/11 attacks also shaped Lt. Col. Mathew B. Tully, a founding partner of the Tully Rinckey law firm in Colonie. Tully, whose military career dates back to 1991 when he joined the Hofstra University ROTC, barely escaped his Morgan Stanley office in the World Trade Center after the first plane hit on 9/11.

The decorated combat veteran said he has "mixed emotions" about the unsatisfying conclusion to the two-decade war that left him and his peers questioning what exactly was accomplished in Afghanistan after the initial objectives were achieved.

"The military is very well-trained for killing and destroying, but an extended years-long government-building operation, it's not trained to do that. ... Once you get sucked into that, it's very hard to get out," Tully said.

Lori Van Buren/Albany Times Union

Military leaders have warned that a full withdrawal will likely result in the collapse of a fragile U.S.-backed government, providing an opening for the Taliban to regain power in the region. President Biden argues that there never will be a good time to withdraw.

"So when will it be the right moment to leave? One more year? Two more years? Ten more years? Biden said.

The seemingly endless "War on Terror" for many has echoes of the Vietnam War, which also kept soldiers overseas for years without a clear end game.

Retired Army Maj. Dave Erickson of Knox, who served during the Gulf War, said there was no parallel between that operation, which lasted only months and ended with the U.S. and allies pushing Iraqi forces out of Kuwait in early 1991, and the Afghanistan war, which seemed to drag on indefinitely.

"(Former President) George H.W. Bush Sr. had a vision," said Erickson, who runs the Junior ROTC program at Albany High School. "We were led by those who had been the junior leaders of the Vietnam war. They swore it would never happen again and they made sure it didn't."

There is a distinction in scale. More than 58,000 American troops died in Vietnam while 2,448 U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan have died since 2001.

Tully, who worked in the Afghan interpreter program in 2012, said he's concerned about Afghans who worked with Americans and their families "who have a high chance of being slaughtered" if the Taliban retakes control.

Roughly 17,000 former Afghan interpreters and their families are still waiting for their U.S. immigrant visas to be approved, according to No One Left Behind, a nonprofit that advocates for them.

Tully also thinks of those who died, like Maj. Gen. Harold J. Greene, a two-star general who grew up in Guilderland and was killed in an attack on his base, and Todd Clark, a Purple Heart recipient and Christian Brothers Academy graduate who died at the hands of one of the native soldiers he was there to train. Greene was the highest-ranking military officer to be killed since the Vietnam War.

During his deployment, Tully received a Purple Heart for wounds he sustained when he and his unit were attacked by insurgents using a car bomb on Aug. 7, 2012.

"It's a meaningful accomplishment that we were able to destroy that hotbed of terrorist activity, we were able to prevent further attacks on American soil by being there," Tully said. "Whether or not that accomplishment outweighed the harm and damage caused by our presence, I guess the history books will figure out that."
BRUSSELS (AP)  European Union foreign ministers on Monday debated ways to maintain support for Afghanistans beleaguered government after a brutal weekend attack on a girls' school underscored deep concern that violence will spread as U.S.-led troops leave the country.

With the departure of foreign troops just a few months away, European governments are still trying to work out what kind of diplomatic presence they will keep in Afghanistan and who will provide security for them. They are particularly reluctant to be perceived as abandoning the country.

Just hours after the Taliban announced a cease-fire for later this week, a bus in southern Zabul province struck a roadside mine on Monday killing 11 people. At least 24 others on the bus were injured, the Interior Ministry said.

On Saturday, a bomb attack on a girls school killed up to 60 people, most of them students aged 11-15. The death toll from the three explosions there continues to climb.

After the terrible attacks of recent days, it is all the more important for the EU to make very clear that Afghanistan and the Afghan government can continue to count on Europes support, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told reporters in Brussels.

We will continue to make available sufficient funding for civilian reconstruction, and we will do everything we can so that the ongoing peace negotiations reach a conclusion, Maas said. Peace talks, though, between the divided Afghan government and the Taliban appear to be going nowhere.

The remaining 2,500 to 3,500 American troops officially began leaving Afghanistan on May 1. They are expected to be out by Sept. 11 at the latest  a deadline set by President Joe Biden. European troops depend on U.S. forces for transport and logistics help and will leave with the Americans.

Germanys defense ministry has suggested that a July 4 withdrawal might be on the cards.

The U.S. has openly also warned of battlefield gains for the Taliban and officials in Washington say Afghan government forces face an uncertain future against the insurgents as the withdrawal accelerates in the coming weeks.

This is all raises deep security concerns for the Europeans which weigh heavily as they debate how to help ordinary Afghan civilians, including many who have helped international forces, agencies and NGOs during almost 20 years of conflict.

The decision has been taken and what we have to do is to face the situation that is going to be created, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said last Thursday. The violence in Afghanistan is increasing, and its clear that once the U.S. will withdraw, the European Union troops will not be able to stay.

We better face the future and to try to take positive decisions in order to face reality, Borrell said.

Part of that reality could be a return of the Taliban as the dominant force.

No matter who is in control in the future, Maas said Monday, the EU will always point out to those in charge in Afghanistan that the aid we make available is tied to the things that have been achieved in the past 20 years  regarding the building of the state, regarding womens rights, regarding education  not being sacrificed. That is the precondition.

___

Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)  A medical researcher and professor who pleaded guilty to what prosecutors called a sophisticated scheme to transfer U.S.-backed research to China was sentenced Friday to 37 months in federal prison.

Song Guo Zheng, 58, who had been working most recently at Ohio State University, will also have to pay $3.4 million in restitution to the National Institutes of Health and nearly $414,000 to the college.
LONG LAKE  When schools across the state were preparing to reopen during the pandemic, expenses shot up.

Air filters, masks, hand sanitizer and technology for remote learning pushed up the cost of educating students.

Thus, when the American Rescue Plan was passed earlier this year, schools everywhere were welcoming the relief.

But to the dismay of two Hamilton County schools  Indian Lake and Long Lake central school districts  they were excluded, because, they were told, they did not have enough children living in poverty.

The district has to have 10 students, ages 5 to 17, living in poverty, said Long Lake Superintendent Noelle Short. We were told that according to the census we have five. Our more current population, we have 40 percent of our students who receive free and reduced lunch. If they used a percentage and not a standalone number, we would more than qualify.

She attributes the discrepancy to the use of old census data for her district of 70 students. She also said she has already spent $25,000 on prepping school, but really needs the additional money for learning loss  staffing for after-school and this summer's programs for students who struggled during the months of remote learning.

Dave Snide, superintendent of schools at Indian Lake, who said his free and reduced lunch rate is 38 percent, said that he was especially aggravated that districts with similar population profiles  Lake Pleasant ($213,331), Minerva ($279,766), Newcomb ($163,997), Tupper Lake ($1,886,051), Wells ($262,047) and others -- did receive funding.

I dont want to sound like sour grapes, said Snide, who has spent more than $50,000 to sanitize and supply the school with PPE. But it was just the two of us. Its a little disheartening. We could really use it."

Short and Snide said they reached out to all of their elected officials on the state and federal level. State Assemblyman Robert Smullen (R-Johnstown) responded early on to their concerns. He wrote a letter to state Education Commissioner Betty Rosa, asking her to find a solution.

"Indian Lake and Long Lake Central School Districts' finances got hit by the pandemic just as hard as neighboring school districts' finances did," Smullen wrote. "While neighboring school districts received hundreds of thousands of funding .... Indian Lake and Long Lake have received nothing, but they are just as much deserving."

Others advocated for them too, including David Little, the executive director of Rural Schools Association of New York; Robert Lowry, deputy director of New York State Council of School Superintendents; and Dale Breault, Jr. district superintendent Franklin-Essex-Hamilton BOCES. All wrote to state and federal elected leaders and education officials. Breault wrote Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer that he was "imploring you to assist us in advocating for our school communities."

Schumer's office said that the aid package provided the state with discretionary COVID funding that could have been used for the excluded schools.

Other larger, wealthier districts in Westchester and Long Island, including Chappaqua, Briarcliff Manor and Bridgehampton, were also deemed not needy enough based on the formula for funding from the American Rescue Plan.

Freeman Klopott, press officer for the state Division of Budget, explained the American Rescue Plan required the state to base 90 percent of its allocation funding on a Title 1 formula, which is based on students in poverty. He also said that the remaining funds were used "to expand access to pre-kindergarten and provide additional aid to school districts of lower wealth."

He said Indian Lake and Long Lake, which are land rich districts in the heart of the Adirondacks, did not receive the funding because their combined income and property wealth per pupil is greater than 96 percent of districts.

All is not lost, however. The districts are now pinning their hopes on state bullet aid, the targeted package of funding that goes to schools, libraries and nonprofits in June. With that in mind, Sen. James Tedisco (R-Glenville) and Smullen sent a letter to the state Budget Director Robert Mujica on Wednesday to ask for an allocation to Indian Lake and Long Lake schools "in their time of dire need."

"These two schools are challenged in many ways," Tedisco said on Friday. "We can't change the formula, but we have $10 million in bullet aid. They do deserve some assistance."

Short said at this point she has not considered how exactly she would spend the funding if she gets it. She has been too busy lobbying for the funding.

Ive been knocking on doors, and trying suggesting pathways and creative ideas and it has fallen on deaf ears," Short said. "Its an easy fix, the money is there. This is a big bill for us.The criteria is to have students who live in need and we more than meet the mark. We just dont fit the formula.
DETROIT (AP)  The murder conviction of a man who was accused of setting a fire that killed five children in suburban Detroit could be in jeopardy years later after a new prosecutor said Friday that she's gravely concerned about tactics used by her office.

Juwan Deering's defense attorney wasn't told that three informants got substantial benefits from helping authorities at the 2006 trial, said Karen McDonald, the Oakland County prosecutor.

Separately, McDonald announced an investigation of any case related to those informants.

Fairness and transparency are paramount, McDonald, who was elected in November, said in a written statement. We must always do the right thing, even if it exposes our own office, even when its not easy.

Deering, 50, is serving a life sentence for murder in the deaths of five children in a house fire in Royal Oak Township in 2000. Authorities at the time said the fire was revenge for drug debts, though Deering repeatedly declared his innocence. No one could identify him as being at the house.

The Innocence Clinic at University of Michigan law school had sought a new trial for Deering, arguing that the fire analysis was based on junk science, but it wasn't successful in the state's appellate courts. McDonald, a former judge, said problems with the informants emerged during her review of the case.

She said the informants had charges dismissed or sentences reduced based on their cooperation. Greg Townsend was the assistant prosecutor who prosecuted Deering. He's now a Michigan assistant attorney general and part of the team handling an alleged kidnapping plot against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

As prosecutors, we have an ethical duty to disclose information that bears on the guilt or innocence of the accused," McDonald said. We also have a duty to disclose to juries what, if anything, an informant was given in consideration for their testimony. Based on the evidence I reviewed, I am gravely concerned that this was not done in the case against Juwan Deering.

Townsend was reassigned from his docket after the attorney general's office was informed about developments in the Deering case, spokeswoman Lynsey Mukomel said.

An email seeking comment was sent to Townsend.

The evidence here is truly overwhelming, said Imran Syed, an attorney at the Innocence Clinic. We plan to present the prosecution with legal pathways for Mr. Deerings release and it is my hope that we will be able to reach an agreement.

___

Follow Ed White at http://twitter.com/edwritez
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 23:16:26|Editor: huaxia

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JAKARTA, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Nine people were reportedly missing after a boat with 20 people aboard capsized in Kedung Ombo Reservoir in Indonesia's Central Java province on Saturday, an official said.

As many as 11 people have been rescued. Passengers of the boat were reportedly taking selfies before the boat overturned in the reservoir, according to local authorities.

Bambang Sinungharjo, head of the search and rescue agency in Boyolali district, said a team of divers was going to search for the missing people.

"We are going to form a team of divers to search for the victims in the accident area," he was quoted by Antara news agency as saying. Enditem
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP)  Missouri is set to become the last state to require out-of-state online stores to collect sales taxes on residents' purchases after the GOP House gave its approval Friday.

House members voted 145-6 to send an online sales tax bill to fellow Republican Gov. Mike Parson, just hours before lawmakers 6 p.m. deadline to pass legislation. Parson appears likely to sign the bill. Hes called on lawmakers to pass such legislation in the past.

Bipartisan proponents have argued that its unfair that local Missouri stores have to charge sales taxes while out-of-state online retailers dont.

We had to have a level playing field for them, Democratic St. Louis Rep. Steve Butz said Friday.

Missouri is the only state with a sales tax that that hasnt approved some kind of requirement that out-of-state online stores collect taxes on items sold to residents. Buyers are still required to pay that tax, but many people don't know that, and its challenging to enforce without the help of retailers.

Diane Yetter, president and founder of the Sales Tax Institute, said that meant Missouri lost out on potential revenue during the coronavirus pandemic as many people opted to buy online.

The budget impact of the pandemic was really probably hardest felt by Missouri because they didnt have that, Yetter said.

The legislation would require out-of-state retailers with at least $100,000 of annual sales in Missouri to collect state and local taxes beginning in 2023. It also would require online marketplace facilitators to collect Missouris taxes on sales made through their sites, beginning in 2023.

The Missouri Municipal League described the legislation as a big win for cities and local businesses.

The unfair advantage out-of-state vendors had is now fixed, said Chuck Caverly, a Maryland Heights council member and president of the municipal association. "They will simply pay the same level of taxes that our local businesses have been paying for decades, and that money goes directly to critical services such as first responders, street repair, park maintenance and so much more.

As part of a deal to boost tax collections from online sales, lawmakers agreed to cut state income taxes. The individual income tax rate would fall by one-tenth of a percentage point in 2024 and could fall by two additional one-tenth percentage point increments in subsequent years if Missouris net general revenues grow by $150 million.

Maysville Republican Rep. J. Eggleston, a top negotiator for the bill, said including the income tax cut was a top Republican priority to make sure that this was not accidentally harmful to our citizens."

Another provision would create a state tax credit for lower income working families modeled after the existing federal earned income tax credit. That tax credit would start in 2023 and could increase in size in subsequent years, but only if Missouris revenues grow by at least $150 million.

The legislation also would exempt federal coronavirus relief payments from state income taxes.

___

Associated Press writer David A. Lieb contributed to this report.
Last-minute tax filers can call for help

ALBANY - The state Department of Taxation and Finance's Income Tax Call Center will be open until 7 p.m. Monday, May 17, to help last-minute filers.

Representatives will be available from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 518-457-5181. But before calling, taxpayers should consider visiting www.tax.ny.gov.

Since the filing season began in February, agency representatives have answered more than 130,000 tax return filing-related questions. They said they expect to assist an additional 4,700 callers on tax day alone.

Two seats on library board, but just one candidate

ALBANY - A write-in candidate will end up winning Tuesday's election for Albany Public Library trustee, because only one candidate filed for the two open seats.



The declared candidate is Jah-Raii Gause of Livingston Avenue. The ballot will list Gause, along with a write-in spot next to her name. This year, however, there will be an additional write-in spot on the ballot for the second seat. The two people who receive the most votes will be elected to the open seats. Both spots carry full five-year terms that start in July.



The two open seats are held by trustees President Matthew Finn and Karen Strong. Both are finishing five-year terms on the nine-member board and declined to run for second terms.



The librarys trustee election runs in conjunction with the Albany city school district budget and trustee vote. Polls are open from 7 a.m. until 9 p.m. Tuesday, May 18. In-person polling locations can be found on the school districts website.



There is no library budget vote this year because it is the same amount as the current plan. Because the budget does not raise the tax levy, the library is not required to put it out for a public vote.

Nearly half of Albany County residents fully vaccinated

ALBANY - There were 22 news cases of coronavirus in Albany County Friday but no new deaths, County Executive Dan McCoy said in his Saturday update.

In another key figure, as of Friday, 57.7 percent of the countys population has received at least the first dose, and 49.6 percent are fully vaccinated. That compares to the statewide first-dose vaccination rate of 49 percent, and full vaccination rate of close to 41 percent.

There are now 133 active cases in the county. There are 13 county residents hospitalized from the virus, with four patients in intensive care units.

Motorists advised to pay attention at Columbia Turnpike

The state Department of Transportation is advising motorists to watch for an around-the-clock single right lane closure beginning Monday, May 17, on eastbound U.S. Routes 9 and 20 (Columbia Turnpike) between Elliot Avenue and Park Avenue in East Greenbush. Work will be done on sidewalks.

The lane closure is scheduled to be in place for about a month.

History professor, author to be honored

The New York State Archives Partnership Trust will award Annette Gordon-Reed, an award-winning author and history professor, the 2021 Empire State Archives and History Award at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 18 both virtually and in person at the University Club of Albany.

Harvard History Professor Gordon-Reed is known for her research on Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, and her Pulitzer Prize winning biography, The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family and her latest book On Junteenth.

The public is invited to hear her speak about her career with Lincoln scholar and Archives Partnership Trust Board Member, Harold Holzer. Tickets can be purchased by phone at 518-486-9349 or online at www.nysarchivestrust.org.

French role in revolution explored

Hear about the French connection to Americas victory in the Revolutionary War at Washingtons Headquarters and the invaluable assistance they provided in Receiving the French: The French Role in the American Revolution, beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 29 virtually on YouTube.

Search YouTube for Palisades Interstate Park Commission Television. For more information, call (845) 562-1195.

Nominations accepted for preservation awards

ALBANY  In honor of May being Preservation Month, Historic Albany Foundation is accepting nominations / applications for its 2021 Preservation Merit Awards.

Since 1976, the foundation has given annual awards to projects, individuals and organizations demonstrating best practices, excellence, and a commitment to preservation techniques and initiatives. The Preservation Merit Awards will be presented in conjunction with the HAF Annual Meeting Sept. 23 at the newly-renovated Kenmore Ballroom.

For more information on the awards, and to download the application form, go to: https://www.historic-albany.org/preservation-merit-awards

Principal chosen for West Sand Lake Elementary

AVERILL PARK - Keri Rosher was appointed as the new principal at West Sand Lake Elementary School by the Averill Park Board of Education.

Rosher is currently an elementary school assistant principal in the Schodack school district, where she has led building-wide initiatives in literacy, mental health and social-emotional learning. She also spent six years at Guilderland schools, working as a K-5 reading specialist and language arts coordinator. She was also the principal for Guilderlands K-12 summer special education program. She began her career in education working as a teacher at Hoosic Valley schools.

New display begins at Fort Ticonderoga

Fort Ticonderoga unveils a major new exhibition A Well Regulated Militia: Citizen, Soldier, and State that explores the critical institution of the militia in early American history, from colonization through nationhood, and the unique system that developed in the United States that relied on citizens to bear the burden of national defense.

The exhibition can be viewed at the ground floor exhibition gallery in the Mars Education Center. Fort Ticonderoga is open from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday through Oct. 31
BOSTON (AP)  A former Massachusetts mayor first elected at the age of 23 by touting himself as a successful entrepreneur was convicted Friday of stealing money from investors in his start-up to bankroll his lavish lifestyle and soliciting bribes from marijuana vendors who wanted to operate in the struggling mill city.

Jasiel Correia was found guilty of extortion, fraud and filing false tax returns after 23 hours of jury deliberations over four days in a trial that highlighted Correia's swift rise and fall in Fall River, where he had dazzled voters at a young age with his promises to turn the city around.

Correia, now 29, was also acquitted on three counts, including accusations that he forced his chief of staff to give him half of her salary in order to keep her city job.

Correia, who insisted he was innocent and attacked the charges as politically motivated, never took the stand. After leaving Boston's federal courthouse fitted with a electronic-monitoring bracelet, Correia told reporters that his fight is not over" and predicted he would win on appeal.

Eventually the real truth will come out, Correia said. "I will be vindicated and my future will be very long and great.

Acting U.S. Attorney Nathaniel Mendell called the verdict a fitting end to this saga.

Correia made a lot of promises, a lot of bold statements in business, in politics and in government," Mendell said. "The jury found today, in its verdict, the truth.

Correia's lawyer had argued his client wasnt a criminal, but merely an inexperienced businessman who believed that he was free to use investors money as he deemed fit while he was producing the smartphone app.

Before Correia became mayor, prosecutors say he lured investors to support his app called SnoOwl by falsely claiming that he had previously sold another business for a big profit. Prosecutors say he used nearly two-thirds of the almost $400,000 he took from investors on himself and spent it on things like fancy hotels, casinos, high-end restaurants and expensive gifts for his girlfriend.

Investors who took the stand told jurors they handed over their cash because they believed Correia was bright, trustworthy and headed for great things. One investor said he thought Correia was a boy wonder and that Correia assured him he wasnt going to take a dime out of the company so all the money could go to the development of the app.

Instead, prosecutors say Correia looted a bank account filled with investor money to pay for things like a helicopter tour of Newport, Rhode Island, a Mercedes, a $300 bottle of cologne and a $700 pair of Christian Louboutin shoes for his girlfriend.

These werent occasional purchases, this is shameless continued stealing without any regard for the fact that he is betraying people who trusted him, Assistant U.S. Attorney Zach Hafer said.

Throughout the trial, prosecutors portrayed Correia as a serial liar, who they said misled voters in order to get elected just like they said he duped investors.

In a clip shown to jurors from a 2015 debate during the race for mayor, Correia promised taxpayers that he would take your money and spend it wisely  because he said thats what he had done in his business. His lie about how he previously sold another app for big money allowed him avoid questions about how he could afford such a lavish lifestyle on his $17,000 annual salary as a Fall River city councilor, prosecutors said.

After the Democrat took office as mayor in 2016, prosecutors say Correia quickly turned to old school pay-to-play political corruption, by soliciting bribes from marijuana vendors seeking to operate in Fall River. Marijuana business owners, who were given immunity to testify against Correia, told jurors about how Correia or middlemen negotiated bribes in exchange for letters of approval from the city they need in order to get a license.

Correias lawyer attacked the credibility and sought to shift the blame onto the governments witnesses who had cooperation agreements with prosecutors, suggesting they were lying in an effort to help themselves.

One man, who pleaded guilty in the extortion scheme, told jurors about how he collected an envelope filled with $25,000 in cash that a middleman had put in a shed behind his home. The witness, Hildegar Camara, said he opened the envelope in front of Correia and got spooked, telling the mayor, If you take this or I take this, were going to go to jail.

Another man, who was hoping to operate a marijuana business in Fall River, described how Correia showed up at his familys store and asked for $250,000, saying he needed it for legal defense fees. After Correia and Charles Saliby eventually agreed on a lower bribe, Correias chief of staff told Saliby: Youre family now, according to Salibys testimony.

Correia was acquitted of two extortion counts related to a scheme involving a Rolex watch and one count of bribery stemming from accusations that he convinced his chief of staff to kickback part of her salary to him.

Correias lawyers argued it wasnt a bribe but a loan from a mother-like figure to Correia. And though his chief of staff pleaded guilty to charges including extortion and bribery, she never took the stand to testify against Correia.

He's scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 20.
COLONIE - Town police said they arrested a Schenectady man in the fatal shooting of Xiaa Price in the parking lot of the Curry Road Motel 6 on Tuesday.

Police arrested Paul A L Streeks, 23, at 10 p.m. Friday and charged him with second-degree murder and felony criminal possession of a weapon. Police Saturday said they would not yet provide any information about the relationship between Streeks and Price, or Streeks' role in the homicide, citing their continuing investigation.

"As more information is developed, additional arrests could be forthcoming," according to a statement provided by Colonie Lt. Daniel Belles.

Streeks was arraigned in the Colonie Town Court Saturday morning and was sent to the Albany County Correctional Facility, pending a preliminary hearing on Thursday, May 20.

That is also the day Price would have turned 22, according to family members from Schenectady. They recalled his outgoing nature and how he was raised in church with his siblings at New Jerusalem Home of the Saved Church in downtown Albany.

Police have said Price died from a single gunshot wound near the motel, which is near the border with the town of Rotterdam. A car accident at the scene was "secondary to the driver being shot," Deputy Chief Robert Winn said Tuesday. He said town police officers tried to revive Price, and that he was alive at the scene, but later died of the injuries.

One of Price's aunts, Sherain Rivera, said earlier this week that police told the family that based on surveillance footage it appears Price was trying to drive away with his younger brother in the car when Price was shot in the head, causing the car they were in to crash in the motel parking lot.

The Colonie Police Department said its Investigations Division is working on the case - an active investigation - and has had assistance from the Schenectady Police Department, the Capital Region Crime Analysis Center, State Police and the Albany County Sheriffs Office.

Police continue to ask for witnesses, or people with knowledge relevant to the investigation, to contact them at 518-783-2754.

To report a tip anonymously, can call Capital Region Crimestoppers at 1-833-ALB-TIPS, or go to capitalregioncrimestoppers.com.






As most municipal buildings in Schenectady County make plans to reopen their doors to the general public, it appears access to Schenectady City Hall will likely remain by appointment only for the foreseeable future.

Theres a little inconvenience, but nobody is being denied services, said Schenectady Mayor Gary McCarthy this week about when City Hall might open up to pre-pandemic days when people could walk in freely and take care of business without calling ahead. Part of it is still moving people in and out in a controlled fashion, where if you got to find one place, its that potential to contaminate, so we want peoples paths through City Hall to be minimized.

Besides appointments, McCarthy stressed that people can call from outside when they get to City Hall and that we then send somebody down and move them through. Court officers man the entrance to the Jay Street building.

But Electric City residents might soon be able to see the inside of City Council chambers at City Hall for meetings.

Council President John Mootooveren said in a text that the topic is up for discussion at Monday's City Council Committee meeting.

McCarthy also pointed out that Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo recently extended the executive order to allow for virtual meetings to continue and that Schenectady County has the second highest vaccination rate in New York.

Still, the mayor said the positive COVID-19 result in the City Clerks Office where four employees went into quarantine as a precaution after one them tested positive for the coronavirus only underscores the need for more people to get their vaccinations.

On Thursday, the CDC announced that fully vaccinated people dont need to wear face masks indoors or outdoors in most settings but that masks would still be required at health care facilities, public transportation, and businesses that mandate them.

Elsewhere in the county

In Niskayuna, Supervisor Yasmine Syed said Monday is when people will have a little more free rein at Town Hall.

"Starting Monday, anyone can come at any time and they will be allowed to visit any department that they need to without the need for an appointment," she added. "If there are any indications that anyone tests COVID positive as a result of this, then we're going to have to re-evaluate whether or not we're going to need to shut down again.

This past Tuesday marked the first time in a while that people could pre-register and attend a Town Board, which one person did.

Rotterdam Town Supervisor Steve Tommasone said at Wednesday nights virtual Town Board meeting that Town Hall will open for in-person services from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on June 1.

Were still working out some details and logistics because we still have to obviously maintain our COVID compliance to ensure that everyone is safe , he said. Theres just a lot of planning that goes into this, its not as simple as saying, put a mask on and walk into Town Hall and everything is fine.

Tommasone also said people will be able show up in person to the June 9 Town Board meetings, which convene at the more spacious Rotterdam Senior Center because it gives us more room to ensure social distancing.

More coronavirus-related news Two Schenectady County residents died from COVID-19 Thursday, the county said Friday: A woman in her 80s and another in her 90s. The death toll since the pandemic started in the county is 158. There were 24 new cases reported Friday. Albany County had 23 new cases but no new deaths. Clifton Park pools will be opening in June. Based on current staffing levels, lifeguard availability due to school schedules and training needs the pool schedule will be: Barney Road Pool, soft open June 11, 12 and 13 and open every day June 17 to Aug. 22. Country Knolls Pool will be open every day June 11 to Aug. 22. Locust Lane Pool will be open every day June 24 to Aug. 22. See www.cliftonpark.org and click on the Parks and Recreation Summer Recreation Book 2021 for details. See More Collapse

In all cases, residents will still have the option of handling their matters online or tuning in to municipal meetings from the comfort of their homes.

Its been business as usual at Glenville Town Hall since March when residents started trickling back into the facility to handle their business.

We invested in and put up panels of glass between us and the public, we cut in new windows into the walls so that we can do business  its more spread out, so we did take precautions to keep people distanced, but you still have to wear your mask when you come in, added Koetzle.

While that numbers of people taking advantage of that has grown, Supervisor Chris Koetzle joked that  nobodys really coming, for in person virtual Town Board gatherings.

He said the biggest crowd so far has been the half dozen or so people who showed up for a community meeting about marijuana.

Schenectady County Legislator Gary Hughes said that lawmakers and some staff recently started showing up in person for their meetings after deciding among themselves that it was something they wanted to try. He said by next month they could begin allowing spectators into the county chambers for the meetings.

The Schenectady County Office Building opened to walk-in service starting on May 10, according to Erin Roberts, the county's spokeswoman. She said masks are mandatory along with social distancing and other public health precautions.

Due to limited space and social distancing guidelines, appointments are still required for the county Clerks Office. Appointments can be made at https://scncountyclerk.as.me/schedule.php.
KABUL - The Biden administration's vow to withdraw troops from Afghanistan without conditions has left the fate of a Taliban-held American hostage uncertain.

President Joe Biden has instructed U.S. negotiators in recent weeks to raise the case of Mark Frerichs, a civilian contractor who was abducted in Kabul last year, in talks with the militant group. But he would need to issue specific instructions to U.S. negotiators to make his release a precondition of the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Afghanistan, and he has not, said one senior U.S. official closely involved in talks with the Taliban. The official, like others in this report, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing sensitive negotiations.

"We have not been told to tell the Talibs that, let that be clear," the official said. The official and a second senior official also closely involved in the talks insisted that the United States has enough leverage in other forms to continue to press for Frerichs's release.

Both time and influence are running short. The United States has rejected requests by the Taliban for a prisoner swap, and with all U.S. troops set to withdraw from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, Frerichs's family is increasingly concerned their loved one will be left behind.

The family and advocates have criticized U.S. officials negotiating with the Taliban, particularly U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, for not prioritizing the case in the lead-up to the deal that the Trump administration struck with the Taliban and in the more than a year of negotiations with the militants that followed.

"If the president wants Mark home, then his ambassador should follow his orders and get it done before we run out of time and leverage," said Charlene Cakora, Frerichs' sister. "I'm sick of government people trying to make it look like they are helping us, when we are not convinced they are. America doesn't leave people behind, right?"

That Frerichs has not yet been brought home is "not for lack of effort," the first official said. The official described numerous "intense" meetings with the Taliban focused on his recovery over the course of more than a year.

Frerichs, 58, a former Navy diver from Lombard, Ill., had been living in Kabul for a decade working on construction projects as an engineer when he was abducted by a criminal gang a few weeks before the U.S.-Taliban deal was signed in February 2020. He was handed over at an unknown date last year to the Haqqani network, a group that has close ties to the Taliban and has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States.

In mid-2020, the Taliban took custody of Frerichs. Today, the United States is "extremely confident" he is alive and remains in Taliban control, according to the second senior U.S. official.

Advocates for this case say the presence of American troops in Afghanistan is the most powerful bargaining tool the United States has with the Taliban.

"What it means to prioritize an American being held hostage abroad is to use the leverage we have, when we have it to get someone home," said Margaux Ewen, executive director of the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation and an advocate for the Frerichs family. "It seems that everyday that we approach the troop withdrawal we're losing that leverage."

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., who represents Frerichs's home state, "believes we shouldn't leave any American behind and that our nation must continue to prioritize the safe return of Mark Frerichs," spokesman Ben Garmisa said in a statement.

State Department spokesman Ned Price told The Washington Post in a statement that the Biden administration "has no higher priority than the safe return of Americans held overseas against their will."

"That is why Ambassador Khalilzad - acting at the direction of the National Security Advisor, Secretary of State, and, ultimately, the President - has repeatedly raised the case of Mark Frerichs with the Taliban," he said. "We will not stop until he is safely reunited with his family."

Price declined to discuss whether Khalilzad advised the Biden administration to make Frerichs's release a condition of the withdrawal.

"The Ambassador was integral to the decision-making process. But we wouldn't want to detail the deliberative process," Price said. The White House referred questions to Price.

Frerichs' case is rarely raised in public by senior U.S. officials involved in negotiations with the Taliban. During the Trump administration, Frerichs was not mentioned in the public text of the U.S.-Taliban deal, nor in statements surrounding its signing. Biden did not acknowledge his case when he announced the new withdrawal timeline. Khalilzad tweeted about him once in May 2020.

The tweet mentioned another missing American in Afghanistan, Paul Overby, whose case is older. He disappeared in Afghanistan in 2014 while researching a book. The second official said his case also has been part of the talks "to establish what happened to him to gain some sort of accountability."

The Taliban's political office in Qatar did not respond to requests for comment on either case.

During the Trump administration's push for a deal with the Taliban and now, with the Biden administration's withdrawal plans, Khalilzad "fell into the classic mistake of wanting the deal so badly, and the other side can always smell it," said Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.), a former Green Beret, veteran of the war in Afghanistan and advocate for the Frerichs family who is briefed on the negotiations by the family's representatives. He said Khalilzad views Frerichs's case as "an impediment" to securing a deal with the Taliban and did not push the issue at the negotiating table.

A former U.S. official briefed on the talks between the United States and the Taliban said Waltz's account was consistent with his knowledge of the negotiations. The former U.S. official said he had been told that for over a year Khalilzad did not bring up the Frerichs case in a serious way with the Taliban, often only mentioning it in passing.

Both current U.S. officials said those characterizations are untrue. The first official said meetings that addressed Frerichs's case were often one-on-one and behind closed doors. "I would be surprised how anyone would know" what was discussed in those meetings, he said. He credited U.S. influence for ultimately pressuring the Taliban to "acquire" Frerichs from the Haqqani network.

The United States knew that Frerichs had been kidnapped when the withdrawal deal was signed with the Taliban in February 2020, but the first official said it was not known then who the captors were. Only months later did U.S. negotiators pressure the Taliban to locate Frerichs and take him into their custody, allowing talks to begin on how to bring him home, according to the first official.

The Taliban asked for the release of Afghan drug kingpin Bashir Noorzai, who was convicted and sentenced in U.S. federal court for drug trafficking, in exchange for Frerichs, said the second official. The proposal was considered last year but ultimately overruled by the Justice Department because of concerns about setting a precedent by releasing someone convicted of a crime for political reasons, the former U.S. official said. Nearly a year later, it is unclear whether the proposal is back on the table.

The Taliban is also demanding the removal of sanctions on key Taliban leaders and the release of thousands of prisoners. The group's political leadership is aware that the movement needs international recognition and large amounts of aid money if it were to exert power over Afghanistan on a national level.

Other political settlements negotiated by the United States have included the return or exchange of hostages. Five Americans, including Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, were freed after talks that ran parallel to the 2015 nuclear negotiations with Iran. Two other hostages were not freed: Siamak Namazi, a business consultant abducted while the deal was being negotiated, and Bob Levinson, a former FBI agent who was abducted in Iran in 2007.

Namazi remains in Iranian custody, and Levinson's family was informed he was deceased in 2020, but they are still seeking information about when and how he died.

"We have to send a very clear signal," said Waltz, the Florida congressman. "You don't get a deal - whether it's the Iran deal, or in this case what the Taliban have been asking for 20 years, which is for Americans to leave - while you hold an American hostage. You don't reward that behavior."

Waltz also fears the complete withdrawal of U.S. forces will make it "incredibly difficult and incredibly risky" to conduct a rescue operation in Afghanistan to recover Frerichs.

But even before the complete withdrawal of U.S. forces by Sept. 11, Frerichs's family and advocates fear for his well-being after May 1, the original withdrawal deadline negotiated by the Trump administration with the Taliban.

After Biden extended that timeline, the Taliban warned "problems will certainly be compounded and those whom failed to comply with the agreement will be held liable," according to a tweet from Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid.

The first senior U.S. official said there is "no indication" that Frerichs's life will be in greater danger after May 1.

"We haven't seen anything" that would suggest that, he said, "and the Talibs haven't threatened anything like that."
Chris O'Meara

The Longest Day is the day with the most light  the summer solstice. This year, on June 20, I will join people around the world to fight the darkness of Alzheimers disease by participating in the Alzheimers Associations DIY fundraising event The Longest Day.

Im shining my light for my dad who lived and passed away in the Scottish borders last October. He took us on many adventures as a kid; we traveled and lived all over the world. He was diagnosed with dementia a few years ago. Every time I was able to fly home to visit, it was heartbreaking to see his wide world get smaller and smaller until it comprised just his bedroom. My step mum cared for him every step of the way and Ill always be grateful for her and for the Alzheimers Association who work tirelessly here and in other countries to provide support for both caregivers and patients.
Farmington, WV (26555)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. 1 to 2 inches of rain expected..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. 1 to 2 inches of rain expected.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 23:33:12|Editor: huaxia

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A man waves a flag of Palestine in Hawalli Governorate, Kuwait, May 15, 2021. Hundreds of protesters participated in a solidarity drive on Saturday in Kuwait to show support for the Palestinians. (Photo by Asad/Xinhua)

KUWAIT CITY, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of protesters participated in a solidarity drive on Saturday in Kuwait to show support for the Palestinians.

The protesters gathered in their cars against Israel's decision to evict Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem, as well as Israel's ongoing bombing raids in Gaza.

Gathering in seaside streets for more than an hour and chanting "end the Israel occupation now," they expressed their hope for an end to the ongoing violence and reiterated their support for the two-state solution to end the decades-long conflicts between Israel and Palestine.

Kuwaiti citizen Abdullah Al-Asqbai said that the de-escalation and protection of civilians are a necessary and basic requirement to end the suffering of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

A Palestinian protester Abeer Salameh said she will continue to support the Palestinian cause, calling for saving lives instead of living in war.

"We gathered today to support our Palestinian brothers, and we will stand together for the Palestinian cause. It is time to stand by each other hand in hand," a resident named Mustafa Ahmed said. Enditem
The driver of a Tesla involved in a fatal crash that California highway authorities said may have been on operating on Autopilot posted social media videos of himself riding in the vehicle without his hands on the wheel or foot on the pedal
[May 15, 2021] Bit.Country Raises $4M in Seed for Individualized Metaverses

SINGAPORE, May 15, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ZEXPRWIRE Humans have never stopped expanding their consciousness and sphere of exploration. We are composing a new chapter in the web3.0 paradigm for mass adoption with sustainable technologies.

Ever since the internet came into our lives, we have benefited from the high speed of information exchange, and then blockchain networks provided us with a trustless flow of value. We now envisage that the metaverse will bring civilization a highway of imagination and happiness. Today, we are excited to announce a new era of the metaverse. The Bit.Country team has secured US $4M in the first round of funding and is backed by some amazing metaverse enthusiasts. The first round was led by four top web3 and metaverse pioneers along with another 56 metaverse-future believers around the world. Bit.Country Investors & Partners A large network of influencers, Walsh Wealth Ventures co-leads the round by bringing a powerful network of KOLs and influencers reaching 200 million fans on classic social media platforms. Their network includes CryptoGodJohn, Mr Beast, KSI, Tobias31, Lazarbeam, MrFreshAsian, LachlanYT, CryptoWizardd and others. A global leader in blockchain gaming, Animoca Brands joins in co-leadership of the round, and brings in vast knowledge and connections to metaverse games. As an owner of many popular blockchain games, we are looking forward to a collaborative future in this space. Top funds in the Polkadot ecosystem, Hypersphere Ventures, and Digital Financial Group (DFG) are the co-leaders from the Polkadot community and they bring us a clear future of the internet of chains and the composition of chains on Polkadot/Kusama. Visionaries and trendsetters, Anti Fund backed by Geoffrey Woo and Jake Paul (20M subscribers on YouTube); and Cao Yin (the first Crypto-art collector in China) of DRF.EE, are both sound supporters in this round. The crypto and digital Investment communities, Republic teams have a strong belief in what we do. Both Republic Labs and Republic Realm have joined in, allowing us to have access to the most elite communities from crypto retail investment to digital real estate development. Apart from the co-leaders of the round, it is our great honor to have the following amazing friends, investors and partners, Kernel Ventures, Shima Capital, Genblock Capital, Longhash, CMS, Illusionist Group, Altonomy, LD Capital, SevenX Ventures, GFS Ventures, Polka Warriors, Moonwhale Ventures, Moonrock Capital, Paka Capital, and NGC Ventures. Vendetta Capital, OKEx Blockdream Ventures, Remarxs, Polkaworld, NxtBlock, Sky Vision Partners, SSSNode, Coinblox Capital, Waterdrip Capital, Marshland capital, Mr Block, YBB, BlokeGlobe, Lotus Capital, 18Ventures, MGNR, and Ratio Ventures along with many other amazing parties that support our metaverse initiatives. About Bit.Country Bit.Country enables everyone to start their own metaverse with token economy and NFT, and takes community engagement to a new dimension on web3.0. In each bit country, there is a local social token backed by our native token $NUUM, the local marketplace, and the local DAO that governs the community and makes decisions for issues such as the supply of assets. We are also transitioning social engagement to a 3D virtual world while still allowing access to the classical web social timelines with text and multimedia. Our Purpose While our team is excited about web3.0 development, our destiny is to create a network that brings real world impact. We want to provide ordinary people with opportunities of value access in this paradigm shift. Our vision and dream comes true when the common people of the world are able to earn a modest income by contributing to their Bit.Country communities; and Bit.Country owners distribute value to their followers by generating greater influence through network expansion. Our Approach Education is the door to many great things, as founding members of Industry Connect, a well-known global tech educator, our proven strength is to educate people for success. We have launched several courses to bring eople to benefit from the Web3.0 movement. Those are the Substrate Runtime Developer Academy (partnered with Acala Network), and the world's first Metaverse Career Academy .



Education will allow us to bring awareness to this new paradigm while growing an elite community for the metaverse future. More The Inception

In early 2018, Ray Lu, our Co-founder & CEO, while attending the US-China blockchain conference in San Francisco, visualized a future digital world for virtual assets and virtual life. Making it meaningful and real through trustless value, which is a strong link between the metaverse and reality. He bought the domain name bit.country right on the spot and started imagining a new venture. Since then, his team Justin, Shannon, and Daniel, with their master-apprentice culture, started the proof of concept. In late 2018, Ruitao, CEO and Co-Founder of Acala Network, also his former colleague and friend, introduced Substrate/Polkadot technology to him. This new technology excited him as he found that it was the only framework available on the market that can implement the ultimate vision of Bit.Country. We could have raised capital eight months earlier in the current market, however, we chose to build milestones first and create a long-term thinking culture. Not only for the community, but most importantly for ourselves, the co-founding team members. This long term thinking is evidenced by our seed round valuation, we aimed for a humble valuation to give our end users room for growth, says Ray Lu. Ray Lu is a seasoned entrepreneur and has successfully launched three multi-million dollar startups in tech, and his group currently has an AUM of $US 50M. (Pre Bit.Country) Now, I am committing the next 10 years of my life for a metaverse future, it is a great feeling that we can bring web3.0 to everyday people like us, says Ray Lu. Our Team & Partners Everyone in the team are believers of a metaverse future, and we have talented staff from Europe, Silicon Valley and Asia; with a diversity of skills and experiences accumulated from large scale solutions to great community development. Our secret weapon is education. Industry Connect has been serving the world in the tech education space since 2013, and our group has benefited greatly by having a direct relation to some of the top talent at the beginning of their journey. With some becoming co-founders in the startups we have launched over the years. Moreover, with Ruitao and the Acala team as our advisor and partner, our vision is aligned with the Polkadot native economic model, and we will strive to build our culture as one of the serious builders in the ecosystem, and create long term value for users. After recent acceptance into Berkerley Blockchain Xcelerator, we are mentored by experienced blockchain experts, and connecting with more partners. Where Are We Bit.Countrys team started from New Zealand, a wonderful country that brought the world many great creations including the Lord of the Rings films, digital human ventures, launching rockets, the Jet Pack, air taxi, bungy jumping, Zorbing, Hobbiton, Beef Wellington, McLaren Cars, the finest milk powder and many others, all from the middle earth, Aotearoa and the middle metaverse. Be a Meta-Human & Join Us Official Links Website  https://bit.country

Our Blockchain  http://explorer.bit.country

Whitepaper  https://bit.ly/3dP5TNv

New Ideas  https://bit-country.ideas.aha.io/ Social Channels Twitter  https://twitter.com/BitDotCountry

Medium  https://bitcountry.medium.com

LinkedIn  https://www.linkedin.com/company/bit-country

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/bitcountry

FB Group  https://www.facebook.com/groups/326320685509939/

Telegram Announcement  https://t.me/bitcountryofficial Chat Groups Telegram Group  https://t.me/BitCountryOfficialTG

Discord Channel  https://discord.gg/PaMAXZZ59N Signups Ambassador Program  https://bit.country/ambassador-program

Early Access Waiting List  https://bit.country/request-access Ticker $NUUM (Taking from Continuum and it is about U) Media contact Company: BC innovation Pte Ltd.

Contact Name: Ray Lu

Address: Singapore

E-mail: hi@bit.country A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8d389f97-f95f-4a40-86ad-b23a5f4cf5b7



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[May 14, 2021] Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP Files a Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit Against Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE: EBS) for Violations of Federal Securities Laws With Expanded Class Period

The law firm of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP announces that the firm has filed a securities fraud class action against Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE: EBS) ("Emergent") on behalf investors who purchased or acquired Emergent common stock between April 24, 2020, and April 16, 2021, inclusive (the "Class Period"). This action, captioned Roth v. Emergent BioSolutions Inc., et al., Case No. 1:21-cv-01189-CCB (the "Roth Action"), was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland (Southern Division). To view a copy of the Roth Action complaint, please click here. There is one related class action case pending against Emergent in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland (Southern Division), and a published notice in that action triggered the deadline of June 18, 2021, for any investors who purchased Emergent common stock to seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class. The filing of the Roth Action does not change the June 18, 2021 lead plaintiff deadline. For additional information or to learn how to participate in this litigation, please contact Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP: James Maro, Esq. (484) 270-1453 or Adrienne Bell, Esq. (484) 270-1435; toll free at (844) 887-9500; via e-mail at info@ktmc.com; or visit: https://www.ktmc.com/emergent-biosolutions-class-action-lawsuit?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=Link&utm_campaign=emergent. Emergent is a specialty biopharmaceutical company that develops vaccines and antibody therapeutics for infectious diseases. In response to the novel strain of coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) causing COVID-19 disease ("COVID-19") pandemic, Emergent signed a series of deals with Johnson & Johnson ("J&J") and AstraZeneca worth a combined $876 million to provide ontract development and manufacturing organization services to produce the companies' COVID-19 vaccine candidates.



The Class Period begins on April 24, 2020, the day after Emergent announced that it had entered into an agreement with J&J to manufacture J&J's COVID-19 vaccine candidate at Emergent's Baltimore facility. Under the deal, Emergent would provide drug substance manufacturing services and reserve large-scale manufacturing capacity for J&J. Then, on June 11, 2020 Emergent announced that it had signed another agreement to provide contract development and manufacturing services and secure large-scale manufacturing capacity to support AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine candidate. The truth about Emergent began to be revealed on March 31, 2021 after the close of markets, when The New York Times published an article reporting on the accidental contamination of COVID-19 vaccines developed by J&J and AstraZeneca at Emergent's Baltimore facility. The New York Times article stated that in late February 2021, Emergent employees at the Baltimore facility mixed up ingredients of the two different COVID-19 vaccines, contaminating up to 15 million doses of J&J's vaccine and forcing regulators to delay authorization of the facility's production lines. Also, "[f]urther shipments of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine - expected to total 24 million doses in the next month - were supposed to come from the giant plant in Baltimore" but "[t]hose deliveries are now in question while the quality control issues are sorted out."

The next morning, April 1, 2021, the Associated Press (News - Alert) reported, based on documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, that the Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") had "repeatedly . . . cited Emergent for problems such as poorly trained employees, cracked vials and problems managing mold and other contamination around one of its facilities." Following this news, Emergent's stock price substantially declined from a close of $92.91 per share on March 31, 2021, to $80.46 per share at the close of trading on April 1, 2021, a drop of $12.45, or over 13%, per share. Then, on April 19, 2021, Emergent revealed that, "at the request of the FDA, Emergent agreed not to initiate the manufacturing of any new material at its Bayview facility and to quarantine existing material manufactured at the Bayview facility pending completion of the [FDA's] inspection and remediation of any resulting findings." Following this news, the price of Emergent's common stock declined $9.77 per share, or more than 12%, from a close of $77.64 per share on April 16, 2021, to close at $67.87 per share on April 19, 2021. The Roth Action alleges that, throughout the Class Period, the defendants failed to disclose that: (1) Emergent's Baltimore facility had a history of manufacturing issues increasing the likelihood for massive contaminations; (2) the Baltimore facility had received a series of FDA citations as a result of these contamination risks and quality control issues; (3) Emergent had been forced to discard millions of doses of COVID-19 vaccines after workers at the facility deviated from manufacturing standards; and (4) as a result of the foregoing, the defendants' public statements about Emergent's ability and capacity to mass manufacture multiple COVID-19 vaccines at its Baltimore facility were materially false and/or misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis. Emergent investors may, no later than June 18, 2021, seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class through Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP or other counsel, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed as a lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP prosecutes class actions in state and federal courts throughout the country involving securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duties and other violations of state and federal law. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP is a driving force behind corporate governance reform, and has recovered billions of dollars on behalf of institutional and individual investors from the United States and around the world. The firm represents investors, consumers and whistleblowers (private citizens who report fraudulent practices against the government and share in the recovery of government dollars). For more information about Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP, please visit www.ktmc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210514005569/en/

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[May 14, 2021] $ 169.82 Billion growth expected in Unified Communication and Collaboration Market | 46.81% YOY growth in 2021 amid COVID-19 Spread | North America to Notice Maximum Growth | Technavio

NEW YORK, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The global unified communication and collaboration market by end-user (enterprise and government), application (enterprise collaboration, enterprise telephony, and contact center), and geography (North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA) has been added to Technavio's offering. The global unified communication and collaboration market is expected to grow by USD 169.82 billion. However, the market growth momentum is expected to decelerate at a CAGR of over 35% during 2021-2025. Request a Free Sample Report to Know More Unified communication and collaboration (UCC) solutions were widely adopted by large enterprises. Recently, the market has been witnessing a steady rise in the adoption of UCC solutions by many medium-sized enterprises and small-sized enterprises to make the workflow smoother and easier. The growing demand for UCC solutions is compelling market vendors to adopt various strategies to remain competitive in the market. Many such factors will have a positive impact on the market during the forecast period. The market is expected to be driven by factors such as the growing demand for video and voice conferencing, increasing internet penetration, and growing demand for WebRTC-enabled devices. The report also offers information on the upcoming trends and challenges that will influence market growth.

Download Our Free Sample Report Unified Communication and Collaboration Market: Opportunities

The number of technology start-ups has been increasing significantly across the world. For instance, the number of listed domestic companies in East Asia and the Pacific was 14,716 in 2011. This number was increased to around 19,498 in 2019. Also, the rising adoption of BYOD and work from home policies by enterprises is increasing the demand for efficient UCC solutions . Many such factors are expected to create significant opportunities for market vendors during the forecast period. Unified Communication and Collaboration Market: Segmentation by End-user

Based on the segmentation by end-user, the market generated maximum revenue in the enterprise segment in 2020. The segment is driven by the increasing focus on streamlining business operations by enterprises. In addition, the proliferation of start-ups led by favorable government policies is expected to foster the growth of the segment during the forecast period. Unified Communication and Collaboration Market: Segmentation by Geography

North America held the largest market share in 2020 and the market growth in the region is expected to be slower compared to the growth of the market in other regions. The growth of the market in North America can be attributed to the presence of large enterprises and the high adoption of digitalization in the region. Also, the rise in the number of mobile workers and the rising demand for UCC solutions from colleges and universities are contributing to the growth of the unified communication and collaboration market in North America.



One of the fortune 500 companies had used the detailed research report on the unified communication and collaboration market and had decided to increase their market share in the North American region which offers the highest market opportunities during the forecast period. Explore more about market opportunities: Enquire about the report before purchasing

Unified Communication and Collaboration Market: Major Vendors

8x8 Inc.

The company offers 8x8 X Series that sets employees and customers free by connecting them with a single app for all modes of communication, running on the 8x8 Open Communications platform in the cloud. ALE International

The company offers unified communications that can be used to connect the office to anywhere, whether remote, onsite, or at a client thanks to secure, reliable phones, and solutions. Avaya Holdings Corp.

The company offers unified communications solutions that enable work-from-anywhere culture, so everyone is always ready to meet unplanned work head-on. Huawei Investment & Holding Co. Ltd.

The company offers unified communications & video surveillance management which supports management and monitoring of unified communications, videoconferencing, and video surveillance devices. Microsoft Corp.

The company offers unified communications namely, Unified Communications Managed API 4.0 Runtime which is a managed-code platform that developers use to build applications that provide access to and control over Microsoft Enhanced Presence information, instant messaging, telephone and video calls, and audio/video conferencing. Along with the market data, Technavio offers customizations as per the specific needs of companies. The following customization options are available for the unified communication and collaboration market report: Regional Analysis Further breakdown of the market segmentation at requested regions. Market Player Information Detailed analysis and profiling of additional market players, vendor segmentation, and vendor offerings.

Know the strategies adopted by vendors during the COVID-19 Recovery Phase. Speak to our Analyst for a Customized Report Related Reports on Unified Communication and Collaboration Market:

Global Web Real Time Communication Market  Global web real time communication market is segmented by platform (browser, mobile, and UC), application (video, voice, and data sharing), and geography (North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA).

Download Exclusive Free Sample Report Global 5G Equipment Market  Global 5G equipment market is segmented by product (macrocell, small cell, and others) and geography (North America, Europe, APAC, MEA, and South America).

Download Exclusive Free Sample Report 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 Application Market segments

Comparison by Application

Enterprise collaboration - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Enterprise telephony - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Contact center - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Market opportunity by Application Market Segmentation by End-user Market segments

Comparison by End-user

Enterprise - Market size and forecast 2020-2025

Government - 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

8x8 Inc.

ALE International

Avaya Holdings Corp.

Cisco Systems Inc.

Huawei Investment & Holding Co. Ltd.

Microsoft Corp.

Mitel Networks Corp.

NEC Corp.

RingCentral Inc.

Star2Star Communications Appendix Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations 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: media@technavio.com

Website: www.technavio.com

Report: www.technavio.com/report/unified-communication-and-collaboration-market-industry-analysis View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/-169-82-billion-growth-expected-in-unified-communication-and-collaboration-market--46-81-yoy-growth-in-2021-amid-covid-19-spread--north-america-to-notice-maximum-growth--technavio-301291936.html SOURCE Technavio

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[May 14, 2021] BOSTON SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION INITIATED by Former Louisiana Attorney General: Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC Investigates the Officers and Directors of Boston Scientific Corporation - BSX

Former Attorney General of Louisiana, Charles C. Foti, Jr., Esq., a partner at the law firm of Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC ("KSF"), announces that KSF has commenced an investigation into Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX). On November 17, 2020, the Company announced a global recall of all unused inventory of its LOTUS Edge Aortic Valve System, due to "complexities associated with the product delivery system," and that "[g]iven the additional time and investment required to develop and reintroduce an enhanced delivery system, the company has chosen to retire the entire LOTUS product platform immediately." Thereafter, the Company and certain of its executives were sued in a securities class action lawsuit, charging them with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws, which remains ongoing. KSF's investigation is focusing on whether Boston Scientific's officers and/or directors breached their fiduciary duties to its shareholders or otherwise violated state or federal laws.



If you have information that would assist KSF in its investigation, or have been a long-term holder of Boston Scientific shares and would like to discuss your legal rights, you may, without obligation or cost to you, call toll-free at 1-877-515-1850 or email KSF Managing Partner Lewis Kahn (lewis.kahn@ksfcounsel.com), or visit https://www.ksfcounsel.com/cases/nyse-bsx/ to learn more. About Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC

KSF, whose partners include former Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., is one of the nation's premier boutique securities litigation law firms. KSF serves a variety of clients - including public institutional investors, hedge funds, money managers and retail investors - in seeking to recover investment losses due to corporate fraud and malfeasance by publicly traded companies. KSF has offices in New York, California and Louisiana. To learn more about KSF, you may visit www.ksfcounsel.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210514005560/en/

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[May 14, 2021] ISMRM-SMRT Annual Meeting Features Distinguished Speaker Program

CONCORD, Calif., May 14, 2021 /CNW/ -- The International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) is holding its Annual Meeting this week and the program features several well-known speakers. ISMRM Annual Meeting Features Many Prominent Speakers This year, the ISMRM Presidential Lecture will be given by Simon Singh, Ph.D. The title of Singh's presentation is "From the Big Bang to Homer's Last Theorem." Singh became a TV producer and director working on BBC programs including "Tomorrow's World" and "Horizon" before winning a BAFTA for his award-winning documentary, "Fermat's Last Theorem," which was followed by his book on the same subject. Singh, one of the world's most popular science and math writers, will lead listeners on a tour through his bestselling books and talk about how he has taken some difficult topics and explained them to a large general audience. In addition o Simon Singh, this year's ISMRM keynote speakers are Pia C. Maly Sundgren, M.D., Ph.D., the Mansfield Lecturer, speaking on Viribus Unitis; John Gore, Ph.D., the Lauterbur Lecturer, speaking on Adventures in Contrast; and Katja Pinker-Domenig, M.D., Ph.D., the NIBIB New Horizons Lecturer, speaking on Precision MRI of the Breast: Reality or Utopia? The SMRT keynote speakers are Thomas Grist, M.D., the President's Lecturer, speaking on Go with the Flow: Lessons Learned About the Importance of Radiologist-Technologist Teamwork in the Development of MR Angiography, and Donald McRobbie, Ph.D., who will conduct the SMRT Masterclass on MR Safety: From Folklore to Physics.



The ISMRM-SMRT Annual Meeting will be held virtually this year, with over 5,000 attendees dedicated to the field of magnetic resonance participating. The next ISMRM Annual Meeting will be a joint meeting with the ESMRMB and will be held 7-12 May 2022 in London, England. About ISMRM:

The International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine is an international, nonprofit, scientific association whose purpose is to promote communication, research, development, and applications in the field of magnetic resonance in medicine and biology and other related topics and to develop and provide channels and facilities for continuing education in the field. Its multidisciplinary membership consists of clinicians, physicists, engineers, biochemists, and technologists. In addition to its large scientific meetings, the Society holds workshops and publishes two journals, Magnetic Resonance in Medicine and the Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging, and a virtual newsletter, MR Pulse. It also sponsors 29 study groups on specific areas of scientific interest and chapters based on geographical location. To find out more about the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM), please call +1 510-841-1899, or visit our website at www.ismrm.org. ISMRM, One Concord Center, 2300 Clayton Road, Suite 620, Concord, CA 94520 USA #### Contact: Sharon Taplin, ISMRM

Phone: 510-841-1899

Email: Sharon@ismrm.org View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ismrm-smrt-annual-meeting-features-distinguished-speaker-program-301292020.html SOURCE ISMRM International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine

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[May 15, 2021] CoinsPaid is nominated for the Payment Provider of the Year Award!

CoinsPaid is one of the top globally recognized providers in crypto processing and manages 5% of all BTC transactions. TALLINN, Estonia, May 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Transacting in cryptocurrencies brings a new level of freedom, rewarding you with extra spare time and more money. To start using crypto, you require a tailored service that perfectly suits your personal or business needs. CoinsPaid has been offering its clients ready-made solutions, suitable for both business and individual operations, since 2014. CoinsPaid supports 30+ crypto and 20+ fiat currencies. All our services are officially certified by Kaspersky Lab. Among the CoinsPaid product range, you can fid an OTC platform, Cryptoprocessing, B2B and B2C Wallets, Plug&Pay, and a White Label service, all within one interconnecting ecosystem.



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May 19-20 - iFX EXPO, Dubai

- May 24-26 - AIBC & AGS Summit, stand BR37

- May 25 - AIBC Awards. We are confirmed as one of the nominees for this prestigious award and look forward to finding out who the winner is! If you are in Dubai and wish to schedule a personal appointment with our company representatives, please contact our Event Manager Natalia at natallia.vavulina@coinspaid.com . For more information on CoinsPaid, go to: https://www.coinspaid.com/

CoinsPaid introduces services and products that help people and their businesses realize the potential of cryptocurrencies. The CoinsPaid ecosystem allows you to work quickly, profitably, and effectively both with national and digital currencies. Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1509760/CoinsPaid_Logo.jpg

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 00:11:22|Editor: huaxia

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JERUSALEM -- An Israeli was killed in a rocket attack on central Israel on Saturday, Israeli authorities said.

Carmel Shama-Ha'Cohen, mayor of Ramat Gan city outside Tel Aviv, told reporters that a 50-year-old man died after a rocket hit a road outside his residential building in Ramat Gan. (Israel-Gaza-Rocket)

- - - -

JAKARTA -- Nine people were reportedly missing after a boat with 20 people aboard capsized in Kedung Ombo Reservoir in Indonesia's Central Java province on Saturday, an official said.

As many as 11 people have been rescued. Passengers of the boat were reportedly taking selfies before the boat overturned in the reservoir, according to local authorities. (Indonesia-Boat Accident)

- - - -

ADDIS ABABA -- The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) disclosed Saturday it has decided to postpone the sixth general elections to an undetermined date.

Speaking to journalists, Chairperson of NEBE Birtukan Mideksa said repeated extensions of voters' registration dates, delay in nominating and training of electoral staff as well as delay in printing and distribution of ballots have forced postponement of the sixth general elections. (Ethiopia-Election-Postponement)

- - - -

FREETOWN -- The Parliament of Sierra Leone has ratified the China Kingho Company's Rail and Port Lease Agreement, the company told Xinhua Saturday.

The agreement will allow Kingho Railway and Port Company Limited to manage and operate the infrastructure of the railway and Pepel Port for haulage and export of Kingho Mining Company's iron ore out of the country, it said. (Sierra Leone-China-Railway-Port) Enditem
[May 15, 2021] Earn Passive Income With Nhash Cloud Mining...

London, UK, May 15, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A few weeks ago, the hash rate of Bitcoin dropped about 20% leaving many analysts skeptical of the long-term sustainability of the largest cryptocurrency. Despite the drop, the enthusiasm around the mining of Bitcoin remains as strong as ever with a rising mining difficulty and more miners coming into the fray. Photo Available Here Despite growing into the strongest computational network, Bitcoin has slowly turned into an activity only suitable for the rich. Bitcoin mining requires technical knowledge, expensive equipment, and high electricity costs, which makes it difficult for the common man to make a profit from mining the crypto. This has forced miners to look for alternative cryptocurrencies to mine and formulate new ways of mining. At the top of the solutions is Bitcoin cloud mining. In the next sections, we elaborate on how you can start mining Bitcoin for as little as $70 using NHash, one of the most profitable crypto cloud mining services. Cloud Mining is the process of cryptocurrency mining utilizing a remote datacenter with shared processing power.

NHash, a Bitcoin cloud mining service, aims to give everybody a chance to start mining Bitcoin without the need for expensive equipment or high technical knowledge. The Bitcoin mining rigs are houed and maintained in a facility owned by a mining company and you as the customer only need to register and purchase mining products to receive mining rewards in your account.



NHash's team has always put the task of making mining accessible not only for crypto-enthusiasts but also for common users, the NHash website reads.

The cloud mining service allows users to purchase multiple proof-of-work crypto mining contracts. The platforms allow cloud mining of SHA-256, Scrypt, and ETHASH coins including Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Bitcoin Cash among other cryptocurrencies. The service pays out daily rewards to miners and direct withdrawals to your external crypto wallet. NHashs goals revolve around making crypto mining easy, smart, rewarding, and affordable for all.



To see this goal through, the NHash team is comprised of highly skilled engineers, developers, and mining specialists that ensure mining run smoothly and investors are offered the best rates and rewards possible via their cloud mining service.



The cheapest-most profitable cloud mining service



NHash offers users some of the best cloud mining rates in the crypto scene to ensure anyone with some capital can start earning rewards from the service. The cloud mining service currently offers five BTC mining price plans  curated from as low as $70 for a 1-day mining contract. The 1-day BTC mining contract ears users a 3% daily reward with no extra maintenance fees charged.



Other contracts include the 7-day mining contract that users can purchase for as low as $200 giving users a fixed income reward of up to 6%, and the 14-day mining contract costs $600 with an expected return of 10% during the period. Photo: NHash offers multiple mining contracts for clients (Image: NHash) NHash also offers mega contracts to users including the 30-day mining contract that costs $2,000 and gives the miner an expected return of 25% during the period and the 45-day mining contract, a $5,000 contract offering miners a 40% return during the period.



Finally, Nhash launched a new campaign that rewards all users with a sign-up bonus of $5, also has a referral program that rewards you for inviting friends to the platforms. At the starter tier, miners get 2% of the quantity of hash power purchased (money invested into NHash) by your referral. This can be a great way to start earning passively! To learn more about NHash and purchase cloud mining plans, visit its website at Nhash.io





Ross Davis team@globalcryptopress.com https://www.nhash.io

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A quick compilation local pandemic news as local plague rules quickly change.

Check-it . . .



NextGen Vaxx Underway

Children's Mercy Hospital opens up vaccinations to 12-15 year-olds KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Children's Mercy Hospital is vaccinating 12-15-year-olds starting on Saturday. Kids in this age range will receive Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine as they are the only company approved by the FDA to do so. Children's Mercy Hospital has two vaccination clinics on Saturday.

Northland Unmasked

Platte County rescinds mask order following CDC recommendations PLATTE COUNTY, MO. (KCTV) --- The Platte County Health Department on Saturday announced that it's ending its mask mandate. It's the latest jurisdiction in the metro area to do away with its emergency order. Information via a news release: 1. Rescind all previous limits on business operations and gatherings under previous COVID-19 orders.

Kansas Mask Holdouts

Wyandotte and Douglas, the last 2 Kansas counties with mask rules, ponder new guidelines LIBERTY, Mo. (AP) - The last two Kansas counties that require residents to wear masks to slow the spread of COVID-19 will keep the mandates in place for now to discuss new federal guidelines that loosened mask requirements.

COVID Lesson Plan Exposed

Masks optional for staff, students inside the Lee's Summit and Blue Springs school districts JACKSON COUNTY, MO (KCTV) --- The Blue Springs and Lee's Summit School Districts announced that they have lifted the mask mandates for their school districts. The move comes in conjunction with the CDC's new guidance on vaccinated individuals not having to wear masks. It also comes after Jackson County announced it was ending its own requirement.

Plagued By Fashion Choices

Updated CDC mask guidance prompts confusion as millions become eligible to go maskless There is confusion surrounding the CDC's updated guidance easing mask requirements for fully vaccinated people. As Meg Oliver reports, business owners are unsure how to enforce the new guidelines. Then, Dr. Brittani James, a family medicine physician and co-founder of the Institute for Antiracism in Medicine, joins CBSN's Lana Zak to discuss the latest COVID headlines.

NURSES PUSH BACK!!!

Nation's largest nurses union condemns new CDC guidance on masks The nation's largest nurses union condemned the new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that stipulates fully vaccinated people do not have to wear masks in most settings. The National Nurses United (NNU) in a statement Saturday said it was concerned that it would put patients, frontline workers and nurses at risk amid a pandemic that is still present in the U.S.

The Great Mask Kiss-Off

Masks Are Coming Off, and Lipstick Is Back! I have been to Sephora twice during the pandemic, both in-and-out drive-bys to refill the one skincare product I still use after the coronavirus gutted my beauty routine. I no longer wear most makeup; if I want to feel fancy I might swipe on some old, crunchy mascara.

Developing . . .
Today most Kansas City municipalities gave up on masks as a defense against the plague . . . But in some places masks are still required and businesses are allowed to make their own determinations.

Here are more than a few relevant news links and a guide to weekend partying unmasked.



Read more . . .

Kansas City COVID Mask Redux

KCMO rescinds COVID-19 emergency order Following the release ofthe Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention's updated mask guidance, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas - in consultation with Kansas City Health Director Rex Archer, M.D. - announced Thursday that effective Friday, May 14 at noon, Kansas City will rescind its Fourteenth Emergency COVID-19 Order.

Courthouse Concurs

Jackson County Health Order Expires May 14, 2021 Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. - in consultation with Jackson County Health Department Director Bridgette Shaffer, MPH and Emergency Management Coordinator Troy Schulte - is announcing the expiration of the county health order. The order, which requires masks in indoor businesses and places of public accommodation, expired upon its signature this afternoon.

THE DOTTE STILL DEMANDS COVID MASKS!!!

Mask order remains in effect in Wyandotte County and KCK The mask order remains in effect in Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas.

Meth Town Unmasked

Independence lifts mask mandate and capacity limits by: Juan Cisneros Posted: / Updated: INDEPENDENCE, Mo. - Independence Mayor Eileen Weir announced that the city of Independence is lifting the mask mandate and capacity limits in accordance with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The decision comes a day after the CDC announced that fully vaccinated individuals are no longer required to wear masks indoors or in groups.

Northland Drops COVID Rules

Clay County lifting mask mandate, ending COVID-19 emergency health order Kansas city Missouri mask mandates in place for over a year have now been lifted, but businesses still have the right to have the right that is to make their own rules about covid restrictions. Kmbc nine Michael Mahoney live in midtown right now, with more on this story.

Local Biz Still Allowed To Request Pandemic Precautions

Mask rules will vary from business to business despite no Kansas City mandate KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Shortly after Mayor Quinton Lucas announced Kansas City is dropping its mask mandate, many businesses tore their signs off their doors and are back to business as usual. "It is weird. I think there's going to be a lot weird about all of this," said Jim Saffels, who hasn't been in public without a mask since the pandemic started.

Royals Reject COVID Masks

Kansas City Royals lift face mask requirement at Kauffman Stadium KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City Royals said Thursday they are lifting their face mask requirement at Kauffman Stadium. The team said fully vaccinated fans can ditch their masks if they choose now that the team has lifted its restrictions. Masks are recommended, but not required, for non-vaccinated fans.

Union Station Kinda Keeps Masks For Another Week

Union Station announces updated mask policy KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) --- Masks are no longer required in Union Station's public spaces as of Friday, but will still be required for Science City, the Planetarium and Extreme Screen Theatre until May 18. Kansas City rescinded its emergency order on Friday.

Kansas City Zoo Goes Wild Without COVID Masks

Kansas City Zoo will no longer require face masks on zoo grounds, per CDC guidance Kansas city Missouri mask mandates in place for over a year have now been lifted, but businesses still have the right to have the right that is to make their own rules about covid restrictions. Kmbc nine Michael Mahoney live in midtown right now, with more on this story.

Library Keeps Face Coverings

Kansas City, Missouri, Public Library to maintain mask policy KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City, Missouri, Public Library announced Friday patrons will still be required to wear masks inside its buildings. The announcement comes as federal, state and local governments relax mask wearing and social distancing requirements as COVID-19 vaccinations rise and cases trend lower.

Check Another Worthwhile Kansas City Pandemic Overview

Who has dropped mask mandates, emergency health orders in Kansas City metro area? Kansas city Missouri mask mandates in place for over a year have now been lifted, but businesses still have the right to have the right that is to make their own rules about covid restrictions. Kmbc nine Michael Mahoney live in midtown right now, with more on this story.

Developing . . .
This debate at the state level should be interesting IF ONLY because KCMO is cutting the budget across the board.



Real talk . . . It's unlikely this one will pass BUT it's a sign that Jeff City continues to flex on both KC and STL amid an ongoing cultural shift in perceptions of public safety.

Read more . . .
An important reminder for parents and weed candy now becomes more commonplace than . . . Candy.

Check-it as adminsitators work to inform the public on the growing danger . . .
featured

MASKED

CDC, Biden, says no more masks, Gov. Phil Murphy says he knows more
Johnstown, PA (15901)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low 62F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low 62F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 00:13:24|Editor: huaxia

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BANGKOK, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Thailand decided on Saturday to allow restaurants in the capital Bangkok to resume dine-in services, but with a limited serving capacity and operating hours.

From Monday, restaurants, cafes and other foodshops in Bangkok and its neighboring Nonthaburi, Pathumthani and Samut Prakan provinces, which currently remain under maximum control and restrictions, can receive customers up to 25 percent of their capacity until 9:00 p.m. local time and provide take-away services until 11:00 p.m. local time, according to a royal gazette issued late Saturday.

Previously restaurants in regions under maximum control and restrictions could only open for food delivery.

Restaurants, cafes and other foodshops in another 17 provinces under maximum control can provide dine-in services until 11:00 p.m. local time, according to the royal gazette.

However, the sales of alcoholic beverages at those places will still be banned.

Thailand reported 3,095 new COVID-19 infections on Saturday, raising the total caseload to 99,145, official data showed. Enditem
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Mark Bennett has reported and analyzed news from the Wabash Valley and beyond since Larry Bird wore Sycamore blue. That role with the Tribune-Star has taken him from Rome to Alaska and many points in between, but Terre Haute suits him best.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 00:27:46|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday expounded on China's position on the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict during a phone talk with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

In recent days, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has continuously escalated, causing huge casualties, which is distressing, said Wang, before presenting China's views and proposals on the issue.

First, Wang said, the root cause of the deterioration of the situation is that for a long time there has not been a just solution to the Palestinian issue.

Especially, in recent years, the Middle East peace process has deviated from its original track, the UN Security Council resolutions have not been earnestly implemented and, in particular, the Palestinian right to build an independent state has been continuously violated, adding to the plight of the Palestinian people, which has led to the intensification of the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation and repeated conflicts, Wang said.

As has been proven, Wang noted, without a just settlement of the Palestinian issue, Palestine and Israel as well as the Middle East will not be able to achieve true peace.

Second, Wang said, what is pressing now is the ceasefire and cessation of violence, and the Security Council has the responsibility to seek early de-escalation.

China, as the president of the Security Council for May, has pushed the Council to hold two emergency consultations on the Palestine-Israel conflict, and has drafted a press statement, in a bid to guide the Council to take actions, he added.

But regrettably, the Council has so far failed to reach an agreement, with the United States standing on the opposite side of international justice, Wang said, urging all members of the Council to shoulder their due responsibilities and make effective efforts to maintain regional peace and security.

Third, Wang said, an ultimate way out of the Palestinian issue lies in the implementation of the two-state solution. China will host an open debate on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict at the UN Security Council Sunday, and expects all parties to make a unified voice on this issue.

China holds the opinion that the Security Council should reconfirm the two-state solution and urge Palestine and Israel to resume peace talks on the basis of the two-state solution as soon as possible, Wang added.

China will continue to firmly support the just cause of the Palestinian people to strive for the restoration of their legitimate national rights, support a just solution to the current issue through political dialogue, and support the UN, the League of Arab States and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in playing a constructive role in this regard, Wang said.

For his part, Qureshi said that Pakistan agrees with China's position on the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict, supports the two-state solution and the just cause of the Palestinian people, and advocates promoting a solution through dialogue and negotiation between the Palestinian and Israeli sides.

Noting Pakistan highly appreciates China for upholding justice in the Security Council, Qureshi said his country is willing to strengthen communication and coordination with China to find ways to achieve a ceasefire and cessation of violence as well as to cool down the situation. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 00:35:03|Editor: huaxia

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ALGIERS, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Algeria on Saturday reported 135 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the North African country to 125,194.

The death toll from the virus rose to 3,366 after six new fatalities were added, said the Algerian Ministry of Health in a statement.

Meanwhile, 134 more patients recovered, bringing the total number of recoveries in the country to 87,173, the statement added.

Algerian Presidency Saturday announced that President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and the Council of Ministers will discuss the issue of reopening the border in its regular meeting on Sunday, the official APS news agency reported.

As an advisory body, the Algerian Scientific Committee monitoring the spread of COVID-19 suggested last Thursday the conditional return of Algerians stranded abroad and foreigners.

Algeria has closed its borders in March 2020 after it reported the first COVID-19 case. Enditem
This ferry goes from Freeport, Grand Bahamas to Fort Lauderdale, Florida and it departs 5PM and arrives 9PM.

Once it arrives at Fort Lauderdale, does anyone know if I can order an Uber? The terminal is in a secured area and I'm wondering if Uber is allowed to go there or I have to walk outside that area first.

Edited: 15 May 2021, 16:41
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 00:38:36|Editor: huaxia

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SOFIA, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Bulgarian national qualification contest of the 14th "Chinese Bridge," a Chinese language proficiency competition for foreign middle school students, was held here on Saturday.

Nine teenagers studying Chinese demonstrated Chinese language and cultural skills such as dancing, singing and tea ceremony at the event, which was held online for the first time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lyana Vladinova from the 18th Comprehensive School in Sofia, the first Bulgarian school to begin Chinese language teaching in 1992, won the competition. She will represent Bulgaria at the finals in China.

"I hope that, through your study of the Chinese language and culture, you will become envoys of the friendly exchanges between China and Bulgaria and contribute with your efforts to the strengthening of mutual understanding and friendship between our two countries," Chinese Ambassador to Bulgaria Dong Xiaojun said at the opening ceremony.

Last year, the Ministry of Education and Science of Bulgaria officially introduced curricula for teaching the Chinese language in schools, Dong recalled.

"At the same time, many universities, including Sofia University, have specialties related to the Chinese language and China, which have trained a large number of talents who speak Chinese and understand Chinese culture, providing a solid intellectual foundation for exchange and cooperation between China and Bulgaria in different areas," the ambassador said.

The "Chinese Bridge" competition is organized annually to inspire foreign students to learn Chinese and enhance their understanding of the Chinese culture. Enditem
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TRUMBULL  Having lived in major cities like New York and Tampa, there was no doubt in Cassie Castillos mind where she wanted to live when it was time to start thinking about raising a family.

Having experienced the suburban lifestyle, thats something I want my family to have, said Castillo, 32, who recently bought a house in the Nichols section of Trumbull with her fiance, Jonathan Faccento, 38.

We were looking since October, and we went back and forth, looking at houses in Shelton and Monroe, Castillo said. But Trumbull had this close-knit New England feel, and its right off the Parkway and so central to everything.

Castillo and Faccento are part of an influx of new residents that has made Trumbull the No. 2 community in Connecticut in terms of people moving into town. According to a U.S. Postal Service change-of-address study by Dallas-based CBRE Group, 2,413 people relocated to Trumbull in 2020, nearly 500 more than the 1,948 who moved to town in 2019. The net increase of 516 new residents last year is more than triple 2019s net gain of 155, according to the report.

The statistic is so notable that First Selectman Vicki Tesoro made mention of it in her recent announcement that she is seeking a third term in office.

It is no accident that Trumbull is second in the state for people moving in. It is the result of hard work and focus on things that matter to people, Tesoro said. There are plenty of communities from which to choose but these people chose Trumbull. Clearly, we remain a community of choice.

But what is it about Trumbull that made it such an attractive destination in 2020? Real estate agent John McBride said the towns location played a key role.

When you look at buyers coming from New York, Trumbull still allows for entry-level home buying, he said. Compared to some of the other Fairfield County towns at a million dollar price point, you get a lot of house in Trumbull for $450,000.

Trumbull also has a school system that is considered among the best in the area. Other Fairfield County communities also pride themselves on their school systems, but Trumbull remains considerably more affordable than the lower Fairfield County towns with similar school rankings, McBride said.

In addition, when the COVID-19 pandemic struck and more and more people began working remotely, Trumbulls location just over 60 miles from Midtown Manhattan suddenly became less of a deterrent for commuters, said fellow real estate professional Ken Martin.

When you look at the new houses going in at the former Moorefield farm, there are premium homes that are going to be selling in the $700,000 range, Martin said. That kind of square footage and design in Fairfield would cost $900,000.

And while Fairfield has two Metro-North train stations and Trumbull has none, Martin said the same location that provides easy access to the Merritt Parkway and I-95 also made for an easy commute to the New Haven rail line.

My son commuted to New York City, and he took the train from Bridgeport. It was 12 minutes from his house to the station, Martin said. And you can actually get parking at the Bridgeport station instead of getting on a waiting list for a spot at Fairfield. So if youre going to live in Fairfield and drive 10 minutes to the train, living in Trumbull and driving 12 minutes to the train really opens up a lot of options.

And in 2020, the commute becomes much more palatable for workers like Faccento, who works for a company with its headquarters on Avenue of the Americas in Manhattan but has been working remotely since the pandemic began. Even when offices reopen, he said, the practice of working remotely is likely here to stay.

I used to live in New Haven and made that commute into the city on the train before I moved to Queens for eight years, he said. But when we started looking at houses last year, going into the city once or twice a week, or a few times a month, and with trains running express from Fairfield into Grand Central, its not so bad.

In addition to the all the other factors that have made Trumbull attractive to those looking to relocate, Tesoro said the construction of new apartment complexes in the Reservoir Drive corridor meant that young professionals and empty-nesters now had an additional option for moving into or remaining in town.

It would be foolish to say the apartments had nothing to do with (the influx), it was clearly a case of right place, right time, she said. Diversity of housing is so important because it gives people the opportunity to come to town and get invested in the community.

Tesoro said the apartments give younger people not interested in owning a home a foot in the door that could pay off in the future.

When they start getting into their 30s and maybe looking to start a family, theyre going to look to buy a house in Trumbull, she said. And the people whose kids are grown and they dont want a house and property, it gives them a chance to stay in Trumbull.

Meanwhile, Tesoro said, the new residents presence has revitalized the Reservoir Avenue corridor that was formerly home to a vacant office building and lumberyard.

People were concerned that the apartments would hurt the town, and weve seen that it hasnt, she said. But now, when you drive through the area, it looks totally different.

The new residents also help support a growing restaurant scene, Tesoro said.

Weve done a good job blending development into areas like Long Hill Green and lower Madison Avenue while still retaining traditional, old-fashioned residential streets through town, she said.

And while no one would say Trumbull has an active scene for night life, Martin said the new restaurants and other additions to the town have not gone unnoticed by home buyers.

It used to be, 20 or 30 years ago, we would say Trumbull is a nice place to sleep, he said. But now if you want to go out for dinner or to go shopping, you can do that in Trumbull. And if you want to go to New Haven or Stamford, its 20 minutes away. You can go to a theater or go out for the evening, and when thats over, in 20 minutes youre back in your house on a quiet street.
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  People in Michigan who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 don't need to wear a mask any longer, and people who aren't vaccinated don't have to wear one outdoors, officials said Friday, also declaring that the state's indoor mask requirement will expire in July.

The announcement from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the state health department came a day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people.

Michigan's revised order will take effect at 9 a.m. Saturday.

People won't have to wear a mask outdoors, including in contact sports, regardless of whether they're vaccinated. While indoors, the fully vaccinated can go without a face covering but the unvaccinated still must wear one, at least until the state's mandate ends after July 1.

Businesses  including stores  governments, schools and events must make a good faith effort to ensure unvaccinated employees and patrons are masked. It wasn't clear what sort of requirements could remain after the statewide mandate expires, which is nearly seven weeks away and will allow time for more vaccinations.

More than 55% of Michigan residents ages 16 and older have received at least one dose. The state still has the country's highest two-week infection rate, but it has dropped significantly recently.

With millions of Michiganders fully vaccinated, we can now safely and confidently take the next step to get back to normal, the Democratic governor said in a statement. The message is clear: Vaccines work to protect you and your loved ones. If you have not yet received your vaccine, now is the time to sign up.

The order was announced more than a week after state officials lifted an outdoor mask requirement except in gatherings of at least 100 people and in organized contact sports, and said vaccinated people aren't mandated to be masked at indoor residential gatherings evens if others are unvaccinated.

In Detroit, Christoph Cunningham, 28, was wearing a mask as he rode an electric scooter to Andrews, a bar, for lunch. He said hes fully vaccinated and agrees with the new federal and state policies.

I have confidence in the science behind it all, said Cunningham, who works in the culinary field. Ill eventually take my mask off more and more. I might take it off to make other people comfortable. ... If you dont feel comfortable not wearing a mask, I think you should be able to keep it on. Dont beat anyone down about it.

Whitmer plans for the health department to ease indoor capacity restrictions two weeks after 60% of people get at least one shot and to end them entirely two weeks after 65% receive a dose. At 70%, the gatherings order will be rescinded such that broad mitigation measures go away.

A rule requiring remote work when feasible will be repealed, effective May 24. But it wasn't clear if coronavirus workplace safety regulations, such as a mask requirement for employees who can't consistently keep 6 feet apart, will change due to the new order. They remain in place for now.

The agency has the flexibility it needs to ensure consistency with public health guidelines and will continue to protect Michigan workers as we work toward ending this pandemic, said Sean Egan, the state's COVID-19 workplace safety director.

Teen athletes must continue to be regularly tested for the virus unless they are fully vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19 in the past three months.

House Speaker Jason Wentworth, a Farwell Republican, urged the governor to lift the indoor mask requirement sooner.

There is no science that says July 1 is a safer date to stop wearing a mask than any other day; it is just a round number on the calendar, he said in a statement. "Lets move it up sooner, embrace the strategy of trust thats working right now and move Michigan past this pandemic.

Michigan courts will still mandate masks for all employees and visitors.

In a memo, State Court Administrator Thomas Boyd said the CDC advice, in the absence of any way to identify who is vaccinated and who is not, creates an unacceptable level of risk.

___

White reported from Detroit.

___

Follow David Eggert at https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00
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.
Ukraine could join the initiatives of Eastern European member states of the European Union, in particular in the field of infrastructure.

"We could build infrastructural relations with Ukraine. I mean such EU countries as Poland, Slovakia, Hungary. And Ukraine would benefit from this," ex-foreign minister of Poland Jacek Czaputowicz said during an online discussion of the Kyiv Security Forum dedicated to the Europe Day in Ukraine, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

He added that Ukraine and EU countries could work more closely on energy security.

"Poland wants to be independent of Russia in gas imports. That's why we joined the North Sea route, the Baltic Pipe, we have an LNG terminal and signed an agreement with the United States on the supply of liquefied natural gas," said the ex-minister.

Another important format for Ukraine, he said, is the so-called Lublin Triangle, created by Poland, Lithuania, and Ukraine.

"This is a smaller, but also very useful format for Ukraine, for consultations on security, economic cooperation, solving certain historical problems," Czaputowicz noted.

He stressed that Ukraine could not fully participate in some associations, as they are limited to EU member states, but could receive observer status.

"One of the observers is the United States, the other is Germany. Ukraine would fit well into such a format," Czaputowicz summed up.

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The basic task for a possible meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin is to analyze the implementation of the agreements reached by the leaders of the Normandy Four countries in Paris in 2019, Head of the President's Office Andriy Yermak has told the RBC-Ukraine news site.

According to Yermak, the analysis of how the Paris Summit agreements were fulfilled is the basic task for Zelensky's potential meeting with Putin.

"We see that the fundamental things of a humanitarian nature and in the field of security have not yet been implemented. There are also other issues that should be discussed at the top level," he said.

He also noted that the terms of a possible meeting were still being agreed upon, but it was too early to announce specific details. "Of course, it would be right to hold talks as soon as possible. The situation requires quick reaction," Yermak said.

At the same time, he specified that Kyiv did not seek to cancel or replace any of the existing formats with bilateral talks in the Zelensky-Putin format, while the President's Office "seeks to use any diplomatic opportunities" that could lead to progress in resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

Yermak said he was convinced that key issues could not be resolved without the participation of the Russian side in the negotiations.

"Western friends of Ukraine support us, and we act in such a way that each of our initiatives is absolutely clear and predictable for our partners. This also includes the issue of negotiations between the two leaders  of Ukraine and Russia," Yermak said.

On April 20, Zelensky addressed Putin, inviting him to meet "in any part of the Ukrainian Donbas where war is ongoing."

On April 22, Putin said he was ready to meet with Zelensky in Moscow, but he added that the issue of ending the war in eastern Ukraine would be discussed only after the Ukrainian authorities hold talks with "DPR and LPR leaders."

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Ukraine imposed personal sanctions on 557 thieves in law.

Following the adoption of the law on thieves in law, the strategy for combating organized crime, and nine months of work, personal sanctions have been imposed on 557 thieves in law currently known in the world, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said after a meeting of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine on May 14.

According to the President, most of these thieves in law are not in Ukraine and the number of those at liberty in Ukraine has halved from 34 to 17 people.

Today we did everything to make this figure zero, Zelensky assured.

Zelensky explained that sanctioned persons were subject to asset freezing, ban on entry into the territory of Ukraine, refusal to grant a visa, abolition of visa, temporary or permanent residence permit, immigration permit, refusal to extend the period of stay in Ukraine, inability to acquire Ukrainian citizenship and forced expulsion.

In a word: those who are not in Ukraine have nothing to come here for. Those who are in Ukraine have nothing to stay here for, he said.

The President also informed that Ukraine imposed sanctions on the leaders of criminal groups, the so-called crime bosses.

We are a hospitable country, but not for 111 foreigners. These are crime bosses on which the same package of sanctions has been imposed today, the Head of State stressed.

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Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Oleksiy Danilov supposes that Viktor Medvedchuk, if convicted, could be exchanged for Ukrainians imprisoned in Russia, but such a decision can be made only by the President.

President of Ukraine makes such a decision. I think that if there is such an opportunity, we will gladly do this, Danilov said on the air of the Freedom of Speech by Savik Shuster TV program, answering questions about the possible exchange of MP Viktor Medvedchuk for Ukrainian patriots held in Russian prisons.

As reported, on May 11, Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova signed notices of charges for MPs Viktor Medvedchuk and Taras Kozak. They are suspected of treason and the attempted plundering of national resources in Crimea.

The investigation believes that Medvedchuk, among other things, negotiated with the aggressor state to re-register the Hlyboka oil and gas field in the Black Sea, 75 km of Feodosia town, for the purpose of production of minerals which are Ukraine's national resource. Moreover, Medvedchuk is suspected of treason (transferring secret information about a military unit of the Ukrainian Armed Forces to the aggressor state).

If guilty under the treason article (Part 1 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) is proven, they face imprisonment for a term of 12 to 15 years with or without confiscation of property. The plundering of national resources in the occupied territories (Part 1 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) is punished with a term of eight to 12 years.

On May 13, Viacheslav Pidpalyi, investigating judge of the Pechersky District Court in Kyiv, ordered Medvedchuk to be put under round-the-clock house arrest as a measure of restraint.

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Ukraine officially requested the U.S. authorities to provide full information on 61 Ukrainian citizens under U.S. sanctions.

"We talked about the sanctions imposed by our partners, the sanctions imposed on the citizens of Ukraine by the United States. We appealed to them with official documents so that they could give us comprehensive information about every citizen of Ukraine  when and why certain sanctions were imposed  to react here, in Ukraine," Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleksiy Danilov said at a briefing after the NSDC meeting chaired by President Zelensky on May 14, an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

After comprehensive data are received, Ukrainian law enforcement officers will make a decision on the possibility of bringing these persons to justice in Ukraine.

According to Danilov, "to date, we know for sure about 61 citizens of Ukraine, against whom the United States imposed sanctions."

The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council assured that Ukraine would address similar requests to European partners.

Danilov also informed that a total of eight issues had been considered during the NSDC meeting on May 14, including: making proposals to the Budget Declaration for 2022-2024 on articles related to national security and defense of Ukraine, imposition of information security measures, adoption of the Cyber Security Strategy, the issue of priority measures to ensure biological safety and protection.

At its meeting on May 14, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine also endorsed the Cyber Security Strategy of Ukraine for 2021-2025 and approved a decision to create a nationwide digital multichannel television network Multiplex.

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Ukraine hopes that the promise of future NATO membership of Ukraine and Georgia will be confirmed in a statement of the NATO summit in June.

"Thirteen years have passed since the Bucharest Summit, at which it was decided that Ukraine and Georgia would be granted [NATO] membership in the future. And now we are in a situation when we insist on fulfilling this promise. Our position is that this promise is fixed, it will be confirmed at the next summit, and the statement of this summit will pave the way to the MAP," Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna said during an online discussion of the Kyiv Security Forum dedicated to the Europe Day in Ukraine, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

She added that the presence of President Volodymyr Zelensky at the June summit was not decisive for members of the Ukrainian government.

"We focus mainly on substantive issues," she said.

At the same time, Stefanishyna said that next week she would attend a meeting of ambassadors, the leadership of the Alliance in Brussels in order to develop a format in which Ukraine could be physically involved in the summit discussions.

"Of course, we are somewhat disappointed by the public discourse, in which too much attention is paid to diplomatic formats. It is also important for us. But we are not disappointed with the expected results of the summit and plan that the next summit will be dedicated not to discussions, but to decision-making, and this will definitely create a platform on which our President will be present," Stefanishyna summed up.

The next summit of NATO leaders will be held in Brussels on June 14.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 01:24:38|Editor: huaxia

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RABAT, May 15 (Xinhua) -- A total of 112 people tested positive for COVID-19 in Morocco on Saturday, taking the national tally of infections to 514,817, the ministry of health said in a statement.

In the past 24 hours, six people have died from the disease, taking the death toll to 9,098 in the country, and 211 people are in intensive care units.

The total number of recoveries from COVID-19 in Morocco increased to 502,884 after 280 more were added.

The COVID-19 fatality rate in Morocco stands at 1.8 percent while the recovery rate is 97.7 percent.

Meanwhile, 6,171,437 people have received so far the first vaccine shots against COVID-19 in the country, and 4,500,638 people have received the second doses.

The North African country launched a nationwide vaccination campaign on Jan. 28 after the arrival of the first shipment of China's Sinopharm vaccines. Enditem
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko opened Europe Day in the capital. The general concept of the holiday is "Danube Way to the European Union".

As an Ukrinform correspondent reports, the events are taking place on the Mykhailivska Square in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Kyiv Mayor greeted representatives of the diplomatic corps, ambassadors of Belgium, Great Britain, Denmark, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Germany, Turkey, and other countries.

Europe Day was opened to the anthem of Ukraine and the anthem of the European Union performed by a symphony orchestra.

Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna, Head of the EU Delegation Ukraine Matti Maasikas, and Ambassador of Ukraine to Hungary, Chairperson of the Danube Commission Liubov Nepop delivered the speeches.

As Stefanishyna stressed, the EU is Ukraine's largest political ally. The European Union is Ukraine's largest partner and donor which supports its independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, Maasikas noted.

Liubov Nepop drew attention to the role of the Danube in Ukraines European integration.

Today, the Danube is what unites us, and the Danube not only physically helps our ships reach our partners from the European Union, but also helps us fulfil our key course towards the European Union integration in terms of sectoral and regulatory approximation to the EU standards, said the Chair of the Danube Commission.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 02:15:33|Editor: huaxia

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BAGHDAD, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's authorities has lifted the planned 10-day full lockdown put into effect to curb the rising COVID-19 infections, replacing it with a partial curfew.

The Iraqi authorities earlier decided to tighten COVID-19-related restrictive measures, including a full curfew from May 12 to 22. Malls, restaurants, cafes, and other public facilities were required to be closed.

One day after the full curfew came into effect on Wednesday, a statement by the Higher Committee for Health and National Safety said that the committee decided to ease the restriction and replace the full curfew with a partial one to facilitate the vaccination campaign.

A statement of the Ministry of Health shows that the daily count of citizens receiving vaccines before Wednesday exceeded 21,000, while decreased sharply to 8,774 on Thursday and 3,825 on Friday, apparently due to the curfew and the beginning of the Eid al-Fitr holiday, which marks the end of Ramadan.

Ziyad al-Jubouri, a professor of economics at Baghdad University, told Xinhua that vaccination is an essential process to contain the pandemic and help the country return to normality.

However, he said facilitating vaccination is not the only reason that prompted the higher committee to quickly lift the full curfew. He also attributed the decision to the the economic difficulties faced by people in the war-torn country, where the poverty rate is about 27 percent.

The previously announced full curfew angered many laborers, stall vendors, and other self-employed craftsmen who were living hand-to-mouth and anxiously waiting to do a brisk trade during the last several days of the Ramadan and the three-day Eid al-Fitr holiday.

Hundreds of citizens rallied in Baghdad and some other provinces to protest against the restrictions, particularly the full curfew.

Anas Dara, an employee of a humanitarian organization, said the decision to cancel the full curfew "balances the health requirements and the living requirements of poor citizens."

Unlike others, Dr. Mohammed Hassan from a private al-Tawfiq Hospital in Salhudin's provincial capital Tikrit told Xinhua that he prefers to maintain the full curfew due to the seriousness of the epidemiological situation in the country.

"We are in a difficult health situation, especially with fears of the spread of the double mutant variant," Hassan said.

But with lifting the full curfew, Hassan called on citizens to adhere to health-protective measures and refrain from holding social gatherings, especially during the Eid al-Fitr holiday.

Hassan also hoped more citizens will be vaccinated, as currently, it is the most effective option to avoid COVID-19 infections.

As of Saturday, a statement by the ministry of health said Iraq's caseload reached 1,136,917 with 15,930 deaths.

Iraq has been pushing forward its vaccination drive after its drug authority approved the emergency use of China's Sinopharm vaccine and other COVID-19 vaccines. Enditem
Cason "Casey" Lanier Branan, 41, passed away Sunday, May 31, 2021. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, June 3 at the chapel of Moores Funeral Home with burial to follow in Camp Creek Church Cemetery. Casey was born in Macon, Ga. on May 5, 1980, to David Branan and Tashia McCul
Kevin Ko Shares What You Need to Know About Cryptocurrency and Rik

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(Photo : Instagram)

Cryptocurrency has gained global recognition from investors in digital currencies from all corners of the world. The increased awareness has raised the demand for the money with more investors being attracted to the field. It is a faster and easier way to transact finances, thus opening up new and advanced payment options. New investors and business people are willing to risk their money in this currency platform as they see it as a booming field despite its volatility.

Kevin Ko is one investor who has been keeping his presence in the market low despite the big-money moves he has been making. He is a commercial broker for the industrial market in Honolulu, HI. Kevin joined the crypto space in 2017. Since then, he has been helping thousands of investors by educating them on building a portfolio. He has helped people from your average joe to Hollywood celebrities and social media influencers. From a young age, Kevin always had a passion for investing and seeking new opportunities.

The launch of Crypto Kingz has influenced him to no longer work under the radar and begin to teach others the market basics. The platform is receiving thousands of newbie investors. He feels there is a need for others to learn how to manage the risks in the market. Besides, he believes Cryptocurrency is the future and wants to be exposed in the space while capitalizing on the market.

As an investor, you need to be wary of the market as it is a high-risk venture. Every decision and move contributes to either your downfall or success. Investing in the market demands new tools and the adoption of new concepts, and unless you are eager to learn and keep up with the market speed, you can easily be left behind. If you are new in the market, Kevin advises that you consider first learning the industry basics and understand what to expect or do before you join.

Kevin offers the following strategies to help you minimize the risks in the cryptocurrency world.

1. Crypto Funds

The crypto fund concept is just the same as the standard investment plan, and if you are coming from the finance world, you probably stand a better chance of understanding it better than most. But there is no reason to worry if you are new in the market. Crypto funds are sets of professionally managed assets cutting across a wide range of investments. They are more of group investments, and individual investors do not have much say since it's a group investment. The risks are reduced since the investment is managed by a professional.

2. Hedging

This is something like obtaining an insurance policy. It involves offsetting any potential losses against an investment.

3. Restrain from Hyped temptations

In other words, it can be thought of as emotional management. The fear of missing out can result in more devastating results, thus, avoid peer decision-making. Imagine cashing out on potential investment or ending up buying at the top, all because you chose to move with the Hype.

4. Quality always triumphs over quantity.

Do not over-trade in the market; instead, try swing trading to move with the trade. Otherwise, you will end up wasting money and time on unnecessary investments.

5. Keep learning

There is no better way to mitigate the risks in the crypto world other than being informed. A well-informed investor will always understand the market better and diminish the uncalled-for hypes.

You can use the following link to get in touch with Kevin on Instagram or his website.

See Now: Facebook will use AI to detect users with suicidal thoughts and prevent suicide

 2017 University Herald, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
DUBAI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 15th May, 2021) H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Supreme Council of Energy (DSCE), has issued Directive No. 3 of 2021 on the regulation of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) trading, in order to protect the environment and society, by implementing the highest standards of safety and security. This includes the transportation, storage, and distribution of LPG, whether through cylinders or transport tanks.

The Directive stipulates that it is prohibited to distribute LPG cylinders in Dubai unless they are filled in the approved LPG factories in the Emirate. This ensures compliance with all standards and regulations issued by local departments.

In its Directive, the DSCE stipulated the necessity of obtaining its authorisation to issue the permit to complete all approvals and requirements from government authorities in the Emirate, according to their respective requirements. The DSCE will coordinate with government authorities to conduct joint inspection campaigns to ensure that workers in this sector follow the Directive and apply the highest safety and security standards.

"Through this Directive, we outline the regulatory framework, strategies and regulations for LPG trading in Dubai, in accordance with the highest international standards in this area. We also work to regulate business practices and implement the highest international safety and security standards. We aim to ensure transportation, storage and distribution of LPG according to the approved criteria in the UAE. We thank all authorities involved in regulating this sector," said Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Vice Chairman of the DSCE.

The DSCE is the sole entity in Dubai to carry out all tasks and powers according to Federal Law No. (14) of 2017 as well as the decisions issued thereby, in particular, to issue permits for trading in petroleum products in Dubai and to determine the petroleum materials that may be traded, the activities associated therewith, and the control and inspection of the facilities authorised to deal in this regard. This is based on the Federal Law No. (14) of 2017 regarding the regulation of petroleum products trading and Decree No. 8 of 2020 regarding the appointing of the competent entity in the Emirate of Dubai responsible for implementing Federal Law No. (14) of 2017 for petroleum products trading.

The Directive also states that issue or renewal of licenses to distribute LPG and its derivatives in Dubai requires written approval from the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy (DSCE). This confirms the distributor has a valid contract showing commitment to safety and security criteria, with the approved bottling plants in the Emirate," said HE Ahmed Buti Al Muhairbi, Secretary-General of the DSCE and Chairman of the Dubai Regulatory Committee for Petroleum Products.

"We would like to thank the Dubai Regulatory Committee for Petroleum Products members for their efforts to protect individuals, society and organisations. This is by ensuring the effective application of policies related to petroleum products trading as well as inspections," said Burhan Al Hashemi, Vice Chairman of the Dubai Regulatory Committee for Petroleum Products.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Washington, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :With the park in front of the White House reopening this week, selfie-snapping tourists have suddenly reappeared.

Washington DC, home to some of the toughest anti-Covid regulations in the country, is now reopening, highlighting the United States's steady transition back to normality.

Boasting imposing landmarks such as the US Capitol and the Supreme Court, Washington began reopening the doors of its museums on Friday, including the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the National Portrait Gallery, which will soon host a painting of former president Donald Trump.

By next Friday, six museums run by the famed Smithsonian Institution, and the National Zoo, will once again welcome visitors as vaccination rates climb and infections continue to plunge.

The question now is how to attract more tourists and spur an economic rebound after a year of pandemic restrictions that left the US Federal capital city, normally a hub for conferences and meetings of international institutions, stricken.

"For the moment, I have very few customers," said Ngre Phung, whose mobile souvenir shop is parked near the African American museum.

So far, DC residents, who are packing the terraces of restaurants and bars, haven't rushed downtown to peruse Phung's selection of caps, T-shirts and other trinkets. Instead the shopkeeper relies heavily on visitors to nearby museums.

"It's very key with the museums opening," said Anne Purcell, director of hospitality market analytics for the northeast region at CoStar Group.

Between the 555-foot (170-meter) Washington Monument obelisk and a memorial to World War II, Read Scott Martin sat on his pedicab, patiently waiting for customers to emerge from the crowd.

- Waiting for full vaccination - At the moment he gives about three or four tours a day, but that can double on weekends.

"The last few weeks, it was improving," he said, especially since the city's Cherry Blossom Festival in the spring.

His optimism is boosted by increasing arrivals of tourists from Asia and Latin America.

One of them is 17-year-old Valeria, who came from Peru for a week-long visit, posing for photos in front of the White House with her little sister and parents.

"We wanted to come before the Covid but we have to cancel our trip," she said.

However, the overwhelming majority of visitors are from other US states coming to see family, or tourists stopping by on their way to New York.

Ghania and Abdel, who live in Los Angeles, were in Washington to visit their daughter Shiraz, 26, who just graduated from Georgetown University.

"This is our first trip in just over a year," the couple originally from Algeria said in French. "We were waiting to be fully vaccinated and for the city to get a little busier." But these leisure travelers are not the ones who typically fill hotel rooms.

Hotel occupancy in Washington, DC on Saturday, May 1 was only 43.4 percent, slipping to 42.4 percent the following Saturday, according to STR, which provides data and analysis for the industry.

That's far from the 80.3 percent and 78.6 percent recorded on the first two Saturdays in May 2019.

"Tourism is only one component of the city's business," said Purcell, noting that Washington is "very reliant" on conventions and business travel.

With travel restrictions still in place for many countries including large parts of Europe, the tourism sector is still struggling and its recovery is uncertain.

"It's still very unclear whether business travel will return to pre-pandemic levels because everyone has gotten so used to doing so much online," Purcell said.

In 2019, Washington welcomed 1.8 million visitors from abroad, led by China, Britain and India, and 22.8 million domestic visitors, according to Destination D.C.

While waiting for the return of international business travelers, the organization will soon launch a major advertising campaign to target the American public.
(@FahadShabbir)

Montreal, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :The general in charge of coordinating Canada's Covid-19 vaccination campaign has left his post in the Public Health Agency as he is being investigated by the military, the Department of National Defence said Friday.

Formerly commander of the NATO mission in Iraq, Major-General Dany Fortin has left his public health assignment "pending the results of a military investigation," authorities said in a brief statement, without elaborating.

Fortin was appointed last November by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to coordinate the logistics of the largest vaccination campaign in Canadian history.

The Canadian military is responsible, in collaboration with the public health agency, for distributing the vaccine in remote communities of this vast country.

The military has been shaken in recent months by a series of investigations into high-ranking officers accused of sexual misconduct.

They include retired general Jonathan Vance, a former chief of the defense staff, who has denied the allegations against him.

His successor, Admiral Art McDonald, left office a few weeks after his appointment, following the opening of an investigation into similar charges.

Last month, Minister of National Defence Harjit Sajjan instructed Louise Arbour, prosecutor before the International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and for the former Yugoslavia, to conduct an independent investigation into the handling of sexual harassment cases within the military.
(@FahadShabbir)

New Delhi, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :Suneet Sharma has calmly staged dozens of funerals each day of India's resurgent coronavirus crisis -- but he was overwhelmed when a father arrived at the crematorium with the body of his infant daughter.

The 48-year-old volunteers in New Delhi with a Sikh association, one of many groups to spring up around the country and reach across religious traditions to help bereaved families bid farewell to their loved ones.

The arrival of bodies at cremation and burial grounds has been unrelenting in recent weeks and teams work long hours under the summer heat, sometimes in full protective gear to reduce their exposure to the virus.

Like Sharma, the volunteers from different faiths are willing to take on the emotional and physical toll of carrying out the final rites, driven by a sense of duty.

"We are doing it for... mankind, for humanity. That's all. Sometimes it's very, very painful," the 48-year-old told AFP.

Behind him, smoke curled up from crackling funeral pyres and family members of victims stood silently in protective suits.

"We are used to cremating 50 bodies a day, but we never cry. Today, I saw a little girl. Today, we cried," he said.
Rome, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :A major Italian mafia fugitive who controlled cocaine routes within Europe has been returned by authorities to Rome from Spain, police said on Saturday.

Giuseppe Romeo, 35, arrived at Fiumicino Airport under escort from Barcelona Friday night, following his March 11 arrest on a European arrest warrant after three years on the run, police said in a statement.

Romeo is accused of being a top member of an international drug network run by three 'Ndrangheta clans based in the Reggio Calabria area of the southern Italian region of Calabria.

The 'Ndrangheta is Italy's most powerful mafia group, involved in nearly all areas of criminal activity beyond drug trafficking and extortion, whose operations extend throughout Europe and beyond.

According to an Italian police statement, Romeo, who lived in Germany, "had the role of promoter, organiser and financier of trafficking of cocaine in Europe." "He shuttled between between Calabria, Lombardy and north-western Europe to make agreements with suppliers and with suppliers and with some intermediaries in Belgium, Holland and Germany."In 2018, he managed to escape the "European Ndrangheta Connection" raid carried out by Italian, German, Dutch and Belgian authorities that targeted about 90 people suspected of involvement in the cross-border drug and money laundering ring.

In November, Romeo was sentenced in absentia to 20 years in prison for charges related to international drug trafficking, mafia association, drug possession, and money laundering.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 02:33:00|Editor: huaxia

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KUWAIT CITY, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The Kuwaiti Health Ministry reported on Saturday 795 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total number in the country to 290,801.

The ministry also announced six more fatalities, taking the death toll to 1,687, while the tally of recoveries rose by 1,047 to 276,792. A total of 12,322 COVID-19 patients are receiving treatment, including 194 in the intensive care units.

The Kuwaiti government has lifted the partial curfew, but all commercial activities are still suspended from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m. local time, except for pharmacies, food marketing outlets, restaurants, and maintenance services.

Restaurants and cafes are allowed to receive orders but only for takeaways on their doorstep. Enditem
Paris, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :Paris braced for possible clashes on Saturday as organisers vowed to hold a march in support of the Palestinians through the French capital despite a ban by authorities fearing a flare-up of anti-Semitic violence.

Police have ordered shops to close from noon along the planned route, from the heavily immigrant Barbes neighbourhood in the north to the place de la Bastille.

Police had banned the march, and a court upheld the decision, fearing a repeat of fierce clashes that erupted during a similar Paris demonstration during the last Israel-Palestinians war in 2014, when protesters took aim at synagogues and other Israeli and Jewish targets.

"We all remember that extremely troubling protest where terrible phrases like 'death to Jews' were yelled," Mayor Anne Hidalgo told AFP on Friday, welcoming the "wise" decision by the police to ban the march.

Similar protests in Germany and Denmark this week have degenerated into clashes leading to several arrests.

Organisers of the Paris march, who failed to have a court overturn the police ban, have announced a press conference for 1:00 pm (1100 GMT) ahead of the expected 3:00 pm start.

"We refuse to silence our solidarity with the Palestinians, and we will not be prevented from demonstrating," the Association of Palestinians in Ile-de-France, the region encompassing the capital, and other groups said in a statement.

They include anti-fascist associations, the citizens' activist group Attac and the far-left New Anti-Capitalist party.

A lawyer for the groups, Sefen Guez Guez, denounced the police ban as "disproportionate" and "politically motivated.

" The police department warned on Twitter that anyone taking part would face fines of 135 Euros ($165).

- Repeat of unrest? - The protest had originally been called to mark the Nakba, as Palestinians call the "catastrophe" of Israel's creation in 1948, which turned hundreds of thousands into refugees.

But a Paris court maintained that the "international and domestic context" justified fears of unrest "that could be as serious or even worse than in 2014." Interior Minister Gerard Darmanin also called for similar bans in other cities if necessary, and officials have prohibited marches in Nice and some Paris suburbs.

Other protests are going forward in Lyon, Bordeaux, Marseille and other cities.

Critics accuse France of being too favourable toward Israel in the latest conflict, which has seen a barrage of rocket fire from Gaza that has been met with Israeli artillery and air strikes.

The ban has caused a split among French politicians, with President Emmanuel Macron's centre-right party and the right-wing opposition supporting the move, but leftists calling it an unacceptable attack on freedom of expression.

Macron's office said he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday, offering his "condolences for the victims of the rocket fire claimed by Hamas and other terrorist groups." The statement said Macron urged a return to peace and "his concern about the civilian population in Gaza."France has the largest Muslim population in Europe, with an estimated five to six million people.

It also has the largest Jewish population after Israel and the United States.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Gaza City, Palestinian Territories, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :Ten members of a single extended family were killed in an Israeli air strike early Saturday on the western Gaza Strip, medics in the Palestinian enclave said.

The eight children and two women were killed when a three-storey building in Shati refugee camp collapsed following an Israeli strike, medical sources said.

Israeli warplanes struck multiple targets in Gaza overnight, while Palestinian militants fired some 200 rockets at southern Israel, around 30 of which fell short, hitting the ground inside Gaza, the Israeli military said.

Speaking outside Shifa hospital in Gaza City, the father of four of the children, Muhammad al-Hadidi, said he wanted "the unjust world to see these crimes".

"They were safe in their homes, they did not carry weapons, they did not fire rockets," he said of his children, who were killed "wearing their clothes for Eid al-Fitr", the holiday marking the end of Ramadan.

Both Hadidi and Mohammad Abu Hattab, his brother-in-law and host, were away from Hattab's home when it collapsed. The Abu Hattabs' five-month-old baby also survived.

A spokesman for Gaza's Islamist rulers, Hamas, declared the deadly air strike "a war crime in its own right." The overall death toll in Gaza since Monday now stands at 139, 39 of them children. Around 950 people have been wounded.

On Monday, Hamas fired rockets towards Jerusalem in response to a bloody Israeli police action at the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound in annexed east Jerusalem, prompting Israel to begin air strikes.

More than 2,300 rockets have been fired at Israel since then, killing nine people, including a child and a soldier. More than 560 people have been wounded.
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Paris, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :Police officers used tear gas and water cannon in Paris on Saturday to try and disperse a pro-Palestinian rally held despite a ban by authorities, who fear a flare-up of anti-Semitic violence during the worst fighting between Israel and Hamas in years.

Thousands of people converged in the heavily immigrant Barbes neighbourhood in the north of the capital, defying orders issued by loudspeakers that the march was illegal.

Officers blocked off wide boulevards as well as narrow streets where some of the protesters were forced to retreat, while knots of residents and passers-by watched or recorded the scene with their phones.

Some threw stones or tried to set up roadblocks with construction barriers, but for the most part police pursued groups across the district while preventing any march toward the Place de la Bastille as planned.

"You want to prohibit me from showing solidarity with my people, even as my village is being bombed?" Mohammed, 23 and wearing a "Free Palestine" t-shirt, told AFP.

The march was banned Thursday over concerns of a repeat of fierce clashes that erupted at a similar Paris march during the last war in 2014, when protesters took aim at synagogues and other Israeli and Jewish targets.

- Ban 'unacceptable' - "We all remember that extremely troubling protest where terrible phrases like 'death to Jews' were yelled," Mayor Anne Hidalgo told AFP on Friday, welcoming a "wise" decision to ban the march.

But Walid Atallah, president of the Association of Palestinians in Ile-de-France, the region encompassing Paris, accused the government of inflaming tensions with the ban.

"If there were genuine risks of public disorder, of serious problems, they would have prohibited it right away," he told a press conference ahead of the march.

"They banned it at the last minute -- it's unacceptable," he said.

Similar protests in Germany and Denmark this week have degenerated into clashes leading to several arrests.

Thousands of people also staged rallies in London and Madrid on Saturday in solidarity with Palestinians after days of intense clashes with Israeli forces.
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Washington, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :A day after the top US health agency eased Covid-19 mask restrictions, many people could still be seen walking around the capital Washington wearing face coverings.

Among them was a student, Chloe, who said she was fully vaccinated -- but was wearing her black face mask anyway.

"I think the announcement... was definitely a shock to a lot of people. It definitely was a shock to me," the student, who declined to give her last name, told AFP Friday.

Chloe, 20, viewed the CDC announcement as "hopeful" but said she plans to keep wearing her mask for a while longer.

"If I see more people not wearing masks, it'll make me feel comfortable not wearing masks," she said. "And then just seeing the number of people who are vaccinated in the US will definitely help. If that number goes up, I might feel more comfortable taking it off." But "it's really important to recognize that the pandemic's still going on." Currently, only 36 percent of people are fully vaccinated in the United States, where the pandemic has killed more than 580,000.

"Yesterday, I was not really into the idea" of going maskless, said Lauren, who wore a white cloth face mask. "Even though I'm vaccinated, what if there's some slight chance that I'm around somebody who's sick? A non-vaccinated person?" The 36-year-old consultant, who also chose to only give her first name, told AFP she plans to keep her mask handy when she's out and decide whether to put it on based on a "day-to-day, even hour-to-hour feeling." "It has kind of become a part of our face. I feel kind of bare without it," Lauren said, adding her mask sometimes can feel like a "security blanket." Health experts say it's normal to feel anxious about returning to normal life, given how hard the last year has been.

But there is such a thing as being too careful, warns Dr. Amesh Adalja: "The science is showing that if you're fully vaccinated, the virus is going to treat you very differently, so you can act very differently." Part of the problem, said Adalja, a senior scholar from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg school of Public Health, is that the CDC was overly cautious during the pandemic and has now shocked people with what seems like a more aggressive step.

When the CDC announced Thursday that people fully vaccinated against Covid-19 no longer had to wear masks outdoors, President Joe Biden celebrated the decision, calling it a "great day" for the country hardest-hit by the pandemic.

Comedic takes flooded Twitter, but their humor belied users' deeper-seated anxiety over the issue.

"We don't have to wear masks anymore if we're vaccinated but what if I'm mistaken for a republican," another woman wrote, referring to political divisions over masks.

"This is a just a note to say that masks are like weighted face blankets and I'm keeping mine forever," tweeted author Glennon Doyle.

According to Adalja, "people didn't develop the ability to risk calculate." "There just was a lot of precautionary principles that got carried away to a point that I think it's going to be hard for people who totally embraced all of that to jettison it," he told AFP.

But "what value are you deriving from the vaccine if you're not actually living your life?"Lauren ultimately agrees: "I'm really desperate to see people's faces again," she said. "I want to be able to smile at people."
PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mehmood Khan Saturday expressed grief and sorrow over demise of humorous artist Farooq Qaiser (Uncle Sargam).

In a condolence message the Chief Minister prayed Almighty Allah to rest the departed soul in eternal peace and grant courage to bereaved family members to bear this irreparable loss with fortitude.

The Chief Minister said that Farooq Qaiser was a renowned artist and has won the hearts of his fans.
LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :Punjab Governor Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar has said that Prime Minister Imran Khan has no political or personal agenda and he is only pursuing the interests of the nation.

He was talking to the Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjarani, Deputy Chairman Senate Mirza Muhammad Afridi, Senator Waleed Iqbal, Senator Ijaz Ahmad Chaudhry and Senior Provincial Minister Punjab Abdul Aleem Khan who met him on Eid. The meeting discussed important political and parliamentary matters.

All the leaders strongly condemned the Israeli crimes and urged the United Nations to take prompt action and press Israel to uphold international laws.

Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar also congratulated Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani on performing Umrah.

The Governor said that despite all the negative propaganda of the opposition, Pakistan is stronger and more stable than before. All the plans of the opposition will continue to fail till 2023 and the elections in the country will be held on time, he observed.

He strongly condemned the massacre of more than 150 Palestinians by Israeli occupying forces and said that only condemnation by Islamic countries against Israel is not enough.

He stressed upon the Islamic world to forge unity against Israeli terrorism. He called for an unequivocal policy on Israeli crimes and said that Pakistan stands with their Palestinian brothers and sisters and will continue to support their just right for freedom.

Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjarani said that international human rights organizations should take notice of Israeli terrorism against Palestinians. Over 220 million Pakistanis are with Palestinian brothers and sisters and will not shy away from any sacrifice for the protection of the Holy Al-Aqsa Mosque, Qibla-e-Awwal, he maintained.

Deputy Chairman Senate Mirza Mohammad Afridi said that independence of Palestine and Kashmir is necessary for peace in the world and Israeli terrorism is highly condemnable.

On this occasion, Abdul Aleem Khan and others strongly condemned Israeli terrorism.

Earlier ,Punjab Governor Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar offered Eid prayers at the Badshahi Mosque and prayed for the country's development, security, stability, and freedom of Palestinians and Kashmiris.
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2021 ) :Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi Saturday had a telephone conversation with the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and shared Pakistan's profound concern over deteriorating security and humanitarian situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

During the conversation, both the foreign ministers discussed the Palestinian issue, peace process in Afghanistan, and Pakistan-China bilateral relations, a Foreign Office statement said.

Foreign Minister Qureshi said the humanitarian situation in Palestine was becoming a major threat to peace and security of middle East.

He added that the violent attacks perpetrated by Israeli forces against the innocent worshipers in Al-Aqsa Mosque and unarmed civilians and the children in the occupied territories, were against humanitarian norms as well as the international law.

Qureshi underlined the importance of urgent steps by the international community to stop the Israeli attacks, protect the civilian population, facilitate engagement of the parties, and ensure just and lasting solution based on relevant UNSC resolutions and the two-state vision.

The foreign minister also briefed Wang Yi about Prime Minister Imran Khan's outreach to world leaders in addressing the current serious situation.

Qureshi congratulated Chinese leadership and its people for successful landing of Chinese spacecraft at Mars and underlined that it was a historic milestone for China in the technological realm.

The foreign minister underscored that the year 2021 had a special significance as it marked 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Over the years, our bilateral relationship had become an All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership, he added.

He underscored that Pakistan and China should continue to deepen their cooperation in fighting COVID-19.

He thanked China for the support it had extended to Pakistan in containing the spread of the pandemic, including through provision of vaccines.

Foreign Minister Qureshi stressed that Pakistan supported an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan.He highlighted Pakistan's contribution to the Afghan peace process and its support for a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan.

Underscoring the importance of a responsible withdrawal, reduction in violence, and earliest possible ceasefire, the foreign minister stressed the need for the Afghan parties to seize the opportunity to work together and secure a negotiated inclusive political solution.

The foreign minister maintained that China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Trilateral Foreign Minister's Dialogue was playing an important role in promoting peace and stability.

The two foreign ministers agreed to deepen Pakistan-China strategic cooperation and coordination to deal with the emerging challenges and reaffirmed both countries' commitment to intensify their collective efforts to promote peace, stability and imperatives of justice.
MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th May, 2021) Dmitry Rogozin, the head of Russia's space agency Roscosmos, congratulated Chinese colleagues on Saturday with the successful landing of spacecraft on Mars.

Earlier in the day, the Xinhua news agency reported, citing the China National Space Administration, that Chinese spacecraft Tianwen-1 with the country's first Mars rover Zhurong made a successful soft landing on the surface of the Red Planet.

"Roscosmos welcomes the revival of exploration of the solar system planets by the leading space powers. The successful landing of China's spacecraft on the surface of Mars is a great success of the PRC's fundamental space research program," Rogozin wrote on Telegram.

Roscosmos chief added that the Russian-European mission ExoMars is scheduled for Mars next year and affirmed Russia's commitment to strengthening international cooperation "for the joint promotion of research into the Universe."

Chinese probe was launched on July 23 last year and successfully entered Mars' parking orbit this February. Tianwen-1 is China's first independent mission to Mars and the world's 46th since 1960.
PARIS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th May, 2021) The Netherlands' caretaker prime minister, Mark Rutte, expressed concern about the escalation of tensions between Israel and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, stating that the Netherlands respects Israel's right to "proportionate" self-defense.

"Very concerned about ongoing violence in Israel and Gaza. Hamas firing rockets indiscriminately at civilians is unacceptable. The Netherlands respects Israel's right to proportionate self-defence, within the limits of international law," Rutte said on Twitter on Friday.

He also called on the conflicting sides to show restraint and de-escalate the situation through dialogue.

"Utmost must be done to avoid civilian casualties," Rutte added.

The situation on the border between Israel and Palestine's Gaza Strip escalated on Monday evening. Since then, around 1,750 rockets have been fired from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory. Israel has responded by launching multiple strikes against Hamas. Over 130 Palestinians and seven Israelis have been killed in the conflict escalation.

The conflict has garnered international attention, with regional and international mediators such as Egypt, Qatar, the United States, Russia and others having proposed to step in to negotiate a truce.
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The Syrian Supreme Constitutional Court has approved three candidates, including incumbent President Bashar Assad, to run in the May 26 presidential election, rejecting all appeals from candidates who were disqualified, the head of the court, Mohammad Laham, said on Monday

DAMASCUS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 10th May, 2021) The Syrian Supreme Constitutional Court has approved three candidates, including incumbent President Bashar Assad, to run in the May 26 presidential election, rejecting all appeals from candidates who were disqualified, the head of the court, Mohammad Laham, said on Monday.

"The court has studied the appeals, according to the constitution, and decided to reject them all on the basis of the absence of any reason for their submission," Laham said, noting that there were six appeals.

"The Syrian Supreme Constitutional Court finally announces the presidential elections, in which the incumbent president and two announced candidates will run," he added.
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| 2021-05-16 03:04:10|Editor: huaxia

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BAGHDAD, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of Iraqi protesters rallied on Saturday in Iraqi capital Baghdad to protest the Israeli attacks against the Palestinians in Gaza Strip.

The angry protesters gathered in the afternoon in Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the protests in Iraq. Many of them waved Iraqi and Palestinian flags and chanted slogans in support of the Palestinian people.

An Interior Ministry source told the official Iraqi News Agency that the security forces tightened measures and blocked all the roads leading to Tahrir Square to protect the demonstrators.

Such pro-Palestinian demonstrations also took place in the provinces of Basra, Dhi Qar, Qadisiyah, Wasit and Babil.

The protests came in response to a call by the Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr who urged all Iraqis to participate in the protests in Baghdad and other Iraqi provinces to show solidarity with the Palestinian people. Enditem
WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th May, 2021) United States Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai has discussed a patent waiver on COVID-19 vaccines in a virtual meeting with World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the USTR said on Friday.

"...Tai today met virtually with ... Director General of the WHO to discuss increasing vaccine production, and the proposed waiver to certain provisions of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) for the COVID-19 pandemic," the USTR said in a readout.

Tai explained the Biden administration's support for the waiver of intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines and the administration's comprehensive effort to expand vaccine manufacturing and distribution around the world, the USTR said.

Tai and Adhanom Ghebreyesus also agreed to stay in regular communication in the days ahead, the USTR added.
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After meeting with Pope Francis, Special US Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry speaks to Vatican News in this exclusive interview about this meeting and his work in promoting cooperation on addressing climate change.

Special Presidential Envoy John Kerry made a special visit to the Vatican on Saturday and met in private audience with Pope Francis. He is currently in Europe visiting Rome, London, and Berlin, to meet with European government officials and business leaders on to strengthen cooperation on dealing with climate change. The 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change will meet later this year.

After his audience with the Pope and Vatican officials, Mr. Kerry sat down with Vatican News' Christopher Wells for this inteview.

Youre on a very important mission here to Europe to speak with world leaders and especially European leaders about the climate crisis. Why is it important for you to include a visit with the Pope on this journey to Europe?



Well, the pope is one of the great voices of reason and compelling moral authority on the subject of the climate crisis. He's been ahead of the curve. He's been a leader. His encyclical Laudato si is really a very, very powerful document, eloquent and morally very persuasive. And I think that his voice will be a very important voice leading up to and through the Glasgow conference, which I believe he intends to attend. So, we need everybody in this fight. All the leaders of the world need to come together and every country needs to do its part. And I think, I think his Holiness speaks with a moral authority that is quite separate. It's unique and we need all the power we can bring to the table.

And, in fact, on that note, Pope Francis has also spoken about the importance about getting everybody to the table and to dialogue in order to reach a consensus, especially with regards to concrete actions to move forward. At the same time, there are very different interests at stake. You have very large countries, very small countries. You have economically very powerful countries like the United States, but you also have developing countries that have a stake and an interest in the question as well. In practical terms, how do you advance the dialogue? And what is the US prepared to do in terms of both offering something and asking something of other countries?



Youre absolutely correct. There are differences between countries and what they can do and what they're doing today, that is part of the problem versus part of the solution. There are differences, of course. And those differences have been embraced in the language of the Paris Agreement and before that would the phrase common, but differentiated responsibility. We all have a common responsibility, that's key. No, country is exempt from needing to take measures to deal with this crisis. On the other hand, we don't expect a very small economy, a very small country, and a very small emitter of greenhouse gases to step up and do the same thing we're going to do. We accept  we are the second largest emitter in the world. China's first, behind us is India and then you have Russia and other countries coming. But the bottom line is this: no one country can solve this problem. We all have to take steps and the issue is finding the reasonableness, that point at which people are doing what they reasonably should be expected to do and can do. So, the United States has to put up its fair share of funding for adaptation for resilience. We have to lead in helping to cut our emissions  and we are! President Biden has set a target of reducing our emissions over the next decade by 50 to 52%. But we need other big emitting countries to step up and also offer some reductions. You can't just keep going along with a coal-fired power plant or with more coal coming online and really be the part of the solution that we need to have here.

Everybody shares an obligation here. No one country can get this job done. If the United States was at zero-emissions tomorrow, wed still have crisis. We are only 11% of all the world's emissions. So, 89% is other countries. 20 countries are responsible for about 73, 75% of the emissions. So those 20 countries, which are the most developed in the world, have a special responsibility. But everybody has a responsibility to be part of the solution here. And I think His Holiness, the Pope Francis speaks with unique authority, compelling moral authority, and that hopefully can help push people to greater ambition to get the job done.



We can do this. That's the important thing. People need to know this is doable. And in the doing of it, we can create millions of jobs. We can have cleaner air. We can have better health. We can have less cancer. We can have less air problems where people are choking and kids are going to the hospital in the summer because of environmentally induced asthma. And we can be more secure in our nation's because we can depend on energy that's at home  renewable energy, alternative energy, sustainable energy. And in the creation of those alternatives, there's enormous wealth to be created. Do you know the two of the three fastest growing jobs in the United States last year? One was wind turbine technician and the other, the third fastest growing, was solar panel installer. So, this is there to be grabbed by people. And what we want to show people is were not looking for unfairness. We're not looking for people to do the impossible. But no nation has the right to say, we don't have to do anything. Or we don't have to step up. Because no one country can solve this problem. It takes all of us together to get it done.



Your optimism, that we can do this is an echo of what our Holy Father, Pope Francis, has said  that we can do this together. Let me ask you a question very concretely about practical steps on a diplomatic level. How does the US as a superpower, an economic and political superpower, and the Holy See, as a very small nation, but as a moral and spiritual authority, how can they collaborate in fighting together for a positive global economy and to fight against climate change?



The Holy Father is one of, if not the, one of the most powerful voices on the planet and he's been extraordinary in the eloquence of his call on people to do to step up and be reasonable and to live out our responsibility as human beings in caring for God's creation. And we all have to be stewards of that creation, that's his message. But because he is above politics and outside of the hurly-burly of day-to-day, national conflict, etc. I think he can sort of shake people a little bit and bring them to the table with a better sense of our common obligation. And I think that the Vatican may be a small entity, but the flock is enormous on a global basis and His Holiness, Pope Francis, has the ability to help galvanize action from countries. He has the ability to be able to affect citizens in many different countries all at the same time and have them call on their governments to be responsible, to do what we need to do to preserve the planet. So, I think that the world has a special respect for Pope Francis and there is no question that he has already been a significant leader in this endeavor. And we look to him for further guidance and help in getting this job done.



Different entities will make different contributions to this effort. There are very small nations, some of which don't emit a lot, like Norway or Sweden and some ScandinavianDenmark is an example. There are plenty of countries, Kenya and places where they're reducing emissions  and they're small. But the power of their message is enormous right now because they're effective and that's one of the compelling aspects of this. Big, powerful nations, like the United States, have had the ability over years to be emitting and growing, but now we're at a day of reckoning with respect to what are the consequences of the way we've been growing. And I think that the Holy Father speaks with special authority to our sense of obligation to each other, and the ways in which we need to all step up now together, given the divisions of the world and some of the polarization and the ideology and conflict. That voice is more important than ever.


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Tran Kim Chung, chairman of C.T Group, sharing the groups three-dimensional approach to CSR

Recently, at Leman Luxury building in Ho Chi Minh City, C.T Group held the appreciation party for the "Good Seeds" programme with the participation of leaders of prestigious universities such as University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, Foreign Trade University, Open University, Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Ho Chi Minh City University of Law, Hong Bang University, University of Natural Sciences, and others, and nearly 30 leading recruiters in Vietnam such as Vietnamworks, CareerBuilder, Base Enterpise, and JAC.

At the party, Tran Kim Chung, chairman of C.T Group, shared a unique three-dimensional perspective on the connection of three parties: universities, human resource developers, and investors in people.

With nearly 30 years of operation, in addition to investment, construction, and comprehensive urban development, another mission of C.T Group is human development, making employees responsible members of the group and society, leading society towards sustainability.

Kim Trang, representative of CareerBuilder, a long-time companion to C.T Group that has brought many talented people into the group, expressed, "We are very pleased to hear chairman Tran Kim Chung share about C.T Groups business and CSR plans. In particular, with the group's motto of not only focusing on business but also on truthfulness, goodness, and beauty to contribute to the development of society and community, CareerBuilder is grateful for the spirit of sincere and open-minded cooperation C.T Group has shown throughout their cooperation. Hopefully, we will always be a reliable and sustainable partner, working towards our mutual development."

At the event, the chairman of C.T Group shared, "During the past 30 years, we have been very proud to have trained so many officials for society who now hold important positions. When it comes to C.T Group, they always think of it with joy, pride, and deep memories. I believe that this is one of the good seeds that we have sown over the past 30 years."

The party at Leman Luxury building

In addition to showing gratitude to partners and friends who have helped the group sow good seeds for society, C.T Group also implements annual cooperation programmes with universities in Ho Chi Minh City to award many internships with high income for students in difficult circumstances but with a fondness for learning. This activity has also received positive responses and participation from prestigious universities.

Also at the event, a representative of C.T Group introduced a housing product line called DIYAS for young people which the group has launched to meet the great demand for affordable accommodation. He highlighted that no developers are interested in the segment due to the minuscule economic efficiencies. However, C.T Group has made efforts to develop DIYAS for young people and workers.

Our friends gathered here today share our concerns about helping employed people and young families. We believe once you finish exploring DIYAS products, you will also feel the need to do something for workers and young people looking for a good and stable place to live and work. This may not be done by just anyone, but we will do it and do it well. We will develop about 20,000 products along Metro Line 2, where most workers in Ho Chi Minh City live, a representative of C.T Group shared.

The three-dimensional approach of C.T Group gathering universities, human resources developers, and investors in people ensures support in all aspects: Good training, good job, social security, and stable career. Joining the "Having a job is having a house" programme, students will be able to learn, and once employed, they get a job and a house, solving many social problems at the same time.

At the party, C.T Group has received many comments from leaders of prestigious universities in Ho Chi Minh City. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Dong Phong, chairman of the Council of the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City shared, This event has created a connection, helping the universities to better understand the activities and mission of C.T Group. I believe when C.T Group will come to the universities to introduce your meaningful product, it will surely receive a lot of attention from lecturers and students who would love to have a house for themselves in the city."

Meanwhile, Thao Kim, representative of JAC Recruitment Company Vietnam said, "No company has ever organised a gratitude party for corporate partners in recruitment. Through this event, JAC has managed to acquire a better understanding of C.T Groups vision and mission as well as future recruitment plans. JAC hopes to continue cooperating and accompanying C.T Group in recruiting the right people for the right jobs in the future."
Hai Duongs lychee has conquered many fastidious markets such as the USA, Australia, EU, Japan, and Singapore

Not only lychee, Hai Duong province strives to put 5-10 other products under the One Commune One Product (OCOP) Program on e-commerce platforms in May.

In order to prepare for the introduction of agricultural products to be distributed through e-commerce, the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency is coordinating with agencies of the province including the Department of Industry and Trade and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to open train courses and support potential products from the province.

Vu Viet Anh, deputy director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Hai Duong province believed that lychee products in particular and other potential products of Hai Duong province will be sold successfully on e-commerce platforms.

Hai Duongs lychee has conquered many fastidious markets such as the US, Australia, the EU, Japan, and Singapore.

In 2020, the province's lychee production was estimated at 43,000 tonnes. About 50 per cent of the province's lychee output is consumed domestically while the rest is exported.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the total actual value of lychee fruit in 2020 reached VND1.166 trillion ($50.7 million), an increase of VND445 billion ($19.2 million) compared to 2019. In particular, about 1,600 tonnes were exported, an increase of about 1,400 tonnes and 1,000 tonnes compared to 2017 and 2019, respectively.

In 2021, Hai Duong's lychee output is estimated at about 55,000 tonnes, up more than 20 per cent over the same period last year. It is expected that 50 per cent of the output will be exported to China, 40 per cent to the domestic market, 5 per cent will be exported to other markets, and 5 per cent for processing.
Republican Representative Liz Cheney has been removed from the House Republican Conference chair position following a voice vote in a closed-door meeting in the House basement. In an interview with The Epoch Times on May 9, House Minority Leader Republican Kevin McCarthy said that Cheneys vote to impeach Trump was not the underlying reason for setting up a vote to decide whether or not to oust her from the GOP position.

Several Republicans felt that Cheneys comments to the media were counterproductive to the Republican Partys efforts to win back the House in the 2022 elections. After the ousting, Trump called Cheney a talking point for Democrats and said that he was looking forward to watching her work as a paid contributor on CNN.

Liz Cheney is a bitter, horrible human being. I watched her yesterday and realized how bad she is for the Republican Party. She has no personality or anything good having to do with politics or our Country She is a warmonger whose family stupidly pushed us into the never-ending Middle East Disaster, draining our wealth and depleting our Great Military, the worst decision in our Countrys history, Trump said in a blog post.

A recent poll conducted by the Club for Growth Political Action Committee (PAC) found that the majority of voters in Wyoming hoped to replace Cheney in the next election. Her unfavorable rating of 65 percent was significantly higher than her favorable rating of 29 percent. Of the respondents, 52 percent stated that they would vote for Cheneys opponent no matter who ran against her.

Repeated actions to oppose Trump

In February, Cheney was one of the only Republicans who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump. In a statement, she blamed Trump for the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol building, saying that he summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack. In a May 6 article in the Washington Post, Cheney said that Trump has never expressed remorse for the Jan. 6 attack and that his claims of election fraud were a crusade to undermine the foundation of American democracy.

Following her expulsion, Cheney said that she would do everything in her power to ensure that former President Donald Trump never gets anywhere near the Oval Office, according to a tweet by CBS correspondent Vladimir Duthiers. In an interview with the New York Post in late April, Cheney stated that she was open to the idea of a 2024 White House bid.

Last year, some reports suggested that Russia had placed bounties on American forces stationed in Afghanistan, a story that was possibly a hoax according to The Daily Beast. Cheney questioned the Trump administration on the issue, which several media outlets interpreted as admonishment of the president. She went so far as to co-sponsor an amendment with a Democrat that would prevent Trump from decreasing the number of troops stationed in Afghanistan, but the amendment was not passed.

Cheney also proposed that senators who objected to the Electoral College results on Jan. 6 should not run for the GOP presidential nomination for 2024. I do think that some of our candidates who led the charge, particularly the senators who led the unconstitutional charge, not to certify the election, you know, in my view thats disqualifying, she said to New York Post.

Stefanik takes on the mantle

Republican Elise Stefanik from New York was voted into the post of House Republican Conference chair on Friday morning, beating out opponent Chip Roy with a 134 to 46 vote. In a statement posted on her official Twitter account, Stefanik said that she was honored and humbled to serve the party, and that House Republicans are united in their fight to save the country from the radical Socialist Democrat agenda of President Biden and Nancy Pelosi.

My statement as the newly elected House GOP Conference Chair. pic.twitter.com/emb6lNxPRm  Elise Stefanik (@EliseStefanik) May 14, 2021

In a May 10 post, Trump had extended support to gifted communicator Stefanik as a replacement for Cheney. A statement from the National Border Patrol Council had also announced support for Stefanik, according to a Breitbart report.

Congresswoman Elise Stefanik is the strongest member to share and grow our message of securing our border and protecting our communities She is one of the most ardent supporters of the Border Patrols mission as well as law enforcement generally, Brandon Judd, President of the National Border Patrol Council, said in the statement.

In an interview with Breitbart, Stefanik called Trump voters critical in the Republican bid to win the 2022 midterm elections. She pointed out that Trump had won the support of 75 million voters in the 2020 presidential race. On Jan. 6, Stefanik backed an objection during the Electoral College vote count seeking to confirm Biden as the winner of the election. She also supported the Texas lawsuit filed in the Supreme Court in December last year that sought to overturn election results in multiple states.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 03:43:30|Editor: huaxia

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JERUSALEM, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Israel's Ministry of Health reported 38 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, raising the total number in the country to 839,117.

The death toll from the virus rose by one to 6,381, while the number of patients in serious conditions decreased from 73 to 66, out of 119 hospitalized patients.

This is the lowest number of patients in serious conditions in Israel since July 1, 2020 when it stood at 59.

The total recoveries in Israel rose to 831,981 after 31 newly recovered cases were added, while the number of active cases increased to 755.

The number of people vaccinated against COVID-19 in Israel stands at over 5.43 million, or 58.2 percent of its total population.

On Friday, Israel extended the ban on travel to Ukraine, Ethiopia, Brazil, India, South Africa, Mexico and Turkey until May 30, citing high morbidity levels in the seven countries, the health ministry said. Enditem
A member of an independent review panel that recently upheld former President Donald Trumps Facebook suspension suffers from major conflicts of interest with the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) notorious United Front Work Department (UFWD), reveals a recent investigation.

The Facebook Oversight Board recently upheld the ban barring Trump from the social media platform after the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, disagreeing with Facebook only on suspensions lifetime duration. A member of the Board, former Denmark Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt, was discovered to have delivered a headline speech at a 2017 Beijing event held by a friendship association found to be responsible for the UFWDs foreign influence operations.

The United Front is one of the primary Communist Party organs responsible for conducting foreign political influence operations, intelligence gathering, and suppression and control of overseas dissident movements, working day and night to corrupt not only overseas Chinese communities, but western high value political and economic targets as well.

Thorning-Schmidt spoke at the Chinese Peoples Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) in Beijing where she told the UFWD organ her charity, Save the Children, had pledged to donate 2 billion dollars between 2017 and 2020 for the health and nutrition, to guarantee the most poverty and needed women, children and their communities may have equal access to high-quality service of nutrition and sanitation.

The CPAFFC website for the event noted Save the Children had been working with the Communist Party for many years, In China, Save the Children had been working together with related government and institutions for years, to bring the most advanced medical technologies to China.

According to a Hoover Institution report titled Chinas Influence & American Interests, CPAFFC is headed by Party princeling Li Xiaolin, daughter of former Chinese President Li Xiannian, who died in 1992. As to the nature of the organization, the report states, The Friendship Association is effectively the public face of the CCPs UFWD. It is not covert and, for all the connotations conjured up in its name, it remains avowedly an arm of the party-state.

The Association, along with many other United Front arms, is reported to be bolstered by Party branches such as the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Overseas Chinese Affairs Office merged with the UFWD in March 2018.

In October of 2020 Press Statement, the U.S. Department of State under Mike Pompeo and Donald Trump labelled the CPAFFC as a Beijing-based organization tasked with co-opting subnational governments seeking to malignly influence state and local leaders to promote the PRCs global agenda.

Un-American oversight

Among the 20 Facebook Oversight Board members, only five are American citizens while the remaining 15 are foreign nationals.

Out of the five Americans, only one has Republican leanings  Michael McConnell, Professor and Director of the Constitutional Law Center, Stanford Law School. The National Pulse calls McConnell solidly in the establishment wing of the party. The four remaining American board members have strong left wing histories:

Jamal Greene, Professor at Columbia Law School: He worked as an aide to now-Vice President Kamala Harris in 2019 during the Senate confirmation hearings of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, according to Greenes profile at Columbia.

Evelyn Aswad, Professor and Chair at the University of Oklahoma College of Law: In 2013, she participated in the Istanbul Process initiative launched by Hillary Clinton, which was partnered with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

John Samples, Vice President of Cato Institute: In a Jan. 2018 podcast with Libertarianism.com, Samples stated that removing Trump from office because he is the way he is may well be justified.

Suzanne Nossel, Chief Executive Officer of PEN America: In a New York Times opinion, she stated that lawmakers are right to insist that Mr. Trump pay the highest price for the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.

Muslim Brotherhood ties

Some of the foreign members on the Board also keep troublesome company. For instance, board member Tawakkol Karman, a Nobel laureate, held a senior position in Yemens Al-Islah Party, which is an affiliate of the Muslim Brotherhood, according to Arab News.

Ghanem Nuseibeh, founder of risk consultancy Cornerstone Global Associates, told Arab News Karman has not denounced the extremist ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood.

On the contrary, there is everything to believe that she continues to espouse the hate speech that has been a mark of the Brotherhood in general.

After receiving her Nobel Prize, Karman was congratulated by Brotherhood leader Yusuf Al-Qaradawi who is on record encouraging suicide bombings and praising Hitler for punishing Jewish people.
The Young Lawyers Association of Zimbabwe (YLAZ) says judgment in a matter in which they are challenging President Emmerson Mnangagwas extension of Chief Justice Malabas term of office and the legality of the Zimbabwe Constitution Amendment Act (Number 2) is expected on Saturday.

In a tweet early Saturday morning, the YLHR said, Judgment in the @YLAZ v@JSCZim, Mr. Malaba & the AG matter has been set for 12 noon today. Than you to all of you who have been following our updates since 2pm.

Frederick Mutanda, a liberation war veteran, filed an urgent chamber application at Harare High Court seeking an order to stop Chief Justice Luke Malaba from continuing as the head of the Constitutional Court.

The court adjourned for a couple of hours as Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi and the Judicial Service Commission attempted to stop the judges, particularly Zhou, from handling the case.

In the application filed by Honey & Blanckenberg Legal Practitioners, who are members of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, YLAZ and Mutanda argued that Chief Justice Malaba ought not to benefit from the term extension provisions as introduced by the amendment of the Constitution since he has served 15 years as a Judge of the Constitutional Court.

YLAZ and Mutanda argued that the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), which is cited as the first respondent, failed to discharge its constitutional obligations diligently and without delay as was and now is required in law and as provided in section 324 of the Constitution.

YLAZ contended that if Chief Justice Malaba continues in office there would be no Constitutional Court in Zimbabwe thereby pushing the country into a constitutional crisis because he would have retained power in clear contravention of section 328(7) of the Constitution.

In a supporting affidavit filed together with the urgent chamber application, Mutanda argued that government is reversing the gains and fruits of the liberation struggle such as the Constitution.

YLAZ and Mutanda want the High Court to declare that in failing to activate the provisions of section 180 of the Constitution diligently and without delay, the JSC violated section 324 of the Constitution.

They also want Chief Justice Malaba not to benefit from the term limit extension as introduced by an amendment of section 186 of the Constitution and for him to vacate office as the chief justice at midnight on May 15, 2021.

In the alternative, YLAZ and Mutanda want section 14 of Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No.2) Act, 2021, to be declared invalid for violating section 56(3) of the Constitution and be struck down.

High Court Judges Justice Jester Charewa, Justice Happias Zhou and Justice Edith Mushore are presiding over the case.
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The Underground Railroad Chapter 3: North Carolina Season 1 Episode 3 Editors Rating 4 stars * * * *  Previous Next  Photo: Atsushi Nishijima/Amazon Studios

The scale of Chapter 3: North Carolina is much smaller than the two installments that preceded it. The town feels smaller; there are no grand conspiracies; Cora spends the episode confined to an attic, and begins it still underground. Railroad-maintenance kid Ellis needs to be on his way, so he leaves her some water while she waits for her next instructions. When the agent Martin (Damon Herriman) comes, its not a warm welcome. While we didnt witness Coras entrance into Griffin  instead plopped into her existence thereafter some time  we can imagine it was much warmer than this.

Cora has arrived at a station thats been closed. Im not accepting any more passengers, Martin tells her, which seems to be the antithesis for someone whose position is to help those running away. He explains that he only came down to leave the manifest behind for anyone who passes through. When Cora says that shes come from South Carolina and cant go back, he tells her, You shouldve stayed there. Still, Martin takes her in, but with a warning: If we do this, I am not your master but you must obey me, you understand? North Carolina, it seems, is a place to be feared, and she hasnt even gotten beyond the station.

Martin hides Cora in his wagon, and as they travel to his house, he explains that North Carolina has outlawed Black people, even and especially slaves. Any Black person seen (and any white person caught helping them) is strung up on what they call the Freedom Trail, a warning to keep everyone in line. Its a horrific, haunting sight, but were spared the brunt of it  Martin shows it to her in the hours of the early morning, covered in darkness.

Cora will stay with Martin in his home, but its already a bit crowded. Martins wife Ethel (Lily Rabe) seems to not approve of his abolitionist ideals. (But in Martins current state of fear, does he still believe in them?) When she learns who Martin has brought with him, Ethel is fearful and angry: You just got us all killed, she says, Cora still in earshot. Martin takes Cora to hide in the attic, which would be small enough a space on its own. So its even more painful when Martin speaks of the crawl space that his own father had built, in which she must stay instead. Plus, the crawl space already has one inhabitant: Grace (Mychal-Bella Bowman) is a young girl, presumably another runaway (though were not given the details of her story or how she came to get there). The first thing Grace tells Cora: You dont fit up here. This is true in terms of space, but its also indicative of how Cora has been thrust into another new story, with characters with their own plots already in progress. The two must live and sleep in the cramped compartment, navigating creaky floors without making any noise at all. Theres a peephole in the wooden wall that lets a bit of sunlight in.

In particular, Grace and Cora attempt to hide from Fiona, an Irish house servant, and from Ethel and Martins daughter and her husband who come to town for what Ethel calls, vaguely, a ceremony. When Cora asks how long it will take to get her out of the house, Ethel slaps her: You stupid, stupid thing. The ceremony is led by Constable Jamison, and has a religious feel to it, but it isnt just a sermon: They murder a runaway (named in the credits as Louisa) who tried to leave North Carolina when the outlawing occurred. Cora and Grace can see the happenings of the stage through the peephole in the wall, unable to do anything for Louisa but look away. Cora promises that shes going to get her and Grace out of there, so that they wont share Louisas fate. But, as Grace asks, where is there for them to go?

Coming off of last episodes use of station agent Sam  his apology to Cora and ability to not know what was going on  this episode really seems to be interested in further exploring white complicity in the face of these atrocities. At the ceremony, for example, Constable Jamison makes a joke that gets laughter from the audience: Ill say its harder to teach a n- - - - to reason than [to teach] a hog arithmetic. Martin laughs too, before looking nervous or perhaps ashamed that he laughed. A minute later, Louisa is stabbed and killed. Whatever Martin is doing to protect Grace and Cora doesnt save her.

The explorations of the varying lines of complicity dont end there. Later, when Martin and Ethel have the constable and people in their home, Martin is provoked into challenging the constables thinking. Jamison uses religious rhetoric to justify his anti-Blackness: North Carolina is Gods vision of America, he says, pure as God intended. Martin doesnt manage a full-throated denouncement, but we see him struggle to figure out how to avoid a hanging and also challenge the constables vision.

After too long in the crawl space, Cora falls ill. She needs a bath and some care and observation that cant be provided with her upstairs. To keep the town away from the house, Martin plays sick, making himself throw up in front of Fiona. Ethel is in on the plan too, speaking of a pox that must have made him sick, and urging Fiona to stay away until they need her. Its interesting to watch these moments of care interspersed with racism  Ethels relationship to Black people is marked by the peculiar white-savior narrative of religion. You see? she says, touching Coras face, I see the wicked in you, girl. In your kind. Your being here, its Gods will. He sent you. He sent you to me. And I am grateful. When Ethel kisses Coras forehead twice, Cora wipes it away.

But once again, its Ridgeway and Homer, rather than the goings-on of the new location, that bring Coras stay to an end (this time they have a new footman and another runaway in tow). Since Cora is wanted for the murder of the white boy from episode one, the constable allows Ridgeway to search houses regardless of typical protocol. Martin tries to buy Ethel time to get Cora back upstairs, but Homer sees her. Rather than let Homer or Ridgeway search the rest of the house and find Grace, Cora surrenders herself. The gathered crowd has the feel of a witch trial, screaming and hurling questions and threats, treating Cora and her Blackness like evil as Ridgeway takes her away. Fiona throws a lamp at the house, starting a fire that spreads to the attic, Grace still inside.

Ridgeway wants to know how Cora came to be in this town, and Martin confesses that it was the railroad that brought her there. Ridgeway demands to be taken to it, but Martin has already blown up the entrance and damned it with dynamite. He apologizes to Cora and asks for forgiveness from God. Ridgeways lackey shoots him in the head.

In a weird way, Ridgeways entry changes Coras fate: She wont die of sickness in the attic, or on the Freedom Trail if shed been discovered otherwise. Instead, Ridgeway will take her back to Randall. Howd you find me? Cora asks. See, thats the thing. I do not think that I did. I think  you found me. I truly do. He believes that the two of them are truly fated to each other.

The Caboose

 Chapter 3: North Carolina was written by Allison Davis (a staff writer for David Makes Man, created by Moonlights Tarell Alvin McCraney). The song played during the closing credits is Marvin Gayes Wholy Holy from the album Whats Going On.

 The image of Grace playing with her hands in the shadow of the light  thanks, Barry Jenkins!

 Grace is an invention for the show, not present in the book. So it was difficult for me to work around her feeling plopped in there. I was stuck on Martin saying, Youre not my worst secret. Is Grace his secret? Does Ethel know Grace is staying there? She never seemed to acknowledge her presence.

 Martin wanted to leave the manifest for those passing through, so Im interested in the significance of it going forward. This is the second time our attention has been brought to it.

 Im so upset with Homer after this episode. I truly dont know what to think about his character!

 Regarding the Freedom Trail, Martin says, The savagery a man is capable of when he believes his cause to be just. A thesis for the episode.

 Is it possible that Martin blew up the station so that no other runaways would end up somewhere so unlivable? Was it purely to keep himself out of even more trouble? Was it a symbolic action of him damning all of abolition? Is it more complicated than any of those options make it?

 Not a book culling! Speaking of  Reading Railroad: Travesty Generator, a book of poetry by Lillian-Yvonne Bertram that uses computer coding to (re)produce poems. Its stunning work that considers the patterns of anti-Blackness as if theyre coded into American history and culture.
Law enforcement across all of North Alabama took some time on Friday to honor all the officers who've fallen in the line of duty. Saturday, May 15th is National Police Memorial Day. Across the country, people will recognize officers who've died in the line of duty.

It's the first time the Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office held a service at their memorial for fallen officers. The sheriff, Rick Singleton, told WAAY 31 it's even more important now because of how difficult this past year has been.

I think this year just has a special meaning to it because faced with the challenges weve had over the last year, I just think it really has a special meaning this year for our men and women in blue and brown, and whatever," he said.

On Friday, the Decatur Police Department, the Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office and Morgan County Sheriff's Office each held a service to honor their officers who've died during the line of duty. Each department couldn't hold a memorial service last year because of the coronavirus.

The Morgan County Sheriff, Ron Puckett, said all of National Police Week reminds the community that they are risking their lives to protect ours.

We dont do it because of the money, we dont do it because of the dangers, theres no other profession in America that goes to work every day thinking, Im not going to come home tonight," said Puckett. "Law enforcement is the only profession and we do it because we are called to this profession."

Singleton said officers appreciate the recognition this year especially.

Im in my 44th year of service and Ive never seen a year in my 44 years like this past year," he said.

Decatur Police Chief, Nate Allen, said it's important to remember the officers who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Honoring the fallen officer is something we want to do each and every year because it keeps them in the forefront, and it makes the officers recognize that at any time, that could be us," said Allen. "We could actually sacrifice our life in order to save someone else.

National Police Week ends on May 15th, but they all said the community can continue to show support by simply saying, "Thank you."
Steven Roberts teaches politics and journalism at George Washington University. He can be contacted by email at stevecokie@gmail.com.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 04:08:25|Editor: huaxia

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RAMALLAH, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday held a phone call with U.S. President Joe Biden, discussing the ongoing tension in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian Civil Affairs Minister Hussein al-Sheikh said in a press statement that it is the first phone conversation between the two leaders since Biden took office in January.

Al-Sheikh said the two presidents talked about the heavy fighting between Israel and Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip, but the minister did not mention more details on whether Abbas and Biden discussed a truce to end the bloody conflict.

Also on Saturday, Biden held a phone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Enditem
As Italy reopens to tourism, we look at what tourists can expect when they return to the 'Bel paese'.

Italy is starting to welcome back its tourists, a trickle for now but that is set to change soon as the five-day quarantine restrictions are lifted for visitors from the EU and Schengen countries, the UK and Israel.

This quarantine requirement for tourists from these countries will be dropped from 16 May however a negative coronavirus test result will still be required before travelling to Italy.

In early May the Italian premier Mario Draghi invited tourists to book their summer holidays in Italy, stating that the country would be open to visitors who have been vaccinated, have just tested negative or can prove they have recently recovered from covid-19.

"The world wants to travel to Italy" - the prime minister said - "the pandemic has forced us to close but Italy is ready to welcome back the world."

An upbeat Draghi added: "The time has come to book your holidays in Italy - our mountains, our beaches, our cities are reopening.

The move comes as the health ministry announced on 14 May that more than eight million people in Italy are fully vaccinated against covid-19, with almost 26 million covid shots administered to date.

The virus has not gone away, far from it, however the head of Italy's Higher Health Institute (ISS) Silvio Brusaferro said on 14 May that the nation's contagion curve was "gradually declining," with the incidence of covid infections falling to 96 cases for every 100,000 inhabitants.

"It is a slow decline but one that has continued for several weeks and can seen in all of the regions," said Brusaferro.

Italy is now emerging slowly from a year spent grappling with lockdowns and extended closures, with things finally opening up again, for both Italians and tourists.

The country is still operating under a system of tiered covid-19 restrictions, with regions divided into colours based on the level of risk of infections.

From 17 May almost all of Italy (except Val d'Aosta) will be classified as the lower-risk 'yellow' zone, with less stringent rules applying.

This includes Italy's major cities - Rome, Milan, Florence, Naples and Venice - however bear in mind that the colours can change on a regular basis, depending on the epidemiological situation.

In tandem with its efforts to vaccinate the population as quickly as possible, Italy is desperate to kickstart its battered tourism sector which in pre-covid times generated some 13 per cent of the country's economic output.

So what should tourists expect in Italy and how have things changed since covid-19 turned the country's crucial tourism and hospitality sectors upside down?

The most noticeable thing - for returning tourists - is that they will have museums and landmark sites almost to themselves - although this phenomenon is not likely to last long!

Tourists will have the chance to explore Pompeii , the Colosseum or the Uffizi Galleries in small groups or take a selfie in front of a crowd-free Trevi Fountain

Masks

Everyone is required to wear masks in indoor public spaces, including on public transport and in public hotel areas, as well as outdoors, all the time. The obligation to wear masks outside could be lifted later in the summer but for now these are the rules.

There is currently a nightly curfew from 22.00 until 05.00, across Italy, but again that is likely to be pushed back to a later hour, perhaps midnight, very soon, before being scrapped entirely at a later date.

Bars and restaurants

Restaurants and bars are open to customers but - for now - only outside.

Venues with limited space have expanded onto pavements outside or set up decking areas on the street. Many restaurants have extended their opening hours - late lunches and early dinners - due to the early closure obliged by the curfew.

For now, rain is the biggest fear of restaurant owners but thankfully summer is on its way. However remember to pack layers as the evenings are still quite cool for outdoor dining.

Many bars are currently waiving their usual "outside" (higher) prices until business goes back to normal and customers can once again dine indoors - again, expect news on that front soon.

Museums

It is no longer possible to just walk into a museum or queue up to buy a ticket at archaeological sites - everything has moved online, with visitors obliged to book their tickets in advance. In the case of the bigger museums and at weekends, it is advised to book at least a day before visiting.

Culture

Cinema and theatres have reopened, with limited numbers and strict covid-19 protocols, and outdoor festivals and concerts can take place with reduced numbers and social distancing rules.

Public transport

On the subway, buses and trams, there are seats marked off-limits, with capacity capped at 50 per cent. There are 'covid-free' trains running between Milan and the capital, with passengers tested before boarding. In Rome commuters are obliged to enter buses from the front and exit at the back.

Beaches

Italy's beaches, beach clubs and outdoor swimming pools reopen from 15 May, with covid protocols in place.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 04:54:11|Editor: huaxia

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Iran's Judiciary Chief Ebrahim Raisi arrives to register his candidacy for presidential race at the Interior Ministry in Tehran, Iran, May 15, 2021. (Photo by Ahmad Halabisaz/Xinhua)

Three senior Iranian politicians -- Judiciary Chief Ebrahim Raisi, First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri and former Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani registered for presidential election.

TEHRAN, May 15 (Xinhua) -- A total of 592 people, mostly political unknowns, have registered for the 13th presidential election in Iran, Jamal Orf, head of the country's election campaign, said on Saturday.

Out of the total candidates, 40 are women and 552 are men, Orf was quoted by the official IRNA news agency as saying.

On Saturday, the last day of the registration process, three senior political figures announced their bid for the upcoming presidential election scheduled on June 18.

Iran's Judiciary Chief Ebrahim Raisi as a principlist candidate, First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri as a reformist candidate, and former Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani as a moderate conservative political figure officially registered for the campaign.

Iran's First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri (C) arrives at a press conference after registration his candidacy for presidential race at the Interior Ministry in Tehran, Iran, May 15, 2021. (Photo by Ahmad Halabisaz/Xinhua)

Iran's Ministry of Interior Affairs on Tuesday officially started registering candidates for the 13th presidential race.

From Sunday, each candidate will be scrutinized by the Guardian Council of the Constitution (GCC), the country's highest legislative body. The GCC will assess the qualification of the applicants and release the names of qualified candidates by May 27.

The nominees will have 20 days to campaign before election day.

A presidential candidate should be an Iranian national, prudent and capable of taking on leadership duties, and believe in the Islamic republic's principles and official religion, according to the constitution.

Former Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani registers his candidacy for presidential race at the Interior Ministry in Tehran, Iran, May 15, 2021. (Photo by Ahmad Halabisaz/Xinhua)

Recently, the GCC updated the requirements for individuals planning to register as candidates.

"All nominees must be between 40 and 70 years of age, hold at least a master's degree or its equivalent, have at least four years' experience in managerial posts, and have no criminal record," said Hadi Tahan Nazif, a GCC jurist member.

Meanwhile, top military commanders of major general and higher positions are also allowed to run for president. 
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 00:26:29|Editor: huaxia

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JOHANNESBURG, May 14 (Xinhua) -- Suspended African National Congress (ANC) Secretary General Ace Magashule served the party with court papers Friday, challenging the legality and constitutionality of his suspension.

In the papers, he wants the court to declare "the ANC step aside rule 25.70 of the ANC constitution to be unlawful, unconstitutional, invalid and null and void."

Magashule was served with a suspension letter dated May 3 after the party implemented the resolution, adopted at the 54th Conference in December 2017, requiring any representative criminally charged to step down.

The resolution stipulates that party members charged in a court of law step aside from their positions within 30 days of being charged until their legal matters have been resolved.

Magashule was charged with corruption and fraud in November 2020 after being implicated in the Free State asbestos project.

Speaking to Xinhua, Ralph Mathekga, a political analyst, said factionalism was "escalating" within the structures of the ruling party and it was clear that Magashule was challenging the ANC to "expel" him.

The last senior member being expelled was ANC League President Julius Malema who went on to form his own political party Economic Freedom Fighters. Enditem
Domina 

Stan, from Friday*

The figure of Livia Drusilla looms large in the history of Rome. For 50 years the wife of Julius Caesars adopted son, the emperor Augustus Caesar, she gave birth to another emperor, Tiberius, and from her line followed Caligula, Claudius and Nero.

In between she became Romes most powerful empress. Of course, that makes things sound a good deal simpler than they were. And, as this handsome new drama series makes plain, none of it might have happened at all had Livia not been such an extraordinary woman in her own right. However many men you kill  and I have had to kill many  you never forget your first, the older Livia (Kasia Smutniak) reflects as the camera acquaints us with her younger self.

Kasia Smutniak as Livia Drusilla, the wife of Julius Caesars adopted son, the emperor Augustus Caesar, in the sword and sandal epic Domina. Credit:Stan

That younger Livia (Nadia Parkes) is just 15 when we meet her in the aftermath of Julius Caesars assassination. Shes so inexperienced that her lifelong friend and household slave, Antigone (Colette Dalal Tchantcho), is trying to give her an explicit demonstration of what will be expected of her on the night of her wedding to her much older and rather awful cousin Tiberius Claudius Nero (Enzo Cilenti).
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 19:52:59|Editor: huaxia

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GABORONE, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese Charity Care Center (CCCC), together with Chinese Embassy in Gaborone, has donated goods valued at 60,000 pula (about 5,575 U.S. dollars) to the less privileged at SOS Children's Villages of Botswana to assist them during the cold winter season.

Speaking at a ceremony held in Gaborone Friday to hand over the goods, including blankets, food hampers, wheelchairs, Chinese Ambassador to Botswana Wang Xuefeng thanked and praised CCCC for its effort in caring for the SOS Children's Villages.

"Caring for the vulnerable has always been a deeply held virtue of the Chinese nation, I am very glad to see that over years, the Chinese community in Botswana, especially the CCCC, has been adhering to this virtue and extensively engaged in the charity work in local communities," said Wang. "For our children to embrace a brighter tomorrow, China and Botswana have been combating the virus shoulder to shoulder like brothers and sisters. China have provided Botswana with material and technical assistance to the best of our capacity."

Miles Nan, chairman of Charity Association of Chinese in Botswana, one of the founders for CCCC, said that the cold season is here and everybody need to be warm especially during the time of COVID-19.

"In future, we will not be only donating money, blankets or food hampers to our community, we will be happy if we can have some volunteers who will be working with us, more especially the youth," he said.

Botswanan Minister of Transport and Communications Thulaganyo Segokgo expressed delight and gratitude for the donation. He said Botswana and China friendship has brought Chinese scholarship to Botswana students, the donation of Mmopane primary school and last month a donation of 200,000 doses of Sinovac vaccines.

Speaking at the same occasion, Motshwari Kitso, the national director of SOS Children's Villages, also expressed gratitude and said the CCCC has been very loyal to them by donating food hampers, blankets especially since it now is difficult to find sponsorship because of COVID-19.

Currently, the SOS Children's Village in Tlokweng, Gaborone, alone has about 93 children and the donations will be distributed among the three SOS Children's centers in Tlokweng, Serowe and Francistown. Enditem
As Israel conducts the largest offensive operation in Gaza since at least 2014, the words of Donald Trumps former national security adviser John Bolton creep into mind like an uncomfortable oracle: Its clear that Bidens focus  and I dont disagree with it politically  is domestic ... [but] that will change. Because it always does.

After speaking to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Joe Biden expressed his expectation and hope that this will be closing down sooner than later. The lack of American activity in this comment reflects his administrations eagerness to fight the propulsive draw of crises in the Middle East. Instead, he is trying to maintain a level of stability in the region that will not distract him from his other priorities both at home and in the Indo-Pacific.

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on a building in Gaza City on Thursday. Credit:AP

Unlike past administrations, Bidens foreign policy team is weighted towards the Indo-Pacific. His National Security Council is now filled with considerably more experts on this region than on the Middle East. And Australian foreign policy watchers have been reassured by Bidens emphasis on the Indo-Pacific, given an increasingly assertive China.

But the escalation of conflict overnight between Israel and Palestine reflects just how difficult it will be for Biden to treat the Middle East like any other region outside of Asia: that is, to not to prioritise it. Biden is not the first President to come to the White House with plans to do less overseas. In 1992, Bill Clinton said, foreign policy is not what I came here to do until his presidency was earmarked by an unfulfilled peace agreement at Camp David and humiliation in Somalia.
Wilmington, DE (19810)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low 62F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low 62F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Despite new CDC mask guidance, some businesses will still require them
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 20:23:53|Editor: huaxia

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FREETOWN, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The Parliament of Sierra Leone has ratified the China Kingho Company's Rail and Port Lease Agreement, the company told Xinhua Saturday.

The agreement will allow Kingho Railway and Port Company Limited to manage and operate the infrastructure of the railway and Pepel Port for haulage and export of Kingho Mining Company's iron ore out of the country, it said.

The agreement also makes provision for Kingho to haul the commodity of any other company along the rail corridor under a commercial agreement, it added.

"The company is trying to build a solid foundation of our success in compliance with all government and local regulations and laws and in a transparent manner for the benefit of not just the company, but also the people of Sierra Leone," said the company. Enditem
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.
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Today

Partly then mostly cloudy and more comfortable; a shower possible late, mainly south and west of the Lehigh Valley.

Tonight

Partly then mostly cloudy and more comfortable; a shower possible late, mainly south and west of the Lehigh Valley.

Tomorrow

Mostly cloudy and much cooler with a few showers possible, more likely south and west of the Lehigh Valley.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 22:17:41|Editor: huaxia

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ADDIS ABABA, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) disclosed Saturday it has decided to postpone the sixth general elections to an undetermined date.

Speaking to journalists, Chairperson of NEBE Birtukan Mideksa said repeated extensions of voters' registration dates, delay in nominating and training of electoral staff as well as delay in printing and distribution of ballots have forced postponement of the sixth general elections.

Mideksa said the new voting date will be announced soon after consultations with a wide array of electoral stakeholders.

The NEBE had previously extended the voter registration period at least two times, citing logistical and security challenges. The NEBE had tentatively set June 5 as the date for the sixth general elections.

Earlier on Saturday, the NEBE announced it had registered more than 36.2 million potential voters out of a potential voters' number of around 50 million.

Under Ethiopia's parliamentary government system, the Prime Minister who is the highest authority of the land is selected from the party that wins the most seats at federal parliament level and will be sworn in after parliamentary vote. Enditem
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 04:55:22|Editor: huaxia

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TUNIS, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Tunisian Health Ministry on Saturday reported 552 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total number of infections in the country to 325,832.

The death toll from the virus rose by 52 to 11,779 in Tunisia, and the total number of recoveries reached 325,832, the ministry said in a statement.

Earlier on Saturday, Tunisian Minister of Health Faouzi Mehdi inaugurated a new COVID 19 vaccination center in the capital Tunis with a capacity of vaccinating 2,000 people per day.

"The health ministry is examining ways to open other centers in different governorates of the country in order to accelerate the pace of vaccination and benefit from the doses necessary to successfully slow the spread of the pandemic," said Mehdi.

Mehdi described the epidemic situation in the country as "stable," expressing the wish to see the number of infections to drop further.

Since the start of the national vaccination campaign against the coronavirus on March 13, a total of 540,000 Tunisians have received the vaccines, according to the latest figures published by the ministry. Enditem
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Willmar, MN (56201)

Today

Partly cloudy. Low near 75F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy. Low near 75F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media

HARTFORD  The states largest teachers union said members will march on the state capitol Monday - tax day - calling for greater funding for schools.

The rally is part of a larger Tax Day demonstration organized by a group called Recovery For All, which held a demonstration in the city earlier this month that included nursing home workers.
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP)  If Glenn Youngkin was looking to pivot back to the political center after winning the GOP's nomination for governor in Virginia, Donald Trump made it a little tougher by giving the nominee a big bearhug of an endorsement.

Glenn is 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 written statement issued the day after Republicans declared Youngkin the victor in their May 8 nominating convention.

Virginia Republicans chose Youngkin, a political newcomer, over six rivals. In doing so, they snubbed the most overtly pro-Trump candidate, state Sen. Amanda Chase, who gladly accepted the moniker of Trump in heels.

Chase finished a distant third.

Tom Davis, a former Virginia congressman who is now rector of George Mason University, said Youngkin's nomination shows Virginia Republicans were more concerned about electability than fealty to Trump.

It's not that he threw Trump under the bus, but there were other candidates who ran campaigns that were just focused all on Trump, and they lost, Davis said. I think Youngkin's in a good position to be his own guy.

Davis also pointed to the nominations of Winsome Sears for lieutenant governor and Jason Miyares for attorney general as evidence that Republicans were focused on winning in the fall.

They've got a bazillionaire, a Black woman and a Latino running at the top of the ticket, he said. It's hard to even put that together in a back room. It's a very strong ticket and it puts a lot of pressure on Democrats."

Larry Sabato, political science professor at the University of Virginia, acknowledged that Youngkin was not the most pro-Trump candidate in the field, but he said Youngkin still tied himself too closely to the former president to be viable in the general election in a state where Trump is deeply unpopular with moderates and lost by 10 points last year. He described the GOP candidates as Trump-y, Trumpier and Trumpiest, with Youngkin as the Trump-y candidate,

Sabato said people who knew Youngkin well told him at the outset of the campaign to expect Youngkin to position himself as a moderate.

It didn't turn out that way," Sabato said. "I understand they thought they had to do it to win the nomination, when it turns out they really didn't. ... But now he's stuck with the positions he took and the endorsements he's received.

Sabato said that not only is Trump's endorsement a kiss of death in a general election, but Youngkin's decision to campaign with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in the days leading up to the nominating convention is equally unappealing to the political center. Sabato said that as much as Youngkin will try to run back to the center, Democrats won't let it happen.

Most people still don't know who Youngkin is, can't pronounce his name and know nothing about him, Sabato said.

He expects the campaign of Terry McAuliffe, the front-runner in a five-candidate Democratic primary to be held next month, will define him as a Trump loyalist before Youngkin can define himself.

Indeed, the McAuliffe campaign pounced on Trump's endorsement, in which Trump went out of his way to take a shot at McAuliffe, referring to him as the Clintons' bagman.

Glenn Youngkin spent his campaign fawning all over Donald Trump, and now Trump has returned the favor by wholeheartedly endorsing him," McAuliffe said in a statement issued after Trump's endorsement.

Youngkin, for his part, sought to address criticism that he refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of Biden's victory. His campaign circulated an excerpt from an interview with Bloomberg Radio in which he was asked if Biden's win was legitimate, and Youngkin responded Of course! Hes our president. He slept in the White House last night. Hes addressed a Joint Session of Congress. Hes signing executive orders that I wish he wasnt signing. So, lets look forward and just recognize that what we have to do is lead.

Youngkin was more circumspect during the primary; He made election integrity a top issue in his campaign, which many people saw as a wink-and-a-nod to Trump supporters who falsely believed their candidate was cheated. In a March interview with The Associated Press, Youngkin compared Republican's concerns about the 2020 election to those raised by some Hillary Clinton supporters after her narrow loss in 2016.

Its an issue thats been raised by both parties for 10 years, Youngkin said.

As for Trump's endorsement, Youngkin said he is honored to receive it.

Youngkin and the Democratic nominee will square off in November in the only open-seat race for governor in the country this year. Republicans have not won statewide in Virginia since 2009, but the GOP typically fares well in years following Democratic presidential victories.
Winchester, VA (22601)

Today

Thunderstorms this evening followed by occasional showers overnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Locally heavy rainfall possible..

Tonight

Thunderstorms this evening followed by occasional showers overnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Locally heavy rainfall possible.


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Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 12:08:23|Editor: huaxia

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CANBERRA, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The first repatriation flight from India has touched down in Australia after the government's controversial travel ban ended.

The Qantas jet carrying approximately 80 Australian returned travelers who were stranded in India touched down at a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base in Darwin on Saturday morning.

The flight was scheduled to carry about 150 passengers but dozens were blocked from boarding after 40 tested positive for COVID-19 and 30 were deemed close contacts of the positive cases, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Those that were able to board will quarantine for 14 days at the Howard Springs facility outside of Darwin.

They are the first people to enter Australia from India since the federal government made it a criminal offence to do so at the end of April in response to the surging coronavirus crisis in India.

The travel ban was condemned by human rights groups as racist but Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday said it had effectively prevented the hotel quarantine system from being overwhelmed by positive cases.

"That pause has done its job. The number of cases that we had up in Howard Springs at that time was over 50. It's now down to four," he said.

About 10,000 Australians, permanent residents and their immediate family members in India are seeking to return home.

Barry O'Farrell, Australia's High Commissioner to India, told the ABC that he was disappointed that people were blocked from boarding the flight.

"My team has worked hard across India to get them bookings on this flight because they are vulnerable," he said.

"Regrettably those people will have to return home and deal with the COVID that they have, or continue to isolate to prove that they don't have COVID.

"Until such time that they test negative they won't be able to fly on one of these facilitated flights." Enditem
The head of a national conservative group told supporters it secretly helped draft legislation in Republican-controlled statehouses across the country as part of a coordinated network of organizations pushing to tighten voting laws across the country.

FILE - In this Dec. 11, 2020 file photo, a sign in an Atlanta neighborhood urges people to vote early in Georgia's two U.S. Senate races. The leader of a national conservative group is taking credit for secretly helping to write laws tightening voting rules in several Republican-controlled states and says the group has secretly guided legislation in Arizona, Georgia and Iowa. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy, File)

The head of a national conservative group told supporters it secretly helped draft legislation in Republican-controlled statehouses across the country as part of a coordinated network of organizations pushing to tighten voting laws across the country.

Jessica Anderson, executive director of Heritage Action, made the claim during a recent meeting with supporters in Arizona. A recording of the event was released by the liberal investigative website Documented, which made a copy available for The Associated Press to review. Heritage Action confirmed its authenticity.

"In some cases, we actually draft them for them," Anderson said of legislation written for state lawmakers. "Or we have a sentinel on our behalf give them the model legislation, so it has that grassroots, from-the-bottom-up type of vibe."

Anderson's comments shed additional light on precisely how well-funded national organizations have seized on false claims about the 2020 election to try to tighten state voting laws. While it is known that Heritage Action and several other groups are working with state lawmakers on legislation, it is rare to hear a leader detail how a group masks involvement to give the bills the appearance of broad political support.

Anderson gave the example of Georgia, where she said an activist affiliated with Heritage had given a letter outlining the group's recommendations to key legislators. The activist first had the proposal signed by thousands of other activists. Other states where she said the group helped write bills included Iowa and Texas  though in Iowa, the authors of the voting legislation said they never spoke with Heritage.

In a statement Friday, Anderson said: "Heritage Action is proud of our work to make it easier to vote and harder to cheat. That work begins at the state level through our grassroots and continues in state legislatures throughout the country."

Heritage Action is one of several Republican-affiliated groups that jumped into elections issues for the first time after former President Donald Trumps false claims about election fraud led to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The lies also have fanned deep suspicions about the integrity of the countrys voting systems among GOP activists and donors  Anderson noted Heritage activists cited it as a top issue in a survey  and led to new laws in Georgia, Florida, Iowa, Kansas and other states.

Democrats have argued that the laws make it harder for people to vote, and disproportionally affect Black, Latino, young and other Democratic-leaning voters. Republicans argue the tougher rules will guard against fraud and are needed to restore trust in the election system. On Friday, the liberal group End Citizens United released a report that tallied up more than $42 million that conservative groups have pledged to spend on election laws, including Heritage's $24 million budget.

Heritage and other conservative groups contend they are only trying to counter what they see as an array of well-funded liberal groups that work to loosen voting rules.

Heritage Action announced its effort in March, saying it would push legislation in eight battleground states based on model principles formulated by its parent organization, the conservative Heritage Foundation. Hans von Spakovsky, the foundation's top voting expert and a former member of Trump's 2017 election fraud commission, appeared at the event with Anderson and boasted of regularly talking with Republican secretaries of state. Anderson added that Heritage Action had just had a "huge" call with secretaries of state, who often serve as a state's chief elections official.

Anderson also said the group runs a Tuesday call to "give marching orders" to other conservative organizations that have just launched voting pushes, including the anti-abortion rights Susan B. Anthony List and the small government group FreedomWorks.

Anderson took credit for an Arizona law that bans donations to election offices from outside groups. The law was meant to fight back against $300 million in donations from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg last year. She also claimed credit for a controversial provision in Iowa that moves voters to inactive status after missing a single election.

"Iowa is the first state that we got to work in, and we did it quickly and we did it quietly," Anderson said. "We helped draft the bills. ... Honestly, nobody even noticed. My team looked at each other, and were like, it cant be that easy."

Iowa Republicans who worked on the voting legislation have said they had no contact with Heritage. In March, Republican state Rep. Bobby Kaufmann told The Associated Press that he had not talked to Heritage or any other outside group. On Friday, he reiterated that denial.

"Heritage is telling a bold-faced lie," Kaufmann said. Asked if claiming credit for the bills was a fundraising technique, Kaufmann replied: "That's exactly what it is."

State Sen. Roby Smith, who co-wrote the legislation with Kaufmann, also denied working with Heritage. "A number of the policy provisions in SF 413 were also in previous pieces of legislation long before the Heritage Foundation even knew to take credit for some thing they did not do," Smith said in a statement.

Mike Marshall, the regulator who oversees lobbyists interactions with the Iowa executive branch, said Friday he has requested that Anderson provide any contacts that she or other Heritage Action representatives made in Iowa. Marshall said he had also asked the office of Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds to search its records for any such interactions.

Heritage is not a registered lobbyist in Iowa and did not publicly register a position on the election bill when it was released in February.

At the event, Anderson said there was another task besides simply passing new laws. Many Republicans fear that their voters lost trust in the system due to Trumps allegations and then in Georgia didnt cast ballots during two January Senate run-offs, which Democrats won. Heritage wants to make sure conservative voters hear that voting rules are being tightened to prevent fraud.

"It's our job to tell them that was done, with the hope that it will restore voter confidence and let people return to the polls in 2022," Anderson said.

__

Riccardi reported from Denver and Izaguirre from Lindenhurst, New York. Michael Biesecker in Washington and Ryan J. Foley in Iowa City, Iowa, contributed.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  Israel slammed the Gaza Strip with airstrikes on Saturday, in a dramatic escalation that included bombing the home of a senior Hamas leader, killing a family of 10 in a refugee camp  most of them children  and pulverizing a high-rise that housed The Associated Press and other media.

An Israeli artillery unit fires toward targets in the Gaza Strip, at the Israel-Gaza border, Saturday, May 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP)  Israel slammed the Gaza Strip with airstrikes on Saturday, in a dramatic escalation that included bombing the home of a senior Hamas leader, killing a family of 10 in a refugee camp  most of them children  and pulverizing a high-rise that housed The Associated Press and other media.

The Hamas militant group continued a stream of rocket volleys into Israel, including a late-night barrage on Tel Aviv. One man was killed when a rocket hit his home in a suburb of the seaside metropolis.

With a U.S. envoy on the ground, calls increased for a cease-fire after five days of mayhem that have left at least 145 Palestinians dead in Gaza  including 41 children and 23 women  and eight dead on the Israeli side, all but one of them civilians, including a 5-year-old child. U.S. President Joe Biden, who has called for a de-escalation but has backed Israels campaign, spoke separately by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Still, Israel stepped up its assault, vowing to shatter the capabilities of Gazas Hamas rulers. The week of deadly violence, set off by a Hamas rocket Monday, came after weeks of mounting tensions and heavy-handed Israeli measures in contested Jerusalem.

On Saturday, Israel bombed the home of Khalil al-Hayeh, a senior figure in Hamas political branch, saying the building served as part of the groups "terrorist infrastructure." There was no immediate report on al-Hayehs fate or on any casualties.

Palestinian mourners carry the body of Malek Hamdan who was killed in clashes with Israeli forces, during his funeral in the village of Salem, near of the West Bank city of Nablus, Saturday, May 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

The bombing of al-Hayeh's home showed Israel was expanding its campaign beyond just the groups military commanders. Israel says it has killed dozens in Hamas military branch, though Hamas and the smaller group Islamic Jihad have only acknowledged 20 dead members.

Since the conflict began, Israel has leveled a number of Gaza Citys tallest office and residential buildings, alleging they house elements of the Hamas military infrastructure. On Saturday, it turned to the 12-story al-Jalaa Building, where the offices of the AP, the TV network Al-Jazeera and other media outlets are located, along with several floors of apartments.

"The campaign will continue as long as it is required," Netanyahu said in a televised speech on Saturday evening. He alleged that Hamas military intelligence was operating inside the building. Israel routinely cites a Hamas presence as a reason for targeting certain locations in airstrikes, including residential buildings. The military also has accused the militant group of using journalists as human shields, but provided no evidence to back up the claims.

Palestinian mourners cry during the funeral of Husam Asayra, 20 in the West Bank village of Asira al-Qibliya, near Nablus, Saturday, May 15, 2021. The latest outburst of violence began in Jerusalem and has spread across the region, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed cities of Israel. There were also widespread Palestinian protests Friday in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

The AP has operated from the building for 15 years, including through three previous wars between Israel and Hamas, without being targeted directly. During those conflicts as well as the current one, the news agencys cameras from its top floor office and roof terrace offered 24-hour live shots as militants rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city and its surroundings.

In the afternoon, the military called the buildings owner and warned a strike would come within an hour. AP staffers and other occupants evacuated safely .

Soon after, three missiles hit the building and destroyed it, bringing it crashing down in a giant cloud of dust.

A woman surveys the damage in her home after it was struck by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, in Sderot, southern Israel, Saturday, May 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit),

"The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today," AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said in a statemen t. "We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing APs bureau and other news organizations in Gaza."

"This is an incredibly disturbing development. We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life," he said, adding that the AP was seeking information from the Israeli government and was engaged with the U.S. State Department to learn more.

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al-Jazeera Media Network, called the strike a "war crime" aiming to "silence the media and to hide the untold carnage and suffering of the people of Gaza."

Smoke rises following Israeli airstrikes on a building in Gaza City, Friday, May 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

Later in the day, White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted that the U.S. had "communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility."

In the early hours Saturday, another airstrike hit an apartment building in Gaza Citys densely populated Shati refugee camp, killing two women and eight children.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters that his wife and her brothers wife had gathered at the house with their children to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday ending the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. The only survivor was Hadidis 5-month-old son, Omar.

Damage is seen in a house after it was struck by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, in Sderot, southern Israel, Saturday, May 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

The blast left the childrens bedroom covered in rubble and smashed the salon. Amid the wreckage were childrens toys, a Monopoly board game and, sitting on the kitchen counter, unfinished plates of food from the holiday gathering.

"There was no warning ... You filmed people eating and then you bombed them?" a neighbor, Jamal Al-Naji, said, referring to Israels surveillance over the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A building housing various international media, including The Associated Press, collapses after an Israeli airstrike on Saturday, May 15, 2021 in Gaza City. The airstrike Saturday came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building. There was no immediate explanation for why the building was targeted. The building housed The Associated Press, Al-Jazeera and a number of offices and apartments. (AP Photo)

In his call with Netanyahu, Biden expressed his "strong support" for Israels campaign but raised concern about civilian casualties and protection of journalists, the White House said.

The bombings took place a day after U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived in Israel as part of Washingtons efforts to de-escalate the conflict. Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian intelligence official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.

Mediators from Egypt, which works closely with Israel on security issues and shares a border with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, appeared to be growing alarmed. The intelligence official said Egypt hopes the U.S. intervention could halt the Israeli assault. The U.N. Security Council was set to meet Sunday.

A view of a 11-story building housing AP office and other media in Gaza City is seen moments after Israeli warplanes demolished it, Saturday, May 14, 2021. The airstrike Saturday came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building. There was no immediate explanation for why the building was targeted. The building housed The Associated Press, Al-Jazeera and a number of offices and apartments. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

The tensions began in east Jerusalem earlier this month, when Palestinians protested attempts by settlers to forcibly evict a number of Palestinian families from their homes and Israeli police measures at Al-Aqsa Mosque, a frequent flashpoint located on a mount in the Old City revered by Muslims and Jews.

Hamas fired rockets toward Jerusalem late Monday, triggering the Israeli assault on Gaza. Since then, Hamas has fired more than 2,000 rockets, though most have either fallen short or been intercepted by anti-missile defenses. Israels warplanes and artillery have struck hundreds of targets around blockaded Gaza, where some 2 million Palestinians live.

The turmoil has also spilled over elsewhere, fueling protests in the occupied West Bank and stoking violence within Israel between its Jewish and Arab citizens, with clashes and vigilante attacks on people and property.

Palestinians on Saturday marked the Day of al-Nakba, or "the Catastrophe," commemorating the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what was now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. Thousands of Arab Israelis marched in a Nakba rally in the northern Israeli city of Sukhnin, and scattered protests took place in the West Bank.

Palestinian health officials reported the deaths of two Palestinians by Israeli fire in the West Bank on Saturday. One of the shootings occurred when the army said it thwarted an alleged car ramming.

Keath reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue in Beirut and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed.
RICHMOND, Texas (AP)  While a Texas man who police allege is the owner of a tiger that frightened residents after it was seen briefly wandering around a Houston neighborhood was ordered back behind bars on Friday, the animals whereabouts remain a mystery.

Victor Hugo Cuevas, a 26-year-old linked to a missing tiger named India, is taken into custody after his bond in a separate murder charge was revoked and reset at $300,000 at Fort Bend County Justice Center on Friday, May 14, 2021, in Richmond, Texas. (Godofredo A. Vasquez/Houston Chronicle via AP)

RICHMOND, Texas (AP)  While a Texas man who police allege is the owner of a tiger that frightened residents after it was seen briefly wandering around a Houston neighborhood was ordered back behind bars on Friday, the animals whereabouts remain a mystery.

An all-day court hearing Friday didnt reveal any new information on the tigers whereabouts as Houston police say about 300 tips theyve so far received havent panned out.

Police allege Victor Hugo Cuevas is the owner of the tiger, a 9-month old male named India, and he is facing a charge of evading arrest after authorities allege he fled from Houston officers who responded to a call about a dangerous animal on Sunday night.

After a court hearing in a separate case Cuevas, 26, is facing in neighboring Fort Bend County, his attorney, Michael W. Elliott, reiterated his client doesnt own the tiger. Elliott said he only knew the first name of the owner, that he has been working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to find India and that Cuevas only wants for the animal to be safe.

We want to find India. Somebody knows where India is at. Hopefully the cat is still doing well, Elliott said.

At a separate news conference in Houston earlier Friday, police Cmdr. Ron Borza said some of the tips officers have received on the tigers possible location have been a little bit crazy.

We know the group of people that are involved in the exotic animal trade here in Houston ... We have visited all of them and no luck so far, Borza said.

Victor Hugo Cuevas, a 26-year-old linked to a missing tiger named India, arrives at the Fort Bend County Justice Center for a bond revocation hearing on a separate murder charge, on Friday, May 14, 2021, in Richmond, Texas. Prosecutors in Fort Bend County are seeking to revoke a bond for Victor Hugo Cuevas after he was charged with murder in a 2017 fatal shooting. (Godofredo A. Vasquez/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Investigators believe the tiger has likely been passed around between six and eight different locations in Houston in an effort to hide it but that the animal is probably still in the city, Borza said.

Carole Baskin, from the Netflixs docuseries Tiger King, has offered a $5,000 reward for the tigers safe return.

At the time of his arrest on Monday for allegedly evading Houston police, Cuevas was already out on bond for a murder charge in a 2017 fatal shooting in Fort Bend County. Cuevas has maintained the shooting was self-defense, Elliott said. Cuevas had been released on a separate bond for the evading arrest charge on Wednesday.

During a court hearing Friday, Fort Bend County prosecutor Christopher Baugh asked Cuevas be held without a bond for the murder charge, alleging the incident with the tiger showed Cuevas has a total disregard for the public safety.

State District Judge Frank J. Fraley did not grant the request, but instead revoked Cuevas current $125,000 bond and issued a new bond for $300,000. It was the fifth time that Cuevas bond had been revoked in the murder case.

Borza said that Cuevas and his attorney have not cooperated with Houston police in the search for the tiger but maybe if he goes to jail hed be more cooperative with us. Well see how that goes.

During Fridays court hearing, Waller County Sheriffs Office Deputy Wes Manion testified he lives in the Houston neighborhood and was alerted about the tiger by a neighbor.

Manion testified he interacted with the tiger for about 10 minutes to make sure it didnt go after someone else and that Cuevas came out of his house yelling, Dont kill it and that it was his tiger.

He approached the tiger, grabbed it by the collar, kissed its forehead, Manion said.

The deputy said he identified himself to Cuevas and told him not to leave after he loaded the animal in the back of a white Jeep Cherokee but that Cuevas fled the scene just as Houston police arrived.

During the court hearing, Elliott argued Cuevas was not aware that Houston police wanted to question him and that he only left because he feared for the tigers safety because Manion had been aggressive. Elliott said the tigers release was an accident as it likely jumped a fence.

Elliott also said Cuevas did nothing illegal as Texas has no statewide law forbidding private ownership of tigers and other exotic animals. Tigers are not allowed within Houston city limits under a city ordinance unless the handler, such as a zoo, is licensed to have exotic animals.

After the court hearing, Elliott described the tiger as more of a pet, like a dog, and that Cuevas would occasionally take care of the animal for its owner. Elliott provided copies of pictures that showed Cuevas cuddling with the tiger and kissing it.

Elliott said Cuevas, who is a mixed martial arts fighter and has also worked as a barber, first met the tigers owner after buying a dog from him and that the man later informed him he had other animals, including the tiger.

This (tiger) is loved like a dog. Victors love for this cat ... is real, Elliott said.

Elliott said he did not know if Cuevas would be able to post his new bond but if he is again released, Cuevas will do all he can to find the tiger and have it live the rest of its life in a wildlife preserve.

__

Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70
DARTMOUTH - The sudden departure of the senior military officer in charge of Canada's vaccine rollout is unlikely to slow down the high-profile operation, an expert in military affairs said Saturday.

DARTMOUTH - The sudden departure of the senior military officer in charge of Canada's vaccine rollout is unlikely to slow down the high-profile operation, an expert in military affairs said Saturday.

Christian Leuprecht, a professor at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont., said the unexpected reassignment Friday of Maj-Gen. Dany Fortin won't affect vaccine distribution because the military always has a second in command ready to get the job done.

"The mantra is, 'Failure is not an option,'" Leuprecht said in an interview Saturday.

"The mission has to go on. If you're fighting a war and your general gets taken out, you need someone who is able to step into the fray right away and keep running the operation. The entire machine is set up to keep on rolling."

Fortin's replacement was not revealed Friday and the Defence Department declined to comment on the case Saturday. The Public Health Agency of Canada did not respond to a request for comment.

In Manitoba, the province's deputy chief public health officer had little to say when asked about Fortin's abrupt exit.

"I haven't heard anything related to that," Dr. Jazz Atwal said Saturday during a news conference with provincial Education Minister Cliff Cullen.

The Department of National Defence has confirmed Fortin left his post with the Public Health Agency of Canada pending the results of a military investigation, though the nature of that probe was not revealed in a statement released Friday.

Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan issued a brief statement that night saying he was committed to building a culture of inclusion for the Canadian Armed Forces, and he also said he wants to make sure the military sheds "toxic and outdated values, practices and policies."

But the minister's statement did not provide any clarity regarding the reasons for Fortin's departure.

The Canadian military has faced increased scrutiny since February when allegations of sexual misconduct were levelled against the former chief of defence staff, retired general Jonathan Vance.

Military police are investigating allegations that Vance had a sexual relationship with an officer under his command and that he sent an off-colour email to a junior officer in 2012, before taking the militarys top job.

Vance has not responded to requests for comment from The Canadian Press, but Global News has reported he denies any wrongdoing. He stepped down as chief of the defence staff in January and has since retired from the military.

Meanwhile, Vance's replacement as chief of the defence staff, Admiral Art McDonald, stepped aside due to an unspecified allegation of misconduct. He, too, is facing a military police investigation.

Another top commander, Vice-Admiral Haydn Edmundson, is also being investigated by the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service following media reports detailing an allegation of sexual assault.

Brian Greenspan, a lawyer for Edmundson, said Friday his client denies the allegations.

Leuprecht said the military is suspending people "to maintain the integrity and the legitimacy of both the institution and the chain of command."

"Given how pervasive the problem appears to be, the approach they've had to implement ... is effectively to remove people with pay until such time as the matter has been fully investigated."

Having served in the military for almost 30 years, Fortin commanded NATO's training mission in Iraq and led Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan at the height of the fiercest fighting there.

Last November, Fortin was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to oversee what he called the "greatest mobilization effort Canada has seen since the Second World War."

The military has since managed a global supply chain for national vaccine distribution, and has also helped with provincial management of long-term care homes.

Fortin was appointed to serve as vice-president of operations and logistics for the for the Public Health Agency of Canada.

As Canada watched for further developments on the national immunization drive, COVID-19 infections continued to mount in some recent hot spots.

Ontario counted 2,584 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, coupled with 24 new deaths linked to the virus.

Quebec, meanwhile, added 760 new cases of COVID-19 to its tally and reported eight new deaths.

Farther east, New Brunswick recorded seven new cases of COVID-19, while Newfoundland and Labrador counted five and Prince Edward Island logged one.

Nova Scotia, which has been the Atlantic province hardest hit by the pandemic in recent weeks, reported 86 new cases of COVID-19.

It's the first time the province's daily case count has dipped below 100 since May 1.

Meanwhile, Manitoba counted 430 new cases of COVID-19 and four added deaths, while Saskatchewan recorded 196 new cases of the virus and one death and Alberta identified 1,195 new cases and three deaths.

Nunavut reported five new COVID-19 diagnoses.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 15, 2021.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version identified Cliff Cullen as Manitoba's health minister. He is, in fact, the province's education minister.
TORONTO - Canadian residents should be able to head to the United States for COVID-19 vaccinations and be exempt from mandatory quarantine on return if health authorities here deem the shots medically necessary, a hospital CEO said on Friday.

Healthcare workers from Women's College Hospital prepare doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at a pop-up clinic in Toronto's Jane and Finch neighbourhood, Saturday, April 17, 2021. Canadian residents heading to the United States for COVID-19 vaccinations should be exempt from mandatory quarantine on return if health authorities here deem the shots an essential medical service, a hospital CEO said on Friday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston

TORONTO - Canadian residents should be able to head to the United States for COVID-19 vaccinations and be exempt from mandatory quarantine on return if health authorities here deem the shots medically necessary, a hospital CEO said on Friday.

Although a vaccination itself does not exempt incoming travellers from quarantine rules, an exemption does exist for those heading abroad for medically essential procedures.

David Musyj, head of Windsor Regional Hospital in the border city of Windsor, Ont., said he has asked the Public Health Agency of Canada whether the government does deem the vaccines medically necessary.

"How can a COVID vaccine not be considered essential?" Musyj said in an interview Friday. "These vaccines are within reach. Any Canadian can go over there."

Windsor's mayor has discussed using city transit buses to take residents to a mass vaccine site at Detroit's Ford Field stadium and bring them back. Musyj said his hospital could help with such an effort but the quarantine requirement for people returning to Canada is an obstacle.

Musyj has now sought clarity on the medical exemption.

According to the rules, a doctor in Canada has to decide a medical service abroad is essential for a patient, and the person must provide proof they received it to avoid quarantine on return.

Musyj said he wants an advance ruling from Health Canada, adding it would be beneficial to access clinics in the U.S. and return without having to isolate.

In an initial response for comment on the hospital's request, Health Canada said only that a doctor's recommendation "falls under the practice of medicine, which is of provincial/territorial jurisdiction."

However, a spokeswoman did say the ministry was looking at allowing Canadians to pick up surplus doses in the U.S. for injection here.

"The government of Canada is currently working with provinces, territories and the United States to determine the feasibility of importing COVID-19 vaccines made available via donation," Kathleen Marriner said.

What is off the table, Marriner said, is allowing vaccine retrieval from the States under a special import program for urgently needed drugs that are not available in Canada. The program, she said, would not be "appropriate mechanism" to facilitate importation.

While supplies in Canada are ramping up, shortages remain a major obstacle to inoculating the population. The Windsor region in southwestern Ontario alone estimates it still needs about 600,000 doses to fully vaccinate its residents.

At the same time, pharmacies and other vaccination sites across the border are struggling to use their supplies due to a lack of demand. Michigan and other states have said they are willing to offer their excess supply to Canada.

The Windsor hospital had wanted permission under the federal "special access program" to be able to take the Americans up on their offer.

Despite rejecting the program application, Health Canada has asked the hospital several logistical questions, such as how the vaccines would be retrieved, transported and stored, and what security measures would be in place.

Quality, safety and traceability, along with procedures for reporting any adverse reactions, would be key to allowing the imports, Marriner said.

"Health Canada would work with the requester, in collaboration with our federal, provincial and territorial partners, to verify that strict protocols are followed," Marriner said.

Musyj said it would be simple to drive over to Detroit or other border states and have the vaccines back in Canada within hours.

"They've got vaccines to burn over there," he said. "Let's go get them."

Ohio, for example, is giving five vaccinated residents US$1 million each by way of a lottery. New York City is promising free fries, while New Jersey is offering a free beer to first-shot recipients.

"That just shows you what's happening in the United States to get people vaccinated," Musyj said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 14, 2021.
The disability tax credit (DTC) is available to individuals  including minors  who have a physical or mental impairment that causes a person to be markedly restricted in at least one of the basic activities of daily living.

The disability tax credit (DTC) is available to individuals  including minors  who have a physical or mental impairment that causes a person to be "markedly restricted in at least one of the basic activities of daily living."

More definitions and eligibility criteria to follow, but two important items first. One is the disability tax credit can reduce federal taxes by about $1,300 and Manitoba taxes by about $700 per year and can open the door to several other government programs, including the registered disability savings plan, the child disability benefit and the disability supplement to the Canada workers benefit.

The second item is the recent federal budget proposed to expand the criteria for "mental functions necessary for everyday life" to add problems with attention, concentration, judgment, problem solving, goal setting, regulation of behaviour and emotions, verbal and nonverbal comprehension and adaptive functioning to the current list of memory, goal setting and judgment (taken together), and adaptive functioning as qualification criteria.

The budget will recognize more activities in determining eligible time spent on "life-sustaining therapies" (things such as dialysis or insulin injecting) and reduce the required frequency from the current minimum of three days a week to two days.

Taken together, these changes should result in a fairer application of the DTC qualification criteria and a likely increase in the number of people approved for a disability certificate. In Budget 2021, the government estimated an additional 45,000 people will qualify.

For full details of the changes, go to Annex 6 of the federal budget or search "Budget 2021 and disability tax credit."

On the other hand, Winnipeg lawyer Krista Clendenning, who practises in disability-related estate planning, has advised me Manitoba legislation has been introduced called The Disability Support Act that may make it harder for Manitobans with disabilities to qualify for provincial income support.

The new Manitoba legislation considers additional resources when assessing an applicant, including reduced-rent accommodations, gifts made by family members and a broader range of other income. Any recipients, future applicants or persons planning around the EIA disability regulations and rules should pay careful attention to the proposed changes.

Back to the federal budget, the government also promised $11.9 million over three years to undertake consultations aimed at reforming the eligibility process for federal disability programs and benefits. This came after two reports from the Canada Revenue Agency disability advisory committee (2019 and 2021) detailing the uneven application and obsolescence of current eligibility rules.

These are proposed changes to apply for 2021 and subsequent years, but will only become law if the budget legislation is passed and proclaimed.

The current criteria will remain that a medical practitioner must certify that an individual has a severe and prolonged (12 months or longer) impairment in physical or mental functions. The effect is, even with devices, medication and therapy, the individual is either blind or is "markedly restricted in their ability to perform a basic activity of daily living (or would be if not for extensive life-sustaining therapy)" or they are "significantly restricted" in more than one basic activity of daily living.

The activities are defined as walking, speaking, hearing, elimination, feeding, dressing or mental functions necessary for everyday life. A person may also qualify if they need life-sustaining therapy to support a vital function, with the current minimum at least three times a week for an average of 14 hours a week.

The CRA website provides more detail and good examples, both in writing and in video form. Thats a good place to start if some of this may apply to you or a family member, including a senior.

The application process requires completion of a T2201 form, with the second part certified by the appropriate medical practitioner, which may be a doctor, nurse practitioner, speech language pathologist, audiologist, occupational therapist, physiotherapist or psychologist, depending on the nature of the impairment.

Dollars and Sense is meant as an introduction to this topic and should not in any way be construed as a replacement for personalized professional advice.

David Christianson, BA, CFP, R.F.P., TEP, CIM is recipient of the FP Canada Fellow (FCFP) Distinction, and repeatedly named a Top 50 Financial Advisor in Canada. He is a Portfolio Manager and Senior Vice President with Christianson Wealth Advisors at National Bank Financial Wealth Management, and author of the book Managing the Bull, A No-Nonsense Guide to Personal Finance.
Opinion

Business leaders often make their chops while manning the rudder through choppy waters.

But this pandemic is wearing us all out a little and while none blame the COVID disruption directly, there are more than half a dozen Manitoba industry organizations that have undergone leadership changes since the start of the series of pandemic lockdowns that began 14 months ago.

While personnel changes are obviously a normal part of any business or organization, it can also be stressful and time consuming for boards and staffers at the best of times.

Such an uncommon occurrence as the COVID-19 pandemic has just made everything a little trickier. Perhaps because there was so much disruption all around, several people involved in the process of recruiting for some of these leadership positions said there were a large number of excellent candidates for all the positions.

Bill Campbell, the volunteer president of Keystone Agricultural Producers, which just appointed Brenna Mahoney as its new general manager, said, "I hope we dont have to go through that again for a while."

In addition to KAP, since the beginning of the pandemic the following organizations, in no particular order, have hired new leaders or are about to: Canadian Grain Commission, Bioscience Association of Manitoba, Food and Beverage Manitoba, Tech Manitoba, Manitoba Mining Industry Association, Manitoba Pork, Research Manitoba and Peak of the Market.

The fact that nothing is normal these days may lessen the general awareness of any particular change having occurred. But next time there is an occasion to get together, people are going to notice there a lot of new faces around the table.

While many of the board members and new organization heads downplayed the impact of COVID as the rationale for change, some are taking over to launch or continue new initiatives for which the pandemic was at least partly responsible.

Kelly Fournel, who became CEO of Tech Manitoba (formerly ICTAM) in mid-March, came on at a time when, as she put it, "we are really coming into our own."

Technology has obviously become an increasingly important part of many businesses, especially those creating their own intellectual property. But now its crucial for just about every business.

With the help of other business groups Tech Manitoba was involved in some roundtable discussions to find out the elements of technology small businesses are struggling with.

The No. 1 thing they heard was people want an agnostic place to go for information about technology so they dont feel they are being sold to.

"Were now looking at how that would work and how we can provide that information," Fournel said.

At Research Manitoba, where Karen Dunlop recently took over from longtime CEO Christina Wiese, who left in August, some of its funding was diverted to COVID-related projects.

Also Andrea Legary, the organizations chair, said it was already well into a large project aimed at clarifying the process leading up to clinical trials.

While it is not necessarily related to the pandemic or to a change in leadership, Legary acknowledged it is a "unique undertaking for Research Manitoba, which is normally just advancing and promoting research."

And while few would suggest the changing of the guard has anything to do with the general state of affairs of the Manitoba economy, the pandemic has provided many with the opportunity to step back and take a moment to think about the future.

The fact is there are going to be many new faces in the mix.

Phil Houde stepped down as head of the provinces Economic Development Office, Andrew Dickson, Dave Shambrock and Larry McIntosh retired after more than two decades each running Manitoba Pork, Food and Beverage Manitoba and Peak of the Market respectively.

Shambrock said, "The pandemic has been very stressful and it has caused many people and organizations to reflect on what theyre doing."

New energy is always refreshing for any organization and despite what any of their board members might say, the pandemic has tested all of us in that regard.

Ron Koslowsky, vice-president and head of the Manitoba chapter of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (who is not going anywhere), said hes seen a number of leadership changes among his members as well.

He said, "I havent really connected this changing of the guard with the pandemic but I can certainly say that some weariness has set in in the minds and hearts of people these days. This is all going on way too long now."

martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca
New Braunfels, TX (78130)

Today

A few passing clouds. Low 74F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

A few passing clouds. Low 74F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 19:50:14|Editor: huaxia

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People queue up to receive COVID-19 vaccines outside a vaccination center in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo on May 15, 2021. The total number of infected COVID-19 patients in Sri Lanka reached 138,085 on Saturday after 2,269 new patients were reported the previous day, official statistics from the Health Ministry showed here. (Xinhua/Tang Lu)

COLOMBO, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The total number of infected COVID-19 patients in Sri Lanka reached 138,085 on Saturday after 2,269 new patients were reported the previous day, official statistics from the Health Ministry showed here.

Out of the total number reported since the first local patient was detected in March last year, 110,108 patients had recovered and been discharged from hospitals.

A total of 923 deaths have been reported from the virus.

Sri Lanka is presently in the midst of a third wave of the pandemic after a new variant of the coronavirus was detected and is spreading rapidly across the country, infecting a younger population who require critical care and oxygen.

In the month of May alone, over 20,000 patients have been recorded.

In order to stop the spread, authorities on Thursday declared an islandwide travel restriction requiring everyone to stay at home and allowing only essential services to operate. The travel restriction will be lifted on Monday at 4:00 a.m. local time.

Health authorities said hospitals and intensive care units have been filled to the maximum with the rising number of patients. The army is putting up temporary structures next to hospitals and equip them with beds and medical facilities to treat the incoming patients.

The Health Ministry has made it mandatory to wear masks and maintain social distance.

Anyone caught defying these guidelines could be arrested and fined, the police said. Enditem
MINNEAPOLIS (AP)  Leaders in the Minneapolis suburb where a police officer fatally shot Daunte Wright during a traffic stop in April are expected to vote Saturday on a resolution that would put the city on track to major changes to its policing practices.

FILE- In this April 14, 2021, file photo, police shine lights on a demonstrator with raised hands during a protest outside the Brooklyn Center Police Department on in Brooklyn Center, Minn., over the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright. Brooklyn Center, the Minneapolis suburb where a white police officer fatally shot Wright, a Black motorist in April, sparking a week of protests, planned a weekend vote on a resolution calling for major changes to its policing. The resolution backed by Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott would create a new division of unarmed civilian employees to handle traffic violations and another unarmed division to respond to people in crisis. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP)  Leaders in the Minneapolis suburb where a police officer fatally shot Daunte Wright during a traffic stop in April are expected to vote Saturday on a resolution that would put the city on track to major changes to its policing practices.

The resolution, backed by Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott, would create new divisions of unarmed civilian employees to handle non-moving traffic violations and respond to mental health crises. It would also limit situations in which officers can make arrests.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota called the proposed changes an important first move" in changing policing. But several police groups raised concerns, saying parts of the resolution conflict with state law and will put public safety at risk.

The city attorney said in a Friday memo to City Council members that adopting the resolution wouldn't be a final action, but would commit the city to change.

FILE - In this Thursday, April 22, 2021, file photo, Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott speaks with mourners before funeral services of Daunte Wright at Shiloh Temple International Ministries in Minneapolis. Brooklyn Center, the Minneapolis suburb where a white police officer fatally shot Wright, a Black motorist in April, sparking a week of protests, planned a weekend vote on a resolution calling for major changes to its policing. The resolution backed by Mayor Elliott would create a new division of unarmed civilian employees to handle traffic violations and another unarmed division to respond to people in crisis. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, Pool, FIle)

Elliott introduced the resolution last week, less than a month after then-Brooklyn Center Officer Kim Potter, who is white, fatally shot Wright, a 20-year-old Black motorist, setting off protests in the city. The citys police chief, who has since stepped down, said at the time he believed Potter meant to use her Taser on Wright during the April 11 stop instead of her handgun. Shes charged with second-degree manslaughter and has also resigned.

Some City Council members in Minneapolis failed last year to overhaul that city's police department in the wake of George Floyd's death, and are mounting another effort this year. The move in Brooklyn Center, an inner-ring suburb of just 30,000 people, echoes some of the ideas in the Minneapolis plan.

On Twitter last week, Elliott called the plan a common sense approach to public safety that would make police not the only option when our community is in need.

Wright's death came after he was pulled over for what police said was expired tags  the kind of traffic stop that many community members say often unfairly targets people of color. It escalated when, according to police, they realized Wright was wanted on a gross misdemeanor warrant.

The Brooklyn Center resolution would put enforcement of non-moving traffic violations  such as Wright's expired tags  in the hands of unarmed civilians.

It would also create a department of unarmed workers trained to respond to medical and mental health calls, addressing another frequent criticism that 911 calls can end in the death of someone in crisis when confronted by armed officers.

And it would create a new Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention to oversee efforts on community health and public safety, led by a director with public health expertise.

The resolution would also require more de-escalation efforts by police before using deadly force; ban deadly force in some situations, such as firing on moving cars; and bar arrests or searches of people during non-moving traffic violations, non-felony offenses or warrants.

The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association, the Law Enforcement Labor Services, the Minnesota Sheriffs Association and the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association wrote to the City Council urging them to reject the resolution, saying parts of it conflict with several state statutes. And they said it would be dangerous to have civilians take over certain policing situations, both for the public and the civilian workers, and would likely lead to criminals fleeing.

The resolution is named for Wright and Kobe Dimock-Heisler, a 21-year-old man with autism and mental illness who was fatally shot by officers in June. Officers in that incident were not charged.

Find APs full coverage of the death of Daunte Wright at: https://apnews.com/hub/death-of-daunte-wright

This story was first published on May 15, 2021. It was updated on May 17, 2021, to correct that the warrant for Wright was for a gross misdemeanor, not a felony.
NEW YORK (AP)  News organizations demanded an explanation Saturday for an Israeli airstrike that targeted and destroyed a Gaza City building housing the offices of The Associated Press, broadcaster Al-Jazeera and other media outlets.

People gather at in front of a building housing AP office and other media in Gaza City that was destroyed after Israeli warplanes demolished it, Saturday, May 15, 2021. The airstrike Saturday came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building. There was no immediate explanation for why the building was targeted. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

NEW YORK (AP)  News organizations demanded an explanation Saturday for an Israeli airstrike that targeted and destroyed a Gaza City building housing the offices of The Associated Press, broadcaster Al-Jazeera and other media outlets.

AP journalists and other tenants were safely evacuated from the 12-story al-Jalaa tower after the Israeli military warned of an imminent strike. Three heavy missiles hit the building within the hour, disrupting coverage of the ongoing conflict between' Gazas Hamas rulers and Israel. At least 145 people in Gaza and eight in Israel have been killed since the fighting erupted on Monday night.

"The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today," AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said. He said the American news agency was seeking information from the Israeli government and engaging with the U.S. State Department to learn more.

A ball of fire erupts from a building housing various international media, including The Associated Press, after an Israeli airstrike on Saturday, May 15, 2021 in Gaza City. The attack came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building, which also housed Al-Jazeera and a number of offices and apartments. There was no immediate explanation for why the building was targeted. (Mahmud Hams /Pool Photo via AP)

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al Jazeera Media Network, called the strike a "war crime" and a "clear act" to stop journalists from reporting on the conflict. Kuwait state television also had office space in the now-collapsed Gaza City building.

"The targeting of news organizations is completely unacceptable, even during an armed conflict. It represents a gross violation of human rights and internationally agreed norms," Barbara Trionfi, the executive director of the International Press Institute, said.

In a standard Israeli response, the military said that Hamas was operating inside the building, and it accused the militant group of using journalists as human shields. But it provided no evidence to back up the claims.

Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus claimed that Hamas used the building for a military intelligence office and weapons development. He said "a highly advanced technological tool" that the militant group used in the fighting was "within or on the building."

A man stands on rubble from a building housing AP office and other media in Gaza City that was destroyed after Israeli warplanes demolished it, Saturday, May 15, 2021. The airstrike Saturday came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building. There was no immediate explanation for why the building was targeted. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

But Conricus said he could not provide evidence to back up the claims without "compromising" intelligence efforts. He added, however: "I think its a legitimate request to see more information, and I will try to provide it."

Some press freedom advocates said the strike raised suspicions that Israel was trying to hinder coverage of the conflict. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists demanded Israel "provide a detailed and documented justification" for the strike.

"This latest attack on a building long known by Israel to house international media raises the specter that the Israel Defense Forces is deliberately targeting media facilities in order to disrupt coverage of the human suffering in Gaza," the groups executive director, Joel Simon, said in a statement.

The bombing followed media consternation over an Israeli military statement that prompted some news organizations, including The Wall Street Journal, to erroneously report early Friday that Israel had launched a ground invasion of Gaza.

An Israeli airstrike hits the high-rise building that houses The Associated Press' offices in Gaza City, Saturday, May 15, 2021. The airstrike Saturday came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building. There was no immediate explanation for why the building was targeted. The building housed The Associated Press, Al-Jazeera and a number of offices and apartment. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Israeli military commentators said the media had been used in a ruse to lure Hamas militants into a deadly trap. Conricus denied that the military engaged in a deliberate deception when it tweeted falsely Friday that ground forces were engaging in Gaza, calling it "an honest mistake."

The AP, based on its analysis of the armys statement, phone calls to military officials and on the ground reporting in Gaza, concluded there was no ground incursion and did not report there was one.

The strike on a building known to have the offices of international media outlets came as a shock to reporters who had felt relatively protected there.

"Now, one can understand the feeling of the people whose homes have been destroyed by such kind of air attacks," Al-Jazeera producer Safwat al-Kahlout, who was at the bureau in Gaza when the evacuation warning came, told the broadcaster Saturday. "Its really difficult to wake up one day and then you realize that your office is not there with all the career experiences, memories that youve had."

For 15 years, APs top floor offices and roof terrace on the now-destroyed building had provided a prime location for covering fighting in Gaza. The news agencys camera offered 24-hour live shots this week as Hamas rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city.

Just a day before the bombing, AP correspondent Fares Akram wrote in a personal story that the AP office was the only place in Gaza were he felt "somewhat safe."

"The Israeli military has the coordinates of the high-rise, so its less likely a bomb will bring it crashing down," Akram wrote.

The next day, Akram tweeted about running from the building and watching its destruction from afar.

The New York Times joined other news organizations in expressing alarm about the targeting of al-Jalaa tower.

"The ability of the press to report on the ground is a profoundly important issue that has an impact on everyone." the newspaper's vice president of communications, Danielle Rhoades Ha, said. "A free and independent press is essential to helping to inform people, bridge differences and end the conflict."

Associated Press Writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this story.
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP)  Arizona Republicans say the voter restrictions they're pushing after President Joe Biden's win in the state last year are designed to strengthen the integrity of future elections.

FILE - In this Aug. 28, 2018, file photo, Mildred James of Sanders, Arizona, shows off her "I Voted" sticker as she awaits election results in Window Rock, Arizona, on the Navajo Nation. The tribe says bills recently signed into Arizona law would make voting more difficult than it already is on the vast reservation. (AP Photo/Cayla Nimmo, File)

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP)  Arizona Republicans say the voter restrictions they're pushing after President Joe Biden's win in the state last year are designed to strengthen the integrity of future elections.

To some, the changes will make voting more difficult than it already is.

The bills, some signed into law this past week by Gov. Doug Ducey, are worrisome for Native Americans who live in remote areas, other communities of color and voters whose first language isnt English.

One codifies the existing practice of giving voters who didn't sign mail-in ballots until 7 p.m. on Election Day to do so, defying a recently settled lawsuit that would have given voters additional days to provide a signature. Another will result in potentially tens of thousands of people being purged from a list of voters who automatically get a ballot by mail.

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said Ducey's actions belittle tribes and fail to recognize the unique challenges Native Americans face when casting ballots. That includes driving hours to reach polling places, unreliable mail service and the need for more Native language translators.

This is an assault to the election process for people of color throughout this country, he said. Here in Arizona, its pushing back on the voters of tribal communities, and we came out in big numbers to vote our candidate of choice, which is President Biden.

The bills' sponsor, Republican state Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita, said claims of retaliation or voter suppression were outrageous and unfounded." Elections aren't a surprise, she said, and voters want them to be run efficiently with timely results.

Not everything has to do with Biden and Trump, she said. These are important cleanups and fixes. It makes sense.

FILE - In this Jan. 31, 2017, file photo, is then-Arizona State Rep. Michelle Ugenti-Rita, R-Scottsdale, during a legislative session at the Capitol in Phoenix. Native American tribes in Arizona say two new state election laws won't make it any easier for their voters. Gov. Doug Ducey recently signed the bills that he and fellow Republicans say will strengthen the integrity of elections. The bills' sponsor, Republican state Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita, said claims of retaliation or voter suppression were "outrageous" and "unfounded." Elections aren't a surprise, she said, and voters want them to be run efficiently with timely results. (AP Photo/Bob Christie, File)

Arizona is among several states controlled politically by Republicans that are tightening election rules this year, primarily around early and absentee voting. Democrats say the new rules will disproportionately affect minorities and lower-income voters. Florida, Georgia and Iowa already have enacted voting restrictions, and Texas is debating its own set of tighter rules.

In March, Biden issued an executive order creating a Native American Voting Rights Steering Group. It's tasked with consulting with tribes nationwide to address barriers to voting, among other things.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, voter turnout on swaths of tribal land in Arizona surged in 2020 compared with the 2016 presidential election, helping Biden to victory in a state that hadnt supported a Democratic presidential candidate since 1996. Former President Donald Trump and a legion of his supporters have refused to accept his loss in Arizona and other battleground states, resulting in a partisan review of the ballots cast in the state's most populous county.

The Navajo Nation sued the secretary of state and county officials in 2018 to force changes in election procedures for the tribe's voters. The complaint alleged that more than 100 ballots cast by Navajos were rejected because they didn't have signatures on the envelope or they had mismatched signatures.

Secretary of State Katie Hobbs agreed to insert language into the elections manual that would give all mail-in voters up to five days after an election to fix their ballots  the same as voters whose signatures don't match the one on file.

The attorney general and Ducey didn't sign off on the changes. The Democratic Party has since sued seeking a five-day curing period for mailed ballots. A U.S. District Court judge initially agreed, but the decision was challenged. Oral arguments are scheduled for July in federal appeals court.

Nez said the ballot signature measure just signed into law undermines the settlement in the tribe's lawsuit. It is evaluating the language and has not yet decide on its next step.

We have to deal with the federal government on broken promises. Now we have the state breaking promises on a settlement we thought we all agreed upon, Nez said.

The secretary of state doesn't have final say over the elections manual, and Ugenti-Rita said promises shouldn't have been made that couldn't be kept. She said the Navajo Nation's anger is wrongly directed at the Legislature.

Before the pandemic, Native Americans made voting a social event on many reservations. It was one of the few times a year where they'd meet with old friends and chat about the government, community needs and their families. Tribal leaders give voters time off to cast a ballot and help get others to the polls. Campaigns courted voters with traditional food.

Even when they receive mailed ballots, many Native Americans prefer to drop them off on Election Day at their polling site, no matter how distant. Unless poll workers check for a signature on the spot, voters would have no chance to fix it.

Patty Hansen, the recorder in the state's largest county by size, said she's disappointed with the new law because it treats voters differently based on the error they've made.

We were headed in the right direction," she said. "Now it's being reversed."

Submitting mailed ballots earlier without a signature could mean an hours-long trip to make the fix, said Democratic state Rep. Jasmine Blackwater-Nygren, who is Navajo. The new law says county officials have to make a reasonable effort to contact voters. Blackwater-Nygren said that could be problematic if Navajo translators, for example, aren't available.

The other change in Arizona affects the list of voters who automatically receive a mailed ballot. Voters who sit out all elections  municipal, primary and general  for two election cycles will be mailed a notice asking if they want to remain on what had been known as the permanent early voting list.

If they respond, nothing will change. If they dont respond within 90 days, they will be dropped from the list but will remain a registered voter.

They can rejoin what will now be called the active early voting list at any time, request a mailed ballot for a single election or vote in person. But a ballot wont automatically arrive in their mailboxes.

About 75 percent of registered voters in the state are on the early voting list. That includes some 38,000 Indigenous people, most of whom are concentrated in the competitive but Democratic-leaning 1st Congressional District. The district takes in several tribes in the northern and and eastern parts of the state, including the Navajo Nation.

Voter rolls regularly are purged elsewhere, including on the Navajo Nation, but advocates contend the change will result in more people being disenfranchised.

Blackwater-Nygren said she often hears from Republicans that tribal members know what to expect when it comes to voting. Thats true, she said, but the vast distances, spotty phone service and lack of home mail delivery on some reservations also pose challenges not found elsewhere.

Were saying we dont have the same access to polling locations, and that message seems to get lost, she said.
PARIS (AP)  French riot police fired tear gas and used water cannons Saturday in Paris as protesters supporting Palestinians in the Gaza Strip defied a ban on marching in the French capital.

A demonstrator covered with a Palestinian flag stops at a street pole during a banned protest in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Saturday, May, 15, 2021 in Paris. Marches in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were being held Saturday in a dozen French cities, but the focus was on Paris, where riot police got ready as organizers said they would defy a ban on the protest. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

PARIS (AP)  French riot police fired tear gas and used water cannons Saturday in Paris as protesters supporting Palestinians in the Gaza Strip defied a ban on marching in the French capital.

Hundreds of people marched peacefully in other cities in France and elsewhere in Europe.

In Paris, protesters scattered and played cat-and-mouse with security forces in the city's northern neighborhoods after their starting point for a planned march was blocked.

Paris police chief Didier Lallement had ordered 4,200 security forces into the streets and closed shops around the kick-off point for the march in a working-class neighborhood after an administrative court confirmed the ban due to fears of violence. Authorities noted that a banned July 2014 pro-Palestinian protest against an Israeli offensive in Gaza degenerated into violence and running battles with police to justify the order against Saturdays march.

Organizers said they intended to denounce the latest Israeli aggressions and mark the fleeing of Palestinians after Israel declared independence in 1948.

Demonstrators walk through tear gas grenades fired by police forces during a banned protest in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Saturday, May, 15, 2021 in Paris. Marches in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were being held Saturday in a dozen French cities, but the focus was on Paris, where riot police got ready as organizers said they would defy a ban on the protest. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Stop Annexation. Palestine Will Vanquish, read one poster in a small crowd facing off with police.

Protesters shifted from neighborhood to neighborhood as police closed in on them, sometimes with tear gas and water cannons. At one point, a fire set by protesters blocked a large street.

Anger against the Israeli offensive in Gaza drew protests elsewhere in Europe on Saturday, with thousands of people marching on the Israeli Embassy in London to protest Israels attacks. Those included an Israeli airstrike that blew up the 12-story building in Gaza that housed media outlets, including The Associated Press. Those inside were warned and fled the building.

Demonstrators chanting Free Palestine! marched through Hyde Park in London and gathered outside the embassy gates, watched by a large number of police. Organizers demanded that the British government stop its military and financial support to Israel.

Husam Zumlot, head of the Palestinian mission to the U.K., told the crowd that this time is different.

This time we will not be denied any more. We are united. We have had enough of oppression, he said.

In the Netherlands, a few hundred people in The Hague braved the cold and rain to listen to speeches and wave Palestinian flags. On a central square outside the Dutch national parliament building, protesters held up signs saying: Free Palestine.

On Friday evening, Dutch police briefly detained about 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators in the city of Utrecht who refused to end a demonstration that was banned because participants were not adhering to social distancing.

In France, some of the dozen marches permitted in other cities drew huge pro-Palestinian crowds that marched peacefully Saturday, notably in Strasbourg in the east and Marseille on the Mediterranean Sea.

Demonstrations were also held in several cities in Germany while hundreds gathered peacefully in Rome.

In Berlin, police broke up a pro-Palestinian protest, citing participants failure to comply with coronavirus distancing rules. Stones and bottles were thrown as officers moved to clear participants, the dpa news agency reported.

Anti-Israel protests earlier in the week drew condemnation, particularly a protest outside a synagogue in Gelsenkirchen. A video showed dozens of protesters waving Palestinian and Turkish flags and yelling expletives about Jews. On Friday, Chancellor Angela Merkels spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said that our democracy will not tolerate antisemitic demonstrations.

Jill Lawless in London, Mike Corder in Netherlands and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed.
JERUSALEM (AP)  An Israeli airstrike on Saturday destroyed a high-rise building that housed The Associated Press office in the Gaza Strip, despite repeated urgent calls from the news agency to the military to halt the impending attack. AP called the strike shocking and horrifying.

Gary Pruitt, President and CEO of the Associated Press, makes a statement, Saturday, May 15, 2021, in New York, regarding the Israeli military attack on the building housing AP's bureau and other news organizations in Gaza. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

JERUSALEM (AP)  An Israeli airstrike on Saturday destroyed a high-rise building that housed The Associated Press office in the Gaza Strip, despite repeated urgent calls from the news agency to the military to halt the impending attack. AP called the strike shocking and horrifying.

Twelve AP staffers and freelancers were working and resting in the bureau on Saturday afternoon when the Israeli military telephoned a warning, giving occupants of the building one hour to evacuate. Everyone was able to get out, grabbing a few belongings, before three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it into a giant cloud of dust.

Although no one was hurt, the airstrike demolished an office that was like a second home for AP journalists and marked a new chapter in the already rocky relationship between the Israeli military and the international media. Press-freedom groups condemned the attack. They accused the military, which claimed the building housed Hamas military intelligence, of trying to censor coverage of Israel's relentless offensive against Hamas militants.

Ahead of the demolition, the AP placed urgent calls to the Israeli military, foreign minister and prime ministers office but were either ignored or told that there was nothing to be done.

For 15 years, the APs top-floor office and roof terrace were a prime location for covering Israels conflicts with Gazas Hamas rulers, including wars in 2009, 2012 and 2014. The news agencys camera offered 24-hour live shots as militants rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city and its surrounding area this week.

We have had no indication Hamas was in the building or active in the building, AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said in a statement. This is something we actively check to the best of our ability. We would never knowingly put our journalists at risk.

Pruitt described the news agency as "shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing APs bureau and other news organizations in Gaza. He warned: The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today.

This is an incredibly disturbing development. We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life, he said, adding that the AP was seeking information from the Israeli government and was in touch with the U.S. State Department.

The building housed a number of offices, including those of the Arab satellite channel Al-Jazeera. Dozens of residents who lived in apartments on the upper floors were displaced.

A video broadcast by Al-Jazeera showed the buildings owner, Jawwad Mahdi, pleading over the phone with an Israeli intelligence officer to wait 10 minutes to allow journalists to go inside the building to retrieve valuable equipment before it is bombed.

All Im asking is to let four people ... to go inside and get their cameras, he said. We respect your wishes, we will not do it if you dont allow it, but give us 10 minutes. When the officer rejected the request, Mahdi said, You have destroyed our lifes work, memories, life. I will hang up, do what you want. There is a God.

Late Saturday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the building was used by Hamas military intelligence. It was not an innocent building, he said.

Israel routinely cites a Hamas presence as a reason for targeting buildings. It also accused the group of using journalists as human shields.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, refused to provide evidence backing up the army's claims, saying it would compromise intelligence efforts. I think its a legitimate request to see more information, and I will try to provide it, he said.

Conricus said the army is committed both to journalists, their safety and to their free work.

For AP journalists, it was a difficult moment. Most of the AP staff has been sleeping in the bureau, which includes four bedrooms in an upstairs apartment, throughout the current round of fighting, believing that the offices of an international news agency were one of the few safe places in Gaza. In a territory crippled by an Israeli-Egyptian blockade, it was equipped with a generator that offered the rare comforts of electricity, air conditioning and running water.

AP correspondent Fares Akram said he was resting in an upstairs room when he heard panicked screams from colleagues about the evacuation order. Staffers hastily gathered basic equipment, including laptops and cameras before fleeing downstairs.

I am heartbroken, Akram said. You feel like you are at home. Above all, you have your memories, your friends. You spend most of your time there.

Al-Jazeera, the news network funded by Qatars government, broadcast the airstrikes live as the building collapsed.

This channel will not be silenced. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced, Halla Mohieddeen. on-air anchorperson for Al-Jazeera English said, her voice thick with emotion. We can guarantee you that right now.

Early Sunday, Hamas fired a heavy barrage of rockets at the metropolis of Tel Aviv, saying it was revenge for flattening the high-rise building.

President Joe Biden spoke to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the spiraling violence.

He raised concerns about the safety and security of journalists and reinforced the need to ensure their protection, the White House said.

Later Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Pruitt, AP's president, to express concern about the incident. The State Department said Blinken offered his support for independent journalists and noted the indispensability of their reporting in conflict zones. He also expressed relief that the AP team in Gaza was safe.

The Foreign Press Association, which represents some 400 journalists working for international media organizations in Israel and the Palestinian territories, expressed its grave concern and dismay over the attack.

Knowingly causing the destruction of the offices of some of the worlds largest and most influential news organizations raises deeply worrying questions about Israels willingness to interfere with the freedom of the press, it said. The safety of other news bureaus in Gaza is now in question.

Joel Simon, executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, said the attack raises concerns that Israel is targeting the media "to disrupt coverage of the human suffering in Gaza. He demanded detailed and documented justification for the attack.

The International Press Institute, a global network of journalists and media executives, condemned the attack as a gross violation of human rights and internationally agreed norms.

The Israeli military has long had rocky relations with the foreign media, accusing international journalists of being biased against it.

The attack came a day after the Israeli military had fed vague  and in some cases erroneous  information to the media about a possible ground incursion into Gaza. It turned out that there was no ground invasion, and the statement was part of an elaborate ruse aimed at tricking Hamas militants into defensive underground positions that were then destroyed in Israeli airstrikes.

International journalists have accused the army of duping them and turning them into accessories for a military operation. The army said the error was an honest mistake.
BERLIN (AP)  The Latest on the continuing violence between Israel and Gaza's militant Hamas rulers (all times local):

People hold a Palestinian flag as they march in solidarity with the Palestinian people amid the ongoing conflict with Israel, during a demonstration in London, Saturday, May 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

BERLIN (AP)  The Latest on the continuing violence between Israel and Gaza's militant Hamas rulers (all times local):

SRINAGAR, India  Police in the Indian-controlled sector of the divided Kashmir say 21 people were arrested for disturbing public order by expressing solidarity with Palestinians and holding protests against Israels military offensive in Gaza.

Saturdays statement says police are sensitive to public anguish but wouldnt allow those sentiments to trigger violence, lawlessness and disorder.

A police officer, speaking anonymously in line with department policy, said the 21 were arrested for social media posts, taking part in anti-Israel protests and making graffiti in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and Jerusalem.

The Muslim-majority Himalayan region of Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and claimed by both in its entirety. Kashmiris have often staged anti-Israel protests when fighting broke out in Gaza.

 Aijaz Hussain in Srinagar, India;

BEIRUT  Hundreds of Lebanese and Palestinians have protested along the Lebanon-Israel border, with some climbing a border wall there and triggering Israeli fire that wounded one person.

The incident took place during a protest on Saturday evening in the Lebanese border village of Adaisseh, where hundreds marched waving Palestinian, Lebanese and yellow flags of the militant Hezbollah group.

Few protesters climbed a high border wall where they placed Palestinian and Hezbollah flags.

Lebanons state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli troops fired warning shots near Adaisseh wounding one person who was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

Lebanese and Palestinians from around Lebanon have been heading to the border to protest against Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip. On Friday, Israeli troops opened fire at protesters who crossed a border fence killing a 21-year-old Hezbollah member.

Earlier Saturday, an Israeli military spokesman warned Lebanese authorities not to allow protesters to breach the border.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  An American organization promoting literature and freedom of speech has called Israel's airstrike that destroyed a building in Gaza that was home to the offices of The Associated Press and other media deeply disturbing.

PEN America said in a statement after Saturday's strike that the only reason the world knows about the ongoing fighting between Gazas Hamas rulers and Israel is due to the tireless, indefatigable work of journalists, risking their lives to inform the world.

The organization demanded a detailed accounting of why Israel launched the strike.

A police water canon vehicle advances during a banned protest in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in Paris, Saturday, May, 15, 2021. Marches in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were being held Saturday in a dozen French cities, but the focus was on Paris, where riot police got ready as organizers said they would defy a ban on the protest. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

PEN America added that the resulting destruction will hobble the ability of professional journalists to do their work documenting a fraught, complex conflict at a critical time.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Al-Jazeera has called the Israeli bombing that destroyed its office in Gaza a clear act to stop journalists from reporting on the conflict between it and Hamas.

Al-Jazeera issued the statement Saturday night after an Israeli strike that destroyed the building that was also home to the Gaza offices of The Associated Press.

The Doha-based broadcaster said in a statement: Al-Jazeera calls on all media and human right institutions to join forces in denouncing these ruthless bombing and to hold the government of Israel accountable for deliberately targeting journalists and media institutions.

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al-Jazeera Media Network, called the Israeli strike a war crime.

The aim of this heinous crime is to silence the media and to hide the untold carnage and suffering of the people of Gaza, Souag said.

Al-Jazeera is a major broadcaster in the Mideast, funded by the Qatari government. It operates in both Israel and the Palestinian territories

ISTANBUL  The communications director to Turkeys president tweeted that Israels targeting of The Associated Press and Al-Jazeera offices in the Gaza Strip were a blow on the freedom of press.

The airstrike on Saturday targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

Fahrettin Altun said after the attack: I curse these lowly attacks by Israel hitting press centers to cover up its massacres. He also claimed that Israel is continuing its massacres and war crimes.

Turkeys Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted that Turkey stands with the Palestinians, who are still facing ethnic, religious and cultural cleansing.

AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building after the Israeli military telephoned a warning that the strike was imminent within an hour. Three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it in a giant cloud of dust.

WASHINGTON  The White House says Israel has a paramount responsibility to ensure the safety of journalists covering the spiraling conflict.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted on Saturday that the U.S. has communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility.

President Joe Biden has urged a de-escalation, but has publicly backed Israels right to self-defense from Hamas rockets fired from Gaza.

The White House statement followed an Israeli airstrike that targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets. APs president and CEO Gary Pruitt said the agency was shocked and horrified at the strike.

Youths run away during a banned protest in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in Paris, Saturday, May, 15, 2021. Marches in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were being held Saturday in a dozen French cities, but the focus was on Paris, where riot police got ready as organizers said they would defy a ban on the protest. (AP Photo/Rafael Yaghbozadeh)

AP staffers and other tenants safely evacuated the building after the military telephoned a warning that the strike was imminent within an hour. Three heavy missiles struck the 12-story building, collapsing it in a giant cloud of dust.

MADRID  Thousands have marched in Spains capital to protest the attacks by Israels military on the Gaza Strip.

Many waved Palestinian flags as they marched toward Madrids central Puerta del Sol square on Saturday.

Protesters chanted This is not war, this is genocide in Spanish. Some held up homemade signs that read USA Terrorist State and Muslim Lives Matter.

The rallies in Madrid and elsewhere in the world are taking place against the backdrop of a most serious escalation in the Mideast.

On Saturday, an Israeli airstrike targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children.

BAGHDAD  Hundreds of demonstrators have gathered in cities across Iraq to stand in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and Jerusalem.

The demonstrators on Saturday waved Palestinian flags and banners across five provinces in rallies called for by influential Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Al-Sadr called on followers to take to the streets and support Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which is under attack by the Israeli military.

Protesters gathered in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, and the southern provinces of Babylon, Dhi Qar, Diwanieh and Basra in a show of support. In Baghdads central Tahrir Square, demonstrators carried a Palestinian flag several feet long. Many also held up photos of al-Sadr.

Al-Sadr is a firebrand cleric who wields significant power in the country. In the May 2018 elections his party won the most number of seats.

BEIRUT  Hundreds of people have participated in the funeral of a Hezbollah fighter who was shot dead along the Lebanon-Israel border during a rally denouncing Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.

The funeral of Mohammed Tahhan was held in his hometown of Adloun in southern Lebanon on Saturday afternoon. The 21-year-old man died of wounds sustained on Friday, shortly after he was struck during the protest at the border.

On Saturday, scores of Palestinian and Lebanese youth gathered in the border area again to rally against the Israeli military campaign in Gaza. Lebanese troops detained several people who tried to reach the border wall.

Earlier in the day, an Israeli military spokesman warned Lebanese authorities not to allow protesters to breach the border.

A small group had breached the fence on Friday and crossed the border into Israel, triggering the shooting. The Israeli military said troops fired warning shots toward the group after they sabotaged the fence and crossed over briefly.

BERLIN  The United Nations human rights chief is urging all in what has developed into a battle between Israel and Gazas militant Hamas rulers to lower tensions, and faulted actions by both sides.

Michelle Bachelet, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said in a statement issued in Geneva on Saturday that rather than seeking to calm tensions, inflammatory rhetoric from leaders on all sides appears to be seeking to excite tensions rather than to calm them.

Bachelet's statement was issued on Saturday, shortly before an Israeli airstrike destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets.

In the statement, Bachelet warned that the firing of large numbers of indiscriminate rockets by Palestinian armed groups into Israel, including densely populated areas, in clear violation of international humanitarian law, amounts to war crimes.

There also are concerns that some attacks by the Israeli military in Gaza have targeted civilian objects that, under international humanitarian law, do not meet the requirements to be considered as military objectives.

It added that the failure to adhere to the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution in the conduct of military operations amounts to a serious violation of international humanitarian law and may constitute war crimes.

BERLIN  Irans foreign minister has called off a planned visit to his Austrian counterpart in Vienna. The decision came after Austrias chancellery and foreign ministry flew the Israeli flag as a signal of solidarity in Israels conflict with the militant Hamas group.

Austrian daily Die Presse reported Saturday that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was due to meet Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg on Saturday morning. But he called off the trip over the Austrian leaders decision to fly the Israeli flag on Friday.

The Austria Press Agency said Schallenbergs spokeswoman, Claudia Tuertscher, confirmed the report. She said: We regret this.

Vienna has been hosting negotiations in recent weeks aimed at bringing the United States back into the 2015 nuclear deal aimed at allaying concerns about Irans nuclear ambitions. France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China are still parties to that agreement.

Irans deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, tweeted on Friday that Austria so far been a great host for negotiations but it was shocking & painful to see flag of the occupying regime, that brutally killed tens of innocent civilians, inc many children in just few days, over govt offices in Vienna.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Saudi Arabia has called for foreign ministers of the worlds largest body of Muslim nations to hold a meeting Sunday. The gathering is to discuss Israeli acts of violence against Palestinians and the Israeli polices use of force against protesters at Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem.

The kingdom will host the virtual summit, gathering ministers of the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation to discuss the Israeli aggression in the Palestinian territory, particularly acts of violence in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the body said Saturday.

The Saudi-headquartered OIC includes countries Iran, Turkey, Indonesia and a range of Muslim majority nations.

The sanctity of Al-Aqsa mosque, one of Islams holiest sites, is a sensitive and emotive issue for Muslims around the world. The OIC was formed 51 years ago in response to a Jewish extremist arson attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem.

The hilltop on which the mosque stands is also sacred to Jews, who revere it as the Temple Mount because it was the site of the biblical temples. Some Jews and evangelical Christians support building a new Jewish temple on the site, an idea that Muslims find alarming because they fear it would lead to the mosque being partitioned or demolished.

RAMALLAH, West Bank  Palestinians have begun gathering across the occupied West Bank to mark the anniversary of the displacement of hundreds of thousands of refugees from what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.

Nakba Day, Arabic for catastrophe, comes amid widespread Jewish-Arab violence in Israel and heavy fighting between Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas, which rules Gaza. The main event Saturday was held in West Bank city of Ramallah, where the internationally-backed Palestinian Authority is headquartered.

On Friday, Palestinians in the occupied West Bank held some of the largest protests in years and clashed with Israeli forces, who shot and killed 11 people, including a Palestinian who tried to stab a soldier at a military position.

Some 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes during the 1948 war. Today, they and their descendants number around 5.7 million and mostly reside in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
BEIJING (AP)  Back-to-back tornadoes killed 12 people in central and eastern China and left more than 300 others injured, authorities said Saturday.

Workers clear debris at a factory that was damaged by a reported tornado in Shengze township in Suzhou in eastern China's Jiangsu Province, Saturday, May 15, 2021. Two tornadoes killed several people in central and eastern China and left hundreds of others injured, officials and state media reported Saturday. (Chinatopix via AP)

BEIJING (AP)  Back-to-back tornadoes killed 12 people in central and eastern China and left more than 300 others injured, authorities said Saturday.

Eight people died in the inland city of Wuhan on Friday night and four others in the town of Shengze, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) east in Jiangsu province, local governments said.

The first tornado struck Shengze about 7 p.m., damaging homes and factories and knocking out power, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The Suzhou city government, which oversees the town, said in a social media post that four people had died and 149 others had minor injuries. Shengze is near Shanghai on Chinas east coast.

Another tornado hit Wuhan at about 8:40 p.m. with winds of 86 kilometers (53 miles) per hour, destroying more than two dozen homes and triggering a power outage affecting 26,600 households, Xinhua said. Officials in Wuhan said at a news conference Saturday that eight had died and 230 were injured.

They said that 28 homes collapsed in Wuhan, another 130 were damaged and put economic losses at 37 million yuan ($5.7 million), the Hubei Daily newspaper said. Construction site sheds and two cranes were also damaged, while downed power lines knocked out electricity, Xinhua said.

Damage to buildings from a reported tornado is seen in an aerial view in Shengze township in Suzhou in eastern China's Jiangsu Province, Saturday, May 15, 2021. Two tornadoes killed several people in central and eastern China and left hundreds of others injured, officials and state media reported Saturday. (Chinatopix via AP)

Photos showed a swarm of rescuers searching through building debris in Wuhan after midnight Friday and workers clearing metallic debris at a factory in Shengze in the morning.

Wuhan is the city where COVID-19 was first detected in late 2019.

Tornados are rare in China. In July 2019, a tornado killed six people in the northeastern Liaoning province, and another tornado the following month killed eight on the southern resort island of Hainan.

In 2016, a tornado and accompanying hailstorm killed 98 people in the eastern Jiangsu province.
VATICAN CITY (AP)  John Kerry, President Joe Bidens climate envoy, met privately with Pope Francis on Saturday, afterward calling the pope a compelling moral authority on the subject of the climate crisis who has been ahead of the curve.

Pope Francis and John Kerry talk during their meeting at the Vatican, Saturday, May 15, 2021. Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, currently President Bidens envoy on the climate, met in private audience with Pope Francis on Saturday, afterward calling the pope a compelling moral authority on the subject of the climate crisis who has been ahead of the curve. Kerry told Vatican News in an interview that the pope speaks with unique authority, compelling moral authority, that hopefull can push people to greater ambition to get the job done. (Vatican Media via AP)

VATICAN CITY (AP)  John Kerry, President Joe Bidens climate envoy, met privately with Pope Francis on Saturday, afterward calling the pope a compelling moral authority on the subject of the climate crisis who has been ahead of the curve.

The former U.S. Secretary of State told Vatican News that the pope's embrace of climate issues hopefully can push people to greater ambition to get the job done.

Kerry is visiting European capitals to strengthen cooperation on climate change ahead of the next round of U.N. climate talks in Glasgow this November.

Kerry said United States, the second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases after China, must take a lead in cutting emissions and be joined by other big emitting countries.

Everybody shares an obligation here. No one country can get this job done. If the United States was at zero emissions tomorrow, wed still have crisis, Kerry said.

The United States, which is responsible for 11% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions, has set a target under Biden of reducing emissions over the next decade by 50% to 52%, Kerry said.

Another 20 developed countries are responsible for 73.75% of emissions, he added.

We need other big emitting countries to step up and also offer some reductions. You cant just keep going along with a coal-fired power plant or with more coal coming online and really be the part of the solution that we need, Kerry said.

Follow all AP stories on climate change at https://apnews.com/hub/climate.
A consultant could soon gauge private interest to build and operate key parts of a $1.85-billion upgrade to Winnipegs north end sewage treatment plant  despite union concerns such privatization would trigger layoffs and pose safety risks.

A consultant could soon gauge private interest to build and operate key parts of a $1.85-billion upgrade to Winnipegs north end sewage treatment plant  despite union concerns such privatization would trigger layoffs and pose safety risks.

Gord Delbridge, president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 500, called the provincially directed step a "slap in the face."

"Theres no question about it, its going to impact the livelihoods of city workers. And right now, of all times, to start bringing this type of uncertainty forward, during a pandemic Its despicable that the provincial government would even propose such (changes)," he said Friday.

A City of Winnipeg water and waste report asks councils executive policy committee to fund a $400,000, single-source contract with Deloitte LLP, to determine if theres interest in a private-public partnership (P3) for the upgrades biosolids facility and nutrient-removal phases.

The report notes city officials dont think private operations are feasible.

Instead, officials are recommending the contract because the province wont submit a tri-government funding request to support the sewage upgrade unless the city explores this exact option.

The union expects an unknown number of jobs will be lost if such privatization actually occurs, said Delbridge, who represents Winnipeg water and waste workers.

Its not yet clear how EPC will vote on the contract.

Coun. Brian Mayes, chairman of the water and waste committee, said hes concerned privatizing operations of any wastewater treatment could introduce new safety risks.

"Its a plant worth (almost $2 billion), treating effluent going into the river and the lake. I would think most people would (not be) looking to get the cheapest possible option here To operate a sewage treatment plant, safety and the environment should be first here, not looking for a private profit," said Mayes.

The current contract marks just a first step toward possible private construction, operation and maintenance, said Moira Geer, Winnipeg water and waste director.

If companies are interested, the consultant would then do a value-for-money analysis of how the model compares to other options. If no interest is found, the city would seek a private design and construction for the project but keep public control of operations and maintenance.

She said the province expects the P3 model could deliver the upgrades cheaper and faster, but the city disagrees.

"(We think) that this will cause undue delay and theres no need to look at the workforce because were very, very confident in how the plants are operated," said Geer.

The procurement process for the private model will likely take a minimum of two years to complete, which threatens to delay the sewage treatment upgrades, she added.

In October 2019, the city applied for Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program funding to secure federal and provincial cash to help cover the first two phases of the upgrade, which has yet to be approved.

Funding has not yet been requested for the third and final "nutrient removal" phase of the project, which would greatly reduce algae-promoting nutrients that leave the plant and ultimately wind up in Lake Winnipeg.

Geer said any change in operations of the north end sewage treatment plant, the citys largest such facility, would also affect the south and west end plants, since the smaller sites are run remotely by north staff on nights and weekends.

"This type of P3 would essentially be privatization of the entire sewage treatment system in the City of Winnipeg," Geer wrote in a city report.

In an email, a Manitoba Central Services spokesperson said the province believes the private-public option is promising.

"Manitoba believes a P3 procurement model will bring the benefits of greater cost certainty and constraint, as well as schedule acceleration," the spokesperson said.

The province declined to directly respond to union concerns about layoffs and safety risks.

EPC members will be asked to cast the first and final city vote on the matter Tuesday.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 20:18:23|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Cyclone Tauktae which is approaching India's coast will intensify into a severe cyclonic storm next week, India's Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Saturday.

"The cyclonic storm Tauktae (pronounced as Tau'Te) over east-central and adjoining southeast Arabian Sea moved north-northwestwards with a speed of about 11 kmph during past six hours and lay centered at 8:30 (local time) of today," the ministry of earth science said quoting the IMD.

"It is very likely to intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm during the next six hours and into a very severe cyclonic storm during the subsequent 12 hours," it added.

The cyclonic storm, the first one to hit India this year, comes at a time when India is in the grip of the second wave of deadly COVID-19.

Reports said more than 50 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are on duty in five states in anticipation of the storm.

According to the IMD, very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall is expected to "cause flash floods and landslides" over some coastal districts on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Officials said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a review meeting over the cyclonic situation on Saturday evening.

Fishermen have been asked to avoid venturing into the Arabian Sea until Tuesday and restrictions have been imposed on tourism activities in the sea.

Meanwhile, the Indian navy's aircraft, helicopters, diving and disaster relief teams have been kept on standby for rendering full support to the local governments in case of the cyclonic storm. Enditem
A Manitoba couple has been fined $20,000 and banned from owning animals for life after animal protection officers seized dozens of sick and malnourished dogs, rabbits and birds from their Winnipeg area home.

A Manitoba couple has been fined $20,000 and banned from owning animals for life after animal protection officers seized dozens of sick and malnourished dogs, rabbits and birds from their Winnipeg area home.

"By any stretch of the imagination and understanding, I see no reason not to properly describe this as a house of horrors for these animals," provincial court Judge Keith Eyrikson said Thursday.

Bruce and Maureen Feaver pleaded guilty to several offences under the Animal Care Act, including keeping animals in unsanitary conditions, failing to provide adequate food and water and failing to provide medical attention.

The couple came to the attention of authorities after a basset hound belonging to them was turned in as lost to the Winnipeg Humane Society on Oct. 5, 2017.

According to an agreed statement of facts provided to court, the dog had "significant medical issues and was deemed to be emaciated" and had not received proper medical attention following an earlier injury or illness.

The couple surrendered the dog to animal protection officers who, a day later, visited their home and found 21 dogs, 14 rabbits and 25 birds, all of them in various states of medical distress.

The animals were confined in a small space, in unsanitary conditions, without adequate lighting or ventilation and no opportunity for exercise.

Animal protection officers seized all of the animals, a number of which were euthanized, court heard.

"It seems strange that this got this far and how could it get this far is something that I cant stop turning to," Crown attorney Lee Turner told Eyrikson. "It seems the Feavers desire to have animals is much, much higher than their interest in caring for them."

Animal protection officers inspected the couples home a second time on Jan. 31, 2018, and found another 10 dogs and three rabbits living in unsanitary conditions, many of them in need of medical attention. In a garage, officers stumbled over three dead dogs under a blanket on the floor. The couple said the dogs had died after being left alone in a car for three hours during the officers Oct. 5 visit.

In April 2018, officers seized three more dogs from the couples home and another three in January 2019.

"Throughout the entirety of the periods in question, the Feavers acknowledge they could have done more for the well-being of the animals, provided more care than they did, and ought to have been more forthcoming in seeking assistance when these situations got out of control," says the agreed statement of facts.

Court heard care for the animals deteriorated as the couple struggled with their own health, financial problems and caring for Maureen Feavers ailing parents.

"While I accept the Feavers were doing the best they could to protect these animals, the end results were perverse," Eyrikson said. "What this amounted to in many ways for these animals was torture."

Eyrikson rejected a request the couple be allowed to keep up to three dogs, saying he had no faith the animals would be cared for responsibly.

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca
WHO helps heal the healers during the pandemic?

WHO helps heal the healers during the pandemic?

For a growing number of health-care workers in Winnipeg hospitals, the answer is spiritual care practitioners.

"Theres been a major shift in the amount of time we spend with staff," said Kathleen Rempel Boschman, professional lead for spiritual care services for the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority and manager of spiritual care at Concordia Hospital.

"Health-care staff are struggling. They need a listening ear, a chance to debrief," she said, adding staff in intensive care units are feeling the greatest amount of stress.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rempel Boschman said WRHA spiritual health-care providers spent about 10 per cent of their time with staff. It is now up to 28 per cent.

"We really need to be there for the health-care staff, to help them stay healthy for their own sake, for the sake of their patients, and for the sake of the health-care system," she said. "They play such a vital role and they need support."

They do this by "being a listening ear, giving them a chance to let it out if they need to," she added, noting there is a lot of anger, frustration, fear and sadness in hospitals as the pandemic third wave hits.

Doug Koop is a spiritual health-care practitioner at Health Sciences Centre.

"Staff in the ICU have been working very hard for a long time, under constantly changing circumstances," he said. "Theyve been through a lot, and it doesnt seem to be ending."

Added in is the trauma they have witnessed as patients struggle with COVID-19 and sometimes die. "Theyve seen a lot of awful stuff," he said.

Koop sees his role as "being a listening ear and calm presence. I just want to be a sounding board, help them with their processing."

For Kendiss Olafson, an ICU doctor at St. Boniface and Grace hospitals, the spiritual care practitioners "are a very important part of the health-care system."

This is especially true now.

"People are feeling burned out, especially in ICUs," she said, noting there is a lot of "unresolved grief and trauma" from caring for those who are so very ill.

For many staff, "its reassuring to know there is someone to talk to, if they need it," she said.

Another way spiritual care practitioners are helping staff is through the Family Liaison Initiative Project, which provides health-care workers with information about their patients when they cant speak, due to being intubated.

Through the project, a collaborative effort between spiritual care practitioners, social workers and health-care staff, information is collected about each COVID patient when they enter the hospital (such as career, hobbies, music preferences, etc.).

This is posted at bedsides and enables health-care workers to know something about the person they are caring for.

"They still need to hear words from us," said Olafson. "It is comforting and encouraging, and gives them hope."

Not only does this connect with patients, it comforts their families, she said.

Spiritual health-care practitioners are also helping staff by connecting families and patients through technology  something that takes a burden off health-care workers who have so little time to facilitate those kinds of interactions.

"Weve become very good at connecting families with their loved ones via technology," Koop said of this service. "Its become a staple of our work."

Since family cant visit, they also spend more time with patients.

"They are talking to us more, telling us things they would normally share with families, but cant because of the restrictions," he said. "We are like family to many patients now. It makes our work even more sacred and important."

faith@freepress.mb.ca
Home builds and renovations are enjoying a pandemic boom in Winnipeg, with industry members predicting the trend will continue well into next year.

Home builds and renovations are enjoying a pandemic boom in Winnipeg, with industry members predicting the trend will continue well into next year.

"We expect that these high levels of residential permits, both on new construction and home renovation, will continue throughout 2021 and well into 2022," Lanny McInnes, president of the Manitoba Home Builders Association, told city councils finance committee Friday.

McInnes said he expects the demand for residential construction, which continues despite pandemic-caused delays and a sudden surge in lumber prices, should be "a key driver of Winnipegs economic recovery" from COVID-19.

Darryl Harrison, a director with the Winnipeg Construction Association, told the committee his members saw a 40 per cent increase in residential permits this year to date, compared to the same period last year.

"We see a huge demand for permits and inspections right now... and theres a definite need for improved service on permit processing and inspections," he said.

The comments came as the finance committee considered a request to approve $900,000 of extra funding for the planning department. The department says it would allow it to hire about 22 more temporary staff to handle the surge.

A planning report says the number of applications has risen 30 per cent higher this year than by this point of 2020, while call volumes doubled during the same period.

The finance committee unanimously voted to give final approval to the request.

Coun. Scott Gillingham (St. James) said the department is about two weeks behind in permit processing, a backlog the new employees could help reduce.

Gillingham said the residential construction boost offers a glimmer of hope for economic recovery from COVID-19, amid major losses in other sectors.

"If this renovation, construction (and) new building permit activity continues into 2022, its very good news for the City of Winnipeg. It means people have jobs (and) theres spinoffs to other sectors of the economy," he said.

The department said the new staffing cost will be covered through a boost in 2021 permit revenues, which are now expected to rise $4 million above what the city budget had predicted.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga
Universities are at a crossroads, with COVID-19 acting as a tipping point for whether they thrive or barely survive.

Opinion

Universities are at a crossroads, with COVID-19 acting as a tipping point for whether they thrive or barely survive.

On April 13, about 100 faculty members from Laurentian University lost their jobs because of a massive restructuring and insolvency negotiations. In Australia this past fall, University of Sydney eliminated 10 faculties and 100 programs in order to increase its long-term sustainability.

Demographic, technological and socio-economic trends, including reduced government funding and increased dependency on private donors, are influencing the mandate of universities, and survival depends on transformation. As we document in our recent book, these trends are affecting all universities across the west, and most institutions are unable to nimbly pivot to the new reality.

Our research shows universities must "future proof" themselves, which happens when an institutional strategy is focused on the future while mitigating the impact of unforeseen events. Successful future-proofing involves clearly articulating a path to a new vision with the participation of faculty, staff and external community members. It also involves consistently applying decision-making criteria and continuously measuring progress.

Attracting students

Virtual technologies have been available for decades, but universities at large were mostly dependent on in-person learning. Online classes comprised only two per cent of the global higher education market before the pandemic, but as universities were forced to close, most classes were driven online in a matter of weeks.

Most faculty expect to return to traditional teaching, with few questioning its value. Yet the effectiveness of large lectures continues to be questionable, while small group face-to-face discussion leads to greater learning. Post-pandemic universities must integrate face-to-face time with virtual technologies to optimize learning.

Universities have increasingly been forced to compete for students from a declining applicant pool. Highly ranked universities with excellent online programs can attract students globally. Demand is increasing for professionally oriented degrees. Universities Canada notes liberal arts enrolment at Canadian universities has declined in recent years.

Private companies are a new competitor as they provide micro-credentials for employment relevant skills. Examples include Googles recent announcement of three "career certificate programs," and Facebooks partnership with colleges to deliver marketing certificates. These companies can create programs faster and at a lower cost than universities. In order to maintain integrity and competitiveness, universities must revise programs to balance short- and long-term educational needs.

Public universities in developed countries can no longer depend on government funding, and must restructure to reduce costs and increase revenue.

An increasing trend is to link government funds to visible performance metrics, which has led some research universities to redirect resources to commercialized research.

Universities are competing for limited philanthropic donations with donors expecting greater scrutiny on how their funds are spent. Donor restrictions reduce the flexibility of university leaders to redirect funds to less visible but important needs or programs.

As a result, both government and philanthropic funding are increasingly influencing how programs develop. University leaders are scrambling to find the appropriate balance between independent development and responsiveness to funders.

Tension between faculty views, realities

Based on our own experiences as strategic planners in universities, we have found that many tenured faculty remain convinced the traditional university structure provides the greatest value to society, and most universities are constrained by their extensive physical and technical infrastructures.

Universities may survive in their current state, but they will lose legitimacy and perceived value if they dont adapt. And other organizations will quickly move in to replace them.

The surviving institutions will have made tough decisions that will include closing programs and departments, and creating new approaches to delivering programs while still building critical thinking and judgment in students. In terms of research, the university will have to balance supporting curiosity-driven research and research that can be commercialized, including research focused on pressing societal and environmental issues.

How will universities survive the disruption?

Almost all universities engage in strategic planning, but the actual plans rarely move beyond presidents offices or are viewed by faculty as "window dressing."

In contrast, future-proofing occurs when a strategic plan is the primary co-ordination point for difficult trade-offs and decisions. Universities are comprised of semi-autonomous operating units, with important information on the impact of trends dispersed across them. Stakeholders such as faculty, staff and external community members are aware of some trends, but few have sufficient information to understand their full impact on the institutions future.

Difficult decisions, transparent criteria

A critical first step in developing a strategy is coalescing this dispersed information into digestible formats that all administrators, faculty, staff and community members can access.

Once faculty and staff have a more complete understanding of the disruptions, their recommendations are more focused on a sustainable future for the university, rather than just their department. Finalizing the strategy is the responsibility of university leaders, however they must ensure that all faculty and staff understand its intended outcomes.

A strategy provides a line-of-sight between the desired future state, the development or cancellation of programs, attracting and allocating funds and how the university will measure the impact of decisions.

Difficult decisions must be based on transparent and consistent criteria, and visible benchmarks must be monitored to assess progress toward strategic goals. Resistance decreases when stakeholders understand the basis of a decision, perceive consistency in the criteria applied across decisions and recognize progress towards goals.

Universities without a visible strategy will not flourish and may not even survive. Although the preceding discussion may suggest creating a strategy is easy, it is not. If it was easy, very few businesses would fail. The probability of successful future-proofing dramatically increases when university leaders appropriately engage stakeholders in forming strategies.

Loren Falkenberg is the senior associate dean of business and M. Elizabeth Cannon is president emerita at the University of Calgary.

This article was first published at The Conversation Canada: theconversation.com/ca.
For Canadians who thought relations with the United States would suddenly be blissful and genteel the instant Donald Trump exited the White House, its time to think again.

For Canadians who thought relations with the United States would suddenly be blissful and genteel the instant Donald Trump exited the White House, its time to think again.

In the early days of Democrat Joe Bidens presidency, cross-border oil and gas pipelines have become a new flashpoint in relations that were already in need of repair after Mr. Trumps tumultuous time in office.

Just hours after being sworn in, Mr. Biden signed an executive order cancelling approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, a project meant to expand critical Canadian oil exports.

"This is a gut punch for the Canadian and Alberta economies," Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said at the time.

DNCC/Handout/Getty Images/TNS Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

Tensions are on the rise again as Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wages a battle to shut down Calgary-based Enbridges Line 5, a nearly seven-decade-old pipeline that carries petroleum from western Canada through Wisconsin and Michigan, ending at refineries in Sarnia, Ont.

The pipeline, which runs along the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, helps deliver nearly half the supply of light crude oil, light synthetic crude oil and natural gas liquids in Ontario and Quebec.

Casting herself as an environmental champion, the Democratic governor was elected on a promise to shut down Line 5, which she calls a "ticking time bomb" and a "catastrophic" threat to the Great Lakes ecosystem. In November, Ms. Whitmer revoked the easement that had allowed the line to operate since 1953.

Enbridge argues that the disputed section of the 68-year-old pipeline has never leaked and that it is taking steps to protect the lakes after negotiating a plan with former governor Rick Snyder to encase the pipes in a tunnel below the lake bed. It ignored an order to shut the pipeline on May 12, arguing Michigan cannot unilaterally close an energy link that crosses the Canada-U.S. border.

AP FILE The pipeline, which runs along the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, helps deliver nearly half the supply of light crude oil, light synthetic crude oil and natural gas liquids in Ontario and Quebec.

Enbridge has vowed to continue operating Line 5 unless shut down by a court order, while Ms. Whitmer has threatened to seize the companys profits if petroleum keeps flowing under the lake.

In a rare filing in U.S. federal court, the Liberal government warned closing the pipeline would cut off almost half the supply used to make gasoline, jet fuel and home heating oil for residents in central Canada, and lead to higher fuel costs and thousands of job losses.

The two sides are in court-ordered mediation, with the next session scheduled for May 18. Canadas trump card is a 1977 treaty that prohibits either country from blocking an existing pipeline unless there is an emergency.

The heat is intensifying. Richard Studley, head of the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, didnt mince words last week when he commented, "Every Michigan governor I have worked with, until today, has treated our Canadian friends and neighbours with courtesy and respect."

AP FILE Enbridges Line 5, a nearly seven-decade-old pipeline that carries petroleum from western Canada through Wisconsin and Michigan, ending at refineries in Sarnia, Ont.

Its unlikely Ms. Whitmer will succeed in turning off the taps, but in appealing to a growing environmental wing, the flamboyant governor appears to be laying the foundation for a run at a Senate seat, or possibly even the White House.

Regardless of who sits in the Oval Office, the two countries will always be at odds over some issues. With Mr. Trump gone, theres no guarantee Canada will win more of these cross-border spats, but at least theres reason to be optimistic that the rhetoric flowing through the diplomatic pipeline will be something other than crude.
Beavertail Light "has been determined to be excess to the needs of the United States Coast Guard, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, GSA spokesperson Paul Hughes said in a statement.

Beavertail Light has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places since 1977. The 64-foot (19.5-meter) granite lighthouse faces south where Narragansett Bay and Rhode Island Sound meet, offering drop-dead-gorgeous ocean vistas.

All that remains of the original lighthouse is its foundation; it was constructed in 1749 and burned down by British soldiers leaving the Newport area in 1779. The current lighthouse was built in 1856 along with six additional structures totaling 5,171 square feet (480 square meters.)

Hughes said the government is asking interested groups to formally express their interest in the next 60 days, and the National Park Service will review the applications.

Perched on a peninsula, Watch Hill Light is a three-story granite block tower with a cast iron and glass lantern on top. It's attached to a two-story brick keepers dwelling built in 1935. Outbuildings on the 4.5-acre complex include an oil house built in 1855-1856.
Masks will no longer be required in Winona, city officials announced Friday, to match the decision of Gov. Tim Walz to end Minnesotas mask mandate.

The decisions follow newly released guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 do not need to wear masks indoors.

There was a mask order in place in Winona and then at the state level since July 2020, It was decided upon by then Mayor Mark Peterson and was supported by the city council.

Masks are still required on public transit, and residents are still welcome to wear masks if they feel necessary.

Additionally, private businesses and organizations can still require masks to be worn inside their buildings.

Winona Area Public Schools has announced that masks will still be required in their schools.

Masks were a critical tool that prevented the spread of COVID and kept Winonans safe throughout the pandemic. Now that many residents have been vaccinated, our community is in a different place. The order was the right thing to do then, and the end of the states mandate is the right thing to do now, Winona Mayor Scott Sherman said in a press release Friday.
Race-conscious programs designed to improve equality would not be at risk, the organization said, because the amendment's wording is much different than in other states where legislation has been passed with the intention of using it to challenge affirmative action.

Because its ultimate effect is unknown, the ballot question has raised suspicion among some rural Pennsylvanians, said Rep. Jesse Topper, a Republican from Bedford County, east of Pittsburgh.

There are some who are generally skeptical, because the word equality has somewhat been co-opted over the years by left-leaning groups to mean whatever they want it to mean, Topper said.

He said he has had to assure constituents that there is nothing nefarious behind the proposal.

One reason for the uncertainty is that the Legislature did not hold hearings on the three amendments that will appear on Tuesday's ballot, said Rep. Tim Briggs of Montgomery County, the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee. If they pass and turn out to have unintended consequences, another statewide vote would be needed.

A constitutional amendment is a tough way to legislate, because when you don't put a lot of thought into what the consequences are, it's hard to correct, Briggs said.
The resolution would also require more de-escalation efforts by police before using deadly force; ban deadly force in some situations, such as firing on moving cars; and bar arrests or searches of people during non-moving traffic violations, non-felony offenses or warrants.

The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association, the Law Enforcement Labor Services, the Minnesota Sheriffs Association and the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association wrote to the City Council urging them to reject the resolution, saying parts of it conflict with several state statutes. And they said it would be dangerous to have civilians take over certain policing situations, both for the public and the civilian workers, and would likely lead to criminals fleeing.

The resolution is named for Wright and Kobe Dimock-Heisler, a 21-year-old man with autism and mental illness who was fatally shot by officers in June. Officers in that incident were not charged.



Find APs full coverage of the death of Daunte Wright at: https://apnews.com/hub/death-of-daunte-wright



This story was first published on May 15, 2021. It was updated on May 17, 2021, to correct that the warrant for Wright was for a gross misdemeanor, not a felony.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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Sauk County officials adjust COVID precautions; Columbia County Health Department silent

NEWS REPUBLIC ARCHIVE Sauk County Health Officer Treemanisha Stewart answers a question during a Baraboo school board meeting Monday at the high school. DAILY REGISTER ARCHIVE Portage sisters Kendra Dorn, left, and Courtney St. Martin drink wine April 30 with their "favorite aunt," Jean Gavinski, Portage, at Bee Alive Yoga in downtown Portage during the sold out Wine Walk event. Marianne Hanson, executive director of the Portage Area Chamber of Commerce, said Friday after an announcement from CDC officials that fully vaccinated people can interact without masks in most public settings that the new guidance reinforces it was the right decision to host public events throughout the summer.

An announcement Thursday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention means that residents throughout the region who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 no longer have to wear masks in most public settings.

For Marianne Hanson, executive director of the Portage Area Chamber of Commerce, the new guidelines show that making plans for the summer was the right decision.

We are happy to hear these new guidelines announced, Hanson wrote in a statement Friday. We were already planning to host events and programs this summer and these new guidelines are a positive reinforcement that we should be moving forward and getting back to business and enjoying life.

Baraboo council extends employee COVID-19 policy Baraboo Common Council members unanimously agreed Tuesday to extend the citywide employee COVID-19 policy.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services seconded the guidance with an announcement late Friday. DHS Secretary-designee Karen Timberlake said the new guidance for fully vaccinated people, which is considered to happen two weeks after completing a vaccination series, is an exciting step forward.

The Sauk County Health Department issued a statement Friday outlining the restrictions still in place despite the lifted restrictions for those fully vaccinated. While vaccinated people can essentially resume activities from before the pandemic, like indoor gatherings without masks, there are still limitations for certain spaces.

Exceptions to the updated guidance include healthcare facilities, schools, businesses, correctional facilities, homeless shelters and modes of public transportation, like planes and airports, buses and depots and trains and stations.

According to the released statement, mask wearing, regardless of vaccination status, continues to be an important COVID-19 mitigation strategy in schools, correctional facilities, homeless shelters, and other settings where additional regulations exist.

For teachers and school staff, masking should continue until more people and children are vaccinated and anyone on buses should continue following previous guidelines, according to the statement.

Portage City Administrator Shawn Murphy said in an email Friday that he, City Attorney Jesse Spankowski and Mayor Rick Dodd are currently revising protocol for employees and residents who use city facilities.

Murphy

The city had already planned to reopen most of its facilities closed under the most recent emergency order approved by Portage Common Council members June 1. The mask requirement in city buildings will be lifted that day as well, though Murphy said employees may still wear them when interacting with residents.

We have been strongly encouraging our employees to get the vaccinations and to date approximately 75% of city employees are fully vaccinated, Murphy wrote. The city provides paid leave to employees who suffer side effects from the vaccination and are unable to work.

He added that the city has deferred to the Columbia County Public Health Department to publicize and promote COVID-19 vaccinations as they are the health experts.

Columbia County officials, including director of Health and Human Services Department Heather Gove and Corporation Counsel Joseph Ruf, have not responded to phone calls or emails for information regarding COVID-19 throughout the pandemic. Columbia County Health Department has provided no public guidance or education regarding COVID-19 precautions or vaccination since the start of the year. The Columbia County Board did not budget funds to fill vacant health department positions in 2021.

Murphy said council members will discuss the revised protocols at their May 27 meeting.

According to Sauk County weekly data, 45% of residents are partially vaccinated with 37.7% fully vaccinated. Of those 65 years or older, 85% are partially vaccinated while nearly 81% are fully vaccinated. In total, more than 29,000 residents have received at least one dose of a vaccine.

Between May 6 and 12, there were 41 additional cases of COVID-19, though 25 fewer active cases as the total dropped to 70. Another person died of the virus, bringing the total to 48 and two more were hospitalized. There were 161 new cases per 100,000 people in the two weeks prior to Wednesday, placing the case activity level at high as of May 11.

Residents 18 years or older can receive a free Johnson & Johnson or Moderna vaccine from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday in the basement of the West Square Building, 505 Broadway Street in Baraboo. They will also be accepting walk-ins from 9 to 11 a.m. May 27.

In Columbia County, the health department website data shows that as of Friday, more than 49,000 residents were given vaccines. Roughly 27,300, or 47%, have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. About 40%, or more than 23,200 residents total, are fully vaccinated.

The number of active cases rose by 13 from Thursday to Friday, adding one active case for 73 total in the county, which has suffered 57 total deaths from infection of the virus. A free walk-in vaccination clinic will next be held from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Cambria Fire Department, 702 Elizabeth Street, where residents can receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

In the statement to the public, Sauk County health officials said that studies show scientists and experts that the vaccines are working.

According to the release, studies show that COVID-19 vaccines are more than 90% effective in real-world settings in preventing mild and severe disease, hospitalization, and death. Individuals who are fully vaccinated can start returning to normal activities.

Reporter Jonathan Richie contributed to this story.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-15 13:42:11|Editor: huaxia

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KIEV, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The Ukrainian military held artillery drills near the Crimean Peninsula, the country's Armed Forces said Friday.

In the drills, 220 mm multiple rocket launchers Uragan were used under conditions that are as close to combat as possible, said Joint Forces Operation Commander Lieutenant General Serhiy Nayev.

The commander added that the artillery units are in full combat readiness, and are ready to respond to military threats.

Russia held large-scale military exercises in Crimea at the end of April amid escalated tensions with Ukraine.

Relations between Moscow and Kiev have been deteriorating since Crimea was incorporated into Russia in March 2014 following a local referendum. Ukraine says the peninsula was annexed. Enditem
After they canceled so much stuff, I was like, Were not really about to have anything. Ill be surprised if we even had our own graduation ceremony, Jackson said. Like, I imagined it being online or them just being, like, Heres your diploma, congratulations in the mail or something.

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It feels a little bit nice being recognized all together, she added.

Her father, Thomas, said he felt great about getting to see her accept a $1,500 Nessler scholarship. She has been an achiever ever since she was in Head Start, when she was interviewed by the newspaper, he said. As a single dad, Im really proud of her, he said.

Larsens grandparents, Mona and Eugene Larsen, echoed him, saying they were proud of their granddaughter and glad to be able to attend Honors Night.

Its nice to have a presentation to kind of cap off their educational experience, and its a reward for all of them, Eugene Larsen said. Were very happy.

Especially since this whole year has been quite different than shed been anticipating for years, Mona Larsen said. (She) had a big plan for how she was going to take certain classes and enjoy everything, and it didnt turn out that way.
Dodge County announced Friday it was moving into Phase 3 of the COVID-19 pandemic response on the heels of a Thursday announcement by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that fully vaccinated people can largely resume pre-pandemic lives, including ditching face masks indoors.

Masking and social distancing continues to be recommended by the CDC for people who are not fully vaccinated.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Health, 31.6% of Dodge Countys 87,000 residents have been fully vaccinated.

Private businesses can still require face coverings and public officials may wait for more guidance before adjusting practices.

Beaver Dam Mayor Becky Glewen said Friday city policies have not changed, but she is in touch with public health officials with the goal of easing precautions soon after receiving further guidance.

Jana Stephens, director of community services for the city, said masks will remain required at The Watermark, 209 S. Center St., for the time being. The Watermark recently re-opened to offer some in-person programming.

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But Cheney didnt care. On Meet The Press, in December 2001, he declared that 9/11 ringleader Mohamed Atta had met in Prague with a Saddam secret agent. In Cheneys words, Its been pretty well confirmed.

But Cheney had seized on a rumor that U.S intelligence officials could not confirm. In April 2002, inside sources told Newsweek: U.S. intelligence and law enforcement officials now believe that Atta wasnt even in Prague at the time. But Cheney persisted anyway. In September 2002, he said it again on Meet the Press: We have reporting that places (Atta) in Prague with a senior Iraqi intelligence official a few months before the attack.

Fast forward to June 2004. Thats when the bipartisan 9/11 Commission rebuked Cheney: We have examined the allegation that Atta met with an Iraqi intelligence officerBased on the evidence available  including investigation by Czech and U.S. officials, plus detainee reporting  we do not believe that such a meeting occurred.
Utica, N.Y. - The 2021 version of America's Greatest Heart Run and Walk was unlike any other in the event's 47 year history.

It was held on Saturday, here in the middle of May instead of the first week of March, and it was considered a virtual event, as individuals and groups did their own run or walk to raise money, rather than having one huge event.

The theme of this year's event, 'Apart...Yet Together', and that was very appropriate.

Each year the event raises money for the American Heart Association to help fight heart disease and stroke.

There were a number of locations where people met at a specific time on Saturday to go for a walk or run, including on First Street in Whitesboro, Proctor Park in Utica, the track at MVCC in Utica and the 840 Rayhill Trail parking lot on Middle Settlement Road in New Hartford, among others.

We caught up with the group at the 840 Rayhill Trail in New Hartford.

That's where Christine Kisiel, the Executive Director of the American Heart Association, took part.

She says the event have a different feel this year, but the spirit is still the same, "Weve asked everybody to get out and walk where they are and today we have several American Heart Association board members and Hannaford Grocery Store workers, they came together to walk at the 840 Trail."

Also among those participating and raising money at that location is American Heart Association Board Member and heart attack survivor Albert Pylinski of Utica, "20 years ago I had a heart attack at the age of 47 and since that time I have been in the hospital five more times."

This year, Albert is not only a board member and survivor, he's also one of this year's Red Cap Ambassadors, people whom Kisiel says are vital to the event each year, "We are so happy when our survivors tell their stories and reinforce the importance of coming together and fundraising for the American Heart Association."

Pylinski is an inspiration to others, "I try to get out and walk as much as possible. I try to go to the gym and of course during the past year its been very difficult, gyms all over the country have been closed and so I have been doing as much as possible walking outside, doing fitness at home and thats really whats been my salvation ever since I was diagnosed with heart disease."

Angela Johnson of Utica lost her mother to heart disease and she's been a part of this event for several years now.

She also walked with the group at the 840 Rayhill Trail location, "Just to spread awareness for her disease, people lose loved ones that mean a lot to them. Diseases are terrible, so anything you can do to support them and care for them, its always the way to go."

So far, $425,000 has been raised. There were a total of 1,000 walkers and 150 teams who helped raise money.

The effort though, is continuing until June 30th. So you can still help the local cause and try to help the the American Heart Association reach that magical one million dollar mark by signing up and raising money, or just by donating.

Here's a link : www.UticaHeartRunWalk.org
"L O V E L Y Oakland!" the house description began. It went on to give a slew of details about the 1,484 square-foot home  light-filled, charming, Mediterranean-style, with a yard that "boasts lush front landscaping"  and finished by describing the "cozy fireplace" and "rustic-chic" pressed tin ceiling in the living room.

It looked like any number of the property descriptions you might see online in today's red-hot US housing market. Typically, they're written by humans. This one, however, was composed by artificial intelligence.

A Canadian startup called Listing AI is using cutting-edge AI to quickly churn out computer-generated descriptions that, like the one above, can be surprisingly compelling. All users need to do is give it some details about the home, and the AI does the rest.

The results still need work: The real-life Oakland, California, home that fits with the above description (which my family is currently selling) actually has a pressed tin ceiling in the dining room, rather than the living room, for instance. The descriptions Listing AI created for me are not nearly as specific or well-written as the one crafted by our (human) realtor. And I had to provide the website with a lot of information about different rooms and features of the house and the outdoor landscaping  a process that felt a bit like real-estate Mad Libs  before the website was able to come up with several different descriptions.

But the general coherence of the descriptions that Listing AI proposed within seconds of my submission provides yet another sign that AI is getting better at a task that was traditionally seen as uniquely human  and shows how people may be able to work with the technology, rather than fearing it may replace us.

It probably won't do all the work of writing a house description for you, but according to Listing AI co-founder Mustafa Al-Hayali, that's not the point. He hopes it will complete about 80% to 90% of the work for coming up with a home description, which may be completed by a realtor or a copy writer.

"I don't believe it's meant to replace a person when it comes to completing a task, but it's supposed to make their job a whole lot easier," Al-Hayali told CNN Business. "It can generate ideas you can use."

There is a basement, but it's not finished

Al-Hayali, whose day job is senior software developer at Canada-based e-commerce platform Shopify, said he and his co-founder (Corey Pollock, a Shopify senior product manager), came up with the idea for Listing AI after both became new homeowners in Toronto. As they each navigated that process, he said, they noticed property descriptions that were inaccurate or even copied from a previous time the property was up for sale. Al-Hayali bought his condo in March 2020  just before Covid forced many people to start relying on virtual visits and other ways of learning about properties remotely, which made thorough descriptions that much more important.

They built the website over the past month or so and launched it publicly this week. Listing AI asks that a user provide all manner of data about the house, then software polishes it so that it can be better used by AI.

After that, the information is processed by GPT-3, an AI model from nonprofit research company OpenAI. GPT-3 was trained on text from billions of webpages so that it would be adept at responding to written prompts by generating everything from news articles to recipes to poetry. (Real estate descriptions are among the hundreds of applications developers have envisioned for the model, with varying levels of success.)

Users can sign up for a free trial that lets you generate several listings. If you want to generate unlimited descriptions it currently costs $9 per month or $84 per year (the website states these are launch prices; the regular prices will be $12 per month or $105 per year).

There were obvious errors and weird AI decisions in the listings the website composed for me, ranging from false statements (the house does not have a "finished basement", though it does have a basement) to final sentences ("The living room") that just trailed off. Listing AI also offers more social-media friendly versions of its home descriptions, which didn't appear that much different to me but each came with a made-up asking price for the home (they ranged from about $600,000 to $2.4 million).

However, the overall tenor and style  and the fact that GPT-3 has no knowledge of the actual look or floor plan of the house  were surprisingly reflective of reality.

"This Mediterranean style house is perfect for you!" exclaimed one listing the website generated. It ended with a call to action: "Come and take a look today!"

Human touch

After experimenting with Listing AI, I asked the realtor representing my family in the sale of my mother-in-law's home, Scott Ward, what he thinks of this kind of tool. Ward, a realtor with Red Oak Realty in Oakland, had a few issues with Listing AI's word choices  he'd never describe the Oakland house as "rustic-chic" he said, and he hates the word "boasts" in property descriptions.

But he agreed that there are plenty of poorly written home descriptions out there, and that automating the process could help some people. For example, it could be useful if people are not familiar with this kind of writing process or they're selling a number of similar homes, such as tract housing.

Still, he said the assumption that AI, rather than a person, can be used to present a home to prospective buyers worries him.

"I think parts of this business can be certainly automated but there's too much human touch still," he said. "And I think that's not necessarily a bad thing."

Correction: An earlier version of this article misidentified Corey Pollock's job title at Shopify. He is a senior product manager there.
Ransomware attacks draw headlines when they take down major operations: hospitals, cities and most recently, a US fuel pipeline. Not only do cybercriminals scam businesses demanding large sums of money or they'll wreak havoc on their computer systems, this week's gas shortages showed how it can also have broader impacts.

But ransomware against individuals  specifically, anyone who uses the internet  can also be very damaging. Hackers can lock computers and threaten to delete or expose sensitive information and photos in exchange for money.

The concept predates the widespread adoption of the internet. In the late 1980s, the inventor of ransomware attacked the attendees of the World Health Organization's international AIDS conference with infected floppy disks, asking for $189 to decrypt files on their computers. Nearly three decades later, the US Justice Department recently said 2020 was "the worst year to date for ransomware attacks." Security experts believe attacks against both corporations and individuals will only continue to grow because they're easy enough to execute and people are paying.

Here's what to do if you've fallen victim and how to protect yourself.

How it happens

Criminal organizations behind ransomware attacks don't care if the victim is an individual or a business  they just want to get paid. Ransomware is often obtained through social engineering  an act of someone stealing personal data by using information gleaned from their social media account  phishing emails or getting someone to click on a link on a website. It's especially prevalent on pornography and pirate websites that promise free viewing. Ransomware kits are also sold on the dark web, a part of the internet not detected by search engines where cybercriminals often sell and buy illicit materials.

Older computers running operating systems that are no longer supported by the manufacturer, such as Microsoft's Windows 7, and don't offer security updates are more susceptible, as well.

Once the ransomware has been clicked, a hacker can gain access to that computer and demand a ransom to relinquish control. Because the system locks as soon as it's infected, it's not possible to negotiate with the criminal. Many times, hackers will urge people to pay with cryptocurrency, such as bitcoin, which can be received anonymously and is harder to trace.

The biggest motivating factor behind these incidents is money, and sometimes a criminal will use fear tactics, such as threatening to publicly expose sensitive photos, to entice people to pay. "When criminals attack individual users, they often ask for small amounts of money, as they know most individuals can't or won't pay thousands of dollars to get their data back," said Randall Magiera, cybersecurity expert and professor of information technology at Tulane University.

What to do if you've fallen victim

The FBI's general guidance is that victims should not pay a ransom. "The FBI does not support paying a ransom in response to a ransomware attack," according to the FBI website. "Paying a ransom doesn't guarantee you or your organization will get any data back. It also encourages perpetrators to target more victims and offers an incentive for others to get involved in this type of illegal activity."

If a hacker gets a credit card number and goes on a shopping spree, a bank can often reverse the charges, but the use of cryptocurrency makes funds nearly impossible to get back. Some common malware infections can be reversed with existing cybersecurity tools but many cannot.

"Ransomware groups evolve their tactics generally when they see that cybersecurity tools can counter them," said Michela Menting, research director at ABI Research. Some security researchers have tools to decrypt ransomware, but they're not always reliable because many ransomware versions exist.

People who are hit with ransomware should treat their computer as though it's compromised even after it's been unlocked. "This is because you do not know what changes the ransomware made to the system when it was infected," Magiera said.

He suggested erasing the computer's hard drive and reinstalling the entire operating system rather than selecting the option that restores files.

Even though it's hard to track down the criminals and prosecute them, anyone targeted should report the crime to police officials, according to Menting. "The greater the number of incidents reported, the more visibility this provides to law enforcement, which eventually leads to bigger budget allocation for fighting it," she said.

Be proactive

People can do a few things to protect themselves from ransomware, starting with being mindful about what they're clicking on in email and on websites. Individuals should also consider backing up important files, so even if they fall victim to ransomware their files wouldn't be lost.

Menting said because some ransomware groups threaten to publish the data online to either shame or reveal personally identifiable information, people can use basic tools to encrypt sensitive files, so that even "if a ransomware gang gets hold of it and publishes it, they cannot read it."

People can also invest in an antivirus program to monitor for and filter out malicious software.

"Cybersecurity solutions can help to weed out some of the more generic and common attacks, but individuals need to be prepared in case some are not caught by the filters," Menting said. "No security solution is 100% effective. A combination of tools and techniques will provide the best safeguards."
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - An Ohio citys $10 million settlement is just the latest big payout in recent years over the killing of Black people by white officers. On Friday, the city of Columbus announced the settlement with the family of Andre Hill, a Black man who was fatally shot by a white Ohio police officer in December. It was in March when the city of Minneapolis agreed to pay $27 million to George Floyds family. Their attorney called it the largest pretrial civil rights settlement ever. Some settlements in police killings are kept private. Often a settlement includes money but specifies there's no admission of guilt.
VERNON, N.Y. --- For the first time in more than a year fans returned to the Utica-Rome Speedway, now under new ownership. In 2020, racing on the track was limited and fans were not allowed to attend.

Now that the world has turned over a new page in the pandemic, Track Promoter Chris Moore said he's thrilled to see the fans return.

"We've been working hard. Last year was tough with COVID for everybody. We've been working hard, the weather has been kind of rough on us this year, but we're excited. We're glad to have everybody back and hopefully, the hard work is gonna pay off. We will continue to grow and get better. The stands look full, it's awesome hopefully it keeps getting better," said Moore.

Last year, fans looking to get their racing fix had to take a road trip to other tracks across Upstate New York. Racing fan Tiffany Kiefer said she's glad to be able to return to her home track.

"You had to drive a couple of hours going whichever way. Going to Fulton, Brewerton, It's not the same this is close to home," said Kiefer.

NASCAR World Truck Series driver Stewart Frisen also getting behind the wheel. Frisen said he's raced at the Utica-Rome speedway a number of times and said he always enjoyed the energy.

"I've spent a lot of years racing with Utica-Rome. It's been probably 4 or 5 years since I've been here. You know now with all the new stuff going on, we're back and I'm looking forward to it," said Frisen.

If you'd like to attend a race, the full 2021 race schedule can be found here.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)- The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed thousands of lives in the state of Indiana. However, some people survived the disease and are still recovering. Mary Johns is a COVID-19 survivor. She caught the virus in December of last year and spent 70 days in the hospital recovering.

"I couldn't move at all. I forgot how to walk, said Mary Johns. So they taught me how to slide off a board onto the wheelchair."

Since then, Mary has learned how to walk again through physical therapy. A recovery she said was difficult.

"As they kept working with me my physical therapist just kept pushing me he wasn't my favorite person at the time but I did it and I was really proud the first day I walked in here without the wheelchair," said Mary.

Mary's story is not unique. Her physical therapist says treating COVID-19 survivors has become normal.

"It doesn't just stop after the COVID-19 infection passes people have a lot of after-effects sometimes and we manage a lot of those situations here at the clinic," said Danny Robertson a Physical Therapist with Franciscan Health.

Robertson says people who are hospitalized for COVID-19, are patients physical therapists most commonly see.

"I would say the most common things are definitely cardiovascular based just with fatigue and getting people's energy levels back up and the ability to breathe through and activity, said Robertson. Also a lot of weakness people having difficulty getting out of chairs or getting out bed."

Mary is in her 70's and she says many doctors were not sure if she would be able to beat the virus.

"Every doctor I have seen keeps telling me I am a miracle walking and I do not think they thought I would make it, said Mary. It was hard on the family.

During Mary's stay at the hospital, her family was not allowed to visit as COVID-19 restrictions were still in place. However, her husband checked in every day to make sure she was recovering.

"She needed just somebody to hold her hand and I wasn't able to do that, said Mike Johns Marys husband. It was extremely tough."

While the worst of this disease is behind the Johns family, they are recognizing how fortunate Mary is to be alive.

"My doctor I went to a few weeks ago said you know you could have been in a box by now, said Mary. Every doctor I have seen has said you are just one of the lucky ones."

Mary hopes by sharing her story more people will get vaccinated, that way fewer people have to go through the long hard recovery she has.
Michigan State Police said 40-year-old Isaiah Gary Gardenhire, who also goes by Zeke, is accused of stabbing a 13-year-old to death and sexually assaulting an adult woman in Isabella county. A neighbor spoke about the aftermath of the horrific crime.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 04:06:12|Editor: huaxia

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PARIS, May 15 (Xinhua) -- France has administered the first doses of COVID-19 vaccines to 20 million people, reaching its target days ahead of the reopening of catering businesses and cultural venues, French Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Saturday.

Castex announced on Twitter the hitting of the 20-million mark, a number that represents some 30 percent of the population.

"This is a very important moment for the whole country because it supports our prospects for ending the crisis, reinforced by the evolution of the epidemic data, which is regressing everywhere in France," Castex said earlier in the day during a visit to the mass vaccination site at the Porte de Versailles conference center in Paris.

"The next target is 30 million first doses. It is within our reach," he added.

COVID-19 hospital admissions continued to decline in France on Saturday. In the past 24 hours, the number of hospitalized patients went down by 456 to 22,950 patients, continuing a negative trend for the second week in a row.

The number of intensive care patients, a key gauge to evaluate the health system's ability to cope with the epidemic, fell by 81 to 4,271.

Since the epidemic outbreak, France has confirmed 5.86 million cases and 107,535 deaths. The two indicators grew by 15,685 and 112 in one day respectively.

From May 19, non-essential shops will reopen in France. Restaurants and cafes will be allowed to take in half of their capacity on terraces with a maximum of six people per table. Museums, theatres, cinemas and sport facilities will also reopen, with a limit of 800 people indoors and 1,000 outdoors. Enditem
With workplace restrictions being lifted, real estate agents are able to work out of the office. While most of their work is now done online, it does not replace in-person communication. Steven Wright, left, and Justin Halfacre observe that some tasks, such as analyzing new listings, are often more easily done in the office.
Gov. Dan McKee, Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos and the P-Bruins mascot, from left, celebrate with Lisa Dias and Marty Walton, both of Smithfield, after both received the 100,000th and 100,001 vaccines at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence Thursday. The couple, along with Governor McKee were presented P-Bruins jerseys and the couple received numerous gifts for participating.
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 14: The FBI seal is attached to a podium prior to Director is Christopher A. Wray speakin at a news conference at FBI Headquarters, on June 14, 2018 in Washington, DC. Earlier today the inspector general released a 500 page report on the Clinton email investigation. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
We are a little more than 1 month away from NASCAR returning to Nashville. In June for the first time in 37 years -- NASCAR Cup Series racing will be front and center at Nashville Superspeedway. Our Justin Beasley is in Wilson County introducing us to one man who has waited and worked for th
Source: Xinhua| 2021-05-16 04:45:11|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, May 15 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday expressed concerns about the escalating conflict in separate phone calls with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Biden voiced concerns about violent confrontations in the West Bank and "shared his grave concern about the intercommunal violence across Israel," according to a White House readout of Biden's call with Netanyahu.

He also raised concerns about "the safety and security of journalists and reinforced the need to ensure their protection," likely referring to an airstrike carried out by the Israeli military earlier in the day that destroyed a building housing international news organizations in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Biden "reaffirmed his strong support for Israel's right to defend itself against rocket attacks from Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza," said the readout.

Biden also held his first phone conversation with Abbas since he took office, in which he conveyed "the U.S. commitment to strengthening the U.S.-Palestinian partnership."

The two leaders discussed current tensions in Jerusalem and the West Bank and expressed their shared concern about the loss of civilian life in the ongoing violence, the White House said in a separate readout. Biden emphasized to Abbas the need for Hamas to cease firing rockets into Israel.

Biden voiced his support for the two-state solution in speaking with both leaders.

The phone calls came amid escalating violence between the Israeli security forces and Palestinian militants.

Israeli fighter jets on Saturday bombed and demolished Jala Tower, a high-rise building in Gaza City housing Al-Jazeera TV and Associated Press (AP) offices as well as residential apartments.

The building "contained military assets belonging to the intelligence offices of Hamas," said an Israeli military spokesperson in a statement.

AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said in a statement that "we are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing AP's bureau and other news organizations in Gaza."

"We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life," he said. "A dozen AP journalists and freelancers were inside the building and thankfully we were able to evacuate them in time."

The ongoing conflict was the worst violence between Israel and the besieged Palestinian enclave since 2014.

Militant groups in Gaza continued firing barrages of rockets targeting cities in northern, central and southern Israel. A spokesperson of the Israeli army said that more than 200 rockets were fired from Gaza at Israel in the last 12 hours.

It is reported that rockets fired by militant groups in Gaza have killed 10 people, including a five-year-old boy, a soldier, and two women. Meanwhile, the health ministry in Gaza said that since Monday more than 140 Palestinians have been killed, including 40 children and 20 women, and about 1,000 others injured. Enditem
A discriminatory and anti-democratic ban on Australian citizens returning from India supposedly elapsed today. In reality, the government is continuing the callous blockade by preventing the repatriation of citizens who have tested positive to COVID-19 or who are a close contact of an infected person.

Izhaar Hussain Shaikh, left, an ambulance driver, and others pick up a COVID-19 patient from his home in Mumbai, India May 28, 2020 [Credit: AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool]

The policy is plainly homicidal. Citizens with a potentially deadly disease are being denied their right of return, guaranteed under international law. They are being condemned to seek treatment in Indias hospital system, which has been overwhelmed by a coronavirus tsunami that has seen confirmed daily infections of well over 350,000 and 4,000 officially-recorded fatalities per day.

The bancondemned as illegal by human rights organisations and civil liberties organizationswas imposed early this month. Based on draconian provisions in the Biosecurity Act, it was accompanied by explicit threats from Health Minister Greg Hunt that the government would prosecute anyone who sought to circumvent the blockade, with fines of up to $66,000 and as many as five years in prison.

To damp down widespread anger, the government claimed that the ban was temporary, and repatriations would begin today. Those mealy-mouthed statements have been exposed as lies. It is now clear that the government has no intention of aiding the vast majority of the 9,500 Australian citizens in India, more than 900 of whom are classified as vulnerable. Some 173 are unaccompanied children.

On the first repatriation flight today, almost half the scheduled 150 passengers were denied the right to travel. A reported 42 tested positive to the coronavirus and another 31 were classified as their close contacts. Only 80 people were repatriated, and the next flight is not scheduled until May 23, more than a week away.

The government does not intend to provide any medical assistance to Australian citizens who have COVID in India. Australias High Commissioner to India, Barry OFarrell, declared merely it was unfortunate that so many citizens had been barred from the flight.

OFarrell, a longstanding Liberal Party politician, said those barred would have to deal with the COVID that they have, or continue to isolate to prove that they dont have COVID. In other words, they are on their own.

The figures from the first flight indicate that the travel ban, over the past fortnight, has contributed to a major spread of coronavirus among Australian citizens in India. In March, the positivity rate of passengers returning from India was 3.5 percent. For those scheduled to fly today, it was 26 percent.

If a similar rate of infection exists among the entire Australian population in India, then more than 2,500 citizens are afflicted with the disease. And if the rate holds for those classified as vulnerable, more than 250 of that cohort would currently be infected. That is, the Australian government has already increased the likelihood of its citizens being infected by COVID, and now is gambling with their lives.

The tragic scenes of seriously-ill people in India unable to find treatment and dying outside hospitals have been viewed with horror by the worlds population. In addition to a massive shortage of beds, the country has insufficient supplies of oxygen and other basic medical infrastructure. In an indication of the criminal indifference of the Australian ruling elite to this disaster, todays repatriation flight arrived in India with just 1,056 ventilators and 60 oxygen concentrators that the Australian government had pledged in aid.

It is unclear what medical treatment, if any, the Australian citizens infected with COVID will be able to find in India. The country does not allow dual nationality. People from India who have become Australian citizens have been compelled to forgo the rights associated with Indian nationality. They are likely to be forced to seek treatment in private facilities, if they can afford it. But those too are stretched to breaking point.

Speaking to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Sunny Joura, one of those blocked from the flight, bluntly stated: If I die, the Australian government will be responsible. Joura travelled to India in May 2020, to see his terminally-ill father. Many of the Australian citizens in India who have spoken to the media similarly travelled to the country to be with elderly and ill relatives.

Like tens of thousands of other Australians, Joura has been prevented from returning, after two private flights he booked before the travel ban was imposed were cancelled.

Joura, who is at heightened risk because he is middle-aged, suspects he was infected in an Indian hotel that is part of the repatriation process. He demanded that the Australian government get your act together please, get more quarantine facilities.

Medical experts have called on the government to repatriate all citizens, including those who are COVID-positive, and establish purpose built quarantines. Associate Professor Adam Kamradt-Scott, a global health security expert, told the Age: We should be bringing them home, full stop. The risk is that they will succumb to the illness and die. He added: Im probably angrier than I have been in a decade about how our government is treating our own citizens with regards to this.

The government has refused to improve quarantine facilities. Aside from the Howard Springs centre in the Northern Territory, which has a capacity of just 2,000, returnees are compelled to quarantine in private hotels. The hotels are not equipped to prevent airborne transmission of COVID, and have been staffed by low-paid, casual employees who are frequently forced to work several jobs to make ends meet. The hotels have been the source of some 17 leaks of the coronavirus in Australia over the past six months.

The government has insisted that the hotel system has worked well. In a tacit admission that this is not the case, it has mandated a safe infection level of just 2 percent in the hotels, citing that as a reason to deny COVID-positive citizens in India their right to return.

The Labor Party opposition has bemoaned the absence of purpose-built quarantines and issued weasel words of concern over the plight of citizens stranded in India. But throughout the pandemic, Labor has functioned as a constructive opposition, largely marching in lockstep with the Liberal-National government.

In his reply to the 202122 budget this week, Labor leader Anthony Albanese said nothing about what a Labor government would do to increase quarantine capacity and safety. Moreover, Labor-led state administrations have played a central role in implementing the hotel quarantine system.

The plight of citizens in India underscores the erosion of basic democratic rights, including those associated with citizenship. It also exposes the fraudulent character of claims that relatively low infection rates in Australia are the result of a more humane or scientifically-minded governance than abroad.

In reality, the Australian ruling elite, like its counterparts internationally, has subordinated the health and lives of ordinary people to the dictates of corporate profit.

The crisis of citizens in India coincides with a renewed push to complete the reopening of the Australian economy, after virtually all safety restrictions have been abolished already. Speaking for the financial elite, a task force at the University of Sydney yesterday issued a report, demanding the opening of international borders, and government policies that will force ordinary people to live with the virus.

Australias former deputy chief medical officer Nick Coatsworth today echoed this call. He defended the Indian ban, before declaring that it was necessary to dispense with the false idol of eradicating coronavirus transmission. [W]e need to come to terms with the idea that we cannot, nor do we need to, ride this one out in an eliminationist bunker, he wrote.

Coatsworth denounced hardcore activist doctors, associated with the most extreme views [which] tolerate a zero-risk approach to any COVID-19 infection in a healthcare worker and misuse the legal tenet of the precautionary principle as a proxy for the infinite elimination of risk.

This is the same line of letting the virus spread, to boost the profit-making activities of the corporate elite, that has led to catastrophic levels of death and disease the world over.
A long-delayed inquest into the shooting deaths of 10 people in the Ballymurphy estate in Belfast, Northern Ireland has concluded that all were civilians, posed no threat to anyone, were unarmed and that nine of them were shot by the British Army. Coroner Mrs Justice Keegan could not definitively identify the origin of the bullet that shot the tenth person.

The verdict was welcomed by relatives and supporters of those killed. John Teggart, whose father Daniel was among those shot dead, addressed a press conference.

John Teggart's father Danny (44) was shot 14 times-mainly in the back as he lay injured on the ground - by the British Army. Photo taken at an event in 2014. (credit: Sinn Fein-FlickR)

We, the Ballymurphy families welcome the coroner's historic verdict today. Justice Keegan concluded that unjustified force was used in the killing of our loved ones who are entirely innocent. After 50 years, they have finally had their names cleared and their innocence put beyond doubt.

Teggart condemned the media falsifications used from day one to conceal the massacre.

General Mike Jackson is considered a hero in Britain, but he was the one who told you that our loved ones were gunmen and gunwomen. The inquest confirmed that the soldiers who came to the North, supposedly to protect us... turned their guns on us. The British government now wants to deny us the chance for justice by introducing an amnesty for these murders.

Jackson went on to become the Chief of General Staff of the British Army until his retirement in 2006.

Teggart continued, I want to speak directly to the people of Britain at this moment. Can you imagine what would have happened if soldiers murdered 10 unarmed civilians on the streets of London, Liverpool or Birmingham? What would you expect of an investigation? Would you expect justice? Or would you be happy for them to get an amnesty?

Events in Ballymurphy following August 9, 1971 are less well known than the Bloody Sunday massacre of January 30, 1972 when 14 people were gunned down by members of the Parachute Regiment. At Ballymurphy no TV cameras were present to counteract the blatant army lies, recycled by the media, to cover its actions. The shootings went on for two days.

The Ballymurphy massacre took place 50 years after British imperialism's violent partition of Ireland. Northern Ireland, established by the partition of Ireland 100 years ago, was founded on sectarian violence primarily directed against the Catholic section of the working class. Its purpose was to maintain the rule of Ulster capitalists as a proxy for continued British imperialist presence on the island. Based on six of the historic nine counties of Ulster with a Protestant majority, the border and all subsequent state and local authority arrangements, including gerrymandered election boundaries, the provision of jobs and housing, were based on upholding sectarian divisions and a truncated form of the Protestant ascendency.

Mass opposition to these arrangements, predominantly, but not exclusively, from Irish nationalists and Catholics, emerged in the late 1960s as a civil rights movement mobilising broad layers of the working class seeking to redress the historic wrongs on which the entire state was based.

The Ulster state fought back with police and paramilitary violence, including loyalist pogroms during which entire Catholic streets were burnt out. The previously declining Irish Republican Army (IRA) began to achieve prominence through involvement in working class Catholics' efforts to defend their neighbourhoods. In August 1969, the British Labour government dispatched thousands of troops to prop up the Ulster authorities, under the pretext of defending Catholic communities.

On August 9, 1971, the British Army launched Operation Demetrious, a mass operation to intern, or imprison without trial, anyone suspected of being an IRA supporter. 342 people were arrested, with most having no links to the IRA. One of the army's target areas was Ballymurphy, a working class largely Catholic and nationalist estate on the outskirts of Belfast, where residents had already raised barricades and whose streets were the target of loyalist mob violence.

Warnings of the approach of soldiers were made by hundreds of residents banging dustbin lids on the streets. What followed was a British Army rampage, ultimately involving as many as 600 soldiers, resulting in sustained gunfire, gunfights, numerous shootings, 10 deaths, angry counter protests, whole families arrested, one man chained to the back of an army vehicle, houses trashed and shot up as families escaped across the fields.

The coroner's inquest opened in 2018 after decades of campaigning by family members who only fully realised the scale of what took place in 1971 when they attended an event for victims of Northern Ireland's Troubles.

The inquest dealt in detail with five separate incidents, spread over two days, and sought evidence from relatives, witnesses, medical and ballistics experts. Former soldiers gave evidence anonymously, some refused. Two ignored subpoenas to attend. Names of some individual soldiers appear not to be known to the coroner because of the destruction of a cipher listing soldiers' names at previous, token, inquests held in 1972.

Incident One:

Father Hugh Mullan and 19-year-old Frank Quinn, a window cleaner, were both shot in the evening of August 9. The inquest found that Quinn was shot dead when going to help someone lying injured in a field, in the midst of a gun battle. Soldiers from the Parachute Regiment fired at targets that may have been a small number of IRA gunmen, but different groups of soldiers also appear to have been inadvertently shooting at each other. Father Mullan, crouching while going across the same field, waving a white object like a t-shirt, was shot at least three times. The bullet that killed Quinn may have passed through Father Mullan. Neither Quinn nor Mullan were armed. The injured man was not a gunman.

The coroner found that even if there were IRA gunmen in the area it was very clear from the evidence that there were quite a lot of civilians in the area, including women and children who have been evacuated from the Springfield Rd area. She found the Father Mullan's death was caused by army gunfire, that there was no justification for it, the use of force was disproportionate, no proper investigation had been carried out, the killing was in violation of Article 2 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) and that the army's own rules of engagement were not followed.

Incident Two:

On August 9, Joan Connolly, a mother of eight children in her mid-40s, Noel Phillips (19), a single man who worked as a window cleaner, Daniel Teggart (44), a labourer with 10 children and Joseph Murphy (41) who worked on bin lorries, were killed during protests directed against soldiers in the nearby Henry Taggart Hall. The coroner considered that some shots may have been fired at the hall during the evening, but there was no evidence to link any of those killed with this, or for them to have been in direct proximity to IRA activity. She noted the deceased were all unarmed, none were IRA members, none had paramilitary funerals.

Mrs. Connolly's death is particularly shocking. She was angry at the soldiers, was said to be carrying a stick at certain points and was participating in protests. She was shot two or three times, including in the face, by what appears to have been soldiers in the Henry Taggart Hall. One child was injured. Mrs. Connolly was not armed and no gunshot residue was found on her body. She was left dying for hours. The coroner noted a "basic inhumanity associated with leaving Mrs. Connolly in the field for so long". Swift medical attention might have saved her life.

Noel Phillips was shot at least three times. Joseph Murphy was shot once in the leg. The bullet shattered his femur. He died 13 days later. Daniel Teggart was shot between eight and eleven times. The coroner rejected assertions from the Ministry of Defence that Teggart, whose body was dragged into the Henry Taggart Hall, had been found with .22 ammunition in his pockets. Soldier N who claimed this at the time did not give evidence. The coroner found the Parachute Regiment responsible for all four deaths, all of which breached the EHCR, were disproportionate and outside the army's rules of engagement.

Incident Three:

Edward Doherty (30) was a father of four and worked as a builder's labourer. He was shot August 10 in the early evening by a soldier in the Royal Engineers, driving a bulldozer while clearing a barricade, who claimed Doherty was about to throw a petrol bomb. There was a crowd of about 50 people near the barricade.

The soldier, who gave evidence, appears to have wildly fired his submachine gun several times with one hand in the direction of the barricade while maneuvering the bulldozer with the other. Doherty was hit once in the chest. The coroner found, on the basis of where he was shot and witness evidence, that Doherty was not a petrol bomber and he was not acting in any other way that would justify a violent attack on him. The killing breached the EHCR, was disproportionate and broke the rules of engagement.

Incident Four:

Joseph Corr was a 43-year-old machinist at the famous Shorts aircraft factory in Belfast. He had also worked at the Harland and Wolff shipyard. He was shot with a high velocity bullet to the back, which lacerated internal organs. He died of his injuries and complications about 13 days later. John Laverty was a 20-year-old road sweeper shot twice with high velocity ammunition.

The circumstances of their deaths are confused. Both appear to have responded to early morning dustbin lid warnings of army and loyalist attacks on their area on August 11, as did a large number of Ballymurphy residents. There were angry and fearful crowds on the streets, shots were being fired. Soldiers were arresting and attacking people. Both men appear to have been prone, lying on the ground possibly taking cover and crawling away from the soldiers when they were shot in the back. No weapons were found near them. The coroner rejected claims by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) that both were shot by other, unknown, gunmen, finding that both were shot by soldiers from the Parachute Regiment. She found that no valid justification was provided for the soldiers opening fire, the circumstances of both deaths were not adequately investigated, and both breached the EHCR.

A mural in Belfast commemorating the victims of the Ballymurphy Massacre in 1971, when 11 unarmed civilians were killed by British soldiers. (credit: photograph of work by public artist R. O Murchu--Flickr PPCC Antifa)

Incident Five:

John McKerr was a 49-year-old former soldier and father of eight, who worked as a joiner. He was killed by a single gunshot to his head on the morning of August 11 outside a church where he had been repairing a door. Ballistics experts were unclear as to what sort of bullet killed McKerr, or which direction it came from. There are suggestions his prosthetic arm might have been mistaken for a weapon. There was a lot of army activity, general chaos in the area and conflicting reports of soldiers possible involvement in the shooting. The coroner listed as a core finding the striking failure of the authorities to mount any adequate investigation and described this as an abdication of responsibility and of grave concern. As a result, the inquest verdict was unable to state who fired the fatal shot.
On May 5, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke on the bicentenary of the death of Napoleon Bonaparte on May 5, 1821, in exile on the island of Saint Helena.

Macron with French Army Chief of Staff General Pierre de Villiers in 2017 [Credit: Etienne Laurent/Pool Photo via AP, File]

Napoleon, his military genius and the sweep of his political life have been the topic of countless official speeches these two centuries. His careerfrom the radical era of the French Revolution in 1793, through his seizure of power in a 1799 coup and his decision to crown himself Emperor in 1804, to his defeat at Waterloo in 1815is marked by all the contradictions of the era of the French Revolution. What official speakers have chosen to highlight about Napoleon has typically said more about their regimes than about Napoleons place in history.

In this, Macrons speech was no exception. Delivered as the French army publishes fascistic threats to mount a coup, and Macron himself ignores scientific advice and calls to live with the virus after COVID-19 has claimed over 1 million lives in Europe, it testified to the mortal crisis of democracy in France and across Europe.

Though he is the president of a Republic and owes his office to election, Macron hailed Napoleon for having secured bourgeois property through a coup and the reestablishment of inherited titles, after the French people overthrew monarchs claiming to rule by divine right.

Addressing high school students at the Institute of France, Macron said, After months of failure, of France besieged, of latent violence, Napoleon discovered how to be the very incarnation of order.  Napoleon understood very rapidly the necessity of responding to the dizziness provoked by the end of rule by divine right, substituting for it another legitimacy, another transcendence.

Macron then hailed Napoleons decision to end the French First Republic and crown himself emperor in 1804: His greatest intuition was how to fill the void left behind by the figure of the King on January 21 [1793, at the execution of Louis XVI by the guillotine]. The solution  was radical and expressed in his extraordinary oxymoron: The Republic has an Empire.

Macrons view that the 1789 revolutions toppling of the monarchy left a void that must be filled reflects authoritarian conceptions that now prevail in the French ruling class. As Macron spoke, the neo-fascist magazine Current Values was preparing yet another letter by thousands of officers, threatening civil war and pledging to intervene militarily on French soil, at the cost of thousands of lives. Remarkably, Macron was totally silent on this threat in his speech.

If, peering out at France and the world, Macron sees only failures and hidden threats, it is because he is speaking not of the era of the 1776 American, 1789 French and 1791 Haitian revolutions, but of France today. Rather, he is discussing his own presidency.

The decade between the peoples taking of the Bastille on July 14, 1789 and Napoleons 1799 coup was not one of failure, nor was its violence latent. In the five years after the taking of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, revolutionary France defeated the allied armies of Europes monarchies and expropriated feudal property. Within France itself, it crushed counterrevolutionary revolts, of the Vendee in the west and of the federalists in the south.

After the execution of Maximilian Robespierre and the ending of the revolutions radical period in the Thermidor of 1794, the bourgeois Republic crushed several revolts calling for the holding of property in common, like Gracchus Babeufs Conspiracy of Equals. Initially disgraced for his ties to Robespierres younger brother Augustin, who had decorated him for retaking the Toulon port from Britain in 1793, Napoleon became the strongman of the new order. Waging war on Europes feudal monarchies, he consolidated capitalist property in France and across much of Europe.

Echoing his Republican salute to neo-fascist candidate Marine Le Pen the night of his election, Macron praised Napoleon for allying with both democrats and monarchists. Napoleon understood he had to constantly seek national unity and greatness.  He did it by working to reconcile those the revolution had opposed in blood, Macron said. He praised Napoleons decision to use the bee, an emblem of Frances early Merovingian dynasty, as a symbol during his coronation as emperor.

Such obscure references reflect one indubitable political fact. Macron looks back at Napoleon, especially at the vast police apparatus he set up against both royalist conspiracies and left-wing opposition, because he is consciously seeking to appeal to traditions of Bonapartist rule in France to fashion an authoritarian regime in the 21st century.

A Bonapartist regime relies on the military and police to present itself as balancing between classes, in the higher interest of the nation. However, it always proves to be the mailed fist of the capitalists against the working class.

The classic example was the French Second Empire set up after the 1848 revolution in Europe by Napoleons nephew, Louis-Napoleon, in 1851. Toppling the bourgeois Second Republic, which had discredited itself with its bloody suppression of the Paris proletariat in June 1848 and its heavy tax burden on the peasantry, he set up a police state that censored the arts and spied ceaselessly on the working class. After his humiliating defeat by Germany in 1871, his army massacred the Paris Commune, the worlds first workers state, killing an estimated 20,000 people during the Bloody Week.

In one of his last articles, Bonapartism, Fascism and War, Leon Trotsky characterized the Nazi-collaborationist Vichy regime of Marshal Petain, voted into office by the National Assembly of the Third Republic in 1940, as a senile form of Bonapartism in the epoch of imperialist decline. In its early period, it enacted a corporatist Labor Charter, promising to adjudicate between workers and capitalists based on national interests. It then joined in the Holocaust, the Nazi war of extermination against the Soviet Union, and the bloody suppression of the French resistance.

To be sure, Macron still hangs on to the trappings of the Republic and democratic rule. However, his presidency has seen not only 100,000 COVID-19 deaths but a surge in police violence against strikers, students, and yellow vest protesters demanding greater social equality. Since Macron hailed Petain as a great soldier before sending riot police against the yellow vests, there have been tens of thousands of arrests, thousands of wounded, and several people killed by police.

As French generals warn of a global discrediting of the social order amid the pandemic and talk of killing thousands in military interventions inside France itself, plans are being furiously worked out in the military staffs for a vast escalation of repression.

Macron made a show of acknowledging the divisions over Napoleon, referring to one of his great crimes, the reestablishment of slavery in 1802criticized by various forces, including recently, petty-bourgeois forces linked to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Napoleon, Macron said, reestablished slavery that the Convention had abolished in 1794. In 1848, with Victor Schoelcher, the Second Republic repaired this moral error, this betrayal of the spirit of the Enlightenment. At the same time, Macron stressed his determination not to give an inch to those who would like to erase the past because it does not correspond to the idea that they have of the present. He concluded, I have no intention to say if Napoleon realized or instead betrayed revolutionary values. I will of course steer clear of such territory.

In the centuries since Napoleons death, the experiences of the French and international working class have shown that not only Bonapartist rule but the capitalist system itself is incompatible with the principles of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity proclaimed in 1789. Amid the mounting threats of a coup from the French military, Macrons speech must be taken as a political warning. The defense of international principles of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity requires the international, revolutionary mobilization of the working class, fighting for socialism and workers power.
On Friday, the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Benny Thompson (Democrat-Mississippi), and the top Republican on the committee, John Katko (New York), released a statement announcing that an agreement had been reached to introduce legislation to form a bipartisan, independent Commission to investigate the January 6 domestic terrorism attack on the United States Capitol and recommend changes to further protect the Capitol.

In this Jan. 6, 2021 photo, rioters try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington [Credit: AP Photo/John Minchillo, File]

Thompson added in a separate statement: There has been a growing consensus that the January 6th attack is of a complexity and national significance that what we [sic] need an independent commission to investigate. I am pleased that after many months of intensive discussion, Ranking Member Katko and I were able to reach a bipartisan agreement.

Katko claimed that an independent, bipartisan commission will remove politicization of the conversation and focus solely on the facts and circumstances surrounding the security breach at the Capitol as well as other instances of violence relevant to such a review.

Katko was one of only 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump following the attempted coup. Explaining his vote at the time, he said: It cannot be ignored that President Trump encouraged this insurrection. Katko added that as the attack was underway, Trump refused to call it off, putting countless lives in danger.

The legislation, titled the National Commission to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the United States Capitol Complex Act (H.R. 3233), is expected to be considered by the House of Representatives as early as next week. However, there is no guarantee that the bill will pass the House, much less the evenly divided Senate, where a two-thirds majority would be required.

Given the fact that the Republican Party overwhelmingly continues to support Trumps lying claims that the election was fraudulent and that nothing of significance happened on January 6, it is entirely possible that the proposal could be further amended to garner Republican support, or be dropped altogether.

On Friday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi indicated she would bring the legislation forward along with a $1.8 billion security package that includes funding to expand the US Capitol Police force, install retractable fencing around the Capitol and implement other recommendations included in retired Gen. Russel Honores Task Force 16 Assessment.

Neither the proposed funding nor Honores recommendations deal with the obvious and undeniable fact that frontline Capitol Police officers were sabotaged by their leadership in order to facilitate the attack on the Capitol.

The legislation agreed to by Katko and Thompson largely hews to the agreement Pelosi announced on April 22, which granted major concessions to the Republicans. The concessions to the demands of Trumps Republican co-conspirators included altering the composition of the panel to give the Republicans 5050 representation, with five members appointed by the Democratic chair and five named by the Republican co-chair. The evenly split panel would have the power to issue subpoenas only if they were approved by a majority of panel members and signed off by both the chair and the vice chair. In other words, the panel as defined in the House bill would give the Republicans veto power over its operations and conclusions.

A summary of the agreement distributed by the committee notes that the commissioners must have significant expertise in the areas of law enforcement, civil rights, civil liberties, privacy, intelligence, and cybersecurity. It continues: Current government officers or employees are prohibited from appointment.

On April 20, the New York Times published an editorial comment demanding that Pelosi accept key Republican demands so as to break an impasse in establishing the commission. The newspaper cited an April 8 open letter signed by former national security officials from both parties calling for the creation of a commission modeled on the supposedly successful 9/11 Commission. That body in fact failed to address substantial evidence indicating that high-level state officials ignored a series of warnings of an impending attack and may have facilitated the terror attacks that provided the justification for the war on terror.

Signatories to the open letter comprised a whos who of government spymasters, Homeland Security officials and war criminals responsible for eviscerating democratic rights within the US and launching neo-colonial wars in the Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa that killed millions and destroyed entire societies. These trusted agents of the capitalist state will ensure that any findings the commission unearths will not implicate the agencies many of them spent their careers defending and serving.

Under conditions in which far-right members of the Republican Party continue to threaten violence against Democrats while purging and censoring any members of their party who refuse to adhere to Trumps fascistic lies, Pelosi hailed the proposed agreement on Friday, releasing a statement saying that it is imperative that we seek the truth of what happened on January 6 with an independent, bipartisan 9/11-type Commission to examine and report upon the facts, causes and security relating to the terrorist mob attack.

The idea that a bipartisan commission is the only method to get to the truth of January 6 is patently absurd. Testifying to that reality, on the same day the commission agreement was announced, arch-conservative Liz Cheney was removed from her leadership position within the party in a secret vote at the behest of Trump.

Cheney, who has been promoted by the Democrats and the mainstream press for her refusal to adhere to Trumps Big Lie of a stolen election, was replaced with New York Representative Elise Stefanik. In a Friday morning vote, Stefanik defeated ultra-right House Freedom Caucus member Chip Roy of Texas 13446.

Roy ran to the right of Stefanik, who prior to her recent transformation into a Trump sycophant was a relatively moderate Republican, voting in line with Trumps policies only 78 percent of the time, compared to 93 percent for Cheney, according to data compiled by FiveThirtyEight.

Demonstrating that the Republican Party has become an incubator for fascist forces, at a House Judiciary Committee hearing earlier this year held on the rise of violence against Asian Americans following the Atlanta spa shootings, Roy unleashed a racist tirade, claiming that violence and discrimination against Asian Americans was blown out of proportion.

Roy claimed that censorship was a bigger problem than hate-speech, while referring to the Chinese as Chi-coms. Roy invoked the legacy of lynch law in America and demanded that the government find all the rope in Texas and get a tall Oak tree and take out the bad guys.

At a Friday press conference, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy thanked Roy for running, saying it was a good election. McCarthy then expressed reservations about the commission proposal, telling reporters he would look through it, while complaining about the scope of the commission. Youve got to look at what the build-up before and what has gone on afterwards, otherwise the commission does not work, he said.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Katko said that McCarthy was still looking at the proposal and had not yet agreed to it. Asked by a reporter if he thought the Republican House leadership would have any problems with the proposal, Katko said, Ill see about it.

Republican lawmakers, many of whom were deeply complicit and continue to support Trumps coup, have argued in the months following the attack on the Capitol that any commission would have to also include alleged violence committed by antifa and Black Lives Matter protesters during last years protest in response to police violence.

The demand to increase the scope of a January 6 commission to include alleged left-wing violence has been championed most vociferously by Republicans who played a leading role in Trumps attempted coup, including Stop the Steal organizer Arizona Representative Andy Biggs. During a House hearing on Wednesday on the attack on the Capitol, Biggs used his time to defend indicted insurrectionist and Proud Boy Christopher Worrell, while spreading lies equating the storming of the Capitol with anti-police violence protests.

Joining Biggs in whitewashing the attempted coup were several Republicans who voted to overturn the election even after the storming of the Capitol. This includes Representatives Jim Jordan (Ohio), Paul Gosar (Arizona), Andrew Clyde and Jody Hice (Georgia).

Clyde described the attack on the Capitol, which left some 140 injured and five dead, a normal tourist visit, and said it was a bald-faced lie to describe the events of January 6 as an insurrection. Hice tried to say that the hundreds of militia members, neo-Nazis and white supremacists who marched on the Capitol did nothing wrong, claiming they marched peacefully and patriotically to make their voices heard at the Capitol.

The hearing marked the first congressional testimony by the Trump-appointed acting Secretary of Defense, who oversaw the stand down of National Guard troops despite repeated pleas from the commander of the DC National Guard and besieged lawmakers, including Vice President Mike Pence, for forces to be sent to clear the Capitol of fascistic militia forces seeking to kidnap and kill them. Trumps Pentagon accomplice, Christopher Miller, arrogantly defended his role.

In the months following the attempted coup, the Democrats fecklessness, as demonstrated by the coalescing of the Republican Party around Trumps Big Lie, has only emboldened Trump and the fascistic elements he represents within the financial oligarchy and state apparatus to continue their drive to eliminate what remains of democracy in the US in order to prosecute their shared class agenda of herd immunity at home and imperialist war abroad, principally against China.

As the WSWS has previously explained, the proposed commission must be understood as an attempt by the Democrats to politically rehabilitate their Republican colleagues, while at the same time concealing the widespread support for Trumps attempted coup, not only within the Republican Party, but throughout the upper echelons of the police, military and intelligence agencies that facilitated the attack on the Capitol.
In the aftermath of Labours May 6 Super Thursday electoral debacle, efforts are being made to rehabilitate Jeremy Corbyn as an alternative to the disastrous right-wing lurch of the party under Sir Keir Starmer.

Britain's Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer delivers his keynote speech, during the party's online conference in October 2020 (Stefan Rousseau/Pool Photo via AP)

Labour lost the Hartlepool by-election to the Conservatives and suffered its worst performance in local council elections since 1935, with Starmer held in popular contempt for his colluding with Prime Minister Boris Johnsons government during the pandemica policy he famously described as constructive criticism. In response Corbyn, his former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, and others in his inner circle are portraying themselves as saviours who Starmer must now work with to get Labour back on track.

This is an extraordinary demonstration of political cynicism. The character of their appeal, for a deeper working relationship between left and right, confirms that Corbyn and his allies are responsible for Starmers rise to office and the consolidation of the rights control of the party.

McDonnell told LBC's Iain Dale on Tuesday that Corbyn, who was suspended from membership by Starmer based on bogus accusations of anti-Semitism, still hasnt got the whip back and again I think that is a real mistake by Keir He just needs the Chief Whip and the Leader to say come back. And Jeremy would be back like a shot

Corbyn wrote for the Independent this week, making clear that he is offering his services to Starmer. Citing various rhetorical commitments to a living wage, secure housing, transport, properly funded healthcare and education made in Labours 2017 election manifesto, Corbyn proclaimed, There is a consensus on these policies across the Labour Party; they are the programme Keir Starmer was elected on.

This is, of course, a lie. The Labour Party is committed to preserving the interests of British imperialism, nothing else. This is proved by its treatment of those workers and young people who joined from 2015 based on the mistaken belief that Corbyn would fight for socialist policies, as the enemy within to be witch-hunted and expelled.

Corbyn is still seeking to conceal the implacable hostility of the Labour Party and the trade unions to the social and political interests of the working class and to the socialist aspirations of its best elements. This operation, the essence of Corbynism, is epitomised by his statement in the Independent that, The challenge facing progressives across the western world is that support for redistributive policies is rising while support for social democratic parties is falling.

It is precisely because the working class is moving to the left while social democratic parties the world over are moving to the right that they are haemorrhaging support and facing collapse.

Corbyns aim as Labour leader was to block the leftward movement of the working class and its younger generation and corral it behind the Labour Party. He spelled this out in 2015, immediately prior to being elected party leader, explaining that his aim was to prevent Labours Pasokificationa reference to the implosion of PASOK and other social democratic parties throughout Europe.

The process was already well advanced when Corbyn made his reluctant bid for leadership, so that various Stalinist and pseudo-left groups had begun to set up and champion new broad left parties such as Syriza in Greece and Podemos in Spain as an alternative to the discredited social democratic parties.

Faced with widespread hostility to the Blairite right-wing, Corbyn set out to rescue Labour. Under advisement from leading Stalinists and members of pseudo-left groups, he emphasised that the development of a new broad left in the UK must proceed through the Labour Party, not outside of it. I have been in Greece, I have been in Spain, he said. Its very interesting that social democratic parties that accept the austerity agenda and end up implementing it end up losing a lot of members and a lot of support. I think we have a chance to do something different here.

Corbyns victory was hailed by the pseudo-left in Britain as proof that Labour and its affiliated trade unions could be pushed to the leftreinforcing his own insistence that everything must proceed within the political and organisational straitjacket imposed by the labour bureaucracy.

The Socialist Party defined the Corbyn insurgency as an attempt to re-establish a new workers party, emphasising Labours connection with the trade unions as the collective voice of millions of workers. The Socialist Workers Party called it proof of the rebirth of social democracy The wellspring that gave life to social democracy long ago still pours forth and will find a channel for expression if given the opportunity, whether that be in Syriza, Corbyn or another vessel.

What politically animated such claims was opposition to the struggle to build a revolutionary leadership in the working class, by forces whose political origins are in the ranks of the Stalinist parties or as opponents of Trotskyism who had broken from the Fourth International decades previously. Corbyns heading of the Labour Party was used as an argument for similar efforts to build left populist parties to fill the political void created by the collapse of social democracy. These were to be non-socialist, anti-working class parties, promising personal advancement for sections of the upper middle class by utilising various forms of identity politics, and based on a pro-capitalist programme opposed to the class struggle and socialist revolution.

Chantal Mouffe, the author of For a Left Populism, explained in April 2018, The crisis of European social democracy has now been confirmed. After the failures of PASOK in Greece, Partij van de Arbeid in the Netherlands, PSOE in Spain, the SPO in Austria, the SPD in Germany and the Partie Socialiste in France, the PD in Italy have just received the worst election results in its partys history. The single exception to this disastrous vista across Europe is to be found in Great Britain, at the Labour Party, which under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn is rapidly growing in size and power. She stressed that Corbyns advantage, which he enjoys unlike his comrades in Podemos or La France Insoumise, is that he finds himself at the head of a large party, which has overwhelming support from the unions.

This was a key issue for the ideologues of the pseudo-left, particularly because Corbyn came to power as Syriza was betraying its popular mandate to oppose austerity measures demanded by the European Union and International Monetary Fund, leaving their former political darling, Alexis Tsipras, a despised figure in the working class in Greece and internationally.

Defining Corbyns political perspective, Mouffe told Red Pepper in September 2018, The traditional left political frontier was established on the basis of class. There was the working class, or the proletariat, versus the bourgeoisie. Today, given the evolution of society, that is not the way in which one should establish the political frontier anymore.

There are a series of democratic demands which cannot be formulated in terms of classfor example, it is necessary to take account of the demands of feminism, anti-racism, the gay movement, ecology. Those are demands that do not sit with the traditional opposition between working class and bourgeoisie. We need to build the frontier in a populist way, which is much more transversal, in terms of the people against the oligarchy. There are many sectors that can be won for the anti-neoliberal project and it is necessary to federate them by constructing a people: a collective will.

Chantal Mouffe speaking at an event in 2013 (credit: Stephan Rohl-FlickR)

This was the agenda advanced by Corbyn, with his non-class invocation, For the many, not the few. It was a programme stressing unity within the Labour Party and, above all, efforts to stifle growing class antagonisms, rooted in ever worsening social inequality, through what he described as a new kind of politics: kinder, more respectful, but courageous, too.

In practice this meant the suppression of all efforts to kick out the Blairite right-wing, working with the trade union leaders to suppress strikes, and instructing Labour councillors to obey the law and impose Tory cuts. When it came to war, the former leader of the Stop the War Coalition allowed a free vote on bombing Syria, backed NATO membership and the recommissioning of the Trident nuclear weapons system.

Corbyn declares in his article for the Independent, In 2017, Labour reversed a decade of political decline, including in the communities that had been torn apart by Margaret Thatchers war on organised workers and industry, increasing its vote share in places like Hartlepool and making gains from High Peak to Canterbury. My greatest regret is that by 2019 the Conservatives were able to undo many of those gains.

He blames his and Labours decline on the Tories successfully exploiting the single issue of delivering the Brexit vote. But Corbyns 2017 gains were all made after the 2016 Brexit referendum, in both leave and remain constituencies. The difference was that by 2019, the working class had got Corbyns true measure, knew he would not fight for their social interests, saw him offer national unity agreements with Theresa May and then Boris Johnson to get Brexit done, and had concluded that he was a servile creature of the Blairite right who were busy witch-hunting his supporters out of the Labour Party.

It was Corbyn who put Johnson in office and then meekly handed the party over to the Blairites, under the leadership of Starmer. This left the working class with no real choice in the last elections and most stayed at home in disgust. The bitter price paid for his five years in office are the 150,000 victims of Johnsons herd immunity policies, and a Tory government readying a further savage assault on the livelihoods and democratic rights of the working class.

The same dilemma holds true of workers in every European country. The social democratic parties, long ago transformed into nakedly pro-capitalist, right-wing parties of exploitation and war, are in a state of putrefaction. In France, the Parti Socialiste has virtually collapsed, with around 6 percent of the popular votearound the same or less than PASOK. In Germany, the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has lost four consecutive federal elections, secured just 20.5 percent in the 2019 Federal elections, and less than 16 percent in the 2019 European elections. Its role in the Grand Coalition government virtually guarantees continued losses.

The pseudo-left/Stalinist created parties are also ever more discredited. Immediately prior to Super Thursday elections in the UK, the right-wing Popular Party (PP) defeated the ruling Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) and pseudo-left coalition partner Podemos in the May 4 Madrid regional election. Podemos, represented by party leader Pablo Iglesias, crashed to last place with just 7.2 percent of the vote, with Iglesias resigning.

Real dangers are posed to the working class by the terminal degeneration of the old parties and the reactionary role of their pseudo-left allies and defenders.

In the UK, it has left the Tories in office for 11 years of savage austerity, unprecedented attacks on democratic rights, escalating warmongering targeting Russia and China, and the deadly cost of a pandemic that Johnson let rip and let the bodies pile high.

In Germany, the far-right Alternative for Germany is the main opposition party, even as its policies of militarism and anti-migrant xenophobia are embraced by the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union and SPD Grand Coalition.

In Madrid, the PP, the heirs of Franco, and the fascist Vox party rule Spains capitalafter waging an anti-communist campaign deliberately invoking the Civil War and promising an end to all even vestigial protections against Covid. The election saw fascist death threats directed towards Iglesias and others, just weeks after WhatsApp comments were leaked from retired generals and colonels proclaiming loyalty to fascism, boasting of links to active-duty officers and to Vox, and calling for a coup to murder 26 million left-wing Spaniards.

France also has been rocked by the release of two letters, one from retired generals, many connected to Marine Le Pens National Rally, and another from a group of serving French soldiers, threatening civil war.

Millions of workers have already rejected their old leaderships, but this must now become a conscious political break with the express aim of constructing a new and genuinely socialist leadership.

Jeremy Corbyn (left) and Keir Starmer at an event during the 2019 General Election (credit: AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)

The rightward lurch of Labour and other social democratic parties, together with the transformation of the trade unions into adjuncts of corporate management and the state, is not merely due to bad leaders who can be replaced by better ones advocating left reformist policies. The globalisation of production and the integration of the world market has rendered bankrupt policies based on securing reforms without challenging capitalism and the repressive apparatus of the nation state. The old nationally-based labour bureaucracies and parties everywhere have responded in accordance with their history, pro-capitalist programmes and privileged class interests by repudiating reformism and openly embracing their role as guardians of the bourgeois order.

The working class must now undertake to build a party whose programme corresponds to the realities of globally organised capitalist exploitation and the irreconcilable conflict between the capitalist class in every country and the international working classthe Socialist Equality Party in Britain and its sister parties within the International Committee of the Fourth International.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson was forced to call a public inquiry into his governments handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, a murderous herd immunity programme that has claimed more than 150,000 lives.

Boris Johnson announcing the Covid-19 public inquiry (credit: screen capture Parliament TV)

The governments system underestimates COVID deaths but even its toll of 127,668 is the fifth highest of all countries. With 1,872 fatalities per one million of the population, the UK has the third highest rate among countries with a population of over 60 million, with only Italy (2,049) and Brazil (2,013) listing higher rates.

Johnson announced the inquiry in parliament Wednesday, declaring, Amid such tragedy, the state has an obligation to examine its actions as rigorously and as candidly as possible and to learn every lesson for the future which is why I have always said that, when the time is right, there should be a full and independent inquiry.

Johnsons real aim was to continue the cover-up of his criminality. The many thousands of relatives seeking justice for the preventable deaths of their loved ones will be denied, as Britains ruling elite again turns to its favourite means of escaping responsibility for social murderthe independent public inquiry.

Johnson said the inquiry would not even start for at least another year, in spring 2022. He cynically utilised the situation facing the National Health Service (NHS), saying that preparation for the inquiry will place a significant burden on our NHS and on many others. We must not inadvertently divert or distract the very people on whom we all depend in the heat of our struggle against this disease.

It will then likely last for years to come, with Downing Street refusing to rule out that it will not conclude until after the next general electionscheduled for May 2, 2024. The Times noted that the average public inquiry takes two and a half years, but others inquiries have taken much longer. The Saville Inquiry into the events leading to the fatal shooting of 13 unarmed citizens in Londonderry in 1972 took 12 years to complete and the Chilcot Inquiry into Britains invasion of Iraq in 2003 took seven years.

The families of the 96 people killed in the 1989 Hillsborough stadium disaster were denied justice after a succession of hearings, inquests and inquiries, with not a single person among those responsible being brough to justice after more than 30 years.

The Grenfell Inquiry into the June 2017 deaths of 72 people in a residential tower block in London has already lasted nearly four years and is nowhere near finished. The polices own study of the Inquirys final report, before which it will not even consider any prosecutions, may not take place until 2025 eight years after the fire .

Just as with Grenfell, the COVID inquiry is to be held under the Inquiries Act 2005. Johnson trumpeted how the 2005 Act has full powers including the ability to compel the production of all relevant materials and take oral evidence in public under oath.

This is a smokescreen. No matter what evidence is uncovered or what oral evidence is presented, the Inquires Act specifically prohibits ruling on or determining anyones civil or criminal liability.

On top of that guarantee, all bases have already been covered to ensure that Johnson is exonerated. The Times reported Wednesday, Aides are understood to have been gathering emails and documents for more than six months to support the Prime Ministers case.

Johnson has contemptuously refused to meet with the COVID-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK who have long demanded an inquiry. The group, who started what became the National Covid Memorial Wall in London, said in response to Johnsons announcement, It sounds like common sense when the Prime Minister says that an inquiry can wait until the pandemic is over, but lives are at stake with health experts and scientists warning of a third wave later this year.

Johnson announced the inquiry in the run up to his fully reopening the economy by June 21, with most of it opened from next Monday. He does so despite telling parliament, Our own scientific advisers judge that, although more positive data is coming in and the outlook is improving, there could still be another resurgence in hospitalisations and deaths.

He pointed to the persistent threat of new variants, and should those prove highly transmissible and elude the protection of our vaccines they would have the potential to cause even greater suffering than we endured in January.

The last weeks have seen a rapid spread throughout Britain of B.1.617.2, one of the Indian mutations of the virus, which has already contributed to mass death and suffering in India after being detected earlier this year. On Thursday, it was announced that the Indian mutation had caused its first deaths in Britain, with four people dying between May 5 and May 12. The virus was only detected recently in Britain, but has already resulted in at least 1,313 infections by May 12, nearly triple the 520 recorded the previous week and a massive increase from just 77 four weeks earlier. Public Health England data this week found that B.1.617.2 was responsible for between 40 percent and half of all cases detected in London.

Coronavirus cases are on the increase nationally, according to a PA news agency analysis of Public Health England data published May 13. It found that of the 315 local areas in England, 159 (50 percent) have seen a rate increase, 140 (44 percent) have seen a fall and 16 areas are unchanged.

As a result of the surge of Indian mutation infections, Boltona town in Greater Manchester in North West England, recorded the most coronavirus cases nationally for the seven days to May 9. It saw 553 new cases, the equivalent of 192.3 cases per 100,000 people, a more than a doubling from the 84.9 per 100,000 people the previous week.

Boltons surge is a clear indictment of the reopening of the economy that has been underway for months, as Johnson laid out his irreversible roadmap to end the last lockdown in February. Bolton has a large population hailing from the Indian sub-continent, as do many urban areas in the north of England.

Around half of the cases found in Bolton are located in just three districts south of the city centreRumworth, Deane and Great Lever. Speaking to the BBC, Bolton Labour MP Yasmin Qureshi noted of the three areas, It's an incredibly busy part of the town It's very urbanised with major bus and train routes. There is a university, a sixth form college and a community college. There are some deprivation issues with a lot of people in social housing; some people not working or in low-paid jobs.

Scientists, including among the governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, have warned that up to 20,000 people could be hospitalised daily by the summer in a worst-case scenario if the virus turns out to more transmissible than other COVID variants. This would lead to the NHS being unable to cope, as it struggled to treat 3,800 covid cases a day at the height of Januarys surge.

According to SAGE modelling, if there is a 40 percent increase in COVID-19 transmission in coming months, there could be up to 6,000 admissions daily. But if transmission increases by 50 percent from current levels there could be 10,000 admissions a day and up to 20,000. SAGE found that if the government just carried out Stage 3 of reopening next Monday and not the full reopening in June, a 50 percent transmission rate could still see between 6,000 and 14,000 daily hospitalisations.

The Tories only response to such great dangers has been to order surge testing in Bolton and a few other areas, allowing the virus to spread unchecked in the meantime. Their only consideration is to protect the corporations in a profits before lives policy. Interviewed by Sky News Thursday, Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi said that Mondays reopening remains in place because the vaccines are delivering. He declared, ignoring the fact that the Indian variants and four other variants of concern are in circulation and still being investigated, that At the moment we have no evidence that it escapes the vaccines or is more severe in its impact on people.
European Union (EU) governments are endorsing the Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip. In a further attack on basic democratic rights, they are banning peaceful protests in favor of the Palestinians in European cities, based on the slander that those attending are violent anti-Semites.

The fighting that has escalated since Israeli riot police rampaged through the Al-Aqsa Mosque last weekend is a one-sided slaughter. The Israeli military is bombing the Gaza Strip and boasting of assassinating Palestinian military commanders, who can reply only with a few crude rockets. As of yesterday, there were over 126 Palestinian had been killed, along with six Israelis and one Indian national. Ten Palestinians were also killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank yesterday. Yet the EU and its member states are lining up behind the Israeli government, denouncing the Palestinians.

People gather outside Downing Street to protest against Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza, in London, Saturday, May 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen set the tone, taking to Twitter to declare herself concerned. She then endorsed the Israeli position against the Gaza Strip, writing: I condemn indiscriminate attacks by Hamas on Israel. Civilians on all sides must be protected. Violence must end now. Similar remarks came from both Berlin and Paris.

After German Chancellor Angela Merkels spokesman Steffen Seibert denounced Palestinian terror attacks and hailed Israels right to self-defense, the Elysee presidential palace in Paris released a statement yesterday. It said French President Emmanuel Macron had called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: He presented his condolences for the victims of fire from Hamas and other terrorist groups that he again firmly condemned. And on the anniversary of Israels creation, the president stressed his unwavering support for Israels security and its right to self-defense.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD) blamed Hamas for the conflict and called for bans on demonstrations in defense of the Gaza Strip. At the very least, Hamas has wantonly caused the latest escalation, by firing over a thousand rockets at Israeli cities, he told the Bild newspaper. He said pro-Palestinian demonstrations should be banned if criminal actions can be expected there.

The EU powers are supporting Israeli aggression, though they know it could trigger a broader war.

On May 12, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told the French Senate he was very concerned at the gravity of the situation in the Near East. Israel has repeatedly bombed Syria this year, targeting both Syrian government and Iranian forces, and Le Drian noted the danger that a regional war could erupt: The ongoing spiral of violence in Gaza, Jerusalem, in the West Bank and several Israeli cities threatens to provoke a major escalation. In less than 15 years, the Gaza Strip has seen three bloody wars. Everything must be done to avoid a fourth.

Nonetheless, Le Drian came down in support of Israeli aggression, declaring, France condemns in the strongest terms the rocket and missile fire from the Gaza strip targeting Jerusalem and several inhabited areas in Israeli territory, including Tel Aviv.

Without condemning Israels far greater bombardment of the Gaza Strip, Le Drian cynically tried to adopt an evenhanded posture. Condemning Israels forced resettlement of Palestinians from East Jerusalem, he pledged to work with German, Egyptian and Jordanian officials to restart dialog between the conflicting parties to attain a just and lasting settlement of the conflict. He also called for the right to protest to be respected in Israel.

EU governments own policy at home exposed the hypocrisy of Le Drians statements of concern about democratic rights in the Middle East. Amid growing working-class anger at police brutality, social inequality and the over one million deaths caused by the EUs policy of malign neglect towards the circulation of the COVID-19 virus, governments across Europe are banning or threatening to ban anti-war demonstrations.

On Thursday, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin banned todays pro-Gaza protest in Paris. I asked the prefect of police to ban demonstrations Saturday that are linked to the recent tensions in the Near East, he tweeted, adding that across France, orders have been given to the prefects to be especially vigilant and firm. He told Frances police prefects to mobilize the intelligence services [to] closely follow these movements and anticipate any risk of troubles.

The sole justification Darmanin gave for this drastic attack on civil liberties was that seven years ago, there was violence at a pro-Palestinian protest in Paris against the 2014 Israeli war on Gaza.

The Association of Palestinians of Ile-de-France, which is organizing the Paris protest, condemned Darmanins ban. Its spokesman Walid Atallah said: By banning this demonstration, France shows its complicity with the state of Israel, which wants to ban all expression of solidarity with the rights of Palestinians, who are suffering occupation, colonization, and bombardments.

The Paris administrative court rejected a first appeal of Darmanins ban by the association, which appealed to Frances State Council. It maintained the call for the protest, nonetheless, noting that too many demonstrators have planned to make the trip in order to express themselves.

Frankfurt city authorities have banned a rally in the city center this afternoon by several pro-Palestinian organizations. The reason given on yesterday was that criminal acts committed by demonstrators could endanger public safety. City official Markus Frank (CDU) accused the organizers of making anti-Semitic calls.

Such accusations of anti-Semitism serve to suppress any protest against Israels murderous actions.

Before the protest, in fact, organizers repeatedly spoke out against anti-Semitism, especially after a few dozen people chanted anti-Semitic slogans outside a synagogue in Gelsenkirchen. A statement released Thursday by the group Palestine Speaks stated, If you hate Jews, you have no business being here. The official leaflet for the Frankfurt demonstration calls on everyone to show solidarity against expulsion, against land theft, against ethnic cleansing, against the ongoing Nakba and for the right of return and for an open society for ALL.

That does not stop European politicians and media from denouncing any protest against Israels war policies as anti-Semitic. However, criticism of the right-wing Netanyahu governments brutal actions has nothing to do with anti-Semitism. On the contrary, the claim that the terror-bombing of a largely defenseless population is an expression of Judaism is itself an anti-Semitic argument.

Nothing could make the reactionary nature of the official propaganda campaign clearer than the fact that it is led in Germany by the far-right AfD (Alternative for Germany), whose members glorify the Nazi Wehrmacht and are agitating against the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin.

It is not anti-war demonstrators, but the EU governments that promote anti-Semitism. They not only court the far right across Europe, but also collaborate with openly anti-Semitic forces to pursue their political goals. This was notably the case with the far-right coup in Ukraine in 2014, when then-German Foreign Minister and current President Frank-Walter Steinmeier met the leader of the fascist Svoboda party, the notorious anti-Semite Oleh Tyahnybok, in the German embassy in Kiev.

As for Frances interior minister, Darmanin, he is a sympathizer of the far-right Action francaise on record as declaring that he dislikes seeing kosher foods in French supermarkets.

The EU governments response to the Israeli onslaught on Gaza, including their banning of legitimate public protests, is a serious political warning. To advance their interests at home and abroad, they increasingly rely on war and dictatorship, with fascistic indifference towards human life. War can be stopped only by mobilizing the enormous opposition that exists among workers and youth across Europe, the Arab countries and Israel itself on the basis of a socialist and internationalist program.
Amid a series of far-right threats from active-duty and retired military officers in France, the Macron government has adopted a policy of silence and conciliation toward the far-right coup plotters.

The two letters were published on April 21 and May 9. The first was originally signed by 23 retired generals, over 200 former military officers and 1,500 ex-military personnel of lower rank. At least 18 active-duty military personnel have since been confirmed to have signed the letter. Directed to the Macron government, it consisted of fascistic denunciations of the danger of Islamism in France and the hordes of the banlieues (working-class suburbs).

It threatened that unless the government took action, there would be 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 deaths, for which you will be responsible, will number in the thousands.

The May 9 letter, also published by the neo-fascist magazine Valeurs actuelles, was allegedly signed by up to 2,000 active-duty military personnel, according to Valeurs actuelles, which has kept the signatories anonymous. The website has since claimed that more than 100,000 people have signed the petition. It endorses all the generals earlier threats, pledging to fight a civil war it blames on growing communalism in public areas and hatred of France and its history becoming the norm.

President Emmanuel Macron has responded to threats of a military coup by far-right networks in the military with silence. He has not even publicly acknowledged their existence, more than three weeks after the initial publication. Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly and Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin have made only brief statements in response to the latest letter.

The government has made clear that there will be no legal repercussions for an open threat of a military coup. After Jean-Luc Melenchon filed a motion for charges to be brought against the signatories, the Paris prosecutor, Remy Heitz, announced that there would be no charges brought, as no criminal infraction had been committed.

Despite Macrons silence, the issue is followed extremely closely in the Elysee presidential palace. The Parisien on May 7 published a report with anonymous statements from government advisors about the governments awareness and preparations for the upcoming release of the second letter by Valeurs Actuelles: Its a less trashy tribune than the previous one, but its a pain in the ass. The Parisien notes that the subject is taken very seriously. It has gone as far as the Elysee and the minister of the army.

A member of the presidents inner circle states: Security is a theme that is rising very strongly in public opinion. We have lived for a year under alarm. Many tensions have built up. Another presidential advisor states: we are going to get a beating [in the 2022 presidential elections] if we give a centimeter of space to the opposition, adding, we could begin by making trips into the [immigration] detention centers, to make known our policy in returning people at the border.

In other words, the governments response to the threat of fascist violence from within the military is to strengthen its anti-immigrant and police-state policies, while protecting the far-right network. This is cynically presented as a response to the demands of public opinion.

Accordingly, on April 25, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, known to be a former supporter of the far-right Action francaise, announced that the government would present a new Interior security and anti-terrorism law.

The new law includes far-reaching attacks on the democratic rights of the population through an expansion of state surveillance of the Internet. It extends laws currently permitting the intelligence services to monitor the phone traffic of the population to their internet usage. As Darmanin told the Journal de Dimanche on Sunday, it permits the use of algorithms, that is to say, the automatic treatment of internet data.

Asked if this threatened the rights of the population, he replied: Lets stop with the naivete. All the big companies use algorithms. And would the state be the only one not able to use them?

This underscores an essential political reality of Macrons response to the coup threats. The government is politically dependent upon the strengthening of the police apparatus against growing opposition in the working class, under conditions of rising social inequality and mass anger over the governments criminal and disastrous handling of the pandemic, which has led to over 100,000 deaths in France. The government is far more fearful of a movement in the working class than of far-right officers, even those openly threatening a coup.

This is the context in which the statements of General Charles Lecointre, the chief of the armed forces, must be understood. After the publication of the second letter, Lecointre wrote a conciliatory public letter to the anonymous signatories. While making clear that there was no investigation or legal measures planned against them, he appealed to their good sense to resign from the army and defend their political views publicly.

The most reasonable thing to do is certainly to quit the military to be able to make public, in complete liberty, ones ideas and convictions, he said.

There is no reason to believe that the far-right networks in the army have any intention of resigning, but Lecointres appeal itself has a reactionary and anti-democratic character. Were the coup plotters to take his advice, they would be effectively constituting a public, far-right tendency made up of former officers with close ties to the French general staff.

Moreover, the letters largely base themselves on the political campaign the Macron government has been waging for the past five years, especially its anti-separatism law targeting Muslims.

Macron has already set the line for his campaign in the 2022 presidential elections by seeking to position himself to the right of Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally. In February, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin held a televised debate with Le Pen, in which he accused her of being soft on Islam. You are acting with softness, Mrs. Le Pen. You have gone so far that you say that Islam is not a problem, he said. You should take vitamins. I find that you are not tough enough!

The entire official framework of the election campaign continues to shift ever further to the right. This week, Michel Barnier, a prospective candidate for the Republicans party, stated that France should place a three- to five-year moratorium on all migration from outside the European Union.

In the fight against the growing fascist danger, the working class cannot depend on any faction of the political establishment. The only way forward is in the development of an independent movement of the working class for the taking of political power and the establishment of socialism.
On Monday, the coronavirus cabinet, led by German Health Minister Jens Spahn, rolled back restrictions on those who have been vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19. With this reckless action, the German ruling class has flung the door wide open, endangering countless thousands of lives.

Intensive care bed

Since the action on Monday, Germanys 16 state governments have been racing to see who can dismantle all the remaining public health measures first. The tourism, restaurant and retail sectors are opening once again, as well as all schools and childcare facilities. Everything is going in the right direction, enthused Spahn at his weekly press conference on Wednesday.

These policies have absolutely nothing to do with a scientific approach to the pandemic. They are instead dictated by the needs of the profit system. Moreover, they are extremely risky. Even though the incidence rate has been declining in Germany for some time, the coronavirus pandemic is a long way from being under control.

Thus far, just under 10 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated. Almost five months after the beginning of the inoculation campaign, only one third of the population has received a single dose. No vaccine has been approved in Europe for children aged 15 and under. Ten million people considered high risk or prioritised due to their profession have yet to even receive a vaccine appointment, as the head of the Permanent Vaccine Commission (StIKo) noted with concern.

This was why the virologist Melanie Brinkmann (Technical University Braunschweig) warned, Were dancing on the rim of a volcano. For months, she has been urging the government to accelerate the pace of vaccinations. She sees the reopening policy as carrying a big risk.

Her colleague, Michael Meyer-Hermann (Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research) said it was cynical how the politicians are selling the stabilisation of the pandemic at a high rate of infection as a success. Its a major failure, remarked the immunologist.

Hundreds of coronavirus patients continue to die every day. On Wednesday, the toll was 283, about the number of people who might die in a commercial plane crash. Younger people are increasingly falling victim to the virus. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) has recorded 19 deaths of people aged under 20, 12 of whom were children under the age of 10. When unreported cases are included, the true figure is probably much higher.

According to a new and alarming study by a Washington State-based institute, the number of global coronavirus deaths is much higher than previously reported. The study estimates the number of worldwide COVID-19 deaths at 6.93 million, more than twice the officially reported figure. The Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation came to this conclusion on the basis of an analysis of excess mortality figures.

According to this study, more than 120,000 people have already died from COVID-19 in Germany, close to 50 percent more than the official death toll. This would be the equivalent of eliminating, in the space of 14 months, a mid-sized city such as Wolfsburg or Heilbronn.

The Federal Statistics Agency in Wiesbaden did not respond to a request from this author for comment on the death toll. The RKI had registered 85,481 deaths by the end of Wednesday. There are currently 251,400 active coronavirus patients in Germany, of whom 4,461 are in critical condition in intensive care.

The number of young people in this latter category is increasing. The patients get younger and younger, have to stay in hospital longer, and spend more time in intensive care, Dr. Med. Heike Schlegel-Hofner, head of hospitals in Ilm district in the state of Thuringia, told Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR). In the report Conditions in the ICUs, she refers to more serious illnesses and elevated death rates.

The dominant variant in Germany, B.1.1.7, is highly aggressive, and almost every ICU patient requires a ventilator. The mutations are leading to worse illnesses, Heike Schlegel-Hofner said. The lung damage suffered by patients continues to get worse. Almost every patient in intensive care requires a ventilator, and for a longer period of time.

In the Ruhr region, the Recklinghauser Zeitung reported on the youngest COVID-19 patient in intensive care at the Prosper Hospital: a 23-year-old who required oxygen until recently. The newspaper cited the head doctor as saying, As a young person, one is not free from the risk of serious illness due to COVID-19.

Speaking of the most recent reopening policies, he added that there would be no swift return to normalcy because a pandemic can only be combatted globally. He added, As long as people in Africa or Asia are not vaccinated and hundreds of thousands continue getting infected, there will continue to be mutations. And at some point, another catastrophe will find its way to Europe.

This is precisely the danger bound up with the latest round of reopenings.

Politicians justify the reopening measures by claiming that the incidence rate is declining. The average seven-day incidence rate is about 100 infections per 100,000 inhabitants. On Wednesday, the nationwide incidence in Germany was 107.8.

But this provides no grounds for comfort. If one examines the data more closely, which the media refuse to do, a clear difference in incidence rates according to age group becomes apparent. The incidence rate among people aged 60 to 79 is 67 per 100,000 inhabitants, and 47 for those over 80. This shows that the prioritisation of the elderly for vaccinations is having a positive impact.

By contrast, the incidence rates for children and young people, together with their parents, are worryingly high. According to RKI figures from 11 May, the incidence rate among children aged 5 to 9 is 148 per 100,000 inhabitants, 167 for those aged 10 to 14, and 178 for those aged 15 to 19. For the age groups including people aged 20 to 45, the incidence rates range from 147 to 157, i.e., more than three times higher than the infection rate among people aged 80 and over.

The incidence rate among all the age groups for children and young people is higher than it was during the second wave, states the RKIs study on childcare facilities. And if one examines the studys Excel spreadsheet, one makes the shocking discovery that thousands and thousands of children have been infected by COVID-19 since the beginning of the year, with virtually no comment from the media.

Many districts and cities continue to have very high incidence rates. On 12 May, more than half of Germanys 412 districts (239) had an incidence of more than 100 infections per 100,000 inhabitants. Eight districts had incidences above 250. Only 21 had an incidence rate below 50.

Even an incidence rate of 50 provides no security, as serious scientists like Brinkmann and Meyer-Hermann have been stressing for months. Only when the seven-day incidence falls substantially below 35 will local health agencies be able to contact trace every infection to prevent new outbreaks.

What would happen if B.1.617, the so-called Indian variant, spread throughout Europe? On May 10, the World Health Organisation declared it to be a global variant of concern (VOC). It is raging out of control in India, infecting several hundred thousand people every day.

The Guardian noted on 12 May that the Indian variant is spreading rapidly in Britain. In just two weeks, it has increased its share of COVID-19 infections from 1 percent to 11 percent, with particularly sharp increases in London and northwest England. Only a few isolated cases, such as in Cologne, have been identified thus far in Germany. However, the British variant, B.1.1.7, rapidly established itself as the dominant strain in Germany.

New outbreaks confirm these warnings, but they are systematically ignored. Repeated outbreaks have been recorded at schools and childcare facilities since the Easter holidays. Another outbreak was reported at a refugee accommodation centre in Mainz, where at least 12 out of the 63 residents have been sickened by the virus.

The pandemic is a global problem, which is indicated by the ancient Greek words pan (comprehensive) and demos (citizenry). It can only be resolved globally, and this is something that the bourgeois politicians are neither willing nor able to do. The coronavirus pandemic is not merely a medical, but above all a political catastrophe. It has laid bare the bankruptcy of all governments and the capitalist system as a whole. For more than a year, governments of all political stripes have refused to take the necessary measures because they would restrict the profits of the tiny wealthy elite.

The working class must draw the correct conclusions from this. They must organise independent rank-and-file committees in order to protect themselves and their families. Only a Europe-wide general strike can impose a lockdown and create the conditions to bring the pandemic under control.
On Wednesday, fascist Georgia Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene threatened New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, falsely accusing Ocasio-Cortez of supporting terrorism due to her support for the Black Lives Matter movement. Greene also falsely accused the New York congresswoman, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, of being linked to Antifa, the loose grouping of antifascist activists that has assumed monumental proportions in right-wing mythology.

On Thursday, Greene continued her fascistic provocations and death threats, again falsely accusing Ocasio-Cortez, Vice President Kamala Harris and Muslim Democratic congresswomen Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar of supporting terrorists, labeling the group on social media the #JihadSquad.

As the WSWS explained in an article posted on Friday: The charge of supporting terrorism amounts to a death threat, reinforced by the fact that Greene waged her 2020 congressional campaign using commercials showing her armed with an assault rifle and threatening AOC and two other left Democratic congresswomen, Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib.

The article continued: While the Socialist Equality Party has numerous and deep political differences with Ocasio-Cortez and the Democratic Socialists of America, we condemn the violent threats against her and defend their democratic right to conduct political work without threats and attacks from the fascist right.

On Friday, CNN released a previously recorded video taken by Greene in February 2019 in which she and several male accomplices, dressed head to toe in Trump paraphernalia, attempted to enter Ocasio-Cortezs locked congressional office. Unable to open the door, Greene and her entourage proceeded to taunt and harass Ocasio-Cortezs staff, who were apparently inside at the time. The video underscores the fact that Greenes incitement of violence against Democratic lawmakers targeted by Trump in his effort to foster a fascist movement based on anticommunism and racism is not a new development.

In the video, which was deleted by Greene from her Facebook page but saved by CNN, Greene is observed walking up to Ocasio-Cortezs office, narrating as she goes.

Were going to go see, were going to visit, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Crazy eyes. Crazy eyes. Nutty. Cortez. After arriving at Ocasio-Cortezs locked office, Greene and her associates proceed to vandalize her guest book with antisocialist propaganda, while taunting her staff through the mail slot of the locked door.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Im an American citizen. I pay your salary through the taxes that you collect for me through the IRS because Im a taxpaying citizen of the United States, says Greene through the mail slot. She continues her unhinged tirade, filming herself saying she does not support your socialist policies or murderous abortion policy and that Ocasio-Cortez is bringing Gods judgment on our country.

So you need to stop being a baby and stop locking your door and come out and face the American citizens that you serve. If you want to be a big girl, you need to get rid of your diaper and come out and be able to talk to the American citizens. Instead of having to use a flap, a little flap. Sad.

CNN noted that the video was taken February 22, 2019, the same day that Greene threatened and harassed other Democratic politicians, including delivering a petition to House Speaker Nancy Pelosis office accusing her of treason and suggesting that she be executed or imprisoned for her crimes.

Also the same day, Greene visited California Democratic Representative Maxine Waters office and claimed that Waters was just as guilty of treason as Pelosi. Greene continued her fascistic and racist provocations by visiting the offices of Representatives Omar and Tlaib. CNN reported that Greene falsely claimed the first two Muslim women elected to Congress werent official because they had been sworn in on the Quran.

One of the men joining Greene in taunting Ocasio-Cortez was Anthony Aguero, a right-wing live-streamer and former Texas congressional candidate. Aguero participated in the storming of the US Capitol on January 6, declaring in a since deleted YouTube video: A message was sent. These politicians are not going to continue to get away with the abuse theyve been doing. We will continue to press on these individuals.

Aguero and Greene have been photographed together multiple times, including at the first Million MAGA March held in Washington D.C. on November 14, 2020. The event, along with the second march in December, was attended by Proud Boys and Oath Keeper militia members who later served as the spearhead for the January 6 attack on the Capitol.

Despite the ample evidence and open admission by Aguerro that he participated in the siege of the Capitol, including illegally entering the Rotunda, he has yet to be arrested or charged with a crime.
Asia

India: Striking health workers in Punjab sacked

Around 1,400 striking National Health Mission (NHM) workers, including staff nurses, medical officers, homeopathy Ayurveda doctors and ministerial staff, were sacked by the Punjab government on May 10 for refusing to end their week-long strike.

About 3,000 NHM workers walked out on strike to demand higher wages and permanent jobs. The sacked workers, who were fired through the draconian Disaster Management Act, were from seven districts in Punjab.

Last September over 30,000 NHM contract workers held a national stoppage over the same demands. Although many have had ten years service, they are paid meagre salaries and are denied entitlements available to regular government employees.

The NHM, previously known as the National Rural Health Mission, was established in 2009 to address the health needs in rural and urban areas in 18 Indian states.

East Delhi teaching hospital nurses protest over COVID-19 workloads

Off-duty nurses from the 1,700-bed government-run GTB (Guru Teg Bahadur) hospital in East Delhi demonstrated outside the facility on Wednesday to demand more nursing staff to handle the increased COVID-19 workloads. The overworked and exhausted nurses also demanded changes in the current duty roster. While hospital administration later agreed to the nurses demand it made no concrete commitments.

Like hospitals throughout India, the GTB has had a massive influx of COVID-19 patients but no increase in medical staff. On April 20, the hospital came within an hour of running out of oxygen for coronavirus treatment.

Bangladeshi police fire on garment workers in Gazipur

Police opened fire and baton-charged hundreds of protesting garment workers on Monday, injuring at least 20 at Tongi in Gazipur, near Dhaka. Fifteen of those injured were from the Ha-Meem Group garment factory.

The garment workers were demanding extension of the Ramadan holiday for up to 10 days, against the governments recommended three days. Star Link Design garment workers at Kaliakair in Gazipur demonstrated demanding a 12-day Ramadan break. On May 8, garment workers from several factories at Bhashantek and Kafrul in Dhaka staged a sit-down protest demanding early payments and extended holidays.

While garment sector trade bodies claimed 90 percent of their plants had paid workers wages for April by Monday evening and 92 percent had cleared festival allowances, the Industrial Police said that only 75 percent of factories paid wages and allowances. The government had set May 10 for the payments to be made.

Bangladeshi jute mill workers demand compensation

Hundreds of temporary workers from shuttered mills of state-owned Amin Jute Mills Limited demonstrated on May 8 outside the mill in Chattogram to demand payment of salary arrears.

The Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) closed all state-owned mills in July last year, retrenching about 3,000 temporary workers and same number of permanent workers from the Amin Jute Mills. The workers had been promised compensation by September last year.

Twenty-five plants were closed with BJMC claiming they were operating at a loss. About 50,000 workers lost their jobs overnight, including 25,000 permanent employees, and thousands of jute farmers were left with no income. Jute mill workers and farmers, facing poverty without an income, have been holding ongoing protests demanding the mills be reopened.

Bangladeshi hotel and restaurant workers protest for unpaid wages

Bangladesh Hotel Restaurant Sweetmeat Workers Federation (BHRSWF) members warned on Tuesday that they will hold national demonstrations to demand unpaid wages and the Ramadan festival bonus. The demonstrations will follow a protest in Dhaka in January by federation members demanding implementation of the labour law and the end to terminations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The federation accused the hotel and restaurant owners of exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown to avoid timely payment of wages while cutting staff.

Sri Lankan hospital non-medical health workers demand improved COVID-19 safety

Non-medical (junior) staff at several major Sri Lankan hospitals have been boycotting work over the failure of health authorities to implement COVID-19 safety measures.

On May 11, workers at the Badulla base hospital, 220 kilometres from Colombo, struck for four hours over the issue. A day earlier, health workers at the base hospital in Karawanella, 70 km from Colombo, held a two-hour protest outside the hospital over the same demands.

Workers alleged that more than 300 health workers have been infected with COVID-19 due to hospital and health institutions failures to implement the safety measures.

Karawanella health workers said they are forced to wash and wear their own PPE equipment because authorities claim theres no other option. Following the protest, hospital management agreed to give them access to washing machines.

Thousands of junior hospital workers held a national sick-leave protest on April 7 over several demands, including proper COVID-19 safety measures. The same workers held a national protest in January to demand permanent jobs, increased overtime payments, uniforms, risk allowance for handling coronavirus-infected equipment and proper PPE equipment.

Sri Lankan public health inspectors strike

Public Health Inspectors (PHIs) in Badulla district and Galle stopped work on Monday and Wednesday respectively over interference in their duties by health authorities. They denounced the government over its COVID-19 mitigation response.

PHIs complained that regional health authorities in many instances prevented them from carrying out quarantine regulations.

In September, the Association of Public Health Inspectors called an 11-day national strike by its 2,000 members to protest the governments failure to implement adequate legal procedures to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

The inspectors were concerned that the government had failed to gazette health-care guidelines for dealing with the coronavirus and that they did not have enough legal authority to conduct COVID-19 mitigation procedures. PHIs are the main officials responsible for carrying out all basic on-the-ground activities related to the control of the pandemic.

The September strike was called off after the Ministry of Health accepted a false explanation from the Attorney Generals Office regarding the legal powers of the inspectors.

Australia

South Australian power workers strike again over pay

Power maintenance workers from the state-owned South Australia Power Networks (SAPN) walked off the job on May 6 in opposition to managements proposed enterprise agreement. Electrical Trades Union (ETU) members stopped work for four hours on April 1 and imposed work bans that included working-to-rule and not working on rostered days off.

ETU members have twice rejected the companys initial offer to maintain current conditions with a 2 percent pay increase in a 12-month agreement. Their main concern is SAPNs moves to include a two-tier wage structure in which new recruits would be paid 20 percent less in the new enterprise deal.

Workers claimed that the increase fails to compensate for the loss of the previous years bonus and is an effective wage cut. The union alleges that the latest offer cuts wages and allowances and removes limitations on the use of third-party contractorsincreasing job insecurity for permanent employees.

The ETU wants 4 percent annual pay increases in a three-year agreement, no two-tier wage structure and further negotiations to resolve issues pending from the 2018 agreement.

Downer EDI workers in Melbourne hold second strike

About 130 members of three unions at Downer EDI Rails rolling stock construction plant in Williamstown walked out on May 7 and picketed the premises to demand job security for long-term casuals in a new enterprise agreement. The action followed a walkout a week earlier on the issue.

Workers are demanding to be taken off fixed-term contracts and made permanent employees. The workers pointed out that the buildings are fixed, the contracts are secure, the work is ongoing, but they are individually engaged and reengaged temporarily.

In mid-April, Electrical Trades Union (ETU), Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) and the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) members overwhelmingly voted for future industrial action.

Downer EDI has been contracted to build 65 high-capacity metro trains for Melbournes suburban rail network upgrade at a cost of $2.3 billion.

Municipal workers in Victoria vote for industrial action over pay cut

Moorabool Shire Council workers in rural Victoria last week voted to take industrial action for a better enterprise agreement (EA). The industrial action by 103 Australian Services Union (ASU) members could include work bans and 24-hour stoppages. Workers rejected the councils EA offer that would limit their future annual pay increases to as little as 1.2 percent.

When negotiations began in early 2020 the council offered a meagre 2 percent increase in wages, increase in allowances as per the consumer prices index (CPI) and no changes to conditions. The agreement was to end in June 2021.

Using the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse, the ASU collaborated with Moorabool management and agreed to put negotiations on hold for 12 months, a virtual wage freeze. On April 13, council management reduced its pay increase offer to 1.2 percent per annum, below the current CPI of 1.6 percent.

New South Wales power distribution workers prepare to strike

About 100 ETU workplace delegates from the state-owned power distribution company Ausgrid, voted on May 4 for a membership ballot on possible strike action for a new work agreement. At least 1,700 workers will be involved in the vote.

Negotiations between the ETU and Ausgrid for a new enterprise agreement (EA) have stalled after 26 meetings over the past six months. Following the axing of 2,000 jobs since the utility was privatised in 2015, and another to 500 to go by 2022, workers are demanding that a job security clause be inserted into the proposed EA.

Ausgrid has rejected this and demanded workers agree to a 12-month wage freeze with increases in the following two years limited to the consumer prices index (CPI) increases. Ausgrid also wants to restrict the amount of annual leave that workers can accrue and include forced shift work.

New Zealand nurses vote to strike

About 30,000 New Zealand public sector nurses and health care assistants have voted to strike for eight hours on June 9 over their pay negotiations. The ballot was under way last week when the Labour-Greens government announced a three-year pay freeze for public servants earning more than $NZ60,000.

A spokesman for the NZ Nurses Organisation (NZNO), said nurses were absolutely furious at the announcement as most have already progressed to the last step of their pay scale. NZNO members had already rejected a derisory annualised increase of 1.38 percent offer from the 20 District Health (DHBs).

Nurses in Managed Isolation and Quarantine (MIQ) facilities for COVID-19 will not be involved in the strike but those working as a part of the vaccination rollout will. The union says DHBs have been given ample notice to make alternative arrangements for the eight-hour period.

The NZNOs limited industrial action portends a repeat of the sell-out agreement imposed by the union in 2018. The union agreed to wage increases limited to 3 percent and ignored demands for safe staffing levels. The NZNOs initial claim was for a 17 percent pay rise.

Mediation between the NZNO and DHBs remains scheduled for May 1819, with the union expressing hope of finding a solution to avoid a strike.
The New York Times championed the 1619 Project, a now-discredited attempt to rewrite all of US history as centered on racial conflict and the first arrival of slaves in America in 1619. The racialist climate it helped stoke has seen petty-bourgeois supporters of Black Lives Matter topple statues of leaders of the 1776 American Revolution and of the anti-slavery forces in the US Civil War.

Now, the Times is taking aim at the French Revolution. In March, it published a column by Professor Marlene Daut titled Napoleon Isnt a Hero to Celebrate. A supporter of Black Lives Matter, she is outraged by the marking of the bicentennial of Napoleons death on May 5, 1821. She denounces Napoleon, claiming he was driven by genocidal anti-black racism:

After a year in which statues of enslavers and colonizers were toppled, defaced or taken down across Europe and the United States, France has decided to move in the opposite direction.  As a Black woman of Haitian descent and a scholar of French colonialism, I find it particularly galling to see that France plans to celebrate the man who restored slavery to the French Caribbean, an architect of modern genocide, whose troops created gas chambers to kill my ancestors.

Daut has chosen what is perhaps Napoleons most flagrant betrayal of the ideals of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity proclaimed by the 1789 revolution. Napoleon had taken power in a 1799 coup, as Europes kings waged war on the young French republic for having abolished absolute monarchy and serfdom. Napoleon then spread across Europe, by force of arms, the struggle against feudal privileges that the struggles of 1789-94 had brought to a conclusion in France.

Napoleon at the Battle of Austerlitz by Francois Gerard, 1805 (Wikimedia Commons)

Consolidating conditions for the development of European capitalism inevitably entailed betraying the promises of the French Revolution, however. The infamous trade in slaves and sugar was at the heart of Atlantic Ocean commerce, and Napoleon rescinded the 1794 decree abolishing slavery while negotiating an 1802 peace treaty with Britain. He sent an army to Haiti that waged a bloody war in a failed attempt to re-impose slavery, which the 1791 Haitian revolution had overthrown. Later, in 1804, he crowned himself emperor, ending the First Republic.

At issue is not whether Napoleons decree on slavery and his war in Haiti were criminal, which they clearly were. Daut concocts a simplistic, racialist narrative, thrusting aside the international and class issues raised by the great 18th century revolutions in America, France and Haiti. She attacks Napoleon as Frances biggest tyrant and an unredeemable racist, sexist, and despot.

Daut describes the First Republic as a regime that was not historically progressive, but driven by genocidal hatred of blacks. Her attack on Napoleon as Frances biggest tyrant has far-reaching implications. Had the First Republic overseen a more tyrannical regime than the feudal absolute monarchs it overthrew, as Daut claims, then the French Revolutions legitimacy would disappear.

The lie that the First Republic built gas chambers to carry out a genocide invites readers to crudely equate it with the Nazi regime. Daut takes this allegation from a 2005 book by right-wing black nationalist author Claude Ribbe, Le crime de Napoleon, which Daut promotes on Twitter. The cover of Ribbes book features two portraits, one of Napoleon and one of Hitler, blended together so they appear to stand next to each other.

Battle of Vertieres in 1803, during the Haitian Revolution (Wikimedia Commons)

Over the centuries, historical lies or oversimplifications about the 1789 revolution have always been closely linked to political positions. Daut uses them to posture as an opponent of French President Emmanuel Macron. His policiesa bloody war in the former French African colony of Mali, bans on burqas or Islamic veils, and murderous police brutality against working class youth, often targeting those of Arabic or African originare intensifying ethnic and religious tensions in France.

Daut points to Macrons fascistic anti-separatist laws that ban criticism of anti-Muslim policies and institute loyalty oaths to Frances current Fifth Republic, writing:

The Year of Napoleon has arrived during a dangerous time. French academics who study race, gender, ethnicity and class are under attack. President Emmanuel Macron has derided the field of post-colonial studies by suggesting that it has encouraged the ethnicization of the social question to the point that the Republic is in danger of splitting apart.

Again, what is at issue is not whether Macrons police-state laws are reactionary. They clearly pose a mortal threat to democratic rights and aim to divide the working class along ethnic and religious lines. They come amid mounting threats of a coup from French retired and active-duty officers.

But while Daut criticizes Macron, her racialist arguments unmistakably echo those of the French president. She shares his view that the French population and, presumably, humanity at large are riven by deep-rooted, essentially insoluble racial and ethnic hatreds. While Macron proposes to address this by demanding submission to a capitalist police state, Daut advances a narrative suiting privileged layers of blacks and allied academics, on both sides of the Atlantic, who demand access to positions and influence in the name of fighting anti-black racism.

Daut argues that French attitudes on Napoleon prove the irreconcilable hostility of the Frenchpresumably, that is, of white people in Francetoward blacks. She complains that it is still common for the French to lionize [Napoleon] as a hero, even if an unlikable one, who not only stomped all over Europe at the Battle of Austerlitz, but also created the Bank of France, the modern legal code and the education system still in use today. She then attacks in particular

the role that the French people played in their countrys violent return to slavery. This did not result solely from the capricious whim of one terrible dictator. French legislators and the French Army, with broad support from the public, upheld Napoleons actions, demonstrating the enduring incoherence of French republicanism.

Reading Dauts outpouring of hatred at Napoleon, one feels compelled to ask: would Daut prefer it if Napoleon had been defeated at Austerlitz and other key battles he fought?

Indeed, he first came to prominence at a critical time in 1793, for retaking from Britain the strategic Toulon port on Frances southern Mediterranean coast. At that time, the British, Austrian, Prussian, Spanish and Portuguese monarchies, together with Holland, were waging war on France. Moreover, the execution of Louis XVI for treason in January and the final abolition of feudal rights without compensation in July had led to counterrevolutionary revolts inside Francefirst of the Chouans in the western Vendee region, then of the federalists across the south.

Would slaves have had a better fate if Europes kings, who controlled most of the Atlantic slave trade, had instead consolidated control of southern and western France; marched on and taken Paris; imposed on Parisians the total military execution that the duke of Brunswick had threatened in his infamous 1792 manifesto; and, in an orgy of mass murder and terror, crushed the revolution and reestablished the principle of feudal oppression unchallenged across Europe?

One is tempted to say that to ask such a question is to answer it. This would be to underestimate, however, the ferocious opposition to revolution encouraged by academic postmodernism, and the growing far-right and monarchist influence in Europe, going well beyond neo-fascist parties. This ultimately includes Macron, who, before hailing Frances Nazi-collaborationist dictator Philippe Petain as a great soldier, declared that what France is missing is a king. One cannot escape the question: does Dauts tirade against the First Republic have any factual foundation?

Did the French First Republic perpetrate anti-black genocide in Haiti?

Dauts argument that Napoleon is the architect of modern genocide is a historical lie, and the comparison she invites between Napoleon and Hitler is politically obscene. The Nazis denounced Judeo-Bolshevism and tried to exterminate the Jewish people, due notably to the role they played in the communist movement, and the leading role of individual Jews, such as Leon Trotsky, in the October 1917 Bolshevik revolution in Russia. They murdered 6 million Jews and over 20 million Soviet citizens after launching a war of annihilation against the Soviet Union.

Napoleon did not set out to exterminate black people, or to reverse the overthrow of feudal property carried out by the 1789 revolution. Daut, however, concocts a narrative in which Napoleon willfully decided to restore slavery via genocidal violence, of which French people were willing tools. She writes:

In 1794, in the wake of the revolution that transformed France from a monarchy into a republicand after an enormous slave rebellion ended slavery on the French island of Saint-Domingue (today, Haiti)France declared slaverys abolition throughout its territory. But in 1802, Napoleon was in charge and reversed that decision, making France the only country to ever have brought back chattel slavery after abolishing it.

Daut writes that French schools leave out or gloss over how and why slavery was re-established eight years later by Napoleon, who used the justification that if he did not reinstate it, sooner or later, the scepter of the New World would fall into the hands of the Blacks. She notes in passing that Napoleon took this decision while negotiating the 1802 Amiens treaty with Britain, as he debated what to do with colonies Britain was returning to France. In these colonies, Britain had blocked the 1794 abolition decree and maintained slavery.

She then recounts the French armys bloody campaigns that crushed an uprising in Guadeloupe and failed to crush the former black slaves who had risen up in Saint-Domingue:

Black people on the island of Guadeloupe fought the French troops Napoleon sent there to shackle them once more, but they eventually lost their struggle and saw slavery officially reinstated that July. Things unfolded differently, but no less tragically, in Saint-Domingue. Under two generals who were sent to the island by Napoleon to, in his words, annihilate the government of the Blacks, the French Army was ordered to kill all the people of color in the colony who had ever worn an epaulet. French soldiers gassed, drowned and used dogs to maul the revolutionaries; the French colonists openly bragged that after the extermination the island could simply be repopulated with more Africans from the continent.

The expedition to Haiti was a political crime that left 80,000 Haitians and 20,000 French soldiers dead. It prefigures the colonialist violence French capitalism and other imperialist powers would deployon a far larger scalein later decades and centuries.

It is impossible, however, to maintain the claim that the French First Republic tried to exterminate blacks without running roughshod over history. This is what occurs when Daut cites the apparently damning piece of evidence, written in Napoleons own hand, that he feared that the scepter of the New World would fall into the hands of the Blacks.

This is a distortion of Napoleons 1801 letter to Foreign Minister Charles Talleyrand on French negotiations with London, which Daut cites without identifying it. Reading the letter gives an entirely different picture of the calculations driving Napoleons decision to invade Haiti.

Napoleon was Frances first major bourgeois politician, in the modern sense of that term. He aimed to use the overthrow of feudal property carried out in 1789-94 to entrench bourgeois property and to secure as strong as possible a position for France in world trade. Acutely aware of the threat from below, he downplayed and mocked his left-wing opponents as Ideologues.

Far from being driven by genocidal anti-black hatred, Napoleon based himself on pragmatic, national military and commercial considerations. He initially planned to leave slavery abolished in the area of Saint-Domingue controlled by the Haitian revolutionary leader Toussaint LOuverture. In an August 16, 1800 State Council meeting, Napoleon said:

The issue is not whether abolishing slavery is good.  I am convinced this island would belong to the English, if the blacks were not attached to us. They may perhaps produce less sugar; but they will produce it for us and will provide us, at need, with soldiers. We will have one less sugar refinery, one more citadel occupied by friendly troops.  So I will speak of liberty in the free part of Saint Domingue  reserving for myself the right to limit slavery where I maintain it, and re-establish law and order where I maintain freedom.

Napoleon changed positions, however, when LOuverture invaded the Spanish-controlled area of Saint-Domingue to liberate slaves there. LOuverture was nominally a representative of the French Republic, but his initiative did not have French support. This risked encouraging new revolutionary aspirations in Europe and also angered the Spanish king, whom Napoleon was courting as an ally in his negotiations of the 1802 peace treaty with Britain.

Toussaint LOuverture [Source: Wikimedia Commons]

Napoleon responded by sending an army in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to retake Saint-Domingue and exploit it as a profitable sugar-making slave colony. This decision is recorded in the November 13, 1801 letter from Napoleon to Talleyrand. While Daut cites a few phrases of the letter as proof that Napoleon planned genocide to prevent the scepter of the New World from falling into the hands of the Blacks, an actual reading of the letter refutes Dauts misleading claims.

In this letter, Napoleon told Talleyrand to stress that attacking Saint-Domingue was against French interests: The liberty of blacks recognized in Saint-Domingue and legitimized by the government would in every way make it a stronghold of the Republic in the New World. Propping up a weak, counterrevolutionary regime, he added, would burden France militarily: Saint-Domingue retaken by the Whites would be for many years a weak point, requiring assistance from France.

On the other hand, Napoleon added, crushing the slaves in the Caribbean was of great interest to the French Republics enemiesnotably the British monarchy, which feared a revolt in its own sugar cane plantations, in Jamaica and elsewhere. He wrote:

One advantage of peace at the present time, for England, is that it comes when the French government has not yet recognized the organization of Saint-Domingue and so the power of the Blacks. If this had been done, the scepter of the New World would, sooner or later, have fallen into the hands of the Blacks. The shock that would result for England would be incalculable, while the shock of a Black empire, in France, was indistinguishable from that of the Revolution.

Napoleon also explained why he intended to pursue a policy that, by his own admission, harmed his governments political and strategic interests. He told Talleyrand to convey to London his fears that the liberation of slaves could provoke renewed, left-wing political ferment internationally: In my decision to annihilate in Saint-Domingue the government of the blacks, I have been guided less by commercial or financial considerations, than by the necessity of smothering in every part of the world all types of seeds of disquiet and disorder.

France was ultimately allowed to dispatch two flotillas, undisturbed by the more powerful British Royal Navy: one to Guadeloupe, another to Saint-Domingue.

In his article The Colonial Failure of the Consular Regime, referring to Napoleons title of First Consul at that time, historian Thierry Lentz writes on these expeditions bloody outcome. In Guadeloupe, General Antoine Richepanse relied on the aid of Magloire Pelage, a black officer who had fought in French armies in Europe since 1794, and of black troops to crush uprisings against the reestablishment of slavery led by Louis Delgres and Joseph Ignace. Lentz writes:

Richepanses military operation was carried out with a brutality that even his own lieutenants denounced in their reports. From May 10-28, the battle raged. Overall, Richepanse lost around 40 percent of his troops, either to combat or illness, and owed victory to support from Pelage and 600 colored troops of the colonys army.  For many months, large-scale massacres were carried out, killing several thousand among the black population. Slavery was reestablished by a simple decree of the captain-general, and around 5,000 Blacks were expelled to other colonies.

In Saint-Domingue, French troops under General Charles Leclerc forced LOuvertures troops to withdraw to the western mountains to wage guerrilla warfare. The insurgents counted now on several factors to overcome Leclerc: guerrilla warfare, a scorched-earth strategy, and the ravages of yellow fever, Lentz writes. Before dying of yellow fever, Leclerc made a deal with LOuvertures treacherous subordinates to hand over L'Ouverture, who died in prison in France in 1803.

As more and more French troops died of yellow fever, General Donatien de Rochambeau then continued a doomed war effort for a year, with even more savagery than Leclerc. This barbaric war, predictably, ended in disaster. Lentz writes of Rochambeau:

Torture, the training of dogs specialized in hunting blacks, collective drownings and summary executions marked his command, without improving the military situation. On the contrary, black generals had successes whose impact was all the more disastrous in that the number of European troops kept falling.  Renewed war with England [in 1803] put an end to the dreadful adventure in Saint-Domingue, a great mistake on my part, the Emperor [Napoleon] later said.

After Napoleons 1815 defeat and the restoration of the French monarchy by the European powers, Juste Chanlatte, a Haitian journalist trained at the elite Louis-le-Grand high school in Paris, wrote a history of the Saint-Domingue war. In the book, published in Paris in 1824, Chanlatte reported that French troops burned sulfur dioxide in the holds of prison ships. He wrote that victims of both sexes, crowded together the one on the other, died, suffocated by the sulfur vapors.

Dauts claim that the French Republic created gas chambers to kill my ancestors is a reference to this report, taken up later by other 19th-century historians of Haiti. French historian Pierre Branda has contested that such poison-gassing occurred, arguing that there is no documentary record that French troops ever had orders to burn sulfur in prison ships.

Whatever took place, it is evident both that the French war in Saint-Domingue was a bloody crime, and that if there was poison gassing, it was on nothing like the scale of the industrial murder of millions in Nazi gas chambers during World War II. Nonetheless, Claude Ribbe, whose 2005 book Daut promotes on Twitter, baldly asserted that Napoleons policies prefigure in an evident way the policy of extermination carried out against Jews and Gypsies during World War II.

It is not to defend the foreign policy of the French bourgeoisiecovered, as it is, in the blood of millions spilled later, during imperialist rule and counterinsurgency wars in Algeria, Indochina, Syria and West Africato state that this is a historical lie. Napoleon waged bloody wars, but he neither planned nor carried out a genocide of black people, in the Caribbean or elsewhere. The attempt of Daut, Ribbe and others to falsely equate the French First Republic with Nazism, and thus to discredit social revolution, is based on a concocted historical narrative.

Were the French people complicit in the restoration of slavery?

Daut fashions another apparently devastating argument based on Napoleons restoration of slavery in the French colonies in 1802. The French people, according to Daut, overwhelmingly supported slavery: French legislators and the French Army, with broad support from the public, upheld Napoleons actions, demonstrating the enduring incoherence of French republicanism. She concludes that France should dedicate itself to a century of introspection to do penance:

The truth is that exposing the brutally inhumane consequences of Frances fight to bring back slavery lays bare the uncomfortable fact that racism and colonialism existing alongside proclamations of universal human rights are not aberrations. This apparent contradiction is in fact fundamental to French republicanism. France probably needs to dedicate at least a century to pondering that.

In fact, it has been not 100 years but 232 years since the French Revolution, and workers not only in France but internationally have had the time to ponderand, also, to fightthe betrayal of the promises of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity by the capitalist system.

In the 19th and 20th centuries, opposition to successive French republics crimes, including colonial oppression, came primarily from a socialist critique of capitalism. Workers concluded that these crimes did not invalidate the perspective of genuinely establishing Liberty, Equality and Fraternity via mass revolutionary action. The experience of capitalist rule, and the bloody suppression by successive capitalist French republics of workers uprisings in 1848 and in the Paris Commune of 1871, showed that equality was incompatible with capitalist property.

Amid the growing popularity of works of Karl Marx after his great defense of the Paris Commune, workers of all nationalities in France and internationally joined mass socialist and, after the October 1917 revolution in Russia, mass communist parties.

Dauts denunciations of Napoleon come from a different, diametrically opposed class standpoint. She speaks for the racialist identity politics that have come to dominate in middle-class postmodernist academia since Stalinism completed its betrayal of the October revolution, dissolved the Soviet Union, and restored capitalism in 1991. In this view, humanity is so deeply infected by racism as to make collective revolutionary action at best impossible, and at worst dangerous.

She writes that dedicating an entire year to the memory of Napoleon demonstrates that repressing history in the name of Frances favorite ideology, universalism, is already a crucial part of the Republic.

Dauts own potted account, blaming the French people for slavery, is itself based on ignoring history, however. She condemns the lack of revolutionary opposition in France to Napoleons restoration of slavery in 1802. However, she is silent on the bloody suppression of the left after the Thermidor, that is, the fall of Robespierre on 9 Thermidor (July 27, 1794 in the standard calendar).

The fate of the February 4, 1794 decree abolishing slavery is, however, inseparable from the shift to the right that followed the Thermidor. Voted by acclaim in the Convention, reflecting broad popular hatred of slavery, the decree largely remained a dead letter outside Saint-Domingue, where the slaves had already taken power, and French Guyana and Guadeloupe, where it was inconsistently applied. The British navy had seized many other French colonies, and French slaveholders in the Mascareignes, in the Indian Ocean, chased away officers who arrived to enforce the decree in 1796.

Indeed, the decree was voted as conflicts mounted among the revolutionaries who had abolished the monarchy, expropriated feudal property, and defeated the Vendee revolt. A fratricidal struggle over whether to maintain emergency measureslike maximum limits on high incomes and executions during the Terrortore apart the Mountain led by Maximilien Robespierre, the Enrages led by Jacques-Rene Hebert, and the Indulgents led by Georges Danton. In five months, from March to July 1794, first Hebert, then Danton and finally Robespierre went to the guillotine.

After Robespierre was executed, in front of a crowd shouting F*** the maximum [income limit], the bourgeoisie worked to consolidate its rule against the threat on the left. The Jacobin club, the leading club in the French Revolution, where figures like Robespierre, Danton and Hebert had spoken, was closed. The army crushed two uprisings in Paris against hunger and poverty wages, on April 1 and May 20, 1795. At least 2,000 people, mostly Jacobins, were killed in a White Terror by counterrevolutionary militias like the Friends of Jesus and Friends of the Sun.

Egalitarian, left-wing tendencies that emerged in opposition to the Thermidorian regime were suppressed. These included political ancestors of the socialist movement, like the Conspiracy of Equals led by Gracchus Babeufa writer who had attacked slavery before the revolutionwhich advanced the call for holding property in common. Arrested in 1796 on charges of preparing an insurrection, Babeuf was executed in May 1797.

The anti-egalitarian political climate of the White Terror that accompanied the consolidation of bourgeois property in France militated against enforcing the decree abolishing slavery. This does not, however, vindicate Dauts accusation that the French people supported slavery. Rather, it underscores the point made, two-thirds of a century later, by Karl Marx in Capital: If money, according to Augier, comes into the world with a congenital blood-stain on one cheek, capital comes dripping from head to foot, from every pore, with blood and dirt.

Indeed, Dauts racialist condemnation of the French people, while remaining silent on the Thermidor, is inseparable from her opposition to social revolution.

Napoleon was a bourgeois figure, who came to power in a coup as the culmination of the Thermidor and ruled based on a compromise between Republican and monarchist forces. He is not a hero of the Marxist movement. However, Dauts hysterical condemnation of him as Frances biggest tyrant overlooks one central question.

General Bonaparte during the coup d'etat of 18 Brumaire in Saint-Cloud, painting by Francois Bouchot, 1840 (Wikimedia Commons)

The resounding defeats of Europes monarchies by Napoleonic France, before Napoleons ultimate defeat in 1815 at Waterloo, played a critical role in spreading the abolition of feudal property from France across much of Europe. In a 2009 article Napoleon and Abolition of Feudalism, Professor Rafe Blaufarb writes:

Napoleon extended French legislation dismantling feudal property relations to annexed territories. Similar policies were pursued in satellite kingdoms like Naples and Westphalia. And even after Napoleons Empire fell, restored monarchs made no attempt to undo these changes. Instead, they confirmed the transformation Napoleon had wrought.  While Napoleonic domination of European lands was bitterly contested and soon proved ephemeral, his program of feudal abolition was neither. Indeed, it was one of the most significant long-term legacies of the Napoleonic episode. From this perspective, Napoleon can still be seen as the faithful heir of 1789, as the vector by which the abolition of feudalism was spread to Europe.

It is hardly surprising, to be blunt, that Daut is uninterested in the abolition of feudalism in Europe. Her racialist politics emerges in the broader context of the ruling elites cultivation of the Black Lives Matter movement. Flush with tens of millions of dollars in cash from the Ford Foundation, a leading corporate foundation with close links to Wall Street, it has a large presence in US academia and media, and is increasingly active on social media in France, intervening notably in mass protests against police brutality after the murder of George Floyd last year in Minneapolis.

These forces advance calls for racial equity, seeking greater access to influence and privilege for layers of the black middle class in academia, corporate boards and elsewhere. Lavishly funded to divide the working class with racialist rhetoric, they are hostile to any revolutionary overthrow of existing property formsin the 18th century or today.

One final point must be made about the racialist outlook championed by Daut. By writing with evident contempt and hostility for the revolutionary struggles in 18th century France, Daut helps reactionary French nationalists to falsely pose as defenders of the accomplishments of the French Revolution. Macrons anti-separatist law, inciting anti-Muslim racism while claiming to defend secularism and Republican principles, is but one example.

Far-right politician Philippe de Villiers recently wrote an article, titled A call to insurrection, attacking race war, cancel culture, remigration  in order to avoid the annihilation of France. De Villiers article has elicited a wave of coup threats from far-right forces in the French officer corps in the neo-fascist magazine Current Values. Denouncing racialism, indigenous nationalism and decolonial theories, one letter warned of race war and declared that the French army might intervene militarily inside France, leading to thousands of deaths.

The arguments of Macron and de Villiers are entirely fraudulent. Terrified of mounting opposition among workers to imperialist war, policy brutality and their pandemic policy of living with the virus, they are not defending a revolutionary heritage. Their stoking of anti-Muslim sentiment is an unmistakable sign of their opposition to the left-wing traditions that are the great heritage of the 1789 revolution.

The French Revolution, part of an international revolutionary upsurge that included the American and Haitian revolutions, was based on a promise of equality and opposition to class privilege that was international in content. By eradicating bonded labor in France and much of Europe, it dealt a powerful blow against slavery, helping trigger the Haitian revolution in 1791. In that same year, it granted full legal equality to Frances religious minorities at the timeJews, Protestants and Muslimsa policy Napoleon never rescinded.

With her false, racialist denunciation of the French First Republic as a genocidal state, however, Daut denigrates the egalitarianism and internationalism that emerged from the 1789 revolution, and thus works to undermine socialist opposition to threats of far-right rule and military dictatorship. The historical falsifications and oversimplifications on which racialist identity politics is based, and which divide the working class along racial and ethnic lines, must be decisively rejected.
Ontarios Long-Term Care COVID-19 Commission submitted its final report to the provinces hard-right Progressive Conservative government at the end of last month. Its findings constitute a cogent condemnation of the failure of the Doug Ford-led Tory government to protect the provinces tens of thousands of elderly care home residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. In both Canadas first and second waves of the pandemic Ontarios chronically underfunded and profit-driven long-term care sector became the scene of mass infections and death.

A member of the Canadian Armed Forces working at a Quebec nursing home (Canadian Dept. of Defence)

The government established the commission, which was chaired by Associate Chief Justice Frank N. Marrocco, last summer due to the public outcry over the devastation the pandemic had wrought in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities during the first wave. By the end of May 2020, that is, just three months into the pandemic, 1,587 residents of long-term care facilities in Ontario had died after contracting the virus, about 75 percent of all the provinces pandemic fatalities to date.

A year on, close to 4,000 residents of long-term care homes in Ontario have died from the virus, as well as 11 staff members. Across Canada, nearly 15,000 residents of long-term care and retirement homes have succumbed to COVID-19. According to a report released in March by the Canadian Institute for Health Information, Canadas long-term care homes have the worst record for COVID-19 deaths among wealthy nations.

The independent commission was tasked with investigating how and why COVID-19 spread in care homes so aggressively, if the actions taken by the Ford government were adequate, and if the roots of the devastation lay in the conditions of the facilities prior to the pandemics onset. Over the course of nine months, the commissioners interviewed more than 700 family members, residents and workers from the long-term care facilities. Chillingly, the report acknowledges that those interviewed provided a first-hand oral history of the loneliness, anguish, and fear that, for them, forever marked this time in Ontarios history. It adds, The Commissioners were indelibly marked by what we heard.

Following the deadly impact of the first wave, Ontario Premier Doug Ford vowed that the province would build an iron ring around long-term care homes to protect residents and staff from further disaster. The commissions findings demonstrate that the premiers vow was a hollow, farcical sham, and that government inaction meant that the second wave had an even deadlier impact on long-term care residents than the first.

As the pandemic surged in the spring of 2020, low-paid, poorly trained and precariously employed staff were largely left to fend for themselves in facilities that lacked even the most basic provisions of personal protective and infection prevention equipment due to decades of austerity and privatization. The cost-cutting drive of LTC providers and the poverty wages they pay forced staff to continue working at multiple sites, spreading the virus throughout the system. The situation was so catastrophic during late April and May 2020 that the Canadian military was called in to provide emergency support in several LTCs, where they uncovered horrendous living conditions. (See: Ontario takes over five nursing homes after military exposes systematic negligence )

The report concludes that the province not only forgot the lessons learned from the 2003 SARS outbreakwhich exposed almost two decades ago how ill-prepared the countrys emergency and health systems were, at both the national and provincial levels, to cope with the spread of a deadly virus. The Ford government failed even to implement changes after Canadas first COVID-19 wave had caused so much tragedy in the long-term care sector.

As early as April 2020, a group of physicians had warned the Ontario government that infection prevention and control (IPAC) measures needed to be immediately implemented in long-term care homes. Calls were made for IPAC specialists to be hired for the facilities at a ratio of one full-time specialist per 200 beds, and one per 250 beds in retirement homes. This is what is known as a hub and spoke model, and the workers at the facilities in which it was executed would have been trained and overseen by specialized doctors at local hospitals.

The infectious disease experts who implored the government to instigate these measures estimated the proposal to cost a mere $5.5 million to $7.2 million per year. Yet despite the urgent calls for rapid action, virtually nothing was done. Funding letters only began to arrive for these measures in January 2021, nine months after the proposal was made. It wasnt until November 2020 that the Ministry of Long-Term Care began outlining recommendations for care homes akin to the hub and spoke model.

The commissioners also concluded that problems that had festered in the sector for decades undoubtedly contributed to the loss of thousands of lives of Ontarios most vulnerable citizens. Chronic underfunding, severe staffing shortages, outdated infrastructure and poor oversight were all existent within the sector long before the pandemic began. Indeed, the assault on long-term care that led to the COVID-19 catastrophe began thirty years ago, when the New Democratic Party government of Bob Rae began privatizing homes as part of its assault on public services. This drive was massively accelerated by the right-wing Tory government of Mike Harris, and continued under the trade union-backed Liberal governments of Dalton McGuinty and Kathleen Wynne. In other words, the entire political establishment has blood on its hands.

The commissioners criticized Ontarios Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Williams for initially ignoring myriad warnings by scientists and health officials that asymptomatic carriers could spread the virus and community transmission was occurring, and discouraging mask use.

The commissions findings are all the more damning given that the Ford government hand-picked its members. In addition to Justice Marrocco, they included such establishment figures as Angela Coke, a former senior executive in the Ontario Public Service, and Dr. Jack Kitts, former president and CEO of the Ottawa Hospital.

Ontario Long-term Care Minister Merrilee Fullerton, whose ruinous response to the pandemic is detailed in the report, tried to shift blame on to previous governments and the deadly character of the virus when questioned about the commissions findings at a May 3 press conference. When asked if the provincial government would issue an apology for the thousands of deaths and immeasurable suffering, Fullerton said, I think collectively, as a society, we need to do some soul-searching.

Underscoring where the Tories interests lie and whom they are concerned with protecting, the Ontario government late last year passed legislation (Bill 218) that protects long-term care homes, including those owned by giant for-profit corporations, from civil lawsuits arising from their gross mismanagement of the pandemic.

The results of the commission echoed similar conclusions drawn in a report on pandemic readiness and response in long-term care that was issued by Ontarios Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk on April 28. Lysyks report highlighted key issues within the long-term care sector, namely residents living in rooms with three or four occupants, care-home staff lacking adequate training to provide appropriate care, inconsistent practice of infection prevention and control even before the pandemic, and a problematic enforcement practice.

A key reason for the lack of enforcement was the Ford governments outrageous fall 2018 decision to discontinue proactive, comprehensive inspections of long-term care homes. An anonymous former provincial inspector of Ontarios care homes recently spoke to Global News about the lack of enforcement. The inspector described a severe shortage of inspectors and an inability for them to impose fines, meaning that when care homes fail to meet standards, they have no financial or other compulsion to correct their non-compliance issues.

A prime example of this was the case of a Scarborough, Ontario, nursing home in which 81 residents died due to an outbreak in December. Two inspectors had visited the 254-bed nursing home ten times between January 7 and January 20, 2020, and had issued 13 written notices. The inspectors had been called to the home following numerous complaints ranging from nutrition and hydration concerns and understaffing to unexplained injuries.

A months-long Global News investigation has also brought to light documents that reveal that the Ford government was repeatedly warned about the risks in long-term care homes but ignored the appeals of scientists, doctors and seniors advocates for steps to prevent a second wave ravaging their residents. The documents include a letter from infection prevention and control leaders at Toronto-area hospitals, dated April 20, 2020, warning of the urgent need to train and hire more infection prevention experts, and a lessons learned list from the Ministry of Long-Term Care dated July 15, 2020, that stated the province knew it needed thousands of additional personal support workers.

Another document, dated July 24, 2020, was an Ontario Health review titled Insights and Recommendations for Long-Term Care, which warned that [Long-term care] and public health are significantly under-resourced to meet IPAC standards to protect the basic needs of residents.

Despite the overwhelming amount of evidence suggesting that major changes need to be immediately put in place in the long-term care sector to prevent further deaths, Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliot announced on April 28 that a new emergency order would allow the province to begin transferring patients from hospitals to long-term care homes in order to free up beds for the massive influx of COVID-19 patients entering hospitals due to the third wave of the pandemic. More infectious variants, including the B.1.1.7 British variant, have produced soaring infection rates among younger people, driving the number of intensive care patients to more than two times the upper limit set by the government for the maintenance of regular levels of care.

Even prior to this announcement, Ontario hospitals had begun discharging elderly patients. By April 22, over a thousand patients had been rapidly discharged and transferred to long-term care homes despite still requiring medical aid.

The new measures allow for patients to be transferred to any nursing home and without giving consent. The Ford government has made a feeble attempt to draw attention away from this concerning fact by emphasizing that those transferred will not be subject to the usual co-payment that homes normally charge upon receiving new patients, as if to infer that they are somehow the recipients of generosity.

These developments only further highlight the urgent need for the working class to form its own organizations of struggle to combat the homicidal policies of the ruling class. Society must be restructured along socialist lines in order to defend and expand public services, including the programs and care facilities that support our most vulnerable and at-risk populations such as the elderly.
The Oregon Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee will be hosting a meeting with our sister committees across the West Coast at 2:00p.m. PDT on Saturday, May 22. We will discuss a strategy to fight for remote learning until the pandemic is contained in order to save lives. Register today and invite your coworkers and friends!

A beloved sixth and seventh grade language arts teacher, Samantha Fox, 46, died from COVID-19 last Saturday, May 8, in Estacada, Oregon. She passed away one week after contracting the virus, with no underlying health conditions. She had taught in the district for 20 years and leaves behind her mother, husband and two teenage sons.

Estacada, Oregon teacher Samantha Fox (Source: Twitter)

Roger Clound, Samathas ex-husband, told local press, You cant go anywhere in Estacada without someone coming up to talk to her. Her mother, Mary Beck, cried as she said that Samantha took care of everyone. The entire family loved her dearly. She added that Samantha always had a big smile and was fun to be with.

Foxs death marks the first recorded death of a teacher by COVID-19 in Oregon. Other education workers in the state have also died from COVID-19, including a volunteer for the North Clackamas School District who died in December, and a Joseph Charter School bus driver who died in September.

In recent weeks, case rates in Oregon and Washington have outpaced the national average. This comes in the aftermath of the March 5 issuance of an executive order by Democratic Governor Kate Brown demanding the reopening of schools, making Oregon one of the last states to resume in-person learning in the face of enormous opposition among educators.

Estacada School District has tried to absolve itself from responsibility for Foxs death, while the media has seized on the fact that she was unvaccinated when she contracted COVID-19. Foxs last day teaching in-person was April 27. According to a spokeswoman for the district, 60 students have been told to quarantine. This number has been refuted by sources from within the school district, stating that by May 3 there are over 237 students in quarantine.

In their attempt to cover up the spread of the disease, a district spokeswoman said there is no evidence of spread in any of the schools even though cases continue to rise, and almost 11 percent of the districts students are under quarantine.

An educator who worked at the same school as Samantha noted on social media that on April 26, when schools fully reopened, two students and one staff member tested positive, which was reported to the Oregon Department of Education (ODE). However, by May 3 there were 14 students and two staff who tested positive, but this data was not recorded on the May 5 ODE report. This same source insisted that the principal of Samanthas school had tried to convince the students in Samanthas class that they had been infected outside the school.

Even though infection rates in Clackamas County have been in the very high category since April 10, the Estacada School District resumed fully in-person learning with three-foot social distancing on April 26. In doing so, they followed the pseudo-scientific guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and supported by all the teachers unions.

The ODE claimed that schools with a case rate of over 200 would have to resort to six-foot social distancing, but even this wholly inadequate guideline was ignored by the district. From the period of April 18 to May 1, the case rate in Clackamas County was 283.4 per 100,000, far above the 200 mark. From April 4 to May 5, the case rate exceeded 200 per 100,000, which should have necessitated abandoning the three-foot distancing guideline for six feet.

Local news outlets have attempted to blame Samantha for her own death, despite the fact that Oregon Governor Kate Brown and the ODE have done everything possible to spread the lie that schools are safe for in-person learning. Throughout the state, only 35.8 percent of adults are vaccinated, while virtually no young students have received a vaccination.

Commenting on the medias attempt to blame Samantha, a long-term substitute teacher in Oregon reached out to the World Socialist Web Site and wrote: Most students are unvaccinated, and the biggest growth in cases now are among younger adults. When students become infected they can spread it anywhere ... to other students and school staff, who then take this home to families and communities. This is all about concern over spread  so yes, blaming the teacher is a huge distraction.

The Clackamas Education Association has so far remained silent on this tragedy. The union waged no struggle whatsoever against the murderous return to in-person instruction. Most Oregon teachers unions fall under the authority of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), whose President Randi Weingarten gave a one-hour speech Thursday advocating the full resumption of in-person learning, stating, There is no doubt: Schools must be open. In person. Five days a week.

The long-term substitute teacher continued, writing: Samanthas death shines a very sad light on just why schools never should have reopened for in-person learning. Governor Brown put profit, politics and economics over lives and health. Our national unions betrayed us as they pushed for so-called safe openings. There was never any such thing. Hundreds of COVID cases are reported each week in Oregon schools  in students and staff.

This educator highlighted the total irrationality of the reopening drive, commenting, While indoor gathering capacities correctly retain restrictions, schools are exempt  it seems sacrificing our educators, children, and their families is not a problem for our state leadership.

It is not possible to know precisely the number of educators who have succumbed to the virus since schools have reopened, with no federal tracking program ever established. Education Week has tracked 937 active and retired K-12 educators and personnel who have succumbed to COVID-19, undoubtedly a significant undercount.

The long-term impacts on children are incalculable. A staggering 10 to 15 percent of infected children suffer from long COVID symptoms, including fatigue, muscle and joint pain, headaches, insomnia, respiratory problems and heart palpitations.

Across the country in numerous states, schools are the number one source of COVID-19 outbreaks, with the state of Michigan bluntly admitting in the first week of March that schools are the source of the largest outbreaks. Similar figures have been cited in Minnesota, Colorado, Pennsylvania and other states.

The school districts, both capitalist parties and the teachers unions have conspired against the lives and health of teachers, students and the working class more broadly. The policies advanced by the ruling class make containing and eradicating the virus a scientific impossibility.

What is necessary is the building of new forms of organization, rank-and-file committees, to combat the homicidal opening of schools and workplaces. These committees, which are being formed across the US and globally, must unite workers across the world as broadly as possible. We urge all educators, parents and students in Oregon who wish to fight for these policies to sign up today to join the Oregon Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee .
On May 11, a group of international mining experts released a 23-page Conceptual Development Plan to expand the underground investigation of Pike River coal mine in New Zealand.

The document is a major step forward in the fight to uncover the truth about the mine disaster in November 2010 that killed 29 men. It was prepared by the Pike River Independent Technical Advisory Group, which consists of highly-qualified mining experts, including former chief mines inspector Tony Forster. They wrote the plan for free on behalf of 23 of the families of 29 men.

A placard from the 2016 blockade of the road to Pike River mine [Source: Uncensored Pike Facebook group]

It demolishes the claims made by the Labour Party-led government that to go deeper into the mine to fully investigate the precise causes of the explosions and recover bodies would be too expensive and dangerous. The experts explain how this can be done safely, using standard mining techniques used all over the world, for under $8 millionmuch less than the figures thrown around by the government of between $60 million and $100 million.

The Pike River Coal company gambled with the lives of its workers and contractors. A 2012 royal commission established that it placed production and profit ahead of safety, breaking numerous laws and regulations. A decade later, however, no individuals in the company leadership have been prosecuted for the entirely avoidable deaths.

Health and safety charges brought against Pike River CEO Peter Whittall were dropped in 2013 in a back-room deal between his lawyers and the governments Department of Labour. This was a blatant case of class justice. The state regulator was itself complicit in the disaster; it knew about the life-threatening conditions in the mine but did not shut it down.

The Labour Party-Greens-NZ First coalition, elected in 2017, promised to re-enter the mine to look for bodies, which have not been recovered, and to gather forensic evidence for criminal prosecutions.

The government is now reneging on these promises. Andrew Little, the minister for Pike River recovery, announced in March that, having explored the 2.2km drift tunnel, the re-entry operation would not proceed through a roof-fall and into the mine workings. He claimed that the area was inherently unstable and would be phenomenally expensive to explore. As the Conceptual Development Plan points out, Littles statements were highly speculative and not based on any feasibility study.

Bernie Monk, whose son Michael died in the mine, told the World Socialist Web Site he had written to Little asking which experts advice he was relying on, but the minister had not replied.

Following the release of the plan, however, Little doubled down, telling Newshub: weve reached the end, and we have delivered justice for the families. This statement is patently false. Prior to the 2017 election, Labour and its allies led the families, and the public, to believe they would consider entering the mine workings after recovering the drift.

By preventing the examination of evidence beyond the roof-fall, especially Pike Rivers main ventilation unit, the government will ensure that there is no justice for the victims families. The experts say the fan site could contain the most critical items of evidence relating to the cause of the initial explosion on November 19, 2010.

Little said the Pike River Recovery Agency would look at the expert plan, but added, in a callous and provocative statement: When youre in government, youve got to weigh up competing priorities. For me, my priority now is the living.

In response, Kath Monk, Michaels mother, told the WSWS: Little was the national secretary of the EPMU [Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union] back in 2010. Well, he should have been as concerned about the living back then, because some of the men underground were members of that union.

Eleven of the 29 men who died were EPMU members. The union knew about the dangerous conditions at Pike River but took no action to shut down the mine and protect workers. Days after the first explosion, Little, speaking to the New Zealand Herald and Radio NZ, defended the company, saying that the union had no concerns about Pike River mine, and that it had a good health and safety committee.

The Labour-Greens government, like the previous National Party government, is covering up the causes of the disaster to protect those responsible. This includes the company, successive Labour and National governments which deregulated health and safety in the mining industry, as well as state regulators, and the EPMU, now called E tu, which functions as an adjunct of big business and the state.

E tu is supporting the states cover-up. Asked by the WSWS what position it took on the Pike River investigation, national secretary Bill Newson replied on May 5 that the union was satisfied that the government has kept its promise to re-enter the drift and supports the governments position regarding not re-entering the main mine.

Going further into the mine could also determine whether any of the 29 men survived the first explosion, and even the second explosion five days later, but were trapped in the mine workings, which some experts believe is possible. This could raise questions about the initial response to the disaster, led by the police, and the royal commission, which concluded that the first explosion was not survivable.

Steve Rose, whose stepson Stuart Mudge died in Pike River, posed the question: What could be so awful in that mine that they dont want brought into the light of day? Andrew Little knows stuff, and the stuff that he knows, they obviously consider to be damaging to the government.

Regarding Littles insistence that it is unsafe and too difficult to continue exploring the mine, despite mounting evidence to the contrary, Rose said: I think hes working on the basis that if you repeat something often enough then the public will believe its true.

Carol Rose, Stuarts mother, noted that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was remaining conspicuously quiet about Pike River, and said, I would really, really like to hear what shes got to say on this. She believed the Labour Party wanted to leave her untainted by any of this, because theyre going to need her at the next election, theyre going to need her reputation to remain intact.

Members of the Independent Expert Advisory Group have made strong statements urging the government to continue the underground investigation and seek justice for the families. Forster told Newshub: This job should have been done years ago. As a mining engineer, Ive never understood why so much dithering has been carried out.

Another member of the group, mining engineer David Creedy, said none of the barriers are really technical. The barriers are political and financial. Creedy said reaching the fan area could also lead to the recovery of human remains, and we owe that both to them and to their families.

UK-based mines rescue expert Brian Robinson told Newshub the mine re-entry would be a half-finished job if it was given up now. David Bell, an engineering and mining expert at Canterbury University, agreed that the mine should be recovered at least to the main fan and this could be done safely.

Writing in the Facebook group Uncensored Pike, electrical engineer Richard Healey, who has carried out an extensive investigation of data from Pike River over the past two years in collaboration with some of the families, stated: Like Little, my priorities are with the living. In the last decade 60 to 70 people every year go to work and come home in a box the living are important, we owe it to them to make sure that the guilty are held to account for their actions at Pikebecause if we dont, we will surely see the tragedy at Pike happen again.

The families of the Pike River 29 have the right to know the truth about what happened to their loved ones, and to see those responsible brought to account. This is a matter of crucial importance for the entire New Zealand working class, and for working people in countries throughout the world who are being forced by corporations, governments and the pro-capitalist trade unions to work in life-threatening conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Demonstrations involving hundreds of workers have erupted at several tea estates in recent weeks against increased daily productivity demands and wage cuts.

In January, the Rajapakse government ordered plantation companies to pay a 1,000-rupee ($US5) daily wage (a 900-rupee basic payment plus 100-rupee allowance) to tea and rubber estate workers, starting from April. The governments announcement was in order to dissipate the rising anger of plantation workers over their poverty-level wages.

Line rooms at Gartmore Estate [Credit: WSWS Media]

Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) that manage the Sri Lankan estates opposed the increase and went to the courts to challenge the governments decision. Conscious of the mass opposition of plantation workers, the appeal court approved the government pay directive.

The plantation unions, particularly the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), falsely promoted the wage rise as a major victory for workers. The CWC is part of the Rajapakse government and the unions leader, Jeevan Thondaman, is a cabinet minister.

The RPCs have reacted to the court decision by attempting to drive up production to compensate for the pay increase and have introduced other measures to reduce workers earnings.

On May 10, hundreds of workers at the Murray and Brunswick Estates, which are controlled by the Maskeliya Plantation Company, and the upper division of the Welioya Estate, which is owned by the Hatton Plantation Company, protested against increased work targets and management refusals to pay the 1,000-rupee daily wage.

About 700 workers from Murray Estate demonstrated over the companys failure to pay the new wage rates in April and against the new productivity targets. Management is demanding that the daily tea plucking target of 18 kilos be increased by 2 kilos to pay the 1,000-rupee wage.

Brunswick Estate workers walked out on strike over the April pay rates. While management paid the 1,000-rupee daily rate it refused to pay for the additional teas plucked above the usual daily target. Brunswick Estate workers were previously paid an additional 40 rupees per kilo if they produced more than the daily target.

Welioya Estate workers protested for the same reason.

Isolated Fordyce estate workers demanding food support [Credit: Annachinews]

A week earlier, Bogawantalawa Estate workers demonstrated near the highway to Hatton in protest over similar cost-cutting measures. They told the media that management paid the new daily wage rate but had increased working hours, commencing work at 8 a.m. and not finishing until 6 p.m.

In April, Bogawantalawa Estate employees were only given two days work a week and just 13 days for the entire month, drastically reducing their income. Management only allowed them a 15-minute tea break and reprimanded them if it went five minutes longer. They now have to harvest 20 kilos tea per day to earn 1,000 rupees. If they fail to do so, their wages are cut.

Glenugie Estate workers at Maskeliya walked out on April 23 over management demands that they pluck 20 kilograms of tea leaves per day.

On the same day, over 300 workers from the Talawakelle Troup Estate and the Corrine Estate protested for three hours after management demanded workers pluck 20 kilos of tea per day for six days and then the impossible target of 50 kilos on Sundays. Workers at the Lionorn Estate in Bogawantalawa also demonstrated near the tea factory against increased work targets.

At the Alton Estate in Maskeliya, the plucking target is 18 kilos for a 1,000-rupee daily wage. However, if a worker fails to achieve the target, they are only paid 500 rupees for nine kilos and 50 rupees per kilo for additional leaves. Overtime payments for field supervisors were also abolished at Alton after the government-imposed new wage scheme.

The increased workloads and cost-cutting measures at estate after estate follows the brutal anti-democratic attacks on Alton Estate workers in the past months. The RPCs are determined to impose the economic impact of COVID-19 and falling tea exports on workers and crush all resistance.

Alton Estate workers, who participated in the CWC one-day strike on February 5 to demand the 1,000-rupee daily wage, remained on strike for another 47 days in protest against a company-police strike-breaking witch hunt.

Twenty-four workers and two youth were charged on frame-up allegations that they physically assaulted the manager and assistant manager at the estate. Thirty-eight workers, including those now facing court, have been sacked from jobs on that basis, without any inquiry being conducted.

The CWC collaborated with the company and the police in every step of witch hunt, including drawing up a list of names of Alton workers to be arrested and those to be sacked from their jobs. The National Union of Workers (NUW), which covers some workers at the estate, supported managements provocations and has refused to assist the framed-up workers.

Last month, supporters from eastern Batticaloa delivered food supplies to the sacked workers. On April 30, Hatton police summoned 10 workers and a teacher who initiated this relief work. They were questioned by police about their connection to the NGO and told not to engage in any future similar actions without police permission.

Significantly, this months strikes and protests were organised independently of the plantation unions. Instead of supporting the industrial action, the unions appealed to management to negotiate the backbreaking workloads and wage cuts.

The dire conditions faced by estate workers, however, will worsen with rising COVID-19 infections in the plantations and at other workplaces.

Fordyce Estate near Hatton was recently placed in quarantine lock down, following the discovery of infected workers, as was the nearby Ingestre Estate. The Norwood Fashion Wear garment factory in Maskeliya was also closed after several workers tested positive.

Norwood Fashions factory at Norwood [Credit: K. Kishanthan]

When the quarantine period ended at Fordyce Estate, workers protested outside the estates tea factory, denouncing the government and estate management for not providing workers with relief funds and essential items. Soldiers and police immediately erected barriers and stopped the protest.

The vast plantation area in Sri Lankas central hill district lacks proper healthcare facilities. There is no systematic testing of the hundreds of thousands of plantation workers, who live in congested line rooms where social distancing is impossible. The unions are committed to defending company profits and supporting the governments reopening of the economy.

Responding to the Socialist Equality Partys campaign in defence of the victimised Alton Estate workers, several workers formed an action committee to take forward this struggle.

The rising number of strikes and protests by plantation workers and other sections of the working class underline the urgency of workers establishing action committees, independent of unions, to defend their democratic and social rights.

A female worker from Brunswick Estate spoke to the World Socialist Web Site this week about managements new productivity demands. After this wage increase, management stopped paying us for additional kilos we plucked over the target, she said.

In the rainy season, from January to May, we can harvest more and get additional income [added] to our wage. This is necessary because during dry season we cant even reach management targets and our income is less. In these times, we have to borrow to pay for our daily expenses.

The worker denounced the CWCs celebratory claims that the government-ordered pay rise was a victory, adding, We are losing now. The trade unions have always cheated us.

Referring to the 2019 conference organised in Hatton by the SEP and the Abbotsleigh Workers Action Committee, she said, You explained [at the conference] about the treachery of the unions. This has been confirmed every day since.
One year after Swedish authorities took the decision to let the coronavirus run rampant with the goal of reaching herd immunity, infection rates remain among the highest in Europe. Last week, the Scandinavian country, with a population of just 10.3 million people, surpassed the mark of 1 million officially registered cases. To date, over 14,200 deaths have been recorded, with over 5,000 of those occurring since the peak of the second wave in December.

The working class and young people are paying the price for the ruling elites policy of mass deaths and infections, which served as the template for governments across Europe and North America to abandon all serious lockdown measures following the spring 2020 first wave. Low-income earners and immigrant communities have been disproportionately affected by unemployment and coronavirus infection, while the current rollout of vaccines is failing to reach immigrant communities.

Throughout April, infection rates in Sweden were the highest of any major country in Europe, with intensive care units full to the brim with sick patients. On April 13, the seven-day rolling average for daily infections was 625 per million inhabitants, behind only tiny San Marino. By late April, the reported infection rate was 800 cases per 100,000 inhabitants within a two-week period, one of the highest rates at any time since the beginning of the pandemic.

The individual publicly identified with Swedens herd immunity policy is state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell, who infamously noted in an email on March 14, 2020: One point might speak for keeping schools open in order to reach herd immunity more quickly. At the time, Swedish authorities refused to impose a lockdown as the first wave spread, kept all primary and lower secondary schools open, and allowed businesses to continue operating normally.

Anders Tegnell [Source: Wikimedia Commons]

Even as Swedens elderly care homes were transformed into killing fields, and infection rates among the general population were among the highest in Europe, Tegnell refused to impose tighter restrictions and even rejected the wearing of masks as ineffectual. Swedens Public Health Agency only issued a recommendation to wear masks in December 2020 and only for commuters during rush hour travel.

But Tegnell only expressed in the most unvarnished manner what was in fact the policy of the entire Swedish ruling class and what rapidly became the homicidal agenda of every capitalist government in Europe and North America. His herd immunity strategy was embraced by the New York Times and the Trump administration in the United States, the Johnson government in Britain, which sought advice from Tegnell, and the political establishment in Germany. This included the Left Party whose only minister president, the head of the state government in Thuringia Bodo Ramelow, declared his support for the Swedish model. Indeed, the Swedish approach to COVID-19 has been so widely embraced that Tegnell has, with some justification, pointed out that Sweden has not handled the pandemic all that much differently to other countries.

In Sweden, the herd immunity strategy was enforced by the Social Democrat/Green coalition government, which relies in parliament for its majority on the ex-Stalinist Left Party and two small centre-right parties, the Liberals and Centre Party. Both the Centre and Liberal parties belong traditionally to Swedens right-wing party bloc, which is led by the Moderates and includes the Christian Democrats.

But in a significant shift to the right following the 2018 election, Social Democratic Prime Minister Stefan Lofven secured a deal with the Liberals and Centre that saw them leave the right-wing bloc known as the Alliance. The latest reports indicate that the Liberals will return to the Alliance for the 2022 election with the aim of establishing a right-wing government that will for the first time rely on support from the far-right Sweden Democrats, which has its roots in Swedens neo-Nazi movement.

As criticism of Tegnell and the Public Health Agency mounted throughout 2020, Lofven increasingly took over public announcements on pandemic policy, but nothing of substance changed. In November, as the second wave gathered pace, Lofven urged people to restrict private gatherings to eight, but no new regulations were brought in to enforce this. Schools and businesses remained open.

The first report by Swedens coronavirus commission was released in December. It presented a damning indictment of the governments response, as well as sharp criticism of the austerity for health and social services enforced by successive governments of the left and right. The report noted that one of the main factors for the high death rate in care homes was structural shortcomings caused by cost cutting and privatisation. These shortcomings have led to residential care being unprepared and ill-equipped to handle a pandemic. Staff employed in the elderly care sector were largely left by themselves to tackle the crisis, the report added.

In January, a new pandemic law was adopted in parliament. But other than restricting the opening of restaurants and cafes to 8:30 p.m. and imposing limits on the number of guests at a single table, no major restrictions were implemented.

Anger over the governments pandemic response continues to build within the medical community. Last month, The Lancet published a piece entitled, The Swedish COVID-19 strategy revisited, that was a searing condemnation of the authorities refusal to take the necessary measures to protect human lives.

In December, 2020, we wrote about the Swedish response to the COVID-19 pandemic, noted the authors, Mariam Claeson and Stefan Hanson. Our hope was that our comment, together with hundreds of other fact-based articles, would gain the attention of the Swedish Public Health Agency, that they would revisit and change the national strategy that they had designed so that it would be more aligned with global best practices, and that the political decision makers would act on it. They did not.

The authors continued that the Public Health Agency had as of April 19 recorded over 5,600 deaths since their December article. A third wave was raging in the country without any widespread sense of gravity or urgency, they continued. The Public Health Agency has doubled down and defended its approach without reconsidering the assumptions on which the failed national strategy is based. It has downplayed the role of asymptomatic spread, aerosol transmission, children as potential source of infection, and the use of face masks.

The Lancet article noted that medical experts have been urging Swedish authorities for over a year to be strategic, test and trace more, follow the growing evidence base and recommend the use of face masks, and enforce regulations about physical distancing and ventilation, especially in schools if they are open. The authors continued: It has been a call for timely implementation of basic principles of pandemic prevention and control to contain the spread and flatten the curves of hospitalisations, deaths, and chronic illness.

Swedens herd immunity policy has disproportionately impacted the most vulnerable sections of the population. During the first wave, infection and death rates were many multiples higher among Stockholms immigrant communities, many of which are wracked by high jobless and poverty rates, than the national average. People with North African and Middle Eastern backgrounds were seven times more likely to be admitted to hospital due to COVID-19 than native Swedes as of February 2021.

The Social Democrat/Green government also responded to the pandemic, like governments throughout Europe, by providing multibillion krona bailouts to big business and the financial elite. According to business daily Dagens Industri, at least 40 new krona billionaires emerged in Sweden during 2020 (1 dollar = 8.5 kronor). The total value of investments owned by 169 individuals and families increased by $35 billion, equating to almost 40 percent of all private savings in shares and equity funds held by Swedes. In 2020 the government also abolished Swedens top income tax rate, which imposed a 5 percent surcharge on all incomes over 703,000 kronor ($74,300). Cuts were also made in the 2021 budget to employers social security contributions for young workers.

Figures on Swedens vaccine rollout show that disadvantaged communities are being left behind. According to a report in the Financial Times, 91 percent of native-born Swedes over the age of 80 have received at least one vaccine dose. The rate drops to 59 percent for people aged over 80 from North Africa and just 44 percent for those from Sub-Saharan Africa.
As Israels ongoing onslaught on Palestinians in East Jerusalem and Gaza provokes mass anger in Turkey, it is also exposing the hypocrisy of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government led by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the plight of the Palestinian people. The Turkish government and other venal bourgeois regimes in the Middle East are all complicit in the Israeli governments assault on the Palestinians.

A protest in front of the Israeli consulate in Istanbul, Tukey on May 11, 2021. (Photo: IHH via AP)

Over the past week, thousands of people in many cities of Turkey have protested against Israels attacks on the Al-Aqsa mosque in East Jerusalem and subsequent air strikes in Gaza. Mass demonstrations took place in front of the Israeli Consulate and Taksim Square in Istanbul, despite the curfew imposed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

President Erdogan called Israel a terror state last Saturday, after Israeli police stormed the Al-Aqsa mosque, and urged all Muslim countries and the international community to take effective measures against Tel Aviv.

The major establishment parties in parliamentthe ruling AKP and its fascistic ally, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), as well as the bourgeois opposition, the Kemalist Republican Peoples Party (CHP), far-right Good Party and Kurdish nationalist Peoples Democratic Party (HDP)condemned Israel in a rare joint statement on Monday.

We declare that we will always continue to react to Israels aggressive actions aimed at eroding the status of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount, and [Israels] attempts to usurp the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, it said, before claiming, We strongly declare that we will continue to defend the Palestinian cause and [support] the struggle of the brotherly Palestinian people for freedom, justice and independence.

On Wednesday, after US State Department spokesman Ned Price said, Israel does have a right to defend itself, Erdogans communications director Fahrettin Altun criticized Washingtons support for Israel, asking, Does the US have not any reaction to these massacres and terrorist acts? Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar also called Israels actions crimes against humanity and urged Tel Aviv to stop its ongoing attacks.

Though its president calls Israel a terror state, Turkey, the first country in the Muslim world to recognize Israel in 1949, maintains diplomatic, trade, economic and military ties with Tel Aviv as part of its broader military-strategic alliance with US imperialism.

However, the statements from top Turkish political and military officials are accompanied by intense diplomacy activity. According to Turkeys state-owned Anadolu Agency, Erdogan has recently called the leaders of Russia, Qatar, Jordan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Indonesia, Algeria, Iraq, Pakistan and other countries. He again described the Israeli attacks as terrorism.

He also spoke with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Ismail Haniyeh, a leader of Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated group that controls Gaza, promising support for the cause of Palestine.

During talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, Erdogan said that the international community needed to teach a deterrent lesson to Israel, before proposing that to discuss the idea of sending an international protection force to the region in order to protect Palestinian civilians. According to the statement made by the Kremlin, Putin had called on the parties to deescalate tensions and peacefully resolve the emerging issues.

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) also condemned Israel in the strongest terms the repeated attacks by the Israeli occupation authorities against the Palestinian people.

This pro forma condemnation comes from an organization consisting of reactionary Arab regimes that have recently normalized relations with Israel.

As Israeli strikes on Gaza escalate, killing more than 100 mostly civilian victims, and as Israel prepares a more comprehensive military onslaught, the Turkish Foreign Ministry yesterday again called on the international community to act swiftly to stop these attacks, which will cause further loss of civilian lives. It added: We have learned with concern that Israel has started firing tanks and artillery against Gaza this time.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also called his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry to discuss Palestine after visiting Saudi Arabia. The meeting came amid Ankaras ongoing efforts to reestablish relations with the Egyptian military dictatorship of General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. After Sisis bloody 2013 coup against elected Egyptian President Mohammed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood, Erdogan denounced the Sisi regime, and the ties between the two countries collapsed.

On May 6, there was a direct diplomatic meeting of Turkish and Egyptian delegations for the first time in years. Turkish Trade Minister Mehmet Mus said Turkey wants to improve its economic relations with Egypt while trying to restore diplomatic ties.

The Erdogan governments regional initiatives came as part of a broader diplomatic campaign launched by Ankara, particularly after Joe Biden was elected US president last year. The Turkish government recently declared that it wants to improve relations with all countries in the region. This entails moving as far away from Iran and Russia as possible, while also developing better relations with Egypt and Israel.

After former US President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israels capital in 2017, Tel Aviv violently suppressed Palestinian protests, killing dozens. Ankara then recalled its ambassador to Israel. Although diplomatic relations between Turkey and Israel have been reduced to the level of charge daffaires since 2018, Turkish President Erdogan declared last December that Turkey wants to improve its relations with Israel. Our intelligence cooperation with Israel is ongoing.

Moreover, Israel Hayom cited an anonymous senior Turkish official in March that Turkey is ready to dispatch an ambassador to Tel Aviv once the Israeli government commits to simultaneously reciprocating the measure. The paper claimed: The main point of contention between the two former allies remains the presence of senior Hamas officials on Turkish soil. Given the relations developed simultaneously with the military regime in Egypt, this is not an insurmountable obstacle.

One of the most critical points in Ankaras approach to the Palestine question is the competition over the division of oil and gas resources in the eastern Mediterranean. An EastMed Gas Forum was formally established led by European imperialist powers, France and Italy. While it also involves Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Jordan and Palestine, Turkey protested its exclusion from the forum. Although Palestine is a member of the forum, Israel is blocking it from accessing the Gaza gas field.

Moreover, there are strong economic ties between the two countries. In 2017, Israels Transportation and Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz said that Erdogan is acting as a frenemy.  He attacks us a lot, and we respond, but this does not prevent him from channeling 25 percent of Turkeys exports to the Gulf through Haifas port.

Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Minister Adil Karaismailoglu has called on his Israeli counterpart to allow a leading Turkish firm to bid in a recent tender for the privatization of the Haifa Port, according to a report made by the Israel Hayom in April.

At the end of April, the daily Cumhuriyet newspaper reported that Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz was invited to an official Diplomacy Forum in Turkey to be held on June 18-20. In March, he announced his governments readiness to cooperate with Turkey on natural gas in the eastern Mediterranean.

This hypocritical Palestinian policy of the Turkish government, based entirely on the interests of the ruling class and its ties with imperialism, makes one thing very clear. The allies of the Palestinian people against the military onslaught they face are not this or that reactionary bourgeois regime in the region, but the working class in Israel, Turkey, Iran and all over the world.
The right-wing Ukrainian government of President Volodymyr Zelensky has indicted the countrys main opposition party leader, the oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk, on charges of high treason and embezzlement.

Viktor Medvedchuk (Wikimedia Commons)

Specifically, state authorities are accusing both Medvedchuk and his business partner, Taras Kozak, of transferring oil and gas production licenses located in the Sea of Azov to Russia following Crimeas annexation by Russia in 2014, which at the time was overwhelmingly supported by the peninsulas population.

In addition, Medvedchuk has been accused of disclosing classified information on Ukrainian troop movements.

According to Ukraines Prosecutor-General Irina Venediktova, the charges against Medvedchuk carry sentences of up to fifteen years in prison.

Medvedchuk, as the organizer of illegal activities, and having strong ties with the top leadership of the Russian Federation, began subversive activities against Ukraine, including in the economic sphere, Venediktova said while outlining the charges against Medvedchuk in a briefing.

While the Ukrainian media initially speculated that Medvedchuk would flee to Russia upon hearing of the charges, Medvedchuk appeared at the Prosecutor Generals office later that day in Kiev. He denounced the charges as fabricated and a case of clear political repression.

Ukrainian prosecutors had requested a jail sentence and recommended that bail be set at $10.8 million. The presiding judge denied the governments request and instead placed Medvedchuk on house arrest and confiscated his passport.

Upon leaving the Prosecutor Generals office Medvedchuk was accosted by right-wing nationalists who accused him of being a lackey of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The indictment of Medvedchuk is the latest step in a carefully staged political crackdown against the pro-Kremlin Opposition Platform-For Life party which Medvedchuk leads. The party is currently the second largest in the Ukrainian parliament holding 44 of 450 seats behind Zelenskys own Servant of the People party.

As Zelenskys approval ratings have fallen over the past year due to his inability to solve the over seven-year long civil war in eastern Ukraine and the medical and economic crisis caused by COVID-19, support for Medvedchuks party has risen. Several polls have even shown the Opposition Platform-For Life party winning a hypothetical parliamentary election, raising the prospect of the return of a Moscow-friendly government to Kiev.

Such a scenario would be anathema to both the United States and the EU which backed the far-right coup that toppled elected President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014. They have sent billions in aid to Kiev since, and are playing a central role in the development of Ukraines military which is engaged in an ongoing civil war with Russian-backed separatists in East Ukraine. The civil war has claimed the lives of over 14,000 people and displaced millions.

With the support of the new Biden administration in the United States, Zelensky has moved quickly to head off the threat from a Russia-friendly political opposition within Ukraine.

In February, Zelensky undemocratically shut down three popular predominantly Russian-speaking television stationsZiK, 112 Ukraine and NewsOneall of which are owned by Medvedchuk and his business partner Taras Kozak. Medvedchuks financial assets were also frozen for three years and both he and Kozak were sanctioned by the Ukrainian government.

Following the crackdown, several other journalists were accused of treason including the popular pro-Russian blogger Anatoly Shariy who, like Medvedchuk, leads a political opposition party that favors a negotiated settlement to the war in the eastern Donbass region.

Later in April, Zelensky moved even further to shut down opposition media and limit free speech by asking YouTube to ban all Medvedchuk-affiliated channels within Ukraines borders.

The California-based company dutifully fulfilled the request and was later thanked by Ukraines embassy in Washington.

In addition to leading the main opposition party and a constant figure in post-Soviet Ukrainian politics, Medvedchuk is also an extremely wealthy oligarch, worth an estimated $1 billion. In 2015, amidst the ongoing civil war in Donbass, he purchased a yacht worth $214 million.

A former Stalinist bureaucrat and lawyer, Medvedchuk quickly transitioned into a full-fledged capitalist following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, making millions off the purchase and sale of the Donbass regions prodigious industrial concerns and energy resources.

In 2014, following the United States-backed right-wing nationalist coup and the Russian annexation of Crimea, Medvedchuk was sanctioned by the US Department of Treasury for violating the security, stability, sovereignty, or territorial integrity of Ukraine.

Despite his opposition to the US-backed coup, Medvedchuk has continued to play a significant role in Ukrainian bourgeois politics due to his immense wealth and influence over the Donbass region. As a result of both business and personal ties with the Russian oligarchy, Medvedchuk has been the most prominent go-between with Moscow and Kiev over the course of the civil war in eastern Ukraine. He has helped in drafting the Minsk peace accords and securing the release of captured Ukrainian soldiers by Russian-backed separatists.

It now appears that the increasingly right-wing, militaristic and undemocratic Zelensky government is moving to excise Medvedchuk from Ukrainian ruling-class politics altogether, threatening a complete breakdown of ties with Russia and any remaining possibility of a negotiated settlement between Moscow and Kiev over the Donbass region. The crackdown on Medvedchuk and his party also comes amidst ongoing tensions with Russia over East Ukraine and Crimea, which were escalated by Kievs adoption of a strategy to recover Crimea.

Zelenskys crackdown on the pro-Russian oligarchic opposition has been encouraged by the United States since 2014. Washington has constantly urged both former President Petro Poroshenko and now Zelensky to prosecute the Russian-affiliated section of the Ukrainian oligarchy in the name of an anti-corruption campaign.

Last week, while visiting Kiev amidst growing tensions between Ukraine and Russia, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken obliquely called upon Zelensky to move more aggressively against this section of the oligarchy. He stated,Ukraine is facing two challenges: aggression from outside, coming from Russia, and in effect aggression from within, coming from corruption, oligarchs and others who are putting their interests ahead of those of the Ukrainian people.

The indictment and prosecution of Medvedchuk will undoubtedly further worsen relations between Kiev and Moscow.
Thomas Meaney in The New Yorker:

International conferences are notoriously difficult to organize, all the more so when the aim is global revolution and the worlds empires oppose your agenda. When, starting in 1919, Vladimir Lenin convened the first congresses of the Communist International, some Bolsheviks were disappointed by the characters who turned upold-fashioned socialists, trade unionists, and anarchists, coming with false papers, in disguise, under aliases, and all apparently expecting hotel rooms. The Russian revolutionary Victor Serge observed, It was obvious at first glance that here were no insurgent souls. Lenin kept a blinking electric light on his desk to cut meetings short. But one of the arrivals made an impression. Very tall, very handsome, very dark, with very wavy hair, Serge recalled. It was Manabendra Nath Roy, an Indian who was a founder of the Mexican Communist Party. When ducking imperial authorities, he used a method described by a comrade: If you want to hide revolutionary connections . . . you had better travel first class.

Roy had cut an unusual path to Moscow. Born into a Brahmin family in West Bengal in 1887, he left India in his twenties on a series of missions to secure funds and weapons for an uprising against the British Raj. During the First World War, a group of Indian anti-imperialists wanted the Germans to open a second front against their common enemy. But Roys parleys with contacts in Java, China, and Japan yielded almost nothing. In Tokyo, he resolved to press onward to the United States: I decided to take the bull by the horn, pinned a golden cross to the lapel of my coat, put on a very sombre face, and called at the American consulate. Disguised as Father Martin and having, he said, reinforced my armour with a morocco-bound copy of the Holy Bible beautifully printed on rice-paper, Roy arrived in San Francisco in 1916.

More here.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP)  Two Indiana counties are lifting their local mask mandates after federal health officials eased mask-wearing guidance for those fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

The health departments for the counties that include South Bend and Bloomington are rescinding those local orders, while Indianapolis officials are keeping the citys mask mandate in place.

St. Joseph County Health Officer Dr. Robert M. Einterz cited the new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance that fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings. But he said he remained concerned about many unvaccinated people remaining vulnerable to coronavirus infection.

The CDC reports Indiana has the countrys 12th lowest rate with about 31% of all people fully vaccinated.

The St. Joseph County order covering South Bend was rescinded as of Thursday night, while the Monroe County order including Bloomington will end Monday morning.

Marion County health department director Dr. Virginia Caine said the agency would review the CDC guidance and the Indianapolis vaccination rates before recommending any changes to current restrictions. Caine said work continues on getting more people immunized.

Gov. Eric Holcomb lifted the statewide mask mandate in early April.
GARY, Ind. (WTHI) - After 18 months of waiting, the Hard Rock Casino of northern Indiana will open to the gaming public.

Terre Haute businessman Greg Gibson is a major partner in the project, and he continues to work to bring a casino to Terre Haute.

News 10's Jon Swaner made the trip to Gary as staff put the finishing touches on the new casino.

On Friday, the Hard Rock allowed those in the media to meet some musical guests from Gary.

The Hard Rock doesn't do ribbon cuttings - instead, they do a guitar smash to open their properties officially.

But what about Terre Haute's Hard Rock Casino?

Gibson says he's confident Terre Haute's casino will happen - despite all of the delays.

"We're working hard to where we'll be able to break ground in Terre Haute, and we hope that will be early this summer," Gibson said.

The Indiana Gaming Commission meets later this month, and that meeting could finally pave the way for that groundbreaking to take place - from then, Gibson hopes to bring at least one thing from Gary.

"This excitement, for one, it makes me excited to have the same guitar smash ceremony in Terre Haute, Indian," Gibson said.

News 10 talked with a representative from Hard Rock's corporate office and people from the Seminole Tribe, who own Hard Rock; they said they are excited to come to Terre Haute.

It sounds like it's not a question of if, but when Terre Haute's casino will finally start construction.
PARKE COUNTY, Ind. (WTHI) - Deputies say speed was a factor in a crash that left one person with serious injuries.

It happened Friday afternoon in Parke County. Deputies said it happened on US 41 and County Road 900 South, in the county's southern portion.

According to police, a Michigan man was driving his truck south on 41 when he went to pass and hit a vehicle a Rockville woman was driving.

That woman was stuck in her car. Emergency workers had to get her out of the car, and she was airlifted to an Indianapolis hospital.

Deputies said speed was a factor. The Parke County prosecutor will determine if any charges are coming.
VIGO COUNTY, Ind. (WTHI) - Local students are honoring a classmate while highlighting mental health issues among teenagers.

On Friday, members planted a tree in honor of a former student who died earlier this year.

Bring Change 2 Mind is a student mental health club at Booker T. Washington High School.

Those involved with the club told us it would be a daily reminder about suicide prevention and helping each other out.

"It's important to me because I lost somebody that was a really good friend of mine, and it's really touching," Student Bryce Thompkins said.

The club sponsor, Christy Ellis, says the tree serves as a symbol to branch out to those in need.
MOBILE, Ala. (AP)  A Carnival cruise ship docked at Alabama's main port city on Friday so crew members can be vaccinated against COVID-19.

With a brass band playing on the wharf, the Carnival Sensation docked at the Mobile Cruise Terminal, where staff members from USA Health will go on board to provide first doses for 110 crew members. The ship will return in three weeks for second doses, the city said in a statement.

U.S. ports are closed to cruise lines because of the global pandemic, but Mayor Sandy Stimpson said such vaccinations are a major step toward getting the industry back in business.

Carnival said crew members have received vaccines at other ports including Miami and Port Canaveral in Florida and Galveston, Texas.

Sensation will be based in Mobile offering trips to the western Caribbean once cruises resume, but it's unclear when that will happen.
Charleston, WV (25301)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy overnight with thunderstorms likely. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy overnight with thunderstorms likely. Low 68F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%.
Christine Leigh Heyrman at the NYT:

Although they inspired many imitators, the Fox sisters did not number among those mediums who subsequently developed Spiritualism as an organized movement in both the United States and Britain. Their ranks included Emma Hardinge Britten, who wrote its history and traveled the public lecture circuit as a trance medium in the late 1850s, delivering opinions about the issues of the day as dictated by the spirits. By contrast, Victoria Woodhull had cut her ties to Spiritualist groups when her claim to clairvoyant powers persuaded the tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt to back her in founding the first female brokerage firm on Wall Street. But shortly thereafter she managed to recruit both Spiritualist and womens rights organizations to support her bid for the presidency in 1872. Meanwhile in Britain, Georgina Weldon  not a medium herself but a stage-struck Spiritualist  fought the efforts of her husband and his squad of doctors to commit her to an asylum. She challenged Britains lunacy laws with more than a decade of agitation, which included parading sandwich-board men as pickets, scattering leaflets from a hot-air balloon, giving theatrical performances and offering antic testimony in court.

more here.
Staff Writer JoAnn Snoderly can be reached at 304-626-1445, by email at jsnoderly@theet.com or on Twitter at @JoAnnSnoderly.
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Kudakwashe Mugari recently in UGANDA

President Mnangagwa was yesterday among Heads of State and other dignitaries who attended the 6th swearing in and inauguration ceremony of Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni.

The colourful ceremony that was held under strict Covid-19 regulations, saw 11 Heads of State, a section of the Ugandan population, and other friends of Uganda drawn across the continent converging to witness President Museveni take his oath of office at Kololo ceremonial grounds.

The small crowd roared in excitement when President Museveni announced that President Mnangagwa was among the dignitaries.

It was a similar treat on Tuesday night when President Museveni hosted a banquet where social distancing and strict Covid-19 regulations were observed.

Only 4 000 delegates including supporters were allowed to attend the inauguration with the rest of the people following the events in their homes or social media platforms.

Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Ambassador Frederick Shava said Zimbabwe and Uganda enjoy cordial relations.

"We have good relations with Uganda in the African Union. Uganda also has been our friend since Independence. Just like us, Uganda was colonised by Britain. It is only a pleasure for the President to witness this happy event. We wish the people of Uganda well," Ambassador Shava said.

In his inauguration speech, President Museveni said he had done extremely well for the past five terms in office, something that has given dreamers room to dream of leading Uganda.

"Under the leadership of National Resistance Movement (NRM), Uganda has deepened and blossomed, to the extent that anyone can now dream of leading Uganda. This has not come about by chance. It is the result of unfaltering efforts by patriotic folks who chose to put Uganda first," he said.

He said for Uganda to be safe from the mutating Covid-19 variants, about 5,5 million people have to be vaccinated, adding that his government is working on making its vaccine. He urged the people to start working hard to secure their future.

"Yours and my role should be to put in honest hard work, shun corruption and offer support to each other "President Museveni said.

President Museveni was declared the winner with 58 percent of a poll result while his main challenger, opposition figure Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu also known as Bobi Wine polled 35 percent.

President Museveni has come out openly supporting the country's land reform programme and castigating Western governments for ostracising and demonising Zimbabwe.

When he visited Zimbabwe in 2019 the Ugandan leader agreed with President Mnangagwa to escalate economic cooperation guided by the two countries' General Agreement on Economic, Technical, Scientific and Cultural Cooperation, as well as the current realities.

Back then, President Mnangagwa said the visit by President Museveni allowed both countries to reignite the Pan African spirit engrained in the two nations.

"Since the establishment of our diplomatic relations in 1980, Zimbabwe and Uganda have enjoyed cordial relations at the political level. Your visit allows us to share our socio-economic and political experiences, to improve the quality of life of our people," President Mnangagwa said then.

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During independence celebrations in Uganda last year, President Mnangagwa revealed to President Museveni that he had passed through Entebbe on his way to Egypt for military training in 1961.

President Museveni started his political journey as a student leader at University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, in 1970s and was taught by the late Zimbabwe Minister of Foreign Affairs and Information Dr Nathan Shamuyarira.

Meanwhile, the President returned home last night accompanied by Foreign Affairs and International Minister Ambassador Shava and the Deputy Chief Secretary-Presidential Communications in the Office of the President, Mr George Charamba.

The President was received at Robert Mugabe International Airport by Vice President Dr Constantino Chiwenga, service chiefs, and other senior Government officials.
Charleston, WV (25311)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%.
Clarksburg, WV (26301)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%.
Weather Alert

...HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 6 AM MDT FRIDAY... * WHAT...West to northwest winds 35 to 45 mph with gusts up to 65 mph expected. * WHERE...Southeast Wyoming along and east of the Laramie Range. This includes but is not limited to Douglas, Esterbrook, Lusk, Wheatland, Torrington, Cheyenne and Vedauwoo. * WHEN...6 PM this evening until 6 AM MDT Friday. * IMPACTS...Mainly to transportation. Strong crosswinds will be hazardous to light weight and high profile vehicles, including campers and tractor trailers. 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. &&
Niki Kottmann is the Wyoming Tribune Eagles features editor. She can be reached at nkottmann@wyoming

news.com or 307-633-3135. Follow her on Twitter at @niki_mariee.
Weather Alert

...HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 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...Until 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 extreme fire danger. 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. &&
The Kisutu Resident Magistrate's Court in Dar es Salaam has acquitted former Director of the Medical Store Department (MSD) Laurean Bwanakunu, after the Director of Public Prosecutions withdrew the indictment.

Also acquittedis former Logist Director, Byekwaso Tabura. Both were facing charges ofeconomic sabotage involving more than 3.8bn/-.

Principal Resident Magistrate, Kassian Matembele reached the decision after receiving a document from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) stating the Republic's unwillingness to continue prosecuting charges they were facing.

Senior state attorneys, Wankyo Simon submitted the document to the court on behalf of the DPP stating that the charges against the accused had been dropped under Section91 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA).

Bwanakunu worked at MSD for five years before the former President Dr. John Magufuli revoked his appointment.

One month laterafter handing over the office, Bwanakunu and the former Acting Director of Logistics Byekwaso Tabura was arraigned in court on five counts including embezzlement of more than 1.6bn/- and occasioning MSD a loss of over 3.8bn/.

Bwanakunu, was also charged of abuse of power where he deliberately used his position to pay3.8bn/- to MSD employees as additional salaries and allowances without thepermission of the Permanent Secretary Public Service.

Bwanakunu and Tabura also faced charges of allowing poor storage of medical equipment which resulted in damage of equipment causing MSD a loss of 85.199m/-.
Weather Alert

...HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM MDT THIS EVENING... * WHAT...Southwest winds becoming westerly at 35 to 40 mph with gusts 60 to 65 mph expected. * WHERE...Southwest and south central WY, including along the HWY 30/I-80 Corridor, from Kemmerer to Wamsutter and the Green River Basin. * WHEN...Until 9 PM Thursday. * IMPACTS...Damaging winds may blow down trees and branches. Travel will be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...The dry air mass will lead to low RH values in the single digits, leading to critical fire weather conditions. Any fire could spread extremely fast!. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... People should avoid being outside in forested areas and around trees and branches. If possible, remain in the lower levels of your home during the windstorm, and avoid windows. Use caution if you must drive. Do not attempt to burn today. &&
Russia Is Going to Try to Clone an Army of 3,000-Year-Old Scythian Warriors

Russias Defense Minister suggested he wants to clone a group of ancient warriors.

Thats going to be tricky. To date, there havent been any human clones, and the odds are low for even non-human clones.

The legality of cloning is murky because of the medical uses for specific kinds of cloning.

When you hold a job like Defense Minister of Russia, you presumably have to be bold and think outside the box to protect your country from enemy advances. And with his latest strategic ideacloning an entire army of ancient warriorsSergei Shoigu is certainly taking a big swing.

In an online session of the Russian Geographical Society last month, Shoigu, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, suggested using the DNA of 3,000-year-old Scythian warriors to potentially bring them back to life. Yes, really.

First, some background: The Scythian people, who originally came from modern-day Iran, were nomads who traveled around Eurasia between the 9th and 2nd centuries B.C., building a powerful empire that endured for several centuries before finally being phased out by competitors. Two decades ago, archaeologists uncovered the well-preserved remains of the soldiers in a kurgan , or burial mound, in the Tuva region of Siberia.

Because of Tuvas position in southern Siberia, much of it is permafrost, meaning a form of soil or turf that always remains frozen. Its here where the Scythian warrior saga grows complex, because the frozen soil preserves biological matter better than other kinds of ground. Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu knows this better than anyone, because hes from Tuva.

Of course, we would like very much to find the organic matter and I believe you understand what would follow that, Shoigu told the Russian Geographical Society. It would be possible to make something of it, if not Dolly the Sheep. In general, it will be very interesting.

Shoigu subtly suggested going through some kind of human cloning process. But is that even possible?

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To date, no one has cloned a human being. But scientists have successfully executed the therapeutic cloning of individual kinds of cells and other specific gene-editing work, and of course, there are high-profile examples of cloning pretty complex animals. Earlier this year, for example, scientists cloned an endangered U.S. species for the first time: a black-footed ferret whose donor has been dead for more than 30 years.

So, why are humans still off the menu?

Blame a technical problem with the most common form of cloning, which is called nuclear transfer. In this process, a somatic cell (like a skin or organ cell, with a specific established purpose in the body) has its nucleus carefully lifted out, and this nucleus is deposited in an oocyte, or egg cell, with its nucleus carefully removed. Its like a blank template waiting to have a new nucleus swapped in.

Photo credit: gremlin - Getty Images

From a technical perspective, cloning humans and other primates is more difficult than in other mammals, the National Institutes of Healths (NIH) National Human Genome Research Institute says on its website :

One reason is that two proteins essential to cell division, known as spindle proteins, are located very close to the chromosomes in primate eggs. Consequently, removal of the egg's nucleus to make room for the donor nucleus also removes the spindle proteins, interfering with cell division.

You might remember spindle proteins from your mitosis diagrams back in high school biology. And while theres a relatively easy way around this problem, its almost moot when cloning humans is considered extremely taboo in most of the world. In some places, its also explicitly illegal.

Curiously, the U.S. hasnt banned the gene editing of embryos. But the NIH doesnt fund research on the practice, and places like in-vitro clinics arent allowed to do any non-U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved manipulation of embryos under any circumstances.

That example starts to illustrate why the problem is so complexbecause a lot of cutting-edge genetic medicine is walking right up to the line without crossing it. Making laws that address full human embryo cloning, then, requires a jigsaw puzzle of careful language that doesnt rule out these kinds of therapeutic cloning .

Photo credit: Handout - Getty Images

But lets say Russia ignores all legality in favor of Shoigus big plans. In that case, scientists would have to develop a way to lift out the human nucleus without damaging the cell beyond repair.

Scientists have cloned certain monkeys, so primates are at least hypothetically still in the mix, despite the spindle proteins. But the success rate even for non-primate clones is already very lowit took Dolly the sheeps research team 277 attempts to get a viable embryo.

And what if all of that went perfectly? Well, the Scythians were powerful warriors and gifted horsemen, but scientistsor the Kremlinmust carefully monitor a cloned baby version of a deceased adult warrior for illnesses and other prosaic childhood problems. Who will raise these children? Who will be legally responsible for their wellbeing?

Shoigu may envision a future race of extremely capable fighters, but ... thats at least 20 years away, with an added coin flip on nature versus nurture. After all, the Scythian warriors didnt have plumbing, let alone smartphones. This is a whole new world.

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The place of merit and the will of the people which is the bane of our socio-democratic system in Nigeria has over the years been negotiated and undermined by various factors, sentiments, god-fatherism, zoning and all sort of political arrangements are some of these nefarious factors which has greatly marred the shape of the nation's socio-political set-up.

The year 2023 is another highly significant year in the history and survival of the nation Nigeria as many important posts will be once again up for grasp and many politicians will be gunning for the various available top-prizes. For the people of Ondo North Senatorial district, the battle for the next general elections has just begun, the region is currently considered a strong foothold for the All Progressive Congress [APC], this been made evident with the result of the last election in the state. Presently, the senatorial seat is being occupied by none other than Senator Ajayi Boroffice, one who is regarded as the longest serving senator in the state, having spent over ten years as a senator. He was first elected as a senator under the platform of the Labor Party [LP] in the year 2011.

Having spent half a decade as a senator of the federal republic of Nigeria, it has been said in various quarters that the quite experienced Senator Ajayi Boroffice is eyeing another slot at the Senate come 2023, a move which has started generating mixed reactions from the people of the senatorial district as well as other supporters of good governance in the state. It has been drawn based on the reaction of the electorates, that considering the antecedents of the serving senator over the last 10 to 12 years as a senator, there has been less to show for his representation. Judging by the numbers of years he has used in serving the people, it is logically expected that there should be more to show for it. With the harsh realities of the true state of the senatorial district over the years, which has left the members of this region yearning for a representation that will be committed to their growth and development through sustainable and impactful projects, it will not be considered a crime for the people to demand for a change in representation nor will it be bad if other candidates will make their resolve to contest for the senatorial post.

Prominent among those who has been touted to contest for the senatorial position of the senatorial district is Chief Alex Ajipe, business mogul, politician and philanthropist, MD CEO/ of Klick Konnect Network, he is hailed from Emure-Ile, Owo, Ondo State. While he has not officially stated his intention to contest for the senatorial post, he has been considered by many as the man to bring the much needed change to the senatorial district. He holds an exceptional antecedent within both the economic and political landscape of the nation. As an economist, he has with the Ondo State Government facilitated the rise of the economic fortune of the state, the Ondo Industrial Hub is among one of the numerous projects which he has helped the state to actualize as thousands of youths in the states has benefited directly and indirectly from the project, his brilliant ability to help the state attract both local and foreign investors has helped push the drive of the Akeredolu led administration to changing the identity of the state from a civil servant dominated state to an emerging industrial giant. His political strength came to the forefront last year as he leads the biggest and the most powerful socio-political group, the Ibi-Giga Ambassadors, a group that was highly instrumental to the victory of Arakunrin Akeredolu in the last election, the group boast of a strong membership base across the 18 local government area of the state.

While the sheer reality that a true progressive, young and energetic man who is exceptionally brilliant and willing to is ready to give it his all in the next senatorial election come 2023, it is rather surprising to see certain elements and figures starting to brew up un-necessary and illogical arguments to mar the democratic process involved within our democratic system. There have been various arguments regarding the candidateship of Chief Alex Ajipe and his right to contest, a bane of this argument centered on some existing political and zoning arrangements. Many supporters of Senator Ajayi Boroffice has continued to bring arguments relating to some unrecognized political arrangements to thwart the intention of Chief Alex Ajipe to contest, first we must come to the understanding that zoning arrangement or system is not constitutional, it is just another plot to retain power even when it is clear that you have not performed up to the expectations of the people.

When it comes to our electoral process, merit and the will of the people must come first before any political arrangement, Charity they say begins at home, if the supporters of Senator Boroffice are clamoring that other contestant honor the zoning arrangement, then we must take a look back at the time when he failed to honor the same political arrangement when he contested against Akeredolu, if he was faithful to the political arrangement that they now so revere all because it swings to their favor. Going by the political history of the state, During the Mimiko led administration, Ali Olanusi was the deputy governor, coupled with the fact that he is from Akoko, the Senate seat was also head by a man from Akoko, why not in the name of zoning give it to Owo kingdom.

Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Nigeria Governance By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.

It is high time we look beyond the tentacles of zoning and other political arrangements for the sake of our people, we do our people who are the electorate no good when we undermine their relevance by limiting their constitutional right.

The year 2023 is almost here again and the people more than before are ready and poised to make the much needed change that will advance their course, nothing else must stand in their way as their present and future solely depends on this.

Wale Elegbeyele is a political analyst and wrote this piece from Ikare-Akoko, Ondo State.
US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks with reporters about potential efforts to raise the minimum wage at the US Capitol in Washington, March 1, 2021. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

In a New York Times essay, US Sen. Bernie Sanders called for an "evenhanded approach" to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Sanders said the debate over Israel's "right to defend itself" lacks context.

"[W]hy is the question almost never asked: 'What are the rights of the Palestinian people?'"

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Sen. Bernie Sanders does not question Israel's "right to defend itself." But in an essay for The New York Times, published Friday, he argued that right must be discussed in the context of the Israeli government's mistreatment of Palestinians.

"No one is arguing that Israel, or any government, does not have the right to self-defense," Sanders wrote. But "why is the question almost never asked: 'What are the rights of the Palestinian people?'"

At least 122 Palestinians have been killed this week by Israeli airstrikes on Gaza, including 31 children, according to local health officials. The attacks have come in response to rockets indiscriminately fired by militants with Hamas, the group that controls the Palestinian territory, which is home to more than two million people.

Calling for an immediate ceasefire, Sanders wrote that while Hamas' actions are condemnable, "today's conflict did not begin with those rockets."

As Insider has reported, the latest round of fighting began after an Israeli court ruled Palestinians living in occupied East Jerusalem could be evicted from their homes to make way for Jewish settlers. Israel recognizes a Jewish "right of return" that is denied to Palestinians, thousands of whom were forced to flee their homes in what is now Israel during the 1948 war that marked its founding.

A recent report from Human Rights Watch described Israel's discriminatory policies as amounting to "apartheid."

Sanders, who as a young man worked on a commune in Israel, said those evictions "are just one part of a broader system of political and economic repression," one that has worsened under Benjamin Netanyahu.

Story continues

For more than a decade, the Israeli prime minster, a close ally of the former President Donald Trump, "has cultivated an increasingly intolerant and authoritarian type of racist nationalism," Sanders wrote. And with the US providing nearly $4 billion a year in aid to Netanyahu's government, it shares responsibility for Israeli actions, he said.

"We must change course and adopt an evenhanded approach," Sanders wrote, "one that upholds and strengthens international law regarding the protection of civilians, as well as existing U.S. law holding that the provision of U.S. military aid must not enable human rights abuses."

The essay comes amid a progressive backlash to President Joe Biden's support for the Israeli government and its offensive on Gaza. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, like Sanders a democratic socialist, this week accused Biden of making statements that "dehumanize Palestinians" and provide a de facto green-light for Israeli military operations.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Twitter/Al Jazeera

Journalists for the Associated Press, Al Jazeera, and other international news outlets were forced to run for their lives on Saturday after the Israeli military bombed their high-rise office building in Gaza City.

The missile strike, one of several attempts by Israeli forces to kneecap journalists in the region, left the Associated Press shocked and horrified and Al Jazeera said it constituted a war crime.

About an hour before the strike, a resident of the 12-story building received a call, purportedly from the Israeli military, warning of an impending attack but giving no explanation for why the building was being targeted.

Several networks, including Al Jazeera, then showed the building collapsing on live TV.

We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life, Gary Pruitt, APs president and CEO, said in a statement. The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today.

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Pruitt said Israel had long known that the building houses international media outlets. The Israeli Air Force later said the attack was a justified act of war because the building was a Hamas hub. It claimed, without evidence, that the building contained military assets belonging to the intelligence offices of the Hamas terror organization.

The building contained civilian media offices, which the Hamas terror organization hides behind and uses as human shields, the Israeli Air Force said. The Hamas terror organization deliberately places military targets at the heart of densely populated civilian areas in the Gaza Strip.

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Its not clear if anyone was still in the building when it was razed. AP said a dozen journalists and freelancers were inside but all managed to escape.

After receiving the warning, Al Jazeera reporter Safwat al-Kahlout said he and his colleagues started to collect as much as they could, from the personal and equipment of the office, especially the cameras.

I have been working here for 11 years. I have been covering many events from this building, he said in an interview with his own outlet. Now everything, in two seconds, just vanished.

Story continues

One of Associated Press Gaza correspondents, Fares Akram, tweeted that he had been watching from afar and hoping the army would not go through with its threat.

And now bombs could fall on our office, he wrote. We ran down the stairs from the 11th floor and now looking at the building from afar, praying Israeli army would eventually retract.

In a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday, President Joe Biden reaffirmed his strong support for Israels right to defend itself against rocket attacks from Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza, according to the White House. But he expressed concern about the safety and security of journalists and reinforced the need to ensure their protection.

In a separate call Saturday with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Biden stressed the U.S. commitment to strengthening relations, and called for calm.

President Biden updated President Abbas on U.S. diplomatic engagement on the ongoing conflict and stressed the need for Hamas to cease firing rockets into Israel, the White House said. They expressed their shared concern that innocent civilians, including children, have tragically lost their lives amidst the ongoing violence. The President expressed his support for steps to enable the Palestinian people to enjoy the dignity, security, freedom, and economic opportunity that they deserve.

Endless Airstrikes Push Gaza Hospitals Hammered by COVID to the Brink

Earlier on Saturday, another Israeli airstrike flattened a three-story home in a Gaza City refugee camp, killing eight children and two mothers, and leaving a 5-month-old baby as the familys sole survivor.

In response, Hamas fired rockets into Israel to avenge what it called a massacrethe deadliest of Israels attacks since the conflict erupted six days ago at a Jerusalem holy site revered by both Palestinians and Jews.

The attack came as victims gathered to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, witnesses told reporters.

There was no warning, Jamal Al-Naji, who lived in the destroyed building, told the Associated Press.

Directing his comments toward Israel, he added: You filmed people eating and then you bombed them? Why are you confronting us? Go and confront the strong people!

How Bibi Empowered the Supremacist Movement Fueling This Conflict

The dead were identified by Haaretz as Maha al-Hadidi, 36, and four of her children: Suhaib, 14; 'Abd a-Rahman, 8; Osama, 6, and Yahya, 11. Her infant, Omar, was reportedly found alive in the rubble, shielded by his mothers body. Also killed were Jasmine Hassan, 31, and her three children: Yosef, 11; Bilal, 10, and Ala, 5.

On Saturday, the Palestinian health ministry, which is run by Hamas, said 139 Palestiniansincluding 39 children and 22 womenhave been killed since Monday. Israel has reported eight deaths.

The stage was set for even more violence on Saturday, which is known as Nakba Day, when Palestinians remember the expulsion of 700,000 during the 1948 war.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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NYC Pride makes steps to remove police from participating in the events (Getty Images)

New York City Pride has taken steps to ban police officers from participating in the parade and associated events.

Organisers told the Gay Officers Action League (GOAL), which represents officers from the NYPD and other law enforcement agencies who identify within the LGBTQ community, that they would not be welcomed in the parade.

The ban would prevent officers and other law enforcement personnel from participating in the NYC Pride parade until at least 2025.

The NYPD would also be asked to stay at least one block away from events related to NYC Pride including the parade. Heritage of Pride, which organises the events, said that they would instead be turning to private security and only use the NYPD if necessary.

Removing law enforcement from NYC Pride comes as organisers have faced pressure from activists for years to prohibit police involvement in the event. This pressure mounted following the death of George Floyd and other incidences of police brutality in the last year.

NYC Pride, one of the largest Pride marches in the world, started 51 years ago following the 1969 anti-police riots in response to a police raid at Stonewall Inn in Manhattans West Village. Organisers have maintained that police presence at the parade is contrary to why the annual event was originally started.

GOAL announced the move by NYC Pride ahead of the organisers official announcement on Saturday.

The Gay Officers Action League (GOAL) is disheartened by the decision to ban our group from participating in New York City Pride, the group said in a statement released Friday.

Heritage of Pride (NYC Pride) has long been a valued partner of our organization and its abrupt about-face in order to placate some of the activists in our community is shameful.

The non-profit organisation has worked for nearly 30 years to advocate for LGBTQ rights within police departments. The group includes 300 members who would participate in NYC Pride, as well as about 2,800 affiliated members.

Story continues

Detective Brian Downey, president of the police group, called the move from NYC Pride dehumanising.

It is demoralizing that Heritage of Pride didnt have the courage to refer to GOAL by name in its announcement, referring to us only as Law Enforcement Exhibitors. The label is not only offensive but dehumanizing for our members, he said.

The full impact of the ban will not be apparent in 2021 events as some aspects remain virtual due to the pandemic. Organisers will still have to work with the NYPD on future Pride parades as the department gives out permits for large events in the city.

The idea of officers being excluded is disheartening and runs counter to our shared values of inclusion and tolerance, NYPD spokeswoman, Sergeant Jessica McRorie, told The New York Times. That said, well still be there to ensure traffic safety and good order during this huge, complex event.

There have so far been no similar announcements by Pride event organizers in other cities.

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Times Square shooting suspect denies he was in New York in bizarre jailhouse interview
May 14Two 19-year-olds led police on a multi-county chase and shoot out on Thursday afternoon. In the end, one died and the other remains hospitalized.

A Hill County constable injured during the incident also remains hospitalized.

Officers from Dallas, Alvarado, the Johnson County Sheriff's Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety responded to the incident.

The Dallas Police Department Fugitive Apprehension Unit was conducting an investigation involving two wanted felons who were also suspects in a homicide investigation, according to a release from the Texas Department of Public Safety.

About 2 p.m. the pair were traveling in a red Dodge Neon and entered Waxahachie.

A Waxahachie police officer attempted to stop the Dodge. The suspects chose to evade the officer and lead multiple law enforcement agencies, including Texas Department of Public Safety Troopers, on a multi-county chase on Interstate 35E.

The suspects fired multiple gunshots at police officers and a Hill County Constable sustained a gunshot wound.

The officer, who was identified as Kevin Cordell, was taken to an area trauma center.

The suspects continued to fire gunshots at police as they traveled north on Interstate 35W.

Johnson County Sheriff Adam King said the men spun around and got off on the service road near County Road 604 in Alvarado.

When they made the turn, a DPS Trooper used his patrol vehicle to stop the Dodge Neon. The two men fired additional gunshots at officers, who then returned fire using their service weapons.

Officers shut I-35W and the service road down during the incident.

One of the men, Adrian Murillo, died at a Fort Worth hospital Thursday night. The other, Hector Murillo, remains hospitalized with undisclosed injuries.

Cordell is a retired Burleson police officer. He posted on his Facebook page early Friday morning that he was recovering and will have surgery later.

"There is some fragments they will remove and some that will stay in me for now," he wrote. "They need the swelling to go down before they close me up. Thanks to everyone. I am very blessed in so many ways. God, Family and friends."

Story continues

The Chisholm Trail 100 Club is accepting donations for Cordell at ct100.org/Special-Officer-Donations.

The Texas Rangers continue to investigate and no additional information is available at this time.

Times-Review reporter Matt Smith contributed to this report.
Protesters carried signs and marched after gathering by Baitul Mukarram National Mosque in Dhaka.

It comes as Israel fired artillery and mounted extensive air strikes on Friday against a network of Palestinian militant tunnels under Gaza that it dubbed "the Metro," amid persistent rocket attacks on Israeli towns.

The most serious fighting between Israel and Gaza militants since 2014 began on Monday (May 10) after the enclave's ruling Hamas group fired rockets at Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in retaliation for Israeli police clashes with Palestinians near al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem.

At least 119 have been killed in Gaza and 830 others wounded in the current hostilities, Palestinian medical officials said. The death toll in Israel stood at eight.

Video Transcript

[CROWD YELLING]

[CROWD CHANTING]

[MAN SINGING]

[CROWD MURMURING]

[MAN ON LOUDSPEAKER]

[CROWD CHEERING]

[MAN ON LOUDSPEAKER]

[CROWD YELLING]
Barry Morphew has been charged with fraudulently casting his wifes ballot for president. Separately, he is also accused of murdering her (Chaffee County Sheriffs Office)

Prosecutors have charged a Colorado man with murdering his wife and then fraudulently casting her vote for Donald Trump .

I know she was going to vote for Trump anyways, Barry Morphew allegedly told investigators.

According to KDVR , Mr Morphew had previously been charged with first-degree murder in the disappearance of his wife, Suzanne, who has been missing since Mothers Day weekend 2020. In addition, he now faces a felony charge of forging public documents and a misdemeanour mail-in ballot offence.

Mr Morphew has not yet pleaded to any of the charges brought against him.

Casting a ballot for another person is voter fraud  a crime that Mr Trump has persistently and baselessly accused his enemies of committing in the 2020 election. Mr Morphew says he didnt know it was illegal.

I didnt know you couldnt do that for your spouse, he told the fbi"> FBI .

Investigators say they knew something was amiss when a Chaffee County clerk told them theyd received a ballot from Suzanne Morphew in October. She had been missing since May. The ballot was missing Suzannes signature, but Barrys was on it as a witness.

Last month, the FBI asked Mr Morphew why he cast his wifes ballot while she was missing.

Just because I wanted Trump to win, he answered, adding that the other guys were cheating anyway.

I just thought, give him another vote, he reasoned.

The devoted MAGA fan is currently being held at Chaffee County Jail. His bond in the new forgery case has been set at $1,000, but he is already being held without bail for the murder charge.
Coronavirus

centerpiece

Yakima Valley businesses take different approaches to new mask guidance

Evan Abell / Yakima Herald-Republic FILE FILE -- Debra Flores puts strawberries in a paper bag for a customer on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021 at Wray's Food and Drug in Yakima, Wash.

Yakima Valley businesses are taking various approaches with the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions new guidance stating that vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks in most settings.

Gov. Jay Inslee ended a mask mandate for businesses Thursday, stating that the state would follow the CDC guidance. Businesses have the right to continue requiring masks for employees and customers.

Several major chains, including Target, Home Depot, Macys and supermarket giant Kroger Co., which owns Fred Meyer, said they will require masks in stores for the time being.

Walmart said late Friday that it wont require vaccinated shoppers to wear a mask in its U.S. stores, unless state or local laws say otherwise. Vaccinated workers can stop wearing them on May 18, and will receive $75 if they prove theyve been vaccinated.

Other retailers are still looking into the guidelines before making any decisions.

Chris Brown, president of Wrays Marketfresh IGA, which has locations in Yakima and Selah, said he is waiting for additional guidelines from the state before making any changes. Until then, masks will still be required for customers and employees.

Its premature to make any decisions, Brown said.

At Encore Books in Yakima, owner Brett Lamb said he doesnt plan to make any changes until employees are fully vaccinated, which he expects to happen by the end of the month.

Theyre going to have to wear masks, Lamb said. Everyone who comes in should, as well.

On Instagram, Crafted, a downtown Yakima restaurant, said it plans to continue requiring masks for employees and customers not sitting at their table until all staff members are vaccinated.

Other businesses have started to relax mask policies.

Verlynn Best, CEO of the Greater Yakima Chamber of Commerce, said the businesses shes had contact with plan to drop mask requirements but were hesitant about asking customers about their vaccination status.

You have no way of knowing, she said.

North Town Coffeehouse owner Dave Tompkins said he decided to drop the mask requirement for customers, but will continue to require employees to wear masks until he receives further business guidance from the state.

Tompkins said he plans on putting signs that state the guidance is aimed at those who are vaccinated but said he is apprehensive about asking customers not wearing a mask whether theyre fully vaccinated or not.

Thats asking for personal medical information, he said.

Tompkins said hes concerned about getting into legal issues for asking customers about their vaccination status. Tompkins said that he is vaccinated and plans on wearing a mask wherever it is required. Still, he is concerned about getting into a civil liberties issue with customers.

Im not trying to create a lawsuit, he said.
Gauteng Police's strife to combat gang-related crimes received a boost when a gang member from Westbury, Kemal Zita, was sentenced to two life and 71 years imprisonment.

Zita was found guilty on five counts of attempted murder, possession of unlawful firearms, possession of unlawful ammunition as well as aiding and abetting criminal activities committed for benefit of a criminal gang. All the sentences will run concurrently.

On 2 September 2017, in Westbury, Raymond Jansen was shot and killed by Varado gang members Faldeen Sampie Marks and Kemal Zita. They also shot and injured two people during the same shooting incident.

Two days later, on 4 September 2017, still in Westbury, Faldeen Marks and Kemal Zita fired shots that killed Ricardo Smith while injuring three other victims.

Police arrested both suspects and Provincial Commercial Crime Investigation Unit carried out the investigation, gathering necessary evidence that led to the successful conviction and sentencing of the suspects.

Faldeen Marks is currently serving 274 years in prison after he was convicted on numerous murders in relation to gangster violence.

Provincial Commissioner of the police in Gauteng, Lieutenant General, Elias Mawela, commended the Provincial Commercial Crime Investigation Unit member, Sergeant Antonio Chrispian Moutrey, on building a watertight case that ultimately led to the successful conviction and sentencing of the gang members.

"This is the result of a committed, hardworking and dedicated investigating officer. Combating of gang-related crime remains a priority of the SAPS in Gauteng and such a sentence will send a strong message to those who are still involved in gangsterism often associated with serious and violent crime," Mawela said.
Yankton, SD (57078)

Today

Partly cloudy skies early, then windy with periods of thunderstorms late. A few storms may be severe. Low around 70F. Winds S at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies early, then windy with periods of thunderstorms late. A few storms may be severe. Low around 70F. Winds S at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
News

Washington, DC - A New York man was sentenced Wednesday to 20 years in prison for attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, aka ISIS.

Zachary Clark, aka Umar Kabir, Umar Shishani and Abu Talha, 42, of Brooklyn, pleaded guilty in August 2020 to one count of attempting to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, namely, ISIS.

Todays 20-year sentence recognizes the gravity of Clarks conduct, including his calls for other ISIS supporters to carry out lone wolf terrorist attacks in New York City, said Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers for the Justice Departments National Security Division. Having pledged allegiance to ISIS, Clark provided others with specific instructions on knifing and bomb-making for use in such attacks. We remain vigilant to the threat of terrorism and committed to identifying and holding accountable those who threaten our communities through their support for foreign terrorist organizations.

Zachary Clark pledged allegiance to ISIS and posted calls for attacks on the public and institutions in New York City on encrypted pro-ISIS chatrooms, along with detailed instructions for carrying out those violent acts, said U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss for the Southern District of New York. Thanks to the Joint Terrorism Task Force, Clarks efforts to incite deadly violence on behalf of ISIS have been silenced. Todays sentence sends a clear message that those who seek to further ISISs campaign of terror and violence, no matter the method, will face serious consequences.

The FBI remains steadfast in the fight against terrorism," said Acting Assistant Director Patrick Reddan for the FBIs Counterterrorism Division. I would like to thank the men and women of the FBI, along with our partners in law enforcement, for holding accountable individuals, such as Zachary Clark, who pledge allegiance to ISIS and support and spread their violent terrorist agenda. We remain vigilant in our efforts to prevent terrorism and protect the American people, and todays sentencing underscores that commitment.

According to court documents, Clark pledged allegiance to ISIS twice: first in July 2019 to ISISs then-leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and then in October 2019 to ISISs new leader, Abu Ibrahim al-Sashemi al-Qurayshi, whom ISIS promoted after al-Baghdadis death. Beginning in at least March 2019, Clark disseminated ISIS propaganda through, among other avenues, encrypted chatrooms intended for members, associates, supporters and potential recruits of ISIS. Clarks propaganda included, among other things, calls for ISIS supporters to commit lone wolf attacks in New York City.

For example, on Aug. 3, 2019, Clark posted instructions about how to conduct such an attack, including directions on how to select an attack target, how to conduct preoperational surveillance, how to conduct operational planning and how to avoid attracting law enforcement attention when preparing for and conducting the attack. On another occasion, Clark posted a manual entitled Knife Attacks, which stated, among other things, that discomfort at the thought of plunging a sharp object into another persons flesh is never an excuse for abandoning jihad and that [k]nives, though certainly not the only weapon for inflicting harm upon the kuffar [non-believers], are widely available in every land and thus readily accessible.

Clark urged the participants in encrypted chatrooms to attack specific targets, posting maps and images of the New York City subway system and encouraging ISIS supporters to attack those locations. Clarks guidance also included posting a manual entitled Make a bomb in the kitchen of your Mom, which was issued by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and included detailed instructions about constructing bombs using readily available materials.

The FBIs New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which consists of investigators and analysts from the FBI, the NYPD and over 50 other federal, state and local agencies, investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gillian Grossman, Matthew Hellman and Sidhardha Kamaraju of the Southern District of New York prosecuted the case with assistance from Trial Attorneys Jason Denney and Chad Davis of the National Security Divisions Counterterrorism Section.
News

Washington, DC - A Virginia man and former Army Green Beret was sentenced yesterday to 188 months in prison for conspiring with Russian intelligence operatives to provide them with U.S. national defense information.

Peter Rafael Dzibinski Debbins, 46, of Gainesville, admitted to conspiring with agents of a Russian intelligence service. According to court documents, from December 1996 to January 2011, Debbins periodically visited Russia and met with Russian intelligence agents. In 1997, Debbins was assigned a code name by Russian intelligence agents and signed a statement attesting that he wanted to serve Russia.

Debbins violated his oath as a U.S. Army officer, betrayed the Special Forces, and endangered our countrys national security by revealing classified information to Russian intelligence officers, providing details of his unit, and identifying Special Forces team members for Russian intelligence to try to recruit them as spies, said Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers for the Justice Department's National Security Division. His conduct is a personal betrayal of colleagues and country, and it reflects the threat of Russian intelligence operations targeting our military. Todays almost 16-year sentence reflects the seriousness of his conduct. It should also serve as a warning to those who would be tempted to do the same.

Debbins flagrantly and repeatedly sold out his country, including while he served as a Captain in the U.S. Army Special Forces, said Acting U.S. Attorney Raj Parekh for the Eastern District of Virginia. The defendants brazen disclosures to Russian intelligence agents jeopardized U.S. national security and threatened the safety of his fellow servicemembers. This prosecution underscores our firm resolve to hold accountable those who betray their sworn oath and bring them to justice for their exceptionally serious crimes.

The betrayal of fellow U.S. citizens and servicemembers is inexcusable, and today Debbins was sentenced for his reprehensible and dangerous actions, said Assistant Director in Charge Steven M. DAntuono for the FBI Washington Field Office. He was entrusted to serve his country and protect his fellow Special Forces team, but instead he chose to provide classified national defense information to his own countrys adversary. This investigation which led to todays sentencing is a reminder that the FBI and our partners will continue to diligently and doggedly counter national security threats to the U.S.

The Green Berets epitomize heroics, leadership, and bravery, but Debbins was just the opposite, said Assistant Director Alan E. Kohler Jr. for the FBIs Counterintelligence Division. Debbins' actions in this case show a complete disregard for his fellow soldiers and for his country. The FBI will do everything in its power to identify those who choose to betray our country and bring them to justice.

From 1998 to 2005, Debbins served on active duty as an officer in the U.S. Army, serving in chemical units before being selected for the U.S. Army Special Forces. The Russian intelligence agents encouraged him to join and pursue a career in the Special Forces, which he did, where he served at the rank of Captain.

Over the course of the conspiracy, Debbins provided the Russian intelligence agents with information that he obtained as a member of the U.S. Army, including information about his chemical and Special Forces units. In 2008, after leaving active duty service, Debbins disclosed to the Russian intelligence agents classified information about his previous activities while deployed with the Special Forces. Debbins also provided the Russian intelligence agents with the names of, and information about, a number of his former Special Forces team members so that the agents could evaluate whether to approach the team members to see if they would cooperate with the Russian intelligence service.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas W. Traxler and James L. Trump for the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorney David Aaron of the National Security Divisions Counterintelligence and Export Control Section prosecuted the case.

Acting U.S. Attorney Parekh and Assistant Attorney General Demers greatly appreciate the assistance of Army Counterintelligence, the FBIs Minneapolis Field Office, the United Kingdoms Metropolitan Police Service and MI5.
News

Miami, Florida - Three Peruvian nationals pleaded guilty to operating a series of call centers in Peru that defrauded Spanish-speaking U.S. residents by threatening, among other things, arrest and deportation.

According to court documents, Omar Cuzcano Marroquin, 32, Jerson Renteria Gonzales, 37, and Evelyng Milla Campuzano, 35, each of Lima, Peru, conspired to commit mail fraud and wire fraud through a series of Peruvian call centers that used fraud and extortion to obtain money from Spanish-speaking individuals in the United States. The defendants and their employees falsely told victims that they were required to accept and pay for English language courses and other educational products. Victims who at first refused to make payments were threatened with serious adverse consequences, including supposed criminal court proceedings, arrest and deportation. Between April 2011 and July 2019, thousands of victims made payments based on calls from their call centers.

The Department of Justices Consumer Protection Branch will steadfastly pursue and prosecute transnational criminals who defraud vulnerable U.S. consumers, said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department's Civil Division. Those who impersonate U.S. government officials and use threats to prey on our recent immigrant communities will be brought to justice and held accountable in U.S. courts.

All three defendants were arrested on July 2, 2019, by Peruvian authorities based on a U.S. extradition request, and each has remained incarcerated since that time. The defendants were extradited to the Southern District of Florida on Oct. 23, 2020.

As part of their guilty pleas, the defendants admitted that they managed and operated the Latinos en Accion, Accion Latino, and Bienestar Hispano call centers in Lima, Peru. The defendants admitted that they and their employees in Peru used internet-based telephone calls to contact Spanish-speaking residents of the United States, many of whom were recent immigrants from Central America, Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries. The callers falsely told the victims they had won raffles for free products, including computer tablets with English language courses. Many consumers expressed interest in receiving the supposedly free products and the chance to improve their English language abilities. In later calls, victims were told they were required to make large payments to receive the products. When victims objected, the callers misrepresented that the victims had unlawfully failed to pay for or receive delivery of products.

In pleading guilty, the defendants admitted that they and their employees falsely claimed to be lawyers, court officials, federal agents and representatives of a supposed minor crimes court. The defendants and their co-conspirators falsely told the victims that they had a contractual obligation to pay for and receive products and had caused legal problems for themselves and others by allegedly failing to do so. The callers also falsely threatened victims with court proceedings, negative marks on their credit reports, imprisonment or immigration consequences if they did not immediately pay for the purportedly delivered products and settlement fees. Many victims paid because of these baseless threats, and the defendants and their co-conspirators fraudulently collected millions of dollars from thousands of vulnerable victims.

With todays technology, fraudsters can target victims living thousands of miles away as easily as they can target next-door neighbors, said Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida. This office, together with its domestic and international law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute criminals who prey on vulnerable victims within our district, no matter where those criminals are located.

We seek justice for victims by working collaboratively with foreign governments when investigating criminal misuse of the U.S. mail, such as these fraud and extortion schemes, said Inspector in Charge Joseph Cronin of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Miami Division. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service will continue to aggressively pursue transnational criminal enterprises targeting U.S. consumers.

Cuzcano, Renteria and Milla each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Cuzcano is scheduled to be sentenced on July 9 and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Renteria and Milla are scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 6 and face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola Jr. will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Two co-defendants in this case are scheduled to go to trial in January 2022.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Civil Divisions Consumer Protection Branch investigated the case. Trial Attorney Phil Toomajian of the Consumer Protection Branch is prosecuting the case. The Federal Trade Commission, the Justice Departments Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Florida, the Diplomatic Security Service and the Peruvian National Police provided critical assistance.
News

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - A federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Oklahoma has returned separate indictments charging 11 defendants with murder and other various violent crimes arising out of Indian Country.

Over the course of a three-day grand jury session in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, trial attorneys with the Justice Departments Organized Crime and Gang Section, working with and in support of the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, obtained the indictments charging the 11 defendants. These indictments followed the reversal or dismissal of state cases as a result of the U.S. Supreme Courts decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma.

In July 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court determined in McGirt v. Oklahoma that the historical boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation were never disestablished by Congress and therefore that the State of Oklahoma did not have jurisdiction to prosecute Jimcy McGirt for first degree rape and other state crimes. On March 11, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals ruled that the Cherokee reservation and the Chickasaw reservation were likewise never disestablished. Similar rulings affecting the Seminole and Choctaw reservations were issued by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals on April 1. As a result of these decisions, the United States has primary federal jurisdiction to prosecute major crimes committed byor againstNative Americans occurring within the 26 counties of the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

The following indictments were returned by the federal grand jury and filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma:

United States v. Gregory Gamblin  Murder in Indian Country.

United States v. Gunnar Mathew Hemingway  Murder in Indian Country; using, carrying, and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence; causing the death of a person.

United States v. Cody Nash James Murder in Indian Country; causing the death of a person.

United States v. Brian Mack  Murder in Indian Country.

United States v. Robert Mitchell  Murder in Indian Country.

United States v. Clifton Parish  Murder in Indian Country; kidnapping resulting in death in Indian Country.

United States v. Jeffrey Pierce  Murder in Indian Country.

United States v. Tyas Short  Second degree murder in Indian Country; using, carrying, and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence; causing the death of a person.

United State v. Devin Sizemore  Murder in Indian Country; second degree murder in Indian Country; voluntary manslaughter in Indian Country; child abuse in Indian Country; assault resulting in serious bodily injury in Indian Country; and assault on a police officer in Indian Country

United States v. John Duncan Stubbs  Murder in Indian Country; using, carrying, and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence; causing the death of a person.

United States v. Johnson Wisdom  Murder in Indian Country.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Departments Criminal Division; Acting U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Wilson of the Eastern District of Oklahoma; and Special Agent in Charge Melissa R. Godbold of the FBIs Oklahoma City Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI is investigating the cases.

Trial Attorneys Gerald Collins, Rebecca Dunnan, Alex Gottfried, Lisa Man, Matthew Mattis, Christina Taylor, Christopher Taylor, and Kristen Taylor of the Criminal Divisions Organized Crime and Gangs Section are prosecuting the cases with the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
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Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma says the experiences gained from the various by-elections are an indication that despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, South Africa is ready for the polls in October.

Dlamini-Zuma said this when she tabled the department's Budget Vote to a mini-plenary of the National Assembly on Thursday.

"Despite the challenges presented by COVID-19, the Demarcation Board managed to hand over its work to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).

"We are therefore confident that because of the experiences we have gained in the various by-elections, we are ready for the 2021 Local Government Elections.

"These 147 by-elections which we have run between November and March were in 133 wards, in all provinces and involved 866 772 voters," she said.

Last month, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that this year's local government elections would take place on 27 October 2021. At the time, he urged eligible and first-time voters to ensure they are registered to participate in the elections.

Dlamini-Zuma said government will also use the 19 May polls, which involve 40 wards in 7 provinces with 362 965 registered voters, to refine approaches.

"We remain confident that the regulations, protocols and plans we have put in place for these and the nation-wide October elections, will create an environment for free and fair elections.

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"The revised COVID-19 regulations enable voter canvassing and voting.

"We will continue to monitor the situation and work closely with the IEC in the context of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Municipal Elections.

"We also believe that the elections offer all our parties an opportunity to fix the municipalities by deploying and sending our best to this sphere of government which is most important to our people."

Update on the implementation of the District Development Model

Dlamini-Zuma said, meanwhile, that in implementing the District Development Model (DDM) in the pilot sites, government had also committed to training more than 1 000 young people in partnership with the Department of Rural Development.

"We are pleased to announce that, so far 554 young people have completed their training in agriculture related areas such the production and processing of maize, vegetables, beef, dairy and pork.

"These young people will either be placed in agriculture institutions or will be supported to start community based initiatives."

She said 319 young people have been trained in a range of non-agricultural related areas, including Small Business Management, Environmental Waste Management, Hospitality, Construction and Manufacturing.

Of these young people:

73 have been provided business opportunities by the King Sabata Dalindyebo Municipality;

25 have been absorbed by the eThekwini Metro; and

100 have been absorbed by the Wholesale and Retail SETA who will provide them with start-up capital.

"In Waterberg, a further 53 young people are being trained in Small Business Management, Environmental Waste Management and Hospitality."
She was born at home, he wrote, and rode that Shetland pony to the one-room school, where the students would hide the ruler from the teacher so she wouldnt rap their hands.

She grew up in a house without electricity or running water. Water came from the tank by the windmill or from the cistern in front of the house that gathered the rainwater from the roof.

His list was a century-long sweep of history in two pages. Taking eggs and milk to the general store to swap for groceries. Watching silent movies on the side of a building. Listening to a radio powered by a battery that lost its charge as the days went by. By the end of the week, they had their ears against the speaker.

The phone was a party line, the son wrote, two words that sound like a wedding dance but meant something else altogether.

Every household had their own ring combination, and other people would listen into conversations, even though they werent supposed to.

Those old stories were his moms way of being in the moment, Smith said.

Burt and his three older siblings grew up hearing the stories, but they heard them again in Lelas last years, too.
Two-wheeler market leader Hero MotoCorp on Saturday said it has partnered with the district administration of Gurugram to set up a makeshift 100-bed Covid Care centre in Gurugram.

The company is supporting the setting up of the centre at the Government Girls College in Sector 14, Gurugram under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) platform Hero We Care, Hero MotoCorp said in a statement.

"The Covid Care centre will help augment our medical infrastructure and enable us to widen the scope of our relief activities for the affected people in the district," Deputy Commissioner, Gurugram Yash Garg said.

Stating that this is an excellent example of the public-private partnership in contributing towards the larger cause of the society, he said, "At a challenging time such as this, we urge more corporates and private organisations to come forward for similar initiatives."

Hero MotoCorp Head Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) & Corporate Communication Bharatendu Kabi said this 100-bed Covid Care centre will go a long way in supporting the healthcare infrastructure in Gurugram.

The company has been taking an active role in the combat against the second wave of the pandemic. Recently it had partnered with the Ramakrishna Mission Sevashrama, Kankhal (RMSK) at Haridwar for strengthening their healthcare system and response to COVID-19.

Besides, it is also extending support to COVID-19 hospitals in states, including Delhi, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.

Live TV

#mute
New Delhi: India is currently battling with the second wave of Covid19 with curfews and lockdowns across states. With the restrictions on movement, many are not able to completer their driving license process or get their registration certificate (RC) related work done.

While Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) are shut in many states, the Indian government has brought some respite for Indians. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has introduced new guidelines for new application or renewal of a Driving License or a Registration Certificate.

Currently, the faceless service is available in only a few states, including Delhi. Heres how you can avail the RTO services completely online.

1. You need to visit the official RTO website which is https://parivahan.gov.in/parivahan/

2. On the homepage, you need to click on the service that you want to avail yourself. For example: if you want to apply for a learners license then you need to select the Drivers/ Learners License option.

3. On the next page, you need to select your state, based on which you can check whether the facility is available completely online or you have to visit the RTO office.

According to the new rule, the entire process of getting a Learner's license will be online, from application to license printing. In addition, electronic certificates and documents can be used for medical certificates, learner's license, driving license surrender and its renewal.

It is to be noted that the motive behind bringing such guidelines is that the process of registration of a new vehicle can also be made easier. Renewal of registration certificate (RC) can now be done 60 days in advance. Apart from this, the time limit for temporary registration has also been increased from 1 month to 6 months.

The government has also eased changes in the process for Learner's License. You now dont need to go to RTO for the driving test. The test can now be taken online at home through tutorials, making it easier for all those looking to get a DL in these tough times.

In late March, the Ministry of Roads and Transport has extended the validity of motor vehicle documents such as Driving License (DL), Registration Certificate (RC), Fitness Certificate and Permit to 30 June 2021. The decision was taken after taking note of the Covid-19 crisis across the country.

The Ministry issued a circular saying that in view of the worsening conditions of Corona in the entire country, these documents which expired on 1 February 2020, will be considered valid till next 30 June 2021.

Live TV

#mute
New Delhi: The Mumbai civic body Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has suspended the COVID-19 vaccination drive in wake of Cyclone Tauktae.

The government vaccination centres will remain closed on May 15 and 16.

2-3 private centres are continuing with their vaccinations but all govt centers will be closed for vaccination today and tomorrow. We are focusing on the people due for their second dose. Elderly people and people with comorbidities are also on our priority, Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar was quoted as saying by ANI.

The decision was taken to avoid troubles for senior citizens and also possible crowding as the city is expected to get rains due to the cyclone, Additional Municipal Commissioner Suresh Kakani told PTI.

There are 260 active inoculation centres in Mumbai where 28,41,349 persons have received vaccines including 23,924 on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Mumbai Mayor said that they will assess the situation and decide if there is a need to shift COVID-19 patients from Jumbo centres.

All Jumbo COVID centres have been asked to remain on standby and if needed, patients to be shifted to other places. By afternoon we will have an update about this if patients need to be shifted. We are watching the situation closely, Pednekar informed.

All Jumbo COVID centres have been asked to remain on standby & if needed, patients to be shifted to other places. By afternoon we will have an update about this if patients nees to be shifted. We are watching the situation closely: Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar #CycloneTauktae pic.twitter.com/j1MfYLSwUc  ANI (@ANI) May 15, 2021

Further, she said, Around 100 lifeguards are placed at various beaches for emergency rescue etc. Fire brigade teams are also on stand-by. Bandra-Worli sea link will be closed for traffic today and tomorrow."

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted Mumbai, Thane and Raigad would receive very heavy rainfall on Monday, while Raigad is expected to witness thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty winds from Saturday (May 15).

(With inputs from agencies)



Live TV
New Delhi: West Bengal on Saturday (May 15, 2021) announced to put in place more restrictions from May 16 for the next 15 days.

The step has been taken in view of rising COVID-19 cases. West Bengal on Friday recorded its highest single-day spike of 20,846 fresh coronavirus infections, taking the total tally to 10,94,802. The death toll in the state has also mounted to 12,993 after 136 more people succumbed to COVID-19.

Earlier on April 30, the West Bengal government had imposed a partial lockdown in the state.

-- All private offices, schools, colleges will remain closed.

-- Bazaars, markets selling vegetables, fruits, milk, bread to only remain open from 7-10 am.

-- Local trains, metro services, inter-state bus/train services, Inland Waterways to remain closed.

-- Intra-state goods trucks movement restricted except for essential supplies.

-- Private cars, taxis, auto movement to remain closed.

-- Bank working hours - 10-2 pm.

-- No movement of people and vehicles to be allowed from 9 pm-5 am.



Live TV
New Delhi: With Cyclone Tauktae intensifying into a cyclonic storm on Saturday (May 15, 2021), severe flood-like situations have been predicted for Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The Central Water Commission (CWC) also issued an orange bulletin, predicting a severe flood situation, in the two states on Saturday.

Water levels are likely to reach danger and highest flood levels, the CWC said.

Additionally, Gujarat and Maharashtra are also preparing to grapple the impact of Tauktae on the coastal Konkan and some interiors which are likely to be affected with heavy rains and gusty winds.

Political leaders express concern

Amid the intense situation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to review preparations against the upcoming Cyclone Tauktae with senior officials from the Government and National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

On the other hand, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also appealed to his party workers to provide all possible assistance to those in need in view of cyclone Tauktae alert issued in Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka.

"Cyclone alert has been issued in Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka. Cyclone Tauktae is already causing heavy rains in many areas. I appeal to Congress workers to provide all possible assistance to those in need. Please stay safe," he tweeted.

Impact in five states:

Cyclone Tauktae has caused damage across North Kerala, especially in coastal areas. The worst affected on account of the rough sea include the coastal hamlets in the state capital Thiruvananthapuram, parts of Kollam, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargod.

#WATCH | Kozhikode in Kerala continues to receive heavy rainfall. IMD has issued Red Alert in Kozhikode today.#CycloneTauktae pic.twitter.com/6vFELaJHr0  ANI (@ANI) May 15, 2021

Starting Friday night, many trees were uprooted and power supply disrupted for long hours on account of the gusty winds and heavy rain in Kerala. High tides and rough sea have led to sea water gushing into nearby areas causing damage to properties in Thrissur, Malappuram, Kannur and Kasaragod districts.

The Mumbai civic body Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has suspended the COVID-19 vaccination drive in wake of Cyclone Tauktae. The government vaccination centres will remain closed on May 15 and 16.

NDRF doubles rescue teams:

The National Disaster Response Force has increased from 53 to 100 the number of teams earmarked to undertake relief and rescue measures in the wake of impending Cyclone Tauktae, a senior officer said on Saturday.

The force's Director General, S N Pradhan, said in a tweet that these teams are being mobilised for deployment in the coastal regions of Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Goa and Maharashtra.

In the wake of cyclone #Tauktae alert, two C-130 J aircraft of IAF airlifted three NDRF teams comprising of 126 personnel and equipment from Bhubaneswar to Jamnagar in the morning hours today.#HADROps pic.twitter.com/h6cCaT4xZ1  Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) May 15, 2021

Cyclonic Storm "Tauktae" intensifies:

On Friday night, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had informed that the low-pressure area over the Arabian Sea near Lakshwadeep had intensified into a deep depression and will intensify into a cyclonic storm in the following 12 hours.

"Deep Depression intensified into a Cyclonic Storm "Tauktae" (pronounced as Tau`Te) over Lakshadweep area and adjoining southeast and east-central the Arabian Sea: Cyclone watch for south Gujarat and Diu coasts", the IMD had tweeted.

Cyclonic Storm Tauktae (pronounced as TauTe) over eastcentral and adjoining southeast Arabian Sea: Cyclone Alert for Gujarat & Diu coasts (Yellow message) pic.twitter.com/fmcTMVmrjg  India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) May 15, 2021

A tweet by the Spokesperson of the Indian Navy, also confirmed "#CycloneTauktae-Update 1-Deep depression 240 Nm NW off Kochi on 14th evening very likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm Tauktae by 15th morning.

The cyclone is likely to impact areas including the coast of Kerala, Karnataka, Lakshadweep, Goa, and Maharashtra. The IMD had also predicted that the cyclone would hit the Gujarat coast by May 18 morning.

(With Agency Inputs)

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New Delhi: The Delhi government on Saturday (May 15) announced standard operating procedures (SOPs) for issuing oxygen concentrators for COVID-19 patients who have been discharged from hospitals.

Earlier in the day, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced the launch of an oxygen concentrator bank for use by patients who are under home isolation.

The detailed SOP issued by the Delhi health department said the competent authority has approved the provision of domiciliary oxygen support via provision oxygen concentrators at home for COVID-19 positive patients discharged from coronavirus facilities who are prescribed the same at the time of discharge or thereafter by a treating physician.

"Domiciliary oxygen support will be provided to all patients categorised as moderate to severe who have recovered, are discharged from the COVID-designated facilities (government/ private) and are prescribed domiciliary oxygen support/short-term oxygen therapy (STOT) at home," the SOP read, according to news agency PTI.

The hospital will ensure that the requirement of STOT at home post recovery is clearly mentioned in the discharge slip being provided to patient or care-giver along with estimated prescribed flow-rate, it said.

For issuing oxygen concentrator, voter-id card of the patient or the care-giver is to be obtained which shows the proof of residence. The concentrator will be issued after due inspection and obtaining relevant proof of residence from the owner or person concerned, the SOP further read.

Post verification, an oxygen concentrator and a pulse oxymetre will be provided to a patient and a demonstration of the machine would also be given by a trained person, it said.

The SpO2 level should be monitored by the patient or care-giver every six hours for 14 days, and a written record shall be maintained with date and timing details, the SOP said.

If at any point during the two-week observation period, after discharge from ICU, the oxygen level is recorded less than 93 per cent in two consecutive readings, or less than 93 per cent after three minutes of ambulation, or if nocturnal hypoxia happens with SpO2 level below 93 per cent, then that patient will become eligible for domiciliary STOT, it said.

In that case, a patient or the care-giver can call on 1031 helpline from 9 AM to 6 PM and after tele-consultation with a doctor, an oxygen concentrator will be delivered subject to advise by the doctor, the SOP reads.

The domiciliary STOT facility can be loaned to a patient only for two months, post which it has to be returned to the authorities, it said.

"If oxygen therapy is required after two months, then the patient will be re-evaluated by the physician, and will be prescribed on Long Term Oxygen Therapy (LTOT), as per the existing government policies of the pre-COVID period," the SOP said.

"Also, the domiciliary oxygen support will not include patients already on LTOT (before COVID-19 diagnosis), for other co-existing pulmonary illness," it added.

A nodal officer at district level will coordinate the process along with nodal officers at COVID facilities.

The national capital recorded 6,430 fresh COVID cases and 337 fatalities on Saturday, while the positivity rate dipped to 11.32 per cent, even as Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal asserted that the cases were "slowly and steadily" getting reduced in Delhi.

This is the second consecutive day when Delhi has recorded less than 10,000 cases in a day.

The number of cumulative cases on Saturday stood at 13,87,411. Over 12 lakh patients have recovered from the virus.

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The United States government has criticised how Nigerian courts have continued to sentence citizens to long jail terms for blasphemy and death.

The US position was disclosed by the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, during the release of the 2020 International Religious Freedom Report this week.

He wondered why the Nigerian government has not brought anyone to justice for the "massacre" of members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria also known as Shiites.

Quoting the report, the Blinken said, "In Nigeria, courts continue to convict people of blasphemy, sentencing them to long-term imprisonment or even death. Yet the government has still not brought anyone to justice for the military's massacre of hundreds of Shia Muslims in 2015."

He further stressed that religious freedom is a human right and the freedom enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adding that America would continue to defend freedom of faith globally.

"Religious freedom, like every human right, is universal. All people, everywhere, are entitled to it no matter where they live, what they believe, or what they don't believe.

"Religious freedom can't be fully realised unless other human rights are respected, and when governments violate their people's right to believe and worship freely, it jeopardises all the others," the US State Secretary noted.

The Shiites have for over five years been regularly taking to the streets particularly in Abuja to demand the release of their leader, Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, and his wife, Zeenat.

Both of them have been in detention since December 2015 after a bloody clash between members of the group and soldiers in the convoy of the former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, in Zaria, Kaduna State.

Many Shiites members were reportedly killed by soldiers but the Nigerian Army has since denied such allegation.

On February 28, 2020, a Facebook user, Mbarak Bala, was arrested and detained in Kaduna for alleged blasphemous posts about Islam.

A 35-year-old atheist, Mubarak Bala, had also spent months in detention without trial for allegedly blaspheming Prophet Muhammed.

A Kano-based musician, Yahaya Sharif-Aminu was also accused of committing blasphemy against the Prophet in a song he circulated via WhatsApp in March 2020. He was later sentenced to death by hanging by the Kano Upper Shari'a Court.
New Delhi: Pan-India Lockdown, local government restrictions and the new normal of work from home (WFH) have not deterred Indias best brains working at the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The first and second waves of COVID-19 have affected the schedule of the core space-related activities at ISRO, but, its scientists have been immensely contributing to the countrys fight against the pandemic by developing crucial medical equipment such as ventilators, oxygen concentrators etc.

In an exclusive conversation with Zee Media, Dr S. Somanath, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Center (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram, elucidated on the in-house medical technologies that are ready for industry adoption, free of cost.

Under the series Prana, three variants of ventilators that are fitted with displays and controls, have been developed by the ISRO teams from VSSC, based on modifications to existing designs and also based on their own unique, patented designs. The first one is similar to the Ambu-bags (artificial manual breathing unit), but this home-grown variant can deliver a good amount of volume and pressure, thanks to its unique design and proper actuation system.

A high-end ventilator, with pneumatic regulation (operated by air under pressure), has also been developed by this team and this offering is said to cost around Rs 1 lakh, which is just about half or one-third the price of similar industry offerings.

The most unique of them all is a ventilator that does not require power or an electric motor, drive. Using compressed air and certain other technological features, it can facilitate the inhale-exhale cycle.

All of the medical equipment have been designed and developed to WHO standards, our quality and testing teams worked with doctors for evaluating the devices. The electronics, controls, software, circuits, for ventilators and oxygen concentrators, are all developed in-house by our young scientists, but well be giving it free to industry for mass manufacture. This technology will be handed over to technically competent industries and many have approached us already, so it is expected to be ready in a weeks time Dr Somanath told Zee Media.

As Indias lead centre for building rockets and related technology, VSSC has the distinction of having engineers from across domains. It was this wide-ranging engineering expertise, coupled with immense knowledge of design, materials, mechanics and software that made these indigenous developments possible within a short span.

In designing and developing the Oxygen Concentrator- Shwaas, ISRO took some valuable lessons from the countrys upcoming human spaceflight programme Gaganyaan, for which they were developing Carbon Dioxide removal systems. Despite the technology of oxygen concentrators being well-known and established, the vast majority of the oxygen concentrators being used in India are imported ones. Hence, ISRO focussed on engineering one with a unique technology that absorbs nitrogen(the largest constituent gas) from the air using molecular absorption. Simply put, the air is pumped through a chemical column, which absorbs the nitrogen and provides oxygen of around 95% purity. This equipment can function non-stop for up to a year, following which the chemical used in the absorption process (which is available in the market) will have to be replaced.

With the capability to provide 10 litres of Oxygen per minute, it can simultaneously provide support for two regular patients or one critical patient. The prototype of this variant is already in operation at the VSSC hospital and it is expected to cost no more than Rs.50,000.

These medical equipment are not under our area of work, it requires a deep understanding of human physiology, breathing process etc. Such devices aiding respiration must be able to sense, sync with unique breathing patterns and assist Doctors in saving lives. So, our young engineers, most of whom are in their 20s and 30s studied the theory and explored the processes to make this happen. It was a collaborative effort between several teams largely working from home and partly from labs, under the guidance of seniors and technicians. Ours is highly inspired work culture, its not just about building rockets, we are ready to take on any challenge with our enthusiasm and ideas Dr.S. Somanath says with pride.

The Indian Government-run Space agency has also been providing liquid oxygen to State Governments in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, from their manufacturing facilities or from existing stock. It is important to note that Liquid Oxygen, known as (Lox) in aerospace parlance, is a crucial resource for any modern space agency, as it is used as an oxidizer in cryogenic engines that power large rockets. ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC) in Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu, which is responsible for the production of Cryogenic fuels has been supplying liquid Oxygen to the State Governments in Tamil Nadu and adjoining Kerala.

IPRC has supplied over 150Tons of Lox to Kerala and Tamil Nadu Governments since 24th April and continues to do so. Our daily production capacity was 2.5tons, but we have progressively scaled up to 11 tons per day by working round-the-clock with more staff. Around 20tons of Lox stored at our spaceport in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh has also been provided to the state government Dr K.Sivan, Chairman, ISRO told Zee Media.

ISRO has also provided the large capacity fuel tanks at their facilities to be repurposed and used as stores of liquid oxygen in various states. These tanks serve as a hub for mass storage of liquid oxygen, following which they can be distributed to the healthcare facilities in the region.
New Delhi: The mortal remains of Soumya Santhosh, a Kerala woman who was killed in a rocket attack in the Israeli city of Ashkelon, reached New Delhi on Saturday (May 15).

Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs V Muraleedharan, along with Israeli Deputy envoy Rony Yedidia Clein received the mortal remains and paid their last respect.

Taking to Twitter, Muraleedharan expressed condolence and said he empathises with the pain and suffering of Santhoshs family.

"With a heavy heart, received the mortal remains of Ms. Soumya Santhosh in Delhi and paid my last respects. CDA of Israel Embassy @RonyYedidia also joined. I empathise with the pain and sufferings of the family of Ms. Soumya. More strength to them," Muraleedharan tweeted.

Mortal remains of Kerala woman who died in Palestinian rocket strike earlier this week arrive at Delhi airport. Union Minister V Muraleedharan and Rony Yedidia Clein, Israel's Deputy Envoy pay floral tribute pic.twitter.com/5Jd5Atty6r  ANI (@ANI) May 15, 2021

The 30-year-old Santhosh hailed from Idukki in Kerala and was among those killed in a rocket attack by a Palestinian Islamist group on Tuesday.

She was employed as a caretaker in Israel for the last seven years, her family said. While her husband and nine-year-old son stay in Kerala.

The conflict between Israel and Hamas, a Palestinian organisation, has escalated and led to violence across Israel in the past few days.

At least seven people in Israel have been killed in the rocket attacks launched by armed groups in Gaza, Al Jazeera reported. As per Palestinian authorities, around 132 people have been killed in Gaza since the violence broke out on Monday, including 32 children and 21 women, and 950 others have been wounded in the area.

The Israeli military claimed that more than 2,000 rockets had been fired from Gaza into Israel since the start of the conflict, around half of them intercepted by missile defence systems and 350 fell into the Gaza Strip.

(With ANI inputs)

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Ulhasnagar: At least five persons, including two women, were killed after slabs of an illegal residential building located in Ulhasnagar township in Thane district of Maharashtra collapsed on Saturday (May 15), officials said, adding 11 people have been rescued.

A search is on for a woman resident of the building who is missing, said Santosh Kadam, chief of the regional disaster management cell of the Thane Municipal Corporation.

The incident occurred around 1.40 pm on the ground- plus four-storey "Manorama" building located in camp no 1, he said. The four-story apartment had nine flats and eight shops.

A slab on the fourth floor came crashing down on other slabs which all landed on the ground floor, trapping people in the process, Kadam said. He said a team of NDRF personnel has joined the rescue operations at the spot.

Local firemen rushed to the scene and rescued 17 residents, who were taken to a local hospital for first aid, the official said. The deceased are identified as Monty Milind Parshe (12), Aishwaraya Harish Dodwal (23), Harish Dodwal (40) and Savitri Parshe (60). One Sandhya Dodwal remains missing and rescue teams are trying to trace her in the debris.

Maharashtra: Portion of a building collapses in Ulhasnagar city of Thane district. Officials of Fire & Police Departments are on the spot; 11 people have been rescued & sent to hospital. pic.twitter.com/Gitdjm1OHl  ANI (@ANI) May 15, 2021

The bodies were extricated from the rubble after a search of more than four hours. Ulhasnagar Corporation PRO Yuvraj Badhane said the building was an illegal structure constructed in 1994. It had nine tenements and seven shops on the ground floor. Meanwhile, speaking to reporters at the scene, Kalyan MP Srikant Shinde said kin of the deceased will be paid a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each.

A member of the Thane Disaster Response Force said "the team reached the scene within 30 minutes of being alerted about the accident."

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New Delhi: In order to meet the shortage of COVID-19 vaccines, Odisha State Medical Corporation (OSMC) has floated online global bids from manufacturers to procure the jabs.

OSMC has floated a global e-Tender for the supply of 3.80 crore COVID-19 vaccines which the bidders are required to supply in four phases and the state government will issue a separate purchase order for each of them, ANI reported.

"Odisha State Medical Corporation (OSMC) has invited online global bids through an e-Tender portal for supply of the 3.80 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine from manufacturers", a notice by the Odisha government read.

The bidders will not be permitted to withdraw their bid after the opening of the technical bid, within the minimum bid validity period of 180 days and also after accepting the Letter of Intent. Successful bidders will be provided with online tracking facility for knowing goods delivery status at the consignee location and progress on payment by OSMCL, the news agency reported.

On May 10, the state cabinet had approved the proposal to float a global tender for acquiring coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, the Odisha government has comprised a seven-member state-level committee to monitor the rising cases of Mucormycosis or Black Fungus amongst COVID -19 patients.

"In view of the reported rise in the incidence of Mucormycosis (Black Fungus) amongst the COVID-19 patients on Corticosteroids and other immunosuppressive drugs and also amongst patients in the post COVID period in the State, Odisha Government has constituted a State Level Committee", the government said in a press release.

Odisha recorded 12,390 new cases in the last 24 hours, while 22 COVID-related deaths and 8,665 recoveries were also reported on Friday, as per the state health bulletin.

(With ANI inputs)

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New Delhi: Raghunandan Lal Bhatia, a six-time MP from Amritsar and a Congress leader died aged 100, PTI news agency reported on Saturday (May 15, 2021). He breathed his last at a private hospital in Amritsar.

"Raghunandan Bhatia died at a private hospital on Friday night and he is survived by his son Ramesh Bhatia, daughter Saroj Munjal and younger brother JL Bhatia," PTI quoted family members as saying.

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh condoled the death said, "Saddened to lose former Governor & Senior Congress Leader & six-time MP, Raghunandan Lal Bhatia Ji. My thoughts and prayers are with his family members in their hour of grief. May his soul rest in peace."

Saddened to lose former Governor & Senior Congress Leader & six-time MP, Raghunandan Lal Bhatia Ji. My thoughts and prayers are with his family members in their hour of grief. May his soul rest in peace.  Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) May 15, 2021

Bhatia was first elected to Lok Sabha in 1972 from the Amritsar parliamentary constituency and again re-elected from the same seat in the 1980, 1985, 1992, 1996 and 1999 elections as a member of the Indian National Congress.

He had served as the governor of Kerala from 2004 to 2008 and the governor of Bihar from 2008 to 2009. He was also the minister of state for external affairs in 1992.

Bhatia, as a senior member of the Congress, held various positions in the party, including the post of Punjab unit president and general secretary.

(With agency inputs)
New Delhi: In view of the rising COVID-19 cases, Tamil Nadu has tightened the lockdown restrictions by capping the timings of the grocery shops to 4 hours amongst other things.

With over 31,000 daily COVID-19 cases in the state, the MK Stalin-led government on Friday (May 14, 2021) imposed further restrictions over and above the ongoing lockdown which was imposed from May 10 and will remain in place till May 24.

The new curbs have come into effect from 4 AM May 15.

As per the new restrictions during Tamil Nadu lockdown, the working hours of standalone grocery shops, supermarkets, vegetable shops, meat shops and others will be from 6 AM to 10 AM. These shops must operate without air-conditioning and must permit only 50 per cent footfall.

E-commerce services such as Dunzo and others that deliver grocery, meat, vegetables will be permitted to function from 6 AM - 10 AM. Whereas, other e-commerce firms would be permitted to deliver goods between 2 PM and 6 PM.

While fuel stations, ATMs, medical shops will be open, all other stores including footpath vendors selling vegetables, flowers have been asked to go under lockdown.

Tea shops too will remain closed.

Also, e-pass has been made mandatory for domestic and even inter-district travellers including people going to weddings, funerals, caregiving for the elderly etc and is to be availed on eregister.tnega.org. The E-pass would be required from 6 AM May 17.

The existing night curfew from 10 PM to 4 AM and the total lockdown on Sundays will continue to be in effect.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu recorded 31,892 new COVID-19 cases on Friday that took the total caseload to 15,31,377 while 288 more deaths took the toll to 17,056. The state currently has 1,95,339 coronavirus active infections.



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New Delhi: Black Fungus also known as Mucormicosis has started spreading all over Uttar Pradesh. In response, the state government has issued an advisory for those concerned.

Dozens of patients in the state are showing symptoms of the disease every day.

While in some cases the jaws and eyes of many patients have been removed because of a black fungus infection, there are many more cases of people losing their lives.

The Yogi government has issued an advisory on black fungus, stating that after COVID-19 infection, the black fungus or mucormycosis spreads to the face, nose, sinus, eye and brain and destroys it. Due to this, a large part of the face including the eye is destroyed and there is a risk of life.

Take a look at some of the key points form the advisory.

People likely to show symptoms of the disease:

Those on steroid medication given during Covid - Dexamethasone, Methylprednisolone etc.

COVID-19 patients that had to be put on oxygen or kept in ICU.

People with diabetes issues

People taking medication for cancer, kidney transplant etc.

What are the symptoms:

- Fever, headache, cough, breathlessness.

- Nasal congestion, bleeding in the nose with mucus.

- There is pain in the eye, the eye becomes swollen, two is visible or stops appearing.

- There is pain, swelling or numbness on one side of the face (do not feel touched when touched).

- Toothache, teeth begin to move. Chewing is a pain.

- Mucus bleeds in vomit or coughing.

What to do:

If you have any of the above symptoms, then immediately go to a government hospital or any other specialist doctor. Get a nose, ear, throat, eye, medicine, chest or plastic surgery specialist immediately and start treatment.

Precautions

Do not start steroid medicine at the behest of yourself or a non-specialist doctor, friend, friend or relative. Steroid medicines like - Dexona, Medrol etc.

Delivering steroids in the first 5 to 7 days of symptoms has adverse effects. Do not start steroids as soon as the disease starts, this increases the disease.

Expert doctors give steroids for only 5-10 days to some patients, that too 5-7 days after the onset of the disease, only serious patients need a lot of investigation before that.

Stay in regular contact with a specialist doctor when steroids are introduced.

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Srinagar: Office of Lieutenant Governor Jammu Kashmir extend the ongoing Corona Curfew by a week  effective from May 17 to May 24  across all the twenty districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

Announcing the decision DIPR on its official Twitter Handle wrote; The Corona Curfew imposed in all 20 districts of Jammu and Kashmir till 7 am on Monday (May 17) is extended further till 7 am on Monday, 24/5/21.

COVID CONTAINMENT The Corona Curfew imposed in all 20 distts of J&K till 7 am on Monday, 17/5/21 is extended further till 7 am on Monday, 24/5/21. The curfew will be strict except for a few essential services.#IndiaFightsCorona #JandKFightsCorona#WeShallOvercome  DIPR-J&K (@diprjk) May 15, 2021

"The curfew will be strict except for a few essential services", it concluded.

On April 29, the Jammu and Kashmir government imposed a curfew in 11 districts to curb down the surge in COVID-19 cases. This lockdown was subsequently extended to all the 20 districts the next day till May 17.

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Mumbai: Superstar Salman Khan on Friday received the second dose of the novel coronavirus vaccine. The 55-year-old actor, who got the first jab of the vaccine in March, was spotted at a centre in Dadar here.

Recently in an interview, Salman Khan had shared that his parents, veteran screenwriter Salim Khan and producer Salma Khan, got their second dose on May 9, while brother-producer Arbaaz Khan received his first shot on Sunday.

The actor went for the vaccination a day after his much-awaited film 'Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai' started streaming on multiple platforms, including OTT and DTH services.

The audience can also view the film on the pay-per-view broadcast platform Zee Plex.

Various film personalities, including superstar Rajinikanth, Saif Ali Khan, Madhuri Dixit-Nene, Kamal Haasan and others, have got vaccinated.

On March 1, the government launched the nationwide drive to vaccinate everyone above 60 years of age and those aged between 45 and 59 with co-morbidities.

Last month, the Maharashtra government announced its decision to provide anti-COVID-19 vaccines to people in the age group of 18 to 44 years.

Maharashtra on Thursday reported 42,582 new COVID-19 cases, a drop of nearly 4,200 infections from a day ago, while 850 more patients succumbed to the disease, the state health department said.
Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan tweeted Eid wishes to his fans on Friday evening, urging all to be compassionate and helpful towards others.

"Eid Mubarak to everyone around the world. May Allah shower each one of us with health & give us strength & means to be compassionate to all those who need our help in our country, India. As always together we will conquer all! Love U," Shah Rukh Khan wrote on Twitter.

Eid Mubarak to everyone around the world. May Allah shower each one of us with health & give us strength & means to be compassionate to all those who need our help in our country, India. As always together we will conquer all! Lov U. pic.twitter.com/jdj9Nlj8ha  Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) May 14, 2021

The 55-year-old-actor also treated fans with a black and white selfie, which has gone viral on social media.

Commenting on Shah Rukh`s post, fans showered him with love. Some fans expressed how they are missing gathering outside his residence, Mannat, due to the pandemic, as they did in pre-COVID times.

"Eid Mubarak Sir. Missed the outside view of your house this Eid where fans used to gather & wish you in a single voice loud & louder. One day will definitely feel that feeling seeing you just my front. #EidMubarak," commented a fan.
Chipinge  An receptionist intern with the Department of Social Welfare who defrauded funds from One Money Wallet facility using stolen NetOne sim cards appeared before a Chipinge magistrate facing theft charges.

Tatenda Manhimanzi (22) of Coffee Research, government farm was arrested by detectives after a tip-off that she had stolen 53 sim cards and siphoned $90 100 from a One Money Wallet account.

The funds were meant to cushion underprivileged members of the local community.

Manhimanzi appeared before Chipinge magistrate Franklin Mukwananzi who ordered her to perform 140 hours community service at Madziwa primary school and also return all the money.

Prosecutors told court that on May 4 this year, detectives received information to the effect that the now convict, who was a receptionist at Social Development Office in Chipinge, stole the 53 NetOne lines on several different occasions from March 24, 2021 to April 13, 2021.

Manhimanzi reportedly transferred $78 200 as indicated in the bank to Gladys Sithole who was amongst the beneficiaries whose line went missing.

She went on to transfer $78 200 from Sithole's NetOne number 0715800404 to James Mudimu's NetOne line number 0713184920.

The money was deposited in batches on several different occasions.

Manhimanzi went on to receive $78 200 in cash from Mudimu.

On March 24, 2021, the suspect transferred $2 850 as indicated on the bank statement to Tinashe Sithole NetOne number 0714606667 and she received $2 850 from Tinashe.

On April 5, she transferred $7 400 to James Mudimu and she received the money in cash.

After withdrawing money from each line, Manhimanzi went on to throw the lines away.

The value of the stolen lines is $1 325 while the total value stolen money from the One Money wallet is $91 425 and nothing was recovered.
India is undergoing a huge crisis, thanks to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the country. A lot of companies are coming forward to help India come out of it. The latest one is Bharti Airtel which has rolled out a range of COVID support initiatives for customers by leveraging its digital platforms.

Airtel has integrated an easily accessible bouquet of COVID support resources and related information in the Airtel Thanks app`s Explore section.

Accordingly, it has now provided COVID SOS resource which aggregates verified and updated contacts for important supplies such as medicines, oxygen, plasma donors, ambulance, hospital beds (regular, O2, ICU), and testing centers.

With a few clicks, the platform connects users to these service providers/resources and tries to ensure that users do not have to waste precious time to access this data, the company said in a statement.

All the information available on COVID SOS is painstakingly verified by their teams. The platform is powered by Airtel IQ, it said.

Also, Airtel Thanks users can also book a vaccination slot for themselves and their loved ones through the app. With the CoWin platform APIs integrated with the Airtel Thanks app, information on nearest vaccination centers and available slots is updated on a real-time basis.

Users need to download the latest version of the Airtel Thanks app (iOS, Android), go to the Explore section and click on the Covid support banners to access relevant resources, the company said.

Besides, businesses of all sizes can now set up a FREE Covid Helpline for their employees within two minutes with Airtel IQ - a cloud communication platform. Airtel is giving 5000 minutes with each Helpline account so that businesses can stay connected with their employees and organize their efforts.

This feature is particularly useful for medium to small-sized companies who can set up a secure helpline instantly without any in-house telco infrastructure, the company said.

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Kannur: India is witnessing the second wave of coronavirus. This wave is proving to be much more severe as compared to the first one. Various state governments have imposed lockdown in order to curd down the infection. As lockdown has been imposed only essential services are exempted and people are advised to strictly stay indoors and followed the COVID guidelines. However, the government has allotted e-pass for the people who need to get help urgently. On a daily basis, authorities receive thousands of e-pass requests from citizens and travel is allowed only if the e-pass states a valid reason. However, one bizarre request received by Kerala police has grabbed eyeballs.

In an interesting event, a resident from Kannur's Kannapuram applied for an e-pass in order to out for "sex". According to a local media agency, the man wanted to visit Kannur in the evening. Needless to say, the police were surprised by the request application and even the Assistant Commissioner of Police has given the information about the incident. The Valapattanam police were then asked to locate the individual, who was brought to the station for interrogation.

When police asked about the reason mentioned on the application, the man answered that it was just typing mistake and as he had misspelt the word. He said that he actually wanted to write six o clock instead of sex, and apologised for the same. Later, his apology was accepted by the officials and the man was released. The police also further instructed him to not apply for an e-pass for non-essential purposes.

We at Zee News request everyone to follow the COVID guidelines and do not go out without any essential reason. Stay indoors and and stay safe.

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Sydney: The University of New South Wales` (UNSW) library building in Sydney lit up with Indian tricolour on Friday in solidarity with India, Indian students, faculty and staff, as the country fights against the unprecedented COVID-19 situation.

"UNSW library building, Sydney, lit up in solidarity with India, Indian students, faculty and staff," said Australian High Commissioner Barry O Farrell.

The university also posted a picture of the main library tower, which could be seen illuminated with the Indian flag along with a message of `stay strong India`.

"We`ve illuminated our main library tower in support of our Indian students and friends (and others around the world) who are suffering from or affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope you all stay safe, stay well, stay strong!", the university tweeted.

Australia: University of New South Wales, Sydney illuminates its main library tower in support of "Indian students and friends"#COVID19 pic.twitter.com/4pg0V91jOT  ANI (@ANI) May 14, 2021

The UNSW is an Australian public university with its largest campus in the Sydney suburb of Kensington.

India has been reeling under the deadly second wave of COVID-19. India on Friday reported 3.43 lakh new cases of the novel coronavirus and 4,000 deaths.The country`s caseload of 2,40,46,809 now includes 37,04,893 active cases, 2,00,79,599 recoveries and 2,62,317 deaths.

Last month, Burj Khalifa in Dubai lit up with the tricolour to showcase support in India`s fight against the pandemic.
Canberra: The first repatriation flight from India landed in Australia on Saturday after the government's controversial travel ban to the Covid-battered country ended.

The Qantas jet carrying approximately 80 Australians, who were stranded in India, touched down at a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base in Darwin earlier in the day, reports Xinhua news agency.

The flight was scheduled to carry about 150 passengers but dozens were blocked from boarding after 40 tested positive for Covid-19 and 30 were deemed close contacts of the positive cases, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Those that were able to board will quarantine for 14 days at the Howard Springs facility outside of Darwin.

They are the first people to enter Australia from India since the federal government made it a criminal offence to do so at the end of April in response to the surging coronavirus crisis in the South Asian nation.

The travel ban was condemned by human rights groups as racist but Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday said it had effectively prevented the hotel quarantine system from being overwhelmed by positive cases.

"That pause has done its job. The number of cases that we had up in Howard Springs at that time was over 50. It's now down to four," he said.

About 10,000 Australians, permanent residents and their immediate family members in India are seeking to return home.

Barry O`Farrell, Australia's High Commissioner to India, told the ABC that he was disappointed that people were blocked from boarding the flight.

"My team has worked hard across India to get them bookings on this flight because they are vulnerable," he said.

"Regrettably those people will have to return home and deal with the COVID that they have, or continue to isolate to prove that they don`t have COVID.

"Until such time that they test negative they won't be able to fly on one of these facilitated flights," he added.

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New Delhi: The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday (May 14, 2021) asked countries not to vaccinate kids and urged them to donate vaccines to COVAX as COVID-19 to be 'more deadly' this year.

During a press briefing, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the fact that so many people are still not protected against coronavirus is a sad reflection on the gross distortion in access to COVID-19 vaccines across the globe.

Ghebreyesus said, "I understand why some countries want to vaccinate their children and adolescents, but right now I urge them to reconsider and to instead donate vaccines to COVAX. Because in low and lower-middle-income countries, vaccine supply has not been enough to even immunize health and care workers, and hospitals are being inundated with people that need lifesaving care urgently."

"Because in low and lower-middle income countries, #COVID19 vaccine supply has not been enough to even immunise health and care workers, and hospitals are being inundated with people that need lifesaving care urgently"-@DrTedros #VaccinEquity https://t.co/hX6rZ3KYTs  World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) May 14, 2021

The WHO Chief informed that at present, only 0.3% of vaccine supply is going to low-income countries.

Ghebreyesus stated that COVID-19 has already cost more than 3.3 million lives and said, "We're on track for the second year of this pandemic to be far more deadly than the first."

"Saving lives and livelihoods with a combination of public health measures and vaccination  not one or the other - is the only way out of the pandemic," he added.

Ghebreyesus said that India remains hugely concerning, with several states continuing to see a worrying number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

He highlighted that WHO is responding and has shipped thousands of oxygen concentrators, tents for mobile field hospitals, masks and other medical supplies to help India fight the second wave of coronavirus.

"But it's not only India that has emergency needs. Nepal, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Egypt are just some of the countries that are dealing with spikes in cases and hospitalizations," the WHO Director-General said.

He added that some countries in the Americas still have high numbers of COVID-19 cases and as a region, the Americas accounted for 40% of all COVID-19 deaths last week.

"There are also spikes in some countries in Africa," Ghebreyesus stated.

"#COVID19 has already cost more than 3.3M lives & were on track for the 2nd year of the pandemic to be far more deadly than the 1st. Saving lives & livelihoods with a combination of public health measures & vaccination  not one or the other - is the only way out"-@DrTedros  World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) May 14, 2021

The world has so far witnessed over 16,15,54,788 confirmed coronavirus cases, of which, 33,53,195 have succumbed to the virus, as per Johns Hopkins University on Saturday (May 15) morning.


Local Government Minister July Moyo has suspended Victoria Falls Town Clerk Ronnie Dube who faces corruption charges which are before the courts.

Moyo, who has been accused by councillors of overbearing control on the affairs of the local authority, had written to council a few days ago seeking clarification on a raging conflict between city fathers and residents regarding budget issues.

He then flew into the resort city Thursday to suspend Dube, saying this was meant to restore sanity within council.

Dube faces charges of criminal abuse of office and is out on $50 000 bail after appearing before a Hwange magistrate recently.

City mayor Somveli Dlamini had suspended Dube two weeks ago before councillors moved in and reversed the suspension while accusing their boss of not following procedure and carrying out unilateral decisions.

After release on bail, Dube continued in his office.

Councillors accuse the minister of fighting Dube from Dlamini's corner.

Said Moyo, "All we need is sanity so that the city continues to work on a trajectory that will enhance the attraction of tourists."

He said Victoria Falls was so dear to government that he would not tolerate anyone who tried to throw spanners in its wakes.

"If a Town Clerk of a city like this is being investigated by the courts, then we have to stabilise the management and we have stabilised by saying there should be an acting Town Clerk while he (Dube) is dealing with his issues," said Moyo.

The minister said his visit to Victoria Falls was to encourage councillors and management "to work together as a team of professionals".

Chamber Secretary Kholwani Mangena will be acting Town Clerk.

Moyo implored council to come up with a supplementary budget as a way of addressing residents' concerns.
Kwekwe has recommended restrictions on public gatherings in the city after Kwekwe Residents chairperson and prominent businessman Robson Kadenhe has succumbed to Covid-19 complications.

Kadenhe is believed to have contracted the virus after a recent visit to India where a rampaging Covid-19 menace continues to kill thousands.

India has in recent weeks become a global Covid-19 epicentre registering an average of at least 3 000 Covid-19 deaths a day.

"Community mobilisation and health education needs to be stepped up. Public gatherings must be restricted in the city.

"All returnees and foreigners need to be tested for Covid-19 and quarantined," read city preliminary recommendations.

"The outbreak report of Covid-19 in Kwekwe City started on the 12th of May 2021 following the death of Robson Kadenhe (76/M) of 22 Old Gokwe Road, Chicago Plots.

"Mr Kadenhe, his wife (Mary Kadenhe) and nephew (Nataly Kadenhe, 21/F) who returned from India on 29th April were antigen (Ag) tested on 9 May 2021 at their plot by Dr Tavashure.

"Mr Kadenhe and his wife tested positive and Nataly tested negative. Mr Kadenhe died on 12 May 2021."

Kadenhe, it has been gathered, fell sick on 8 May 2021 and exhibited symptoms such as fever, chills, dry cough and diarrhoea.

The now deceased, according to the report, was a known hypertensive on treatment and had high RBS levels above 33 at the time he was first seen by his doctor on the 9th of May though he was not a known diabetic.

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"His condition is reported to have deteriorated on the 12th of May and as arrangements were being made to send him for ICU care, he died in an ambulance on arrival to Kwekwe hospital," the report read.

According to the report, one Zvichauya Midzi an EHT at Kwekwe City Health, who had contact with both Mr Kadenhe and Nataly while they were processing their business licence tested positive on 12 May 2021 at Cimas Laboratory.

It is said a total of 9 contacts of the three cases were tested on 13 May at Al Davis Clinic and 6 tested positive.

Contact tracing was conducted and four contacts of the Kadenhes who stay at the plot and had no symptoms were Ag tested at Al Davis Clinic and one tested positive.

A follow up on Midzi was done on 13 May 2021 and a total of five contacts exhibiting symptoms such as cough and fever were tested and all tested positive.

The five contacts of Midzi included three minors aged between 4 and 12 enrolled at Goldridge Primary School tested positive.

Furthermore, four teachers from the school were tested at Al Davis Clinic and they all tested negative.
Mr Asitiba Atenya Ayua and his wife Phanice Ondeche Asitiba bought a house in Kariobangi South from the City Council of Nairobi for Sh22,500 in 1972.

Determined to secure a home for his young family, Mr Asitiba, a former quarry worker, bought the house they had lived in since 1965 through a tenant purchase scheme promoted by the council.

He cleared the purchase price and paid all the rates for the property known as L.R no. 12062/316 (V-7053).

Mr Atenya was given a title deed for the property -- a three-bedroom house adjacent to the Civil Servants Estate. Over the years, he rented out the house to tenants to earn an income.

But sometime in 1993, the landlord was stunned when rent was not paid on the due date and the tenant said someone had told him she was the new owner of the house.

It would later emerge that the council had sold the house to someone else for Sh250,000 through an auction. The house had purportedly been repossessed over alleged Sh15,338.30 in rate arrears.

Mr Asitiba in 1996 unsuccessfully attempted to save his property by challenging a suit filed by the second purchaser. He died in 2000 before he could secure the property.

Illegal sale of property

That would lead to his wife, and son Patrick Atenya Asitiba, filing a suit on October 31, 2003, arguing illegal sale of their house by the council.

The two told the High Court that Mr Asitiba had contested the arrears and the council had acknowledged it had erred by sending him a demand notice.

Mr Atenya told the court his father visited City Hall after receiving the demand letter, which said he owed the Council rate arrears.

After reconciliation of records, it was confirmed that his father did not owe any money, either as a balance of the purchase price, or rate arrears.

The court heard the council instructed its lawyers to withdraw both the demand letter and a suit on the property through its letter dated 29.9.1993.

This, the court ruled, confirmed the assertion that the demand letters and the suit had been erroneously filed to claim rate arrears.

But despite the withdrawal of instructions, Mr Atenya said he was surprised that the council's lawyers went ahead with the case without his father's knowledge and eventually sold the house to a third party behind his back.

Never paid the money

The son produced before the court a copy of the letters of administration he had obtained over his late father's estate.

"The plaintiffs tendered credible evidence confirming that L.R. No 12062/316 (V.7035) belonged to the late Asitiba Atenya Ayau who did not owe the defendant any rates nor purchase price to warrant the defendant sell the property in the manner it did. The defendant's action therefore was not justified in law," ruled Justice Joseph Sergon on October 19, 2017.

The judge declared the sale of the property by the Council unlawful and ordered City Hall to pay the family Sh12 million, being the estimated value of the house as well as costs of the suit.

The council has never paid the money to the widow, who is now 90 and sickly.

By March, this year, the award, which was to attract an interest of 12 per cent a year until payment in full, had attracted an interest of Sh4,920,000.

Through lawyer Wangira Okoba, mother and son obtained warrants of arrest against senior county employees for failing to compensate the widow Sh17 million.

Effect the payment

They want Mr Jairus Musumba (acting county secretary), Ms Lydia Kwamboka (county attorney), Mr Allan Esabwa Igambi (executive committee member, Finance) and Mr Halake Wako (finance officer) committed to civil jail.

When the four appeared before Justice Sergon on Thursday, they pleaded to be given until May 31 to effect the payment.

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Justice Sergon directed them to compensate Mrs Asitiba for the illegal sale of her house.

Mr Okoba urged the judge to stamp the authority of the court by ensuring the four comply with the court order as the widow proved she had no rent arrears.

"Unless this court takes a firm stand to stamp its authority, these officials of the NCC have become elusive and have totally refused to pay the widow, yet they sold her house irregularly in 1993," Mr Okaba told the judge.

"It's five years down the line since the judgment was delivered, yet the officials of NCC have been tossing the widow here and there," he added.

The court was told since her husbands' death, Mrs Asitiba has struggled to pay medication costs of Sh25,000 monthly.

Justice Sergon gave the county officials until May 31 to pay the widow, failure to which they will be jailed.
The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) has again called on President Muhammadu Buhari to resign over insecurity, accusing him of failing to secure the lives and property of the citizenry.

The coalition claimed that the nefarious activities of bandits and other criminals terrorising Katsina and other Northern states, forced President Buhari to stop celebrating Salah at his country home, Daura.

While claiming that the only available option for Nigerians was President Buhari's resignation, the CNG insisted that insecurity, poverty, unemployment, inequality, and corruption had continued to haunt the country, particularly the Northern region.

The CNG, in a Salah message by its North-west Zonal Coordinator, Jamailu Aliyu Charanchi, titled: 'Failed Presidency: Buhari Should Resign Now', claimed that President Buhari also failed to "create jobs in addition to soaring debt levels and mega corruption scandals which have continued unabated."

Charanchi, in the message, added that the president may have meant well for the country and its citizens before he ascended to power, but six years on, his administration has failed in the vital area of providing security for the nation.

According to him, the chain of unchecked vicious attacks on communities and schools, mass abductions, incessant killings in the president's own Katsina State have exposed the state and the entire North to dangerous crimes.

He said: "Northern Nigeria, from where Buhari extracted most of his votes in the 2015 and 2019 elections in the hope that its people can live secure lives, and its children can live in a nation they can be proud of, today bears the brunt of his bad governance more than other Nigerians.

"The North has under a presidency that tends to run away from threats, been virtually abandoned to the mercy of a rampaging insurgency, spreading banditry, kidnapping and other crimes that appear to sense and exploit the huge vacuum in the political will and capacity to challenge them."

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He added: "This unacceptable level of exposure of Northern communities to dangerous crimes is such that even Buhari fears to dare celebrate the Salah in his native town of Daura."

He lamented over what he described as the deteriorating economic status of the country, saying the country depends on loans to stay afloat.

He added: "The poor policies by Buhari's economically failed administration of continuing to make the poor poorer and exposing the vast majority of Nigerians to everything that makes life difficult for people.

"The economy is not creating jobs for the youth. Nigeria is a country where some people have captured the state and are treating it like a personal property and that is why after amassing loans in trillions we are still borrowing, because all the monies are stolen."

He regretted that Buhari and his administration had, in the last six years, shown a glaring incapacity to confront the nation's multiple and intersecting challenges like unemployment, poverty and growing sense of frustration and idleness, compounded by a general and pervasive insecurity, particularly in the North.
President Muhammadu Buhari has assured the Republic of Chad of Nigeria's readiness to help that country stabilise and return to democratic rule within 18 months as promised by its Transitional Military Council President, Lt General Mahamat Deby last month.

The President, who gave the pledge yesterday while receiving Deby, also lauded the efforts of the Nigerian neighbour in the drive to fight terrorism in the country.

The President, in a release issued after the closed-door meeting by his Media Adviser, Femi Adesina, emphasised that Nigeria would assist the Republic of Chad to stabilise, and return to constitutional order.

According to the statement, he said: "We will help you to ensure a smooth transition in 18 months, as you have promised your people."

President Buhari further said that Nigeria would help strengthen the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) and the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF).

He also said: "We are bound together by culture and geography, and we will help in all ways we can. Nigerians know and appreciate the role Chad played in helping us to combat terrorism, and we will continue the collaboration."

The President said the late Marshal Idris Deby "was a personal friend, and a friend of Nigeria, and Chad has been very steadfast in defending Nigeria," so the country should not hesitate to ask for help in areas it deemed necessary. Speaking earlier, Deby thanked Nigeria for the solidarity shown after the passage of the former President, noting that the main objective of the Transitional Military Council "is the security and cohesion of our country."

He expressed his commitment to democratic, free, fair polls in 18 months, telling President Buhari: "You were very close to Marshal Itno. I'm here to reaffirm that relationship, and for you to support our transition. We rely on our brother country Nigeria, as we have shared history, culture and geography. We are ready to be guided by you in our journey to constitutional rule."

Former President of Chad, Marshal Idris Deby, had died in battle last month, while leading troops to confront insurgents, who had come into the country through the Libyan borders.

The country thereafter set up the transitional council, headed by the son of the deceased, Lt General Mahamat Deby and a return to democratic order is expected in 18 months.
Press Release

May 15, 2021 Pangilinan pushes bigger role for private sector, LGUs bigger role in Covid-19 response FOLLOWING the government's announcement of new quarantine rules starting today (May 15), Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan said the private sector and the local government units (LGUs) should be given a bigger role in Covid-19 response especially when it comes to vaccination. Pangilinan stressed that the government's vaccination efforts are inadequate and slow, and that government needs to speed up its efforts with the help of LGUs and the private sector. "We have to speed it up. The private sector also wants the vaccination to step up, asking that they be allowed to go ahead with their own vaccinations," Pangilinan said. "We saw this from day one. As early as January, we are already saying that unless the private sector takes a bigger role as well as the LGUs, we're never going to be able to roll it out effectively," he added. Pangilinan challenged the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) to enable LGUs by giving up some of its powers so that it could reach its goal of 70 million vaccinated Filipinos by year-end. "Don't keep it to yourselves. To reach 70 million, you need an army on the ground. You cannot just rely on the DOH; its army of health personnel on the ground would be the private sector as well as the LGUs," said Pangilinan. While he expressed optimism that the government would reach its goal of 70 million Covid-vaccinated Filipinos by end of 2021, Pangilinan said it would all depend on how it addresses the matter on a day-to-day basis. "I hope he's able to achieve what they plan out to do, but looking at it from the ground, they need to do more to achieve their target," said Pangilinan, referring to vaccine chief Carlito Galvez's plan to inoculate some 70 million Filipinos this year. Pangilinan also reiterated his call for a revamp of the IATF, but prefers Galvez to stay as he is doing a good job. "Secretary Galvez is very competent. But if you're surrounded by turkeys, you can't fly like an eagle," he said. Pangilinan said Galvez should be surrounded by experts and people who have the know-how so the IATF can perform effectively.
Six persons were reported killed while scores were wounded with hundreds displaced following an attack on Utsua Daa and Baafada villages at Bali Takum in Bali local government area of Taraba State, LEADERSHIP Weekend gathered yesterday.

A relation of one of the victims, Mr. Tyokua Ayoo told LEADERSHIP Weeekend on the phone that gunmen suspected to be herdsmen attacked the communities on Thursday afternoon.

Ayoo said many people were on the farm when the attack happened and they immediately fled to Bali town.

"The attack on Utsua Daa village in Takalafia ward happened around 10am and two persons were killed, while that of Baafada in Gazabu and Mambilla road happened around 2pm claiming the lives of four persons.

"One person is missing and several people were wounded and houses were set ablaze.

"Some of those wounded are receiving treatment at Santa Maria Catholic hospital in Bali, "he said.

When contacted, Taraba State police command spokesman, DSP. David Misal, said three people were killed in the attack on villages around Gazabu and Utsua Daa.

He added that some people were said to be missing, but that relative peace had been restored in the area.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is to hold an emergency meeting with all Resident Electoral Commissioners across the states over attacks on its offices in some parts of the country.

INEC chairman, information and voter education committee, Festus Okoye, disclosed this in a statement issued Friday in Abuja, adding that all RECs would be summoned in Abuja on May 19.

INEC said Friday that fire gutted its Udenu local government area office in Obollo Afor, Enugu State on Thursday, describing it as another setback to its ongoing activities and preparations for upcoming electoral activities.

The commission's office in Ohafia local government area of Abia State was set ablaze by hoodlums on Sunday night, a week after the commission's headquarters in Essien Udim local government area of Akwa Ibom State, was also razed by unknown persons.

The commission in a statement by Mr Festus Okoye, its national commissioner and chairman, information and voter education committee in Abuja on Friday expressed concern that the spate of fire incidents involving facilities of the commission in some states had unfortunately persisted.

RELATED: Again, INEC LG Office Set Ablaze In Abia

"This time around, it is Enugu State, where the Resident Electoral Commissioner for the State, Mr Emeka Ononamadu, has reported that the INEC office in Udenu LGA was set ablaze," he said.

He said the latest tragic incident occurred at about 8.40 pm on Thursday, but no casualties were reported.

He, however, said the office building was extensively damaged while electoral materials and office equipment were destroyed in spite of the best efforts of the Enugu State Fire Service to contain the inferno.

Okoye said the attention of the police had been drawn to the yet another very worrisome development for investigation.

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"This is the third incident involving INEC's local government offices in three states in less than two weeks.

"First, there was the destruction of the office in Essien Udim LGA of Akwa Ibom State on May 2. This was followed by the fire at the Ohafia LGA office in Abia on May 9.

"This is yet another setback to the commission's ongoing activities and preparations for upcoming electoral activities," he said.

Okoye recalled that following the attack in Abia, the commission resolved to convene an emergency meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) this week to discuss the disturbing trend.

He said the latest destruction of the commission's physical infrastructure and electoral facilities in Enugu State called for an immediate review of the measures necessary to secure INEC's assets across the states.

"Consequently, the commission is convening an emergency meeting with all the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) on Wednesday, May 19, in Abuja ahead of the meeting of ICCES," he said.

The national commissioner, however, expressed the commission's determination to continue to discharge its responsibilities, including the conclusion of the expansion of voters' access to polling units.

The commissioner of police in Enugu State, Mr Mohammed Aliyu, has ordered an investigation into the incident. Aliyu also directed the cordoning off of the scene for the thorough probe to further ascertain the actual cause of the fire outbreak and damages incurred.

The state's police spokesman, ASP Daniel Ndukwe, said this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) early Friday.
Former President Ali Hassan Mwinyi has recalled how he granted civil servants permission and freedom to form unions, which ushered the start of the trade union autonomy in the Tanzania post-independence era.

Autonomy trade unions emerged when the country was fighting for the independence, mainly in 1950s when the labour movement grew and became a force to reckon with in push for the people's demands.

In 1955, some 17 trade unions merged to create the Tanganyika Federation of Labour (TFL) which collaborated with the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) to fight for the nation's independence.

In 1956, the Federation of Zanzibar and Pemba Trade Unions (ZPFL) was founded with assistance from Tanganyika unionists. During the first half of the 1960s, the Zanzibar labor movement flourished and teamed up with the local peasants to overthrow the Sultan.

Post-independence era in 1960s saw the end of trade union autonomy as the government banned such labour autonomy and replaced it with trade unions to propagate the government's policies.

But, following an economic crisis in the early 1980s and growing pressure for trade union autonomy in conjunction with the country's transition to a multi-party system in 1990, Mzee Mwinyi re-introduced the trade union autonomy by allowing the formation of Organisation of Tanzania Trade Unions (OTTU) in 1992.

The 96-year old Mzee Mwinyi says in his memoir, titled: Mzee Rukhsa: Safari ya Maisha Yangu,' translated in English as 'Mzee Rukhsa: Journey of My Life', that workers were grateful to him for restoring their freedom.

However, on the course of workers movement during his tenure, MzeeMwinyi regrets that some workers lost lives and others were injured as they encountered the law enforcers.

Launched last weekend in Dar es Salaam by President Samia Suluhu Hassan, the book is fully packed with the history of the Tanzania's second phase President, Mzee Mwinyi; from his childhood, school life to extraordinary political career.

The book contains answers to several questions to give a true picture of his personal and political life, which saw him serve as Minister and President of Zanzibar and later on President of the Republic United of Tanzania.

Some of the key questions were whether he originated from Mainland Tanzania or Zanzibar Islands, why he resigned in 1977 from the position of minister of Home Affairs and why he succeeded the late Julius Nyerere despite the fact that he was not Mwalimu's first choice.

Mzee Mwinyi narrates that he took a bold decision to resign as minister following the killing of people in Shinyanga and Mwanza regions. "I resigned out of my will, not a push from Mwalimu Nyerere or any other person," he says in his memoir.

In the last sentence of his resignation letter, Mzee Mwinyi wrote: "Due to this embarrassment, I request you to accept my resignation." MzeeMwinyi says, unfortunately, 40 years later, the killing incidents that forced him to step down are still happening in the country.

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"I am saddened by such killings, I stepped down four decades ago because of such brutal incidents, but until today, they are still taking place in some areas in our country," he pointed out.

He further says that during his leadership he was troubled by religious misunderstandings, and it hurt him most when those misunderstandings got their way into politics.

The retired Head of State gave his candid assessment of his stewardship of the country in a 491-page. The memoir becomes the second of such writings by Tanzania's former Head of State after the late President Benjamin William Mkapa also wrote one- "My Life, My Purpose".

The book describes Mzee Mwinyi as the first leader to hold both Zanzibar and Union presidencies.

He fought for drastic economic transformations, a move that changed the image of the country at the time and earned him the name 'MzeeRukhsa', Kiswahili for someone who 'Okays nearly everything'.
The Uganda Private Sector players have expressed satisfaction on the way matters are opening up with promising market access across the East African Community (EAC) partner states.

With the new leadership at the helm of the EAC Secretariat and after swearing in of presidents of governments in most countries, changes are starting to be felt among traders in the positive node for intra-EAC business.

The players are upbeat on prompt interventions on market access challenges for their goods and resolutions of persistent trade barriers across the region, EAC's Secretariat decided to be proactive in clearing trade hurdles at borders.

Also, it is in response to a decision to avail a trade hotline that will provide cross-border traders with a platform to register their challenges and get rapid feedback or solutions.

At the Chief Executive Officers (CEO)'s Round Table in Kampala, Uganda on Thursday, the business leaders called for finalisation of amendment of the EAC elimination of Non-Tariff Barriers (NTB) Act, 2017, in a move set to reduce transaction costs, hence boost intra-EAC trade.

The Executive Director for Private Sector Federation Uganda (PSFU), Mr Gideon Badagawa, said the activation of a dispute resolution mechanism through the operationalization of the Trade Remedies Committee and harmonization of EAC partner states laws are some of the issues the EAC Secretariat is urged to fast track.

Since its founding in 1995, PSFU has served as a focal point for private sector advocacy as well as capacity building, and continues to sustain a positive dialogue with the government on behalf of the private sector.

It is Uganda's apex body for the private sector. It is made up of over 200 business associations, corporate bodies and major public sector agencies that support private sector growth.

The EAC Director General of Customs and Trade, Mr Kenneth Bagamuhunda hailed the United Republic of Tanzania for sharing a letter to the EAC Secretariat, expressing an interest in joining the One Network Area (ONA).

"The adoption of the One Network Area (ONA) model by all EAC partner states is set to reduce the high cost of telecommunications in the region," he said.

In 2015, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) launched the 'Let's Roam the World Initiative' to follow up on previous work in the area of international mobile roaming. It then came up with a report on ONA Roaming Initiative.

The report showed a good example of a multi-country initiative for the creation of a harmonized enabling environment for the international mobile roaming market, with the objective of having affordable access to roaming services for both voice and data.

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It showed that despite price reductions, and the emergence of a range of alternative technologies and calling solutions, prices were still high so that action was still being taken to make the service affordable to all consumers.

It illustrated how important it is to have an inclusive dialogue so that together, stakeholders could define appropriate solutions for business, regulation and policy issues.

The report was taken partly as guidance to assist the East Africa countries and other regional economic communities in Africa in their discussions and decisions on international mobile roaming, hence contributing to bring the East Africa northern corridor states to work together on the issue and contribute to the drive for greater integrated regional economic development.

This week's Uganda CEO's Roundtable under the theme Enhancing a Private Sector led Integration & Emerging opportunities in East Africa was well attended by industry captains from institutions such as the Uganda Manufacturers Association, Uganda Law Society and Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry among many others.
Right from 1986 when the National Resistance Movement (NRM) captured power in Uganda it has put a lot of emphasis on agriculture as the best solution to youth unemployment and poverty alleviation.

To prove that he is really serious about developing agriculture President Museveni has been photographed in the media doing irrigation demonstrations on his personal farm and pushing a bicycle carrying water for irrigation. He has been all over the country visiting selected farmers and encouraging them, by giving them support in form of Friesian cows, trucks, tools, among other things.

Rural Farmers Scheme

The NRM government has consistently identified itself with farmers and in the late 80s it came up with the Rural Farmers Scheme, (RFS) a project that was meant to give credit to farmers in order to boost agricultural productivity and farmers' livelihoods. RFS funds were channelled through the defunct Uganda Commercial Bank (UCB). The farmers were never really trusted with cash and instead the credit was mostly granted in form of inputs. The bank gave RFS beneficiaries items asuch as beans, maize, wheelbarrows, spray pumps, among others.

How RFS failed

It would later give out the funds for weeding the crop and harvesting it. However it turned out that most of the farmers who took the inputs did plant the crops but failed to get the promised cash to pay for weeding and harvesting labour.

The bank tried to recover the money worth the physical inputs loaned out to the farmers but they pleaded that since RFS had failed to provide the cash for weeding, the crops had perished in the fields and they therefore had no money to pay to the bank.

Entandikwa

RFS then slowly died and was replaced with Entandikwa, which was money loaned to the farmers so that they could set up income generating activities such as poultry, beekeeping or crop production. The loaning criterion was, however, not so well understood and many farmers mistook the money for gifts given to them by the NRM for their political support and many never paid back.

At the back of their minds most of them figured that it was difficult for the government to take their plots of land (bibanja) and other property that they had rendered as collateral. Then this was followed by Naads, PMA (Plan For Modernisation of Agriculture), Bonna Bagaggawale (Prosperity for All), Operation Wealth Creation, Presidential Initiative on Wealth and Job Creation (Emyooga), and now the promised Parish Model programme in which some money is to be placed at the parish council for lending to farmers and other groups.

What went wrong?

However, generally all the different poverty alleviation programmes so far presented by the NRM government have not yielded satisfactory results and poverty continues to bite.

Mr Joseph Kalungi, formerly Masaka District chairman and well known NRM member, says, "All those programmes that you have listed are good and the government actually had the right intentions and the objectives were all very good."

He blamed their collapse on the apparent failure by the government to sensitise the recipients about how to invest the loans in gainful economic activities.

"In most cases the recipients think the money is given to them as rewards for their support for the NRM and they do not feel the obligation to pay. Moreover in their view it is the government that came up with the idea to lend and it is not that they really needed to borrow. It is not demand driven. Some of them are just selfish and never think about others. For example some farmers receive cows and they are told to pass on the calf to another farmer as a form of payment but they don't want to do so," says Kalungi.

Kalungi discloses that although the programmes are initiated by politicians intent on improving the lives of the citizens, the implementers are, in most cases, the technical staff such as agricultural services extension officers and the chief administrative officers (CAO) who lack the zeal of the politicians in ensuring that the programmes succeed and that the people benefit. "For example we have seen cases when seeds delay to reach the farmers and they are delivered at the end of the rain season."

Biotechnology

Other observers, however, attribute Uganda's slow pace in agricultural development to the NRM's phobia for adopting science and technology in agriculture. Writing in the Daily Monitor on October 9, 2015, Dr Wilberforce Tushemeirwe of Naro said: "Our crops are facing extinction and there are no known ways of effectively dealing with the new pests and diseases other than the use of biotechnology." Food crops such as cassava, bananas, sweet potatoes, are facing extinction due to incurable crop diseases. Cotton which is a cash crop has proven difficult to grow here in Uganda because of the cotton bollworm pest infestation. Maize is under attack by the fall army worm.

According to Uganda Biotechnology Information Centre (UBIC), 80 per cent of Ugandan farmers grow maize and the crop generates an estimated $51m (Shs180b) annually to the country. It is also an important food crop for both humans and livestock.

However, its production is greatly hampered by stem borer and the fall army worm as well as recurrent droughts, particularly in these times of climate change which reduce yields by 40 per cent.

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GMO research has led to preparation of maize that can withstand, drought, stem borer, and fall armyworm. Irish potato farmers have to spend a lot of money to spray the crop with pesticides in order to overcome potato blight. This reduces profits and carries a health risk to consumers. Our researchers in Naro have come up with GM potatoes that resist the potato blight.

The NRM government has built state of the art GMO research laboratories across the country besides spending heavily on GMO research and training of manpower in biotechnology.

Naro to which Dr Tushemereirwe belongs is mandated to carry out agricultural research in order to find solutions to our country's farming challenges. It has warned that one of the best ways to overcome the pests and diseases challenges is to adopt biotechnology. Yet the same NRM government is not ready to approve the adoption of GMO technology in its farming systems so as to save its cash and food crops by coming up with the regulatory law to govern the application of the technology in the country's economic development.

Its universities and other institutions of higher learning are teaching biotechnology yet the country is not so keen on setting up the Biotechnology and Bio-safety Law. So the farmers cannot grow the GM crops yet. Why then do our researchers spend time on research and why pay their salaries and take them for further training?
An innovation is a new or improved product or process or a combination of the two. The innovation thus differs significantly from previously used products and services as it has added socio-economic benefits.

More often than not, innovations are thought to be complex and unaffordable products and services. However, one simple innovation that has the potential to transform the rearing of indigenous chicken is the chick cage made from used vehicle tyres.

From disease to predation control in chicks, the cage can multiply profits in the indigenous chicken free-range farming system. Other innovations that enhance the cage's potential include incubators that have the capacity to hold just a few eggs as well as commercial feed formulations designed for the various development stages of local birds.

Indigenous chicken

Indigenous birds are produced by resource-poor farmers in the rural areas and their production contributes significantly to food security and poverty alleviation.

The birds are commonly reared in a free-range system where they scavenge for food in the compound and there is little supplementation with grains and kitchen remains.

All the ages of birds and sexes scavenge together and the chicks have little to eat making them prone to diseases, stunted growth and high mortalities. They are also predisposed to predators that include mongoose, hawks, eagles and stray dogs and cats, among others. This reduces productivity of the indigenous birds whose eggs and meat are a delicacy.

Another challenge with indigenous birds' production is the brooding nature of the mother hen. This is a situation where the hen lays a number of eggs in a batch/clutch and then sits on them for three weeks to hatch after which it takes care of them for another nine weeks before it can start producing eggs once again.

The process is repeated about three times in a year with the bird producing between 30 and 60 eggs. Research has shown that if the bird is prevented from brooding, the number of clutches can be increased to five in a year with an increase of about 18 or more in the same year. Rise in egg production is another way of increasing productivity in the farming system.

Used tyre cages

The cage has a circular base made of criss-crossing wires. The wires are extracted from used tyres through burning. The wires are then attached to a tyre that is lying on its side, from which another wire mesh system is added to form a conical structure. On one side of the cone is a small door that is used to let in chicks, hens, feed and water. The cage is sold in open air markets across the country. The factors that make the cage a novelty are:

Disease control: Disease control is not about drugs and vaccines only as housing also plays a major role. The cage protects chicks from bacterial diseases such as salmonella and E.coli; and also worms and other parasites.

Predation control: The cage keeps off predators.

Mobility: It is easy to carry the cage from one place to another, thus during the day, it can be placed outside for the chicks to get sunshine and hence vitamin D while it is placed inside at night for safety of the birds. It is recommended that the cage be placed on a raised platform at night to control crawling insects such as mange mites and fleas.

Brooding control: The use of the cage coupled with a heat source makes it possible for the mother to be relieved of its chick-care duties in which case it goes back to laying.

Ease of feeding: With the cage, it is possible to feed the chicks separately, what results in speedy growth.

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Isolation ward: Since local birds are not housed during the day, it becomes very difficult to isolate and treat sick birds.

This forces farmers to place medicated water/feed in a strategic place in the compound for all the birds to take. The danger with the practice is that even healthy birds are exposed to medicines and with time, micro-organisms get used to these medicines hence anti-microbial resistance. This implies that the birds will not respond to treatment when treated with the same medicine in future.

Another challenge with the mass treatment of sick and healthy birds is the presence of small amounts (residues) of the drugs in the meat and eggs of such birds. The residues can cause anti-microbial resistance in drugs that treat the consumers.

They also predispose the consumer to allergy and cancer, among others. The cage, therefore, acts as an isolation ward for sick birds and due to the seclusion, the birds don't continue spreading the disease, they recover fast and can thus be released to continue scavenging.
Ethiopian authorities have proposed delaying a previously postponed national poll over low voter registration and logistical issues.

At a consultation forum with political parties on Saturday, the Ethiopian Electoral Board announced that the 6th General Election will not be conducted on the scheduled date.

The reason, it said, was that voter registration and other "activities" had not been completed per schedule.

The board asked the dozens of political parties to delay the election by at least three weeks. However, it is not yet known if an agreement has been reached among the political parties.

Last year, Ethiopia postponed a parliamentary election due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ethiopians were supposed to vote on June 5, 2021 to elect a new Parliament as well as regional and municipal councils.

Peace increasing unlikely

Political analysts doubt that Ethiopia would hold peaceful elections.

William Davison of the International Crisis Group says a peaceful election in the conflict-ravaged horn of Africa nation seems increasingly unlikely while unresolved grievances persist among nationalities and ethnic groups.

"The big problem is the level of violence we're seeing across the country at this time, which looks like it is increasing in the run-up to the elections in early June," Mr Davidson told DW.

This applies particularly to the regional states of Benishangul-Gumuz and Oromia, the latter which is the largest of Ethiopia's nine administrative regions, and where insurgent activity has increased.

"It may prove difficult to hold elections in areas where the security situation is fragile," Mr Davidson said, adding violence is prone to escalate through increased attacks by ethnic militias.

"There are also logistical issues. More than 56 million citizens eligible to vote are not registered to do so."

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Oromo, Tigray conflicts

According to Mr Davison, the electoral board was initially unable to carry out voter registration in western Oromia.

Security issues also led to massive problems in Benishangul-Gumuz.

On Tigray, Mr Davidson said: "There is a civil war going on in Tigray. There is a state of emergency, so there will be no elections in Tigray."

He added: "There have also been delays in voter registration in the Afar and Somali regions, where there was recently a territorial dispute between regional paramilitary forces."

As a result of the volatile situation, some opposition parties including the powerful Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) and the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) have boycotted the ballot.

Opposition parties accuse the government of arresting their leaders, intermediating between their members and shutting down their offices.
Washington / Khartoum  The USA affirmed yesterday its commitment to working with international partners to find a solution to important issues in the Horn of Africa, including the differences between Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and the border dispute between Khartoum and Addis Ababa.

The US Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa, Jeffrey Feltman, said in a statement at the end of his visit to Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea and Ethiopia from May 4 to 13, that he discussed with leaders in Addis Ababa, Cairo, and Khartoum "Egypt and Sudan's concerns over water security, and how the safety and operation of the dam can be reconciled with Ethiopia's development needs through substantive and results-oriented negotiations among the parties under the leadership of the African Union, which must resume urgently.

"We believe that the 2015 Declaration of Principles signed by the parties and the July 2020 statement by the AU Bureau are important foundations for these negotiations, and the United States is committed to providing political and technical support to facilitate a successful outcome," the media note of the US Department of State reads.

The envoy discussed the resumption of the dam talks under the auspices of the African Union and their speedy resumption with the leaders of the three countries. He emphasised that Washington is committed to providing political and technical support to facilitate a successful outcome of the negotiations.

The US envoy stated he will return to the countries in the Horn of Africa to continue intensive diplomatic efforts to resolve the differences in the region.

Feltman called the Sudanese transition to democracy "a once-in-a-generation opportunity that can serve as an example for the region" and said that "The USA will continue to support the country's ongoing transition to democracy so that Sudan can claim its place as a responsible regional actor after three decades as a destabilizing force."

The USA and EU have both affirmed their willingness to mediate in the negotiations on the GERD between Ethiopia, Egypt, and Sudan.

'The USA will continue to support the country's ongoing transition to democracy so that Sudan can claim its place as a responsible regional actor after three decades as a destabilizing force.'

- Jeffrey Feltman, US Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa

Deadlock

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok previously said that "without a tight and binding legal agreement [on the Nile waters], there will be too many risks, and we hope that we will reach this agreement before the date of filling the dam in July, as announced by Ethiopia".

He referred to the initiative of the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, saying that "we responded to it stressing the necessity to reach a binding legal agreement in accordance with international law".

On April 20, Radio Dabanga reported that the Sudanese government called on the UN Security Council to help break the negotiations deadlock between Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan regarding GERD, after the latest round of talks in Kinshasa earlier this month produced little progress.

In a statement mid-April, the Sudanese government asserted that "while Ethiopia negotiates for its right for socio-economic development, and Egypt for the right of its water share, Sudan negotiates to safeguard the lives of more than 20 million people living downstream the GERD".

On March 13, Sudan's Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok wrote a letter to the African Union, the United Nations, the European Union, and the USA to request formation of a 'quartet committee' to mediate in the negotiations of the GERD. In the letter, Hamdok suggests changing the method used in the negotiations, which led to the failure to reach an agreement between the three parties during the past negotiation period, as well as establishing an approach based on the presence of the main international partners.

Hamdok's letter followed an agreement reached in Cairo in April between Hamdok and Egyptian President Abdelfattah El Sisi, who said "nobody will be permitted to take a single drop of Egypt's water, otherwise the region will fall into unimaginable instability."

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Colonial border

As for the Sudanese-Ethiopian border dispute, Lt Gen Shamseldin Kabbashi, strongly denied "rumours that the El Fashaga farmlands [in eastern Sudan's El Gedaref] will be shared between Sudan and Ethiopia, as was proposed in an initiative by the United Arab Emirates.

In early April, Sudanese authorities closed the border crossing between El Galabat in eastern Sudan's El Gedaref and the Ethiopian town of Metema following attacks by Ethiopian gunmen on Sudanese government forces.

The 1,600 kilometres border between Sudan and Ethiopia was drawn in colonial times. It has never been clearly demarcated since Sudan became independent. The lack of clear border markers has made it easy for Ethiopian militants to occupy fertile farmlands in eastern El Gedaref.

In eastern Sudan's El Fashaga locality, Ethiopian farmers have been cultivating crops for decades. The lands are protected by Ethiopian gunmen (called shifta in the region).
book review

Africa's ministers of finance and economic development convened in Algiers on 8 May 2001 for their annual meeting. Their conference is usually unremarkable: this was a rare occasion in which it was momentous. In his memoir Know the Beginning Well, K.Y. Amoako provides a unique insider's view. I was also there, as a member of his team.

The conference one agenda item: to adopt a unified proposal for a continent-wide rejuvenation programme. The Millennium African Recovery Plan (MAP) had originated as an initiative by South Africa's president Thabo Mbeki for the African 'renaissance', which would among other things reset development partnerships between the continent and its major donors, and facilitate South African private capital finding investment opportunities in the rest of the continent, thereby helping to fill Africa's estimated $64 billion finance gap.

Mbeki's initiative had the strong backing of Nigeria and Algeria. The UK Prime Minister Tony Blair was known to be an advocate--on the condition that Africa presented a unified plan. Not wishing to become a second-tier player, Senegal's Abdoulaye Wade had also put forward his OMEGA plan, which had a stronger emphasis on infrastructure. In reality it was a bid for leadership.

Since Amoako took over as the Executive Director of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) five years earlier, he had refocused the institution on bridging the gap between Africans' analysis of their economic predicament and the World Bank's. He positioned the ECA as an intellectual powerhouse in the emerging international partnership for Africa's development. The previous year, Amoako, had crafted his own set of proposals for economic recovery. Initially floated as a 'Global Compact for Africa' this was refined in discussion with the South African MAP team to become the 'Compact for Africa's Recovery'.

The ECA set the agenda for the Algiers conference, which began with unifying the MAP, OMEGA and Compact for Africa's Recovery. Technically, this should not have been a difficult task, and as an enthusiastic technocrat, Amoako assumed that the procedural hurdle would be vaulted in the opening session, after which the ministers would turn to details. It didn't happen.

After the strong declarations of purpose in the opening session, the conference hit a roadblock. First Senegal and then South Africa refused to compromise. Almost the entire meeting was taken up with shuttle diplomacy among hotel rooms while the planned sessions were put on hold. It was the politics of positioning: who was to be heralded as the leader. It was as though the delegates had been instructed that it was better for the talks to collapse than for their rivals to emerge with the credit. Just as the South Africans and Senegalese reached a deal, the Algerians stepped in demanding trivial but problematic changes, just to show their weight.

I remember Amoako opening a bottle of wine in his hotel suite to celebrate success on the final evening--'success' meaning that there was an agreed final communique to adopt what was now called the 'New African Initiative'. There had been neither time nor energy to discuss the innovative ideas on the table.

Among these proposals formulated by the ECA was the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), a radical idea to shift away from donor-imposed conditionality to a collective African responsibility for good governance. It was the counterpart of the African-led concepts of 'sovereignty as responsibility' and 'non-indifference' to egregious violations of human rights--a recognition that Africa needed to be honest about its own failures and to address those failures itself. While the 'New African Initiative' went forward to the summit of the Organisation of African Unity two months later, the APRM took another year to win approval.

Amoako's vision was that Africa should own the goals and strategies for economic development, and that this would be workable if the principles and institutions for governance were in alignment with international best practices. Africa might not be able to challenge the orthodoxies of the Bretton Woods Institutions--the so-called 'Washington Consensus'--but if the continent acted in a coordinated manner, then it could maximize its room for manoeuvre.

A few months after the OAU adopted the plan, it was renamed the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). It was the first continent-wide economic blueprint to win major backing from Africa's international donors. But under the same pressures that had turned the Algiers conference into a haggling process, NEPAD morphed into a mechanism for coordinating projects instead than a shared set of norms and principles. The progress was incremental rather than transformative.

Chapter 11 of Know the Beginning Well is subtitled 'A look behind the scenes at getting NEPAD off the ground.' It deals with that meeting: that was the point at which Amoako's professional expertise and ambition, aligned with shared vision among some African leaders and international development ministers (especially in Europe), met the transactional calculus of Africa's real politics. For him it was a salutary awakening about the petty games played by political leaders. It is a testament to the energy behind the transformative agenda that Amoako and his fellow travellers got as far as they did.

Twenty years on, we can see the fruits of those efforts--and also how some of the pickings have been greedily gobbled up.

One of the great successes of the development partnership decade was that most of Africa's debt to the OECD and multilateral institutions was forgiven and the proceeds of the write-off were ploughed into supporting government-led programmes to attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In the decades of rapid growth that followed, the biggest economic partner suddenly became China. Its focus was infrastructure and natural resource extraction, and it has been ready to invest and lend heedless of the complex governance assessments championed by the ECA and NEPAD. In their rush to take Chinese loans, many African countries have fallen into a new debt trap, with a creditor unlikely to be forgiving.

Africa's development partnership decades saw impressive growth, poverty reduction and improvements in human development indicators. But too many elites found the possibilities for self-enrichment too enticing. The ECA's own High-Level Panel on Illicit Financial Flows (which reported in 2015) found astonishing levels of corruption and capital flight, with foreign investors, African businesspeople and leaders in cahoots. In extremis these funds were used to buy off entire political systems.

The single biggest case is state capture in South Africa under Jacob Zuma, which the government of Cyril Ramaphosa is struggling to undo. There have been authoritarian-kleptocratic turns in countries from Tanzania and Uganda to Mali and Cote d'Ivoire. In the case of Ethiopia, poster child for the Millennium Development Goals, the current elite is killing the goose that laid the golden egg, its fall shown dramatically by the disinterest of foreign investors in bidding for the crown jewels of the government's privatization programme, Ethiopia Telecom.

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Another success was the African response to HIV and AIDS. Amoako identified the pandemic as the greatest threat to African development--a governance and economic disaster in the making as well as a health crisis. The ECA convened the second Africa Development Forum on the theme of HIV and AIDS as Africa's greatest leadership challenge in 2000 and established the Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa (CHGA) (in which I was involved) thereafter.

When the CHGA reported several years later, its findings were unexpectedly optimistic: Africa had avoided the feared societal and governance crises associated with AIDS. One reason was that anti-retroviral therapies had been rolled out more expeditiously and accessibly than anyone had anticipated, due in large part to international advocacy for affordable treatment. Another was that the HIV and AIDS response was guided by principles of human rights and inclusion.

Sadly, Africa set aside these hard-learned lessons when Covid-19 struck a year ago, opting instead for off-the-shelf top-down biomedical templates for pandemic response. African leadership on HIV and AIDS had been mixed but was ultimately strong; on Covid-19 it has been almost non-existent. This is encapsulated in the bitter irony that the Director General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom, elected to his position because of his extraordinary record in improving the health outcomes for Ethiopians, was rejected and denigrated by his own country.

Amoako's memoir obliges us to reflect on the shifting doctrines, goals and performance of African economic development. The zenith of those efforts was NEPAD, and the origins story of that initiative also tells us much about the politics that makes development function or fail.
In the first of this two-part series, evidence before the state capture inquiry shows how the multibillion-rand deal went ahead despite warnings about the exorbitant cost and danger to health. [Part 2]



It is common knowledge that former president Jacob Zuma fired then minister of finance Nhlanhla Nene in December 2015 because he would not support Zuma's 9.6GW nuclear deal. But what is less well known are the falsehoods told by the deal's supporters to coerce reluctant Cabinet ministers - and the country at large - into believing that nuclear power was in South Africa's best interests.

Witnesses before the Zondo commission investigating state capture revealed the lies told about nuclear power relating to its alleged safety, its alleged cost and the alleged handling of nuclear waste. Evidence before Judge Raymond Zondo shows that parts of the ANC executive were hell-bent on pursuing the deal, with scant regard for South Africa's fiscal health, or the health and interests of its residents.

The Department of Energy presented these falsehoods to Cabinet on 9 December 2015, in a presentation declassified before the Zondo commission. The department was then headed by Tina Joemat-Pettersson, a Zuma loyalist.

To start, the department led Cabinet to believe that seven other African countries would be operating nuclear power plants within the following 10 to 15 years, five of which were said to be procuring nuclear power by 2020. To date, only one has begun to build a nuclear power station: the controversial El Dabaa plant that Russian state-owned Rosatom is building in Egypt for $30 billion. No other African country has made a commitment to nuclear power.

The department told Cabinet that nuclear power is safe. It said only 60 people died because of the Chernobyl catastrophe in then Soviet Ukraine in 1986, and that no one died because of the Fukushima Daiichi disaster caused by an earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan in 2011. The Chernobyl fatalities figure that the department cited was based on the original assessment by the United Nations, which it increased dramatically in 2005 to 4 000 fatalities. But many consider this figure to be a gross underestimate, with some sources claiming that as many as 500 000 will die because of that nuclear disaster (the Russian Academy of Sciences estimates 200 000).

The Ukrainian government compensates 35 000 spouses of people it has deemed to have died from Chernobyl-related health problems, while non-profit science advocacy organisation the Union of Concerned Scientists estimates the death toll at 27 000.

We will never know the true fatality total because there has not been a comprehensive, longitudinal examination of the health impacts of the disaster. This means that deaths from cancer in the Ukraine, Belarus and Russia are simply recorded as such and are not linked to Chernobyl, despite increasing evidence that long-term exposure to low levels of ionising radiation is more dangerous to human health than previously thought.

For the same reasons, we will also never know how many people have died or will die from the Fukushima accident because deaths from cancer are not linked to the disaster. There is also a problem in simply recording death rates as this tends to hide chronic illnesses, suffering caused by illnesses and negative impacts on mental health.

In Fukushima, for example, nearly 600 people died after they were evacuated from around the plant owing to what has been described as "evacuation stress". The stress of forcing thousands of people to abandon their homes, most permanently, is significant. In Japan, 160 000 people were forced to abandon their homes, while 350 000 were evacuated in the Ukraine.

Hidden costs

The department also brazenly told Cabinet that nuclear waste was not a problem because it "is stored deep underground". Nowhere is nuclear waste from power generation stored underground. Where it is being attempted, for example in Finland, it is hugely expensive and no one knows yet if it will work.

Critically, the department told Cabinet that nuclear power was the cheapest option for South Africa. It presented figures stating that the operating costs of nuclear were six times cheaper than those of coal in the country. What the department conveniently forgot to mention was that these costs excluded the enormous cost of construction for Koeberg - Africa's only nuclear power station on the Western Cape coast, which cost more than planned - and the colossal cost of decommissioning this plant when the time comes.

It did not include the cost of "safely" disposing of nuclear waste. Neither did it include the cost of renewable energy compared with nuclear generation.

If the true cost of nuclear power had been factored in, it would not have appeared viable. This was precisely what the government-funded Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) told the government. As did numerous other expert sources such as the Energy Research Centre at the University of Cape Town and private think-tank Meridian Economics, to name just two.

The department blatantly ignored these facts. Instead, it claimed that the construction of 9.6GW of nuclear power would contribute R40 billion to South Africa's gross domestic product each year during construction, and add another R5 billion for each year of operation. The department's presentation noted that it is difficult to assess the impact of energy on economic growth, but this did not stop it from telling Cabinet that the estimated R650 billion investment would "produce a total return of R3.2 trillion for South Africa".

These pie-in-the-sky figures were attributed to a nuclear engineer from North-West University with no qualifications in economics. Such was the determination in 2015 to proceed with the deal that this opinion was deemed more important to the department than that of the CSIR and all the other institutions, energy professionals and economists opposed to the procurement.

Dodgy numbers

The department's presentation was replete with additional financing issues. It listed the rand-to-dollar exchange rate at R10 to $1, despite the rate at the time being R14.50 to $1. This underestimated costs by up to an astonishing 40%. The presentation put the cost of nuclear power over plant lifetime (the levelised cost) at $2 500/kW to $6 500/kW, whereas the true cost in 2015 was somewhere between $6 500/kW and $8 500/kW. The average cost in the United States that year was $7 600/kW. Despite this, the department assumed costs of $5 000/kW in its conclusion.

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The presentation indicated that localisation - the contribution South African companies would make to the nuclear build - would result in economic growth during construction. At the same time, however, it noted that export credit financing would be used to cover 70% of costs. This would result in extremely limited localisation, as export credit financing is only offered by a vendor country if its exports predominate. This blatant contradiction was left unchallenged by Cabinet.

The presentation predicted economic growth rates of between 2% and 4%. South Africa's economy grew by less than 1% on average between 2015 and 2019, and the Covid-19 pandemic caused it to slump by 7% in 2020.

The presentation did acknowledge that the procurement of nuclear power would affect electricity tariffs, but casually noted that "raising tariffs would reduce fiscal costs by shifting some of the burden to electricity consumers". It also acknowledged that there were "affordability limits" and proposed a "stop-go" decision-making process.

While it is not absolutely clear what the department meant by this, it seems to imply that if costs become unreasonable the government should be able to withdraw from the procurement. What implications this would have for the government's credibility, or what resources may already have been sunk and thus lost in now stranded assets, was left unexplained.

Overall, the department's presentation estimated costs for the procurement of 9.6GW of nuclear power at between R240 billion in a "best-case scenario" and R624 billion in the "worst case".
In the second of this two-part series, evidence before the state capture inquiry makes it clear that South Africans will shoulder the real cost of adding nuclear generation to the energy mix. [Part 1]

In stark contrast to the Department of Energy's abundant optimism and can-do attitude, the provisional modelling the National Treasury undertook in 2015 drew attention to the many serious financial risks involved in the Zuma government's procurement of 9.6GW of nuclear power generation.

Made public for the first time before the Zondo commission that is investigating allegations of state capture, the treasury's report said the procurement of 9.6GW would be one of the largest infrastructure investments ever undertaken by a country relative to gross domestic product (GDP).

It would have "material consequences for the country's international financial position and balance of payments, the balance sheet of the South African government, as well as the finances of all South Africans for decades to come ... Ultimately, South African taxpayers and electricity consumers will pay the full cost of the programme," said the treasury.

The treasury's financial modelling, which it presented to the Cabinet, said nuclear power would do little to address "pressing energy security requirements" over the short or medium terms. And it warned that the procurement could lead to "an unwarranted build-up of sovereign debt" that would likely lead to a downgrading of South Africa's credit rating.

The report highlighted the very real risks of delays, deviations and cost overruns during construction, and the potentially "catastrophic" financial consequences of a serious accident. Significantly, it drew attention to the "crowding out of resources for other critical government priorities". The treasury said it would be necessary to "restrain government consumption throughout the build programme" and warned that the government would have to abandon specific policy objectives such as the National Health Insurance scheme, post-school education innovations and social security reforms. It also warned that public sector wages would be negatively affected.

Financial discrepancies

The treasury disputed the energy department's cost estimates, saying that calculations should be based on figures between $5 000/kW and $10 000/kW, saying that "the possibility of cost escalation of at least 50% should be assumed". It described the $5 000/kW that the department accepted as an "optimistic assumption" and said that in pursuing nuclear, the government was "putting all its eggs in one basket", threatening energy security if the procurement failed.

The treasury report said that "whatever contracting model or financing structure is chosen, significant increases in tariffs will be impossible to avoid ... steep upfront increases will be required", suggesting that tariffs may well have had to increase before the first nuclear power station was complete.

If tariffs were not to increase, said the treasury, the government would have to provide financing through tax increases and debt, which would have a negative impact on the economy. Lastly, it drew attention to additional "very large costs" that had yet to be considered, including upgrades to transmission infrastructure, skills development, interim and long-term waste disposal, plant decommissioning and insurance. Excluding all these additional costs, the treasury priced the procurement between R336 billion in a "best-case scenario" and R1.56 trillion in a "worst-case scenario".

The treasury said that even if all the best-case assumptions were met, "there remain significant risks associated with an upfront fiscal commitment to a 9.6GW procurement which cannot be mitigated". It called on the government to do more research before committing to the project and recommended that it do a "full feasibility study" and make it "available for public scrutiny". The report also recommended that the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation undertake a "thorough social and economic impact assessment study of the project before the conclusion of any binding contractual commitments".

Lastly, if the procurement of this nuclear generation capacity were to go ahead, the treasury strongly recommended that the government procure only 2.4GW as a provisional first step.

A nation's finances

At the Cabinet meeting that included the presentation of the energy department's recommendations and the treasury's concerns - which resulted in former president Jacob Zuma firing then minister of finance Nhlanhla Nene - it was agreed that South Africa would procure 9.6GW of nuclear power generation. Taking its figures directly from the department's presentation, the overall cost was estimated to be between R240 billion and R624 billion.

The Cabinet-meeting minutes say it was the government's "intention" to keep costs between R240 billion and R624 billion. Quite how this "intention" was to be met in the real world is unknown. The minutes state under the subheading "Communications implications" that "the worst-case programme cost scenario should not be part of our communication strategy".

The Cabinet's decision to go ahead with the nuclear deal reveals deeply troubling issues with South Africa's fragile democracy. It demonstrates how a determined, if not rogue, president with support from sycophantic ministers can not only ignore the advice of the treasury but can, through the president's right to appoint ministers, exercise complete control over the nation's finances.

That this was briefly possible illustrates how ineffective parliamentary oversight is in holding the executive to account. The limitations of Parliament are revealed when party discipline and loyalty - so-called democratic centralism - is prized above democratic and accountable decision-making.

That Zuma's nuclear deal was thwarted was ultimately not because of the actions of treasury officials such as Nene and then treasury director general Lungisa Fuzile, who openly opposed the deal, but because of the existence of vibrant civil organisations and an independent judiciary.

As we stare down the barrel of yet another nuclear drive - the government wants to add 2.5GW of nuclear power generation to South Africa's energy mix - it is worth remembering the importance of such institutions. It is also worth remembering what the treasury had to say about the procurement of 2.4GW in 2015.

'Significant' risks

While it said that a limited procurement was preferable to 9.6GW, it stated that such an investment "would still add significantly to government debt and take new risks on to the public balance sheet, which could result in a sovereign downgrade, particularly if investors and rating agencies view guarantees as equivalent to debt". It added that the financial risks associated with this smaller commitment were still "significant".

Public debt has ballooned since 2015, rising to more than 80% of GDP today from 43% of GDP in 2015, and sovereign downgrades have become commonplace, forcing the government to turn to the International Monetary Fund for a financial bailout. So, the question must be asked: How does the government propose paying for its nuclear ambitions?

The energy department did not provide an answer in its February "update" on the "nuclear new build" to the portfolio committee on mineral resources and energy in Parliament. It simply repeated that various funding options are available and failed to respond to questions from committee members as to how the state or Eskom could afford such procurement given the parlous financial state of both entities.

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Neither was the answer provided by the nuclear power supporters, including the current energy department, that appeared before the National Energy Regulator of South Africa's (Nersa) "concurrence hearings" on the procurement of the 2.5GW, also held in February. Instead, they hauled out the same old and tired arguments from 2015. In a rerun of the rush to procure in 2015, these arguments were countered by representatives from the government-funded Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, private think-tank Meridian Economics, the Energy Research Centre at the University of Cape Town and a host of other expert energy entities, all of which informed Nersa that South Africa should reject nuclear. We can only hope that someone in 2021 is prepared to listen to their overwhelming argument against nuclear.

There is a growing school of thought, however, that says this entire procurement exercise is nothing more than a performance by the department. Given its absurd cost at a time when South Africa and Eskom are effectively bankrupt, perhaps it is less about the procurement and more about the tenders that could be won in preparation for an eventuality that nobody really believes will occur.

This is a road down which we have travelled before. It emerged in 2016 that Shantan Reddy, a known associate of Zuma's, had scored a R171 million contract to provide a "programme management system" for that nuclear build. And information surfaced last year about a contract relating to the current nuclear procurement when the auditor general drew attention to R8.5 million worth of irregular expenditure relating to an information technology tender for the nuclear new build programme.

Only time will show the real cost to South Africa of the government's continued foolhardy insistence on pursuing its nuclear fantasies.
The family members of mineworkers killed during the Marikana massacre in 2012 have yet to see a police officer held to account, and police testimony thus far appears unclear.

The public area in the Mahikeng high court was populated with history's ghosts at the resumption of the murder trial of the police officers implicated in the strike at Marikana in 2012 that left 44 people dead.

There were close to 20 of the widows and other family members of the 37 mine workers the police killed during the 10-day wildcat strike. They waited, as they have done for almost a decade, for the first successful prosecution of a police officer for any of the strike-related deaths.

In Mahikeng, justice's waiting area appears as a homage to the Sol Kerzner casino and hotel resorts that populated apartheid South Africa's Bantustans - in this case Bophuthatswana and the former Mmabatho Sun - only stripped of its slot machines and card tables, and replaced with cushioned metal seats. It has that official smell of bureaucracy, of time appearing to stand still, and hope struggling to defeat the powerful.

Sharing the same waiting area, passageways and ablution facilities were the men accused of murdering their loved ones and then trying to cover it up.

William Mpembe was a major general in the South African Police Service (SAPS) and North West province's deputy provincial commissioner in 2012. As the police operational commander during the strike, Mpembe, who now heads security at Tharisa Minerals in Marikana, faces five counts of murder and is charged with defeating the ends of justice for lying under oath at the Farlam Commission of Inquiry into the Marikana massacre.

The now retired Colonel Salmon Vermaak, who was part of the police's air-wing command during the strike, is charged with lying to the commission and with leading a posse of police officers - which allegedly included Constable Nkosana Mguye and Warrant Officers Collin Mogale, Joseph Sekgwetla and Khazamola Makhubela - in hunting down and killing striking mineworker Phumzile Sokhanyile.

The charges relate to a skirmish between police officers and striking mineworkers on 13 August 2012, three days before the police massacred 34 striking mineworkers.

Police escort

The police had engaged with the group of mineworkers, who were returning to the koppie on which they had been gathering daily during the strike, on 13 August. The mineworkers had attempted to go to Karee mine's K3 shaft to stop anyone who was working there from doing so. They had twice encountered Lonmin security guards, who told them the shaft was closed, and were trekking back to the koppie when a police contingent led by Mpembe stopped them.

The striking mineworkers were armed with traditional weapons to protect themselves against Lonmin mine security and members of the majority National Union of Mineworkers, both of which had attacked them in previous days. The more violent peripheries among the striking mineworkers had killed security guards and non-striking mineworkers as the violence escalated.

Mpembe acquiesced to the striking miners' demand that the police escort them to the koppie, after which they would hand over their weapons. This after a fruitless negotiation meant they had ignored his demand that they do so near the railway tracks where the two groups encountered each other.

The police were escorting the mineworkers who police witnesses at the commission testified had been marching peacefully and in an orderly fashion until the skirmish broke out.

Video evidence submitted at the commission confirmed that the police started the skirmish without provocation. It left five people dead. These included mineworkers Sokhanyile, Semi Jokanisi and Thembelakhe Mati. Warrant Officers Hendrick Monene and Sello Lepaaku were also killed by striking mineworkers, with a separate murder trial involving those accused also dragging on.

Operational incompetencies

Alone, in another corner of the Mahikeng high court waiting area on 12 May, Warrant Officer Daniel Kuhn of the East Rand Public Order Policing Unit sat impassively in his blue uniform, his palms facing flat on his knees.

Kuhn was the police officer who fired the first tear gas canister which, followed quickly by another canister and a stun grenade, led to the deadly "chaos" on 13 August.

Above his SAPS-issue blue mask, his eyes stared straight ahead. Whether they remained fixed on the present or the past was difficult to tell. But years ago, Kuhn cited suffering post-traumatic stress as a reason not to testify at the Farlam commission, or be cross-examined.

National Prosecuting Authority advocate Kenneth Mashile confirmed information the police officer had furnished to the commission in a witness statement. This included that he had fired the first tear gas canister following an order from someone he was unable to identify. This was in contravention of the police Standing Order 262, which states that force may only be used on the command or instruction of the head of the Joint Operational Centre or operational commander, if appointed. Members may not act individually without receiving a command from their commander. Nine years later and Kuhn has still not been disciplined for this contravention.

Kuhn also confirmed during cross-examination that there had been a shortage of radios at the Marikana operation, which undermined the easy transmission of orders from police leadership to their boots on the ground. That is but one of a litany of operational incompetencies that riddled the police operation at Marikana.

Unclear testimony

Under cross-examination by Mpembe's counsel, advocate Jan Ellis, Kuhn said he could only see about 15m ahead of him because of the tear gas, but had witnessed several miners attacking a police officer.

He fired two bullets at the mineworkers and claimed to hit one of them, who fell "at the feet" of the police officer, who was confirmed as Monene. Kuhn said he had shot the mineworker in the shoulder and that he was still alive when he approached the two bodies. He subsequently handcuffed the mineworker and confirmed that the warrant officer was dead.

Kuhn said he later learnt that the mineworker he shot had died at the scene and that did not know his identity. According to Kuhn's evidence regarding the bullet wounds inflicted, the only person he would have killed in the incident would have been Jokanisi. Mati had sustained gunshot wounds to his thigh and buttock and Sokhanyile had been shot across a small stream about 620m from where Kuhn was and where the skirmish was taking place.

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Photographic and forensic evidence at the Farlam commission, however, appears to contradict Kuhn's version of events. It confirms that 29-year-old Jokanisi's body was found 150m from the body of Monene and an estimated 80m to 100m from Lepaaku.

With wounds similar to those Kuhn described as having inflicted, Jokanisi's body also had a bullet lodged in his spine and another that fractured his leg, making it impossible for him to move after he had been shot. This raises questions about Kuhn's testimony - particularly that he had shot Jokanisi and then handcuffed him - or that Jokanisi was even involved in the attack on Monene.

Kuhn's testimony of what happened on 13 and 16 August 2012, which the families of the dead mineworkers and police officers have waited nine years to hear, appears unclear for the moment. But what is clear is that he has travelled a long, perhaps still unsuccessful journey to free his mind of the trauma and tear gas, the bullets and the bloodshed of that fatal week.

For one sees Kuhn on 16 August 2012 in video footage from "scene one" near the cattle kraal where police officers mow down 17 striking mineworkers. He is not with the section to which he was deployed, the Public Order Policing Unit. Instead, he is standing alone about 10m in front of the Tactical Response Team line that opens fire on the mineworkers as they round the cattle kraal. Kuhn, too, opens fire, shooting 10 rounds of his R5 rifle into the mass of crouching mineworkers. He stops firing well after the order to do so is given.

Was he haunted then by the deaths of 13 August? Is he haunted still by history's ghosts?
editorial

Condemning Israel while continuing to do business with the state is a cynical attempt to spin optics when what Palestinians need is decisive action.

When it comes to Palestine, statements of condemnation are no longer worth the paper they are written on. Israel has used F-16 fighter jets to bomb high-rise apartment blocks, as it did to the Al Jandi Tower in the Gaza Strip, and shot and tear-gassed Palestinians praying in the Al Aqsa Mosque in the final week of Ramadan. On the night of May 13, Israeli war planes carried out an "unprecedented" bombing campaign on Gaza. The government of Israel is rejecting all offers of mediation to reach a ceasefire. It is clear, then, that condemnation not backed by material force is unable to prevent Israeli war crimes, or to offer even the most basic forms of protection to Palestinians.

The Israeli state continues to be awarded a significant degree of impunity by a declining but still powerful Euro-America global hegemony. At the same time, it wields a military backed with billions of dollars received each year from the government of the United States. This combination of impunity and extraordinary military force has produced an appalling system of oppression that needs to be confronted head-on.

The Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign, inspired by key tactics adopted by the international popular opposition to apartheid, is now 16 years old. It offers a practical route towards building international solidarity with Palestinians and opposition to the Israeli state. However, the governments of the world have largely refused to participate in the sanctions component of the campaign. Some municipalities, mainly in Europe, have acceded to pressure from BDS groups to divest from companies that do business with Israel, such as French water, waste and transport company Veolia. Some supermarkets have stopped stocking Israeli goods. But national governments are yet to ban all trade between their public and private sectors with the state of Israel or Israeli companies.

According to the Israeli Trade Mission to South Africa, our country imports R3.4 billion worth of Israeli goods and services each year, much of which is computer software, chemicals and electrical items. The two countries also have ties in agriculture, co-hosting a roadshow in South Africa last year that showcased Israeli smart-agriculture technologies.

When apartheid South Africa was isolated internationally, there were close links between the South African and Israeli states. Mining house De Beers exported rough diamonds worth billions of rands to Israel for cutting, polishing and export to the rest of the world. Israel lost much of the world's diamond beneficiation trade only when India set up lower-cost cutting and polishing factories.

However, Israel adapted fast, becoming what Israeli diamond dealers Benny and Yossi Meirov describe as "simply the international broker" for diamonds from South Africa, Russia and India. The diamond business between South Africa and Israel continues. The South African Diamond Corporation (Safdico) has an office in Israel and South African company Trans Atlantic Gems Sales recently helped the sale in Dubai of hundreds of millions of rands worth of rough diamonds to almost 50 Israeli companies, among others. "You will see traders from Israel coming to Dubai to buy diamonds in droves," David Zabinsky, the chief executive of Dubai diamond corporation Trigem, told the industry press.

Israel is also marketing its expertise in cyber security globally and shamelessly sells security equipment to other countries, some of which is used to repress protests elsewhere in the world, including the US. This was one of the issues that led to mutual affirmations of solidarity between the Black Lives Matter movement and the Palestinian struggle.

South Africa's veteran anti-arms deal campaigner, Terry Crawford-Browne, wrote in February that Israel is one of the top 10 global arms exporters. "Arms imports [to South Africa] from Israel since 2000 have been radar systems and aircraft pods for the arms deal BAE/Saab Gripens, riot vehicles and cyber security services. Unfortunately, the monetary values are not given. We should also remember that the semi-automatic G3 rifles used by the South African Police [Service] in the 2012 Marikana massacre were manufactured by Denel under licence from Israel".

Good for the goose

There is currently no impediment to the ANC government instituting sanctions against Israel to end this trade. Such sanctions would pressure other southern African countries such as Angola and Botswana to end their diamond, and other trade, with Israel. But the ANC, which won huge international support during its period of exile, simply ignores the urgent moral imperative to contribute to ending apartheid in Israel. Sending leaders and ordinary members to attend protests in support for Palestine is a politically meaningless gesture designed to pacify sentiment rather than exert real pressure on the Israeli state.

The ANC government has refused to sever diplomatic ties with Israel and has not shown any sign of being willing to agree to the Media Review Network advocacy group's request to "lift a visa ban on Palestinians and slap it on Israelis" (referring to the fact that Israeli citizens do not need a visa to visit South Africa, but Palestinians do).

Apart from having to apply for visas and the delay that the lengthy process entails, Palestinians have extra burdens that do not apply to Israelis. They have to provide proof of medical insurance, a hotel booking and sufficient funds for their stay. There are a host of restrictions that apply to Palestinians but not to Israelis, yet we are led to believe that South Africa opposes Israel's brutal military occupation of Palestine.

With the permission of the ANC government, the Israeli secret service has been operating its interrogation room at OR Tambo airport for decades. Here, almost every Palestine solidarity activist, trade unionist or pro-Palestinian academic travelling to Palestine for the past 20 years has been grilled about their political views, even strip-searched, before being allowed - or not - to travel to Palestine.

War crimes

Many Israeli war crimes have been committed in Palestine in the first weeks of May, including the murder of nine Palestinian children from the same extended family. Israel has bombed government offices and apartment blocks in the Gaza Strip for several days, killing scores of Palestinians including children and a man preparing for his wedding, the Al Jazeera news network reported. The death toll in Gaza as of the morning of May 14 stood at 115 killed, including 27 children and 11 women, and more than 600 wounded. More bodies remain trapped under the rubble. Earlier in the week, an Israeli attack by F-16 fighter jets on a Gaza refugee camp killed three people, including a mother and her disabled child. One of the dead was Mohammed Nusair, who had been awaiting the birth of his child, born just hours after Nusair was killed by an Israeli missile.

Israeli soldiers have invaded villages in the West Bank and hauled young men off to prison. The Israeli military storming of the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, one of the holiest sites in Islam, was not merely an unconscionable desecration. It resulted in more than 520 Palestinians injured in Jerusalem, another 200 in the West Bank, and the injury and arrest of 37 Palestinian children, Unicef reported. At the time of writing, Palestinian action, including rockets fired into Israel, had killed seven Israelis.

These and other instances of Israeli brutality towards Palestinians in Jerusalem have been misrepresented by the mainstream media, and South Africa's Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco), as "clashes".

Earlier this week Gaza-based academic Haidar Eid said, "Apartheid Israel wants us to accept our slave status and say thank you! That is not going to happen because we have taught the world the meaning of sumud (steadfastness)." Repeated violent attempts by Israeli settlers to evict Palestinian families from their homes in the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheik Jarrah and the invasion of the Al Aqsa Mosque have drawn a red line for Palestinians from Jerusalem, Gaza and the West Bank. That red line being a Palestinian cultural concept meaning a boundary that can never be breached, under any circumstances.

The Israeli government relies heavily on Israeli settlers, typically armed with machine guns and dogs, to invade and occupy individual Palestinian homes and communities in the cities of Jerusalem and Hebron. An ordinary Palestinian family has no chance against these mobs and is often forced to vacate in minutes the home they and their ancestors have lived in for decades.

After a settler occupation, activists from the International Solidarity Movement and the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel have for years had to escort children as young as six to school through the streets of these old cities. Israeli settlers in the occupied apartments throw bricks at the children, making the streets dangerous places. It serves Israel's interests for settlers, rather than soldiers, to be seen to be carrying out these illegal acts independently.

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But as we have seen in the second week of May, the presence of tens of thousands of unarmed Palestinians effectively deters the settlers and even stymies the enormous power of the Israeli military.

Hypocritical posturing

An estimated 90 000 unarmed Palestinians marched to protect the Al Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem. The "1948 Palestinians" living in Israel, sometimes wrongly referred to as "Israeli Arabs", have protested in their towns and cities, too.

This resistance comes at a heavy cost. Several Palestinians lost their eyes when they were shot out by Israeli soldiers. During Palestinian protests in 2003 against the huge concrete wall built by Israel, it was common to see dozens of young Palestinian men in wheelchairs taking part. In the main, they had been left disabled three years before, when the second Intifada began, by Israeli soldiers who deliberately shot at their spines while they took part in peaceful demonstrations. The number of these devastating injuries was so high that one West Bank village, Bili'in, hosted a march - led by young people in wheelchairs - against what activists have dubbed the "apartheid wall".

It is unthinkable that we should sit back and allow the numbers of dead Palestinians and those with life-altering injuries to rise. It is imperative that the ANC impose full and comprehensive sanctions, including a military embargo, against Israel.

Dirco has responded to the current escalation of repression by "condemning" Israel while making absurd calls for a two-state solution that would leave millions of Palestinians in exile, and which has not been possible for the past 20 years since Israel began cutting the West Bank into tiny separated bantustans with its grim architecture of oppression, including the giant wall that deforms the landscape, and people's lives.

The only way out of this quagmire is to isolate Israel and to sustain that isolation until a secular, democratic state is established for all Israeli and Palestinian citizens, including Palestinian exiles, regardless of race, religion and ethnicity. The hypocritical and opportunist posturing of the ANC government, which turns a blind eye to Israel's atrocities while sending small numbers of members to protest with the Palestine solidarity movement, must be rejected with the contempt it deserves.
analysis

Does Prime Minister Roble have enough support and independence to ensure elections can be held at last?

Somalia faces a political crisis because its leaders have been unable to hold elections after President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed's term of office expired in February.

In the absence of elections, his term was extended for two years by the Lower House of the country's Parliament in April. This decision was condemned by international partners and triggered protests and clashes in the capital Mogadishu later that month.

Mohamed, popularly known as Farmajo, has since backed down on the term extension. He has committed to a dialogue process and designated Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble to oversee the implementation and security of the elections.

The president's latest move has defused tensions and allowed the space for various actors to work towards reconciling stakeholders. But will the choice of Roble to spearhead the election process address the deadlock and pave the way for polls in Somalia?

Somali politicians cautiously welcomed Roble's role, as he brings numerous advantages to the position. First, he is Hawiye - the same clan as most of the country's leading opposition figures and most of the soldiers in the capital. Second, he's a newcomer in politics, so doesn't carry the same baggage as other politicians. To some, this gives hope for securing opposition buy-in.

Roble has promised not to take sides in the elections and has committed to delivering a credible poll acceptable to both sides of the political divide. However, since he was given the task by the president, some wonder if he can escape the influence of Villa Somalia. Another question is whether he can steer the election process with independence, given its high-stakes nature for the central government and the opposition.

The biggest challenge is the management of stakeholder trust in the elections. When he became president in 2017, Farmajo promised to work towards 'one person, one vote' rather than the clan-based indirect election, which brought him to office. However, inadequate preparations and al-Shabaab violence across Somalia in the latter part of his four-year term made it clear that universal suffrage wasn't feasible.

The federal government of Somalia and the five federal member states then agreed on a revised election model. The new approach was based on the 17 September 2020 agreement that provides wider participation than previous elections.

However, implementation failed due to mistrust primarily between the federal government and member states. The latter worried about the central government's interference in state-level politics and Farmajo's perceived centralisation of power.

The lack of consensus on the type of federalism Somalia needs has made implementing the current election model difficult. While the federal government increasingly works towards more power at the centre, the member states prefer a more devolved approach.

Amid this dichotomy, the opposition and some federal states blame Farmajo for interfering with some states' elections - notably in Hirshabelle, Galmudug and the South West regions. They also accuse him of creating tensions in the other states, particularly Jubaland. Here, central government opposition to Jubaland President Ahmed Mohamed Islaam Madobe in the 2019 elections soured relations between Mogadishu and Kismayo, Jubaland's commercial capital.

Another source of mistrust has been the use of security forces against the opposition. In his four years of office, Farmajo has been accused of attacking the opposition, breaking up peaceful demonstrations and replacing airport security with a force known for attacking his opponents. He has also allegedly interfered with the security of Puntland and Jubaland delegations and side-stepped the Upper House of Parliament.

Also, one of the reasons for the deadlock in implementing the September 2020 agreement is Jubaland's security issue. The presence of Farmajo's troops in one of the two cities in Jubaland where elections are to take place - Garbaharey in Gedo - is seen by the Jubaland leadership as an attempt to interfere with state-level polls.

Despite the cancellation of Farmajo's presidential term extension, mistrust and frustration have continued to grow in the processes that he has led. The 25 April fighting that followed shows the opposition's capacity to oppose the president's choices.

If the problems that stoke mistrust aren't resolved, key stakeholders such as Jubaland and Puntland could boycott the dialogue for its lack of transparency and accountability. This may cause the new political process to stall, perpetuate stakeholder apathy, further fragment the security sector and allow violence to resume.

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Roble has however swung into action, with a dialogue among stakeholders scheduled for 20 May. Already many praise his management of the troop withdrawals from Mogadishu and his intentions to meet with opposition members.

For an inclusive dialogue to deliver results, Roble must win the trust of all political actors. To do this, he needs to take full control and tackle concerns around the electoral process. Any perception of Roble's lack of independence from Farmajo could worsen tensions. Roble's task is substantial - failure to deliver impartial and timely elections will undermine Somalia's transitional process.

International partners like the United States, United Nations, European Union and Middle East, along with the Intergovernmental Authority on Development and the African Union, must work together to secure the support of all Somali stakeholders. Achieving this will require political compromise from leaders at all levels within the country.

Selam Tadesse Demissie, Research Officer and Andrews Atta-Asamoah, Programme Head, ISS Addis Ababa
analysis

How have Chad's religious leaders reacted to the dramatic events of April and May? So far, top Muslim and Christian figures have appeared vaguely supportive of the Military Transition Council (CMT) and uneager to rock the boat. In the aftermath of Idriss Deby's death, religion has not emerged as a major political cleavage, and indeed has not been in the past - although Chadian leaders do appear slightly concerned by a reported uptick in Muslim-Christian tensions over social media.

Religious identities are, at least on the surface, less salient in Chadian politics than they are elsewhere in the Sahel. Chad is not, like Mauritania, an "Islamic Republic." Indeed, like Burkina Faso, Chad is more religiously mixed than are Muslim-majority Mauritania, Mali, and Niger; Chad is approximately 52% Muslim and 44% Christian. Moreover, as in the other Sahelian countries with the exception of Mauritania, laicite or French-style secularism is foundational to the Chadian state, mentioned no less than four times in the 2018 constitution. In other Sahelian countries, however, laicitehas not prevented religious actors from playing huge roles in public life. In Mali and Niger, and to a lesser extent in Burkina Faso, the meaning and value of laicitehas been vigorously debated. And one would be hard pressed to find a Chadian religious figure equivalent in activism and outspokenness to Mali's Mahmoud Dicko, the celebrity imam who was at the forefront of anti-incumbent protests through the summer of 2020.

The most prominent factors and forces in Chadian politics, since independence, have been region, ethnicity, and interpersonal rivalry. Some divisions within Chadian history and politics map loosely onto Muslim and Christian zones, but religion is not the decisive factor in mobilizing political forces. Chad has lacked major oppositional Christian movements, Islamist parties, or much of a homegrown jihadist presence, aside from the relatively small numbers of Chadians who have been drawn to the Nigeria-centric Boko Haram or other regional jihadist actors. Throughout Chadian history, armed rebel groups have often used the language of "liberation" and "change" to justify their rebellions, while opposition parties in the era of multi-partyism have tended to use the language of "democracy" as they sought footholds within Idriss Deby's authoritarian system. Chadian identity itself remains something of an elusive and moving target. Ironically, Chad's Islamic identity may be stronger outside the country than inside - for example, just last year former Foreign Affairs Minister Hissein Brahim Taha was elected as the next Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and several Chadian institutions have strong ties to the Arab Gulf countries.

Neither the CMT nor the transitional government under civilian Prime Minister Albert Pahimi Padacke include overtly religious actors; the CMT is dominated by military and intelligence personnel who were close to Deby, while the transitional government includes familiar faces from Chadian politics, including Deby regime stalwarts and (former) opposition figures willing to lend their stamp of approval to the CMT. The approximately 55 people with the most formal power in Chadian politics right now are all non-clerics. The junta's most outspoken opposition, meanwhile, in the form of the protest collective Wakit Tama ("the time has come") and other protesters, appear to draw primarily on more or less secular bases - opposition parties, labour unions, and civil society organizations - rather than on explicitly religious sentiments.

Yet religion matters in Chad. Several of the country's pre-colonial components were polities defined at least partly in religious terms, such as the Wadai Sultanate in what is now eastern Chad. The country's first president, Francois Tombalbaye, initially relied on a heavily Christian support base and in his last years in power he attempted, unsuccessfully, to promote a vision of "Tchatitude" that "embraced 'African authenticity' and rejected Christianity and Islam." Later incarnations of the Chadian state, particularly under Deby, had close relations with organized religious bodies, such as the state-backed High Council for Islamic Affairs (CSAI). Actors in those bodies tended to be political loyalists, such as the CSAI's longtime president Hissein Abakar, who died in 2018.

It is not surprising then, that as the CMT sought to build its legitimacy, religious actors have figured among its bases of tacit support. Within two days of Deby's death, his son Mahamat at the head of the CMT met the country's top religious leaders- the CSAI's Mamahat Khatir Issa, the Archbishop Edmond Djitangar of the Catholic Church, and Batein Kalingue of the Evangelical community. That meeting took place on the same day (April 21) that the CMT met France's Ambassador Bertrand Cochery; the CMT clearly considers religious leaders a key part of the central web of relationships, internal and external, that it is now attempting to manage. Significantly, Padacke also met with religious leaders just days after becoming transitional prime minister.

For their part, Chad's top religious leaders have mostly made vague statements appealing for dialogue and national unity. For example, the CSAI's Issa, following the meeting with Padacke, compared the country's situation to that of a boat that has lost its captain: "So we must join forces so that the boat does not topple over." Or to take another example, at an April 24 memorial service for Idriss Deby in the eastern Chadian city of Abeche, seat of the Wadai Sultanate, there was a show of unity as the Sultan, CSAI representatives, and members of the security forces all gathered at the regional governor's residence to pay respects to Deby and pray that "peace and stability may reign in the country." Such gatherings have both national and local audiences, especially given recurring farmer-herder conflicts in eastern Chad and beyond. Amid the talk of "unity" and "peace," top religious actors appear to be attempting to stay out of the political fray, as most of the country's religious leaders have typically done historically. Taking such a stance now, however, amounts to tacitly casting their lot with the CMT and the preservation of Deby's system under Mahamat, perhaps partly out of fear of what the alternatives to continuity might be.

Other religious currents in the country have also shied away from politicizing Deby's death. For example, one significant Muslim constituency in Chad beyond the CSAI is the (non-violent) Salafi movement Ansar al-Sunna al-Muhammadiyya (Supporters of Muhammad's Way). Ansar al-Sunna is something of a rival to the Sufi-dominated CSAI, whose leaders have sometimes been openly hostile to the Salafis. Yet Ansar al-Sunna, too, addressed a warm and fairly formulaic condolence message to Mahamat Deby, referring to him as the president of the country. No major religious current has so far lent its rhetorical or institutional support to the anti-CMT protests.

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The CMT has thus benefited from and inherited Deby's top-down and - at least from the perspective of authoritarianism - relatively successful management of the religious field. Yet there were moments of religious tensions under Deby, as well as longer-term zones of interreligious competition. Such moments include the 1993 national sovereign conference, where among other interventions, the CSAI's Abakar at least appeared to call for a greater role for shari'a in Chad, prompting a backlash from Christians and others. Other moments of tension came in 2018 as the parliament approved changes to the constitution. In a rare political intervention in April 2018, Catholic bishops criticised the move, saying that changing the constitution without a popular referendum was dangerous. Their intervention elicited a public rebuke from the secretary general of the government. The next month, new constitutional requirements about religious oaths for cabinet ministers triggered a rare moment of open dissent against Deby by a direct subordinate, with one minister-designate refusing to swear on a Bible. More broadly, sectors such as higher education have witnessed ongoing struggles over language, identity, and religion. If the CMT has most religious leaders' allegiance, that nevertheless does not mean that the junta can expect religion to lie dormant in the new Chad.
France is due to hold a summit for selected African heads of state to spur economic growth in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Experts differ on the guest list and conference expectations citing reality on the ground.

On May 18, 2020, French President Emmanuel Macron will play host to several African leaders. Amongst them is the chairperson of the African Union Commission and the head of the African Development Bank. Also expected to be in attendance will be some European leaders, G7, G20, International Monetary Fund (IMF), and other financial institutions.

COVID-19 is the topic of the moment, but when it comes to French-Africa relations, the waters are easily muddled by other issues such as colonial legacies, FrancAfrique, aid, and the use of the Franc CFA currency. There is already contention regarding the criteria used for inviting attendees to the summit. Roland Marchal, a leading expert on French African relations at the University Science Po in Paris, says the criteria by which Macron selected the participants was not made public.

"President Macron has sent invitations to the most significant African economies and certainly those who are part of la Francophonie," Marchal told DW. "It will be wrong to assume that the aim of France is only to gather its clients, members of La Francophonie -- its traditional clients on the continent."

Reaching out beyond la Francophonie

According to Marchal, Macron, like his predecessors, Francois Holland and Nicholas Sarkozy, has been trying to extend friendship ties to countries that France did not colonize -- such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria and, South Africa. Observers view them as the most emerging countries on the continent.

"There is the question of the former colonies behind it," French lawmaker Sebastien Nadot said. "Countries with ongoing disputes with France will not be present -- otherwise, it would be perceived as a provocation for the diaspora in France. For example, Sassou Nguesso of Congo Brazzaville, will not be there," Nadot told DW.

Need for optimism?

The summit's primary goal is to 'give a big boost' to countries hit by COVID-19. To this end, some Africans think it is an excellent prospect for the continent.

"Of course, it is an opportunity for Africa because right now, the whole world, especially Africa, is on edge, Albert Rudatsimburwa, a Great lakes analyst from Rwanda, said. "Coming to a meeting where multilateral organizations which are financing the COVID vaccines will be present is an opportunity to have a discussion," Rudatsimburwa told DW.

For Cameroonian analyst Bergeline Ndoumou, there are more pressing issues affecting the continent, which the current summit does not address. "It is just another useless gathering, a waste of time and resources which is more beneficial to France than Africa," Ndoumou told DW.

"They have been holding countless summits, but how have those summits benefited Africa? Do we have potable water? Good schools or medical facilities? How have they [summits] impacted governance in our various African countries? We still have bad leaders," Ndoumou said, adding that such gatherings are a way for France to remind these so-called leaders that they are still a colony.

"It is just a ploy for Macron to solidify his grip on the African continent."

'It is about economics and politics, not COVID'

There is no clear indication as to whether the summit will be discussing some of the broad political, social, and governance issues raised by Ndoumou.

"On the question of COVID-19, I am not sure there will be any significant discussions on that in Paris. I understand the World Health Organisation (WHO) will not be present. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) will be there but not WHO. It is obvious COVID is not the priority," French parliamentarian Nadot said.

Many commentators have highlighted that the new scramble for Africa is well underway. According to Nadot, this summit is about the flexing of muscles by the world powers.

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'Glimmer of hope'

"Presently, France doesn't have sufficient financial power to assist African states," Marchal said, pointing out the need for France to rely on other Western powers. "Also, we will use this opportunity to look into African states that owe huge debts to China. Countries such as Zambia and Djibouti are in trouble. Kenya will be in trouble soon. So, we are trying to adjust African countries' trade deficit with China," Marchal added.

On the contrary, Nadot accuses France of being pretentious by seeking to solve Africa's problems while failing to tackle its own.

He adds that there could be a glimmer of hope for Africans, especially regarding debt cancellation and the question of the Franc CFA currency. "But African leaders have to unanimously organize their countries to find an alternative currency they can use. If they are waiting for a solution from France or Europe, it will be a solution from outside and not clearly for only the interest of the countries of Africa."
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White contractors airlifted to safety before local Black people Hotel manager took two dogs on rescue helicopter, leaving people behind Exclusive satellite imagery reveals damage Read more 

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Mozambique: Mozambique Will Take 'All Possible Advantages' From Military Cooperation With Portugal

AIM, 11 May 2021

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COLUMNISTS Travel to Poland Then and Now

For many years now, Polish reenactment groups have become popular in Poland just as they are in the U.S. They are educational for young and old. A previous article reported about the battle of Grunwald reenacted every July 15 on a site near Malbork. Today, the focus is on the Slav & Viking reenactment at Wolin in the Baltic north.

The Festival of Slavs and Vikings is tentatively scheduled for July 30 - Aug. 1, 2021. Schedule is still tentative due to pandemic resurgence and lock-down in Poland.

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Wolin (say VAWE-lean) is an island in the NW corner of the Baltic Sea about 35 miles from Szczecin and part of the province of Pomerania. It was first mentioned by an Arabic trader in 65 AD as a military and coastal town and trading port. In the Middle Ages, because of its location, it attracted the Norsemen and the Vikings.

In 870 AD, the monk Rymbart said Wolin was one of the largest towns in Europe at that time, and the traveler Ibrahim ibn Jakub described it thus: "They have a powerful city by the ocean with twelve gates. It has a marina where they use half-trunks. They fight with Mieszko and their combat strength is great. They have no king and cannot be led by one ruler, and their elders have charge."

Due to Polish interest in its history and archaeology, the first festival at Wolin was on July 2, 1992 in the city of Wolin. In 1999, it was moved to the island where the reconstruction of the Jomsborg Castle was started.

By 2002 the Association "Centre of Slavs and Vikings Wolin Jomsborg Vineta" was established with the goal of creating a medieval open-air museum. The first fortified gate and entrance was built in 2003 (See photo) and the museum formally opened April 7, 2008.

Enactments educate in a variety of ways. They aim to recreate battle scenes using live equipment and medieval weapons. Enactors wear replica clothing and display tactics, commands, and language used in the past. A most prominent Polish Slav enactor is Igor Gorewicz who not only is chief at the Wolin festival but also does international appearances, television, schools, and has published several books on the subject of Slavs. His wife and three sons participate in his Slavic promotional events and can be seen in a photo of 2016, the youngest only 3 months old.

The Wolin open air museum is actually open from April to October when not closed by pandemic. It contains 27 reconstructed buildings representing life from the 9th to 11th century.

It is actually a settlement which strives to teach about daily life in that distant age. The combat demonstrations of the festival are over 3 days but for two weeks prior to the "wars" the museum is filled with artisans, musicians, and costumed enactors who have set up tents both for teaching and sales.

Among the crafts represented are blacksmiths, shoemakers, tailors, weavers, carpenters, potters, goldsmiths, boat builders, wicker weavers, amber and horn jewelers, and makers of weapons and armor. There is a total or 2000 to 2500 enactors at the festival and it is considered the largest in the region while spectators number in dozens of thousands.

The highlight is the battle between the Slavs and the Vikings. Inasmuch as the battles are in Polish territory, it is inevitable that the Slavs come out on top. The original inhabitants of Jomsburg fortress were subjugated by Mieszko I in 967 after many armed clashes.

As of May 2021, the Polish zloty is $.26 (U.S.) so admission to the museum is about $4 for adults, and about $3 for members of a group. A tour with guide for one hour is about $14 extra. Parking is free. The many historical reenactments evoke pride and respect among the Poles.

Next time: The Historical Bugler.






#Ahora | Arriba a Lima un importante lote de 700 mil dosis de vacunas del laboratorio Pfizer, en el vuelo 743 de la linea aerea KLM, proveniente de Amsterdam. La ministra @claudiacornejom y el titular del @Minsa_Peru reciben este cargamento. #PongoElHombro https://t.co/1rrtwuHT7S pic.twitter.com/djiKzBDqse
Presidente @FSagasti: La mayoria de las personas que conforman este programa son mujeres. Trabajando juntos avanzamos hacia un futuro mejor para todos, demostrando que en el pais se pueden hacer las cosas bien.#TrabajaPeru pic.twitter.com/Zvz72ItmkA
Todas las personas que han acudido a los centros de vacunacion han sido efectivamente vacunadas, informo el viceministro de Salud Publica, Gustavo Rosell, al presentar los resultados de la investigacion sobre supuestas irregularidades en la vacunacion contra la COVID-19. pic.twitter.com/QBN4eaS3a2
YEREVAN, MAY 15, ARMENPRESS. Canadas foreign minister Marc Garneau has addressed the Azeri incursion into Armenian territory.

We are concerned by reports of rising tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan with reports of an incursion into Armenian territory, Garneau tweeted. We urge all parties to respect the ceasefire agreement achieved on November 10 fully and to continue to negotiate a permanent and peaceful settlement. All actions that would undermine the ceasefire and escalate tensions must be stopped.

On May 12, the Azeri military breached the Armenian state border in an attempt to seize territories in the Syunik and Gegharkunik provinces. As of May 15, the Azeri troops havent withdrawn, with negotiations ongoing. Armenia officially requested the CSTO to invoke Article 2 and launch immediate consultations over the threat to its sovereignty.
YEREVAN, MAY 15, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian Nuclear Power Plant halted operations for 141 days for a planned preventive repair as part of the modernization and lifecycle extension program.

The work is organized by Rosatoms Rosatom Service.

The NPP said in a news release that the repair will take that long due to important final work for the modernization of the 2nd power unit.

The NPPs chief engineer Artur Grigoryan said the preparations for the work were carried out in 2020, with all necessary inspections being completed.

120 specialists from Russia have arrived to carry out the work, with 350 other experts from Russia expected to be involved during this year.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Do you know the difference between the drafts in World War II? There were six drafts total between 1940 and 1943. All WWII records are currently closed and all that could be revealed is draft cards or enlistments. All men were required to sign up for the draft, regardless of age. There were 39 in the young mans draft (ages 18-40) whose family paid to participate on the quilt. It was interesting to learn about the old mans draft, which was the fourth draft conducted in 1942. Its sole purpose was to record men between the ages of 45 and 60 years of age and list their industrial skill sets and capacity. I find 21 relationships on the quilt in this age bracket. Many of these names have draft cards from World Wars I and II.

On the quilt, there are 13 recorded WWII veterans who served. There is one youngsters name who later went on to serve during the Korean War, as well as six names who are WWI veterans.

The final piece of the quilt puzzle fell into place while researching Harold Kuppinger, whose name, along with his wife and two sons, appears on the quilt. His mother, Mrs. Henry Kuppinger, was the chairperson of the Owasco Red Cross chapter, meeting in homes and the Owasco Odd Fellows Hall. It is felt this committee sponsored this signature quilt fundraiser.
But the new federal guidance says fully vaccinated people can forgo masks in most indoor settings and no longer need to physically distance from others.

The leader of an industry group advocating for restaurant and bars owners in New York City is calling on Cuomo to lift more restrictions.

"It's more justification to continue eliminating restaurant and nightlife restrictions, so that these businesses which are vital to the city's social and economic fabric can reopen further, welcome back customers and help the Big Apple recover," Andrew Rigie, executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, said in a statement.

Business owners are awaiting to see whether the new federal rules will affect Cuomo's plan to lift some COVID-19 restrictions next week.

Starting May 19, most businesses in New York will no longer have to limit the number of people allowed inside based on a percentage of their typical capacity, the governor announced last week.

Instead, Cuomo said businesses would have to adhere to a new limit: how many people can be inside at once while leaving enough room for 6 feet of physical distancing among patrons and workers.

Cuomo said that could change if the CDC lifts its physical distancing guidance.
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Global investment banking major JP Morgan Chase has increased its COVID-19 support to the country manifold, taking the total planned aid to close to $16 million, of which $3.8 million is for supporting its over 35,000 employees in India. The head of the Wall Street major Jamie Dimon had on April 30 had committed an upfront $2 million financial aid along with an appeal to its over 2.5 lakh employees globally to chip in which would be matched by an equal amount by the company.

In an internal communication on Thursday, which PTI has seen, Filippo Gori, the chief executive of JP Morgan Asia Pacific, said the bank has set aside $3.8 million for the care of its over 35,000 India employees, and an additional $10 million is being earmarked in phases to support the needy in their pandemic recovery phase.

We've committed an additional $3.8 million to support our colleagues in India in their fight against the virus in 2021. This money will be used for medical insurance, 24x7 ambulance service, partnerships with our clinical service providers and hospitals for hotel and in-home quarantine, doctor-on-call service; and vaccination reimbursement support, Gori said in the mail.

The bank is also working towards increasing access to vaccines, subject to availability and government regulations, he added.

This is excluding the already-committed $2 million in immediate India-wide coronavirus relief efforts such as providing support to the public health system to improve the capacity of small hospitals, enabling them to provide treatment for greater numbers of affected patients and also providing food and essential items to low-income communities.

Besides this, the bank has also committed an additional $10 million to help the larger already-disadvantaged communities tide over the long-term consequences of the pandemic often those. This is part of JP Morgan's annual $32 million philanthropic commitment to building economic resiliencies for these communities, Gori said.

This community support and outreach will include support to microbusinesses, particularly those owned by women; helping youth pursue promising careers; and help support inclusive fintech solutions for the post-crisis environment ensuring access to financial tools that will help them weather any future crisis, he said.

JP Morgan is also a member of the recently-announced global taskforce on the pandemic response, a public-private partnership providing 1,000 ventilators and a further 25,000 oxygen concentrators to India. Gori said so far, their employees have contributed $1.5 lakh towards India aid, and the company will equally match that number.

In an email to all the employees on April 30, Dimon committed $2 million to Indian non-profits which are in the forefront of the pandemic fight, along with an appeal to its employees to donate with an additional commitment to match their contributions with an equal amount by the company.

The total aid, including medical supplies and medical equipments, from the US is reportedly nearing $500 million.

Also read: GoAir rebranded as Go First ahead of IPO debut; promises attractive fares, luxury for passengers
Egypt Today

CAIRO  14 May 2021: US ambassador in Cairo Jonathan Cohen shared the Egyptian their celebration of Eid al Fitr feat via baking Kahk [Eid Cookies], wishing them a blessed Eid.

In a video posted on the US embassys Facebook page, the ambassador was wearing an apron has the phrase "I love Egypt," expressing his happiness for baking Kahk.

Eid al-Fitr is celebrated by Muslims after fasting in the month of Ramadan as a matter of thanks and gratitude to God. Usually, Eid al-Fitr is a three-day holiday.

The word Eid is an Arabic word that means a festivity, a celebration, recurring happiness, and a feast. In Islam, there are two major Eids, namely Eid al-Fitr (Festival of Breaking the Fast) celebrating the end of Ramadan and Eid al-Adha (Festival of Sacrifice) which coincides with the Hajj and commemorates Prophet Abrahams sacrifice of a sheep in place of his son Ishmael.
The Jammu and Kashmir government has announced a relief package of Rs 3 crore for people associated with tourism sector, which has been hit hard by the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha announced the relief package on Friday, under which direct financial assistance will be given to people associated with tourism industry.

"In this package, Rs 2,000 financial assistance will be provided to 4,444 registered 'shikara' owners, 1,370 tourist guides, 6,663 ponywalas and 2,150 others, including those who rent palanquins for yatris. The money will be paid for two months. The relief will be transferred to only those who are registered with the tourism department," an official of tourism department said.

Also read: COVID-19 vaccination: Govt hopes to inoculate entire adult population by December

While the measures were welcomed by people associated with tourism, they said the amount could have been higher and should have also included more people like travel agents, hotel owners, among others. "It is a good thing that the government is thinking of such a package, but we feel the amount should have been more given how things are on the ground," Bashir Ahmad, a shikara owner at the Dal Lake, said.

Many also highlighted that the package excludes travel agents, owners of Kashmir's famed houseboats, hotels and transport operators who are also associated with tourism sector. "The package has nothing for people who are travel agents or have guest houses. They too have suffered a great deal," Hussain, a Srinagar-based travel agent, said.

Tourism has been hit in the union territory for three years now. While abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 and subsequent lockdown led to losses to the tourism sector, it has been affected by the pandemic for the last two summers. The union territory had seen some pick up in tourism during winter months this year, but the second wave of coronavirus pandemic has again hit the sector hard.

Also read: COVID-19 in India: PM Modi chairs crucial meet on coronavirus situation, vaccination
Today marks Rust's sixth birthday since it went 1.0 in 2015. A lot has changed since then and especially over the past year, and Rust was no different. In 2020, there was no foundation yet, no const generics, and a lot of organisations were still wondering whether Rust was production ready.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, hundreds of Rust's global distributed set of team members and volunteers shipped over nine new stable releases of Rust, in addition to various bugfix releases. Today, "Rust in production" isn't a question, but a statement. The newly founded Rust foundation has several members who value using Rust in production enough to help continue to support and contribute to its open development ecosystem.

We wanted to take today to look back at some of the major improvements over the past year, how the community has been using Rust in production, and finally look ahead at some of the work that is currently ongoing to improve and use Rust for small and large scale projects over the next year. Let's get started!

Recent Additions

The Rust language has improved tremendously in the past year, gaining a lot of quality of life features, that while they don't fundamentally change the language, they help make using and maintaining Rust in more places even easier.

As of Rust 1.52.0 and the upgrade to LLVM 12, one of few cases of unsoundness around forward progress (such as handling infinite loops) has finally been resolved. This has been a long running collaboration between the Rust teams and the LLVM project, and is a great example of improvements to Rust also benefitting the wider ecosystem of programming languages.

On supporting an even wider ecosystem, the introduction of Tier 1 support for 64 bit ARM Linux, and Tier 2 support for ARM macOS & ARM Windows, has made Rust an even better place to easily build your projects across new and different architectures.

The most notable exception to the theme of polish has been the major improvements to Rust's compile-time capabilities. The stabilisation of const generics for primitive types, the addition of control flow for const fn s, and allowing procedural macros to be used in more places, have allowed completely powerful new types of APIs and crates to be created.

Rustc wasn't the only tool that had significant improvements.

Cargo just recently stabilised its new feature resolver, that makes it easier to use your dependencies across different targets.

Rustdoc stabilised its "intra-doc links" feature, allowing you to easily and automatically cross reference Rust types and functions in your documentation.

Clippy with Cargo now uses a separate build cache that provides much more consistent behaviour.

Rust In Production

Each year Rust's growth and adoption in the community and industry has been unbelievable, and this past year has been no exception. Once again in 2020, Rust was voted StackOverflow's Most Loved Programming Language. Thank you to everyone in the community for your support, and help making Rust what it is today.

With the formation of the Rust foundation, Rust has been in a better position to build a sustainable open source ecosystem empowering everyone to build reliable and efficient software. A number of companies that use Rust have formed teams dedicated to maintaining and improving the Rust project, including AWS, Facebook, and Microsoft.

And it isn't just Rust that has been getting bigger. Larger and larger companies have been adopting Rust in their projects and offering officially supported Rust APIs.

Both Microsoft and Amazon have just recently announced and released their new officially supported Rust libraries for interacting with Windows and AWS. Official first party support for these massive APIs helps make Rust people's first choice when deciding what to use for their project.

The cURL project has released new versions that offer opt-in support for using Rust libraries for handling HTTP/s and TLS communication. This has been a huge inter-community collaboration between the ISRG, the Hyper & Rustls teams, and the cURL project, and we'd like to thank everyone for their hard work in providing new memory safe backends for a project as massive and widely used as cURL!

Tokio (an asynchronous runtime written in Rust), released its 1.0 version and announced their three year stability guarantee, providing everyone with a solid, stable foundation for writing reliable network applications without compromising speed.

Future Work

Of course, all that is just to start, we're seeing more and more initiatives putting Rust in exciting new places;

Critical Section & Ferrous Systems have started Ferrocene, a project to make Rust a viable programming language for safety and mission critical systems across the industry.

Embark Studios have released an initial prototype of rust-gpu , a new compiler backend that allows writing graphics shaders using Rust for GPUs.

, a new compiler backend that allows writing graphics shaders using Rust for GPUs. The Linux project is currently considering a proposal to add Rust as the second language to the kernel to enable writing safer driver and kernel-space code.

Google has announced that it now supports building low level components of the Android OS in Rust, and have already begun an effort to rewrite their bluetooth stack with Rust!

Right now the Rust teams are planning and coordinating the 2021 edition of Rust. Much like this past year, a lot of themes of the changes are around improving quality of life. You can check out our recent post about "The Plan for the Rust 2021 Edition" to see what the changes the teams are planning.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg; there are a lot more changes being worked on, and exciting new open projects being started every day in Rust. We can't wait to see what you all build in the year ahead!

Are there changes, or projects from the past year that you're excited about? Are you looking to get started with Rust? Do you want to help contribute to the 2021 edition? Then come on over, introduce yourself, and join the discussion over on our Discourse forum and Zulip chat! Everyone is welcome, we are committed to providing a friendly, safe and welcoming environment for all, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity, religion, or similar personal characteristic.
The Uttar Pradesh government decided on Saturday to extend the partial coronavirus curfew till 7 am on May 24. A decision was taken at a virtual meeting of the cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Earlier, the government had decided to increase the duration of the curfew till 7 am on May 17.

"The partial corona curfew has helped in controlling the COVID-19 spread in the state," Adityanath said in a statement. "Keeping this in mind, the duration is being increased."

Adityanath said the state government was already providing free testing and treatment of COVID-19, as well as vaccination.

Also read: Centre provides Rs 220 cr grant, Covaxin's monthly production to cross 10 cr doses by Sep

The chief minister said the state government would provide 3-kg wheat and 2-kg rice free of cost to the holders of 'antyodaya' and ration card for three months. This will benefit almost 15 crore people of the state.

He said daily-wage earners in urban areas would be given Rs 1,000 for one month. This will benefit around one crore people. The provision to arrange food for the needy should be done using community kitchens.

Essential services will continue. Barring the basic education, online classes can resume, directions have been issued in this regard, the statement said.

He said the state government was running two insurance schemes to give social security to all the labourers. This includes Rs 2 lakh insurance in case of death or disability to any labourer and a health cover up to Rs 5 lakh.

Also read: FM Sitharaman to chair 43rd GST Council meeting on May 28
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 12, 2021) - Advantagewon Oil Corp. (CSE: AOC) (the "Company"), a leading provider of low-cost energy solutions, is pleased to announce its intention to rebrand to "StarVolt Innovations Corp." following its completed investment in StarVolt Power Inc. ("StarVolt") in February to better reflect the direction of the Company's business activities (the "Name Change"). The Company's recent investment perfectly aligns with its mission of delivering cost-effective power solutions, which is a core element of StarVolt's proprietary solar skin technology. In addition, the Company has secured the trading symbol "ERUN" in connection with the Name Change. The Company has applied to the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") to effect the Name Change and ticker symbol change and anticipates that it will begin trading under the new ticker symbol by May 21, 2021.

The Company is also please to announce the appointment of Carlos Brasil, a global transport logistics expert, as Chief Executive Officer, effective May 11, 2021. Mr. Brasil will continue the Company's mission with a rejuvenated focus on StarVolt's line of New Energy Vehicles ("NEVs") and sustainable mobility networks.

Mr. Brasil brings 33 years of logistical and operational expertise within the international transport sector. Most recently, he has managed all import and export logistics for both domestic and international clients for AB Forwarding Inc., a Toronto-based company specializing in global transportation services. Prior to this role for 16 years, Mr. Brasil managed cargo freight forwarding for Sea Air International ("Sea Air"), a leader in global shipping services from heavy equipment to livestock. One of his largest accounts at Sea Air was Orange Business Services ("Orange"), the business services arm of Orange S.A. that provides integration of communications products and services for multinational corporations. Mr. Brasil managed Orange's business logistics across North America, South America, Europe and Asia. Mr. Brasil holds an undergraduate degree from the Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Story continues

StarVolt offers an innovative line of NEVs featuring proprietary solar technology that is revolutionizing urban transportation. "Road vehicles account for nearly 75% of transport CO 2 emissions1," said Mr. Brasil. "As we see more urbanization worldwide, pollution will only continue to rise if sustainable transportation solutions are not adopted."

Increasing urban pollution has prompted the Company to develop a sustainable mobility ecosystem that will offer a complete suite of low-cost products and services enabling infinite and eco-friendly mobility. The Company's appointment of Mr. Brasil will be extremely advantageous to navigate the complex logistics and operations that come with implementing an integrated network.

The Company's Executive Chairman Paul Haber stated, "Mr. Brasil's competencies are a huge asset to the Company, as we implement integrated transportation networks. His ability to take complex operations and translate them to a seamless customer experience is an invaluable skill that will be highly valued during the Company's next phase of growth."

The Company also wishes to announce that Stephen Hughes has resigned as Chief Executive Officer and a director of the Company. The Company would like to thank Mr. Hughes for his leadership and help in guiding the Company to this point and wishes him the best in his future endeavors.

1 According to IEA, Tracking Transport 2020 Report

About Advantagewon Oil Corp.

The Company is dedicated to providing low-cost energy solutions and sustainable mobility through our line of NEVs. We implement practical methodologies to transform concept designs into tangible outcomes that advance industry potential. Learn more at http://www.starvolt.com/.

For further information please contact:

Mr. Paul Haber

Chairman & Director

Advantagewon Oil Corp.

T: (587) 580-9344

Mr. Frank Kordy

Secretary & Director

Advantagewon Oil Corp

T: (647) 466-4037

Forward-Looking Statements

Neither CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

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 the Company. 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: the Company's intention and timing to complete the Name Change and associated ticker symbol change; the Company's business, products and future plans; and all requisite approvals will be obtained, including acceptance by the CSE. 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.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/83724
Research

Undergraduate Enrollment Sees Steepest Decline Since the Pandemic

Undergraduate enrollment this spring has dropped 5.9 percent compared to last year  the steepest decline since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. That's according to the latest data (as of March 25, 2021) from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, based on 12.6 million students and 76 percent of institutions that report to the organization.

Community colleges have been hit particularly hard, logging a decline of 11.3 percent, compared to 9.5 percent the previous year. The Research Center reported that this is the first time community colleges have experienced a double-digit decline during the pandemic. Also of note: Students aged 18-20, who make up more than 40 percent of all undergraduates, saw an enrollment decline of 7.2 percent  the largest decline of any age group. And for students in that age group attending community college, the enrollment drop was an even more precipitous 14.6 percent.

Graduate institution enrollment was a bright spot this spring, growing 4.4 percent. Still, overall postsecondary enrollment dropped 4.2 percent compared to a year ago.

"The continuing slide in community college enrollments is of great concern," said Doug Shapiro, executive director for the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, in a statement. "In a sign of potentially long-lasting impact on the level of skills and credentials in the workforce, there is still no age group showing increases at community colleges, even after a full year of pandemic and related unemployment."

The full report is available on the Clearinghouse site. The Research Center has also produced a webinar discussion the pandemic's impact on college enrollment, available here.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 15)  Filipino beauty queen Rabiya Mateo pulled out all the stops during the swimsuit and evening gown competitions in the Miss Universe preliminaries.

The 24-year-old Ilongga beauty walked on stage in a yellow two-piece swimsuit with an ankle-length coverup made of sheer fabric.

In the evening gown competition, Mateo donned a bright yellow dress with swarovski crystals and other glittering materials. The dress was designed by Philippine-born, Dubai-based Furne One of Amato Couture, who said the beadwork was inspired by the "radiance of the Philippine sun, which symbolizes positivity and optimism." Mateo also wore sun-shaped dangling earrings.

Mateo stunned Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray and the fans, some of whom said yellow suited her morena complexion.

"Our girl literally said, 'no sun in my natcos? I am the sun.' #AribaRabiya," Gray tweeted.

Mateo is among 74 hopeful competing for the Miss Universe title. The contest will be held on May 16 at 8 p.m. in Florida, United States (May 17, 8 a.m. in the Philippines.)
(CNN)  Apple parted ways with a new employee this week after thousands of workers petitioned the company to investigate how it hired the man, who had previously published an autobiography they said contains misogynistic statements.

Antonio Garcia Martinez, formerly a product manager for ad targeting at Facebook as well as the author of the 2016 autobiography "Chaos Monkeys: Obscene Fortune and Random Failure in Silicon Valley," joined Apple's ads team in April, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Garcia Martinez's book chronicles his life in the San Francisco Bay Area's tech scene from 2010 to 2014. He began his career as a quantitative strategist for Goldman Sachs before leaving for Silicon Valley, where he eventually started an ad-tech startup, AdGrok, which he later sold to Twitter. He worked as a product manager at Facebook between 2011 and 2013. In addition to his book, Garcia Martinez has written for publications including Wired.

On Monday, Business Insider noted Garcia Martinez's new position, citing his LinkedIn profile. By Tuesday evening, some Apple employees began circulating an internal "letter of concern," citing several of Garcia Martinez's passages in "Chaos Monkeys" as problematic. The employees argued, in a letter viewed by CNN Business, that the passages are in direct opposition to Apple's commitment to inclusion.

To illustrate their point, the letter  which was first reported on by tech news site The Verge on Wednesday after it accumulated more than 2,000 employees' signatures  included excerpts from his writing.

"Most women in the Bay Area are soft and weak, cosseted and naive despite their claims of worldliness, and generally full of s**t," read a sentence in one passage from "Chaos Monkeys." It continued, "They have their self-regarding entitlement feminism, and ceaselessly vaunt their independence, but the reality is, come the epidemic plague or foreign invasion, they'd become precisely the sort of useless baggage you'd trade for a box of shotgun shells or a jerry can of diesel."

Another book excerpt cited in the letter detailed startup funding, and included this sentence: "To make an analogy, a capped note is like having to seduce five women one after the other, while an equity round is having to convince five women to do a sixsome with you."

"We are profoundly distraught by what this hire means for Apple's commitment to its inclusion goals, as well as its real and immediate impact on those working near Mr. Garcia Martinez. It calls into question parts of our system of inclusion at Apple, including hiring panels, background checks, and our process to ensure our existing culture of inclusion is strong enough to withstand individuals who don't share our inclusive values," read the letter.

It also demanded the company investigate how Garcia Martinez's "published views on women and people of color were missed or ignored" in the hiring process and come up with a "clear plan of action to prevent this from happening again."

"Given Mr. Garcia Martinez's history of publishing overtly racist and sexist remarks about his former colleagues, we are concerned that his presence at Apple will contribute to an unsafe working environment for our colleagues who are at risk of public harassment and private bullying," the letter also said.

Garcia Martinez did not respond to a request for comment from CNN Business sent Thursday, though he did appear to view a direct message sent to his verified Twitter profile.

On Friday, in a series of tweets, he wrote that Apple recruited him for the position, and that the company was "well aware" of his writing beforehand. He wrote that his references "were questioned extensively" about "Chaos Monkeys" and his "real professional persona (rather than literary one)."

Garcia Martinez tweeted, "I did not 'part ways' with Apple. I was fired by Apple in a snap decision."

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding Garcia Martinez's tweets. This article will be updated with any response.

While employees at tech companies like Google and Facebook have on occasion in recent years been publicly vocal about issues pertaining to internal culture, this episode has been a rare display of dissent among Apple's workforce spilling into view. Numerous Apple employees took to Twitter on Wednesday to communicate openly about it, underscoring how important some felt it was for the company to address the situation.

"The reason I took to this letter as opposed to some other method is while I do trust in Apple's culture and my leadership to do the right thing this was still starkly contradictory to that trust and those feelings," Cher, an Apple engineer who asked that her last name be withheld for privacy reasons, told CNN Business.

By Wednesday night, Apple confirmed to CNN Business that Garcia Martinez no longer works at Apple.

"At Apple, we have always strived to create an inclusive, welcoming workplace where everyone is respected and accepted. Behavior that demeans or discriminates against people for who they are has no place here," an Apple spokesman said.

CNN Business (then known as CNN Money) reviewed "Chaos Monkeys" in June 2016, saying at the time that it reads as if it's four years worth of "Medium posts from a scorned man."

This story was first published on CNN.com Apple parts ways with newly hired ex-Facebook employee after workers cite 'misogynistic' writing
(CNN)  Disney's stock took a hit on Thursday following the news that its prized streaming service Disney+, notched fewer subscribers than expected. So the platform's rapid rise may have hit a snag  but it doesn't mean investors should panic.

That's because there's more to Disney than Disney+.

Long-term, Disney+ is still projected to hit its estimates of 230 million to 260 million by the end of fiscal 2024, according to the company. Yet in the short-term, with vaccinations ramping up and Covid restrictions loosening, it's time for the rest of Disney to help lighten the load.

"We think the subscriber miss is just a bump in the road," Trip Miller, a Disney investor and managing partner at hedge fund Gullane Capital Partners, told CNN Business. "We are not concerned at all about the company as Disney is a rock-solid business that has and will continue to stand the test of time."

A great big beautiful tomorrow?

Disney+ now has 103.6 million subscribers, an astounding number for a service that's not yet two years old  yet still below below the 110 million that many on Wall Street were expecting. The subscriber miss continued to hit Disney's stock into Friday, opening down about 4% before recovering a bit.

Investors might be tempted to compare to Netflix, which also missed subscriber expectations and took a stock hit last month. But streaming is Netflix's whole business model  and though Disney+ has been the buzzy item at Disney, the company has a lot more going on.

"Netflix simply trades on its subscribers, and that subscriber number really moves the stock," Michael Nathanson, a media analyst and founding partner at MoffettNathanson, told CNN Business. "That's the been the case lately with Disney, but it has so many other engines that could help it."

Two of those Disney engines are poised to rev up this summer.

Disney's film unit and its parks and resorts division, historically the two pillars of the company's business, were hit hard by the pandemic: Its parks closed for months and major movies were delayed, costing the company a lot of money.

But parks like Disneyland have since reopened, and films like Marvel's "Black Widow" are ready to hit theaters and Disney+ this summer. That could make a big difference to Disney's overall financial health and give investors more to gauge than just the streaming numbers.

"They have many catalysts in place as the world returns to normal"

Thursday brought other major news for Disney: The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said people who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 do not need to wear masks or practice social distancing indoors or outdoors, except under certain circumstances.

This news has significant ramifications for Disney's parks and theatrical business. If vaccinated consumers don't need to wear masks, that more people may head to Disney World or to the theater.

Asked about the new mask guidelines Thursday, CEO Bob Chapek told CNBC that the resorts have seen "no shortage of demand whatsoever" and that he thinks "in relatively short order, you're going to see our attendance go up significantly."

It's a fantastic development for Disney's core parks and films businesses. And it shows that although streaming has been in the spotlight at Disney and at its competitors, investors have a lot more to consider for the House of Mouse.

As Miller, the hedge fund investor, puts it, streaming and subscriber growth "certainly get the recent headlines" but Disney is a "diversified business that works in a more normal environment."

"We feel all the brands matter and can contribute to the long-term business," he added. "Disney has survived the global pandemic well. Over the next year, they have many catalysts in place as the world returns to normal."

This story was first published on CNN.com Disney+ growth hit a snag. The pressure's on for its parks and films
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 14) Petitioners challenging the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 are urging the Supreme Court to cancel the appearance of National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon for the next round of oral arguments.

"Petitioners respectfully pray [for] his recall to continue his interpellation on Monday, May 17, 2021, at 2:30 P.M. be canceled," they wrote in a motion filed before the high court on Friday.

They also sought to expunge or delete Esperon's testimony from the records of the case.

In the motion, the petitioners cited Esperon's alleged "red-tagging" during the debates. "The supreme irony is that Secretary Esperon was able to engage in red-tagging before this very Court, when red-tagging was one of the grave dangers that impelled petitioners to come to this Court in the first place," they wrote in the two-page document.

"No one specially our government officials should be allowed to use the proceedings of this Court as a platform to engage in acts that are not only anomalous but downright dangerous," the motion further read.

Esperon has yet to comment on the matter.

It was during Wednesday's oral arguments on the controversial anti-terrorism law that Esperon first bared the government would be publishing a list of "designated" terrorists. The Anti-Terrorism Council's list released on Thursday tagged 29 individuals, including Communist Party of the Philippines founder Jose Maria "Joma" Sison and other CPP officials.

Thirty-seven petitions have been filed challenging the constitutionality of the highly-contested law, which critics have labeled as "vague," and may be open to abuse and human rights violations. However, several government officials have repeatedly dismissed these claims, saying there are enough safeguards in place to protect the rights of citizens.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 15)  Three of the close contacts of an overseas Filipino worker infected with the coronavirus variant first detected in pandemic-ravaged India have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Department of Health.

In a virtual briefing on Saturday, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said there are 32 verified close contacts of the 58-year-old seafarer from the United Arab Emirates, who returned to the country on April 19.

Three of them contracted COVID-19 while the remaining tested negative for the coronavirus, Vergeire said.

"Pina-submit na natin sa genome sequencing 'yung isang sample at 'yung sa dalawa ay hinahanap pa natin, nilo-locate natin 'yung mga specific individuals," she added.

[Translation: We already submitted one sample for genome sequencing, while the other two individuals, we're still locating them.]

Vergeire also said three of the close contacts of another OFW with the variant from India - a 37-year-old seafarer who arrived in the Philippines from Oman on April 10 - were negative for COVID-19.

The DOH has yet to locate the three other contacts of the OFW from Oman.

"'Yung tatlo pa ay hinahanap pa namin dahil hindi nagmamatch 'yung mga pangalan sa manifesto," she said.

[Translation: We are still looking for the other three because their names do not match those in the manifesto.]

Last Tuesday, the DOH reported the country's first two cases of B.1617 or the variant first detected in Indian - described as a "double mutant" and believed to be more contagious.

The World Health Organization last week classified the B.1617 variant as one "of concern at the global level" after some preliminary studies showed it spreads more easily.
The Centre has provided financial assistance in the form of grant of Rs 220 crore to vaccine manufacturers to boost the production of Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin, and its production is expected to reach more than 10 crore doses per month by September this year.

The Department of Biotechnology, which is implementing Mission COVID Suraksha announced as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat 3.0 to accelerate development and production of indigenous COVID-19 vaccines, has provided financial assistance to vaccine manufacturers, the Ministry of Science & Technology said in a statement.

"As a part of this augmentation plan, capacities of Bharat Biotech Limited, Hyderabad as well as other public sector manufactures are being upgraded with required infrastructure and technology. Financial support is being provided as grant from Government of India (GoI) to the tune of approximately Rs 65 crore to Bharat Biotech's new Bangalore facility which is being repurposed to increase the capacity of vaccine production," the statement said.

Also read: COVID-19 in India: PM Modi chairs crucial meet on coronavirus situation, vaccination

Among the public sector companies, Mumbai-based Haffkine Biopharmaceutical Corporation Ltd, a public sector enterprise under Maharashtra government, has been provided a grant of Rs 65 crore for manufacturing Covaxin. Once functional, it will have a capacity to produce 2 crore doses per month.

"Indian Immunologicals Limited (IIL), Hyderabad, a facility under National Dairy Development Board, is being provided a grant of Rs 60 crore and...Bharat Immunologicals and Biologicals Limited (BIBCOL), Bulandshahr, a CPSE under Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, is being supported with a grant of Rs 30 crore to prepare their facility to provide 10-15 million doses per month," it said.

Besides, Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre, under the Gujarat government, along with Hester Biosciences and OmniBRx, has also firmed up its discussions with Bharat Biotech to scale up Covaxin production and produce minimum 2 crore doses per month. Technology transfer agreement have been finalised with all manufacturers, the statement said.

Amidst the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and opening up of COVID-19 vaccination for everyone above 18 years of age in the country, there is a shortage of vaccines in the country. However, the Centre expects availability of vaccines to improve from July and plans to inoculate the entire adult population of approximately 95 crore by this December.

The country has administered 18.14 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccines so far.

Also read: COVID-19 vaccination: Govt hopes to inoculate entire adult population by December 439141
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 15)  To ensure food security in the country amid the COVID-19 pandemic, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the reduction of tariff rates on imported rice and the adjustment of the previously lowered tariff on pork products.

Under Executive Order No. 135, tariffs for imported rice were lowered to 35% from its previous in-quota rate of 40% and out-quota rate of 50% for a period of one year.

"The tariff reduction took into consideration the increase in global rice prices, and the uncertainties surrounding the steady supply of rice in the country," Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a statement.

The Agriculture Department previously said the country is expected to import 1.69 million metric tons of rice this year.

Meanwhile, Executive Order No. 134 modified Executive Order No. 128, where reduced tariff rates on pork products will be increased to 10% (in-quota) and 20% (out-quota) for the first three months, and 15% (in-quota) and 25% (out-quota) from the fourth to the 12th month.

Under EO 128 - signed by Duterte last April 7 - tariff rates for imported pork meat were dropped from 30% (in-quota) and 40% (out-quota) to 5% (in-quota) and 15% (out-quota) for the first three months and 10% (in-quota) and 20% (out-quota) from the fourth to the 12th month.

"Given the continuing spread of African Swine Fever and its adverse effects, the adjusted tariff rates aim to strike a balance between the objective of making pork products available and affordable, and the concerns of all stakeholders especially the recovery of the local hog industry," Roque said.

Duterte recently placed the country under a state of calamity due to the impact of the African Swine Fever on the hog industry.

Last April 15, senators adopted a resolution urging Duterte to withdraw EO 128 due to the ASF outbreak.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 15)  Fully vaccinated Filipinos still need to stick with wearing face masks, the Department of Health said on Saturday.

"Hindi pa rin kami magrerekomenda na kayo ay magtatanggal ng mask kung kayo ay bakunado na," Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a virtual briefing.

[Translation: We still do not recommend that you stop wearing masks once you have been fully vaccinated.]

Vergeire argued a vaccinated person "can still be infected, and infect others," adding there's not enough study to recommend that fully vaccinated individuals can roam without their face masks.

The DOH official also cried foul over the comparison between the Philippines and the US, where the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has already advised fully vaccinated people that they do not need to wear masks when going out, and even indoors.

"Hindi po tama na kino-kompara ang sarili natin sa ibang bansa katulad ng US, kung saan napakalaking percent ng kanilang population ang nabakunahan compared dito sa atin that we're just nearing 3 million people who were vaccinated," she said.

[Translation: It's not right to compare ourselves to other countries like the US, where a huge percentage of the population has already been vaccinated unlike us who's just nearing 3 million.]

Vergeire said while the DOH is "open" to the idea, it will still wait for "enough evidence" that everyone's safety will not be compromised.

Infectious diseases expert Dr. Rontgene Solante told CNN Philippines that studies in the US show virus transmission from a person fully vaccinated against COVID-19 is low, but it doesn't mean they are safe from contracting the disease.

"Our vaccine coverage is low. Yes, it (vaccine) can prevent symptoms against COVID-19 and with related severe infection but the data on the ability of the vaccine to prevent transmission is still not that high," Solante said.

Solante added that American vaccine manufacturers have their own data in assessing a vaccine's efficacy in blocking virus transmission and the ability to transmit virus when vaccinated, which became the guidance of the US CDC in ordering a no-mask policy outdoors.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 15) Just three months after he was designated to lead the Philippine Army, Lieutenant General Jose Faustino is stepping down from his post.

President Rodrigo Duterte, in a document dated May 14, has named his replacement: Major General Andres Centino.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana confirmed Centino's appointment as the new Army chief.

"Yes, confirmed," Lorenzana told CNN Philippines on Saturday.

Faustino assumed the top Army post on February 15.

During a meeting of the defense committee of the Commission on Appointments in March, Senator Panfilo Lacson questioned Faustino's appointment. He cited a law that prohibits the designation of officials to major positions in the Armed Forces of the Philippines with less than a year in service.

Lacson cited Section 4 of Republic Act 8186 which states, "except for the Chief of Staff of the AFP, no officer shall be assigned/designated to the aforementioned key positions or promoted to the rank of Brigadier General/Commodore or higher if he has less than one year of active service remaining prior to compulsory retirement."

Faustino is set to retire in November. Issues on his appointment were raised during the confirmation hearings of then Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana for AFP Chief.

Sobejana defended Faustino in the meeting, saying the appointment was only in an acting capacity.

"I agree, designated as acting. But it is still a designation, would you agree? And the law is very clear," Lacson told the committee.

Lorenzana said Faustino will stay on as Army chief because the President said so.

"It is the prerogative of the President (on whom to appoint as) commanding general ng Philippine Army," Lorenzana told journalists on March 19.

Centino is currently 4th Infantry Division commander based in Cagayan de Oro.

Both Centino and Faustino belong to the Philippine Military Academy Class 88.

The Philippine Army change of command ceremony is scheduled on Tuesday, May 18.

Faustino "is projected to be the Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff on peace and development," according to Armed Forces chief General Cirilito Sobejana.
(CNN) The Israeli military directed heavy artillery fire and dozens of airstrikes into Gaza overnight into Friday, as fears grew that a ground invasion of the territory could be launched to quell rocket fire from Palestinian militants.

As the Israeli bombardment rained down, United Nations officials inside Gaza said dozens of people had fled their homes in the north and east of the enclave to seek refuge in schools -- belonging to the UN relief agency for Palestinian refugees -- which are considered designated emergency shelters.

Just a few kilometers away, residents in the Israeli town of Ashkelon were fleeing to their bomb shelters again, as sirens wailed warning of a fresh barrage of rockets fired by Palestinian militants from Gaza.

One Israeli woman died overnight after she fell as she was running to a shelter, the Israeli military said Friday, making her the eighth Israeli to die since the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Palestinian militants began exchanging fire on Monday.

Israel's bombing campaign in Gaza has now killed at least 119 people, including 31 children and 19 women, the Gaza-based Palestinian Health Ministry reported Friday. At least 830 people have sustained injuries as a result of Israeli airstrikes this week, the Health Ministry added.

Power went off across much of Gaza overnight as a result of the Israeli bombardment, a correspondent for Palestinian news agency WAFA reported. The Gaza Electricity Distribution Company said there had been serious damage to electricity networks in northern Gaza, as well as in parts of Gaza City and elsewhere.

A CNN producer inside Gaza reported heavy incoming artillery fire from Israeli ground forces near the border as well as dozens of airstrikes.

CNN also spoke by phone Friday with Tariq Al Hillo, 27, from Beit Lahia in Gaza, who described a "terrifying" scene overnight as the buildings around his own block -- which is home to six families -- were destroyed.

"I can't even describe it, I don't know where to start and I'm losing my sanity," he told CNN. "All the buildings around us were totally destroyed yesterday, we saw shreds everywhere. I can still see them until now, I can still hear women screaming and men crying out loud."

People believed they would be killed at any moment, he said. "We lost everything around us and we lost safety. I have five sisters, three of them are children between 10 and 15 years old, they were shaking and looking around them traumatized and waiting for their turn to come under the rubble."

At 2 a.m., he decided they should leave the house to walk to a relatives' home five or six miles away, Hillo said. "I was not afraid to die but I was afraid that one of my family members would," he said. "On our way I was telling my sisters to calm down and that nothing will happen to us, but I was shaking and couldn't even walk because I was terrified."

On Thursday, Israel's Defense Minister Benny Gantz warned that Israel has "many, many more targets" and no time limit on its military operations against Gaza.

Israel has called up 7,000 army reservists so far, he added. Most analysts believe that the current build-up of a single division's worth of armor and infantry is not sufficient to conduct such a major incursion.

Amid the intense Israeli artillery fire into Gaza early Friday, there were reports -- later conclusively denied -- that the Israeli army had launched a possible ground invasion of the territory.

An army tweet, which said simply "IDF air and ground troops are currently attacking in the Gaza Strip" -- which coincided with the start of a sustained new round of artillery and airstrikes -- led many news organizations to report that a ground war, much-discussed in Israeli media on Thursday, was underway.

A clarification came about an hour or so later. "There are currently no IDF ground troops inside the Gaza Strip," IDF spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus told CNN early Friday local time.

IDF chief spokesman Hidai Zilberman had confirmed to Israel Channel 12 News on Thursday that Israel was amassing troops on the border with Gaza in case of a decision by leadership for a ground incursion, but said it would take time.

"With the enemy waving a land campaign, we say: any ground incursion into any area of the Gaza Strip would, by God's permission, be an opportunity to increase our yield of enemy dead and enemy prisoners," the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said in a statement on Thursday.

Tunnel network targeted

At a media briefing Friday, Conricus said the Israeli military was prepared for "various contingencies" and would continue firing on military targets in Gaza while defending Israeli civilians against rockets.

Palestinian militants have fired 1,800 rockets toward Israel since Monday, according to the IDF, of which 430 fell short. Of those, 190 were fired between 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday morning, 30 of them falling short.

Overnight Thursday into Friday, more than 160 Israeli Air Force, infantry, artillery and armored units from 12 different squadrons attacked about 150 targets in underground infrastructure in northern Gaza, the IDF said.

"Many kilometers" of the Hamas 'Metro' tunnel network were believed to have been damaged but the exact impact was still being assessed, Conricus said.

Conricus said the number of "enemy combatants" killed was still being assessed but had "risen significantly" since the last update, when the number stood at more than 30.

Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system also intercepted another drone launched from Gaza -- the second so far, the IDF said.

Inter-community violence

Conflict between Israelis and Palestinians boiled over at the start of the week, fueled by controversy over planned evictions of Palestinian families in Jerusalem and restrictions at a popular East Jerusalem meeting point as Ramadan began. It has since escalated rapidly into one of the worst rounds of violence between the two sides in the last several years.

Rioting and violent clashes between Arab and Jewish citizens have swept across several Israeli cities this week, leading Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to warn against "lynching" by either community.

In Bat Yam, south of Jaffa, graphic video Wednesday night showed a Jewish right-wing mob trying to lynch an Arab driver. Police say the man was dragged from his car before the assault began.

In Acre, north of Haifa, a lynching attempt by an Arab mob left a Jewish man critically wounded, according to Israeli police. A police spokesman said the mob attacked police officers with stones before attacking the victim with stones and iron bars.

Communal violence was also reported in the Israeli cities of Lod, Tiberias, Umm al-Fahm and Hadera.

Efforts at international diplomacy so far appear to have stalled. A UN Security Council meeting on the violence will take place Sunday morning; the US blocked previous Security Council efforts to meet, preferring direct diplomacy on the conflict rather than discussion in an international forum.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Israel launches more strikes on Gaza as fears of a ground invasion grow."
(CNN)  A fresh batch of data from a big study of health care workers across the country helped prompt the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to say fully vaccinated people can go without masks in most circumstances, the agency said Friday.

The study found that real-life use of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines provided 94% protection for the front-line workers immunized at the beginning of the vaccine rollout. A single dose provided 82% protection, the CDC-led team reported in the agency's weekly report, the MMWR.

It was the findings from the new study, on top of earlier studies, that pushed CDC to decide to loosen its advice on who needs to wear a mask and when, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said.

"This report provided the most compelling information to date that COVID-19 vaccines were performing as expected in the real world," Walensky said in a statement Friday.

"COVID-19 vaccines are effective at preventing COVID-19 disease, especially severe illness and death," CDC says on its new web page describing guidance for the fully vaccinated.

"COVID-19 vaccines reduce the risk of people spreading COVID-19."

After weeks of telling people that even fully vaccinated people might carry virus in their noses, mouths or throats and breathe or spit it out onto others, the CDC says the evidence shows this is unlikely.

The reason  viral load. At least three major studies have shown that fully vaccinated people are not likely to test positive for coronavirus, which indicates they are not carrying it in their bodies, whether they have symptoms or not.

Last March 29, a network of researchers released a study via the CDC that involved nearly 4,000 health care workers who tested themselves weekly. That's the only real way to tell if people become infected with the virus without developing symptoms.

Reduced viral load

About 63% of them were vaccinated.

Only about 11% had asymptomatic infections, the research team found at the time. Those who got both doses of either Pfizer/BioNtech's or Moderna's vaccine were 90% less likely to get a positive test and those who got only a single dose had 80% protection.

A similar study from Israel, published on the same day in the journal Nature Medicine, found vaccinated people who got infected had a lower viral load  fourfold lower than unvaccinated people.

"In this analysis of a real-world dataset of positive severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) test results after inoculation with the BNT162b2 messenger RNA vaccine (Pfizer's) we found that the viral load was substantially reduced for infections occurring 12--37 days after the first dose of vaccine," Roy Kishony of the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology and colleagues wrote.

"These reduced viral loads hint at a potentially lower infectiousness, further contributing to vaccine effect on virus spread."

The latest study was released Friday.

"This assessment, conducted in a different study network with a larger sample size from across a broader geographic area than in the clinical trials, independently confirms U.S. vaccine effectiveness findings among health care workers that were first reported March 29," the CDC said in a statement.

"This study, added to the many studies that preceded it, was pivotal to CDC changing its recommendations for those who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19."

The study involved more than 1,800 workers and compared people who tested positive for coronavirus to those who tested negative.

"Health care personnel are at high risk for COVID-19," the report reads. "The early distribution of two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines (Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna) to health care personnel provided an opportunity to examine vaccine effectiveness in a real-world setting," they added.

Real-life data shows little risk of breakthrough infection

"The first U.S. multisite test-negative design vaccine effectiveness study among health care personnel found a single dose of Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to be 82% effective against symptomatic COVID-19 and 2 doses to be 94% effective."

With more Americans being vaccinated, the risk of infection is dropping, said Dr. Peter Hotez, a vaccine expert and dean of the school of tropical medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

According to CDC data, nearly 47% of the US population has received at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine and about 36% of the US population is fully vaccinated.

"The transmission rates are going way down," Hotez told CNN's Alisyn Camerota and Victor Blackwell on Friday.

"And I think the other piece that's really important is the data coming out of real-life situations like Israel, showing that anyone who does get breakthrough asymptomatic infection  which is very uncommon  has dramatically reduced virus loads and virus shedding, so this really is interrupting transmission, which is just such good news and so exciting."

In theory, if only fully vaccinated people went mask-free, there should be little risk of the virus spreading. But most US states have dropped mask mandates and more are dropping them after the CDC guidance.

Some critics have complained that the CDC has made no provision for people who have not been vaccinated but who will not wear masks.

"While we all share the desire to return to a mask-free normal, today's CDC guidance is confusing and fails to consider how it will impact essential workers who face frequent exposure to individuals who are not vaccinated and refuse to wear masks," United Food and Commercial Workers union president Marc Perrone said Thursday.

And President Joe Biden confirmed that Americans will be on the honor system for making sure they are vaccinated before discarding face masks. "We're not going to go out and arrest people," Biden said in remarks Thursday.

There are some caveats to the science behind the new guidance. Right now, it looks like the authorized vaccines are very effective against new variants of the virus that are arisingbut that's not certain.

"Early data show the vaccines may work against some variants but could be less effective against others," the CDC notes.

This story was first published on CNN.com "What's the science behind CDC's decision to say fully vaccinated people don't need masks?"
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said his government has written to Dr Reddy's Laboratories for supplying 67 lakh doses of COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V.

"We have asked for 67 lakh doses each of Covishield and Covaxin and have written to Dr Reddy's who are dealers of Sputnik in India for nearly the same quantity," Kejriwal said, adding that response from the company is awaited.

"We have asked them (Dr Reddy's) how many doses and by what time they can provide. No response has come from their side as yet," Kejriwal said.

There is shortage of vaccines across states amidst the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and opening up of vaccination for everyone above 18 years of age.

Also read: Oxygen crisis: Centre relaxes norms to fast track approvals for imported cylinders, pressure vessels

Earlier this week, Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia said the national capital was out of vaccine stock and Bharat Biotech had refused to provide additional doses of Covaxin.

Dr Reddy's had partnered Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) for carrying out clinical trials of Sputnik V and for its distribution rights in India. The vaccine, which has been imported from Russia, had a soft launch on Friday, and is likely to be available in the market from next week.

Dr Reddy's said it was working closely with its six manufacturing partners in India to fulfill regulatory requirements to ensure smooth and timely supply. The vaccine will be imported initially, following which it will be produced in India.

Kejriwal said COVID-19 infection can be reduced through vaccination and expressed hope that the vaccination programme in the country will gather pace with increase in supply of jabs.

(With inputs from PTI)

Also read: Centre provides Rs 220 cr grant, Covaxin's monthly production to cross 10 cr doses by Sep
The Delhi Cabinet on Friday approved Rs 5,000 financial assistance to all individuals holding public service badge (drivers) of para-transit vehicles and others in the wake of the lockdown here amid the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said.

The city transport department in a statement, also said, beneficiaries of the 2020 scheme need not reapply but will get the Rs 5,000 directly transferred to their Aadhaar-linked bank accounts subject to verification of deaths from local bodies.

"The Delhi Cabinet today approved Rs 5,000 financial assistance to all individuals holding public service badge (drivers) of para-transit vehicles and permit holders of para-transit vehicles in the wake of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, and further curfew announced by the Delhi government that has left the owners of these vehicles in financial hardships," it said.

Also Read: Lockdown in Delhi: Guidelines, rules, timings, dates; what's allowed, what's not allowed

On May 4, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced that a one-time financial assistance of Rs 5,000 will be provided to the PSV badge and permit holders of paratransit vehicles - namely auto-rickshaws, e-rickshaws, taxis, ''phatphat sewa'', eco-friendly sewa, Gramin sewa and maxi cabs, the statement said.

In 2020, Rs 78 crore was given as financial assistance to more than 1.56 drivers of auto rickshaws and taxis, it added.

In April 2020, the Delhi government had launched two different schemes for PSV badge holders and permit holders who had lost their means of livelihood during the first nationwide lockdown, the transport department said.

Delhi currently has over 2.80 lakh PSV badge holders and 1.90 lakh permit holders who are eligible to apply for the scheme and the Delhi Transport Department has already made necessary budgetary provisions for the same, it added.

The validity of documents, including PSV badge, permit, driving license, of all public service vehicles have been extended periodically since March 2020, according to orders by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

Also Read: Coronavirus: Delhi auto drivers to get Rs 5,000 relief assistance

The recent extension is until June 30, 2021, and all the holders of driving license and PSV badge that are valid as on February 1, 2020, are eligible to receive the financial assistance, the statement said.

However, similar to the last scheme, this benefit will only be extended to individual owners of para-transit vehicles and not to companies owning vehicle fleets, it added.

Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot was quoted as saying in the statement, "Delhi has been fighting this deadly second wave and under CM Arvind Kejriwal's strong leadership, Delhi government is doing everything it can to ensure the implications of a lockdown, especially among the daily wage labourers, including auto/taxi drivers, are kept to a minimum."
LARRY BECK, a longtime Denton resident, writes routinely on the local, state and national sociopolitical issues of our time on his blog, As I See It at asiseeyt.blogspot.com.
The Delhi government on Saturday announced a fund of Rs 1,051 crore for the three municipal corporations here to pay salaries of healthcare workers and other employees amid the ongoing second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, in an online briefing, said despite constrained circumstances due to the lockdown, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has taken this decision as those people who are helping fight the COVID-19 pandemic should get their salaries.

Doctors and other employees of the civic bodies are not getting their salaries due to "mismanagement and corruption in MCD (municipal corporations of Delhi)", the Aam Aadmi Party leader alleged.

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation, East Delhi Municipal Corporation and North Delhi Municipal Corporation are all BJP-led civic bodies.

"The Delhi government has released Rs 1,051 cr to the three municipal corporations in total so that they can pay salaries of their employees, amid this pandemic... the east corporation is to get Rs 367 cr, north corporation about Rs 432 cr and south corporation Rs 251 cr," he said.

The minister asserted that civic authorities must ensure this fund is used for paying salaries of employees only and not "diverted for other usage".

Delhi on Friday recorded 8,506 Covid-19 cases, the daily count dipping to below the 10,000-mark again after a month, with medical experts attributing the lockdown as the main factor behind the dip amid the second wave of the pandemic.

Chief Minister Kejriwal, on Saturday said that the number of cases recorded in the last 24 hours, has further dipped to about 6,500, with a positivity rate of 11 per cent.

Also Read: Delhi sees dip in COVID-19 cases, Centre can allocate extra oxygen to needy states: Manish Sisodia
The government has given permission for 190 Chinese traders to enter Vietnam to buy lychees in the northern province of Bac Giang.

They will enter through Lang Son Province, where, at the border, they have to furnish Covid-19 negative certificates issued by competent Chinese authorities.

They will be tested for the coronavirus and quarantined before they are allowed to visit lychee farms.

Bac Giang has 28,000 hectares under the fruit, and expects to harvest 180,000 tons this year, up 8 percent from 2020, according to its Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The harvest will take two months starting in May end.

The local Department of Industry and Trade estimated that if the pandemic is contained around 47 percent of the lychees harvested would be exported to China, and 2.5 percent to Japan, Australia, the E.U., and the U.S.

If the pandemic situation worsens but still remains under control, 28 percent could go to China.

To protect the lychee farming area from the pandemic, the province quarantines every individual who comes into contact with Covid-19 patients and has set up checkpoints on roads leading to the area.

Visitors have their temperature checked and have to provide medical declarations at the checkpoints, and vehicles are disinfected.
Ngoc Quan, a Hanoi resident, was surprised at the price rise when he visited an electronic retailer to buy a TV.

"I looked for a 32-inch TV of a well-known brand before Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday which fell in February. The price then was VND2.4 million ($104). Now, when I really want to buy it, its price has surged to VND3.6 million," he said.

Dao Tuan, an electronics store manager in Hanoi, said small-sized TVs were in short supply and their prices have been rising since the beginning of the year. The 32-inch TVs used to be sold for as low as VND2 million, but now even the cheapest product of an unfamiliar Chinese brand has reached VND3.3 million.

Le Quang Vu, CEO of the electronics retail chain Media Mart, said prices of small-sized TVs have increased 40-50 percent over last year, while that of larger-sized TVs, around 55 inches, remain the same. He explained that "the large TVs currently sold are old models from last year, so the prices are unchanged."

He expected the prices of TVs of over 50 inches to rise by 10 percent this year.

Thanh Hai, sales manager for a popular TV brand, said the surging TV prices in Vietnam were the result of a global shortage in components.

"The supply of semiconductor chips and TV panels are low, thus component prices surge, making production costs rise," he said.

According to Indian business newspaper Livemint, the cost of open-cell panels has gone up in the global markets by up to 35 percent in just one month in March, and has increased eight-fold since August last year. Open-cell panels constitute 60 percent of a TV unit.

The revenue of Vietnams TV market last year dropped 11 percent over the previous year as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Many Vietnamese people seem to have a false sense of security, which needs to be removed so new Covid-19 outbreaks don't get out of hand, experts say.

They stress that peoples compliance has become the most crucial factor in the nation's fight against the pandemic.

One reason the number of new cases in Vietnam is increasing fast is the immunity of 2020 is absent, said Dr Ali Mokdad, Chief Strategy Officer, Population Health, University of Washington.

He explained that previous exposure to the novel coronavirus had provided Vietnamese with some immunity, but it does not protect people from the new variant, the Indian one. So people are susceptible to it. Immunity for the new variant is zero percent, he stressed.

The second reason, Mokdad said, was that before the latest outbreak, citizens had a "false sense of security." They may have thought "we haven't seen it for a long time, so we can go out and do whatever we want, we are not going to get Covid-19."

Most notably, the rate of mask wearing in Vietnam at some points in time seemed to be lower than last year when people seem to be "tired of the pandemic."

In September 2020, the proportion stood at over 65 percent of Vietnam's population; it reduced to 58 percent in mid-Jan this year. Early in the pandemic, everybody was afraid and they were paying attention to the rules. However, despite the fourth wave happening, the ratio was at just 61 percent mid-May, Mokdad said, citing statistics compiled by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) under the University of Washington.

The ratio of mask wearing decreased to less than 50 percent in October 2020 because there was no new case in the community. It surged to 76 percent in February 2021 amid the third outbreak in Hai Duong Province. Mask use is highly recommended by Vietnamese government as a measure against Covid spread, while the IHME said mask use can reduce transmission by 30 percent or more.

The ratio of mask use in Vietnam since September 2020, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Graphics by IHME.

Mokdad warned that Vietnam could see a rapid rise of new cases, like that seen in India, if the government does not pay attention. He noted that in late April, Vietnam had a long holiday and many people went on vacation. Increased mobility and lower mask wearing is a recipe for disaster, he said, adding: "The situation in Vietnam is very dangerous."

At a time Vietnam does not have enough vaccines for its population, people's awareness and compliance is the most important thing for the country to control the new Covid-19 wave, Mokdad said.

The IHME projects that by September this year, only about 18.5 million Vietnamese citizens will be vaccinated. Therefore, vaccines are not going to provide immunity for a long time because the country does not have enough vaccines to vaccinate needed numbers, Mokdad said.

Professor Mark Jit with The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine said scientists do not know enough about the Indian variant for now. It is possible that it spreads faster than most other variants, so Vietnam and other countries need to be careful while further data is being collected to understand it.

Jit agreed with other experts that Vietnam, like other countries, is caught in a dangerous situation, because there are many variants. Some of them are more transmissible, the mortality is higher and immunity programs work are less effective against them.

The Indian variant is the one people are most worried about, he said.

"Therefore, it needs to be taken very seriously."

Thousands of people are on the beach in Vung Tau that neighbors Ho Chi Minh City on their vacation on April 30, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Truong Ha.

Professor Kelley Lee of Canadas Simon Fraser University said the spread of variants was extremely concerning and can easily undo much of the hard work that Vietnam has been doing over the past 16 months.

Vietnam has won a lot of admiration from other countries with its response to the Covid-19 pandemic so far; and they can learn much from what has been achieved, she said.

However, Vietnam needs to review current protocols to ensure that cases of people infected with new variants do not turn into large-scale community transmissions.

"We have seen this happen in many countries very quickly," she said.

Back to basics

Mokdad feels that the best thing for Vietnam to do right now is to go back to wearing masks and practicing safe distance measures to control the virus until the country reaches herd immunity by vaccination.

He said old measures will work on any variant; the difference now is that the authorities will have to be even stricter because everybody is susceptible to new variants. With his own experience of working with colleagues in Vietnam several years ago, Mokdad said he understands the problems of being a country with a dense population. Furthermore, it is difficult to go to a country where case numbers are very low and say "we have a problem."

For that reason, the government should take action before people let their guard down. If the government does not want to shut down the economy, it has to be strict with preventative measures, he said.

"Whatever the government is doing should be continued. They need to be tough and strict. It will help a lot."

Professor Robert Booy with Australias University of Sydney also said Vietnam needs to persist with what it has already done. In some ways, the country should further improve quarantine and social isolation measures because it's at risk of even more transmissible virus strains, he said.

Booy also said that the virus can be contained with simple physical measures, but in order to control it in the long term, countries must act quickly in implementing their vaccination programs.

With the dramatic rise in the number of cases in some countries in Asia, including India, Nepal and some of the surrounding countries, people should consider the higher risks of importation involved, said Dr Karen Grepin with the University of Hong Kong.

In other words, Vietnam and other nations should consider placing additional restrictions on people coming in from such countries in order to minimize the risk. Vietnam should also step up security measures at border areas towards minimizing opportunities for the virus to spread widely among the community.

Lee said variants can emerge anywhere in the world and Vietnam can learn from countries where variants have gone out of control. Public health authorities need to be ready to adapt and change as the risk shifts.

Jit said that the intensity of measures can be calibrated according to the situation. But if it is necessary that workplaces, schools and other places be closed for longer periods, it has to be done.
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal discussed the proposed waiver to provisions of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) for COVID-19-specific items and raising vaccine production with United States Trade Representative (USTR), Katherine Tai, in a virtually meeting on Friday.

During the meeting, Tai conveyed her deep sympathy for the people of India as the country battles a deadly wave of COVID-19 and reaffirmed the commitment of the United States to help India, the USTR said in a readout of the call. India is in the midst of a deadly wave of the coronavirus pandemic, with 3,43,144 people testing positive for the virus on Friday, taking the country's caseload to 2,40,46,809. The death toll stands at 2,62,317.

India's COVID-19 tally crossed the 10 million mark on December 19 and in under six months it has doubled, surpassing the grim milestone of 20 million cases on May 4.

Tai explained her support for the waiver of intellectual property (IP) protections for COVID-19 vaccines and text-based negotiations at the WTO, which are part of the Joe Biden administration's comprehensive effort to expand vaccine manufacturing and distribution around the world.

Tai recognised the WTO members who have expressed support for future negotiations and welcomed an update from Goyal on India's efforts to revise and re-submit their waiver proposal, the release said.

India and South Africa have been pushing a resolution at the WTO that would force pharmaceutical companies to hand over their COVID-19 vaccine and therapy IP to manufacturers in low-income countries. The waiver is backed by nearly 100 other low-income countries, progressive groups and more than 100 Democratic Congress members.

Also read: Kerala caps prices of medical items needed for COVID treatment
Dao Duy Tung is questioned after illegally entering Vietnam from Laos. Photo courtesy of Hai Duong police.

Police in the northern province of Hai Duong are considering opening criminal investigation into a coronavirus patient for spreading the disease after entering the country illegally.

Dao Duy Tung, 32, illegally traveled to Laos in March to look for a job, then illegally traveled back to Vietnam on April 22. He was later confirmed infected with the coronavirus on May 6.

Authorities accused him of moving around Hai Duong, Hai Phong, Hanoi, Hung Yen and Ha Nam after returning to Vietnam, making contact with many people.

Four people associated with Tung were found infected afterwards.

Police in Hai Duong said during contact tracing efforts, Tung did not fully cooperate with authorities regarding medical declarations.

He is now being quarantined and treated at the Hai Duong National Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

Everyone entering Vietnam from abroad is quarantined for 14 days and tested at least twice. Illegal entrants are those evading official border checkpoints to avoid quarantine.
Ukraine expects the European Union to revise its Neighborhood Policy, and that this revision will affect all the countries of Eastern Europe, said Olha Stefanyshyna, Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration.

"We expect that in 2022 the European Union will start revising the Neighborhood Policy, and this revision will affect all Eastern European countries; that a specific new format of cooperation will be developed for Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova, countries aspiring to membership [in the EU]. And we expect that by 2027, when Lithuania assumes the presidency of the EU Council, it will be possible to come up with specific political decisions," she said during an online discussion of Kyiv Forum, founded by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk Foundation entitled "Discover Ukraine."

Stefanyshyna noted that Ukraine positively assesses the current situation of relations with the EU. "At the same time, we believe that the time has come to start revising the Neighborhood Policy. We hope that this work will begin in 2022. And I know that many in European capitals are ready to join this work, and Ukraine will be able to get the prospect of membership [in EU]," she stressed.

At the same time, she noted that "there is really fatigue from expansion, and we feel it in our capitals."
Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) Oleksiy Danilov has said that in the near future, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky may sign a decree on the creation of cyber troops in the country, this issue was discussed at a closed meeting of the NSDC on Friday, May 14.

"Today, in secret mode, we were considering the issue of creating cyber troops in our country. I can say that this decision was unanimously supported by all 21 members who attended the meeting. I think that there will be a presidential decree about this in the near future. You will learn from the president," Danilov said on the air of the Ukraina TV channel in the program Freedom of Speech (Svoboda Slova) on Friday, May 14.

According to Danilov, "eight issues were considered at the next meeting of the NSDC on Friday."

"Among them, there was the issue of cybersecurity and the approval of the cybersecurity strategy of Ukraine. We've also considered the issue of biological security and protection today, because in the state in which we met COVID-19, it turned out that the country was brought to the brink of import dependence even on those things which are very simple. But our business reacted very quickly to this," Danilov added.

He noted that "at the meeting of the National Security and Defense Council on Friday, an important and fundamental decision was made regarding drugs and vaccines," information about which has not been disclosed yet.

"We are also dealing with the issue of the economic impact of the Russian Federation. And when today we were talking about those people, and there were not only thieves in law, there were also criminal authorities - if you look at their biography, then most of them are from the Russian Federation," noted Danilov.

Also, according to him, "currently the NSDC working group is located on the territory of Kherson, Mykolaiv and Odesa regions." "They are preparing a meeting on the situation, which will take place shortly - in two weeks, if the president approves the agenda," he said.
The final planning conference for the Ukrainian-American exercises Sea Breeze-2021 ended in Odesa on May 13, the public relations service of the Command of the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said.

"The purpose of the event was to finalize the plan, the format for attracting the participating states and reconnaissance of the venues," the Ukrainian Navy said on its Facebook page.

The conference, together with Ukraine, was attended by 16 member states and partners of the North Atlantic Alliance.

"The Sea Breeze is another important step and the most important event aimed at obtaining the capabilities of the Navy to operate completely according to NATO standards. This year we are returning to a full-scale training format, in which all components are involved," Commander of the Ukrainian Navy, Rear Admiral Oleksiy Neyizhpapa said.

This year, for the first time, representatives of Senegal and Tunisia took part in the final conference.

In general, it is planned to attract more than 30 ships, 30 aircraft in the naval and air components and more than 1,400 military personnel from various countries in the land component.

The current Sea Breeze exercise brings together a record number of participating countries, namely 27 countries will take part directly with the involvement of units, ships, aircraft and appropriate officers. Taking into account the "observers", up to 35 countries are planning to take part in the Sea Breeze-2021 exercises.

Last year, due to quarantine restrictions, the Sea Breeze exercises were limited to only the naval phase with the involvement of aviation. All joint activities took place in the Black Sea without personnel contact.

The Sea Breeze exercises have been conducted on the territory of Ukraine since 1997 in accordance with the 1993 Memorandum between the U.S. and Ukrainian Ministries of Defense. The co-organizers of the exercises are Ukraine and the United States.
In connection with the aggravation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, about 80 Ukrainian citizens expressed a desire to be evacuated from the Gaza Strip, the Ukrainians were asked to form a list and send them to diplomatic missions for further processing, a source in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine told Interfax-Ukraine.

According to the source, the development of events remains unpredictable, it is possible that Israel will conduct a ground military operation in the Gaza Strip, which will lead to great destruction and casualties, including among the civilian population, which may raise the question of evacuating Ukrainian citizens from there.

"It is preliminary known that about 80 citizens of Ukraine expressed a desire to evacuate from the enclave, they were asked to form a list and send them to diplomatic missions for further processing," the agency's interlocutor said.

According to available information, the evacuation of citizens of other countries from the Gaza Strip has not been carried out yet.

An estimated number of 1,600 Ukrainian citizens live in the Gaza Strip (mostly Ukrainian women who are married to Palestinians and their family members). As of May 14, no Ukrainian citizens were killed or wounded as a result of the escalation of the conflict.

Previously, the evacuation of Ukrainian citizens was carried out through Egypt.
In a thank-you letter to Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and State President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Thongloun Sisoulith said the Vietnamese leaders messages have vividly demonstrated the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries.

The Lao leader also highlighted Vietnams valuable, timely and effective support to Laos in personnel, medical supplies and medicines, saying the assistance has significantly contributed to the pandemic fight in his country.

We always keep a close watch on the COVID-19 situation in Vietnam, and highly value the measures taken by the Vietnamese Party and government to contain the pandemic, he said.

Vietnam is one of the countries that have reaped great successes in COVID-19 prevention and control which have been lauded by the international community, the Lao leader continued.

We believe that under the leadership of the Community Party of Vietnam and with the great national unity bloc, Vietnam will beat COVID-19, he said, pledging that Laos will closely cooperate with Vietnam to win over the pandemic.
U.S. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) walks with U.S. Representative Elise Stefanik (R-NY) after the Republican caucus meeting to speak to the media, in Washington, U.S. (Photo : REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein)

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives elected Donald Trump's candidate Elise Stefanik to their leadership, succeeding Liz Cheney, who they ousted earlier this week for criticizing the former president's continued false claims of election fraud.



Stefanik, a 36-year-old congresswoman from New York state, rose to prominence https://www.reuters.com/world/us/loyalty-trump-catapults-elise-stefanik-into-republican-stardom-2021-05-11 with her fierce defense of Trump during his first impeachment trial, while Cheney https://www.reuters.com/world/us/liz-cheney-vote-us-house-republicans-reach-watershed-over-trump-2021-05-12 angered her Republican colleagues by rejecting what she called Trump's "big lie" about his November loss to Democratic President Joe Biden.



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The secret-ballot vote boosted Trump's dominance over the party even after it lost its majorities in the House and Senate, as well as the White House, during his single term in office. Trump is positioning himself to play a major role in next year's congressional elections and is also flirting with a 2024 White House run.



"He is a critical part of our Republican team," Stefanik said. "I believe that voters choose the leader of the Republican Party and President Trump is the leader that they look to."



Stefanik defeated Representative Chip Roy, who entered the race to serve as chair of the House Republican Conference on Thursday night.



House conservatives including Roy had complained that Stefanik's voting record was not conservative enough, including a vote against Trump's 2017 tax cuts, his main legislative accomplishment. But the party in the end lined up behind Trump, who blasted Roy's entry into the contest in a statement, hinting at backing a primary challenger to him next year.



A woman has held the No. 3 House Republican leadership job since 2013, as the party has tried to broaden its appeal to independent voters, including suburban women.



The secret ballot tally, according to a source in the room, was 134-46, with nine voting "present" and three votes cast for other candidates.



Conceding defeat, Roy, a Texas congressman, said he succeeded in delivering a message to leadership that it should have created a more open process for electing Cheney's replacement.



"Elise is our chair," Roy said after the vote. "Now we're going to get busy, pointing out how the Democratic Party is destroying America."



CHENEY TO FIGHT ON



Cheney has vowed to continue to fight to prevent Trump from winning the White House again in 2024.



Stefanik was a fierce defender of Trump during his two House impeachment trials. Despite her somewhat moderate voting record, she defeated the rock-solid conservative Roy.



Following the closed-door vote, Trump issued a statement saying, "Congratulations to Elise Stefanik for her Big and Overwhelming victory!"



In celebrating Stefanik's victory, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy tried to put the bruising leadership battle behind Republicans.



During remarks to reporters with Stefanik at his side, McCarthy instead launched an attack on Biden, blaming him for an immigration "crisis" at the southern border, gasoline shortages on the East Coast due a cyber-attack on a major pipeline, and unrest in Israel.



Democrats hold a razor-thin majority in the House and a 50-50 split with Republicans in the Senate. Given those numbers, and a history of political parties doing well in mid-term congressional elections when the opposition holds the White House, Republicans are optimistic of taking over the House in the November 2022 elections.



Now free of her job as head of the Republican conference, Cheney, a lawmaker with impeccable conservative credentials and the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, vows to steer the party away from a man she says is "pushing the lie" that his defeat in the 2020 election was the result of massive voter fraud.



Trump's claim was rejected by multiple courts, state election officials and his own administration. Cheney calls him "an ongoing threat" to U.S. democracy.



House Republican leaders, along with many in their rank and file, pushed Cheney out on Wednesday because they had concluded her battle with Trump was distracting from attacks on Democratic President Joe Biden and threatening their prospects in the 2022 congressional elections.



By dumping Cheney and electing Stefanik, Republicans demonstrated that adherence to strict conservative ideology is no longer of prime importance in the Trump-era.



The conservative Club for Growth, which rates members of Congress, gives Stefanik a lifetime score of just 35% for voting in line with its priorities, one of the worst among House Republicans, and well below Cheney's 65%.



Even more striking, Roy enjoys a 100% lifetime rating.



While House Republicans, cheered on by Trump and McCarthy, were eager to shun Cheney this week, they have not acted against Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene or Matt Gaetz.



The House's Democratic leadership stripped Greene of her committee assignments for past incendiary remarks that included support for violence against Democrats, while Gaetz is the subject of a federal child sex-trafficking probe.



Both are close allies of Trump.


Smoke and flames rise during an Israeli air strike, amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, in Gaza City (Photo : REUTERS/Mohammed Salem)

As the war between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip lit up the skies and sent civilians running for cover for a fifth night running on Friday, diplomats stepped up efforts to try and end the violence.



As Gazans marked a grim Eid al-Fitr feast marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan and Israel began a holiday weekend with no sign of an end to fighting, casualties spread further afield, with Palestinians reporting 11 killed in the West Bank amid clashes between protesters and Israeli security forces.



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The Israeli military said more than 2,000 rockets had been fired from Gaza into Israel since the start of the conflict, around half of which were intercepted by missile defence systems and 350 fell into the Gaza Strip.



At least 126 people have been killed in Gaza since Monday, including 31 children and 20 women, and 950 others wounded, Palestinian medical officials said.



Among eight dead in Israel were a soldier patrolling the Gaza border and six Israeli civilians, including two children, Israeli authorities said.



Ahead of a session of the U.N. Security Council on Sunday to discuss the situation, Biden administration envoy Hady Amr, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Israel and Palestinian Affairs, flew in on Friday.



The U.S. Embassy in Israel said the aim of his trip was "to reinforce the need to work toward a sustainable calm."



Israel launched day-long attacks to destroy what it said were several km (miles) of tunnels, launch sites and weapon manufacturing warehouses used by the militants in an effort to halt the rocket attacks.



The Israeli operation included 160 aircraft as well as tanks and artillery firing from outside the Gaza Strip, Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus said. It included a bank that, Israel said, handled the day-to-day cash flow of Hamas and its armed wing.



There have also been clashes between Jews and Israel's minority Arab community in mixed cities across Israel. The Israeli police said they had arrested at least 23 people over the unrest.



The Israeli army said late on Friday three rockets had been fired from Syria at the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights but there were no reports of any damage.



DIPLOMATIC FLURRY



White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Washington was focused on leveraging U.S. relationships in the region to end the crisis diplomatically, adding that Israel had a right to self-defence.



Egypt was leading regional efforts to secure a ceasefire. Cairo was pushing for both sides to cease fire from midnight on Friday pending further negotiations, two Egyptian security sources said, with Egypt leaning on Hamas and others, including the United States, trying to reach an agreement with Israel.



The foreign ministers of Egypt and Jordan discussed efforts to end the Gaza confrontation and to prevent "provocations" in Jerusalem, Egypt's foreign ministry said.



"The talks have taken a real and serious path on Friday," a Palestinian official said. "The mediators from Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations are stepping up their contacts with all sides in a bid to restore calm, but a deal hasn't yet been reached."



U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also appealed for an immediate ceasefire.



"Fighting has the potential to unleash an uncontainable security and humanitarian crisis and to further foster extremism...," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.



Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza, launched the rocket attacks on Monday, in retaliation for Israeli police clashes with Palestinians near al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam's third holiest site, in East Jerusalem.



Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, who led Friday prayers at al-Aqsa Mosque, decried its treatment by Israeli forces. He said its "sanctity has been violated several times during the holy month of Ramadan" in what he called violations "unprecedented" since the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.



Israel says it makes every effort to preserve civilian life, including warning in advance of attacks.



"What we were targeting is an elaborate system of tunnels that spans underneath Gaza, mostly in the north but not limited to, and is a network that the operatives of Hamas use in order to move, in order to hide, for cover," Conricus told foreign reporters, adding that the network was known as "the Metro".



The Israeli military has put the number of militants killed so far in the Israeli attacks at between 80 and 90.



The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said there were reports of more than 200 housing units destroyed or severely damaged in Gaza and hundreds of people seeking shelter in schools in the north of the coastal enclave.



Major airlines have suspended flights to Israel and at least two owners of tankers delivering crude oil asked to divert from Ashkelon to the port of Haifa, farther north of Gaza, because of the conflict, shipping sources said on Friday.



There were pro-Palestinian protests in Jordan, Bangladesh and elsewhere, but the broader picture across the Islamic world, where Muslims are marking the Eid al-Fitr holiday and where restrictions on movement due to COVID-19 are in place in some countries, was noticeably muted.


Monsanto Co's Roundup is shown for sale in Encinitas, California, U.S., (Photo : REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo)

A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a $25 million judgment and trial verdict finding Bayer's Roundup caused a California resident's non-Hodgkin lymphoma, dealing a blow to the chemical company's hopes of limiting its legal risk over the weed-killer.



The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco rejected Bayer's argument that lawsuits like Edwin Hardeman's never should go to trial because federal pesticide laws barred allegations that the company failed to warn of Roundup's cancer risks.



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"It's a slam dunk for plaintiffs," said Leslie Brueckner, an attorney with Public Justice who helped with Hardeman's appeal. "This proves these claims are viable in the tort system."



Bayer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



A jury in 2019 awarded Hardeman $5 million in compensatory damages and $75 million in punitive damages in the first federal case to have gone to trial. The punitive award was later cut to $20 million and the appeals court also upheld the reduction.



Friday's ruling was the first by a federal appeals court in a case linking Roundup and cancer and Bayer had said the case had the potential to "shape how every subsequent Roundup case is litigated."



Bayer has said that decades of studies have shown Roundup and other glyphosate-based herbicides that dominate the market are safe for human use.



The company has argued that glyphosate was approved by the Environmental Protection Agency as safe for humans and that regulators prevented Bayer from adding a warning to the product's label.



But the company has spent years trying to contain the litigation.



Bayer has committed $9.6 billion to settle 125,000 claims over Roundup.



It also wants to resolve potential legal claims of millions of consumers and farm workers who have been exposed to Roundup and might get sick in the future.



On Wednesday it will seek preliminary approval for a controversial $2 billion proposed deal to resolve those future claims through a class action that would group those exposed to Roundup but who haven't gotten sick.



Personal injury attorneys and consumer groups have opposed the plan, which they say limits the rights of Roundup users to sue.



Brueckner said Friday's ruling undermined one argument for the class action settlement, which was that Bayer might prevail in federal appeals courts.



"The timing couldn't be more perfect," said Brueckner, referring to Wednesday's hearing on the class action agreement. "I doubt it was accidental."



Elizabeth Cabraser, the class action attorney who negotiated the class action agreement, said she was pleased with Friday's ruling.



Proponents of the class action agreement argued that it provides consumers free medical exams to monitor their health. If consumers were diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, they could receive compensation worth up to $200,000 and free legal advice to assess their options.



The deal also pauses litigation against Bayer for four years and if someone rejected the compensation and sued, they could not seek punitive damages.



"The more verdicts against Bayer, the more pressure there is on the company to pull Roundup from the market or agree to a more generous settlement," said David Noll, a professor with Rutgers Law School.


Security fences, erected following the January 6th attack, are seen surrounding the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S (Photo : REUTERS/Carlos Barria)

A key Democrat and Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives reached a deal to form a bipartisan commission to investigate the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Donald Trump's supporters, the lawmakers said on Friday.



Democratic Representative Bennie Thompson, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, and Republican ranking member John Katko said they would introduce legislation as soon as next week to set up the investigative panel modeled after the one used to probe the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.



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"There has been a growing consensus that the January 6th attack is of a complexity and national significance that ... we need an independent commission to investigate," Thompson said in a statement. "Inaction - or just moving on - is simply not an option."



Katko said the Capitol remained a target for extremists. "This is about facts, not partisan politics," he said.



Hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 as Congress was meeting to certify Joe Biden's presidential election victory. The violence left five dead, including a Capitol Police officer.



Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican leader, said he had not signed off on the lawmakers' deal and said the commission should look at events that came before and after Jan. 6, including an unrelated incident in April when a motorist rammed a car into a pair of Capitol Police officers, killing one.



For months, negotiations over the size and scope of the commission stalled amid disagreement between Democrats and Republicans over the number of commissioners each party would name and whether minority Republicans would have subpoena power.



Republicans also had been arguing for the commission to investigate last summer's protests in the wake of George Floyd's murder in Minneapolis.



The Jan. 6 riot followed a fiery speech in which then-President Trump falsely alleged that his election defeat was the result of widespread voter fraud, a claim that has been dismissed by multiple courts, state election officials and his own administration's review.



Following the riot, multiple Republicans condemned Trump's words. But out of office, he has doubled down on his false claims of fraud, which multiple Republican-controlled state legislatures have cited as a justification for passing new voting restrictions.



The House Republican caucus this week stripped Representative Liz Cheney of her party leadership role because she loudly rejected Trump's "big lie."



Some congressional Republicans have downplayed the violence that led to Trump's second impeachment trial on a charge of inciting insurrection.



Andrew Clyde, a lawmaker from Georgia, said on Wednesday that calling the incident an insurrection was a "bold-faced lie."



More than 400 people have been arrested for taking part in the riot.



Like the Sept. 11 panel, the proposed 10-member panel would have five commissioners appointed by each party as well as subpoena authority. Its report and recommendations to prevent future attacks would be due by Dec. 31.



Both the House and the Senate would have to approve the bill that sets up the commission, which would then go to Biden to sign into law.



Senate Appropriations Chairman Patrick Leahy said he was committed to moving a bill that addressed Capitol security vulnerabilities and other needs.



Separately, House Democrats introduced a bill that would allocate $1.9 billion to respond to the insurrection.



The funding would reimburse law enforcement agencies for their response and presence at the U.S. Capitol, provide support for Capitol Police and improve security there, among other measures, according to a statement by Democrats Rosa DeLauro and Tim Ryan.


A 3D-printed Facebook logo is seen placed on a keyboard in this illustration (Photo : REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo)

Ireland's data regulator can resume a probe that may trigger a ban on Facebook's transatlantic data transfers, the High Court ruled on Friday, raising the prospect of a stoppage that the company warns would have a devastating impact on its business.



The case stems from EU concerns that U.S. government surveillance may not respect the privacy rights of EU citizens when their personal data is sent to the United States for commercial use.



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Ireland's Data Protection Commissioner (DPC), Facebook's lead regulator in the European Union, launched an inquiry in August and issued a provisional order that the main mechanism Facebook uses to transfer EU user data to the United States "cannot in practice be used".



Facebook had challenged both the inquiry and the Preliminary Draft Decision (PDD), saying they threatened "devastating" and "irreversible" consequences for its business, which relies on processing user data to serve targeted online ads.



The High Court rejected the challenge on Friday.



"I refuse all of the reliefs sought by FBI (Facebook Ireland) and dismiss the claims made by it in the proceedings," Justice David Barniville said in a judgment that ran to nearly 200 pages.



"FBI has not established any basis for impugning the DPC decision or the PDD or the procedures for the inquiry adopted by the DPC," the judgment said.



While the decision does not trigger an immediate halt to data flows, Austrian privacy activist Max Schrems, who forced the Irish data regulator to act in a series of legal actions over the past eight years, said he believed the decision made it inevitable.



"After eight years, the DPC is now required to stop Facebook's EU-U.S. data transfers, likely before summer," he said.



A Facebook spokesman said the company looked forward to defending its compliance with EU data rules as the Irish regulator's provisional order "could be damaging not only to Facebook, but also to users and other businesses".



PRIVILEGED ACCESS



If the Irish data regulator enforces the provisional order, it would effectively end the privileged access companies in the United States have to personal data from Europe and put them on the same footing as companies in other nations outside the bloc.



The mechanism being questioned by the Irish regulator, the Standard Contractual Clause (SCC), was deemed valid by the European Court of Justice in a July decision.



But the Court of Justice also ruled that, under SCCs, privacy watchdogs must suspend or prohibit transfers outside the EU if data protection in other countries cannot be assured.



A lawyer for Facebook in December told the High Court that the Irish regulator's draft decision, if implemented, "would have devastating consequences" for Facebook's business, impacting Facebook's 410 million active users in Europe, hit political groups and undermine freedom of speech.



Irish Data Protection Commissioner Helen Dixon in February said companies more broadly may face massive disruption to transatlantic data flows as a result of the European Court of Justice decision.



Dixon's office welcomed the decision on Friday, but declined further comment.


An Intel Tiger Lake chip is displayed at an Intel news conference during the 2020 CES in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. (Photo : REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo)

A group of U.S. senators are close to unveiling a $52-billion proposal Friday that would significantly boost U.S. semiconductor chip production and research over five years sources briefed on the matter said.



Senators Mark Kelly, John Cornyn, Mark Warner and Tom Cotton have been negotiating a compromise measure to address the issue in the face of rising Chinese semiconductor production and shortages impacting automakers and other U.S. industries.



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A spokesman for Cornyn said the senator has "not signed on to a semiconductor amendment."



Sources said there remains at least one sticking point over whether to include a provision on labor rates.



The chips funding is expected to be included in a bill the Senate will take up next week to spend more than $110 billion on basic U.S. and advanced technology research to better compete with China.



The proposal includes $49.5 billion in emergency supplemental appropriations to fund the chip provisions that were included in this year's National Defense Authorization Act, but which require a separate process to garner funding, according to a draft summary seen by Reuters.



Democratic Leader Senator Chuck Schumer, also involved in the talks, said Thursday the Senate will take up the technology bill known as the Endless Frontier Act next week in a package of legislation that would include efforts to "invest in the American semiconductor industry, ensure that China pays a price for its predatory actions, and boost advanced manufacturing, innovation, and critical supply chains."



President Joe Biden has also called for $50 billion to boost semiconductor production and research.



Supporters of funding note the U.S. had a 37% share of semiconductors and microelectronics production in 1990; today just 12% of semiconductors are manufactured in the United States.



"There is an urgent need for our economic and national security to provide funding to swiftly implement these critical programs. The Chinese Communist Party is aggressively investing over $150 billion in semiconductor manufacturing so they can control this key technology," the summary says.



The measure would "support the rapid implementation of the semiconductor provisions" in the defense bill.



The draft summary says it would include $39 billion in production and R&D incentives and $10.5 billion to implement programs including the National Semiconductor Technology Center, National Advanced Packaging Manufacturing Program, and other R&D programs.


Tesla China-made Model 3 vehicles are seen during a delivery event at its factory in Shanghai, China (Photo : REUTERS/Aly Song)

Tesla Inc is in talks with Chinese battery maker EVE Energy Co to add the firm to its Shanghai factory supply chain, four people familiar with the matter said, as it seeks to boost procurement of lower cost batteries.



EVE makes lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, which are cheaper to produce because they use iron instead of more expensive nickel and cobalt.



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But LFP batteries generally offer a shorter range on a single charge than the more popular nickel/cobalt alternative.



EVE would become the second supplier of LFP batteries to Tesla after China's Contemporary Amperex Technology Co (CATL).



The talks are advanced and the Palo Alto, California-based company is seeking to finalise the partnership in the third quarter, said two of the people.



Shenzhen-listed EVE is running some final-stage tests of its products for Tesla, said one person.



Shares of the Chinese battery firm jumped more than 10% in afternoon trade on Friday following the Reuters report about the talks.



All sources declined to be identified as the discussions are private. Tesla and EVE did not reply to Reuters requests for comment.



Tesla CEO Elon Musk said this year the company was shifting standard range cars to an iron cathode due to concerns about the supply of nickel for scaling up battery production.



The talks come as Tesla faces growing competition from Chinese rivals such as Nio and Li Auto, as well as mounting cost pressure.



Tesla raised the starting price of a standard range Model 3 sedan in China by 1,000 yuan ($155) on Saturday to 250,900 yuan, citing cost fluctuations.



Data showed this week that China's factory gate prices rose at their fastest in three and a half years in April as the world's second-largest economy gathers momentum.



Tesla also faces mounting regulatory pressure in China after consumer disputes over product safety and scrutiny over how it handles data.



The company is using batteries from China's Contemporary Amperex Technology Co (CATL) and South Korea's LG Chem for its China-made Model 3 and Model Y cars.



CATL has been the sole supplier of the LFP batteries for China-made Model 3 cars with standard driving ranges since late last year.



Three of the sources said Tesla has been working closely with EVE to get its batteries to meet its requirements, as it aims to bring in the supplier as, what one of the sources called a "check and balance" against CATL.



One of the sources said Tesla could start using EVE's LFP batteries in the China-made Model 3 and Model Y vehicles within the next six months and EVE had ramped up production in order to be prepared for the possible partnership.



EVE, which supplies batteries to Chinese EV maker Xpeng Inc, said in March it also has battery supply partnerships with BMW and Daimler AG.



($1 = 6.4505 Chinese yuan)


Swiss Life to pay $77.4 million to settle U.S. criminal tax evasion case

The logo of insurer Swiss Life is seen at its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland (Photo : REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann)

Swiss Life Holding AG agreed to pay $77.4 million and enter a deferred prosecution agreement to resolve a U.S. criminal case in which Switzerland's largest insurer was accused of helping wealthy American clients evade taxes.



The three-year agreement announced on Friday resolves a charge that Swiss Life conspired to defraud the U.S. Internal Revenue Service by concealing more than $1.45 billion in offshore insurance policies.



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These included more than 1,600 "wrapper" insurance policies into which taxpayers can place stocks, private equity holdings and other assets.



U.S. prosecutors began cracking down more than a decade ago on the use of Swiss banks to avoid federal taxes.



Swiss Life and its affiliates viewed this "stepped-up offshore tax enforcement as an opportunity to pitch themselves to tax-evading U.S. customers as an alternative to Swiss banks," U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss in Manhattan said in a statement.



The Zurich-based insurer will pay a $25.3 million fine plus $52.1 million in restitution and forfeiture, and hand over information about accounts it closed between 2008 and 2019.



Swiss Life has said it set aside sufficient funds in 2020 to cover the payment.



Its general counsel accepted the deferred prosecution agreement at a hearing before U.S. District Judge Gregory Woods in Manhattan.



An agreement by Swiss bank UBS in 2009 to pay a $780 million penalty and hand over names and data on thousands of client accounts helped kick off numerous settlements with other Swiss financial companies.



Rahn+Bodmer, Zurich's oldest private bank, agreed in March to pay $22 million to settle U.S. charges it helped taxpayers who fled UBS and other Swiss banks hide money in offshore accounts.


Media mogul Jimmy Lai, founder of Apple Daily, arrives the Court of Final Appeal by prison van in Hong Kong, China (Photo : REUTERS/Tyrone Siu)

Hong Kong authorities on Friday froze assets belonging to jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai, including all shares in his company, Next Digital - the first time a listed firm has been targeted by national security laws in the financial hub.



Also among assets targeted were the local bank accounts of three companies owned by him, Hong Kong's Secretary for Security John Lee said in a government statement.



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The statement, issued after the market close, said Lee had issued notices "in writing to freeze all the shares of Next Digital Limited held by (Jimmy) Lai Chee-ying, and the property in the local bank accounts of three companies owned by him".



Lai was sentenced to 14 months in prison for taking part in unauthorised assemblies during pro-democracy protests in 2019.



He faces three alleged charges under a sweeping new national security law imposed by Beijing, including collusion with a foreign country.



The move against his assets was also made under the security law, which criminalises acts including subversion, sedition, collusion with foreign forces and secession with possible life imprisonment.



The decision by authorities to use the law's powers for the first time to target a Hong Kong listed company could have repercussions for investor sentiment.



There have been signs of capital flight since the law was imposed last June, to foreign countries including Canada, according to government agencies, bankers and lawyers.



CLAMPDOWN



Beijing said it imposed the law on the former British colony to restore order after months of pro-democracy, anti-China protests in 2019.



However, critics say the law has been used by China's Communist leaders to suppress freedoms and pro-democracy campaigners - scores of whom have been arrested and jailed, or have fled into exile.



The chief executive officer of Next Digital, Cheung Kim-hung, told the Apple Daily that Lai's frozen assets had nothing to do with the bank accounts of Next Digital, and that their operations and finances would not be affected.



The firm's employees pledged to continue to "uphold their duty and keep reporting", in a statement posted on the Facebook page of Next Digital's trade union.



Under Hong Kong stock exchange filings, Lai is Next Digital's major shareholder and holds 71.26 percent of shares that were worth around HK$350 million ($45 million) based on Friday's closing share price.



The value of the other "property" assets frozen by the authorities was not immediately clear.



Next Digital runs the Apple Daily, Hong Kong's most influential pro-democracy newspaper that has long been a thorn in the side of Hong Kong and Chinese authorities.



Senior Hong Kong officials have recently warned Apple Daily about its coverage and have spoken of the possible introduction of a "fake news" law. Critics say this is all part of an ongoing crackdown on the city's media.



The Taiwan arm of Apple Daily said on Friday it would stop publishing its print version, blaming declining advertising revenue and more difficult business conditions in Hong Kong linked to politics.



($1 = 7.7658 Hong Kong dollars)


Artists prepare figures of Madame Tussauds London's Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, in their new position in London, (Photo : Madame Tussauds London/Handout via REUTERS)

A year after leaving their royal duties to move to Los Angeles, Madame Tussauds has now decided waxwork models of Prince Harry and his wife Meghan now belong in the attraction's Hollywood zone and not with the other members of the House of Windsor.



The couple, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, quit royal duties to forge new independent careers on the other side of the Atlantic, and have since signed deals to deliver and produce content for Netflix, Spotify and Apple.



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Now their waxwork models have been shifted from their place in the royal section of Madame Tussauds in London to join other celebrities, the famous attraction said on Thursday.



"Harry and Meghan have moved zones - Madame Tussauds London has moved its figures of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to their brand new Awards Party zone to reflect their move from Frogmore to Hollywood," Madame Tussauds said in a statement, referring to the couple's former British home Frogmore Cottage.



Later this month, a television documentary series on mental health issues co-created by Harry and U.S. chat show queen Oprah Winfrey premieres on streaming service Apple TV+.



Ahead of the broadcasts, Harry appeared on the "Armchair Expert" podcast hosted by U.S. actor Dax Shephard, in which he likened his life as a royal to the "Truman Show", a film about a man who unwittingly grew up as the central character in a popular worldwide television reality show.



He also disclosed that when he first began dating Meghan, they met in a supermarket to avoid paparazzi photographers, and that the couple enjoyed more freedom after moving to California with young son Archie.



"Living here now, I can actually lift my head and actually I feel different, my shoulders have dropped, so have hers, you can walk around feeling a little bit more free," he said.



"I get to take Archie on the back of my bicycle. I would never have the chance to do that."


Vicente Zambada after being arrested in Mexico City in March 2009. Eduardo Verdugo / AP

When Vicente Zambada Niebla was in prison, what he most liked to draw were superheroes. In the narrow confines of his cell in a federal prison in Chicago, the 46-year-old would draw pictures of Batman, Spider-Man and Superman like a child in a bedroom. It is hard to imagine whether the eldest son of one of the highest-ranking chiefs of the Sinaloa cartel, Ismael El Mayo Zambada, managed to identify more with the heroes than the villains of those movies.

Vicentillo  a nickname he has never managed to shed despite his college graduate look and carefully manicured two-day beard and in the last photo taken during his detention  was born into the bosom of the most powerful drug cartel in the world and headed some of its biggest trafficking operations. He also ordered executions from the age of 22. He was 16 years old when the first attempt on his life was made. But what his enemies say about him is that he was a traitor, and there is no greater betrayal in the drug-trafficking underworld than working with the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).

At the moment, although the US authorities have not specified his release date, Vicentillo is a free man. He is out of jail on condition that he will not travel to Mexico in the next five years and he cannot have any contact with any members of the Sinaloa cartel. Little more is known, after the authorities acknowledged the release to the television network Univision, other than the fact that El Mayos son is no longer in a US federal jail. Vicentillo testified during the New York trial of drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman and, as the first-born son of Zambada and a leading figure in the cartel before his arrest, he is also the main heir to one of the most powerful drug-trafficking networks in the world.

Vicentillo was arrested in March 2009 at one of his luxurious properties in El Pedregal, to the south of Mexico City. But even before then, his former lawyer told Mexican journalist Anabel Hernandez for her book El traidor (or, The traitor) that he had been seeking to make a deal with the DEA. The situation in Mexico was becoming unsustainable. The war on drugs had littered the country with bodies but bloody turf wars between the Sinaloa cartel and the Arellano Felix gang, based in Tijuana, the Beltran Leyvas (a Sinaloa splinter group) and Vicente Carrillo Fuentes organization had made doing business more and more difficult for a group accustomed to having the run of the house.

Vicente was willing to talk and his objective was to reveal the whereabout of his enemies. According to his own declarations in court, his testimony helped the authorities to kill or capture hundreds of Sinaloa cartel traffickers, members, associates and rivals, among them Arturo Beltran Leyva and some members of the feared Zetas gang. Vicentillo was the DEAs captive messenger, who served as a first-hand source for the agency and provided intelligence as to what was going on in the mountains of Sinaloa. In exchange, he was handed a 14-year sentence instead of life in prison, the standard sentence for a trafficker with his long list of crimes. That 14-year term has been gradually whittled down through good behavior and cooperation with the authorities.

Vicente Zambada during the trial of El Chapo Guzman. JANE ROSENBERG

The clearest example of that cooperation was his testimony against El Chapo in January 2019, when Vicentillo threw his colleague and a faithful friend of his family to the lions. Over five hours of testimony, Vicentillo was able to prove that he was familiar with Guzmans business and his personal retinue. He told the jury stories not only of El Chapos trafficking operations in Mexico, Honduras and Belize, but also about his suppliers, distributors, bodyguards, hitmen, cousins, brothers and children. He also implicated his father, who he said had a budget of up to $1 million a month for bribing officials. A Mexican Army general attached to the Secretariat of National Defense was paid $50,000 a month by the cartel, Vicentillo said. He added that his father also regularly bribed a member of the military who occasionally worked as a bodyguard for former Mexican President Vicente Fox.

Vicente cold betray everyone, but never his father, says Anabel Hernandez in an interview with EL PAIS. His father was aware of his cooperation and even approved of it. It is not the first time the DEA has used such a strategy to catch drug traffickers or for their own ends. The same thing happened with Pablo Escobar years earlier. Vicentillo told his lawyer in a letter that it was El Chapo who gave him the contact to start his collaboration with the DEA in 2008.

On the day that Vicente Zambada was arrested he was just about to go to sleep. He had just messaged his wife and was under the covers when doors and windows were smashed in as the agents descended. A few hours earlier, he had been driving through the city in a top-range car with his team of bodyguards. And according to his version of events, laid out in another of his letters, he had just held a meeting with two DEA agents. That night they arrested me, they betrayed me and I dont know why. Th truth is I approached them of my own volition, in confidence, and I dont know what happened, he said in one of his letters, published in El traidor.

At that time, Vicentillo was not only the favored son of the powerful El Mayo Zambada. He was also a hugely influential figure in the Mexican drug trade and one of the three senior Sinaloa members responsible for giving orders, as he admitted to the authorities. After El Chapos first escape from jail in Puerto Grande (Jalisco) in 2001, El Mayo strengthened his relationship with the man who had until then been just another associate, a subordinate of the cartel chiefs of the 1990s, and together they raised up an empire on the back of violent battles with their rivals in the north of Mexico. In 2001 I was another boss, I was the son of the cartel chief and I coordinated shipments across Central and South America. I handled corruption and manipulated people for my father everywhere in Mexico, Vicentillo wrote his lawyer.

After his capture, Vicentillo created his own legend as a repentant drug baron. He portrayed himself as a 33-year-old man who had decided to retire from the criminal life and live in peace with his family. It was this picture Vicentillo presented during the various hearings on his case and it afforded him certain privileges in his criminal trial. Judge Ruben Castillo, who presided over the court that approved the reduction of his life sentence, acknowledged Vicentillos cooperation with the authorities: If there is a so-called war on drugs, we have lost it. We have lost [] as far as I am concerned, you did not sell out El Chapo. I think it was the other way around. You cooperated with the United States of America. That is what happened. And if we didnt have cooperators, the Department of Justice simply would not win cases. Perhaps we have lost the war on drugs, but we cannot afford ourselves the luxury of losing the war on crime, said Castillo before handing down the ruling.

The question now is what will happen when Vicentillo is fully free again: whether he will return to the mountains of Sinaloa to take the reins of his fathers criminal empire, shaken after the jailing of his friend El Chapo, or if he will remain firm in his stated desire to live a quiet life. The big doubt is human decision. Whether ambition does not win out, whether the thirst for power does not win out. Because his relationship of dependence with his father is very strong. If El Mayo were to say to him: I need you here. What will he do? wonders Hernandez. In the meantime, El Mayo remains on the DEAs most-wanted list and, unlike the majority of his associates, he has never been arrested.

English version by Rob Train.
KYODO NEWS - May 15, 2021 - 21:10 | All, Japan, World

Leaders of Japan, the United States and South Korea are planning to meet on the fringes of the Group of Seven summit next month, with trilateral cooperation in dealing with North Korea's nuclear and missile threats expected to be on the agenda, sources close to the countries said Saturday.

It would be the first time since 2017 for the countries to hold a trilateral summit. The sources said a separate meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and South Korean President Moon Jae In is also being explored to coincide with the G-7 summit.

A trilateral summit would be a first under the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden who took office in January. The United States sees strong ties with Japan and South Korea as key in efforts to denuclearize North Korea and counter China's growing assertiveness.

Although ties between Tokyo and Seoul remain chilly over history-related issues, a source familiar with the matter said South Korea expressed hope to hold a summit with Japan during a recent meeting in Tokyo between its intelligence chief and Suga.

Related coverage:

South Korea expresses hope for holding summit with Japan to improve ties

S. Korea's Moon vows to resume nuke talks involving N. Korea, U.S.

Japan, South Korea at odds over wartime history, radioactive water

Earlier this month, the foreign ministers of Japan, the United States and South Korea met in London, during which they affirmed close coordination to denuclearize the North.

G-7 host Britain has invited Moon as a guest to the in-person summit, which also brings together members Japan, the United States, Canada, France, Germany and Italy, plus the European Union.

The summit is slated for June 11 to 13 in Cornwall, southwestern England.
KYODO NEWS - May 15, 2021 - 05:12 | All, Japan

A 43-year-old Japanese restaurant owner was shot to death in Mexico on Thursday in what appears to be a robbery-murder case, local media reported.

The Japanese man, whose name is believed to be Taro Yoshida, was found dead at a ramen noodle restaurant in the city of Tijuana in northwestern Mexico. His colleague discovered the body Thursday morning after noticing the security camera had been broken and a door was left half-open.

The reports said Yoshida was shot in the head and chest and collapsed into a chair on the second floor of the restaurant. Cash totaling over 100,000 yen ($910) was stolen from a safe whose door remained open.

Citing a security guard of the restaurant, the reports also said Yoshida had left with two men early Thursday morning and the three later returned together, but nothing about the interaction aroused suspicion.

According to local reports and the restaurant's Facebook page, Yoshida runs two ramen shops in Tijuana.
Dhaka:

Amid mounting global pressure, Myanmar on Thursday agreed to take back tens of thousands of Rohingyas who fled the country to Bangladesh following a military crackdown that has been dubbed as ethnic cleansing by the US.

Over 600,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled Myanmars violence-hit Rakhine state to neighbouring Bangladesh since August when the military intensified crackdown against alleged militant outfits of Rohingya Muslims.

Following weeks of talks, the two neighbours on Thursday signed an Arrangement on return of displaced Myanmar persons sheltered in Bangladesh, a foreign office statement said here.

Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali and Myanmars Union Minister U Kyaw Tint Swe signed the agreement in Naypyidaw.

The Arrangement, the statement said, stipulated that the return (of Rohingyas) shall commence within two months while a Joint Working Group would be established within next three weeks and a specific bilateral instrument (physical arrangement) for repatriation will be concluded in a speedy manner.

Bangladeshi officials familiar with the development said the agreement was being negotiated with Myanmar for the past few months while it was nearly finalised on Wednesday at Naypyidaw by senior officials of the two countries.

ALSO READ | Rohingya deportation issue: SC tells stakeholders to talk facts, refrain from emotional rhetoric

Putting pressure on Myanmar, the US on Wednesday declared as ethnic cleansing the violence against Rohingya Muslims in the country and warned that the Trump administration could impose new penalties on the Buddhist-majority country.

Also, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi travelled to both Bangladesh and Myanmar this week and held talks with their top leaderships to resolve the Rohingya crisis, one of the worlds most dire refugee crisis.

Wang had proposed initiatives including three-phased solution so as to fundamentally resolve the Rohingya crisis. Bangladesh and Myanmar had agreed to his proposal.

The statement said the foreign minister earlier called on State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and discussed issues of mutual cooperation in areas of trade, energy and connectivity under Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM).

In brief comments to media, Ali described the deal as the first step while Myanmar said it was ready to receive the Rohingya as soon as possible.

We are ready to take them back as soon as possible after Bangladesh sends the forms back to us, foreign news agencies said quoting Myint Kyaing, a permanent secretary at Myanmars ministry of labour, immigration and population.

Ali also handed over three ambulances for Rakhine State, the scene of atrocities, as gift from the government of Bangladesh to Myanmar.

ALSO READ: Aung San Suu Kyi is a murderer, says Bob Geldof as he slams Myanmar leader over Rohingya crisis

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Washington:

US President Donald Trump on Monday re-designated North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism, nine years after it was removed from the list. This move allows the Trump administration to impose additional sanctions on Pyongyang over its nuclear and missile programmes.

North Korea had been removed from the list of state sponsor of terrorism under the George W Bush administration.The announcement was made by Trump during his Cabinet meeting.

Today, the United States is designating North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. It should have happened a long time ago. It should have happened years ago, Trump said in his address to the Cabinet.

In addition to threatening the world by nuclear devastation, North Korea has repeatedly supported acts of international terrorism, including assassinations on foreign soil, he said.

As we take this action today, our thoughts to turn to Otto Warmbier, a wonderful young man, and the countless others so brutally affected by the North Korean oppression, he said.

This designation will impose further sanctions and penalties on North Korea and related persons, and supports our maximum pressure campaign to isolate the murderous regime that youve all been reading about and, in some cases, writing about, Trump added.

Tomorrow, the Treasury Department will be announcing an additional round of sanctions, and a very large one, on North Korea, he said.

This will be going on over the next two weeks. It will be the highest level of sanctions by the time its finished over a two-week period. The North Korean regime must be lawful. It must end its unlawful nuclear and ballistic missile development, and cease all support for international terrorism -- which it is not doing, Trump said.

The House Foreign Relations Committee welcomed the move.I applaud the administration for relisting North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. Over the past year alone, Kim Jong-Un and his regime brazenly assassinated his brother with a chemical weapon and brutally tortured Otto Warmbier, leading directly to his tragic death, said Congressman Ed Royce, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

These are not isolated incidents, but are examples of a consistent pattern of terror, he said. The regime also continues its push to develop nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles, threatening global security, Trump said.

This designation endorsed by a high-ranking North Korean defector who recently testified before the committee rightly exposes the Kim regimes utter disregard for human life and is an important step in our efforts to apply maximum diplomatic and financial pressure on Kim Jong-Un, Royce said.

Congresswoman Ileana Ro-Lehtinen, chairman Emeritus of House Committee on Foreign Affairs, commended the decision.Redesignating North Korea provides the administration with important tools to increase pressure on the Kim regime and I commend the decision to put it back on the list where it belongs, she said.

Nuclear-armed North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan on 29 August in a major escalation of tensions by Pyongyang. Five days later, it carried out a sixth nuclear test, sending tensions soaring over its weapons ambitions and causing global concern.

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New Delhi:

The fragmented opposition in Syria on Thursday announced that they had reached an agreement to send a united delegation to next weeks UN-brokered peace talks.

The announcement came on the second day of a Saudi-sponsored meeting in Riyadh, where around 140 opposition figures are gathered to unify their ranks before direct talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assads regime in Geneva on November 28.

The six-year war in Syria has killed over 3,30,000 people since 2011. The United Nations held several rounds of talks but has failed to bring an end to the war.

Speaking to the reporters in Riyadh, Bassma Kodmani, a member of the Syrian oppositions High Negotiations Committee said, We have agreed with the two other (opposition) branches to send a united delegation to participate in the direct negotiations in Geneva.

The further meeting would be held on Friday to finalise the names and number of representatives each group would have in the 50-strong unified delegation, Kodmani said.

The delegates at the meeting have been under heavy pressure to row back on some of their more radical demands after a series of battlefield victories that have given Assads regime the upper hand.

ALSO READ | Syria Chemical Weapons Inquiry: Russia vetoes UN resolution 11th time

A Cairo-based Syrian opposition group was reported to have agreed on Thursday to join ranks with other opposition clusters including the Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee (HNC) -- the largest bloc in the oppositionand the Istanbul-based National Coalition.

Kodmanis announcement implies that a Moscow-based Syrian opposition group has also agreed to join forces with that delegation.

Several key opposition figures have boycotted the meeting, including the Moscow groups Jamil and Riad Hijab of the HNC.

Hijab stepped down as leader of the Saudi-backed HNC this week over attempts to lower the ceiling of the revolution and prolong the regime.

Assads fate has been a major stumbling block in multiple rounds of negotiations between the Syrian regime and the opposition.

The HNC and its closest allies have consistently demanded Assad step down from power as a prerequisite for a transitional phase to end the Syrian war.

Other branches of the opposition have taken a softer stance against Assad.

Staffan de Mistura, the UNs Syria envoy, attended the opening session of the Riyadh gathering on Wednesday and said the goal of the meeting was to give momentum to next weeks peace talks.

The Riyadh talks come as Syrian regime ally Russia is seeking to organise a congress to bring together Assads forces and various opposition groups to reinvigorate the peace process.

On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted the leaders of Iran and Turkey for a key trilateral summit aimed at finding a political settlement of Syrias conflict. Putin also met with Assad this week.

(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ: IS recaptures Albu Kamal, last Syrian urban bastion of its collapsing 'caliphate'

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New Delhi:

A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) trooper was killed in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast triggered by CPI-Maoist cadres in Chhattisgarhs Chintagufa area on Friday.

An officer of Chhattisgarh Police said a head constable of the CRPF had suffered splinter injuries in the blast. He died during treatment in a medical hospital in Raipur.

The deceased jawan has been identified as K Venkanna, a resident of Andhra Pradesh.

The officer added, CRPF and state police had launched joint search operation in Chintagufa area on Friday early hours. The Maoists on seeing the search team triggered an IED blast.

The officer added, Venkanna was airlifted to Raipur for medical attention, where he succumbed to his injuries.

Also read: Jharkhand: Four CRPF Jawans injured in IED blast triggered by Maoists



He added, security forces after the blast are conducting operations to nab the Maoists behind the blast.

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New Delhi:

Close on the heels of the ninth anniversary of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, MN Singh, the Former Mumbai Police Commissioner on Friday said the minorities in India are feeling a bit uneasy. He stressed that this issue needs to be attended to with earnestness.



Referring to the ban on cow slaughter he said the focus should rather be on improving internal security.



Singh was speaking on the topic, 'How Safe is Mumbai?' at a function organised by think tank Observer Research Foundation.



"The minorities in the country are a bit uneasy and it needs to be addressed. The (current) national narrative, the debate is creating some anxiety. It has to be changed," he said.



"The issue of Babri Masjid and Ram Mandir has to be solved amicably," he added.



"This Babri Masjid issue has to be amicably settled between the two communities. It is not an easy solution. Any decision coming from the top or court will be half-accepted.



It (the issue) will never end," said the former top cop.



"There are some private groups that are talking sensible things, going and meeting so many Muslim groups. I think that is what should be encouraged," he said.



There have been some 12 terror attacks in Mumbai, of which three have been very deadly. The first was in March 1993 (serial bomb blasts), but security measures improved only after the November 2008 carnage, he said.



V Balendran, a former special secretary in the central government, said, "It is sad our police and anti-terror squads had no night vision cameras; hence the terror attack continued for three days in Hotel Taj (during 26/11). The situation has slightly improved since then."

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New Delhi:

The Karni Sena has once again garnered a lot of media attention after holding massive protests against Sanjay Leela Bhansali's upcoming period drama Padmavati. The group has alleged distortion of historical facts and accused the movie director of playing with the sentiments of the Rajput clan.

Shri Rajput Karni Sena (SRKS) is a Rajput caste group founded in 2006. It is headquartered in Jaipur, Rajasthan. The main centers of the Karni Sena are based out of Jaipur, Nagaur and Sikar districts. However, there is an executive body of the association in all the districts of Rajasthan.

Karni Sena was the brainchild of Lokendra Singh Kalvi who formed a social justice forum in collaboration with rebel leader Devi Singh Bhati of BJP. The forum leaped into mainstream politics by contesting the Rajasthan assembly elections of 2003.

The major agenda on which the forum fought the elections was granting reservation to Rajputs and other upper castes in Rajasthan. In the elections, the forum managed to win just a single seat. Devi Singh Bhati won the elections and later got into the BJP.

So let us take a look into Lokendra Singh Kalvi's political career so far

During the first tenure of Vasundhara Raje as Rajasthan Chief Minister, Lokendra Kalvi organized Karni Sena rallies as a form of protest against the state govt for securing reservation for the Rajputs. In one such rallies, there was a massive gathering organized in Jaipur but it did not gather steam due to infighting among Rajput leaders.

Before the 2008 assembly elections, Kavli made a switch to Congress. He was quite certain that the party would reward him with a ticket for the assembly or later the Lok Sabha. However, things did not turn out in Kalvi's favour and the Congress did not make him a candidate.

After the 2008 state polls, Kalvi went into an oblivion for a long time but the Karni army managed to garner attention in the state political landscape. Before the Lok Sabha elections in 2014, Kalvi joined hands with the BSP. But this time he did not even come to the election season.

Kalvi contested the Lok Sabha election from Barmer-Jaisalmer seat but his maiden poll campaign ended in a defeat. It is notable that his father Kalyan Singh Kalvi was elected as a Member of Parliament from the same seat.

The Karni Sena has not courted controversy for the first time. This organization held massive protests against Ashutosh Gowariker's film Jodhaa Akbar in 2008. Jodhaa-Akbar could not be released in Rajasthan due to opposition.

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Ahmedabad:

The Congress has accused the BJP for "spreading lies on the social media" out of nervousness after a fake resignation letter of the Gujarat Congress chief Bharatsinh Solanki went viral on November 23.

The opposition party said it will file a complaint with the Election Commission on this issue.

The letter addressed to Congress president Sonia Gandhi with Solankis signature on it stated, Solanki is resigning from the post of state president being aggrieved by certain decisions taken by the party, including distribution of tickets. He is aggrieved because tickets were sold to undeserving candidates.

"The letter is fake and is a mischief played on the Congress party. We will register a complaint before the Election Commission against this," Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi said.

Solanki told PTI that his family is wedded to the Congress ideology for four generations, so the question of resigning does not arise.

"I am loyal to Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi and the question of my resignation does not arise," he said.

He came down heavily on the BJP for spreading lies and said it was a conspiracy as the ruling party has realised that the Congress is coming to power in the next month's Assembly elections.

"The writing on the wall is very clear as 22 years of BJP's misrule has disappointed all sections of the society as wrong claims of development have failed to convince the people of Gujarat," he said.

Solanki also tweeted on Twitter to clarify that the letter was fake and blamed the ruling BJP for "spreading lies on social media".

Also Read: Gujarat Assembly Elections 2017: PM Narendra Modi to start campaigning on November 27

"BJP is nervous and rattled by the surging popularity of Congress and as people of all sections are coming together to root out anti-people govt, out of sheer desperation they are spreading such lies on social media to deflect from the real issues," he tweeted.

Also Read: Gujarat assembly elections: Congress releases second list of 13 candidates

Congress on Sunday claimed that a fake list of candidates was allegedly circulated on social media by the BJP a few hours prior the party released its first list of candidates for the Gujarat elections, to be held in two phases on December 9 and 14.

Doshi then said, Letter pad of Congress and signatures of our President have been misused. Our IT cell found that the phone used for BJP's website, was used to circulate the fake list.
New Delhi:

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) sleuths have arrested a Chinese national alleged to be member of an international hawala syndicate. Officials on Friday said, she was trying to smuggle out foreign currencies worth Rs 1.95 crore from the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi on Friday.

The DRI in a statement said, Acting on specific inputs, a Chinese woman was intercepted in the security hold of IGI airport, while she was boarding a flight to Hong Kong.

The statement further read, We have seized $ 3 lakh concealed in sweet boxes which were specially made with false bottom for concealment.

According to officials of the DRI, on questioning the arrested Chinese women they have learnt that the international hawala syndicate to avoid detection was using her as a carrier. She during questioning informed the intelligence agency that she had travelled to India several times on the direction of her handlers.

Also read: Canadian national uses bogus ticket to enter Delhi airport, held by CISF



Foreign hawala syndicates are using foreign nationals for sending forex from India and smuggling gold into the country for the past two years, said DRI.

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Mumbai:

The daughter of policeman Tukaram Ombale, who was killed while trying to capture terrorist Ajmal Kasab, says her family still awaits his return, nine years after the Mumbai terror attacks.

"We feel papa will come home any moment, although deep in our heart we know that he will never be amongst us now," says a teary-eyed Vaishali Ombale, the eldest daughter of the Mumbai terror attacks hero.

"We always think that Papa has gone out on duty and will return home. We have kept his belongings at the place they used to be in our home. Our family is proud of his supreme sacrifice," Vaishali Ombale, who has completed her M.Ed. (Masters in education) and aspires to be a lecturer, told PTI.

Ombale, an assistant sub-inspector, was killed by Kasab's bullets in the early hours of November 27, 2008.

In a daring act, he had pounced on Kasab without thinking much about the consequences. His bravery had made it possible for the police to overpower Kasab, the only 26/11 terrorist to be captured and hanged.

"Not a day has gone by in the last nine years that we have not remembered him," said Vaishali Ombale, who stays at the Worli Police Camp with her mother Tara and sister Bharti, who is an officer in the state GST department.

"For how long will police or armed forces personnel continue losing their lives in the name of supreme sacrifice," she asked.

"This should stop somewhere. There should be a change in this scenario. Every citizen should always be alert and foil incidents in which we are losing our men," she said, ahead of the 26/11 attacks anniversary.

Vaishali Ombale said citizens should know their responsibilities and must understand that when policemen or armed forces personnel get killed in the line of duty, it is not only the family's loss but also that of the country.

"Satara district in Western Maharashtra from where my family hails has a long history of martyrs. Among the recent ones are CRPF head constable Ravindra Dhanawade, who was killed while fighting terrorists in Kashmir in August and Colonel Santosh Mahadik, who died while fighting terrorists in Kashmir in 2015. The list is unending, which disturbs me a lot," she said.

Also Read: After release, 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed vows to fight for 'Kashmir cause'

"We treat every member of a martyr's family like our own family and we help them overcome the grief," she said.

Vaishali Ombale gives tuitions to students from class 8th to junior college, which keeps her busy and makes her forget the pain of losing her father.

Also Read: PM Modi meets 26/11 survivor Baby Moshe in Jerusalem, asks him to visit India with family

On November 26, 2008, 10 Pakistani terrorists arrived in Mumbai by sea route and opened fire indiscriminately at people on different locations, killing 166, including 18 security personnel, and injuring several others, besides damaging property worth crores.

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New Delhi:

At least 200 poeple were killed and 120 others were injured in a bomb explosion and gunfire during Friday prayers near a mosque in the Egypt's restive North Sinai, police said. The bomb was planted near Al Rowda mosque in Al Arish.

According to the sources, gunmen opened fire on worshippers attempting to escape the explosion site.

Egypt Health Ministry spokesperson, Khaled Megahed, said that 75 people were injured during the attack.

Till the time report was filed no group had claimed responsibility of the attack.

Egypt's North Sinai has witnessed many violent attacks by militants since the January 2011 revolution that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak.

Also Read| Kabul bomb blast: Explosion in embassy zone leaves 13 dead, many injured



The attacks targeting police and military establishments have increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 by the military, following massive protests against his rule. Over 700 security personnel have been reported killed since then.

Also Read| Afghanistan: 15 army trainees killed, 4 wounded in suicide attack at Marshal Fahim Military Academy in Kabul



(With agency inputs)

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New Delhi:

In a first spectacle ever discovered by scientists, new bird species belonging to the 'Big Bird' lineage in the Galapagos Islands have evolved into a new species in just two generations, according to a study.



As per the pervious assumptions it was believed that formation of a new species took a very long time, but it is alltogether a new discovery in the case of 'Big Bird' lineage, which today consists of roughly 30 individuals.



A group of Darwins finches on the Daphne Major island in the Galapagos Island chain, were observed during field work carried out over the last four decades, developed closed breeding.



The observation was made by B Rosemary and Peter Grant, two scientists from the Princeton University in the US.



Scientists note that in 1981, a male large cactus finch that is believed to have come from the nearby island of Espanola, mated with a native finch on Daphne Major and produced offspring.



"We didn't see him fly in from over the sea, but we noticed him shortly after he arrived. He was so different from the other birds that we knew he did not hatch from an egg on Daphne Major", Peter Grant told Phys.org.



Researchers took a blood sample and released the bird, which later bred with a resident medium ground finch of the species Geospiz fortis, initiating a new lineage.

This gave rise to a population of finches, about 30 of them. Professors Rosemary and Peter Grant of Princeton University collaborated with Prof Leif Andersson of Sweden's Uppsala University to genetically analyze the mixed-species population, and the findings were published in journal 'Science'.



"The novelty of this study is that we can follow the emergence of new species in the wild," said B Rosemary Grant.



"Through our work on Daphne Major, we were able to observe the pairing up of two birds from different species and then follow what happened to see how speciation occurred," she said.

The various groups of finches in the Galapagos had been aptly named Darwins finches to commemorate Charles Darwin, the famous scientist who developed his theory of evolution by way of natural selection after spending time on the islands, one of the most biologically diverse places in the world.

And what makes this discovery even more interesting is that it was published on the eve of the anniversary of the publication of Charles Darwins magnum opus titled "On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life", which was released in 1859 and largely inspired by his time on the Galapagos Islands.

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New Delhi:

While an existing study led by Roi Maor from Tel Aviv University and UCL indicates towards the nocturnal life of human being before the annihilation of non-avian dinosaurs, a German-led term has come up with a bad news for all sorts of creatures including humans.

The latest findings which appeared in the journal 'Science Advances' suggests that a surging light pollution is threating nocturnal life across the globe as the distinction between day and night will disappear in the most heavily populated countries anytime soon.

This rapid change is a serious threat to human health and the environment, the research said.

"We're losing more and more of the night on a planetary scale," journal editor Kip Hodges was quoted while talking about their findings.

Christopher Kyba from the German Research Centre for Geosciences further suggests that the artificially lit area of the Earth's surface grew by 2.2 percent per year from 2012 t0 2016.

During the process, Kyba captured a bunch of images, one of which shows the change in the amount of nighttime lighting from 2012 to 2016.

"Earth's night is getting brighter," Kyba stated further.

Also Read: Aliens already visited earth and other planets in solar system?

While the entire planet will be affected more or less due to this sudden surge in the pollution, the areas in the Middle East and Asia will suffer most.

The observed 'decrease' in Western Australia is actually due to wildfires in 2012 that were visible from space.

"In the near term, it appears that artificial light emission into the environment will continue to increase, further eroding Earth's remaining land area that experiences natural day-night light cycles," the study concluded.

"While we know that LEDs save energy in specific projects," Kyba was quoted while interacting with reporters at a teleconference.

"when we look at our data and we look at the national and the global level, it indicates that these savings are being offset by either new or brighter light in other places," she added.

"Artificial light at night is a very new stressor," said Franz Holker, one of the paper's authors.

Also Read: Aliens to decode radio signals sent from Earth? Click here to know!

"The problem is that light has been introduced in places, times and intensities at which it does not naturally occur and [for] many organisms, there is no chance to adapt to this new stressor," Holker stated.

"In the longer term, perhaps the demand for dark skies and unlit bedrooms will begin to outweigh the demand for light in wealthy countries," the team of authors wrote.

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New Delhi:

In a new development in the Ryan School murder case, Tanveer Ahmed Mir, the lawyer who appeared for the Talwar couple, accused of killing their daughter Aarushi Talwar, will now defend the teenage student accused of killing Pradyuman Thakur.



"I have had preliminary discussion with the family of the boy, I will in all probability take his case," Mir told India Today.



Mir said the student's father, who is also a lawyer, approached him through his friend, a third lawyer who practices in Gurugram.



"We will first argue on the new amendment whether the accused boy needs to be tried as a juvenile or as an adult?" he asked, adding he would stress on international conventions on trials of underage defendants that India is a signatory to.



Pradyuman Thakur, a class 2 student at Gurugrams Ryan International School, was found murdered in the school toilet on September 8.



"I am thankful to Tanveer Mirji," the teenage student's father told India Today adding he is hopeful Mir will get justice for his son.



"They have beaten him up, he is being framed," he alleged.
New Delhi:

At least 235 people were killed and over hundred injured after terrorists launched a bomb and gun attack on a mosque in Egypt's North Sinai province, state media said.

The terrorists targeted al-Rawda mosque in the town of Bir al-Abed, near al-Arish, during the Friday prayers, the state-run MENA news agency reported.

The attackers blew up the mosque and started indiscriminate firing at the worshipers who tried to escape after the explosion.

About 50 ambulances were rushed to the attack site to shift the injured to hospitals.

No group has yet claimed the responsibility for the attack which is the deadliest single assault in Egypt.

Soon after the attack, Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi called an emergency meeting and vowed to respond with brutal force against militants.

Terming the attack as vile and treacherous, al-Sisi said the incident would not pass without a decisive punishment.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly condemned the "barbaric terrorist attack" and extedned resolute support to the people as well as Government of Egypt.

"Strongly condemn the barbaric terrorist attack on a place of worship in Egypt. Our deep condolences at the loss of innocent lives. India resolutely supports the fight against all forms of terrorism and stands with the people as well as Government of Egypt," PM Modi tweeted.

Some locals said the followers of Sufism, or Islamic mysticism gathered at the mosque and so called Islamic state who consider them as heretics could be behind the deadly attack.

The attacks targeting police and military increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 by military following massive protests against his rule.

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Over 700 security personnel have been reported killed since then.

The military has launched security campaigns in the area, arrested suspects and demolished houses that belonged to terrorists, including those facilitating tunnels leading to the Gaza Strip.

Egypt has witnessed a series of terror attacks this year claiming scores of lives.

On May 26, gunmen attacked a bus carrying Coptic Christians in central Egypt, killing at least 28 people and wounding 25 others.

On April 9, two suicide bombings at Palm Sunday services at churches in the northern cities of Alexandria and Tanta left 46 people dead.

(With Inputs from PTI)





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New Delhi:

A Paradeep-Cuttack goods train on Friday derailed between Goraknath and Raghunathpur in Odisha, the officials said.

Speaking to PTI, JP Mishra, spokesperson, East Coast Railway said that no casualty was reported in the accident which occurred at around 5.55 am.

The train was plying towards Cuttack carrying coal from Paradeep, he said. Around 14 open wagons derailed on down line near Banabihari Gwalipur PH Railway Station, 45 km from Cuttack and 38 km from Paradeep.

The derailment was first noticed by a guard who informed the nearest station. Relief trains and crane were deployed after immediately after the control room was informed about the incident.

General Manager Umesh Singh ordered Khurda Road Division to set up an inquiry committee and submit a detailed report.

ALSO READ | Vasco Da Gama-Patna Express derailment: 3 dead, Railways announces Rs 5 lakh compensation to victims

All aspects of the accident, circumstances and reasons, including fixing up of clear responsibility, is to be mentioned in the inquiry report. DRM/KHURDA Road Braj Mohan Agarwal is nominating an inquiry committee just now, Mishra said.

After a detailed site inspection, it was decided that 12 of the 14 wagons would be thrown off the track with the help of cranes. Two wagons would be re-railed on the track.

(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ | Haryana: Heritage engine featured in over 20 Bollywood films derails in Rewari

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New Delhi:

Union Health Minister J P Nadda on Monday asked members of a patient, who reportedly died of dengue recently, to send all details to his ministry as serious allegations were levelled against a Gurgaon-based private hospital of overcharging the victim.

Nadda has also asked Health Secretary to probe the matter.

"It was an unfortunate incident. The government has taken cognizance of the incident and has sought a detailed report from Fortis hospital, action will be taken," said Union Health Minister JP Nadda.

The victims father demanded a through probe into the matter, saying that they would not like other people to suffer like they did.

He claimed that Gurugram's Fortis hospital charged them of Rs 16 lakh for 15-day Dengue treatment of their daughter who later succumbed to the disease.

I want to appeal for an investigation and if any changes are required in the laws, they should be made. Would not like other people to suffer like we did, the victims father said.

I want to appeal for an investigation and if any changes are required in the laws, they should be made. Would not like other people to suffer like we did: Jayant Singh, Father of the victim, Delhi pic.twitter.com/B75JslXDZD  ANI (@ANI) November 21, 2017

A Twitter user @DopeFloat in a post on a microblogging site alleged that the hospital charged Rs 16 lakh for 15 days of treatment of dengue for a young daughter of his friend.

The tweet later went viral on social media.

One of my batchmates 7 year old was in @fortis_hospital

for ~15 days for Dengue. Billed 18 lakhs including for 2700 gloves. She passed away at the end of it..., he tweeted.

After the post was widely circulated on social media, the Union health minister on twitter said: Please provide me details on hfwminister@gov.in . We will take all the necessary action.

Meanwhile, Fortis hospital in a statement claimed that all standard medical protocols were followed in treating the patient and all clinical guidelines were adhered to.

She was admitted with Severe Dengue which progressed to Dengue shock syndrome and was managed on IV fluids and supportive treatment as there was a progressive fall in platelet count and hemoconcentration.

Fortis Gurugram dengue case: Health Minister JP Nadda has sought a report in the matter & has also asked Health Secy to probe the matter. (File Pic) pic.twitter.com/t8fO5pnFUK  ANI (@ANI) November 21, 2017

As her condition deteriorated, she had to be put on ventilatory support within 48 hours, the hospital said in a statement.

On September 14, the family decided to take her away from the hospital against medical advice (LAMA Leave Against Medical Advice) and she succumbed the same day, it said.

The hospital said an itemised bill spread over 20 pages was explained and handed over to the family at the time of their departure from the hospital.

All consumables are transparently reflected in records and charged as per actuals, it claimed. (with PTI inputs)

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New Delhi:

Senior Sangh functionary Krishna Gopal on Friday said that the RSS workers are free to join any political party including the Congress but the opposition party does not accept them.

Speaking at a panel discussion on a book on the rise of the BJP in the Northeast, Gopal said that the Congress never bothered the RSS in its works in the region.

The leader said, The Congress never bothered us in our work during the time of insurgency in Assam. But at the same time, it failed to stop killing of our workers.

He was replying to a question whether there was any understanding between the BJP and the Congress during the time of crisis in Assam.

Gopal said that the Sangh never stops its workers from joining the Congress, but the party denies them entry.

ALSO READ: Asaduddin Owaisi fumes over Mohan Bhagwat's Ram Temple remark, says RSS playing with fire

Our workers are free to join any political party including the Congress, but the party does not accept them and closes its doors for the Sangh workers, Gopal said.

He further said the opposition parties not only reject them but criticise and ridicule them for their ideological commitment.

This push them towards the like-minded political outfits, he said.

Gopal, a joint general secretary of the RSS, was participating in the panel discussion on the book, The Last Battle of Saraighat, written by Rajat Sethi and Shubhrastha, fellows of India Foundation.

(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ | Kerala: RSS worker allegedly murdered in Thrissur

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New Delhi:

Kerala woman Hadiya, who has to depose before the Supreme Court on November 27 in an alleged love jihad case, on Friday said she wanted to be with her husband, as she was whisked away by her parents and security personnel to board a flight to Delhi.

Chaotic scenes prevailed as mediapersons, who tried to approach her, jostled with the policemen after she reached the airport in Nedumbassery amid tight security.

I am a Muslim. I was not forced. I want to be with my husband, the 25-year-old Hadiya, wearing a head scarf, shouted as she was being taken inside the airport.

Earlier, the woman, who converted to Islam and married a Muslim man Shafin Jahan, and her parents left from their house in a village near Vaikom in this district, accompanied by a police team which also comprised women personnel, for a two-hour long journey to the airport.

The direction by the apex court for producing the woman for an interaction came amid an assertion by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) that this was a case in which the woman was indoctrinated and she may be incapable of giving free consent to marriage.

A Supreme Court bench, comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, had asked senior advocate Shyam Divan, representing the father of the woman, to ensure she is produced before them to ascertain whether she had married of her own volition.

The woman and her parents are likely to stay at Kerala House in New Delhi, sources said.

The NIA, represented by Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh, had said there was a well-oiled machinery working in Kerala that was indoctrinating and radicalising society in the state.

As many as 89 cases of similar nature have been reported from the southern state, the ASG had said.

Divan, appearing for womans father K M Ashokan, claimed that Jahan was a radicalised man and several organisations like Popular Front of India were involved in radicalisation of society.

Also Read : Kerala Love Jihad case: Hadiyas father denies meeting between daughter and State Women's Commission Chairperson

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, counsel for Shafin Jahan,had opposed NIAs submission and that of the womans father.

Hadiya, a Hindu, had converted to Islam and later married Jahan.

It was alleged that she was recruited by ISIS mission in Syria and Jahan was only a stooge.

Jahan had on September 20 approached the apex court seeking recall of its August 16 order, directing the NIA to investigate the controversial case of conversion and marriage of a Hindu woman with him.

Meanwhile, the Kerala government on October 7 told the Supreme Court that its police conducted a thorough investigation into her conversion and subsequent marriage to Jahan and did not find material warranting the transfer of probe to the National Investigation Agency.

Jahan had moved the Supreme Court after the Kerala high court annulled his marriage, saying it was an insult to the independence of women in the country.

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New Delhi:

The ongoing Padmavati row took an ugly turn on Friday when a man's body was found hanging in Rajasthans Nahargarh Fort, 20 km near Jaipur, with slogans against the movie scribbled on stones nearby.

One of the slogans read Padmavati ka virodh (Opposing Padmavati), while another read Hum putle nahi jalate, latkate hain (we dont burn effigies, we kill).

The matter is being investigated by officers from the Brahmapuri Police Station. The deceased has been identified as Chetan. A plastic wire was found near Chetan's body. Police is not ruling out murder.

Mahipal Singh Makrana, a member of the Rajput Karni Sena which has been spearheading the Padmavati protest, said his outfit did not have anything to do with the latest development.

This is not our way of protest. I want to tell people not to resort to such methods, Makrana said. His outfit had last week threatened to chop off Deepika Padukones nose just as Soorpanakhas nose was chopped off.

Meanwhile, the Delhi HC has rejected the plea for an expert panel on Padmavati, as Karni Sena members burnt director Bhansali's effigy in the national capital.

Rajput groups in Rajasthan have staged massive protests against the movie for apparently distorting historical facts. The protests have been supported by several state governments controlled by the Bharatiya Janata Party.

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New Delhi:

The United States is set to deploy six F-22 Raptor stealth fighter jets to South Korea for a joint drill. The aircraft will take part in a joint air force exercise reportedly designed to put maximum pressure on the North Korean regime.

The five-day joint military exercise between US and South Korea has been named Vigilant Ace and will begin on December 4. A South Korean Air Force spokesman said an unspecified number of F-22s would take part in the drill.

A US Air Force spokesman declined to give any further details. Local media reported that the US aircraft will engage in precision strike drills with South Korean Air Force fighter jets.

The move comes as the US pushes what President Donald Trump has called a maximum pressure campaign against Pyongyangs nuclear program.

Earlier in November, two B-1B US supersonic bombers overflew the Korean peninsula as part of a joint exercise with Japanese and South Korean warplanes.

ALSO READ: Donald Trump declares North Korea state sponsor of terrorism



This was followed by a joint naval drill involving three US aircraft carriers and seven South Korean warships in the first such triple-carrier exercise in the region for a decade.

North Korea in July launched two intercontinental ballistic missiles apparently capable of reaching the US mainlandwhich were described by the countrys leader Kim Jong-Un as a gift to American bastards.

It followed up with two missiles that passed over Japan, and its sixth nuclear test in Septemberby far its most powerful yet.Trump on Monday declared North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism, adding the country back onto a US blacklist Pyongyang was taken off nearly a decade ago.

READ: N Korea says Trump deserves 'death penalty' for insulting Kim Jong-un

The US also unveiled fresh sanctions that target North Korean shipping, raising the pressure on the Pyongyang in a bid to make it abandon its nuclear programme.

Trump said that the terror designation and new sanctions are part of a series of moves over the next two weeks to reinforce his maximum pressure campaign against Kim Jong-Uns regime.

Pyongyang condemned the listing as a serious provocation on Wednesday, warning that sanctions would never force it to abandon its nuclear weapons programme.

China, the Norths sole ally, also rejected as wrong new US sanctions, which target Chinese companies doing business with the pariah state.

Russia said on Thursday that the US decision to add North Korea to its terror blacklist was a PR move that could allow the situation on the peninsula to escalate into a global catastrophe.

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New Delhi:

Sanjay Leela Bhansalis much-awaited film Padmavati has been embroiled in controversy ever since the director started shooting in Jaipur.

Massive protests have been staged all over the country demanding a ban against the Deepika Padukone starrer.

The period drama has faced the ire of Karni Sena members and political leaders who have slammed the movie for distorting historical facts. The movie has been facing a lot of troubles with some organisations threatening to chop off the lead actress Deepika Padukones nose.

One of the prolific writers in India, Nayantara Sahgal has opened up on the entire matter at the Times LitFest. The 90-year-old author said that it is Hindutva, not Hinduism which is driving the protests against the Sanjay Leela Bhansali directorial.

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Nayantara said that people should allow art, literature and culture to flourish and forget about other peoples sensitives. She added that had people worried about hurting others sentiments, the practise of Sati would never have been abolished in the country.

The makers and the actress (of Padmavati) have been threatened by violence. This is Hindutva not Hinduism. The first teaching of Hinduism is non-violence, she said.

We have to hurt sentiments when the sentiments are wrong. We are one billion plus people and we must have one billion plus one sensitivities, so, some sensitivity is always in conflict with another, the author also added.

The 'Rich Like Us' novelist was bestowed with the Lifetime Achievement award on November 25 at the fest.

(With PTI Inputs)

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Raipur:

Twelve Naxals have been arrested from separate places in Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit Bijapur district during a joint operation of the Central Reserve Police Force's 199th battalion and the district police.

The Naxals were nabbed from the forests under the Bhairamgarh police station limits yesterday, Additional Superintendent of Police Mohit Garg told PTI.

Acting on specific inputs, security forces had launched a search operation in the interior of Bhairamgarh, around 450 km from here, on November 22, he said.

The Maoists were rounded up after the joint team cordoned off Itampara, Uspari, Biriyabhoomi and Daler villages inside the forests, he added.

Among those nabbed, warrants were pending against nine naxals including a woman, he added.

The maximum number of warrants, for 36 incidents, were pending against Sitaram Hemla, while 12 warrants were pending against Bheema Atra, the ASP said.

The arrested ultras were active as lower-rung cadres and involved in attacks on police, planting of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and putting up Naxal banners and posters, he added.

Search operations have been intensified in the interior of Bastar division, which comprises seven districts, in view of People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (military wing of the Maoists) Week which the ultras observe from December 2 to 8.

Rebels are known to step up their activities during this period.

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KABUL: The US embassy in Kabul on Saturday warned American citizens to be vigilant at places where people generally congregate noting the fact that violence has increased in Afghanistan following the Eid holiday.

Notably, the situation in the country is tense since US President Joe Biden announced that American troops will pull out from the country by September 11. This has made the Taliban intensify attacks on provincial capitals, districts, bases, and checkpoints since the international troops began to withdraw.

The Department had also advised US citizens not to travel to Afghanistan due to crime, terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, armed conflict and the coronavirus, adding that American nationals already in the country should consider departing.

Last month, as per reports, the US State Department ordered some of its employees whose functions can be performed elsewhere to depart from the American embassy in Kabul.

Ross Wilson, the acting US Ambassador to Afghanistan, said that the decision was made "in light of increasing violence and threat reports in Kabul".

Afghanistan is in a state of uncertainty after US President Joe Biden announced that American troops will pull out from the country by September 11.

Currently, both the Taliban and the Afghan government have announced that they would observe a three-day ceasefire for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr that started on Thursday, but the violence continues.

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Iran's foreign minister has called off a planned visit to his Austrian counterpart in Vienna.The decision came after Austria's chancellery and foreign ministry flew the Israeli flag as a signal of solidarity in Israel's conflict with the militant Hamas group.

Austrian media reported Saturday that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was due to meet Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg on Saturday morning. But he called off the trip over the Austrian leaders' decision to fly the Israeli flag on Friday.

The Austria Press Agency said Schallenberg's spokeswoman, Claudia Tuertscher, confirmed the report. She said: We regret this. Vienna has been hosting negotiations in recent weeks aimed at bringing the United States back into the 2015 nuclear deal aimed at allaying concerns about Iran's nuclear ambitions. France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China are still parties to that agreement.

Iran's deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, tweeted on Friday that Austria so far been a great host for negotiations but it was shocking & painful to see flag of the occupying regime, that brutally killed tens of innocent civilians, inc many children in just few days, over govt offices in Vienna.

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CPN-UML chairperson KP Sharma Oli gets reappointed as the Prime Minister of Nepal. The President announced made this tremendous announcement after the opposition parties failed to form a coalition government.

In a statement by Presidents Office, it was said that President Bidya Devi Bhandari has been reappointed as the Prime Minister in his capacity as leader of the largest political party in the House of Representatives. President Bhandari is set to administer the oath of office and secrecy to Oli today afternoon. Presidents Office in another statement said that no two or more than two parties had come to lay claim over forming a coalition by the given deadline of Thursday 9 PM. Meanwhile, Oli is required to win a vote of confidence at the House within 30 days of his appointment as the new Prime Minister. Article 76 (5) of the constitution states that if a Prime Minister appointed according to clauses mentioned. One of which clause read the President shall appoint a member as Prime Minister who produces bases that he/she may win the vote of confidence of the House. While, Article 76 (2) states that if there is not clear majority of any party according to clause (1), the President shall appoint as Prime Minister the member of the House of Representatives.

So, let us tell you that Oli will now continue as caretaker prime minister and has another one month to prove that he has the confidence of the House.

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Laura Riesenberg was visiting a local amusement park with three of her children when she suffered a massive heart attack.

"I was down for about 20 minutes and they defibrillated me twice on site, possibly three times," she says. "Obviously, I was unaware of it. I know from reading the reports what happened."

"I was extremely fortunate that someone found me within seconds of collapsing," says Riesenberg. "Had it happened anywhere else I wouldn't be talking to you right now. If I had been in the basement doing laundry, I would have been in trouble."

The 51-year-old Loveland, Ohio, resident was transported to UC Health's West Chester Hospital where she learned she was a Type 2 diabetic and had suffered previous damage to the heart that led to a big blockage of her left coronary artery while at the amusement park. That type of blockage is often referred to as the "widow maker."

Donald Lynch Jr., MD, assistant professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and UC Health cardiologist, says that the link between diabetes and heart disease often leads to adverse health outcomes for patients. Approximately 65% of deaths among patients with diabetes are due to cardiovascular disease.

Lynch, also Riesenberg's current cardiologist, will be presenting preliminary research virtually at the American College of Cardiology on Saturday, May 15, that suggests plasma proteins discovered in the blood samples of diabetic patients who went on to develop obstructive coronary disease (OCAD) may serve as biomarkers of severe heart blockage. The findings might benefit patients like Riesenberg in the future.

Riesenberg says an internal defibrillator was implanted in her heart after her heart attack.

"There was no explanation why I survived the first heart attack or second heart attack. They also diagnosed me as diabetic that day. Mind you, I should have known. I had been a gestational diabetic, and I had been overweight, but I thought I was doing all the right things."

"I had lost a significant amount of weight, and I was active. I was eating well or at least I thought I was eating well. I had absolutely no idea," she adds. "I wish someone had been able to tell me that there was a strong link between diabetes and heart disease."

Riesenberg, a homemaker, and her husband, Jay, are both diabetic and they worry if their medical hereditary history might someday impact their family; in addition to the three children who joined their mom at the park the couple have another seven.

As part of his research Lynch, a researcher in the UC Division of Cardiovascular Health and Disease, looked at stored plasma samples from 70 diabetic patients: one group was found to have obstructive coronary disease while the second group did not. A total of 248 plasma proteins were identified; 15 were present in patients with obstructive coronary disease while only three were present in patients without OCAD.

"We took samples of plasma and used mass spectrometry to see if we could find biomarkers that were predictive of patients developing obstructive coronary disease," says Lynch. "The significance of this is I see patients who have diabetes and unfortunately develop blockages but no symptoms."

Lynch says Riesenberg was fortunate that she survived her heart attack and cardiac arrest. "For many patients that's not the case," he says. "We know patients with diabetes are much more likely to have blockages in the heart and unfortunately they are more likely to be asymptomatic which places them at significant risk. We don't have good tools to figure out which patients will develop blockages."

"What we found is that we can use a blood test and identify patients with diabetes who might develop obstructive coronary disease," says Lynch. "It is a challenge to identify which patients with diabetes are at higher risk. This may be a good tool in our toolbox to help us in our fight against cardiovascular disease in patients with diabetes."

"We can get them to a provider and have them assessed early for the possibility of developing obstructive coronary disease," says Lynch.

The research is particularly important to Lynch, who disclosed he also battles diabetes. He has planned future studies to further evaluate the ability of these biomarkers to identify patients with coronary disease and improve cardiac outcomes for patients with diabetes.

The preliminary research has definitely captured the interest of Riesenberg, who spoke with Lynch about his findings.

"It fascinates me that a simple blood test might be able to tell my children that this is on their horizon, and you don't have to be dependent on a cardiac device for the rest of your life," says Riesenberg.

###

Other research co-authors from UC include David Hui, PhD, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine along with Auriela Howze, a UC undergraduate majoring in chemistry. Additional co-authors include Koen Raedschelders, PhD, Jennifer Van Eyk, PhD, and Mitra Mastali, PhD, all of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles and James Januzzi, MD, of Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston.

Funding for the research is from Cedars-Sinai Advanced Clinical Biosystems Research Institute, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine Rehn Family Research Award.
BEVERLY HILLS, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 15, 2021 / If you had to describe the Beverly Hills Attorney Group in just one word, it would be personable, or maybe boutique. The truth is there isn't one word that describes them. The Beverly Hills Attorney Group is a team of tenacious attorneys of different backgrounds and ethnicities who focus on their relationships (with their clients, network, and each other) first.

"We pride ourselves on our dedication to our clients, as well as our network of doctors and attorneys. We try to make ourselves very accessible always," says the team at Beverly Hills Attorney Group. "We want to help people who aren't sure what to do when they are faced with potentially life-altering situations like car accidents."

With relationships at the heart of their business, the Beverly Hills Attorney Group built a practice on referrals in Beverly Hills in under a year and a half.

"With COVID, it's been difficult, as it is with everyone, but accidents haven't stopped. When clients come to us, most of the time, they're already injured and shaken, so we do our best to be flexible, accommodating, and understanding, and we give them personalized care. We provide them with an accurate overview of our process from A to Z, so they know exactly what to expect. We're just trying to help people."

All the Beverly Hills Attorneys Group members were born and raised in Los Angeles, but the team comes from very different backgrounds. They're even multilingual! Now, they're giving back to their community by fighting for their clients' rights in the LA area.

The Beverly Hills Attorney Group focuses on personal injury and provides other legal services such as Lemon law matters, criminal lawsuits, and business litigation services. However, their network in the personal injury sphere of practice sets them apart from other law firms.

"Our network in the personal injury sphere has over 30 years of experience. And the relationships with our network and clients are what drives us."

Story continues

Although their goal is eventually to open a Nevada branch, the Beverly Hills Attorney Group doesn't want to turn into a settlement mill where they have to juggle 200 clients.

Why? Because in firms like that, "it's easy for cases to fall through the cracks. Their attention to detail is less because they work on volume. We are careful in choosing cases, upfront on what we provide, and how the process goes. Our attorneys are hands-on with the cases from start to finish. We provide white-glove services in the sense that we're touching every point in a matter, following up with insurance companies, following up with clients, and personalizing the services we provide. We go out of our way to do that."

If you are injured or looking for other legal help, you can request a free consultation from the Beverly Hills Attorney Group by calling 1-310-858-9802 or emailing them at roxanna@beverlyhillsattorneys.com.

Company Name: Beverly Hills Attorney Group

Contact Person: Roxanna Talaie

Address: 280 S. Beverly Drive, Suite 315, Beverly Hills, CA 90212

Phone Number: 310-858-9802

Website Link: http://www.beverlyhillsattorneys.com

SOURCE: Beverly Hills Attorney Group





View source version on accesswire.com:

https://www.accesswire.com/647630/The-Beverly-Hills-Attorney-Group-is-Your-Legal-Destination-For-Personal-Injury




By Ricardo Brito and Maria Carolina Marcello

BRASILIA, May 14 (Reuters) - A Brazilian Supreme Court justice on Friday ruled that former Health Minister Eduardo Pazuello will not be obligated to answer questions that could incriminate him before a Senate panel investigating the government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With more than 430,000 dead, Brazil has experienced the world's second-deadliest outbreak of COVID-19 after the United States.

Critics blame the severity of the death toll on a negligent response by the government of President Jair Bolsonaro, who has downplayed the severity of the disease and opposed lockdowns. Bolsonaro says he regrets the deaths, but Brazil must get back to business as usual.

Pazuello, who stepped down as health minister in March, is under scrutiny over accusations that his actions delayed the country's acquisition of vaccines.

Reuters reported on Wednesday that Pazuello failed to take up Pfizer Inc on its offer of COVID-19 vaccines last year because he believed Brazil should rely on AstraZeneca and Sinovac shots made domestically.

Brazil only agreed to buy Pfizer vaccines in March, more than six months after the company initially approached the Brazilian government offering immunizations. The country's vaccine rollout has been slow, with regular shortages of shots.

Pazuello did not respond to a request for comment.

The former health minister and three star Army general is set to appear before the special Senate committee on Wednesday.

Supreme Court Justice Ricardo Lewandowski on Friday issued a decision that Pazuello has the right to remain silent before the committee, due to the possibility that he could be jailed if he lied or otherwise incriminated himself.

Pazuello could cite the decision as a means to avoid answering any questions, although it does not necessarily exempt him from speaking about matters that would not implicate him.

The Solicitor General's office, which represents the Bolsonaro administration, had submitted the request that Pazuello not be required to speak at the hearing.

(Reporting by Ricardo Brito and Maria Carolina Marcello, writing by Jake Spring, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)
QUILCENE, WA / ACCESSWIRE / May 15, 2021 / Your brand is a reflection of you and the value your business brings to customers. It creates clarity around your services and builds connection with customers on an emotional level.

In a time where many students, employees, and entrepreneurs around the world have no other option but to connect virtually, the importance of your brand and online presence is more vital than ever and must be strong.

If you want your business to scale online and beat the competition, you have to improve your branding efforts. Here are 3 factors you need to know to boost your visibility and prestige in today's digital space:

Build an online reputation

Even before the start of the coronavirus pandemic, your online reputation was important. Then the coronavirus changed the paradigm practically overnight, forcing people to adjust to digital ways of interacting with their families, colleagues, and clients.

More companies are adjusting to a world in which teleworking will reign. 62% of workers with a bachelor's degree or higher say all their work can be done from home.

For online businesses and entrepreneurs with any need to network, both online and in person, this is an advantage-when used correctly.

As vaccine rollouts continue, online businesses will continue to use digital marketing to stay relevant and make profit. The world has shifted to a much more intense online focus, and this is the path forward. A crucial part of scaling your business is having and maintaining an online reputation.

Make a positive first impression online

Operating your business in the online world is no different from how you would present yourself in a job interview or network with people. How you present yourself means everything, and your first impression leaves a lasting mark.

"Google search results for your name are practically your resume these days," says CEO Jacob Darley of PR firm, Ernest Development.

First impressions-whether they are in person or online-are important. Nowadays, google search results or your LinkedIn profile serve as that first impression. These online tools build credibility, prestige, and trust behind your name, which helps close deals and retain business in the long run.

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Differentiate yourself from the market

Every business should have that one benefit, feature, or characteristic that sets it apart from the competition. Introduce your potential clients to why they should be working with you.

You've started an online copywriting business for creative entrepreneurs. But there are hundreds, maybe even thousands, of copywriters in the world who work with creative entrepreneurs. What makes you different? Why do you stand out? Why should people choose you?

It's not enough to communicate what you can do for your client. Branding is about articulating your value proposition in comparison to other competitors.

If you want to scale your business, you have to convince people why your business is more valuable than the competitor down the street. You may be in the same line of work, but how you do your work may be different. The key to a strong brand is in your ability to highlight what makes your business unique. You might know what makes your business or service stand out, but do your potential clients? Do they know from the very first moments of searching online? How much business might you miss out on because the conversation never even occurred for you to explain yourself?

Scale Your Business with Ernest Development

Jacob Darley started working for himself online in late 2015. He worked part-time in the ecommerce sector until he felt secure enough to quit his 9-to-5 job and relocate to Thailand.

When COVID-19 hit, he decided to return home to his native Washington State. He was looking for different lines of work to pursue, and came across an opportunity to create and run his own PR agency, Ernest Development.

Ernest Development is a full-service public relations and marketing firm. The agency helps business owners and entrepreneurs scale their businesses by building their online image and reputation.

Jacob differentiated his agency by understanding one simple principle... If you take care of your client, your client will take care of you. Ernest Development is focused on staying with their clients well after a service is provided- giving advice and helping businesses find their path to success and growth. The Ernest Development Mission Statement aligns with this mindset. "To create genuine, long-lasting, positive change in every person and business we associate with."

Through services including SEO, lead generation, social media, podcasts and more, they earn media coverage for their clients-which garners more visibility in their target market.

Not only is this agency seriously committed to scaling businesses, it is dedicated to building lasting relationships with its clientele.

If you want to learn how you can seriously grow your business, contact experts at Ernest Development today.

Company Name: Ernest Development

Contact Person: Jacob Darley

Address: 185 Mckee dr Quilcene WA 98376

Phone Number: (360) 930 - 3595

Website Link: https://ernestdevelopment.com/

SOURCE: Ernest Development





View source version on accesswire.com:

https://www.accesswire.com/647629/The-Importance-Of-Branding-In-2021-And-Beyond-As-Told-By-Jacob-Darley-CEO-Of-Ernest-Development




Azizi Developments, a leading private developer in the UAE, has announced that it has sold 486 out of the 645 apartments within its luxury development, Creek Views I at Dubai Healthcare City.

These sold units comprise 325 studios, 138 one- and 20 two-bedroom homes, as well as three retail spaces, making up for 75 per cent of the total sellable units, said the company in its statement.

A key AED550 million ($150 million) development, Creek Views I has been mostly sold to UAE nationals, with Emiratis representing 25% of the investors, followed by India with 14%, Saudi Arabia with 7% and Jordan with 6%.

So far, more than 45 nationalities have purchased units in Creek Views I, underscoring Azizi Developments' efforts in getting foreign nationals to invest in Dubai, said the statement.

Two-bedroom apartments were the most popular choice, with all 20 having been sold, it stated.

Second to that were studios with 88 per cent of them having been snatched up by investors, followed by one-bedroom units of which 63 per cent have been sold. Moreover, three out of the 11 retail spaces have also been purchased by savvy buyers, it added.

On the solid sales, CEO Farhad Azizi said: "It brings us great pleasure to put Dubai on the world map of growth-inclined, high ROI real estate investment destinations."

The first quarter egistered the highest recorded number of home sales transactions in Dubai since 2010, according to a market report by real estate consultancy ValuStrat.

Dubai recorded sales of more than 6,000 ready homes worth AED13.5 billion ($3.7 billion), as well as 3,600 off-plan properties worth AED5 billion in the first three months of the year alone, the report said.

"Our portfolio of modern-luxury homes across Dubais most sought-after destinations, as well as our construction-driven and customer-centric approach, continues to make us a trusted developer of choice and attracts investors from all across the globe, which fills us with great pride," noted Azizi.

"2020 was a challenging year for all, but 2021 marks a pronounced comeback for many," he added.

Overlooking Dubai Healthcare City and situated on Al Khail Road, just seven minutes from Dubai International Airport, eight minutes from Dubai Mall and nine minutes from Business Bay and DIFC, Creek Views I has all major business, leisure and retail hubs in its vicinity, said the statement from Azizi.

Positioned as the epicentre of the future, merging views of both the old and contemporary Dubai, Creek Views I represents the citys remarkable transition from a traditional, iconic past to a contemporary, reinvented future, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
As the pandemic wore on, Rachel Suter worried about everyones mental health. She had endured the suicides of three neighbors years ago, and h
Majority Leader Fenberg explained that he doesn't usually work on issues like this, leaving it to others with lived experience. But the shooting in Boulder made this personal, he said, and his community begged him to take action. The bill would not have prevented the shooting, nor solve the problems of guns, he added, but it allows communities to control their own destiny.
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Leading auto group Kia has launched its new global brand identity, strategy and purpose across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) as a signal of Kia Corporations future direction and vision with a new brand slogan Movement That Inspires.

The regional launch, which involved a striking multimedia show at Dubais Burj Khalifa, follows the global announcement of Kias brand transformation at the beginning of 2021.

Defined by the new brand slogan Movement That Inspires and a modernised logo, the shift will see Kia expand its influence beyond vehicle manufacturing to provide sustainable mobility solutions for customers.

In support of this ambition, the new purpose will see Kia work to create spaces that inspire customers and free up time for the activities they enjoy the most, through bold product design, innovative in-car experiences, and meaningful and convenient services at every touchpoint, said the company in a statement.

The regional brand transformation will see the manufacturer put its mid to long-term Plan S strategy into action across MEA.

The Plan S strategy outlines Kias preemptive and enterprising shift from a business system focused on internal combustion engine vehicles toward one centered on electric vehicles and customized mobility solutions.

The launch of Kias new EV6 is an example of the brands roadmap to offer a full line-up of 11 battery electric vehicles by 2025, it stated.

Kia plans to strengthen its EV lineup with 11 new BEV models by 2026  seven built on E-GMP architecture, and four derivative EVs based on existing models, it added.

Within the MEA region, the automaker will realise its brand relaunch by renovating all Kia facilities to reflect its new design philosophy and identity.

It is targeting the end of 2023 for completion of its regional transformation. Towards this target, Kia has revealed that the Cerato sedan will be the first vehicle sold across the region to hold the brands new logo, followed by the recently unveiled K8 - also a sedan - in August 2021.

"This is a historic moment for Kia in the region as we transform and adopt a new perspective on what mobility has to offer the world today and, in the future," said Yaser Shabsogh, Chief Operating Officer at Kia Middle East and Africa.

"A journey is more than getting from point A to B  its about igniting the excitement of discovery. Exactly how society travels is always changing, and Kias brand transformation reflects our ambition to lead the way in defining what this how looks like long into the future," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
A growing number of passengers are waiting until summer to travel, according to a recent passenger survey conducted by Dubai-based budget carrier flydubai.

The survey, which was conducted this February with 2,800 passengers, was aimed to gauge passenger feedback on their travel plans and their experience while travelling with flydubai.

As per the survey, 66% of UAE residents said that they were likely to travel soon, either in the next one to three months (41%) or in the next four to six months (25%), indicating an intent to travel during the summer.

When asked about the reasons for postponing travel 40% of them cited the barriers to travel such as quarantine when returning home and travel restrictions as the key factors in delaying their travel plans.

Around 48% of those surveyed said that border closures were also a deciding factor in planning their next trip.

Commenting on the survey results, CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith said: "Customer feedback is incredibly important to us at flydubai and I would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to share their thoughts with us."

"We are pleased to see that passengers are intending to travel during the summer. Dubai has taken the lead in re-establishing tourism demonstrating that travel is both safe and possible," he stated.

"As vaccination programmes across the world gain momentum, we believe that more passengers will take the decision to travel and enjoy a well-earned summer break," he added.

According to him, flydubais network in the summer is expected to reach more than 80 points in 45 countries and offers passengers a variety of popular leisure destinations that reflects the diversity of its network.

For those seeking a break, flydubai offers passengers the chance to explore a range of cities rich in culture, heritage and activities such as Batumi, Bodrum, Colombo, Male, Tbilisi, Trabzon, Tirana and Tivat.

Holidays by flydubai, the airlines holiday division, also offers a range of attractive tailor-made holiday packages across the flydubai network to suit all budgets with a single booking process.

According to flydubai, the survey also highlighted passengers confidence in the low-cost carrier's Covid-19 precautionary safety measures.

From their travel experience with flydubai 91% felt that the airline crew adhered to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) policies during their journey. Furthermore, 88% agreed that airport staff, at either the departure or arrival airport, followed the procedures.

Moreover, 88% of passengers felt that aircraft cleanliness was of the upmost importance and 73% of passengers felt more confident because masks were being worn throughout the customer journey. They further appreciated the importance of limiting movement around the cabin during the flight (69%), it stated.

Mike Evans, Senior VP of Customer Experience, Brand and Communications, at flydubai, said: "Early in the pandemic we saw the industry come together to make the necessary changes to limit the spread of Covid-19. These tangible measures give people the confidence and peace of mind they need when they travel and its great to see this being reflected in their feedback."

"flydubai has redesigned its passenger journey to protect everyone. We have forged a partnership with our passengers and by working together we have created an environment that allows responsible travel," he added.

Accofrding to Evans, flydubais passenger experience has been redesigned to enable travel in a Covid-19 safe environment.

"During a flight, air is exchanged in the cabin every two to three minutes and is sterile when it enters the cabin after passing through high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters. flydubais aircraft are disinfected every day with manufacturer-certified cleaning products," he noted.

Passengers are required to make sure that they are up to date with the regulations from the IATA Travel Centre and the IATA destination tracker for their whole journey, and follow the guidance issued by the authorities and the airline, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
" " The real Davy Crockett, ca. 1836. Heritage Images/Getty Images

Later in his life, Davy Crockett adopted the motto, "Be sure you're right, then go ahead" [source: Smithsonian]. He was true to this independent ideal from an early age. At 12, he ran away from his first job of driving cattle after it became clear it was merely indentured servitude. His dramatic escape entailed a two-hour, 7-mile nighttime run in knee-deep snow. And he chose work over school, generally. But Crockett was proud of the life he made for himself without the benefit of a formal education. He wore his lack of schooling like a badge of honor.

During his lifetime, Crockett's frontiersmanship became legendary. The book and play "Lion of the West" and other popular books chronicled his life. These biographies were fantastic, absurd accounts of Crockett's wilderness prowess. And when one was written by an author who falsely attributed the "autobiography" to Crockett himself (ostensibly to boost sales), Davy's endearing reputation as a teller of tall tales was secured. Crockett eventually did write his autobiography, which also spun some unbelievable yarns. In one chapter, Crockett describes how he killed 105 bears in one year [source: Crockett].

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Bear hunting was seminally integrated into Crockett's image. The "Ballad of Davy Crockett" (the theme song of the Disney series) mentions that Davy "kilt him a b'ar when he was only three." While this is likely not the case, it captures the essence of his larger-than-life reputation.

At a time when American expansion was meeting resistance from American Indians, Crockett was also regarded as a "brave Indian fighter." As a member of the Tennessee militia during the Creek Indian War, Crockett participated in a massacre of an American Indian village in Alabama, in retribution for a previous raid by the tribe [source: TSHA]. He also fought in the War of 1812 against the British. In 1817, he entered local politics in Lawrence County, Tennessee, fighting for land rights for poor settlers. In 1829 he won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives [source: History].

At some point, Crockett changed his views toward American Indians. As a congressman for Tennessee, he came to oppose President Andrew Jackson's land-use policies. The president's ideas for securing new settlements included the forced removal of American Indians from their tribal lands. Crockett was so vehemently opposed to American Indian removal and land grabbing that he lost his re-election bid to Congress in 1831. However, he was re-elected in 1833.

In 1835, he lost his Congressional seat again and left politics for good, but not before telling newspapers, "I told the people of my district that I would serve them as faithfully as I had done; but if not, they might go to hell, and I would go to Texas" [source: Texas State Library]. And so he did. He was so caught up in the Texas revolutionary spirit as the former Mexican state struggled for independence (and intrigued by the promise of money from land speculation that a free republic eventually promised), that he volunteered to serve as a member of the rebel militia fighting the Mexican Army there.

Crockett died in Texas the next year during the famous 1836 siege at the Alamo, but his death only brought him more glory. He's been portrayed in depictions of the battle using his trusty musket "Old Betsy" as a club, dealing blows to Mexican soldiers. His soldiering was called into question later from firsthand accounts that told of Crockett being captured rather than dying amid a rubble of Mexican corpses. But when the diary of a Mexican solider who had fought at the Alamo was discovered in 1975, Crockett's valiant reputation was supported by the soldier's words: Crockett had been a rallying figure for the doomed men at the fort before he was brutally executed at the hands of the Mexicans upon his capture [source: PBS].

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Originally Published: May 5, 2008
A Kuwaiti ship arrived at Nhava Sheva Mumbai on Saturday, carrying three semi-trailers of LMO (25 MT each) and 1000 O2 cylinders onboard.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 15 (ANI): A Kuwaiti ship arrived at Nhava Sheva Port in Mumbai on Saturday, carrying three semi-trailers of Liquid Medical Oxygen (25 metric tonnes each) and 1000 oxygen cylinders on board, to help India combat the coronavirus pandemic.

External Affairs Ministry (EAM) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi expressed gratitude to the government of Kuwait for the much-needed oxygen to help ease pressure on the health infrastructure of the country.

"Taking forward historical ties of friendship. Kuwaiti ship arrives at Nhava Sheva Mumbai (India). 3 semi-trailers of LMO (25 MT each) and 1000 O2 cylinders onboard. Grateful to H.H. Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah the Amir of the State of Kuwait & government of Kuwait," EAM spokesperson tweeted.

Meanwhile, an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft airlifted three oxygen containers to Kuwait for recharging and subsequent return by sea.

"An IL-76 airlifted three oxygen containers to Kuwait for recharging & subsequent return by sea. Airlift of 8 x containers by C-17s to Qatar is underway. The air-sea logistics supply chain ops will make medical oxygen available in reduced timelines," IAF tweeted.

Last week, a shipment of 282 oxygen cylinders, 60 oxygen concentrators, ventilators and other medical supplies from Kuwaiti reached India to help the country fight the deadly second wave of virus

"Deepening our fraternal ties of friendship. Thank Kuwait for shipment of 282 oxygen cylinders, 60 oxygen concentrators, ventilators and other medical supplies that arrived today," Bagchi tweeted.

India is witnessing a second wave of coronavirus that resulted in increased demand for medical oxygen, beds in hospitals and life-saving drugs.

India reported 3,26,098 new COVID-19 cases, and 3,890 deaths in the last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry. It has the second-highest cases of infection in the world. (ANI)
By Crispian Balmer

ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi will not be able to enact key reforms demanded by the European Union because his unity government is too divided over the issues, rightist leader Matteo Salvini said on Saturday.

Salvini, who heads the League, told newspapers he would back Draghi to become the next president in a parliamentary vote due in early 2022. If Draghi accepts the post, his coalition would automatically fall, opening the way for early elections.

"In any case, it won't be this government that reforms the justice and tax system," Salvini told La Repubblica daily, saying centre-left parties within the broad-based cabinet had very different views to their centre-right counterparts.

Almost all the main parties from across the political spectrum have backed the Draghi administration, which took office in February, meaning it will be extremely hard to reach an agreement on sensitive areas up for discussion.

Draghi has promised Brussels that he will push through an ambitious reform drive to secure more than 200 billion euros ($243 billion) from the EU recovery fund, aimed at helping countries overcome the coronavirus pandemic.

The pledged measures, which have not yet been presented to the cabinet, include plans to cut red tape, shake up the complex tax code and streamline the notoriously slow legal system.

The EU money will only be released in tranches, meaning the taps could be closed if the reforms fail to materialise.

The current legislature is due to expire in 2023 and if Draghi became president in early 2022, his proposed reform timetable would fall by the wayside, leaving it up to the next government to start afresh.

"As far as we are concerned, if he agrees, the next head of state will be Mario Draghi," Salvini told Corriere della Sera.

Draghi has long been touted in the media as the natural successor to President Sergio Mattarella, but he himself has not made any comment on whether he wants the job.

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Opinion polls suggest the centre-right bloc, led by Salvini's League, will win the next election. However, the League risks being overtaken within its own bloc by the increasingly popular far-right Brothers of Italy party.

Political analysts say the threat of losing his role as undisputed leader of the right might push Salvini to seek a vote sooner rather than later.

($1 = 0.8237 euros)

(Reporting by Crispian Balmer; Editing by Frances Kerry)
Srinagar: Police in Kashmir said Saturday that 21 people were arrested for disturbing public order by expressing solidarity with Palestine and holding protests against Israel's military offensive in Gaza.

Police said in a statement they were keeping a "close watch on elements who are attempting to leverage the unfortunate situation in Palestine to disturb public peace and order" in Kashmir. The statement said police were "sensitive to public anguish" but wouldn't allow those sentiments to "trigger violence, lawlessness and disorder".

The Muslim-majority Himalayan region of Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and claimed by both in its entirety. Kashmiris have long shown strong solidarity with Palestinians and have often staged anti-Israel protests when fighting broke out in Gaza.

Police inspector-general Vijay Kumar told reporters that 20 people were arrested in Srinagar, the region's main city, and one from a village in southern Kashmir.

A police officer, speaking anonymously in line with department policy, said the 21 were arrested for social media posts, taking part in anti-Israel protests and making graffiti in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and Jerusalem.

Some of the arrested could be soon released after "counseling and assurances from their parents that they would desist from such acts in future", the officer said.

The officer said the arrested include Sarjan Barkati, a Muslim cleric and a prominent anti-India activist, as well as an artist.

The artist was arrested for painting pro-Palestinian graffiti on a bridge in Srinagar on Friday showing a woman wearing a scarf made of a Palestinian flag and a tear tricking from her eye, with the words: "WE ARE PALESTINE."

The graffiti was later painted over by police.

Since Monday, Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and Palestinian militants have fired hundreds of rockets into Israel. The latest round of fighting between the bitter enemies has already begun to resemble " and even exceed " a devastating 50-day war in 2014.

Story continues

During that war, large anti-Israel protests erupted in Kashmir, which often morphed into clashes with demands of an end of India's rule over the region and causing dozens of casualties.

Relations between Hindu-majority India and Israel have long been viewed with suspicion and hostility in Kashmir, and Israel has also emerged as a key arms supplier to India.

Also See: Will not be silenced, says Al-Jazeera after Israeli airstrike in Gaza destroys building with media outlets

Hamas' Gaza City commander killed in Israeli airstrike; 53 Palestinians, six Israelis dead so far

Israel-Palestine clash: India's experience in resolving long conflicts can help Benjamin Netanyahu in unequal power dynamics

Read more on India by Firstpost.
Russian Ambassador to India, Nikolay Kudashev (Twitter)

New Delhi [India], May 15 (ANI): Russian Ambassador to India, Nikolay Kudashev on Saturday expressed his happiness over the rollout of COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V in India.

"Happy that the day, when @sputnikvaccine had rolled out in India, has come. Hope it will help our countries to cope with the global threat of #COVID19 following our special and privileged strategic partnership as well as fair and equal approach to international cooperation. Congratulations!" tweeted Kudashev.

Sputnik V has become the first foreign-made vaccine to be used in India contributing to the world's largest COVID-19 vaccination campaign.

Inoculations with Sputnik V in Hyderabad started Friday followed the arrival of the first batch of the vaccine in India on May 1, 2021. The second batch of Sputnik V is expected to arrive in India by the end of the week.

With the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine receiving clearance in India, Deepak Sapra, Global Head of Custom Pharma Services at Dr Reddy's Laboratories received the first jab of the vaccine in Hyderabad on Friday.

Sputnik V was approved for use in India on April 12, 2021 and granted an emergency use authorisation. India is the leading production hub for Sputnik V.

To date Sputnik V is registered in 65 countries with total population of over 3.2 billion people. Post-vaccination studies in a number of countries demonstrated that Sputnik V is the safest and most effective vaccine against coronavirus. Sputnik V ranks second among coronavirus vaccines globally in terms of the number of approvals issued by government regulators.

The imported doses of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine are presently priced at Rs 948 (+5 per cent GST) per dose, with the possibility of a lower price point when local supply begins.

Efficacy of Sputnik V is 97.6 per cent based on the analysis of data on the coronavirus infection rate among those in Russia vaccinated with both components of Sputnik V from December 5, 2020 to March 31, 2021. (ANI)
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.

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MSU Reinvents Educational Travel with New Courses

By West Kentucky Star Staff

MURRAY - As it became clear that the COVID-19 pandemic was going to have a long-term impact on Murray State students ability to travel, Melanie McCallon Seib, Murray State University Education Abroad Office Director, began brainstorming how to provide students with opportunities to expand their intercultural competency.She also wanted to open the minds of students to the wonders of the shared human experience across the globe. Her answer to this question was the proposal of a series of intercultural experience courses. These courses would be able to offer students located on the Murray campus the chance to do a deep dive into another culture.The pandemic altered student experiences quickly. Our team rallied to provide experience-rich opportunities through technology, said McCallon Seib. Intercultural competence starts right where you are. The ability to see outside yourself and understand how another system works can happen at home if we structure courses that push students just enough out of their cultural comfort zones.The courses serve another more practical purpose as well. With many travel restrictions still in place due to the pandemic, students face achallenge to study abroad in order to fulfill their graduation requirements. These Intercultural Experience courses have been approved as a substitute for studying abroad by the Universitys Honors College, for example, because some students who are graduating now or very soon have been prevented by the pandemic from completing their study abroad requirement.I was scheduled to go on three study abroad programs, two of which were cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic, said Emily Davis, a Murray State nursing student. Since these programs were cancelled, as a nursing student, I do not have another opportune time to take a study abroad course. When the INT 203 class was offered, the class description seemed like the best way to explore another country without actually being able to visit.Currently, as a second-half-spring semester course, INT 203 Appreciation of Intercultural Experiences: An Exploration of France, is underway. Education Abroad Advisor, Christy DAmbrosio, is the instructor for the course. A lifelong Francophile, DAmbrosio studied abroad in France and continues to practice speaking French whenever possible. Through readings, guest lectures, and virtual visits of cultural landmarks, students are learning much about France. A highlight of the course is what DAmbrosio calls a modern-day version of a penpal. Murray State students in INT 203 are partnered with a student from l'Universite de Bourgogne, a Murray State exchange partner in Dijon, France. The students meet up over Zoom, Skype or Whatsapp to have conversations (in English) about topics related to French or American culture. DAmbrosio offers the students suggestions for conversation topics, but ultimately the students are self-guided in their interactions with their French virtual pals.This is by far the most exciting element of the course, both for me and the students, said DAmbrosio. My students have written in their journals about their positive reactions to the experience of conversing with this person. Of course, they were nervous about it at first, but Im hopeful that they are embarking on the adventure of a new friendship.Davis added, I have loved being in INT 203 and being able to explore French culture and even speak with an individual from France; it's not quite the study abroad experience that I expected but it has been a rewarding experience!Its this type of experience, one that broadens a students understanding of another culture and upon reflection brings moreself-awareness, that the Education Abroad Office hopes to provide through the Intercultural Experience courses in the future as well. Steven Guns, Senior Education Abroad Advisor, is offering INT 204 Appreciation of Intercultural Experiences: An Exploration of Food online during the five-week summer session.The only thing better than talking about food is eating it, said Guns. Students will be encouraged to prepare international andcultural dishes at home or order take-out to eat during class meetings. Im looking forward to diving into discussion topics such as fusion foods and universal spices, and answering important questions like: why is Kikkoman soy sauce brewed in Wisconsin?Much like INT 203, this course will utilize readings, guest lectures and virtual visits to explore food culture, cuisines around the world, food access and ask students to dive into the history behind their treasured family recipes passed down through generations.McCallon Seib will be offering INT 202 Appreciation of Intercultural Experiences: An Exploration of Britain during the second half of the fall 2021 semester. We are a country obsessed with the British royals. Nothing showed us that more than the Meghan and Harry interview, said McCallon Seib.Beyond the royals, students will study the Premier League, race and immigration in relation to Brexit, and of course food. Amisconception Im looking forward to exploring with students is our cultural assumption that the English are just like us. I cant take students to Britain right now, but I can still open the doors tointercultural knowledge.Students can sign up for the summer and fall INT classes through myGate.Since 1922, Murray State University has provided a collaborative, opportunity-rich living and learning community that fosters personal growth and professional success through a high-quality college experience. Students receive support from inspiring faculty and staff and will join a distinctive campus community  the Racer Family. With nearly 10,000 students, Murray State prepares the next generation of leaders to join more than 75,000 successful alumni who make a difference in their community, across the country and around the world. We are Racers. The Universitys main campus is located in Murray and includes five regional campuses in Ft. Campbell, Henderson, Hopkinsville, Madisonville and Paducah. To learn more about Murray State University, please visit murraystate.edu.
Update: 12-05-2021 | 16:31:43

The COVID-19 pandemic in Laos has been gradually controlled with new infection cases falling, especially in major cities.

In Laos

The Lao Health Ministry on May 11 announced that there were 35 new infections in the past 24 hours, including nine in Vientiane, five imported in Champasak and 20 in Tonpheung district of Bokeo province bordering China.

So far, Laos has recorded 1,362 infections, 297 of them have recovered and one death.

Meanwhile, the Cambodian Health Ministry reported that the number of new cases decreased on the third consecutive day, reaching 480 on May 11, raising the total to 20,223. Of which, 8,170 have been given all-clear from the virus.

Earlier on May 10, Australia signed an agreement with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to provide an additional aid of 3.15 million USD to help Cambodia mitigate the impacts of the pandemic.

Also on May 11, Cambodia received the third batch of Sinovac vaccine with 500,000 doses from China.

The nation has so far received more than 4 million doses of vaccines, including 1.7 million doses of Sinopharm aided by the Chinese Government, 2 million Sinovac doses bought from China and 324,000 AstraZenica through COVAX Facility.

To date, more than 1.8 million Cambodians have been vaccinated against COVID-19./.

VNA
Hundreds of worshippers follow the service outside, whilst few were allowed inside due to COVID-19 restrictions. Diyanet leader Ali Erbas led the prayer. During his sermon from the minbar, wielding a sword, he mentioned the Palestinian cause and spoke of cries from aggrieved lands of Islamic geography.

Istanbul (AsiaNews)  For the first time in 87 years, Istanbul's Hagia Sophia, converted into a mosque by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last year, hosted the recitation of the Eid-al-Fitr prayers marking the end of Ramadan, the holy month of Islamic fasting and prayer.

Hundreds of worshippers gathered on the day of celebration in the square in front of the building, which is located in the historic Sultanahmet neighbourhood.

Most of those present followed the rite outside the mosque, due to the anti-gathering measures imposed by the authorities to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, whilst a small number were able to participate inside.

Leading the prayer on Tuesday was Ali Erbas, the head of the Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), Turkey's highest Sunni institution, who climbed the minbar  mosque pulpit  wielding a sword.

During the service, the faithful began chanting and shouting slogans against Israel and in favour of the Palestinian cause, in response to the escalating violence that has been going on for days between the Israeli army and Hamas forces.

Delivering the sermon and leading the prayer, Ali Erbas said that religious feasts are days of happiness and enthusiasm for those who belong to the same faith, history, and civilisation.

He also expressed sadness at the cries raised from the aggrieved lands of the Islamic geography, from Yemen to Syria, via Palestine.

The events currently inflaming the Holy Land, in Jerusalem and al-Aqsa, the third holiest place in Islam after Makkah and Madinah, received special mention.

Ali Erbas then said that the symbolic city of religions, languages, cultures and civilisations is being plundered and our innocent Palestinian brothers and sisters are evicted from their houses by force, [. . .] subjected to massacres. Therefore, until Palestine and al-Aqsa are completely free, every Eid will be marked in sorrow.

The conversion of ancient Christian basilicas  Hagia Sophia and Chora (which became museums in 1935 and 1945 respectively) into mosques is part of Erdogans policy of combining nationalism with Islam in order to hide Turkeys economic crisis and keep his hold onto power.

Following the presidential decree that turned the two churches into mosques, Islamic authorities covered with a white curtain the images of Jesus, as well as the frescoes and icons that testify to their Christian past.

Last years transformation of the two UNESCO World Heritage Sites sparked an international political-religious outcry.
Heavy rains are expected to last until Monday as cyclone hits Indias west coast from the Arabian Sea. In the fight against the pandemic, West Bengal is paying the price for election rallies held a few weeks ago. More than 2,000 bodies wash up along the Ganges.

Mumbai (AsiaNews)  Tropical Cyclone Tauktae is set to hit Indias west coast this week-end, compounding the countrys already troubling pandemic emergency.

The deep depression that formed in the Arabian Sea has already reached some northern districts in the State of Kerala, bringing torrential rains.

According to the India Meteorological Department, the system will intensify in the coming hours and, by Monday, will reach further north. The states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra will be the most affected.

In Keralas Kozhikode district, 125 families have had to move from areas deemed to be at high risk for flooding, while 17 relief camps have been set up to accommodate those evacuated.

The situation is complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially its Indian variant, as infection levels remain very high. In the last 24 hours, official sources reported 326,098 new cases with 3,890 deaths.

Although the situation is improving in Delhi, it is getting worse in other states such as West Bengal, which is now paying the price for the election campaign that the Modi government continued despite the spread of the virus a few weeks ago.

Meanwhile, more and more bodies are washing up in the Ganges. A local newspaper, Dainik Bhaskar sent 30 of its journalists to inspect more than a thousand kilometres of riverbanks in Uttar Pradesh, finding more than 2,000 bodies dumped in the river because they could not be cremated.

This confirms the fear that the real number of COVID-19 victims in India is much higher than what official sources are willing to admit.
EIR LEAD EDITORIAL FOR SATURDAY, MAY 15, 2021

Major Powers Responsibility To Ensure the Means to Life

May 14, 2021 (EIRNS)On Sunday, May 16, a meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian strife will take place in the UN Security Council. Chaired by China this month, the Council was prevented from meeting earlier this week, or even issuing a statement, calling for a stop to the terrible bloodshed, because of the delaying tactics by the United States. Beyond the number of dead killed in bombings and violence, the suffering and death toll is mounting by the hour due to the widespread destruction of the means to lifewater, power and food. On Sunday, electricity is set to shut off in Gaza, home to 2 million people, after Israeli closure of fuel shipments through border crossings. Water supplies, already low and intermittent, could stop.

This crisis region, and the worldwide impact of the prolonged pandemic and worsening famine, cry out for concerted action by major powers. There are institutional networks already in place for the tasks. The emergency situation makes dramatically clear the need for a meeting of the leaders of the Permanent Five members of the UN Security Council (U.S., Russia, China, Britain, and France) as soon as possible, as proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, beginning in Jerusalem on Jan. 23, 2020.

Putin and UN Director General Antonio Guterres met yesterday (online) calling for an end to the fighting between Israel and the Palestinians, and for action to ensure the safety of the civilian population, as the Kremlin stated. Guterres specifically pledged during his Moscow visit that the UN stands fully ready to resume the work of the Middle East QuartetRussia, the United States, the UN and the European Unionto halt the violence.

The U.S. opposition to a peace intervention is a continuation of the long-standing British foreign policy playbook of stoking permanent tensionsinsane in the nuclear era. In particular, the U.S. foreign policy to impose economic sanctions throughout this region, and in so many other places, deliberately destroys the means to life for millions of people. In the case of Syria, for example, the direct and indirect effects of U.S. sanctions prevent the return of Syrians to their homes. A new report states, As of today, 2,249,050 of Syrian citizens have returned to the places of their chosen residence, but millions moreespecially as refugees in neighboring countries, cannot do so, and are suffering greatly. They lack food, safe water, medicines, building materials and so on. All calls to reduce the cruel sanctions have so far been cynically ignored. (May 13, 2021 Statement by the Joint Coordination Committees of the Russian Federation and the Syrian Arab Republic on the problems of the repatriation of the Syrian refugees and IDPs.)

The cooperation of major powers for immediate intervention for ceasefire in the Trans-Jordan, involves at the same time, emergency provision of humanitarian aid of water, power and medicine, and commitment to development. There are economic programs already on the agenda for the region. At the Schiller Institutes 2020-2021 online international conferences, for example, Project Phoenix for Syria, and Project Felix for Yemen, and other projects were presented and discussed. The Oasis Plan perspectivepresented decades ago by economist-statesman Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr.calls for full-scale economic development throughout the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), consistent with many specific projects since, for example, the Russian-Egyptian nuclear project now underway in El Dabaa.

In March this year, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited six Southwest Asian countries, presenting a five-point initiative for regional security, involving economic development, in connection with the Belt and Road Initiative. He expressly said that China, when assuming its chairmanship of the UN Security Council for the month of May, would encourage the UNSC to fully deliberate on the question of Palestine, to affirm the two-state solution. Now that pledge has come to be a task of utmost urgency for the whole world.

Let us make broad use of the dialogue at the May 8 Schiller Institute conference, on The Moral Collapse of the Trans-Atlantic World Cries Out for a New Paradigm. Presentations are archived and individually accessible.
Brotherhood over Geopolitics: El Salvador and Honduras Set an Example

May 14, 2021 (EIRNS)Last weekend, seven Honduran mayors petitioned the President of neighboring El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, to send anti-Covid-19 vaccines to their municipalities, because their people are dying. El Salvador has the highest rate of vaccination in Central America (10%), because President Bukele made getting vaccines a priority early, including from China, which donated 150,000 doses on top of 2 million doses contracted. Honduras, however, has been able to vaccinate 0.56% of its 10 million people, most with only one shot, and whether needed second doses will arrive in time is in still in doubt.

The Honduran mayors were immediately invited to El Salvador to meet with Bukele, the Health Minister and others. Less than two days after their visit, early on Thursday morning, May 13, seven, big, blue trucks marked COVID-19 Vaccine left San Salvador and headed to Honduras, carrying 34,000 vaccine dosesdonated. Salvadoran officials decided that despite their own needs, because they have doses contracted in their pipeline, they should help out their neighbors.

From the moment the convoy of trucks and police escort crossed into Honduras, to when each truck arrived in its designated municipality, crowds were gathered along their route. People cheered, waved the flags of both countries and signs saying Thank you President Bukele! as passing vehicles honked approval. When one truck arrived after dark at its final destination, it was met by people lining the street, waiting to shake the hand of the drivers; visibly moved, the Salvadoran drivers slowed way down to shake as many as they could. In another town, a Honduran doctor videotaped a message of thanks to President Bukele in front of a hospital. One mayor gave a lovely speech hailing this act of friendship as a step towards restoring the single Central American nation which had existed for a short time after Independence.

The Honduran Foreign Ministry tweeted when the decision was announced on May 11: The donation of 34,000 vaccines doses announced today in San Salvador shows that it is possible to put health before geopolitics, and that there is no deadlock where there is brotherhood. In the name of Honduras: many thanks to our brothers. We appreciate the support and reciprocity which we have received from El Salvador and other countries to help obtain vaccines which otherwise have been denied to Honduras because of the politicization of the pandemic.

Honduras is now taking steps at various levels of government to establish some ties with China. Honduras still maintains diplomatic relations with Taiwan, whichlike its protector, the United Stateshas not made any vaccines available. The Association of Honduran Mayors sent a letter this week to President Bukele in the name of the countrys 298 municipalities, requesting that El Salvador help them with contacts and procedures so that Honduras can purchase vaccines from China. The Honduran National Congress passed a motion yesterday calling on the Executive Branch to secure COVID vaccines from producing nations such as Russia, China, India, Cuba and even the United States, specifying a trade office be established in China, among other countries, to facilitate work.
How COVID-19 vaccines will work for kids in US

Children ages 12 and older can now roll up their sleeves for COVID-19 vaccines in the U.S., offering parents and schools a chance to relax their pandemic precautions and bringing the country a step closer to controlling the virus.

A government advisory committee recommended Pfizers vaccine for children 12 and older on Wednesday, after the Food and Drug Administration expanded authorization of the shots to the age group earlier in the week.

Heres what you need to know:

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ARE THE SHOTS THE SAME AS THOSE FOR ADULTS?

Yes. The dose and the schedule are the same; the two shots are given three weeks apart.

WHERE CAN KIDS GET THE SHOTS?

Pharmacies, state sites and other places that are already vaccinating people 16 and older with the Pfizer vaccine should be able to give the shots to all authorized ages in most cases.

All those sites can simply extend down to the younger age group, Dr. Janet Woodcock, the FDAs acting commissioner, said in a call with reporters after the agency expanded authorization.

School districts are also preparing to host vaccination clinics to speed up the campaign. And since parents might feel more comfortable with their pediatricians and primary care doctors, health officials are working to make the shots more widely available at private practices.

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WILL KIDS NEED A GUARDIAN?

Parental consent will be needed, but exactly how its obtained could vary.

For vaccinations at school-based clinics, for example, parents might be able to give consent by signing a form, said Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention and president of Association of State and Territorial Health Officials.

Walgreens said a parent or guardian will need to be present and sign a consent form, but noted guidelines on parental consent vary by jurisdiction.

In Pennsylvanias Montgomery County, anyone under 18 needs to be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Proof of guardianship and the childs age arent being checked, said Kelly Cofrancisco, a spokeswoman for the county, which began vaccinating younger teens Tuesday.

HOW WAS THE VACCINE VETTED FOR KIDS?

Pfizers late-stage vaccine study tested the safety and efficacy of the shots in about 44,000 people 16 and older. The study then enlisted about 2,200 children ages 12 to 15 to check for any differences in how the shots performed in that age group.

This is just extending it down from 16 and 17 year olds, and getting further information, Woodcock said.

None of the children who got the real shots in the study developed COVID-19, compared with 16 who got the dummy shots. That confirmed previous finding among adults that the shots are highly effective.

Children were also followed for two months after the second shot as part of the study.

Dr. Sharon Nachman, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at Stony Brook Childrens Hospital, said theres no reason the shots would be less effective or have any unique safety issues in children compared with adults.

WHY ONLY THE PFIZER VACCINE?

Because only Pfizer, which developed the vaccine with its German partner BioNTech, has completed studies in younger teens. Moderna recently said preliminary results from its study in 12- to 17-year-olds show strong protection and no serious side effects, but regulators still need to review the results before it can be offered to younger people.

WHAT SIDE EFFECTS ARE EXPECTED?

Common side effects were similar to those experienced by adults, and included fatigue, headache, muscle pain and fever. Except for pain in the arm where the needle is injected, the effects were likelier after the second shot.

Dr. Michael Smith, medical director of the Duke Childrens Health Center Infectious Diseases Clinic, noted that younger people tend to have more robust immune systems that respond better to vaccines. That explains why side effects were more common in the 12 to 15 age group than among adults, he said.

Its also why trials for children younger than 12 are testing different doses.

You need to find that dose that is enough to give a good immune response, without giving too many side effects, Smith said.

Dosages for children and adults are the same for many other vaccines, he noted.

CAN KIDS GET OTHER ROUTINE VACCINATIONS AT THE SAME TIME?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said its updating its guidance to say other routine vaccinations can be given at the same time as the COVID-19 shots. It previously advised against other vaccinations within a two-week window so it could monitor people for potential side effects.

The American Academy of Pediatrics said it agrees with the position.

WHEN WILL YOUNGER KIDS BE ELIGIBLE?

Its unclear how long the ongoing trials or regulatory reviews will take. But Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, recently suggested it could happen this year.

We think by the time we get to the end of this year we will have enough information to vaccinate children of any age, he said.

WHY SHOULD KIDS GET VACCINATED?

Even though children are far less likely to get severely ill if infected, health officials note the risk isnt zero.

Vaccinating children is also key to ending the pandemic, since children can get infected and spread the virus to others, even if they dont get sick themselves.

About 20% of the U.S. population is younger than 16, according to Census data. That included about 16.7 million children ages 12 to 15 in 2019.
Portion of L.A. Metros C (Green) Line Suspended in South L.A. This Weekend

A portion of L.A. Metros C (Green) Line service will be suspended today through Sunday in South L.A., but travelers will be provided with free bus shuttles to replace rail service as crews upgrade signal systems.

Service will be suspended between the Long Beach Boulevard and the Vermont/Athens stations from 9 p.m. Friday until the end of service Sunday. Free bus shuttles will be available for people to travel between stations within the closure: Willowbrook/Rosa Parks, Avalon, Harbor Freeway, Vermont/Athens and Crenshaw.

Buses will arrive every 15 minutes between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. and every 20 minutes all other times, and people are urged to allow extra time for their trip.

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Train service between the Norwalk and Long Beach Boulevard stations, and between the Vermont/Athens and Redondo Beach stations, will operate normally.

Shuttle service operated by the Los Angeles World Airports between Aviation/LAX Station and LAX terminals will run on its regular schedule. People can also access LAX on Metro Lines 102, 111, 117 and 232.
School Nurses, Health Service Corps Part of $7.4B Virus Plan

The government is providing $7.4 billion to expand the nations public health capacity, including hiring school nurses to vaccinate kids, setting up a health care service corps and bolstering traditional disease detection efforts, White House officials said Thursday.

Biden administration coronavirus testing coordinator Carole Johnson said its part of a strategy to respond to immediate needs in the COVID-19 pandemic while investing to break the cycle of `boom and bust financing that traditionally has slowed the U.S. response to health emergencies.

We really see this as funding that can help end the pandemic and help us prevent the next one, Johnson told The Associated Press. The money was approved by Congress in President Joe Bidens coronavirus response law. Officials are now acting to pump it out to states and communities through the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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A leading public health nonprofit, Trust for Americas Health, welcomed the announcement.

Given the fact that the core public health workforce is significantly smaller today than it was a decade ago, these are critically important steps, said John Auerbach, president of the nonpartisan group, which provides its expertise to governments at all levels. Ensuring Americans health security requires a standing-ready public health workforce. Auerbach served as an adviser to the Biden presidential transition.

About $4.4 billion of the new money will go to immediate priorities in fighting the pandemic.

That includes $3.4 billion for states and local health departments to step up hiring of vaccinators, contact tracing workers, virus testing technicians and epidemiologists, who are disease detectives trained to piece together the evidence on the spread of pathogens. The White House is stressing that local governments hire people from the communities being served, with an emphasis on lower-income areas.

Theres also $500 million for hiring school nurses, who could play a key role in vaccination now that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has been cleared for use by teenagers. Johnson said that would expand the pool of trusted clinicians able to give vaccines.

An additional $400 million will go to set up whats being called the Public Health AmeriCorps. It would be modeled on AmeriCorps, the volunteer program that annually deploys more than 250,000 people to serve in communities across the country. The goal of the new program would be to train and nurture aspiring young professionals interested in the public health field.

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All told, the money is expected to support tens of thousands of new jobs over a period of five years, Johnson said.

Some of it will go to long-term investments. A pool of about $3 billion will be used to create a competitive grant program allowing states and local communities to sustain their public health efforts after the coronavirus pandemic recedes.

The idea is to offer more permanent employment for community health workers hired for the COVID-19 push. They would gain a chance to continue working as public health professionals, tackling other challenges.

We need the resources now, but we also need to invest for the long-term in the public health workforce, Johnson said.
USC Commencements Kick Off Live at the Coliseum and Online

Commencements starting today at USC will look different this year, but new graduates and parents will agree the tassel is worth the hassle. As the university celebrates the classes of 2020 and 2021, it will be a commencement of firsts.

Following Californias health and safety guidelines, ceremonies will be held twice a day with limited capacity and distancing requirements over the course of a week  Friday through May 20.

For the first time since 1950, the ceremony will occur at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum  and each graduate will proceed across the stage for his or her diploma.

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The commencement will honor not only Trojans from the class of 2021 but also the class of 2020, whose in-person ceremony was put on hold due to the pandemic. Ceremonies will take place at 8 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. at the Coliseum and will be livestreamed on the internet.

The event will combine elements of USCs traditional main graduation ceremony with those of individual school and college ceremonies. Graduates will have the opportunity to proceed across the stage, hear their name announced, receive their diploma covers and have photos taken while projected on gigantic screens at the stadium.

Participation is expected by the full graduating classes of 2020 and 2021, including international students who were permitted to travel to the U.S.

Due to distancing requirements, it will not be possible to hood doctoral candidates; hooding ceremonies will take place in the future when restrictions are lifted.

Bina Venkataraman, an American journalist, author and policy expert will deliver the commencement address on Friday from the Coliseum. She is the editorial page editor at The Boston Globe, formerly serving as senior adviser for climate change innovation for the White House.

Because of COVID-19 restrictions, pre-registration is required graduates and guests  a maximum of two guests per graduate is allowed. Pre-registered graduates and guests will have received information with attendance requirements, which include social distancing and wearing face coverings.

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Anyone who has not pre-registered will not be permitted inside the Coliseum. Gatherings are not allowed outside the stadium. For complete information, visit the USC commencement 2021 website at commencement.usc.edu.
Saturday, May 15, 2021

Vice Chancellor Zurn just issued a monster, 213-page opinion sustaining a complaint alleging that the Board of Pattern Energy breached its fiduciary duties when selling the company. At 213 pages, theres a lot to talk about, but I actually am going to focus on a couple of specific points that happen to intersect with a lot of what I blog about here.

The set up: Pattern Energy was created by a private equity firm, Riverstone, to operate energy projects owned by other Riverstone entities. At one time, Riverstone indirectly owned a controlling stake in Pattern, but by the time of the events of the complaint, it had shed its interest. It did continue to exert influence, though. First, Pattern had been formed to operate other Riverstone projects, and continued to do so, mainly though its relationship with another company called Developer 2, which was majority-owned by Riverstone. Second, Pattern owned a stake in Developer 2, but was prohibited from selling that stake  including through a merger  without Riverstones consent, which functionally gave Riverstone approval power over Pattern mergers. Third, most of Patterns officers, including its CEO, were Riverstone affiliates and partners in various ways, including by occupying present or past managerial roles with Developer 2. Fourth, two of Patterns directors were Riverstone people  its CEO, and a Riverstone manager who had been appointed to Patterns board back when Riverstone had hard control.

According to the complaint, Pattern began contemplating a merger, and because of its close ties to Riverstone and especially Developer 2, Riverstone wanted to make sure that any merger would preserve Riverstones influence and Patterns relationship with Developer 2. Therefore, Riverstone preferred a financial buyer who would maintain Riverstones role with the companies, and was opposed to a strategic acquirer, Brookfield, who would pay more for Pattern but would either also absorb Developer 2 or disentangle it from Pattern. The plaintiff alleged, and Zurn accepted, that Patterns Board favored the financial buyer over Brookfield, largely to protect Riverstone, in violation of its duties to maximize wealth for Patterns stockholders. Zurn also sustained certain claims against Patterns officers, and aiding-and-abetting claims against Riverstone.

So heres what I find most interesting....

(More under the jump)

First, the plaintiff alleged that Riverstone, working with Patterns officers, functionally formed a control group, and therefore the deal had to be evaluated under the entire fairness standard absent cleansing under Kahn v. M&F Worldwide Corp., 88 A.3d 635 (Del. 2014).

Readers of this blog are by now well aware that the issue of who counts as a controller, and when Kahn cleansing standards, rather than Corwin v. KKR Fin. Holdings LLC, 125 A.3d 304 (Del. 2015) standards, are appropriate, is one of my continuing hobbyhorses. Ive blogged about it several times (most recently in this post, which has links to earlier ones), and I wrote an essay addressing the problem, After Corwin: Down the Controlling Shareholder Rabbit Hole. Zurn devoted several pages to a discussion of how one becomes a controller, holding that even though Riverstone did not own any stock in Pattern, directly or indirectly, it was possible that it attained fiduciary status due to its other mechanisms of control.

The most interesting of these mechanisms was Riverstones consent right, which nominally allowed it to block a merger by Pattern with a third party. As it turned out, Patterns Special Committee was counseled that the consent right was relatively flimsy, and could be evaded with the right merger structure. Brookfield agreed, and at first proposed precisely such a structure, so as to avoid having to get Riverstones buy-in. But Patterns CEO  a Riverstone guy  insisted that the consent right was impregnable, and the Special Committee proceeded on that assumption without pushback. So the Special Committee functionally deferred to Riverstone when it didnt necessarily have to do so.

Whats also interesting here is that Pattern, controlled by Riverstone people and created to do business with Riverstone affiliates, looks a lot like the company at the center of Corwin. That company, too, was created by a private equity firm (KKR) to do business with it, and KKRs people ran the company on a day-to-day basis, but KKR did not own much equity and had not elected the directors. The Delaware Supreme Court held that KKR was not a controlling shareholder.

Zurn did not draw any comparisons to Corwin when she concluded that Riverstone might have been a controller of Pattern, despite the similarity in the set ups. Why is that? Well, at least one thing that leaps out is how poorly the conflicts between Pattern and Riverstone were managed throughout the sales process. In addition to the Special Committee deferring to Riverstones consent right  despite being apprised of its fragility  the Special Committee allowed a Riverstone-affiliated Pattern director to sit in on its deliberations, and allowed the Riverstone-affiliated CEO to manage negotiations. There were no comparable allegations in Corwin, and controller status can be tested either by control over operations generally, or by control over the specific transaction at issue. Seen in that light, Riverstones affiliation with Pattern and its willingness to use that affiliation to influence Patterns behavior on Patterns side may have been what made the difference.

Anyway, Zurn did not in fact determine that Riverstone was a controller  she simply held it was possible, and reserved judgment until a factual record could be developed. Instead, she sustained the complaint with Revlon enhanced scrutiny, and rejected the defendants argument that the deal had been cleansed by the shareholder vote under Corwin.

Which gets to the second aspect of the case I want to talk about. The plaintiff alleged, and Zurn agreed, that the proxy statement had serious deficiencies. Among other things, it did not describe some of the conflicts that pervaded the negotiating process, did not disclose that the Special Committee had been advised that the consent right could be evaded, and did not fully communicate the superiority of Brookfields offer. Corwin cleansing depends on a fully-informed shareholder vote, so these deficiencies undermined any Corwin defense, right?

Wrong!

Zurn did reject the Corwin defense, but not because of deficiencies in the proxy statement  deficiencies that she agreed constituted an independent breach of duty.

That suggests motivation to reach an issue. So what interests me is the nature of the issue she wanted to reach.

Well, it turns out that Pattern had two blockholders who voted in favor of the transaction. One, PSP, held 9.9% of Patterns stock, and also was invested in certain Riverstone funds that themselves were invested in Developer 2. In other words, PSP had an interest both in Pattern, and in Riverstone/Developer 2.

The other blockholder was a company called CBRE. In the middle of the ongoing Pattern merger negotiations, Patterns CEO  remember, a Riverstone guy  insisted that the company right away issue new preferred shares to raise capital for new projects. These preferred shares would pay a higher dividend rate than Pattern would have had to pay in interest had it chosen to issue debt. The preferred shareholder would get to roll over its shares to any post-merger entity at a higher dividend rate. And, crucially, the preferred shareholder would be contractually obligated to vote its shares in favor of any merger proposal. CBRE was the lucky buyer.

The plaintiff pointed out that if you treated PSP and CBRE as interested parties, then fewer than 50% of the disinterested shares favored the merger  not enough to cleanse under Corwin.

Zurn agreed with the plaintiff with respect to CBRE. Because CBRE was contractually obligated to vote its shares in favor of the deal  and because it could not have known the details of the deal when bought the preferred, since no final deal had been reached  its vote was uninformed. And, the contractual obligation made its vote coerced. And, CBREs ability to participate in the post-merger entity made it an interested party. Taking CBRE out of the equation reduced the vote in favor of the merger to 47.3%, which meant, no cleansing.

Having concluded that, Zurn declined to reach the question whether PSPs votes were also interested.

So, my take: Zurn thought the preferred share issuance was a particularly egregious attempt by Patterns CEO to force a deal through. Indeed, though she didnt say so explicitly, the generous terms on which the shares were issued carried more than a whiff a vote-buying. As Zurn put it, It is reasonably conceivable that the preferred stock issuance, backed by Garland and passively observed by the Special Committee, was in furtherance of jamming though the Board-approved Merger, which was not the best deal for stockholders. Point being, I think Zurn could have rejected the Corwin defense on the grounds of the deficient proxy, but she wanted to comment on the preferred share issuance, precisely in order to condemn it.

That said, while it is not that uncommon for companies to issue preferred shares to a friendly party in order to consummate (or avoid) a transaction, its still not an ordinary kind of thing.

What is far more mundane is the kind of conflict faced by PSP, where it happened to passively hold shares on what was functionally both sides of a deal. Which gets to the other of my hobbyhorses: cross-ownership. Suffice to say, Ive blogged about this a million times as well, and I talk extensively about its implications for mergers in Shareholder Divorce Court, but the critical point here is it happens all the time because the large mutual fund complexes hold shares in everything, including companies that eventually merge. But Delaware has not refined its definition of interested sufficiently to settle how these investors should be treated. In fact, in In re Tesla Motors Stockholder Litig., 2018 WL 1560293 (Del. Ch. Mar. 28, 2018), Chancellor Slights expressly declined to decide whether mutual funds that owned shares in both Tesla and SolarCity were interested parties for the purpose of cleansing the Tesla/SolarCity merger.

Zurn, as well, did not want to go there  and she didnt. So the punchline here is, she went out of her way to decide what she wanted to decide  the impropriety of the CBRE/preferred share issuance  but obtrusively did not dive into the much more fraught territory of passive cross-ownership.

And, those are my big takeaways.

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/business_law/2021/05/controllers-disinterested-stockholders-and-pattern-energy.html


The New York City restaurant Eleven Madison Park is one of the best in the world.

It has three Michelin stars. There are about 130 restaurants in the world with three stars from the famous French guide.

A meal at Eleven Madison Park, for two people, with wine, costs about $1,000. And when the restaurant re-opens on June 10 after the year-long pandemic, it will not serve meat, fish, or other animal products.

Owner and chef Daniel Humm recently told the U.S. radio broadcaster NPR that the restaurant will be 100 percent plant-based. He said the way people eat meat is not sustainable. And that is not an opinion. This is just a fact. Humm also said he will not serve butter or cheese. He will, however, offer honey and milk to go with tea and coffee.

Epicurious is a website that centers on food and cooking. In late April, the site announced that it will not write about beef or cooking instructions for meals with beef.

The move, it said, is an effort to encourage more sustainable cooking. Raising cows for beef, the site said, led to more greenhouse gas than feeding other animals or planting vegetables for food.

Researchers at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana agree. In a 2019 study, they wrote that food production causes about 25 percent of the worlds carbon pollution. They suggested that if Americans would eat chicken instead of beef for just one meal per day, they could reduce pollution by about half.

Will other restaurants follow?

The question is, will other restaurants follow in the footsteps of a famous place like Eleven Madison Park?

Nevin Martell is a food writer in Washington, D.C. He told VOA that Eleven Madison Park is special.

Theyve always done things a little bit differently and, you know, I think that this is a big bold move for them. But I also think that it's, theyre positioning themselves at the right time to be doing the right thing and I don't think it's as much of a risk as people might think that it is.

Martell added that people do not come to Eleven Madison Park to eat meat. They come for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. He does not think the change will keep people from coming to the restaurant.

Haidar Karoum is the chef at Chloe, a Washington, D.C. restaurant. The restaurant serves meat, chicken, fish and vegetables, based on what items are available in different times of the year. Recently, he said customers have been more interested in vegetables.

Vegetarian dishes have become far more popular than they were, let's say, 10 years ago. So because of that, because of customer demand, and just for the sake that I actually like cooking vegetarian things, if you looked at the menu, you'll find a lot of options for vegetables.

But that does not mean he could make Chloes menu vegetarian overnight. Eleven Madison Park can, Karoum said, because the New York restaurant is so famous that people are willing to travel the world just to eat in the restaurant, regardless of the cuisine.

Karoum feels he has some responsibility to help the environment. He works with a cheese maker in Pennsylvania, about two hours from Washington, to transport cheese, apples, pork and honey from different places to the restaurant. That helps reduce the amount of pollution Chloe adds to the environment.

Other ways to help the environment

Even if restaurants cannot change their offerings completely like Eleven Madison Park, Martell suggests that they can still find ways to reduce their pollution and waste.

Increase meatless and vegetarian offerings. Its something people are more and more interested in and willing to pay more money for, he said.

Re-think take-out. The take-out culture that expanded during the pandemic has an outsized environmental impact, Martell said.

Make sure diners know what steps are being taken to reduce pollution and waste. If you can communicate the programs youve put in place, some diners will appreciate it and some diners will pay more for it because theyll feel good about themselves when they are at the restaurant.

Almost one-and-a-half years into the coronavirus pandemic, most restaurants are just trying to stay in business. As a result, Martell said:

Reopening a place that people have been craving for 14 months, and then not giving them what theyve wanted for 14 months is also a tough thing to ask of a restaurateur.

Im Dan Friedell.

Dan Friedell wrote this story for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor.

What do you think about going to a costly restaurant that only serves vegetables? Tell us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page.

____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

sustainable adj. involving methods that do not completely use up or destroy natural resources

chef  n. a professional cook who usually is in charge of a kitchen in a restaurant

greenhouse gas -n. a gas that causes the warming of the Earth's atmosphere

bold adj. not afraid of danger or difficult situations

vegetarian n. a person who does not eat meat

dish n. food that is prepared in a particular way

saken. used with for to signify the benefit of something, done to help a person or a thing

option -n. something that can be chosen : a choice or possibility

cuisine n. a style of food

crave v. to have a very strong desire for (something)
Since her birth near Senegal's 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 now helps support her family in the small community of Bargny. The women dry, smoke, salt and preserve the catch brought home by male villagers.

But when the pandemic hit, only a few men went out to sea. Many people were too afraid to leave their houses or go out to fish, for fear of catching the virus. When the local women did get fish to process, there was no one to buy them. Markets had closed. Neighboring countries had closed their borders. Without savings, many families went from three meals a day to one or two.

Dieng is among more than a thousand women in Bargny, and many more in other villages along Senegal's coast, who process fish. Fish exports are an important part of the economy for Senegal. The industry employs hundreds of thousands of its citizens. The fish provide more than half of the protein eaten by Senegals 16 million people.

"It was catastrophic -- all of our lives changed," Dieng said. But, she noted, "Our community is a community of solidarity."

New hope with a new fishing season

Last month was the first fishing season since the pandemic began. It brings a new hope to the processors, their families and the village. The brightly painted wooden fishing boats are again carrying men to the sea. Crowds wait on the beach to help the fishermen carry in their catch.

The coronavirus is not the only problem the people of Senegal face. Rising seas and climate change threaten the livelihoods and homes of people on the coast. They do not have enough money to build new homes or move away. Near Bargny's beach, builders work on new factories to make steel and cement. These raise fears about pollution but supporters say they are necessary.

Dieng and the other processors use old ways do their work. New factories that process fish pay more for the fish and produce a fish powder used for animal food.

A bad year

Before the pandemic, a good season could bring Dieng about $1,000. Last year, she said, she made little to nothing. She depended on the help of neighbors and her family.

"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. She said they are very tired, But now, little by little, it's getting better."

Dieng has become a local leader and informal teacher. She and others are now part of a rising group of women in Senegal working for change along the coast and beyond.

Dieng's neighbor, Fatou Samba, is a town leader and president of the Association of Women Processors of Fish Products. She speaks in public about the problems facing the traditional fish industry. She hopes to stop much of the growth of big industry as fishmeal companies take large amounts of fish and send the product to Europe and Asia.

Women must be empowered

"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."

"Especially in Africa, women are fighters. Women are workers. Women are family leaders," Samba said. "Therefore, women must be empowered."

Late last month, fishermen finally came back to Bargny with fish in their boats. Dieng and others hurried to meet them on the beach. She bought a load of fish and took it to the piece of land she and friends claimed. Then she started the work she's known for many years.



They put the fish on the sand and covered them in peanut shells, which they burned. Smoke filled the air. The women stepped away after making sure the fire would continue burning. After a day or so, they returned to turn the fish and let it dry in the sun. Another day passed, and the women returned to clean it. Finally, they packed the fish in large nets and sold it. Others took fish away in trucks.

The pandemic also is not over, so Dieng and other women go door to door to ask people to get vaccinated. She speaks to the other women, hoping they will stay in the industry.

"It's 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...We must work, to always work and work again for our tomorrows, for our future."

Im Jill Robbins.

Carley Petesch wrote this story for the Associated Press. Jill Robbins adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor.

____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

preserve  v. to prevent (food) from decaying

catastrophe  n. a terrible disaster

(be) outdone  adj. having the experience of someone else being more successful than you

net n. a device for catching and holding things like fish that is made of pieces of string woven together with spaces in between

What do you think of the women of Bargny? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.
Chinas national security law threatens the property of residents and investors in the former British colony. Assets worth US$ 64 million that belong to the media mogul were frozen yesterday. About 40 per cent of US companies are considering or planning to leave Hong Kong. For mainland China, the security law has restored stability.

Taipei (AsiaNews)  The freeze of assets owned by pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai is a signal that doing business and investing in Hong Kong is increasingly risky, this according to Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council.

In a statement, the Council notes that the national security law imposed by Beijing on Hong Kong threatens the assets and property rights of residents and investors in the former British colony.

Yesterday, Hong Kongs national security police froze assets that belong to Lai worth HK$ 500 million (US$ 64 million), including his 70 per cent share of the Next Digital media company, which owns the anti-establishment newspaper Apple Daily.

This is the first time that local authorities have used the security law to target a publicly-traded firm.

Lai has been in prison for months charged with national security offences, including participation in two unauthorised protests in August 2019. Prosecutors also accuse him of illegally subletting some public space destined for Next Digital.

Taiwanese authorities are not alone in expressing concern about the effects of the draconian law adopted to repress Hong Kongs pro-democracy movement.

A survey by the US Chamber of Commerce, whose results were released a few days ago, found that 40 per cent of respondents are considering or planning to leave Hong Kong.

Of the latter, around 62.3 per cent cited unease with the national security law as a motive. More than 1,200 US companies operate in Hong Kong.

China's foreign ministry countered by pointing out 58 per cent of respondents to the survey still plan to stay in Hong Kong and that the security law has restored stability, helping to create an investment-friendly environment.
by Francis Khoo Thwe

Yuki Kitazumi was accused of favouring the pro-democracy movement in his work. At least 80 journalists have been arrested. It is unclear if Japans aid is a form of ransom, and if it will go to civilians or soldiers. The death toll from the junta's violence now stands at 788 people killed and 3,971 arrested.

Yangon (AsiaNews)  Yuki Kitazumi, a Japanese journalist arrested by security forces about a month ago, has been freed and deported. Because of his work, Kitazumi was accused of supporting the uprisings against the coup.

Japan's Foreign Minister, Toshimitsu Motegi, confirmed yesterday that Kitazumi was on his way to Tokyo, scheduled to arrive Friday evening (picture 2).

Mr Motegi said that Japan used various channels to free its citizen, offering Myanmar US$ 4 million in emergency food aid via the World Food Programme to help it cope with its dire economic situation. The support is expected to help at least 600,000 people

In March, Japan condemned the coup and called for a return to democracy, saying that it was suspending aid to Myanmar,

It is not unclear whether this donation is a form of ransom payment or some quid pro quo, nor is it known who will receive the aid.

Since the coup d'etat, food shortages have been reported across the country, for both the civilian population and members of the Armed Forces.

Soldiers have reportedly stolen food and valuables as well as beaten, arrested and killed people during their inspections of markets and night raids at homes of alleged activists.

Myanmar state broadcaster MRTV announced that the charges against the journalist were dropped in order to reconcile with Japan and improve our relationship.

In the past few months, the junta has arrested at least 80 journalists, accused of favouring the pro-democracy movement in their coverage, including some foreigners.

In an attempt to stop the bad press, the junta has shut down some local newspapers, banned the use of satellite dishes and limited Internet services.

Despite this, anti-coup protests continue. Demonstrations took places yesterday in Chin State, Magway and Sagaing regions, Kyaukme (Shan State), and Yangon (picture 1).

Security forces also continue to arrest and kill. According to the Association for the Assistance of Political Prisoners, the number of people killed since the coup stood at 788 as of last night, with 3,971 people arrested. Of these, 20 have already been tried and sentenced to death, while 14 were given three years in prison.
Trent Ashby is the state representative for District 57 that includes Angelina, Houston, Leon, Madison, San Augustine and Trinity counties. His email address is trent.ashby@house.state.tx.us.
by Vladimir Rozanskij

Religious and civic celebrations are being held to mark the event. In Russia, the saint symbolises Victory, because he never lost a battle. He fought against Swedes and Teutonic Knights, and worked to prevent the Tatars from destroying Russian cities. He is the patron saint of Russian exceptionalism against the claims of the West and the tartar yoke of COVID-19.

Moscow (AsiaNews)  This 30 May will mark the 800th anniversary of the birth of Prince Alexander Nevsky, the holy chief who saved Kievan Rus' from the Swedes and the Teutonic Knights, who was able to strike a necessary compromise with the Tatar khans, who had invaded Russian lands in 1240.

As religious and civic celebrations are held across Russia, Russian society looks to the ancient hero as a prophetic figure, herald of a possible future for Russia and the whole world.

Alexander is a symbol of Victory. He did not lose a single battle and went as far as Karakorum to defend his people from the Mongols, although he could have remained sheltered in Novgorod, a free and independent city even under the Tatar yoke.

While the Tatars destroyed Kiev, the prince fought against the Teutonic Knights who sought to conquer the northern territories of Rus and force them to submit to Catholic rule.

The Battle on the Ice of 1242 on Lake Peipus, where Alexander drowned his enemies in the freezing water, remains famous. Earlier, in 1240, he was given the title Nevsky. Although his enemies had three times more soldiers, he defeated the Swedes at the mouth of the Neva, where, five centuries later, St Petersburg was founded.

The Tatar Yoke was a tragic time in Russian history, dividing ancient Rus' from Moscow and then St Petersburg, yet, remaining something that cannot be purged from Russian identity, the legacy of the Asian Empire, the union of East and West.

Ancient Rus' (10th-12th century) had already become one of the largest European states. Its vast territory covered almost half of Europe. Thanks to Saint Alexander, Russia saved itself from invasion and slavery on both sides, Europe and Asia, and today still embodies Russias fundamental aspiration.

The topic has been the focus in various publications in recent days. Yesterday, one of Russias most important newspapers, Nezavisimaja Gazeta, dedicated a long section to the saint of Novgorod, who died in Vladimir, and whose remains were moved to St Petersburg by the founder of the city, Peter the Great, who chose him as custodian of the new empire.

In the 19th century, three Russian tzars took the name Alexander to honour him and the epic of Alexander of Macedon, to give Russia a universal vocation to pacify and unify peoples.

Even today there is debate as to whether Alexander was more dedicated to protecting his people, or more attracted by the power of the Mongols, writes Alexander Ivanov, Russia's ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian States (ASEAN).

However, he put his life at risk, and died at the age of 42 returning from a trip to the Tatar khan and his Golden Horde, which he made to avoid the destruction of Russian cities because of clashes with Mongol officials, and to set up a Russian-Tatar-Lithuanian alliance against the Crusader enemies.

For Ivanov, for us Russians of the 21st century, the holy prince is as relevant as ever. He not only saved our country from the slavery of the West, the consequences of which are still felt today, but he planned, with his providential political choice, the Eurasian self-identification of the Russian super-ethnos. Without his ability to sacrifice himself for our friends and for the truth, from generation to generation [. . .], there would be no Russia in the future.

It is no coincidence that yesterday, in the name of the historical memory of Saint Alexander, the Moscow Patriarchate opened the 6th Pan-Russian Congress of Diocesan Missionaries, to discuss the current problems of the spiritual education of people in contemporary Russia.

The Congress will address the issue of new missionary methods during the age of the Asian COVID-19 pandemic, the new Tartar yoke of the 21st century.
3D print of a spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19--in front of a 3D print of a SARS-CoV-2 virus particle. The spike protein (foreground) enables the virus to enter and infect human cells. On the virus model, the virus surface (blue) is covered with spike proteins (red) that enable the virus to enter and infect human cells. Credit: NIH

Eighteen scientists from some of the world's most prestigious research institutions are urging their colleagues to dig deeper into the origins of the coronavirus responsible for the global pandemic.

In a letter published Thursday in the journal Science, they argue that there is not yet enough evidence to rule out the possibility that the SARS-CoV-2 virus escaped from a lab in China, and they call for a "proper investigation" into the matter.

"We believe this question deserves a fair and thorough science-based investigation, and that any subsequent judgment should be made on the data available," said Dr. David Relman, professor of microbiology and immunology at Stanford University who helped pen the letter.

The brief letter was prompted in part by the March 30 publication of a report commissioned by the World Health Organization that sought to discover the origin of the virus that has resulted in the deaths of more than 3.3 million people across the globe.

The authors of that report, which is credited to both the WHO and China, ranked each of four possible scenarios on a scale from "extremely unlikely" to "very likely."

After considering information, data and samples presented by the Chinese members of the team, the authors concluded the likelihood that the virus jumped from a source animal to an intermediary species and then to humans was "likely to very likely," while an introduction due to an accidental laboratory leak was deemed "extremely unlikely."

Other potential pathways the investigators considered were a direct jump from animal to human without an intermediate host ("possible to likely") and transmission from the surface of frozen food products ("possible").

But Relman and his co-authors said their colleagues who worked on the WHO investigation did not have access to enough information to draw these conclusions.

"We're reasonable scientists with expertise in relevant areas," Relman said, "and we don't see the data that says this must be of natural origin."

Ravindra Gupta, a professor of clinical microbiology at the University of Cambridge who signed the letter, said he would like to review lab notes from scientists working at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a research center where coronaviruses are studied. He'd also like to see a list of viruses that have been used at the institute over a five-year period.

The WHO report documents a meeting between its investigators and several members of the institute, including lab director Yuan Zhiming, who gave the joint team a tour of the facility.

At the meeting, representatives of WIV refuted the possibility that the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 could have leaked from the lab, noting that none of the three SARS-like viruses cultured in the laboratory are closely related to SARS-CoV-2.

They also pointed out that blood samples obtained from workers and students in a research group led by Shi Zhengli, a WIV virologist who studies SARS-like coronaviruses that originate in bats, contained no SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, which would indicate a current or past infection.

But Relman said that, as a scientist, he needed more than this thirdhand account to rule out the chance of an accidental laboratory leak. (He and his colleagues did not suggest any potential leak was intentional.)

"Show us the test you used: What was the method? What were the results and the names of the people tested? Did you test a control population?" Relman said. "On all accounts, it was not an adequate, detailed kind of presentation of data that would allow an outside scientist to arrive at an independent conclusion."

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the WHO, expressed a similar opinion when the report was first released.

"Although the team has concluded that a laboratory leak is the least likely hypothesis, this requires further investigation, potentially with additional missions involving specialist experts, which I am ready to deploy," he said in an address to WHO member states on March 30. "Let me say clearly that, as far as WHO is concerned, all hypotheses remain on the table."

Michael Worobey, who studies viruses at the University of Arizona to understand the origin, emergence and control of pandemics, also signed the letter. Since the start of the pandemic, he had entertained two possibilities for how it might have beguneither as an escape from a lab or natural transmission from animal to human.

Fifteen months later, he's still open to both possibilities.

"There just hasn't been enough definitive evidence either way," he said, "so both of those remain on the table for me."

In his own lab, Worobey works with a grad student who collects viruses from bats in the wild, and he's thought a lot about how this research could create an ecological avenue to introduce a new pathogen to humans.

"As someone who does this, I'm very aware of the opening that creates for new viruses to get close to humans, and so I think that's another reason I take this seriously," he said. "I'm concerned about it in my own work."

Other scientists have convincingly shown that SARS-CoV-2 was not a laboratory construct genetically modified to make it more transmissible to humans, Worobey said. But that does not eliminate the possibility that an unmodified virus collected by scientists in the field and brought into a lab could have moved into humans.

"I've seen no evidence that I can look at and say, 'Oh, OK, this certainly refutes the accidental lab origin and makes it virtually 100% certain that it was a natural event,'" he said. "Until we're at the stage, both possibilities are viable."

Scientists said there was one piece of conclusive evidence that would indicate the virus had indeed spread to humans through a natural eventthe discovery of the wild animals in whom the virus originated.

Akiko Iwasaki, a professor of immunobiology and epidemiology at Yale University, noted that the WHO report mentioned the testing of more than 80,000 wildlife, livestock and poultry samples collected from 31 provinces in China. None of those tests turned up a SARS-CoV-2 antibody or snippet of the virus' genetic material before or after the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in China.

"However, it is possible that an animal reservoir was missed and further investigation may reveal such evidence," said Iwasaki, who also signed the letter.

David Robertson, the head of viral genomics and bioinformatics at the University of Glasgow, was not among the letter's signatories. He said he didn't understand the point.

"Nobody is saying that a lab accident isn't possiblethere's just no evidence for this beyond the Wuhan Institute of Virology being in Wuhan," he said.

Robertson said viruses naturally migrate from animals to humans all the time, and SARS-CoV-2 could have been one of them.

Although he agreed with the authors of the letter that it was essential to find the origins of SARS-CoV-2 to prepare for the next pandemic, "wasting time investigating labs is a distraction from this," he said.

Relman doesn't see it that way.

"If it turns out to be of natural origin, we'll have a little bit more information about where that natural reservoir is, and how to be more careful around it in the future," he said. "And if it's a laboratory, then we're talking about thinking much more seriously about what kinds of experiments we do and why."

The authors of the letter noted that in this time of anti-Asian sentiment in some countries, it was Chinese doctors, scientists, journalists and citizens who shared with the world crucial information about the spread of the virus.

"We should show the same determination in promoting a dispassionate, science-based discourse on this difficult but important issue," they wrote.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

More information: Jennifer Sills et al. Investigate the origins of COVID-19, Science (2021). Journal information: Science Jennifer Sills et al. Investigate the origins of COVID-19,(2021). DOI: 10.1126/science.abj0016

2021 the Los Angeles Times

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
(HealthDay)The time and financial costs associated with participating in the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) are considerable, according to a study published online May 14 in JAMA Health Forum.

Dhruv Khullar, M.D., from the Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City, and colleagues examined the costs for independent physician practices to participate in MIPS in 2019 in a qualitative study. Time required and financial costs of participation in MIPS were calculated from responses to in-depth semi-structured interviews conducted from Dec. 12, 2019, to June 23, 2020.

The researchers found that for participation in MIPS, the mean cost to practices per physician was $12,811. Per physician, physicians, clinical staff, and administrative staff together spent 201.7 hours annually on MIPS-related activities. Together, medical assistants and nursing staff spent a mean of 99.2 hours per physician each year; frontline physicians, executive administrators, and other clinicians and staff spent 53.6, 28.6, and 20.3 hours, respectively. The greatest proportion of overall MIPS-related costs (54 percent) was accounted for by physician time.

"The attention of policy makers may be warranted to reduce the burden of the MIPS program, particularly given the uncertainty regarding whether it improves quality or outcomes for patients," the authors write.

Two authors disclosed financial ties to Arnold Ventures.

Explore further Health system clinicians perform better under medicare value-based reimbursement

Copyright  2021 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
In this May 13, 2021, file photo, a child wears a mask while looking out the window of a beachfront restaurant in Santa Monica, Calif. A number of states immediately embraced new guidelines from the CDC that say fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most situations. But other states - and some businessesare taking a wait-and-see attitude. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)

More than a dozen states quickly embraced new federal guidelines that say fully vaccinated Americans no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most cases. But other states and cities and some major businesses hesitated amid doubts about whether the approach is safe or even workable.

As many business owners pointed out, there is no easy way to determine who has been vaccinated and who hasn't. And the new guidelines, issued Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, essentially work on the honor system, leaving it up to people to do the right thing.

Labor groups and others warned that employees at stores, restaurants, bars and other businesses could be left exposed to the coronavirus from customers and could be forced into the unwanted role of "vaccination police."

But in Malvern, Pennsylvania, owner Sean Weinberg took down the mask signs Friday at Restaurant Alba, which he runs with his wife. He also emailed his employees to let them know they can forgo masks at work if they are fully vaccinated.

"It's just a headache we don't want to have to fight any more," Weinberg said.

Several major chains, including CVS, Home Depot, Macy's and supermarket giant Kroger Co., said they are still requiring masks in stores for the time being, though some said they are reviewing their policies.

A customer exits a corner market while wearing a protective mask in the retail shopping district of the SoHo neighborhood of the Manhattan borough of New York, Friday, May 14, 2021. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has yet to say whether he will change his state's mask mandate in light of new federal guidance that eases rules for fully vaccinated people. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

But Walmart, the world's largest retailer, Costco and Trader Joe's said Friday that they won't require vaccinated shoppers to wear a mask in U.S. stores, unless state or local laws say otherwise.

Vaccinated shoppers can go maskless immediately, Walmart said. Vaccinated workers can stop wearing them on May 18. As an incentive, the company said it is offering workers $75 if they prove they have been vaccinated. Both Costco and Trader Joe's said they would not require proof of vaccination, but employees at the grocery chain will still need to cover their faces.

Half the states had mask requirements in place for most indoor spaces when the CDC issued its recommendations amid tumbling cases and rising vaccination rates.

Nearly 47% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, and cases have dropped to their lowest level since September, at an average of about 35,000 a day. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky noted in making the announcement that the vaccine has proved powerfully effective in preventing serious COVID-19 illness.

A sign requiring a COVID-19 protective mask is required to enter is in front of Dee's Cafe, Friday, May 14, 2021, in Pittsburgh's South Side neighborhood. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Ohio, Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Kentucky, Washington, Maine, Vermont, Connecticut, North Carolina, Kansas, Colorado and Rhode Island announced plans to fall in line with the CDC guidance either immediately or in the coming weeks. Some cities, including New Orleans and Anchorage, did the same.

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said the new approach makes clear that vaccines are the fastest way to get back to doing the things "we all love." Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear called the guidance a "game-changer." And Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said the change is "a heck of a benefit."

Other states, such as California, Wisconsin, New Jersey, Hawaii and Massachusetts, and cities like Minneapolis and St. Paul kept mask rules in place for the time being.

"We're frankly not there yet," New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said. And Hawaii Gov. David Ige said, "We are unable to determine who is vaccinated and who is not vaccinated. The best mitigation measure is for everyone to wear a mask."

People go massless on the Atlanta Beltline on Friday, May 14, 2021, after the CDC updated their mask guidelines for COVID-19 vaccinated people. (AP Photo/Ben Gray)

Industry leaders warned of the potential for confusion and hard feelings among customers because of the varying rules from place to place. Even in states that have dropped mask mandates, stores and other businesses can still require face coverings if they want.

Confusion over the guidance extended to the White House, where press secretary Jen Psaki said, "I think we're still figuring out how to implement it."

The CDC and the Biden administration had faced pressure to ease restrictions on fully vaccinated people in part to highlight the benefits of the shots and motivate other people to get inoculated.

Restaurant workers in places where mask mandates remain are finding themselves caught in the middle, said Jot Condie, the president of the California Restaurant Association. He said his phone has been "blowing up" with reports of increasingly belligerent customers.

Customers wait in a line before entering a store on Broadway while wearing protective masks in the retail shopping district of the SoHo neighborhood of the Manhattan borough of New York, Friday, May 14, 2021. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has yet to say whether he will change his state's mask mandate in light of new federal guidance that eases rules for fully vaccinated people. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

"The person who is not wearing a mask will say, 'My president just told me that the CDC just issued guidance and I've been vaccinated and I'm not going to wear a mask,'" he said.

Scott Dolch, executive director of the Connecticut Restaurant Association, said owners are concerned about being put in a difficult position.

"They're like, OK, now I have to deal with the honor system, hoping that that person that told me they're totally vaccinated" is telling the truth, Dolch said.

The CDC announcement sent airline stocks soaring, though the guidance still calls for masks in crowded indoor settings such as planes, buses, trains, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters, and says people should obey all local and state regulations.

Republican Rep. Dusty Johnson, South Dakota's lone congressman, marked the announcement by sharing a video demonstrating how cast-off masks can now be used for things like suit pocket handkerchiefs, bookmarks or beer cozies.

In this May 13, 2021, file photo, although no longer required outside, a sign advises visitors to wear masks at the Denver Zoo in Denver. A number of states immediately embraced new guidelines from the CDC that say fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most situations. But other states - and some businessesare taking a wait-and-see attitude. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

"It seems too wasteful to just throw them away," he said. "I think I'll have my mother make them into a quilt."

Shelby Lofton, a reporter for WKYT-TV in Lexington, Kentucky, tweeted: "So, I guess I'll start wearing lipstick again. Also need to work on my poker face."

In Detroit, a fully vaccinated Christoph Cunningham, 28, wore a mask as he rode an electric scooter to a bar for lunch and said he agrees with the relaxed guidelines.

"I have confidence in the science behind it all," said Cunningham, who runs a catering business. "I'll eventually take my mask off more and more."

The president of the American Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, said the 1.7 million-member union is still trying to sort out what the change means for schools. Many school districts already ditched mask requirements in recent weeks, as had many states and cities, as virus numbers fell.

In this April 30, 2021, file photo, a family takes a photo in front of Sleeping Beauty's Castle at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif. A number of states immediately embraced new guidelines from the CDC that say fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most situations. But other states - and some businessesare taking a wait-and-see attitude. (AP Photo/Jae Hong, File)

In this May 13, 2021, file photo, pedestrian walks in front of an American flag painted on a wall during the coronavirus outbreak in San Francisco. A number of states immediately embraced new guidelines from the CDC that say fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most situations. But other states - and some businessesare taking a wait-and-see attitude. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

John Bechtold puts his face covering on as he passes his storefront sign that lists COVID-19 protective covering required to enter in his retail shop, Friday, May 14, 2021, in Pittsburgh's South Side neighborhood. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

In this April 27, 2021, file photo, masked and unmasked pedestrians walk along the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas. A number of states immediately embraced new guidelines from the CDC that say fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or out in most situations. But other states - and some businessesare taking a wait-and-see attitude. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

That meant the CDC announcement didn't mean much in places like the tourist town of Branson, Missouri, which dropped its mandate early last month after several mask supporters were voted out of office.

"I think it just further supports the decision we made to lift the mask mandate," said the town's new mayor, Larry Milton. "It was dividing our community. We heard loud and clear from voters that they wanted the mask mandate repealed."

Explore further California governor says mask mandate to end after June 15

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Ambassador of Belarus A.Molchan meets the Vice-minister of the Ministry for Foreign Relations of Venezuela

On May 14, 2021, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the republic of Belarus to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Andrei Molchan met with Vice-minister for Multilateral Issues of the Peoples Power Ministry for Foreign Relations of Venezuela Daniela Rodriguez.

During the talks, the sides discussed issues of cooperation between two countries within the UN and other international organizations. Special emphasis was placed on the need to consolidate efforts to oppose illegal unilateral measures.

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WhatsApp users have until 15 May to decide whether they want to accept Facebooks new terms of service and privacy policy for the platform, or stop using the mobile instant messaging app.

Facebook first issued its ultimatum in the first week of January, initially giving users until 8 February 2021 to agree to the new terms and privacy policy.

However, Facebook extended the deadline following widespread backlash over concerns from users that WhatsApp user data would be shared with the Facebook social network.

Facebook has assured that the change only applies to business messaging on WhatsApp, but this hasnt stopped people from checking out other platforms and more carefully scrutinising the data that Facebook collects through WhatsApp.

Telegram is a popular choice as a WhatsApp alternative due to its rich feature set. Its claims that it is more secure than WhatsApp has also helped drive adoption.

Signal is another alternative that has received a lot of attention after being endorsed by Elon Musk and Edward Snowden.

While Telegram and Signal have seen significant uptake since the public outcry over WhatsApps ultimatum, data shows that WhatsApp remains the mobile messaging platform of choice in South Africa.

This is to be expected  even after the 15 May deadline  as the inconvenience of using a second messaging app is far greater than that of clicking Accept on a terms of service popup in WhatsApp.

However, its position of dominance is not absolute. If WhatsApp were to push through a change that truly frustrates users or badly degrades the user experience, it could rapidly lose its market power. Just ask BlackBerry Messenger.

As a starting point for a comparison, it is necessary to make a distinction between a massaging apps security features and its privacy policy.

WhatsApp offers exemplary security, including:

End-to-end encryption by default using the Signal Protocol  the same encryption scheme as Signal.

 the same encryption scheme as Signal. Only holding encrypted messages for as long as it takes to deliver them, then deleting the messages from their servers.

Privacy-wise, WhatsApp is the weakest of the three apps compared in this article.

WhatsApp gathers much more personally-identifying information than Telegram and Signal. It is also part of the Facebook ecosystem and there are legitimate concerns over the amount of data that might be shared between WhatsApp and Facebooks other services.

When you send a message over WhatsApp and Signal, it is encrypted on your phone and sent to one of the platforms servers.

The message is then forwarded, in its encrypted state, to the person or group you are sending it to. Once delivered, the message is deleted from the server.

In other words, the unencrypted message only exists on your phone and on the phones of the people you sent it to.

Telegram has built its platform on an entirely different philosophy. By default, Telegram stores and keeps messages on its servers, along with the keys to decrypt them. It calls these cloud chats.

While Telegram does offer secret chats  a feature that works similarly to WhatsApp and Signals end-to-end encryption  security professionals have warned that Telegrams encryption is based on an unproven algorithm, custom-developed by Telegram itself.

Telegrams cloud chats have the benefit that you can log in to your Telegram account from anywhere and access all your messages without having to restore them from a backup.

However, it has a major drawback in that you have to trust that Telegram will not read the contents of your messages, sell them, or monetise them in some other way in future.

WhatsApps main weakness security-wise is the way it handles cloud backups for your messages. If you choose to enable cloud backups, your messages are either stored on Googles servers (on Android), or Apples (on iPhone) and you rely on whatever encryption they use.

Backing up your WhatsApp messages to the Apple or Google cloud is, in principle, similar to Telegram cloud chats.

Apple, Google, and Telegram may use their own encryption to protect your messages, but they also hold the keys to decrypt them.

Comparison of messaging app features  WhatsApp vs. Telegram vs. Signal

The following table compares the key technical and design differences between WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal.

Telegram recently announced that it will be expanding its video capabilities in May, promising to turn Telegram into a powerful platform for group video calls.

Screen sharing, encryption, noise-cancellation, desktop and tablet support  everything you can expect from a modern video conferencing tool, but with Telegram-level UI, speed and encryption, the company said.

Telegram has also previously disclosed that it plans to roll out advertising in the large public broadcasting groups hosted on the platform. It will introduce its own ad platform rather than supporting and sharing user data with third-party ad platforms.

Feature WhatsApp Telegram Signal End-to-end encryption Yes (Signal Protocol) Only in secret chats (MTProto) Yes (Signal Protocol) Group chats Max. 256 people Max. 200,000 people Max. 1,000 people Voice calls Yes Yes Yes Video calls Yes Yes Yes Group voice calls Max. 8 people Thousands of people Max. 5 people Group video calls Max. 8 people Not yet available Max. 5 people User ID Phone number only Phone number or username Phone number only Cloud storage / backups Backups to Google or Apple servers available Encrypted messages stored on Telegram servers. Telegram has keys to decrypt them. None / Manual backups only Open source encryption software No  Possibly relicensed from GPLv3 libsignal-protocol No Yes Open source client software No Yes Yes

Now read: South Africans flock to Telegram after WhatsApp privacy backlash
Skyworth smart TVs sold in South Africa did not spy on user devices or send sensitive information of their owners to a Chinese-based data firm, the company has told MyBroadband.

Controversy has surrounded the worlds fifth-largest TV manufacturer after a network traffic analysis performed by a user on Chinese developer forum V2EX revealed that its smart TV sets were constantly scanning for devices connected to the same Wi-Fi network.

The analysis showed that the TVs would capture and compile information from these devices which included IP addresses, network latency, and the names of other Wi-Fi networks within range.

This would then be sent to a server belonging to Beijing-based data analytics firm Gozen Data, a targeted advertising company which refers to itself as Chinas first home marketing company empowered by big data centred on family data.

The forum post resulted in big backlash from Chinese users, which forced a response from Skyworth.

The company said it had ended its partnership with Gozen Data over what it deemed to be the illegal acquisition of user information.

Skyworth stated its collaboration with Gozen Data was supposed to be limited to the surveying of domestic TV programme ratings in Mainland China on a sampling basis.

The violations beyond this scope were not approved nor authorized by Skyworth TV, the company stated.

The violation referred to here was that Skyworth never authorised the capturing of peoples information, and would never authorise this.

We have immediately disabled the application concerned across all Skyworth TV products and conducted a thorough investigation into the incident, Skyworth said.

It has further requested that Gozen Data delete all illegally obtained data of Skyworth TV users.

Gozen Data has also issued a statement in which it apologised for causing concerns over user privacy and security and added that users were able to disable the Gozen Data Android app on TVs.

The issue left users of Skyworth TVs in other locations concerned over whether their sets had also captured and sent information to Gozen Data without their permission or knowledge.

Several Skyworth smart TV models are also sold by major retailers in South Africa  including Takealot, HiFi Corp, Incredible Connection, Makro, and Masons.

A phone hacker based in North Africa  which goes by the name of Gsmaster  scanned the connections of multiple Skyworth TVs he owned.

He presented a screenshot of the Nmap network mapping tool to Toms Guide, which showed that at least nine ports were being used for unknown purposes.

It was not clear whether Gozen Data had been installed on his TV and was responsible for the activity, however.

Skyworth has confirmed to MyBroadband that the Gozen Data app was never installed on any of its smart TVs outside of China and therefore the issue did not impact users in other markets.

Not a single Skyworth television in South Africa ever had the Gozen service on it, the company stated.

It added it was grateful to the users which brought the issue to its attention.

The violation is strongly against Skyworth TVs core value of putting users first, the company stated.

Moving forward, we will implement more stringent reviews on the conduct of our partners and service providers to safeguard our users privacy, data, rights, and interests.

Now read: Dell firmware bug puts millions of computers at risk
Years after it closed as a result of Napas 2014 earthquake, Napas former downtown Safeway remains a shuttered, empty building.

However, recent work at the former dry-cleaning site next door could indicate a small step toward site redevelopment.

Quality journalism doesn't happen without your help. Subscribe today! Support local news coverage and the people who report it by subscribing to the Napa Valley Register. Special offer: $1 for your first 6 months!

Over recent weeks, crews have been taking soil samples to review the location and amounts of remaining contamination.

Itd be nice to get that property reactivated, said Napa Mayor Scott Sedgley. Some kind of grocery store is so needed in that area of town.

This site is being investigated at this point which means we are trying to find out the extent of the contamination, said Bill Cook, an engineering geologist with the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board. We are trying to figure out how extensive the release is and how were going to clean it up and doing interim remediation, said Cook.

Between 2002 and 2008, the site at 1634 Clay Street, formerly home to Dow Cleaners, was the subject of various environmental site assessments, said reports from the Water Quality Control Board.
Armenia Prosecutor General receives OSCE/ODIHR election observation mission's delegation

France's Macron intends to discuss situation in Nagorno-Karabakh with Turkish counterpart

Armenia 3rd President on Nikol Pashinyan: People look at him and say 'greetings, son of a b**ch'

US Department of Commerce intends to impose sanctions against Armenia's Armenal aluminum foil producer/exporter

Armenia 1st President recalls his "remedial secession" formula for Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement

"I Have the Honor" bloc to Armenian authorities: Let them try to use force or threaten anyone

Armenia 2nd President: Everything that makes us Armenian has been destroyed over past three years

Azerbaijan continues obscene farce, "investigation" into case of another 26 Armenian POWs is over

Ex-governor presents situation in Armenia's Syunik Province

Armenia 3rd President doesn't know why Nikol Pashinyan hasn't signed the pro-Armenian document he's talking about

Armenia's Pashinyan: If I'm guilty, execute me, and I'll submit

Armenia acting PM holds march with twice as many security and police officers in Vanadzor (PHOTO)

Armenia acting MOD attaches importance to transparency of procurement and supplies in Armed Forces

Remains of 4 more Armenian servicemen found and removed from Artsakh's Jrakan region

Enigmatic incident takes places in Yerevan, semi-decayed body of man found under bridge

Philip Reeker: Azerbaijani Armed Forces need to return to positions of May 11

Armenia opposition party leader says he's ready to form coalition with all forces, except for ruling party

Armenia MOD: Azerbaijani side opens fire at military posts in border section of Gegharkunik Province

Head of Armenia's Mission to OSCE: Goals of OSCE and CSTO serve as ground for their cooperation

Azerbaijan shares documents on 8 Armenian POWs, COVID-19 in Armenia, Jun 19 digest

Azerbaijanis open gunfire at military posts in Armenia's Gegharkunik Province for nearly 30 minutes

Armenia acting justice minister expresses gratitude to US for supporting government's reforms agenda

Philip Reeker: US will continue to press for the return of Armenian POWs and detainees

Armenia 1st President: Russian peacekeepers won't leave Nagorno-Karabakh after 5 years

Catholicos of All Armenians receives newly appointed Ambassador of Kazakhstan

Armenia Parliament Speaker also attending ruling party's campaign meeting in Odzun (PHOTO)

Zakharova: Russia makes essential contributions to post-war demining in Nagorno-Karabakh

160,000,000 children are involved in child labor around the world

Dollar loses value in Armenia

Biden, Johnson underscore close ties between US and UK

Armenia attorney general forwards video recording of ex-FM's sensational statement to National Security Service

Ex-President Kocharyan: Armenia must stand on its feet to conduct effective negotiations on Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia 2nd President: Border with Azerbaijan needs to be constructed as soon as possible

Armenia 1st President proposes to acting PM to publicize recording of their conversation about Karabakh

Armenia President congratulates Portuguese counterpart on National Day of Portugal

Iranian Ambassador to Armenia acting minister: Iran has already developed roadmap and timetable for joint programs

People are brought in vans to Lori Province village for meeting with Armenia acting premier

Karabakh rescue squad searching for remains of deceased servicemen in Fizuli and Jabrayil

Karabakh President appoints new chief of staff

Armenia 1st President doesn't rule out formation of coalition with Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan after elections

Armenia former President Kocharyan: Only way to work with external partners is being straightforward, honest

Acting US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs visits Armenian Genocide Memorial

Armenia 1st President: If we Armenians miss this moment as well, very bad things will happen

"I have the honor" bloc is in Armenias Syunik (PHOTOS)

Horsemen lead Armenia acting PM Pashinyan motorcade in Lori Province village

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
US President Joe Biden has revoked seven executive orders by his predecessor President Donald Trump, and which were signed from May 2020 to January 2021. Shortly before Biden's inauguration, Trump had signed a number of executive orders, RIA Novosti reported.

According to the White House, Biden has repealed a rule introduced by Trump, according to which immigration authorities could refuse to issue a residence permit under the pretext that the given immigrant could become a "burden" on US taxpayers. Biden said in a statement that this is not in the best interests of the United States, urging his administration to make the necessary changes to the respective rules.

In addition, Biden rescinded the executive order on the protection of American monuments and statues, and which Trump had signed after the demolition of monuments to the heroes of the US colonial era, amid protests against racism across the country.

The executive orders on the construction of a park of statue of American heroes, on the rebranding of US aid abroad, on protecting US officials from prosecution for violating various regulations, as well as on the prevention of online censorship will also cease to apply.
YEREVAN.  It is the work of our honor to removewith a victory the opposition in the upcoming electionsthe disgraceful and capitulator authorities that failed the governance of the state, endangered the future of the people and the statehood, to restore the full sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia, to return to our people the right to live peacefully, safely and create with dignity in their homeland, and faith in tomorrow. We cannot and have no moral right to step aside and indifferently follow the course of the collapse of the state. The third President and former ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) chairman Serzh Sargsyan said this in his remarks before Saturdays signing of the memorandum on the formation of the "I Have Honor" bloc, comprising the RPA and the Homeland Party, for the snap parliamentary elections on June 20.

According to him, geopolitical developments, growing tensions almost everywhere, events unrolling in Armenia's vicinity, threats directly threatening the country, and the inadequate behavior of the current Armenian authorities give no reason to be optimistic to hope that in such conditions it is possible today to preventwith literate and calculated stepsthe impending danger, get out of the destructive cycle, and put the course of the Armenian state on a safe and developmental track. "And this is possible, quite possible without the populists who seized power, who are leadingwith broad stepsthe country to final destruction," added Sargsyan.

The third President said that at the time, they had brought victory to the Armenian people. "In the homeland, or in any part of the world, the Armenian walked with his head held high as a child of a victorious people, as a representative of a victorious people. We will return that pride; nothing is impossible," said Serzh Sargsyan.

And speaking about forming a bloc with the Homeland Party, he stated that the Homeland Party leader, Artur Vanetsyanformer director of the National Security Service, had sensed the dangers in time and talked about it, but, alas, they did not listen to him.
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Former secretary of state of public function and mayor of Draveil, Georges Tron, accused of rape and sexual aggression on two former employees alongside his former deputy of culture, arrives for his trial at the courthouse of Bobigny, northeastern suburbs of Paris, on October 23, 2018 - THOMAS SAMSON /AFP

Residents a French town on the outskirts of Paris are mounting a bid to oust their mayor who is continuing to run the town from his prison cell, despite being convicted of rape.

Georges Tron, 63, a former Sarkozy minister, has been the mayor of Draveil since 1995, was found guilty of rape and sexual assault in February and sentenced to five years in prison.

The conviction was initially seen as a huge victory for Frances Me Too movement, with activists hopeful that such a high-profile case would send a strong message to similar perpetrators.

But Tron appealed, and under French law is allowed to hold his post until a final verdict is reached due to presumption of innocence. The 63-year-old continues to communicate with his staff by letters, which are read out loud at municipal council meetings.

Until there is evidence that proves otherwise, [Tron] is still the mayor, his deputy, Richard Prviat, told French television France 3 outside of a heated recent council meeting. No one has removed him from his post so he is still mayor.

Francois Damerval, a local opposition official, said presumption of innocence aside, Tron could still be removed from office under administrative sanctions.

But so far, the higher administration officials who have this power are refusing to exercise it, he said, adding its just shocking that we can let a man convicted of rape continue to continue to hold office from prison.

Georges Tron (R) leaves the courthouse of Bobigny, northeastern suburbs of Paris - GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT /AFP

When asked about ordering Trons removal in March, the French Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti said the judiciary needed to remain independent from the case.

In an emotional exchange on the senate floor, Socialist senator Laurence Rouissignol insisted to Dupond-Moretti that the government had the authority to remove Tron.

She also noted that Dupond-Moretti served as one of Trons defense lawyers in his initial 2018 trial.

Accusations against Tron began over a decade ago, when he was forced to resign from his post as a junior minister under President Nicolas Sarkozy. Two former female staff members alleged that between 2007 to 2010, Tron forced them to accept foot massages which transitioned into rape and sexual assault.

Story continues

Tron has always denied the accusations, insisting he was simply interested in reflexology. He was initially acquitted on all charges in 2018, but in mid-February, an appeals court overturned the initial verdict and sided with one of the women, handing Tron a five-year sentence.

Draveil residents remain divided on whether or not Tron should resign.

When asked about Tron in late April, one resident in the town of 30,000 told French television: Hes a good mayor, hes been elected five times, and not for nothing!

Meanwhile, a group of local activists have founded Not in Draveil or Anywhere Else (NADA), a collective that has been organising demonstrations calling for Trons resignation.

Earlier this week, members of the collective stood in front of the town hall wearing chicken masks and holding signs calling for local officials to end their deafening silence and immediately remove Tron.
In Arcadia, there's a new plan to put up a community of tiny houses to house the homeless, but some residents say it's not the answer to a growing problem.

Video Transcript

- All across Southern California, it's a common sight. Homeless encampments underneath freeway overpasses on streets, near homes, parks, businesses. As Eyewitness News reporter Sid Garcia tells us in Arcadia, there's a new plan to put up a community of tiny houses. But some residents say that's not the answer to this growing problem.

RICHARD ALLAN: I don't know. I really don't know what to do. I don't know what else to do. I don't know.

SID GARCIA: Richard Allan is one of the residents of this encampment below the 210th freeway in Arcadia. It's one of a few that's popped up in the San Gabriel Valley Community.

RICHARD ALLAN: We don't bother with the neighbors. I understand about the neighbors. I totally understand that. I'm sure nobody wants people in their backyard. But we don't have nowhere to go.

SID GARCIA: The city has some beds for the homeless, but they're taking up. Arcadia is like many other Los Angeles County municipalities. They have a growing homeless community, and not enough resources to help them.

Arcadia city council person April Verlato has heard from her constituents both good and bad. One of the ideas the city is looking at is putting together a community of tiny houses, similar to these that were recently opened in North Hollywood.

APRIL VERLATO: They have their own space, they can take their things in there, lock them up. They feel safer at night, sleeping without worrying about who else is in the room, and is somebody's going to come out and attack me, and, it just-- It's a better model for addressing this emergency issue.

SID GARCIA: Verlato says she's felt the pushback from residents who don't want this in their neighborhood. But more and more encampments are popping up in San Gabriel Valley cities.

DOUG BEAVER: I think, before we spend money, we should use what's available. Then when we run out of those facilities, then we look at spending money.

SID GARCIA: City council person Verlato tells us there's no quick fix to this. She's hoping that other cities here in the San Gabriel Valley can get together and really start brainstorming on what to do because, as she put it, the encampments, more and more of them, are coming.
Ken Bennett, state Senate liaison for the Maricopa County election audit, helps package ballots from the 2020 general election to be moved from the Veterans Memorial Coliseum on May 14 in Phoenix, where they were examined and recounted by contractors hired by the Senate. The recount had to pause for various high school graduations scheduled at the coliseum.

PHOENIX  The Arizona Senate is considering expanding its audit of Maricopa County ballots cast in the 2020 election to include all contests, not just for president and U.S. Senate.

Audit organizers said they want to test county voting machines by examining results from all of the races.

We are looking with other companies to do a machine tabulation of all the races on the ballot to compare with the Dominion tabulation back in November," said Ken Bennett, the Senate's audit liaison. "We will be looking at the images of all 2.1 million ballots.

The examination would not involve a physical recount like the one underway at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum. It would be a separate audit using digital images of each ballot, Bennett said.

The effort would require a reexamination of the nearly 500,000 ballots that auditors have gone through since the audit began April 23.

Bennett said the Senate is considering hiring a California company to conduct the digital tabulation, but he declined to name it. He said the imaging would be done in the time of the rest of the counting.

State Senate President Karen Fann, a Republican, said the results would not be used to attempt to overturn the election results but to ensure election integrity in future races.

Republican senators launched the audit after questioning the validity of the general election results in Maricopa County, where Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump by 45,109 votes in the presidential race.

Auditors said in April the recount of ballots would be completed by May 14, when its lease on the coliseum expired. But less than 24% of the ballots had been counted before the audit took a week off to make way for high school graduations scheduled at the venue. Auditors indicated the recount could last into July.

Who is paying for it? Audit could cost millions

The Senate would not provide an accounting of audit expenses.

Several sites established by GOP operatives solicit money for the audit. Those involved include former Trump lawyer Sidney Powell, former Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne and One America News Network personality Christina Bobb.

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It's unclear how donations are used.

The Senate has used $150,000 of taxpayer money. It hired Cyber Ninjas, a Florida-based company, to lead the audit. Its CEO is Doug Logan, a Trump supporter who has espoused election conspiracies.

Two other companies do hands-on work. Pennsylvania-based Wake Technology is in charge of the hand recount, and Virginia-based CyFIR analyzes voting machines.

State Senate Republicans issued subpoenas in January to the county requesting the 2.1 million ballots cast in the county's general election. They demanded all of the county's voting machines, voter rolls, routers and tabulators used in the 2020 election.

'Bias and incompetence' : Voting machine company won't provide data

The county leases its voting machines from Dominion Voting Systems, which was accused by Trump and supporters of rigging its machines to steer votes to Biden.

The company said in a statement Thursday that it provides information to auditors accredited by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to certify voting machines but will not provide information, including passwords, to unaccredited auditors.

The company did not say whether it provided passwords to the two private firms the county hired to do a comprehensive audit of the county's voting machines in February.

Dominion accused Cyber Ninjas of demonstrating "bias and incompetence" in the way it conducted the audit.

Dominion sued Powell and Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, each for $1.3 billion. It sued Trump supporter and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell for $1.3 billion and Fox News for $1.6 billion.

The lawsuits accuse the defendants of spreading false and damaging claims about election fraud as part of a disinformation campaign.

Contributing: Jen Fifield

Robert Anglen investigates consumer issues for The Republic. If you're the victim of fraud, waste or abuse, reach him at robert.anglen@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8694. Follow him on Twitter @robertanglen.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Senate considers expanding Maricopa ballot audit to all races
The Daily Beast

WPA Pool/GettyDissertations could be written about the life cycle of the infamous I Really Dont Care, Do U? coat Melania Trump wore to visit undocumented children at the border in 2018. There was the initial, very warranted outrage and her teams denial of any hidden message in the outfit. Then Donald Trump spoke of it being a shot at the Fake News Media. Later Melania would say it was directed at her critics. In the three years since, the slogan has been reappropriated as a liberal ral
A Minneapolis Police officers unrolls caution tape at a crime scene on June 16, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

A survey crew found human remains last week near Paul Quinn College in Dallas, Texas.

A medical examiner on Friday identified the body as James Alan White, who has been missing since October 22, 2020.

An investigation is ongoing and White's brother told local news WFAA the family is still looking for answers.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

The body of a 55-year-old Dallas, Texas, executive who went missing last October was found on May 13, but the circumstances around the man's disappearance are still unclear, according to police.

Remains were found at around 12:30 p.m. "in a wooded area northwest" of Paul Quinn College campus by a survey crew who works for the institution, police said.

A medical examiner on Friday identified the body as James Alan White. A LinkedIn profile viewed by Insider that appears to belong to White says he was a managing director for KPMG based in Dallas.

The cause of his death is currently unknown, but an investigation is underway and police are seeking more information from the public about White's death.

White was reported missing on October 22, 2020, according to police. He was last seen leaving the gym that morning in a black Porshe Macan and was captured on security footage around 6 a.m putting gas into his car.

A $10,000 reward is being offered for more information regarding the incident. His brother, Tim White, told Dallas-based outlet WFAA he wants answers.

"We're relieved in a lot of aspects but we're also not relieved if that makes sense," Tim White told the outlet. "A good emotion because we found him, a bad emotion because it makes the finality of it complete. I do believe someone is obviously responsible for our brother's final demise."

White continued: "We do want someone to come forward. Someone out there knows something."

Read the original article on Insider
Mayor Lightfoot and Chicago police announced the citys revised search warrant policy Friday following the highly-publicized wrong raid of Anjanette Young in February 2019.

Video Transcript

- [INAUDIBLE]

- This is the moment police officers stormed the home of Anjanette Young back in 2019. Young, a social worker, had just returned from a night shift and was naked while getting ready for bed. Male officers swarmed her apartment trying to find a suspect who was actually next door, and wearing an electronic monitoring device.

ANJANETTE YOUNG: You got the wrong house.

- While stripped of her dignity and understandably obsessed, officers offered no explanation, just a suggestion.

- Relax.

ANJANETTE YOUNG: You telling me to relax?

BRONAGH TUMULTY: Earlier this year an ordinance named after Young was introduced to the city council by five Black female alderman of the Chicago Progressive Reform Caucus outlining certain things that should happen when warrants are served. At least some of which has been addressed in this revised policy, which in the course of being drawn up Drew some 800 public comments. The revisions include limitations to no knock search warrants, a compulsory training sessions to identify any vulnerable people who might be in a home, such as children. Anyone serving a search warrant will be required to wear a fully functioning body camera, and a female officer will be present at all scenes.

If a search warrant is wrongfully served, after action reviews must be carried out followed by an annual evaluation. Now in a statement, the ACLU addressed those public comments we mentioned saying in part, Black and brown residents across Chicago have been victims of wrong raids, and unnecessarily violent raids, for years. But the city's principal means of engaging with these communities was to post this policy on the CPD online portal for written comments not to meet with community organizations whose members have been impacted by wrong raids. Community voices deserve to be heard if CPD is truly committed to ensuring that no one is subjected to the humiliation and trauma that results when police break down doors to enter into homes and hold people, including children, at gunpoint.

Now the revised policy will continue to be looked at during the year and will be followed by a second public comment period later this year. And Meanwhile, this revised version will be effective may 28, two weeks from today. We're at CPD headquarters, Bronagh Tumulty, WGN--
Were tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus and COVID-19 vaccines in South Carolina. Check back for updates.

Cases exceed 487,000

At least 487,178 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in South Carolina and 8,471 have died since March 2020, according to state health officials.

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control reported 337 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, up from 229 reported the day before.

Four coronavirus-related deaths were also reported.

At least 345 people were reported hospitalized with COVID-19 on Friday, and 94 COVID-19 patients were in intensive care units.

As of Friday, 3.2% of COVID-19 tests were reported positive. Health officials say 5% or lower indicates a low risk of community spread.

More than 1.4 million South Carolina residents, or 35%, have completed vaccination against COVID-19, and more than 1.7 million, or 44%, have received at least one dose.

Kids getting COVID is inevitable, school board member says

In an email to a concerned parent, Lexington-Richland 5 school board secretary Nikki Gardner said it is inevitable that children will catch COVID-19 and that wearing masks is potentially harmful.

The exchange came after the board voted to stop requiring students to wear masks in school. Sarah Snodgrass, a mother of a student, sent an email expressing concern over how the policy change might affect her pre-school age son.

Gardner wrote back, saying that students are not at a greater risk of contracting the coronavirus without wearing masks, and that if they do it will be good for their immune systems.

I am in disbelief that you would admit to this, Snodgrass responded. No one should advocate for anyone to get a deadly disease.

Gardner said we dont want them to get it but that it is likely inevitable that they will.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other health agencies, have said for months that wearing masks is an effective way to prevent spreading COVID-19 in close quarters through droplets.

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When contacted by The State, Gardner said she doesnt trust the CDC.

The CDC is run by corporations, she said. They have a spin ... you can find other science out there that they arent willing to put out that (masks) are bad for us.

But catching COVID-19 isnt inevitable, Columbia pediatrician Deborah Greenhouse says, and people should continue taking precautions.

Please follow the science, and not the politics, she tells her patients. This should not be political.

Columbia stops enforcing mask ordinance

The city of Columbia has changed its masks ordinance to an advisory guideline and will no longer enforce their use.

The change comes as federal officials and President Joe Biden advise that fully vaccinated Americans dont need to wear masks outside or in most indoor settings. An executive order issued by Gov. Henry McMaster earlier this week prohibited local governments from implementing mask rules on the basis of prior states of emergency or previous orders by McMaster.

But Columbia was already moving toward lifting its mask mandate, The State reported.

Residents are encouraged to continue wearing masks but wont be required to do so except when visiting a government building.

S.C. officials planning incentives to get people vaccinated

South Carolina health officials are mulling incentives for getting the coronavirus vaccine as demand for the shot wanes across the state and country, The Island Packet reported.

Were open to almost anything that will encourage folks to get the vaccine and that is legal, S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control Director Edward Simmer said Thursday.

State officials are starting small by teaming up with the S.C. Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism to offer a shot in the arm in exchange for free admission to state parks. The park vaccination effort is just a first step, and plans to offer discounts and monetary rewards could be down the line.
SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

On Tuesday, the For the People Act, democracy-reform legislation Democrats believe would expand voting access, saw a preview of its fate. The 900-page bill, dealing with everything from election administration to congressional ethics, was the subject of a full day of debate in a Senate committee with nearly 100 proposed amendments.

A total of 10 passed, while the rest went down in flames on largely party-line votes. Its future on the Senate floor looks no better: It will be forced for consideration, debated for hours, and will still fail.

Rather than squabbling over next steps or surrendering, however, the Democrats have a more realistic option that would solve election administrators need for funding and would boost the health of elections in a way that is truly for the people.

How? By putting election funding into their infrastructure package.

How This Voting Rights Bill Could Turn the Next Election Into a Clusterf*ck

The need for this alternative strategy is obvious. S1, the Senates version of HR1, faces a bleak path: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) can now force the bill to the floor as part of his power-sharing agreement with Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). Once there, they will have an easier time amending the bill in ways that failed in committee, because Vice President Kamala Harris can break ties. But, theres no guarantee Harris will be able to serve that role.

There arent 50 Democrats on board with this bill, and Joe Manchin (D-WV)the most powerful man in the Senateis, Im told by staffers, carrying water for a small handful of other Democrats who do not want this bill to pass but are keeping quiet for fear of being punished by leadership. While the Democratic Party is attempting to sell this bill as supported by a unified front, it is very clearly not. And even if it were, they will still need 10 Republicans or filibuster reform, both of which appear unlikely.

Given Manchin's reservations, expressed in a meeting on Thursday and reported by ABC News, this bill may not make it to the floor at all. (Manchin is far more likely to support a souped-up version of the John Lewis Bill, which does not give meaningful funding to election administrators.)

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The For the People Act may be dead on arrival, but election funding does not have to be. While Republicans assail the infrastructure package, niggling with what infrastructure really means anyway, no one could feasibly argue that elections are not infrastructurefederal policy designates it, along with power and water, as critical infrastructure.

This idea was initially pitched by the Center for Tech and Civic Life, which in 2020 carried out the largest private grant program to election officials in U.S. history.

Unlike the For the People Act, this plan was written in direct coordination with hundreds of bipartisan election officials, who have, for years, been begging for consistent federal funding. Routing funds through the infrastructure plan provides Congress a real ability to equip local officials to give voters the elections they deserve.

Weve heard that robust, consistent funding is the most critical need election departments have today, and the lack of adequate, predictable funding is perhaps the greatest barrier election officials face in doing their best work, they wrote in a statement announcing the initiative.

This is because Congress has funded elections as a secondary thought for years, infusing millions of dollars in reaction to crises: after the hanging chad debacle in 2000, after the cybersecurity failures of 2016, and during the pandemic of 2020. There has never been an effort to consistently fund elections offices such that they can plan ahead for necessary improvements.

A predictable disbursement of cash to local officialseven with clear parameters for policy prioritieswould allow states like Louisiana, which needs machines right now, to buy them. But it would also allow states like Georgia, which just invested millions in new machines, to bank money against the time when they will need to upgrade their machines in eight to 10 years.

Democrats are serious about their desire for automatic voter registration, updating machines, and upgrading physical and digital security. All of these things can be provided for in the infrastructure bill, by offering specific funding for specific plans.

This process will not allow Democrats to be as prescriptive in their policymaking, thats true, but it will become much easier to get Republicans on boardmany of whom already live in and represent states with existing automatic voter registration procedures or more stringent security protocols. The money could be specifically allocated to additional polling locations, or to incentivize states to adopt paper-backed machines and begin to do rigorous auditingall things with at least some bipartisan consensus.

That elections were left out of the infrastructure package to begin with, for many local election officials, is a head scratcher.

Elections are clearly infrastructure, Tiana Epps-Johnson, who heads CTCL, told me. In order for our elections to improve, they need the funding to plan into the future. This would allow for that.

In contrast, the For the People Act, as evidenced by the debacle of a committee markup, will not.

Even internally, Democratic staffers on the various committees responsible for the drafting of the bill acknowledged that it began as a messaging bill while they were in the minority. It was introduced in 2019 as a priority, but because Democrats did not yet hold the majority in the Senate, it was meant to send a signal only.

It was introduced again in the House as HR 1 in 2021 to demonstrate their emphasis on voting rights. The bill was then introduced in the newly Democratic-controlled Senate, with almost none of the changes demanded by elections officials, who, as I previously reported, harbored deep reservations about how they could realistically carry out these reforms. Never fear, Democrats said, they would work out the changes in committee.

In the committee markup session, Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced a manager's amendment addressing the feasibility of the massive election policy changes in the bill. These tweaks to loosen deadlines and add waivers to the mandates were welcomed by election administrators, who saw them as the first step of a good-faith effort to make the bill workable.

They really did listen to election officials concerns, said one former local official, now active in these negotiations. I dont believe they wanted to pass a bill that has unintended consequences, but one that ensures all eligible voters have the same opportunities to successfully participate.

But Klobuchars amendment failed, dashing their hopes again. Both Schumer and McConnell showed up to this markup session, a rare event for Senate leadership, demonstrating how important both parties believe the issue to be. But while Republicans present as a solid bulwark against the bill, Democrats are arguing among themselves as to strategy and the contents of the bill.

If Democrats cannot get a basic amendment addressing basic feasibility concerns passed through a committee they control, it seems their success on the floor isnt as high as they might claim in public statements. Its a strategy thats difficult for local elections officials to digest: Democrats have strapped all of their hopes on voting rights to a single bill that their own party cannot come to a consensus on, and what little funding is made available to elections officials will go down with that ship.

Meanwhile, the John Lewis Voting Rights Actwhich Manchin has signaled he supports and may well get a small amount of Republican buy-inhas been left ignored.

Including electionsan obviously critical piece of American infrastructurein the infrastructure package gives Democrats and interested Republicans a clear opportunity to at least begin to fix the problems that plague our system, even if they cannot fix all of them at once.

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As Hartford emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, the owner of the Bond Residences on Asylum Street plans about $1 million in renovations to put the buildings recent past as an extended-stay hotel behind it and carve out a new place in downtowns apartment market.

Paul Khakshouri, the buildings owner, said he plans to bring back key, original elements that were in the building when a 12-story wing topped with a ballroom was added in 1921 to what for decades was the Hotel Bond.

Those historic touches are expected to include moving the main entrance to its original location at the far left side, opening into the original lobby  the place to see and be seen in the city during the 1920s and 1930s.

You want the tenants to walk into the building with a complete feel that its a residential lobby rather than when they walk into it now, its very hotel-like, Khakshouri said. I had to move from that challenge of people saying, Oh, we know this used to be a hotel. I need that stigma to go away.

He hopes the project will be completed within a year.

Khakshouri closed the previous extended-stay hotel, a Homewood Suites, more than a year ago, early on in the pandemic, as hotel bookings tanked in the city and occupancy plunged. In September, Khakshouri began leasing the former guest suites as short-term rentals, an easy transition because they included kitchens.

Leasing was slow initially, but it has picked up significantly in the past two months, Khakshouri said. About 60% of the 116 apartments are now leased, and Khakshouri said he has moved away from short-term rentals to full-year leases.

Khakshouri attributes the uptick in leasing to relocations into the city by New Yorkers, more people coming back to work in the city and people taking advantage of a hot home sale market to downsize to a city apartment.

On top of increased leasing, Khakshouri said the Bond Ballroom will reopen for a wedding Saturday, after being closed since the start of the pandemic.

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He says he has other reasons to be optimistic that now is the time for further investment.

Last year, Khakshouri completed the conversion of three historic buildings around the corner on Allyn Street into 66 market-rate apartments. The $21.1 million project got off to a slow start in leasing with the units coming on during the pandemic, but is now 91% occupied, according to the Capital Region Development Authority, which loaned $6.6 million to the project.

CRDA may be involved in helping finance the Bond renovations, although the project does not include much work on the apartments. The apartments were recently renovated, Khakshouri said, although the project could involve upgraded elevators, heating and cooling systems and the addition of amenities to make it competitive in the market.

Khakshouri said the new lobby wont have all the flourishes of the original that spared no expense and included flowing rose and gray damask Louis XIV drapes, according to a front-page story in The Courant at its 1921 opening. But the lobby will be a glamorous space to step into, rivaling anything in New York City, Khakshouri said.

Funding a new look for the building still needs to clear a series of hurdles. Khakshouri needs to refinance debt on the Allyn Street property and pay off part of the CRDA loan on that property. Then, the CRDA board would have to approve using some of the proceeds to invest in the Bond.

Michael W. Freimuth, CRDAs executive director, said the strategy is a good one for a building that was battered by the pandemic.

It gets the property on a rescue path, he said.

The Bond Residences have an enviable location just across from Bushnell Park, but Khakshouri said he hasnt been happy with the buildings appearance. The gray paint has got to go, he said, and will be replaced by a beige stucco, in keeping with the original color scheme of the Hotel Bond, which closed in the 1960s.

Asylum Street honestly looks miserable, especially my block and I just want to pretty that up as much as possible to make the entrance as nice as possible, like in 1921, Khakshouri said.

Contact Kenneth R. Gosselin at kgosselin@courant.com.
LONDON (Reuters) -EasyJet Chairman John Barton is preparing to step down once he has completed nine years in the post in May 2022, the British airline said in a statement on Saturday.

The company has already started the search for a successor just as the airline industry battles to recover from the devastating impact on travel of the coronavirus pandemic.

EasyJet is desperate to start flying at scale again this summer, but COVID-19 restrictions remain in place and worries over the spread of the Indian variant in Britain are threatening to hamper the hoped-for travel bounce back.

Barton's plan to step down was first reported by Sky News. The airline, which noted a nine-year term is the recommended maximum for best practice in corporate governance, said in an emailed statement Barton remained fully committed to his role.

It said it had hired an executive search agency to help find a successor and ensure an orderly transition.

EasyJet will report results for the six months to the end of March on Thursday. It has guided investors to expect pandemic restrictions on flying will push it to a loss of between 690 million pounds ($973 million) and 730 million.

From Monday, the airline will be able to fly Britons on holiday again after a 4-1/2 month ban on most travel, but the list of permitted destinations is limited to a handful of places and Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned restrictions will not change any time soon.

($1 = 0.7092 pounds)

(Reporting by Ann Maria Shibu in Bengaluru and Sarah Young in LondonEditing by David Clarke and David Holmes)
SpaceX and Tesla CEO, Elon Musk. PETER PARKS/AFP via Getty Images

A filing on the UK's official business register revealed a new firm called Elonspace Ltd.

It lists the same birth month and nationality as the Tesla and SpaceX CEO.

The contact address, however, is a London tower building used for student accommodation.

See more stories on Insider's business page.

A recent filing on the UK's official business register, Companies House, revealed a new company called Elonspace Ltd with a sole director, who goes under the name "Elon Musk Phd."

The entry records the same birth month and nationality as the Tesla and SpaceX CEO.

Other details, such as the UK-based location and country of residence, differ from Musk's. As Bloomberg reported, the business mogul quit his doctorate program after two days and never earned a PhD.

The contact address of Elonspace Ltd is a tower building located in West London, which is used for student accommodation. The company is described as being active in computer facility management, IT and data processing.

While it has not been possible to uncover the identity of Elonspace Ltd's owner, Bloomberg reported that the company was registered in the UK the same week as posts on social media began promoting a crypto token by that name.

"We can not reveal any classified information about the company, nor the people involved," a representative for the crypto company told Bloomberg. "This would violate our NDA," they added.

One of Companies Houses' main purposes is to register company information and make it available to the public. Its website describes it as an executive agency that is sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Ovidijus Margelis sent the packages to depots around the UK. (PA)

A former Amazon worker who posted packages with explosive devices as part of a plot to get fraudulent refunds has been jailed.

Ovidijus Margelis, 26, sent the packages to depots around the UK, causing site evacuations, road closures, and disruption to more than 50,000 people.

Kingston Crown Court heard the total economic cost of disruption was just under 600,000.

Armed police arrested Margelis in Cambridge last September following reports of a suspicious package in Cricklewood, north London.

The explosive packages caused site evacuations and road closures. (PA)

Margelis pleaded guilty to one count of making explosive substances in February.

The third-year business management student at Anglia Ruskin University also admitted to fraud by false representation and possession of an article for use in fraud.

Margelis was sentenced to 21 months in prison on Friday.

He was also handed a 17-month prison sentence for fraud which will run concurrently.

The court heard Margelis placed the improvised explosive devices inside packages as part of a fraud.

He would post packages with an explosive attached, made to burn through the delivery labels.

This would mean they could not be delivered and the vendor such as Amazon or PayPal would provide a refund, leaving Margelis with the goods and refund.

The court heard he had drawn on his experience working in an Amazon delivery centre in 2018.

Edward Franklin, prosecuting, said Margelis actions were reckless in the extreme and had caused considerable disruption, and indeed distress to multiple people.

He said that on 6 September last year an army bomb disposal team was called to Dunfermline depot in Scotland, which houses 98% of UK Amazon deliveries, following the discovery of one of the packages.

He said: The night shift was cancelled which meant 700 employees could not work.

There was disruption to around 50,000 customer orders.

On 11 September Avon and Somerset police were forced to shut parts of the A38 road and 100-metre cordons were placed around post offices in Bath and Bristol, following reports of further parcels.

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Mr Franklin said the economic costs caused by the incidents totalled around 591,000.

He continued: The mechanism of the fraud was sophisticated, there was significant planning over a sustained period and there was a significant number of victims.

It was reckless in the extreme.

Ovidijus Margelis was jailed at Kingston Crown Court. (Getty)

Tom Wainwright, defending, said Margelis had lacked common sense and foresight.

What Mr Margelis did was incredibly stupid, but not malicious, the consequences simply did not cross his mind, he said.

No one was hurt and nothing was damaged and that should be borne in mind.

Sentencing Margelis, Judge Martyn Barklem said police would not have been aware of Margelis intentions and difficult decisions need to be madepublic safety is paramount.

He added: Incredibly stupid but not malicious was (Mr Wainwrights) characterisation, with which I concur.

A fourth count of possession of criminal property was dropped by the prosecution.
AADLOUN, Lebanon (Reuters) - The family of a 21-year-old man who the Lebanese authorities say was killed by Israeli fire when he and a group of others tried to cross the border fence with Israel held his funeral on Saturday, a day after he died.

The Israeli military said its tanks had fired warning shots at people who had damaged the fence. The incident took place during a protest on the Lebanese side to support Palestinians, amid a conflict between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist group which rules Gaza.

Members of his family, dressed in black and wearing face masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, gathered around the coffin of Mohamed Tahan in his home town of Adloun, in southern Lebanon, to bid farewell, Reuters images showed.

A large poster at the mourning ceremony was emblazoned with his picture, alongside a symbol of the Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, which is a staunch opponent of Israel. The poster carried the words: "On the way to Al-Quds (Jerusalem)."

Protesters gathered again on Lebanon side of border with Israel on Saturday, waving Palestinian and Hezbollah flags.

The Lebanese army deployed in the area, setting up cordons to prevent protesters approaching a border wall that runs along that stretch of the boundary, although some protesters still managed move up close.

UNIFIL, the U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon that monitors the boundary with Israel, said on Friday it had launched an immediate investigation into the incident.

(Reporting by Reuters staff; Writing by Edmund Blair, Editing by William Maclean)
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) speaks on House floor on May 14, 2021. Eric Dolan/YouTube

Rep. Louie Gohmert said Capitol rioters are 'political prisoners' held hostage by the government.

The Texas congressman made the remarks during a lengthy speech on the House floor on Friday.

Gohmert also said there was "no evidence" the Capitol rioters were armed.

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas took to the House floor on Friday to downplay the January 6 Capitol riot, describing the insurrections as "political prisoners held hostage by their own government."

"Joe Biden's Justice Department is criminalizing political protest, but only political protest by Republicans or conservatives," Gohmert said in his lengthy speech in which he cited several conservative news outlets, according to CNN. "They're destroying the lives of American families, they're weaponizing the events of January 6 to silence Trump-supporting Americans."

Gohmert pointed to some defendants who are being held in jail in Washington awaiting trial, calling them "victims of an unequal system of justice in a country where rioters and looters on the left are let off the hook even considered heroes while those on the right are considered hardened criminals without any record before a trial can even begin."

"Their only crime was supporting Donald Trump and concern about the fraud Democrats have been telling us about in elections for many years," he added.

Since the insurrection, which resulted in the deaths of five people including a police officer, 479 people have been arrested and charged with crimes. Here is an updated list.

Gohmert also said there was "no evidence" that some of the rioters were armed. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin made a similar claim in an interview last month, The Hill reported.

"Armed meaning with firearms. There were no firearms," Gohmert said.

His comments come as the House Homeland Security Committee on Friday announced a deal to create a bipartisan commission to investigate the insurrection.

Story continues

Watch the speech below:

Read the original article on Business Insider
BANGKOK (AP)  The U.S. and British embassies in Myanmar expressed concern about reports of fierce government attacks on a town in western Chin state, where the ruling junta declared martial law because of armed resistance to military rule.

The fighting began around 6 a.m. Saturday when government troops reinforced by helicopters began shelling the western part of the town of Mindat, destroying several homes, said a spokesman of the Chinland Defence Force. It is a locally formed militia group opposed to the February coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.

Helicopters also took part in the attack, according to the spokesman, who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

Mindat town is now under siege and is bracing for an all-out assault by the junta troops from air and by land, said a statement by the Chin Human Rights Organization.

The shadow National Unity Government, set up by lawmakers who were blocked by the army from taking their seats in Parliament, warned that within the next 48 hours, Mindat can potentially become a battleground and thousands of people are facing the danger of being displaced. Many have already left the town of about 50,000 people, said a resident contacted by phone who was also fleeing.

The Mindat Township Peoples Administration, another opposition grouping, claimed that 15 young men had been seized by government troops and used as human shields. It said at least five defenders of the town had been killed in clashes and at least 10 others wounded.

None of these details could be independently verified, but a Myanmar state television broadcast Saturday night reported that fighting was going on, and acknowledged the towns defenders have been putting up stiff resistance against the army.

The militarys use of weapons of war against civilians, including this week in Mindat, is a further demonstration of the depths the regime will sink to to hold onto power, the British Embassy said on Twitter. We call on the military to cease violence against civilians.

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The U.S. Embassy said it was aware of increasing violence in Mindat, including reports of the military shooting civilians, and urged that evidence of atrocities be sent to U.N. investigators.

Detailed tallies compiled by several different watchdog groups say government security forces have killed upwards of 750 protesters and bystanders as they have tried to suppress opposition to the militarys seizure of power. In April, security forces were accused of killing more than 80 people in one day to destroy street barricades that militants had set up as strongholds in the city of Bago.

In many or most cases, police and soldiers were trying to break up peaceful protests, though as they increased the use of lethal force, some protesters fought back in self-defense. In recent weeks there has been an upsurge in small bombings in many cities, mostly causing little damage and few casualties.

The junta says the death toll is less than 300, and the use of force was justified to quash what it calls riots.

Mindats resisters are only lightly armed, mostly with a traditional type of single-shot hunting rifle, but the territory around the town is mountainous and wooded, favoring defenders over attackers.

The report on state television MRTV listed past attacks on government forces and installations, most recently on Thursday, when it claimed a force of about 100 blocked security forces from entering the town, destroying one vehicle and leaving an unspecified number of security forces dead and missing.

In a later attack, it said, an even bigger force was said to have launched an attack from the city on security forces patrolling nearby, destroying six vehicles and causing an unspecified number of government casualties.

The opposition government earlier this month announced a plan to unify groups such as the Chinland Defense Force into a national Peoples Defense Force, which would serve as a precursor to a Federal Union Army of democratic forces including ethnic minorities.

Khin Ma Ma Myo, deputy defense minister of the shadow government, said one of the duties of the Peoples Defense Force is to protect the resistance movement from military attacks and violence instigated by the junta.
(Bloomberg) --

Sanjeev Guptas plans to save his sprawling metals empire were mired in confusion on Saturday as a key financial backer sent mixed messages about its support in the wake of a U.K. fraud probe.

On Friday, the Serious Fraud Office launched an investigation into possible fraud and money laundering at Guptas GFG Alliance That initially prompted White Oak Global Advisors LLC -- which had recently offered loans to his U.K. steel businesses and one of his Australian units -- to say it wasnt in a position to continue discussions with a company facing a probe.

Hours later, a spokesperson for the San Francisco-based lender said it was continuing efforts to refinance Liberty Primary Metals of Australia, subject to financial due diligence and acceptable governance. Last week it had agreed terms with Gupta to refinance the unit.

The apparent reversal throws the fate of Guptas businesses into further confusion. Its unclear whether the loan to the Australian unit, which includes the Whyalla steelworks, will still go ahead as planned or depends on the SFO investigation.

White Oak declined to comment Saturday on the status of a reported 200 million pounds ($282 million) of lending to Guptas U.K. businesses, The company also wouldnt comment on a report in the Financial Times saying White Oak may be reluctant to walk away because it has a financial exposure to Guptas businesses after buying up debt from the steel tycoon.

GFG said Friday it will co-operate fully with the SFO investigation. It declined to comment on White Oaks decision.

Gupta has been scrambling to find new financing after Greensill, his biggest lender, fell into insolvency. His group employs 35,000 people across 30 countries, all which may be in danger of losing their jobs if the tycoon cant secure replacement loans. He faces an uphill battle, with the SFO probe likely to deter many potential financiers.

The exact scope of the SFO investigation isnt yet clear. Four banks stopped working with Guptas Liberty House Group trading business, starting in 2016, amid concerns about what they perceived to be problems in paperwork provided by Liberty, Bloomberg News has reported. In one example, the company had presented a bank with what seemed to be duplicate shipping receipts. A spokesman for Gupta has denied any wrongdoing.

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The two-month period from when it started looking into GFG and its financing by Greensill to announcing the formal probe is a quick turn-around for the SFO, which often takes years to publicly confirm its taking action against a company.

It will now start to gather evidence, including securing devices and documents. However, itll likely take years for the office to make any tangible updates to the investigation, including whether it decides to charge individuals as part of the probe.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

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When federal health officials said on Thursday that fully vaccinated Americans no longer needed to wear masks in most places, it came as a surprise to many people in public health. It also was a stark contrast with the views of a large majority of epidemiologists surveyed in the last two weeks by The New York Times.

In the informal survey, 80% said they thought Americans would need to wear masks in public indoor places for at least another year. Just 5% said people would be able to stop wearing masks indoors by this summer.

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In large crowds outdoors, like at a concert or protest, 88% of the epidemiologists said it was necessary even for fully vaccinated people to wear masks.

Unless the vaccination rates increase to 80% or 90% over the next few months, we should wear masks in large public indoor settings, said Vivian Towe, a program officer at the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute.

The responses came from of 723 epidemiologists, submitted between April 28 and May 10, before the new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The survey asked the public health experts about being outdoors in groups of various sizes, and about being indoors with people whose vaccination status was unknown. The situations were consistent with the new guidance, which governs behavior in public places, regardless of size, where it is impossible to know the vaccine status of others.

Federal health officials have already said that vaccinated people can be indoors with other vaccinated people, and epidemiologists mostly agreed. But the CDCs new guidance said masks were no longer necessary for fully vaccinated people regardless of the size of the gathering and whether it was indoors or outside, except in certain situations, like in a doctors office or on public transit.

Epidemiologists are, on the whole, very cautious when it comes to COVID-19, by nature of their training in understanding risk and preventing the spread of infectious disease. Nearly three-quarters described themselves as risk-averse, and they are likely to have been able to work from home over the past year, unlike many Americans. But they also have the same training as many of the scientists at CDC who devised the new policy, and about one-third of the survey respondents work in government, mostly at the state level.

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They acknowledged that many Americans would not want to continue to wear masks  and that many have already stopped.

Wearing masks will be a need, which is a very different question than how long will it continue to occur, said Sophia K., an epidemiologist at the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council. I expect that most people will refuse to wear masks, even in public, by the end of 2021, whether there is still a pandemic or not.

Many epidemiologists echoed the CDC in saying that as long as people were fully vaccinated, they could gather without precautions. But the CDC went further than the epidemiologists by giving the OK for vaccinated people to stop masking in groups with an unknown number of unvaccinated people.

It is either you trust the vaccine, or you do not, said Kristin Harrington, an epidemiology Ph.D. student at Emory. And if we trust the vaccine, that means an unlimited number of vaccinated individuals should be allowed to gather together.

Others acknowledged that policy decisions are based on many goals, such as invigorating the economy and incentivizing people to get vaccinated.

Yet most said mask-wearing continued to be necessary for now, because the number of vaccinated Americans had not yet reached a level that scientists consider necessary to significantly slow the spread of the virus. Until then, there are too many chances for vaccines, which are not 100% effective, to fail, they said.

Crowded circumstances, indoors or outdoors, necessitate a mask until community levels of COVID are much lower, said Luther-King Fasehun, a doctor and an epidemiology Ph.D. student at Temple University.

Sally Picciotto, an epidemiologist at the University of California, Berkeley, said the decision to stop wearing masks indoors depends on more people rolling up their sleeves to get the shot.

Respondents also said that as long as the virus was still spreading, masks were important to protect high-risk people and those who cannot be vaccinated, like children or people who have underlying health conditions.

Until community transmission is lower, it protects the whole community and the other people in the room to wear masks, including children, immuno-suppressed people and Black and Latino communities who have been hit harder by COVID-19, said Julia Raifman, an assistant professor of public health at Boston University.

One-quarter of the epidemiologists in the survey said they thought people would need to continue wearing masks in certain settings indefinitely, and some said they planned to continue to wear them in places like airplanes or concert halls, or during the winter virus season.

Heck, I may wear a mask for every flu season now, said Allison Stewart, the lead epidemiologist at the Williamson County and Cities Health District in Texas. Sure has been nice not to be sick for over a year.

Alana Cilwick, an epidemiologist at the Colorado Department of Public Health, said, I plan to wear a mask indoors for the foreseeable future given the amount of vaccine hesitancy we are seeing, especially in higher-risk settings like the gym or on an airplane.

Just one-fifth of epidemiologists said it was safe for fully vaccinated people to socialize indoors without masks in a group of unlimited size. A majority said indoor gatherings should be limited to five or fewer households.

Even outside, where the coronavirus is much less likely to spread, nearly all the epidemiologists said it was necessary to keep wearing masks in crowds, when people are near others whose vaccination status they dont know.

Masks are the second-most helpful prevention strategy we have to vaccines, Raifman said.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

 2021 The New York Times Company
Officials can now confidently say that human body parts found in 2003 in a San Diego dumpster belonged to a woman named Laurie Potter, and that she was murdered by her husband, Jack.

Video Transcript

- This is Lori Dianne Potter.

- Lori was never reported as a missing person.

- For nearly 20 years, no one knew she was the victim of a brutal murder in 2003. Today, her suspected killer, her husband Jack Potter, is behind bars.

- The victim's family, and I've spoke to them, are very happy that I number one, identified Lori, because they thought she was just living and somewhere nobody knew. And they're extremely happy once they get over the grief of Lori being deceased. That we've identified and arrested the suspect.

- The San Diego Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested Potter outside of his home in Rancho Cucamonga May 12th, And it was investigative genetic genealogy that led to that arrest. This is the same DNA technology that put the Golden State Killer behind bars, but in this case, the DNA was used to identify the victim because investigators never had a body, only a pair of legs that were found in a dumpster in this neighborhood two decades ago. Detective Troy DuGal and his team searched public ancestry databases to find potential DNA matches, and identified a relative dating back to the 1800s.

- Once we're there, we just continue to build the family tree back down, so that you have all the persons inside that family tree.

- From there he began asking potential relatives to help him.

- The Cold Case team would like to talk to anybody that knew Jack or Lori Potter from the mid 80s until present.

- And Jack Potter is scheduled to appear in court next week. Andrew, right now that same technology is being used in at least five other local cold cases. And that all happens right behind us here at the Sheriff's crime lab in Kearny Mesa. That's where we're live, tonight. We'll send it back.
May 14WASHINGTON  After months of relative silence since Idaho Rep. Mike Simpson unveiled his proposal to breach the four Lower Snake River dams, on Friday Gov. Jay Inslee and Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell made their clearest statements yet rejecting the Idaho Republican's plan to save Idaho's dwindling salmon runs.

Simpson, who represents most of Boise and the areas east of the Idaho capital, has been angling to include $33.5 billion to fund his proposal in an infrastructure package Congress is crafting, even if the details of the proposal would need to be hammered out in future legislation. But in a joint statement Friday morning, Inslee and Murray said they "do not believe the Simpson proposal can be included in the proposed federal infrastructure package."

"Regional collaboration on a comprehensive, long-term solution to protect and bring back salmon populations in the Columbia River Basin and throughout the Pacific Northwest is needed now more than ever," Inslee and Murray wrote. "However, a solution must ensure those who rely on the river in the Basin and across the Pacific Northwest are part of the process."

Cantwell, who told The Spokesman-Review in March she didn't think Simpson's plan would be part of the infrastructure package, was not part of the joint statement. But in a statement to The Seattle Times, Cantwell joined her fellow Washington Democrats in opposing the GOP congressman's pitch, though she suggested the infrastructure bill could include pieces of the Simpson proposal.

"This proposal has some things we should focus on; diversifying beyond hydro is a great idea, planning for new investment is a great idea, but the rest is not well thought out enough at this point," Cantwell said.

Since Simpson released his proposal in February, it has shaken up the Northwest's long-simmering "salmon wars." It drove a wedge between otherwise simpatico GOP lawmakers, with Washington Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Dan Newhouse and Jaime Herrera Beutler taking a strong stance against the plan and Simpson's collaboration with Oregon Democrats, including Gov. Kate Brown and Rep. Earl Blumenauer.

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The statement came a day after Simpson, speaking at a virtual event held by the Andrus Center for Public Policy at Boise State University, called for those who don't support his plan to come up with their own ideas to save salmon and modernize the region's power infrastructure.

"What I have asked everyone I have talked to, whether it was Dan Newhouse, Cathy McMorris Rodgers or others in the delegation or any user group, if you've got alternatives that will work, let me know, tell me about them, I'm interested in hearing them," Simpson said, per The Lewiston Tribune. "So far it's just been silence."

Newhouse, speaking in the same virtual event on Thursday, likened Simpson's proposal to a Washington lawmaker proposing that the Boise airport be closed to combat climate change. All four of the Lower Snake River dams lie in Eastern Washington's 5th congressional district, which McMorris Rodgers represents, but two of the dams also straddle the border of Newhouse's 4th district in Central Washington.

After making his point about overstepping the bounds of congressional jurisdiction, Newhouse went on to call for a broader view of the salmon problem, pointing to the lack of fish ladders at Idaho dams and the state's earlier efforts to eradicate ocean-going fish from some Idaho lakes.

"This is a complex system, and it faces a great multitude of complex and difficult challenges," Newhouse said. "Any effort to boil this down to simple half-truths or deal with this issue in absolutes, or to assume a solution can be developed solely upon one main facet, must be called out for its intellectual dishonesty."

Rifts also emerged between environmentalist groups over a provision that would put a 35-year moratorium on dam-related lawsuits, along with a 25-year freeze on agriculture-related litigation, throughout the Columbia Basin in exchange for removing the earthen portions of the four dams on a single river.

The Center for Biological Diversity, an environmentalist group that favors breaching the dams but opposes Simpson's proposal, welcomed the Washington Democrats' clear stance. The group had previously criticized Northwest Democrats for not being more proactive and leaving an opening for the Idaho Republican to take the lead on ending the salmon wars.

"Gov. Inslee and Washington's two Senators are right to reject Rep. Simpson's deeply flawed proposal to remove the four lower Snake River dams," said Sophia Ressler, the group's Washington wildlife attorney. "But we hope they work quickly toward a path to removing them, as it's absolutely critical to saving salmon and the Southern Resident killer whales."

Sam Mace, Inland Northwest director of Save Our Wild Salmon, a group that supports Simpson's plan, said she was happy to see the "language of urgency used in the statement" and hopes the process Inslee and Murray called for begins in "months, not years."

"Whether there are salmon in the Snake River 20 or 30 years from now is really resting on our elected leaders," Mace said.

In a joint statement, Save Our Wild Salmon and eight other conservation groups, including the Sierra Club and Columbia Riverkeeper, characterized Murray and Inslee's statement as a "proposal" in and of itself.

"We hear Sen. Murray and Gov. Inslee making an unequivocal commitment that salmon will not go extinct on their watch," the groups wrote. "We will hold them to that promise starting today."

Northwest tribes have largely backed Simpson's proposal, especially the Nez Perce Tribe, which released a study earlier this month that shows Snake River chinook salmon are nearing extinction, with steelhead similarly threatened. The Nez Perce, whose ancestors occupied parts of Washington, Oregon and Idaho, were guaranteed fishing rights in exchange for land in an 1855 treaty.

The Nez Perce, who were forced onto an even smaller reservation in what is now Idaho by a subsequent treaty but retained their fishing rights, contend that the disappearance of the salmon as a result of the dams constitutes a treaty violation.

In their joint statement, Murray and Inslee nodded to this reality, writing, "Any solution must honor Tribal Treaty Rights."

But in response, newly elected Nez Perce Chairman Samuel Penney expressed frustration with the lack of specifics in the Democrats' statement.

"Gov. Inslee and Senators Murray and Cantwell have stated what they're against, providing no substance with respect to what they're for," Penney said in a statement. "This is not a time for generic statements of support for treaty rights and Northwest Tribes. Northwest Tribes are united and asking for genuine support."

"The Nez Perce Tribe welcomes the opportunity to meet with Senators Murray and Cantwell to discuss this issue in more detail," Penney said. "Time is short, but together we can take this unique opportunity to ensure a better, stronger Northwest for all. We stand ready to work with the congressional leaders of the Northwest on that effort."

While making their opposition to Simpson's approach clear, Inslee and Murray did not rule out the most controversial aspect of the Idaho Republican's proposal.

"Importantly, it is critical that this process takes all options into consideration," they wrote, "including the potential breaching of the Lower Four Snake River Dams."

The Democrats called for an initiative led by the four governors of Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Montana to be accelerated, and suggested they support many of the components of Simpson's proposal, including investments in clean energy storage, habitat restoration, transportation infrastructure, agriculture and more.

"We are ready to work with our Northwest Tribes, states, and all the communities that rely on the river system to achieve a solution promptly," Murray and Inslee said. "We, too, want action and a resolution that restores salmon runs and works for all the stakeholders and communities in the Columbia River Basin."

Eli Francovich contributed reporting to this story.

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Orion Donovan-Smith's reporting for The Spokesman-Review is funded in part by Report for America and by members of the Spokane community. This story can be republished by other organizations for free under a Creative Commons license. For more information on this, please contact our newspaper's managing editor.
London IRA Bombing: Police and firemen at the still smouldering bandstand in Regent's Park following the bomb outrage known to have killed six people.The bomb exploded where the band of the Royal Green jackets was playing on 20 July 1982 - PA

The terrorists behind the killings of more than 500 British soldiers during the Troubles have escaped justice, an analysis of historic murders shows, fueling anger over the continued pursuit of veterans through the courts.

A trawl of reported deaths of troops both in Northern Ireland and on the mainland shows that authorities failed to catch or else prosecute the killers in the vast majority of cases.

In total, according to The Telegraphs analysis, the murders of 516 soldiers went unpunished. Police and prosecutors secured convictions in just 71 cases, while in an additional five killings, the convictions were subsequently overturned on appeal.

Veterans have repeatedly complained that they are being unfairly pursued through the courts for deaths as long as half a century ago, while terrorist suspects are no longer under scrutiny. Lawyers and politicians have argued that soldiers are currently disproportionately much more likely to face prosecution, not least because the Ministry of Defence (MoD) kept paperwork for all shootings committed by troops sent to Northern Ireland to keep the peace.

Last week, two soldiers - known only as Soldier A and Soldier C - walked free from court after they were acquitted of the murder of Joe McCann, an Official IRA commander, who was shot and killed in 1971. Theirs was the first so-called legacy trial, although others are in the pipeline.

The Government announced on Tuesday in the Queens Speech its intention to introduce legislation to restrict future prosecutions of troops through some form of truth and reconciliation process that would also prevent paramilitaries - both loyalist and republican - from being taken to court.

Critics are sceptical that the Northern Ireland office and the MoD will be able to force through legislation without agreement from Sinn Fein and Ulster unionists.

The Telegraph began its research into the deaths of 587 soldiers after Lieutenant Colonel Frank Stewart, 87, wrote to the newspaper to say please remember his comrade Staff Sergeant Malcolm Banks, a Royal Engineer, who was shot dead by an Official IRA sniper in 1972.

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St Sgt Malcom Banks was shot dead in Belfast two minutes before a Provisional IRA ceasefire came into effect

The murder, he said, had taken place two minutes before a ceasefire and conseuqently the death of the father-of-two, who was 29, was never investigated. Banks, he pointed out, was a Catholic.

Lt Col Stewart said Thursday: I was there. I remember it well. He died at the scene. There was no investigation and nobody was ever brought to justice. That is what is so stupid about all this. It is ridiculous they are prosecuting soldiers now. There are bad cases everywhere.

Banks and his comrades had been lured into a trap. They had driven out in a Land Rover to investigate a bomb blast and a sniper had shot at the car, the bullet penetrating the vehicle's exterior and hitting Banks in the back.

Atrocities that have gone unpunished include the deaths of 18 British soldiers at Warrenpoint in County Down in 1979. It was the deadliest attack on British troops during the Troubles. Nobody was ever charged, let alone convicted of the attack launched by the IRA.

Attacks on the mainland by the IRA have also failed to secure convictions. John Downey, an IRA commander, walked free from court after being charged with the murder of four soldiers when a bomb was exploded in Hyde Park in London in 1982.

It emerged Downey had received a so-called comfort letter in the wake of the Good Friday Agreement, assuring him he was not a suspect in the atrocity.

No one has ever been convicted of the murder of seven bandsmen of the Royal green jackets killed when a bomb went off on the same day in Regents Park.

A sergeant in the band of the 1st Bn Royal Green Jackets, injured in the bandstand explosion, being comforted by a passer-by in Regent's Park

Research by lawyers acting for some of the veterans claims former soldiers are now 54 times more likely to face prosecution in Northern ireland than republican paramilitaries.

Matthew Jury, whose clients include Dennis Hutchings, an 80-year-old veteran due to go on trial later this year for attempted murder over the death of an unarmed man with learning difficulties, said: The veterans arent trying to evade justice. All they want is impartial and equal treatment. Surely thats the least we owe them.

His examination of the 3,720 people killed during the Troubles shows 90 per cent of the deaths were committed by paramilitaries on both sides, of which about 60 per cent were by republican sympathisers.

About 10 per cent - at 361 - were state killings by either Army or police. But he alleges that since 2007, only seven republicans have been prosecuted. In the same period, six ex-soldiers have faced prosecution.

That makes British troops at least six times more likely to be prosecuted - except that most state killings were lawful, and the real figure is about 54 times more likely.

Mr Hutchings said: It is an absolute bloody disgrace. Soldiers like me are being prosecuted in the courts but there has never been any justice for hundreds of murdered troops.

The former veterans minister Johnny Mercer outside Laganside Courts in Belfast at the start of the trial of Soldier A and Soldier C - Mark Marlow/PA

Johnny Mercer, a former Army captain sacked earlier this month as veterans minister after he protested against the ongoing prosecutions of troops, said the failure to secure convictions for the deaths of more than 500 soldiers showed the need for legislation.

Mr Mercer has complained that the Government has been too slow to bring in measures to protect troops and is sceptical it will be able to introduce new legislation under current ministerial leadership.

Mr Mercer said: All I have ever asked for is balance in this process to dealing with the legacy of Northern Irelands past. As these figures will show you, there is no balance whatsoever, and Im afraid I will relentlessly defend the vast majority of British soldiers who served in Northern Ireland with exceptional bravery, professionalism, courage and duty.

Mr Mercer added: I will not cut these men and women adrift  our veterans deserve a nation that is proud of them and unwilling to accept attempts to sully their role in bringing peace to Northern Ireland.

Relatives of victims of British military killings have complained that investigations carried out at the time were inadequate and that fresh inquiries were needed to prevent British troops evading justice.

An inquest this week into the deaths of 10 people in Ballymurphy in Belfast at the hands of the Parachute regiment in 1971 ruled they were unlawful and that the victims were entirely innocent.

The Government has since apologised.

Among the victims was a Cathloic priest attending to a wounded man, and a mother-of-eight. There is pressure for at least one of the soldiers to be charged with murder.
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Chanting crowds gathered in several Iraqi cities on Saturday, some burning Israeli and American flags, in protest against the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

Thousands of demonstrators shouted anti-Israeli slogans, held signs saying "Death to Israel, death to America" and waved Palestinian flags.

The rallies, called by powerful Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and other paramilitary leaders, were held as Israel launched more air strikes on Gaza and Palestinian militants fired rockets on Tel Aviv and other cities in the worst escalation in the region since 2014.

Sadr, who has millions of followers in Iraq and controls a large paramilitary group, pledged his support to Palestinian armed groups in Gaza.

Mass public gatherings have been rare in Iraq since security forces and militia groups crushed anti-government protests last year and amid regular curfews to combat the spread of COVID-19.

The government had announced a 10-day curfew over the Muslim Eid holiday in response to rising coronavirus infections. The curfew was partially lifted the day before the anti-Israel demonstrations.

Political leaders aligned to Iran-backed militias joined the call for Iraqis to take to the streets in a rare show of unity by rival Shi'ite Muslim factions which are competing for power ahead of a general election slated for October.

Sadr and the Iran-backed groups see Israel and the United States as enemies and vehemently oppose the possibility of restoring diplomatic links with Israel as two Gulf Arab states have done.

(Reporting by Baghdad newsroom; Writing by John Davison; Editing by Mike Harrison)
May 14DANVERS  Lawyers for some of the five people accused in a flash-mob style robbery of pricey Canada Goose parkas have decided to drop their efforts to have the charges dismissed, at least for now, they told a Salem Superior Court judge Friday.

The robbery, on Dec. 26, 2019, garnered extensive publicity after Giblee's, an upscale menswear store on Route 114 in Danvers, released video footage of the incident, in which workers trying to stop the thefts were injured. The store had been previously targeted over the parkas, which retail at around $1,000 each. At the time, the parkas were in high demand as a status symbol.

The case had been scheduled for Friday for a hearing on a motion to dismiss some of the charges.

Charged in the case are Bryon Vaughn, 24, and Mekeda McKenzie, 20, of Dorchester; Kashawnii Roumo-O'Brien, 21, and Lynasja Trimble, 21, of Mattapan; and Adriana James, 24, of Jamaica Plain. All five are charged with unarmed robbery and assault and battery on a person 60 or older and attempting to commit a crime. McKenzie and James also face larceny charges after police say they managed to get coats out of the store.

Vaughn, McKenzie, and Roumo-O'Brien's attorneys said at a hearing in February that they would seek dismissals of some of the charges. Since then Roumo-O'Brien's lawyer has left the case for unrelated reasons, and lawyers for the other defendants indicated Friday that they would be interested in a potential resolution of the case short of trial.

To that end, Judge Thomas Drechsler scheduled a conference on July 14 to discuss that further.

Courts reporter Julie Manganis can be reached at 978-338-2521, by email at jmanganis@salemnews.com or on Twitter at @SNJulieManganis.
The CDC's mask rules are changing.

When Im three, I have to wear a mask.

This is what my two-year-old son Jack said in a sad voice when we were talking about his upcoming birthday. It made my heart sink.

Jack knows who Mayor Hancock is: His preschool teachers showed the class a picture of the Denver mayor and appealed to his authority when some of the tiny students struggled to keep their faces covered at school.

Jack is too young to understand this, but Mayor Hancocks authority has some limit. Like other public servants, he has had to make very difficult decisions during the COVID pandemic. But all along, we trusted our leaders to roll back pandemic-related restrictions as we learned more about the COVID-19 virus and as we progressed in our efforts to contain it.

To their credit, experts at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) just issued updated guidance on masking for vaccinated people, saying they may go without masks in most places. Similarly, Mayor Hancock, following the lead of Colorado Governor Polis, recently relaxed masking requirements for some group settings where 80% of those present have been vaccinated.

But both the CDC and the City of Denvers latest revised face covering rules missed one important change. Its now time  passed time  for jurisdictions across the country to remove all mask mandates aimed at young children. Denvers current order, which applies to children age 3 and up, is out of sync with current science, and it poses potential harm to children.

So what do we do now?: We're vaccinated but our son isn't. The CDC lifted mask rules.

There is reason to believe that young children, whose emotional and verbal development depend greatly on human faces, are suffering harm from wearing masks and being surrounded by adults and peers masked in public places.

As the World Health Organization has held since August, no one under the age of 5 should be required to wear a mask. WHO and UNICEF advise that children aged 12 and over should wear a mask (under the same conditions as adults).

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The science suggests that young children do not transmit Covid-19 (even new variants of it) in a significant way.

The science concerning the low risk of COVID-19 among young children has long been clear: A July 29, 2020 article in the New England Journal of Medicine titled Reopening Primary Schools during the Pandemic states, Given the same exposure to infected household members, children under the age of 10 seem to become infected less frequently than adults and older adolescents; studies of both household and community transmission find that children 9 or younger are also less susceptible than 10-to-14-year-olds.

Hadley Heath Manning and her son Jack.

Data also suggest that infected children under 10 years of age are less contagious than infected adults, and transmit the disease much less often than adults do (as found in a large South Korean study in summer 2020). In the August issue of Pediatrics, the journal of the American Association of Pediatricians, an article titled COVID-19 Transmission and Children: The Child Is Not to Blame reviews data on children and COVID and concludes that children are not significant drivers of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Furthermore, an increasing number of childcare providers, teachers, parents, and other adults in Denver (and elsewhere) are now vaccinated.

While the consequences of mask wearing in young children merit further study, theres reason to suspect harm: According to a 2011 review of literature (about other outbreaks of disease), mask wearing in children has been found to impose a psychological burden on children, affecting their fear, anxiety, and language development. Masks also impede young childrens social referencing or ability to read social cues and emotions.

Yet, despite all of this, Denvers mask order still applies universally to three year olds.

(Of course, relaxing the citys mandate would not stop families from masking their young children if they choose, based on their individual circumstances. And Colorados statewide order applies to children 11 and up.)

In part because the City of Denvers policy is so alarmist and anti-science, it encourages noncompliance, and worse, it undermines the respect citizens like me have for our local government rules.

The time to free young children from mask wearing has come - and gone. This would be a policy change for the better. And better late than never.

There are still a few more days before Jacks birthday.

Hadley Heath Manning is director of policy for Independent Womens Forum and a senior Blankley Fellow at the Steamboat Institute. She lives in Denver with her husband and three young children.

You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @usatodayopinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To respond to a column, submit a comment to letters@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: CDC reconsiders masks, why not for children, too?
Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., arrives at the Hyatt Regency for new member orientation in Washington on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020 Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Marjorie Taylor Greene said she is the one who is a victim of bullying, not Democrats.

She listed a handful of grievances on Newsmax, re-casting her taunting of AOC as "citizen lobbying."

"They're the ones that are completely out of line," she told the rightwing network.

See more stories on Insider's business page.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene attempted to flip the script about her behavior towards political rivals on Friday when questioned about a recent video of her taunting Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Speaking to Greg Kelly on right-wing network Newsmax, Greene described several encounters with Democrats that she said make her the victim of aggression, contrary to what she sees as a skewed media narrative.

"They're accusing me of being aggressive and saying that my mannerisms are wrong," she said. "It's definitely the other way round."

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene talking to Newsmax's Greg Kelly. Newsmax

Greene had come under intense criticism on several occasions for confrontational behavior and support of far-right causes, most recently on Wednesday when pursuing Ocasio Cortez on Capitol Hill "screaming," as witnesses said. On that occasion, she inaccurately said that Ocasio-Cortez supported terrorists.

Soon after that, a 2019 video emerged from before Greene was a member of Congress, showing her and far-right companions taunting Ocasio-Cortez through the New Yorker's office letterbox, calling her a "baby" who needed to "get rid of your diaper."

Speaking to Kelly, Greene described the act as "citizen lobbying."

Marjorie Taylor Greene in a 2019 video outside Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez' office. CNN/Insider

Earlier this year, a video from 2018 emerged, showing her harassing and mocking Parkland shooting survivor David Hogg over his anti-gun stance.

Greene was stripped of her committee assignments in February after multiple incidences emerged of her endorsing political violence.

Recalling that, Greene told Kelly Friday that "there was no ethics violation against me, I've done nothing wrong."

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Kelly was keen to build the same narrative in his interview, saying that Democrats such as Ocasio-Cortez and Eric Swalwell - who has also been critical of Greene - are "picking on you."

MTG has challenged AOC to a debate on pay-per-view TV over the Green New Deal. Drew Angerer/Getty Images and Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Greene agreed, saying, "They don't know what to do with me because I'm not going to back down and be intimidated by their bully tactics."

She cited several instances that she said constituted bullying from Democrats:

An altercation in January with Missouri Rep. Cori Bush, where Bush was "verbally assaulting me in the tunnels, screaming at me," according to Greene. But when the incident was first reported, Bush said that it was Greene who berated her in the hallway after she had asked Greene to wear her mask properly.

In a live-streamed video from the tail end of the encounter, a voice can be heard shouting for Greene to put her mask on.

A standoff with Rep. Marie Newman, who in February planted the trans flag in what Greene described as "an aggressive manner" outside her own office. She also accused Newman of having "aggressively" bumped her shoulder while walking by her one time.

Pat Mullane, Newman's spokesperson, told Insider: "Like nearly every comment, claim and conspiracy that comes out of Marjorie Taylor Greene's mouth, this is laughably false and frankly absurd."

A video of Newman planting the flag can be seen here:

This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it.

A visit from Guam's congressional delegate Michael San Nicolas in March, during which National Guardsmen offered cookies and books to Greene's aides outside her office. Greene was not in the office at the time.

The gesture came after a gaffe from Greene, who had mistakenly said at CPAC that Guam was a foreign country that is undeserving of American aid.

In their interview, Kelly and Greene cast this as a threatening act.

"I saw an orchestrated political event using our troops, marching them into your office, which I found to be potentially intimidating," said Kelly.

"Thank God I wasn't in there," agreed Greene.



Greene did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
WARSAW, Poland (AP)  Poles pulled off their masks, hugged their friends and made toasts to their regained freedom as restaurants, bars and pubs reopened for the first time in seven months and the government dropped a requirement for people to cover their faces outdoors.

The reopening, for now limited now to the outdoor consumption of food and drinks, officially took place on Saturday. Yet many could not wait for midnight to strike and were out on the streets of Warsaw and other cities hours earlier on Friday evening to celebrate, gathering outside popular watering holes. Some brought their own beer to hold them over until they could buy drinks at midnight  though some bars were also seen serving up beers and cocktails early.

Now they are opening and I feel so awesome. You know, you feel like your freedom is back, said Gabriel Nikilovski, a 38-year-old from Sweden who was having beer at an outdoor table at the Pavilions, a popular courtyard filled with pubs in central Warsaw. It's like you've been in prison, but you've been in prison at home.

DJs were finally back at work and waiters and waitresses were rushing to fill orders once again. Meanwhile, the end of a requirement to wear masks outdoors added to the sense of liberation. Masks will still be required in settings like public transport and stores.

Bar owners were also happy, thanks to the prospect of being able to finally start earning money, and many said they had been bombarded with reservation requests leading up to the opening.

Today we feel as if it was New Years Eve because we are counting down to midnight," said Kasia Szczepanska, co-owner of a bar, CAVA, on Warsaws trendy Nowy Swiat street. It's like New Year's in May.

Pandemic restrictions have meant that restaurants, cafes and other establishments have been limited to offering only takeout food and drinks since last fall.

Everyone says theyre fed up with takeout food, food served on plastic," Szczepanska said.

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The easing of the countrys lockdown is coming in stages but the reopening of bars with outdoor gardens or dining areas was clearly a key psychological step on the road back to normality. From May 29, indoor dining will again be allowed.

Not all businesses survived the long months of forced closure, however, even with some government assistance, and others will be working at first simply to recoup their losses.

The loosening of restrictions comes as vaccinations have finally picked up speed across the European Union, of which Poland is a member, and the numbers of new COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations have plunged in Poland in recent weeks.

Yet many people don't feel like they can fully relax yet.

Aleksandra Konopka, who manages a bar along a popular promenade on the Vistula River where people were lounging in deck chairs and sipping drinks in the sandy garden with a beach-like vibe, said she was thrilled that things were coming back. But she is also nervous there could be more lockdowns as new virus variants circulate. And she said there are new challenges coming from the difficulty of finding workers.

Not everyone is willing to work in the gastronomy or hotel industry because they expect that they will lose their job," Konopka said. They changed professions and its hard to get service.

One of the customers lounging at her bar, Monika Rzezutka, said she had badly missed contact with people during the many months of lockdown and welcomed the resumption of normal life.

What used to be the norm suddenly becomes something unbelievable," said Rzezutka, a 23-year-old psychology student. Its a nice feeling.
NEW YORK (AP)  News organizations demanded an explanation Saturday for an Israeli airstrike that targeted and destroyed a Gaza City building housing the offices of The Associated Press, broadcaster Al-Jazeera and other media outlets.

AP journalists and other tenants were safely evacuated from the 12-story al-Jalaa tower after the Israeli military warned of an imminent strike. Three heavy missiles hit the building within the hour, disrupting coverage of the ongoing conflict between' Gazas Hamas rulers and Israel. At least 145 people in Gaza and eight in Israel have been killed since the fighting erupted on Monday night.

The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today, AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said. He said the American news agency was seeking information from the Israeli government and engaging with the U.S. State Department to learn more.

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al-Jazeera Media Network, called the strike a war crime and a clear act to stop journalists from reporting on the conflict. Kuwait state television also had office space in the now-collapsed Gaza City building.

The targeting of news organizations is completely unacceptable, even during an armed conflict. It represents a gross violation of human rights and internationally agreed norms, Barbara Trionfi, the executive director of the International Press Institute, said.

In a standard Israeli response, the military said that Hamas was operating inside the building, and it accused the militant group of using journalists as human shields. But it provided no evidence to back up the claims.

Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus claimed that Hamas used the building for a military intelligence office and weapons development. He alleged a highly advanced technological tool that the militant group used in the fighting was within or on the building."

But Conricus said he could not provide evidence to back up the claims without compromising intelligence efforts. He added, however: I think its a legitimate request to see more information, and I will try to provide it.

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Pruitt, the AP's CEO, said the news agency had been in the building for 15 years and we have had no indication Hamas was in the building or active in the building.

"We have called on the Israeli government to put forward the evidence," he said. This is something we actively check to the best of our ability. We would never knowingly put our journalists at risk.

Some press freedom advocates said the strike raised suspicions that Israel was trying to hinder coverage of the conflict. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists demanded Israel provide a detailed and documented justification for the strike.

This latest attack on a building long known by Israel to house international media raises the specter that the Israel Defense Forces is deliberately targeting media facilities in order to disrupt coverage of the human suffering in Gaza, the groups executive director, Joel Simon, said in a statement.

The Washington-based National Press Club called the strike part of a pattern this week of Israeli forces destroying buildings in Gaza that house media organizations" and also questioned whether the assaults seek to impair independent and accurate coverage of the conflict.

We call upon Israeli authorities to halt strikes on facilities known to house press, the National Press Club said. "Reliable media organizations are the best sources of accurate information about events in Gaza, and they must not be prevented from doing their vital job.

The bombing followed media consternation over an Israeli military statement that prompted some news organizations, including The Wall Street Journal, to erroneously report early Friday that Israel had launched a ground invasion of Gaza.

Israeli military commentators said the media had been used in a ruse to lure Hamas militants into a deadly trap. Conricus denied that the military engaged in a deliberate deception when it tweeted falsely Friday that ground forces were engaging in Gaza, calling it an honest mistake.

The AP, based on its analysis of the armys statement, phone calls to military officials and on the ground reporting in Gaza, concluded there was no ground incursion and did not report there was one.

The strike on a building known to have the offices of international media outlets came as a shock to reporters who had felt relatively protected there.

Now, one can understand the feeling of the people whose homes have been destroyed by such kind of air attacks, Al-Jazeera producer Safwat al-Kahlout, who was at the bureau in Gaza when the evacuation warning came, told the broadcaster Saturday. Its really difficult to wake up one day and then you realize that your office is not there with all the career experiences, memories that youve had.

APs top floor offices and roof terrace on the now-destroyed building had provided a prime location for covering fighting in Gaza. The news agencys camera offered 24-hour live shots this week as Hamas rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city.

Just a day before the bombing, AP correspondent Fares Akram wrote in a personal story that the AP office was the only place in Gaza were he felt somewhat safe.

The Israeli military has the coordinates of the high-rise, so its less likely a bomb will bring it crashing down, Akram wrote.

The next day, Akram tweeted about running from the building and watching its destruction from afar.

The New York Times joined other news organizations in expressing alarm about the targeting of al-Jalaa tower.

The ability of the press to report on the ground is a profoundly important issue that has an impact on everyone." the newspaper's vice president of communications, Danielle Rhoades Ha, said. A free and independent press is essential to helping to inform people, bridge differences and end the conflict.

___

Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this report.
May 15Patricia Anderson was happy to be back under the portal of the Palace of the Governors, selling her silver. The sun shone with a sense of welcoming, and her granddaughter was napping nearby as customers came by to look over the artist's wares.

Then it was time to wake up. It was only a beautiful dream  and one that hasn't yet been realized, Anderson said.

"I was so happy we were back on the porch," she said of her fantasy about the portal, home to Native American vendors for decades.

In the real world, anyone walking by or under the portal this week would have found it empty. Gone, since March 2020, are the Native American artists who usually set up shop there on any given day.

But with the coronavirus pandemic subsiding, vaccination rates increasing and mask mandates lifted in most places, there's hope Anderson and others will soon be back.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has said she expects to have New Mexico operating at full steam again by the end of June. "When she talks about full reopening, we anticipate it would touch on this kind of an activity," said New Mexico History Museum Executive Director Billy G. Garrett, referring to commerce under the portal.

But Garrett added late June  deep into the traditional tourist season  remains the reference point for reopening the area.

"We don't know if there will be any other adjustments that will be made prior to that time," he said.

The prospect of reopening soon is encouraging for those portal artists and customers who rely on them, said Maya Quintana, Anderson's granddaughter and a Zuni Pueblo silversmith who serves as vice chairwoman of the Portal Committee, a panel of artisans who oversee the Native American Artisans Portal Program.

Like her grandmother, Quintana said her sleep has been dominated by visions of returning to the Plaza.

"I constantly dream about going back and interacting with customers again," she said. "They're our second family."

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The portal program has served as a cultural anchor for the city of Santa Fe for decades, and it is as well known to tourists and locals as the annual art markets, Fiesta de Santa Fe and the burning of Zozobra.

The artists abandoned the portal in March 2020 as the pandemic swept over the state, depriving the Plaza of some of its unique flavor.

Those artists have paid a twofold price as a result, Quintana said. Some rely on the daily sales of their artwork to pay the bills. Quintana had been saving money to buy or build a house by the end of 2020.

Instead, those savings went into sustaining herself during the pandemic.

"My credit cards are maxed. I'm barely hanging on," she said.

Other losses were more personal, more painful to endure. Quintana and her grandmother cried when thinking about the portal artists who won't be coming back this year because the coronavirus, or some other illness or event, took their lives.

As it is, the artists and museum officials have to work out safety measures for reopening the program. Portal Committee members submitted a plan May 3. It requires all artists to wear masks and asks customers to do the same while maintaining social-distancing practices, though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday said those who are fully vaccinated can stop wearing masks and practicing social distancing in most places.

Exactly what that development means for the portal is unclear, but the plan offers two possibilities for maintaining social distance for artists. One would space those artists out to every third vendor space  about 7 feet between each one. The second would space them out by 3 1/2 feet, or every other vendor space.

Quintana said there are 69 spaces for artists at the site.

Garrett said the plan has not yet been approved by museum officials. "It's a continuing work in progress in terms of adapting the way the portal program works with COVID-safe practices," he said.

Garrett and Quintana said another possibility is to move some of the artists onto nearby Lincoln Avenue, on the east side of the Palace of the Governors.

About 1,500 artists are enrolled in the portal program, Garrett said. Of those, 200 to 300 are "actively engaged" in selling, he said.

Anderson, who has been making and selling her work for about 50 years, said that the first day she returns to the portal, she'll "throw my arms up in the air and I'm gonna cry. I miss my brothers and sisters."

And, if health mandates allow it, she said, "I'm gonna do a lot of hugging."
(Bloomberg) --

The U.K. is set to start its own carbon market with the aim of putting a price on polluting that it hopes will help achieve the countrys ambitious climate goals.

The first auction of emission permits on May 19 is the latest test of how the country copes with the separation from the European Union, its largest trading partner.

Until January, Britain was part of the EUs emissions trading system, the worlds largest cap-and-trade program and the centerpiece of the blocs efforts to limit climate change. By going it alone, the U.K. is forgoing a 16-year-old market that helped cut EU emissions by almost a quarter in the past two decades.

The U.K. auction will be keenly watched to see how close prices will be to those in Europe, where emission costs have doubled in the past six months to a record. Too high a price could tilt the economic playing field against U.K. companies by overburdening them with permit costs, while one too low diminishes the incentive to invest in low-carbon technology.

While the U.K. market was designed to be almost exactly like the EU system, there are a few key differences.

The main one is that its much smaller. That means there are far fewer industrial and power-sector emissions that need permits. The U.K. is set to auction about 83 million permits this year, compared to more than 700 million for the EU.

Its an issue market participants are concerned about. Earlier this year representatives from industry groups in the U.K. and Europe wrote to Prime Minister Boris Johnson to urge him to link the carbon trading system with the larger EU system. That would mean permits from both the U.K. and EU could be used to account for emissions in either.

The smaller market size also raises the risk of bigger price swings. An emissions trading system is meant to give businesses an indication of when is a good time to invest in lower-carbon alternatives. A high degree of volatility could hurt confidence that the emissions price is a reliable figure.

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Its an emissions trading system for a very small market, which makes no sense, said Jan Ahrens, head of research at SparkChange, a platform to facilitate investments in carbon markets. That has the risk of having high price volatility.

Volatility and a surging price could also be affected by how much financial players buy into the market. Demand from investment funds helped drive the gains in the EU carbon price this year. Ahrens said the investors he works with are eager to buy British carbon.

So how much will emissions cost in the U.K.? The main indicator is the EU carbon price, which has gained more than 70% this year to a peak of 56.90 euros per metric ton, or 49.01 pounds, on Friday.

The U.K. market is set to be oversupplied from the outset, a bearish indicator for prices. The cap for total emissions is about 156 million tons, compared with about 97 million tons of actual emissions estimated by BloombergNEF. That surplus is intentional, allowing market participants to accumulate permits to hedge for future years. The cap will likely be revised in the coming years to shrink with the U.K.s plans to rapidly cut emissions this decade.

There is also a safety net built into the British system. Unlike the EU, the U.K. has a price floor so that permits cant be auctioned below 22 pounds. But similar to the EU, theres a mechanism for the government to add permits to the market if prices rise too far, too fast.

U.K. Plans Deeper Carbon Cuts to Spur Climate Change Fight

Its a part of the U.K.s effort to ensure that the system works as planned, that companies that need permits can get them and that prices dont bounce around too much after the markets launch.

This is the first year, so they want to make sure the market is effective, said Bo Qin, analyst at BloombergNEF. Not too high, not too low,

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

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Undated photo provided by the Butte County district attorney shows Ryan Scott Blinston, of Oroville, Calif. Blinston has been charged with a series of throat-slashing serial killings that left three dead. (AP)

A tree trimmer in rural Northern California has been charged in throat-slashing serial killings that left three people dead, prosecutors announced this week.

Ryan Scott Blinston, 37, of the small city of Oroville, was charged Wednesday with murder, attempted murder and arson. The charges included special sentencing allegations that Blinston used a deadly weapon, attacked an elderly victim and committed multiple killings.

Blinston didn't enter a plea during his arraignment Thursday. He was appointed a public defender and ordered held without bail pending a Wednesday court hearing. Some relatives of the victims were in court for the hearing, Butte County Dist. Atty. Michael L. Ramsey said.

The defendant could face life in prison without possibility of parole if convicted.

Blinston had been in jail since he was arrested last year and charged in another throat-slashing, authorities said.

He was working for a tree-trimming service in Butte and Tehama counties, north of Sacramento, last May and June when he returned to the clients' homes after the work was completed and slashed the throats of the residents, according to prosecutors.

Loreen Severs, 88, of Los Molinos died and her husband, Homer Severs, 91, survived but died that December of an unrelated illness, authorities said.

Blinston also is accused of killing Sandra George, 82, and an acquaintance, Vicky Cline, 57, both of Oroville. He also is charged with torching Cline's car.

Blood and DNA evidence on and in Blinstons car was forensically matched back to Cline. Her body was later discovered by a fisherman in the Feather River near Belden," said a joint statement from the Butte County and Tehama County district attorney's offices, which filed the charges in Butte County Superior Court.

Blinston was arrested before dawn June 14  about a week after Cline vanished  by a Butte County sheriff's SWAT team that had tracked him to a motorhome in heavily wooded and isolated Brush Creek, where authorities planned to arrest him on suspicion of burning Cline's car, prosecutors said.

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As the team approached the motorhome, they heard the muffled screams of a man inside and loud banging on the outside of the motorhome. The banging turned out to be Blinston attempting to get into the motorhome with a hatchet," the district attorneys' statement said.

Blinston ran into the woods, refused to drop the hatchet and was captured after a short struggle and the use of a stun gun and pepper spray, authorities said.

Blinston had met the 50-year-old owner of the motorhome earlier, then stayed over because he told the man he was afraid to leave after dark because of bears, the resident told authorities.

The man said he was sleeping when he awoke to find Blinston attacking him with a knife, Dist. Atty. Ramsey said.

Blinston slashed the man's neck but the man said he was able to kick him out of the motorhome and lock the door, Ramsey said.

A medic treated the seriously injured man and he was airlifted to a hospital.

The SWAT team may have saved the man's life, Ramsey said, because the isolated area had no cellphone service and it was unlikely anyone would have heard the man's cries for help.

Blinston pleaded not guilty to attempted murder in that case last year.

There was no immediate word on a motive. Blinston had previous arrests, including in 2013 for allegedly driving a stolen Lexus and being in possession of three guns taken in burglaries.

However, none of his previous arrests involved the level of violence seen in the attacks, Ramsey said.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
An Oklahoma City man is facing charges after he was accused of pointing a pistol outfitted with a laser pointer at a police helicopter.

Video Transcript

MSGT.GARY KNIGHT: Obviously that's against the law, and that can have very tragic results, if things go wrong because of that.

LAUREN DANIELS: According to the police report, OK CPD's air one helicopter was flying over the city Southwest side, around 5 o'clock Thursday morning. That's when officers on board noticed a laser pointed at them, and spotted the suspect 26-year-old Corey Gene Shipman.

MSGT.GARY KNIGHT: They saw the man on the ground in a residence, he then went into the house.

LAUREN DANIELS: Officers on the ground were contacted, and sent to shipman's address. Once there, they spotted him inside with a gun. They then began working on a plan to get him out safely.

MSGT.GARY KNIGHT: He simply came out, spoke to them.

LAUREN DANIELS: Shipman was arrested and is facing charges of pointing a laser at an aircraft, as well as pointing a firearm, as that laser was attached to one. News 4 Chopper four pilot Mason Dunn says in the past he's witnessed the dangers laser pointers Pose, when you're operating aircraft.

MASON DUNN: You fly at night, you keep the cockpit really dark, so you can see outside and then when there's a bright light, it's distracting, you might think it's a Warning light, and it can blind you from seeing what you need to see, so, there's a reason that it's a federal offense to shine a laser at an aircraft.

LAUREN DANIELS: Lauren Daniels, Oklahoma's News 4.

- And this type of crime has been on the rise, the Federal Aviation Administration reported more than 6800 laser incidents in 2020, the highest reported number since 2016. News 4 tried contacting Shipman, but we did not hear.
The state of Idaho is poised to buy the historic Carnegie Library near Boise High School and rent it out to the University of Idaho Law school for study and event space.

On Wednesday, both the Idaho House and Senate passed House Bill 408, which authorizes $2.1 million to buy the 117-year-old building from Shawn Swanby, CEO of Ednetics, a North Idaho tech firm.

While the Legislature approved the transfer of $7 million to the Permanent Building Fund for the purchase and renovation of the library, it approved only $200,000 for renovation costs. The Legislature would have to approve any further spending.

Swanby, a University of Idaho graduate, bought the building at 815 W. Washington St. in 2019 with plans to renovate it. The Carnegie Library, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, had sat vacant for 18 months before Swanby bought it, after a law firm moved out.

The two-story neoclassical building at 815 W. Washington St. served as the citys library for nearly 70 years. That use ended in 1973, when the library moved to a former warehouse at 715 S. Capitol Blvd. that it still occupies.

When the library was dedicated on May 3, 1905, the Idaho Statesman described it as marking an epoch in the citys history.

The dedication of the Boise Carnegie Library in May 1905 was heralded by the Idaho Statesman. Judge James Ailshie of the Idaho Supreme Court praised the women of the Columbian Club, which spearheaded the drive to build the library. The women whose vigilance and industry have so fashioned circumstances and moulded sentiment as to make posible this event and the realizations of this day are to be congratulated; yes, thrice congratulated, upon their splendid achievement, Alshie said.

This library is a light in the window of Idaho toward which all her children may turn, Judge C.C. Goodwin, a Salt Lake City resident who spent 21 years as editor of the Salt Lake City Tribune, said at the dedication ceremony.

The bill, introduced on Wednesday, sailed through the Legislature. It passed that day 46-19 in the House and 26-1 in the Senate. It was sent to Gov. Brad Little on Thursday. He has not indicated whether he will sign the bill.

The bill sought $7 million from the Pernament Building Fund for the purchase and renovations. The committee and the House and Senate agreed to move the money into the the Department of Administrations budget, but for now only agreed

Sen. Jeff Agenbroad, R-Nampa, questioned the urgency of the request. He wondered whether Swanby planned to sell the building to another entity if the state didnt act quickly.

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This one is coming at us pretty fast, Agenbroad said.

Jill Randolph, a senior legislative budget and policy analyst, told the committee that Swanby wished to sell the building in the coming months. And Keith Reynolds, director of the Department of Administration, said Swanby was willing to sell the building at the price he bought it for and donate the $1 million worth of renovations completed so far.

Boise developer Ken Howell, right, talks with Christopher Huntley, owner of Huntley Law Firm, which occupied the historic Carnegie Public Library building before it was sold in 2019.

Although the purchase of the Carnegie Library by the state hadnt been publicly disclosed before the committee meeting, it had been discussed for many months, Alex Adams, administrator of the Idaho Division of Financial Management, said.

It has been somewhat on our radar for a number of years, Reynolds said. The risk of passing on any real estate is that it may not be available nine months from now if we pass today.

Rep. Ron Nate, R-Rexburg, voted against the committee motion to recommend buying the building. He said the state already has enough space for events. The discussion indicated that only the University of Idaho would have use of the space.

The university moved its Boise law school (the main law school campus is in Moscow) into the old Ada County Courthouse in 2015. The building is now known as the Idaho Law and Justice Learning Center.

The building was vacated by Ada County in 2002, then used by the Idaho Legislature and other state government offices when they needed temporary space.

A university spokesperson could not answer why the law school needs the additional space at the Carnegie building. She was unsuccessful Friday in finding someone else to answer the question.

Its unclear whether Little plans to sign the bill. A request for comment from his office was not immediately returned Friday.

A message to Swanby was also not returned.
The images and reports coming from Israel, Jerusalem and Gaza in recent days are shocking. They are also surprising to those who thought the 2020 Abraham Accords and subsequent agreements to normalize relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan would place the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians permanently on the backburner.

As someone who has been writing and teaching about the Middle East for more than 30 years, I had no such illusions. The reason for this is that at its heart, the so-called Arab-Israeli conflict has always been about Israelis and Palestinians. And no matter how many treaties Israel signs with Arab states, it will remain so.

In a phone call on May 12, President Joe Biden assured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of his unwavering support for Israels security and for Israels legitimate right to defend itself and its people. Biden was referencing the rocket attacks on Israel launched by Hamas, the Islamist group that governs Gaza. By targeting civilians, Hamas is committing a war crime. In all probability, so is Israel, by bombing and shelling Gaza.

Bright trails of rockets fired towards Israel from the Gaza strip, lighting up the orange night sky

Despite the carnage the Hamas rocket attacks and Israeli retaliation inflicts on Israelis and Gazans, the Biden administration is focusing on a sideshow, not the main event.

That main event is an unprecedented conflict taking place on the streets of Jerusalem, Haifa, Lod and elsewhere. Its what scholars call an intercommunal conflict, pitting elements of Israels Jewish population against elements of Israels Palestinian population who have had enough and have taken to the streets.

Hamas could not maintain its credibility as a movement if it sat by while Palestinians in Israel battled Jewish Israelis there. The reality is that Israel is having its Black Lives Matter moment.

As in the United States, a brutalized minority group, facing systemic racism and discriminatory acts, has taken to the streets. And, as in the United States, the only way out starts with serious soul-searching on the part of the majority.

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But after the spate of Palestinian suicide bombings in the early 2000s that horrified Israelis and hardened their attitudes toward Palestinians, this is unlikely to occur.

Many reasons, one source

Palestinian anger can be attributed to multiple issues. In April, Israel attempted to impede access to Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem for Palestinians living in the West Bank. Israeli police then raided the Muslim holy site, reportedly after Palestinians threw stones at them, injuring 330. At the beginning of May, Mahmoud Abbas, the current president of the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank, cancelled the first Palestinian legislative elections in 15 years. Finally, when the current conflict spilled over into the West Bank, the Israeli occupation and continued colonization of Palestinian territory were thrown into the mix.

These significant issues explain Palestinian anger. However, the intercommunal nature of the ongoing conflagration is due to two other issues.

First, Jewish settlers attempted to evict eight Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Jerusalem. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency had settled the families in the neighborhood during the 1950s.

Jewish settlers filed suit in 1972 claiming their right to the homes where those families lived. They argued that Jews had owned the Palestinians homes before the division of the city in the aftermath of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. By right, they argue, the homes belong to their community.

Jewish neighborhoods housing more than 215,000 encircle the predominantly Palestinian eastern part of Jerusalem, where Sheikh Jarrah is located. For Palestinians, the attempt to evict the families is representative of Israels overall policy of pushing them out of the city. It is not only a reminder that in a Jewish state Palestinians are second-class citizens, but a reenactment of the central tragedy in the Palestinian national memory: the Nakba of 1948, when 720,000 Palestinians fled their homes in what would become the state of Israel, becoming refugees.

Three members of the Israeli security forces. One is firing tear gas.

Growing anti-Arab racism

The second reason for the intercommunal nature of the current conflict is the emboldening of Israels extreme right-wing politicians and their followers. Among them are latter-day Kahanists, the followers of the late Meir Kahane. Kahane was an American rabbi who moved to Israel. Kahanes anti-Arab racism was so extreme that the United States listed the party he founded as a terrorist group. Kahane proposed paying Israels Palestinian population $40,000 each to leave Israel. If they refused, Israel should expel them, he argued.

Kahanism and like-minded movements are on the rise in Israel. A Kahanist was recently elected to the Israeli Knesset, or parliament, and Netanyahu courted his support when the prime minister was attempting to form a government in February, 2019. Kahanists and other ultranationalist thugs  the Proud Boys of Israel  march through Palestinian-Israeli neighborhoods chanting Death to Arabs and assault them.

The current crisis began on May 6, 2021. Pro-Palestinian protesters in Sheikh Jarrah had been breaking the Ramadan fast together each night of the holiday, a custom called iftar. On this particular night, Israeli settlers set up a table opposite them. In the settlers group was Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Kahanist deputy. Rocks and other objects began to fly. Then the violence spread.

In the coastal city of Bat Yam, a Jewish mob marched down the street busting up Palestinian businesses, while another mob attempted to lynch a Palestinian driver. The same scene was replayed in Acre, only this time it was a Palestinian mob that assaulted a Jewish man. Another Palestinian mob burned a police station to the ground in the same city. And in a Tel Aviv suburb, a man presumed to be a Palestinian was pulled from his car and beaten.

[Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversations newsletter to understand the world. Sign up today.]

Lod is a city south of Tel Aviv with a mixed Palestinian and Jewish population. Not only was it the site of a Hamas missile strike that killed two Palestinians, it was where heavy fighting took place between Palestinian and Jewish mobs.

The fighting began after a funeral of a Palestinian man who was killed by an assailant presumed to be Jewish. It was so heavy at times that the Israeli government brought in border guards from the West Bank to quell the unrest. The mayor characterized what was happening in his town as a civil war.

The mayor also reminded the residents of Lod, The day after, we still have to live here together.

He did not explain how this was to happen.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. It was written by: James L. Gelvin, University of California, Los Angeles.

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James L. Gelvin does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
USC graduates cheer on the field of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Friday morning during the first of the university's 14 commencement ceremonies in seven days for the classes of 2020 and 2021. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

The field of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum was filled with USC graduates from the classes of 2020 and 2021 on Friday as they participated in the first of USC's 14 commencement ceremonies.

About 1,500 students celebrated their graduation Friday morning, and a total of 21,000 will take part in twice-daily commencement ceremonies over seven days. Students were spaced eight feet apart on the field, and spectators were distanced in the stands at the Coliseum, which last held a USC commencement ceremony in 1950.

Maria Zamora sanitizes chairs in the Coliseum before the commencement ceremony. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Empty chairs are at the ready in the Coliseum before the commencement ceremony. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Ecstasy Plant wears a unique mask while waiting for the ceremony to start. She is graduating with a BA in art. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)

Roland Azurin, graduating with a master's degree from the Keck School of Medicine, sits with the rest of his graduating class in the socially distanced setup. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

A graduate on a video call with family and friends before the commencement ceremony. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Emily Hernandez, left, Gisela Gonzalez and Johanna De Silva, all graduating with master's degrees in physician assistant practice, take a selfie. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Megan McDuffee, left, fixes the sash of Hayley Bry. Both are graduating with a bachelor's degree in health promotion. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Tianna Shaw-Wakeman, the first Black valedictorian in USC history, addresses fellow graduates. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Students were spaced eight feet apart on the field, and spectators were distanced in the stands. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Aleeson Eka, left, Josephine Nwokedi and Lawrence Rolle show off their dual diplomas as all are graduating with medical doctorates and master's degrees from the Keck School of Medicine and the Marshall School of Business. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Jacqueline Chu, left, Marissa Kuo and Deborah Madelon, all graduating with master's degrees in physician assistant practice, signal to family in the stands. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Jia (Tina) Huiting, left, photographs Karishma Chhugani after they graduated with master's degrees in pharmaceutical sciences from USC School of Pharmacy. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich is one step closer to freedom, after prosecutors agreed to end his supervised release early.

Video Transcript

- Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is one step closer to complete freedom. Federal prosecutors say they plan to end his supervised release early. Last year, former President Trump commuted Blagojevich's sentence for a federal corruption conviction. A judge still needs to approve that plan.
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP)  State prosecutors on Friday asked a judge to dismiss most sex crime charges filed against a reality TV doctor and his girlfriend, who are accused of drugging and raping several women at their Southern California home.

The attorney general's office, which took over the case from the Orange County district attorney's office last year, filed a motion asking for dismissal of 10 charges involving six of the seven alleged victims.

We have no reason to believe that any of these victims are being untruthful, but a review found that some allegations couldnt be proved beyond a reasonable doubt, the prosecutor said.

The motion said a review found that some allegations couldn't be proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

However, Orange County Superior Court Judge Steven D. Bromberg asked the state to file a brief with more information before he rules on the motion, which could happen next month.

Noting twists and turns in the case, Bromberg said it is becoming the never-ending story.

Dr. Grant Robicheaux, a surgeon who previously appeared on a Bravo TV show called Online Dating Rituals of the American Male, was charged in 2018 with in connection with seven victims, and Cerissa Riley was charged in connection with five. At the time, authorities said the pair plied their victims with drugs and sexually assaulted them when they were incapable of resisting.

Robicheaux, 40, and Riley, 33, have pleaded not guilty, saying the sex was consensual.

If the charges are dropped, the case would be pared down to allegations that Robicheaux and Riley assaulted a woman in 2017 at their Newport Beach home with intent to commit sexual offense. The state is asking for dismissal of a charge that they kidnapped the woman.

At the same time, state prosecutors want to file four additional charges alleging that the couple gave the woman drugs in an effort to have sex with her while she was unable to resist.

If convicted of assaulting one woman, Robicheaux and Riley could face 10 years in prison. If the judge won't dismiss the other charges, a conviction could carry a potential life sentence.

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We have no reason to believe that any of these victims are being untruthful," but a review found that some allegations couldn't be proved beyond a reasonable doubt, Deputy Attorney General Yvette Martinez said in court.

Obviously, the victims are not in favor of this and want the chance to testify, said Mike Fell, an attorney for one alleged victim who could be removed from the case.

Last August, another judge ordered that the case be turned over to the attorney generals office after the Orange County district attorneys office tried to have the case dismissed, saying it believed there was insufficient evidence to proceed.

District Attorney Todd Spitzer had accused his predecessor, Tony Rackauckas, of manufacturing the case to bolster his reelection campaign.
A protester saved the life of a woman who was shot at as she walked into a San Antonio, Texas, women's clinic on Saturday morning, police said.

Officers responded to gunfire outside of women's reproductive health clinic around 8:30 a.m. CT. While no one was injured, authorities discovered several gunshots to the Alamo Womens Reproductive Services building.

Protesters who were standing outside the clinic witnessed the shooting, San Antonio police spokesman Chris Ramos said in a press conference. One of them was armed and opened fire on the suspected gunman, who fled the scene, he said.

Authorities don't know if he was wounded as a result of the protester's intervention. The protester had a permit to carry a concealed handgun, according to Ramos.

He absolutely saved this young ladys life," he said. "He did something a reasonable person would do and he saw someone engaged in a shooting and he stepped in and intervened and stopped that shooting from occurring.

While police were canvassing the area to look for the suspected shooter, they found a gun they believe he used in the incident, Ramos said.

Police are investigating the shooting as a possible domestic violence incident because the woman and the alleged gunman know each other.
Protesters throw the statue of Edward Colston into Bristol harbour during a Black Lives Matter protest rally - Keri Gravel/Reuters

Voters in Red Wall seats will replace people from metropolitan bubbles on the boards of Britain's museums and heritage bodies to stop them bowing to pressure from woke activists over contested history.

Oliver Dowden, the Culture Secretary, said on Saturday that he wants people from the North and the Midlands to join the management of top cultural organisations and give them the courage to stand up against the political fads and noisy movements of the moment.

Separately Robert Jenrick, the Communities Secretary, said he will amend regulations so that buildings used by the public have separate ladies and gents lavatories, in a blow for campaigners who want more gender-neutral facilities.

In an article for The Telegraph, Mr Dowden said he will take not a Maoist approach but a moreist approach to our heritage.

He said: I want more statues erected; more chapters added to our national narrative and more understanding of it. In short, more history, not less.

Mr Dowden has grown increasingly frustrated at the way that heritage bodies have allowed themselves to be bullied by campaigners into removing statues erected to honour figures from Britains imperial past, or censoring other contested parts of UK history.

Mr Dowden has summoned 25 of the UK's biggest heritage bodies and charities to a summit. They will be told "to defend our culture and history from the noisy minority of activists constantly trying to do Britain down.

Mr Dowden now says it is time for heritage bodies to fight back against this pressure. He said: Museums and other bodies need to have genuine curatorial independence. But that independence cuts both ways.

Heritage organisations should be free from government meddling, but the people who run them also need the courage to stand up against the political fads and noisy movements of the moment.

He added: And as national institutions, heritage organisations should take into account the views of the entire nation: the people for whom they were set up, and whose taxes pay for them.

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Thats why I want to make sure the boards of these bodies are genuinely diverse and not solely governed by people from metropolitan bubbles.

I want a grandparent in Hartlepool or Harwich to feel as represented by their decisions as a millennial in Islington.

Official figures show that last year 50 per cent of the chairmen and trustees appointed by Mr Dowden's department to publicly funded institutions lived in London.

Mr Dowden has taken aim at the University of Liverpool, which last week renamed a student accommodation block named after William Gladstone, one of Britains greatest prime ministers, because his father had owned slaves.

He said: I dont agree with that approach. Leading voices in our museums and heritage organisations dont agree with that approach. And neither does the British public. Instead he wants organisations to retain and explain the pasts of historical figures.

Mr Dowden said: I will not simply look on as people threaten to pull down statues or strip other parts of our rich historic environment.

He added: Confident nations face up to their history. They dont airbrush it. Instead, they protect their heritage and use it to educate the public about the past. They retain and explain, rather than remove or ignore.

The news follows the resignation of Sir Charles Dunstone as chairman of the Royal Museums Greenwich, after he clashed with Mr Dowden who had refused to grant a second term to a trustee and academic whose work had supported decolonising the curriculum.

A newly-formed Heritage Advisory Board  comprising Museum of the Homes Samir Shah, as well as Sir Trevor Phillips, a former head of the human rights watchdog and historian Robert Tombs  met last week for the first time to draw up new guidelines for heritage organisations on how this should be done. It will report back in the coming months.

Mr Dowden added: None of this means preserving our history in aspic. History is a dynamic, living subject, and its right that we constantly reassess and reinterpret events as our understanding evolves.

But any account of the past should start from a commitment to telling a balanced, nuanced and academically rigorous story  and one that doesnt automatically start from a position of guilt and shame or the denigration of this countrys past.

This means that it is possible to acknowledge the evil of slavery, but also that this isnt a uniquely British crime, and that our nation led the world in eradicating it.

Mr Dowden said: The point is to expand the conversation  not shut it down. The pressure on our heritage is part of a worrying trend  a cancel culture whereby a small but vocal group of people claim to have the monopoly on virtue, and seek to bully those who dare to disagree.

But the world is too complicated for that kind of totalitarian moral certainty  and we must resist it at all costs.

Mr Dowdens initiative was welcomed by Sir John Hayes, the chairman of the Common Sense group of Conservative MPs, who said: People who run heritage bodies are custodians of a heritage much older than any of us which will last much longer than any of us.

They should see themselves as custodians and therefore the abandonment of parts of heritage is just not acceptable.

Some of what we have heard from public bodies has been mischievous, some of it has been sinister and some of it has just been daft. It needs to be stopped in its tracks.
The 82-year-old U.S. congresswoman detailed a death threat she received, in which a caller referred to her as the n-word and said she deserved to be hung by a rope for treason.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters is weighing a lawsuit against Fox News after the conservative news outlet reported that she requested and utilized federal law enforcement for security during her travels to and from Minnesota where she attended a Black Lives Matter demonstration last month.

Chairwoman Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) (Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

In a report published on Friday, Fox News claimed Rep. Waters (D-Calif.) used government resources to be accompanied by two armed Capitol Police officers and two U.S. Secret Service agents and that she requested two air marshals and two more marshals to escort her in the airport.

Fox cited an alleged complaint filed with the U.S. House Committee on Ethics and Air Marshal National Council President, however, U.S. Capitol Police and U.S. Secret Service denied the claims to the outlet.

Read More: Maxine Waters slams blatant distortion of critics framing her as violent

On Saturday, Congresswoman Waters rebuked Fox News reporting and echoed the denials issued by the federal law enforcement agencies. Whats more, the chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services threatened to sue the conservative news organization and said its false claim, among other previous reporting, has led to continued death threats made against her.

Fox News is an organization that charades as a news outlet while manufacturing lies, claiming them as truths, and using their platform that reaches millions of Americans as a vessel to spread misinformation. It is no surprise that the targets of Foxs misinformation campaigns include women of color like me, other people of color, and anyone who dares to speak the truth, Waters said in the lengthy statement provided to theGrio.

Protesters rally against Fox News outside the Fox News headquarters at the News Corporation building. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

In a recent article by Fox News, reporters William La Jeunesse and Lee Ross cited sources that falsely claimed I was accompanied by two armed Capitol Police and two U.S. Secret Service agents on an April 17 flight, that I requested a total of four U.S. Air Marshals, and used government resources for my travels. Variations of this article and false claim were then published by the New York Post and the Daily Mail.

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The statement added, Each and every one of these claims is an absolute lie. Let it be made clear that I have never requested or utilized any Capitol Police, Secret Service, or U.S. Air Marshal presence on that flight or any of my flights.

Waters said after her trip to Minnesota during the Derek Chauvin murder trial, which was feverishly covered by news outlets after she was accused of encouraging violence (which she vehemently denied in an exclusive interview with theGrio), she discovered that documents regarding a security threat assessment that included her flight number and additional travel information were leaked to the conservative media outlet TownHall.

Despite claims that these documents indicated her request for police protection, Waters said its an absolute lie.

Read More: Whats In It For Us podcast unpacks exclusive Maxine Waters interview with Gerren Keith Gaynor

This leak of my travel information and operational and threat assessment information is deeply disturbing and puts my life at risk, the congresswoman said.

Capitol Police are investigating the source of the security assessment leak.

Rep. Maxine Waters, D-CA, speaks during a House Select Subcommittee hearing on April 15, 2021 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. (Photo by Susan Walsh-Pool/Getty Images)

Because of the way that right wing media outlets have rushed to spread lies about me, it should be no surprise that as an outspoken Black woman with an important role in Congress as Chair of the House Committee on Financial Services, death threats against me have continued, Waters added.

The 82-year-old U.S. representative detailed a death threat she received on her voicemail, in which the caller who claimed to be from Louisiana referred to her as the n-word and said she deserved to be hung by a rope for treason.

I pray for your death every day just like you prayed for the fucking conviction of an officer who is not guilty, the caller said. So, go fuck yourself and go shove your face into some dough, in the kitchen, and make some gorilla cookies, bitch Fuck you Maxine Waters

Just weeks before a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol building, Waters received a threatening voicemail from a man in Kansas who said, Your time is coming n*gger bitchI got an AK47 and Ill use it if I have to.

Read More: Echoing Maxine Waters, Jim Clyburn says Americans must confront injustice

Waters, who was an early critic of former President Donald Trump and called for his impeachment days into his presidency, has become a frequent target of Republicans and right-wing media outlets. The congresswoman has cited several death threats over the years.

Now Rep. Waters said she is considering a lawsuit against Fox News.

Rep. Maxine Waters (above) questions Health and Human Services Secretary Alex M. Azar at a hearing before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis last month in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Micahel A. McCoy  Pool/Getty Images)

Once again, this is a made-up story by Fox News, which is not only irresponsible, but now openly creating danger for me. My office is now getting even more calls from haters who are threatening my life due to this type of reporting. As a result of Foxs willingness to lie and deceive its audience, I am now considering a lawsuit against Fox News and demand an immediate retraction of the article, she said.

 my life is constantly threatened by racists, haters, and ill-informed people under the influence of the likes of Fox News. If in fact I lose my life because of these scurrilous attacks in the fight against injustice and racism, my life will not have been lost in vain.

Fox News did not immediately respond to theGrios request for comment.

Have you subscribed to theGrios Dear Culture podcast? Download our newest episodes now!

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The post Rep. Maxine Waters threatens to sue Fox News after false claims, citing death threats appeared first on TheGrio.
It happened in a moment.

We were looking from our hotel balcony Saturday at the Tel Aviv beach scene, full of happy families frolicking in the Mediterranean. Then we suddenly heard sirens and loudspeaker warnings, and watched people scramble for cover.

Some rushed into our hotel lobby to take advantage of the buildings bomb shelter. Cameraman Pierre and I immediatley went up to the roof, where we listened to the explosions and saw rockets crisscrossing the skies.

LIVE UPDATES: ISRAEL TAKES OUT MEDIA BUILDING IT SAYS WAS BEING USED BY HAMAS

Once again, Israels battle with the Hamas militant group based in the Gaza Strip was brought home to residents of the countrys biggest city, some 40 miles away.

Hamas also sent a barrage of missiles into the center of the country. Most were knocked out by Israels Iron Dome defense system. But a few got through. One hit the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan just about a mile from where we are, killing one person, injuring several others, and damaging buildings and cars.

After it was over, our hotel manager came up to check if we were OK. While we watched the aerial duel, we spoke with another guest of the hotel and he told us what it was like the last time Tel Aviv was hit by Hamas earlier this week. He said the building, including window frames, shook from the blasts.

CNN ANCHOR CLASHES WITH EX-ISRAELI DEFENSE MINISTER, ACCUSES ISRAEL OF INDISCRIMINATE AIRSTRIKES

The word from the Hamas groups spokesperson was that this barrage of rockets was in response to an Israeli strike on a refugee camp in Gaza which they claim killed an extended Palestinian family of 10, including children. They also worryingly said that they could target Tel Aviv for the next six months.

The broader reach of Hamas is just one of several surprises Israel is dealing with as it does battle this time. The Palestinian rockets used to pose a limited threat, making it just a few miles across the border with Gaza. That kept hostilities localized.

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The latest rockets can target much of Israel  indiscriminately, because they are mostly unguided. The Israeli defense system has basically kept up with the advances, but its estimated that 10 percent of the missiles evade the anti-missile fusillade.

And if there are thousands in the Hamas arsenal that could spell a lot more trouble for civilians.

A few hours after missiles filled the skies over Tel Aviv, police patrolled the beach trying to convince stragglers that this was not a safe place to spend ones leisure time. But at least some resisted the warnings and continued to enjoy the warm early summer sun. Despite a deadly and tortured geopolitical tangle ... some life goes on.
RICHMOND, Texas (AP)  While a Texas man who police allege is the owner of a tiger that frightened residents after it was seen briefly wandering around a Houston neighborhood was ordered back behind bars on Friday, the animals whereabouts remain a mystery.

An all-day court hearing Friday didnt reveal any new information on the tigers whereabouts as Houston police say about 300 tips theyve so far received havent panned out.

Police allege Victor Hugo Cuevas is the owner of the tiger, a 9-month old male named India, and he is facing a charge of evading arrest after authorities allege he fled from Houston officers who responded to a call about a dangerous animal on Sunday night.

After a court hearing in a separate case Cuevas, 26, is facing in neighboring Fort Bend County, his attorney, Michael W. Elliott, reiterated his client doesnt own the tiger. Elliott said he only knew the first name of the owner, that he has been working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to find India and that Cuevas only wants for the animal to be safe.

We want to find India. Somebody knows where India is at. Hopefully the cat is still doing well, Elliott said.

At a separate news conference in Houston earlier Friday, police Cmdr. Ron Borza said some of the tips officers have received on the tigers possible location have been a little bit crazy.

We know the group of people that are involved in the exotic animal trade here in Houston ... We have visited all of them and no luck so far, Borza said.

Investigators believe the tiger has likely been passed around between six and eight different locations in Houston in an effort to hide it but that the animal is probably still in the city, Borza said.

Carole Baskin, from the Netflixs docuseries Tiger King, has offered a $5,000 reward for the tigers safe return.

At the time of his arrest on Monday for allegedly evading Houston police, Cuevas was already out on bond for a murder charge in a 2017 fatal shooting in Fort Bend County. Cuevas has maintained the shooting was self-defense, Elliott said. Cuevas had been released on a separate bond for the evading arrest charge on Wednesday.

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During a court hearing Friday, Fort Bend County prosecutor Christopher Baugh asked Cuevas be held without a bond for the murder charge, alleging the incident with the tiger showed Cuevas has a total disregard for the public safety.

State District Judge Frank J. Fraley did not grant the request, but instead revoked Cuevas current $125,000 bond and issued a new bond for $300,000. It was the fifth time that Cuevas bond had been revoked in the murder case.

Borza said that Cuevas and his attorney have not cooperated with Houston police in the search for the tiger but maybe if he goes to jail hed be more cooperative with us. Well see how that goes.

During Fridays court hearing, Waller County Sheriffs Office Deputy Wes Manion testified he lives in the Houston neighborhood and was alerted about the tiger by a neighbor.

Manion testified he interacted with the tiger for about 10 minutes to make sure it didnt go after someone else and that Cuevas came out of his house yelling, Dont kill it and that it was his tiger.

He approached the tiger, grabbed it by the collar, kissed its forehead, Manion said.

The deputy said he identified himself to Cuevas and told him not to leave after he loaded the animal in the back of a white Jeep Cherokee but that Cuevas fled the scene just as Houston police arrived.

During the court hearing, Elliott argued Cuevas was not aware that Houston police wanted to question him and that he only left because he feared for the tigers safety because Manion had been aggressive. Elliott said the tigers release was an accident as it likely jumped a fence.

Elliott also said Cuevas did nothing illegal as Texas has no statewide law forbidding private ownership of tigers and other exotic animals. Tigers are not allowed within Houston city limits under a city ordinance unless the handler, such as a zoo, is licensed to have exotic animals.

After the court hearing, Elliott described the tiger as more of a pet, like a dog, and that Cuevas would occasionally take care of the animal for its owner. Elliott provided copies of pictures that showed Cuevas cuddling with the tiger and kissing it.

Elliott said Cuevas, who is a mixed martial arts fighter and has also worked as a barber, first met the tigers owner after buying a dog from him and that the man later informed him he had other animals, including the tiger.

This (tiger) is loved like a dog. Victors love for this cat ... is real, Elliott said.

Elliott said he did not know if Cuevas would be able to post his new bond but if he is again released, Cuevas will do all he can to find the tiger and have it live the rest of its life in a wildlife preserve.

__

Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70
A subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell RDS.A recently made a major oil discoveryat the Leopard prospect in the Alaminos Canyon block 691 in the deep-water U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GoM). At multiple stages, the Leopard Well encountered more than 600 feet (183 metres) of net oil pay and an assessment is underway to further determine development options.

Notably, Leopard is run by Shell (50%) and co-owned by Chevron U.S.A. Inc. CVX (50%). It is located about 20 miles east of the Whale discovery, 20 miles south of the recently reviewed Blacktip discovery and 33 miles from the Perdido host. The discovery well was drilled at a water-depth of 2,070 meters by Transoceans ultra-deepwater drillship Deepwater Thalassa.

Shell's Deepwater executive vice president Paul Goodfellow believes that Leopard is a lucrative add-on to the company's core portfolio and strengthens its supremacy in the Gulf of Mexico, particularly given its connectivity to established infrastructure and other discoveries in the Perdido Corridor. He further added, "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."

Also, Leopard offers Shell a chance to boost its production in the Perdido Corridor where the companys Tobago, Great White and Silvertip fields are already carrying out production activity. In the meantime, Shell-run Whale discovery, which is also in the Perdido Corridor, is nearing a final investment decision this year.

About Shell

This integrated energy player belongs to a global group of energy and petrochemical companies. It is involved in all phases of the petroleum industry right from exploration to final processing and delivery. The company recently released first-quarter 2021 earnings results wherein the bottom line came ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.8%.

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Among other supermajor players in the energy space, the bottom-line results of ExxonMobil XOM and TOTAL SE TOT beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 10.2% and 29.4%, respectively.

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May 14FRANKSTON  Frankston Maiden Jamiyah Burton made it official Monday by signing her national letter of intent to run track at Jacksonville College.

An emotional Burton shed tears with her family and friends Monday afternoon as the realization of her accomplishment set in on her.

"I've always wanted to continue track in college," Burton said. "This was the only offer I thought was best for me."

Burton recently was a regional qualifier for the Maidens after she placed fourth in the 100m dash (13.73s) and second in long jump (15'-2 3/4 ") at the area meet. She also placed fifth in the 200m dash with a time of 28.55s.

She visibly expressed her gratitude for a chance to begin a new chapter with Jacksonville College, but the memories of what she is leaving behind is what steered her into an emotional state.

"Just yesterday it felt like I was in middle school," Burton said as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "To see everyone I've grown with since then come out to support me meant a lot. It showed me how much they cared for me."

Burton began running track for Frankston while she was in middle school. She's been under head coach Lisa Hokit since then and now that chapter has come to a close.

"I knew it was something special about her," Hokit said. "To see the way she competes and her work ethic come to fruition is awesome. I'm super proud of her."

Burton was also a state champion for Frankston in powerlifting where she recorded a total weight of 645 pounds. Burton had the second best squat (240) and bench press (115), but out shined the competition with a 290-pound deadlift.

"No matter how big or small your name you have to give it your best," Burton said. "No matter how hard it gets you can't give up. Work until what you're chasing comes to you."
The man who shot and killed a California police officer and tried to strangle an 8-year-old boy was on parole when he opened fire on the officer earlier this week before being fatally shot himself.

Lance Lowe, 30, was imprisoned in March 2018 and faced a five-year sentence for a grand theft auto with use of a firearm out of Los Angeles County, FOX 40 reported. He was originally charged with firearms offenses but all were dismissed except for the auto theft.

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said Lowe received 820 pre-sentencing credits and 37 post-sentencing credits while awaiting transfer, KOVR-TV reported. While incarcerated, he was found guilty of disobeying a direct order in 2018 and 2019 for not meeting program and work expectations and misuse of the telephone, KGTV-TV reported.

After his release, Lowe moved to Stockton, according to local reports.

He was identified as the suspected shooter of Stockton police Officer Jimmy Inn Tuesday morning after a caller reported seeing a woman bleeding and possibly assaulted. Inn was responding to the domestic disturbance call when he was shot near the front door of a home, authorities said.

"It was a violent, blatant and very sudden assault on our police officer," Stockton Police Chief Eric Jones said hours after the shooting.

Another officer, Pancho Freer, arrived at the scene and exchanged fire with Lowe, who went back into the home. When he came back out, he was allegedly strangling his 8-year-old son. As he had the boy, a bystander tackled Lowe and freed the child.

The officer opened fire on Lowe, who later died at a hospital. Inn, 30, was also taken to a hospital where he died. His death was the second of a police officer in the line of duty in a 24-hour period.

A San Luis Obispo officer was killed while serving a search warrant on Monday.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Inn was a five-year veteran of the police force and left behind a wife, also a police officer, and several children, including a 7-month-old son, a 12-year-old stepdaughter and a 14-year-old stepson.
The body of a 19-year-old woman was found in an abandoned home in Perry County, and a man has been charged in connection with her death.

Kentucky State Police said they found the body, later identified as that of Jacqueline Herald, of Hazard, after getting a tip from a caller at 1:59 a.m. May 8 that a body might be inside an abandoned residence on North Engle Street in the Combs community.

State police said they checked inside and found the body, which the coroners office took to the medical examiners office in Frankfort for an autopsy.

Roy L. Johnson, 29, of Hazard, has been arrested and charged with abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence, first-degree wanton endangerment and second-degree complicity to commit arson. He was taken to Kentucky River Regional Jail, state police said.

Johnson is scheduled to be arraigned in Perry District Court Tuesday, court records show.
MADRID - (Reuters) - Thousands joined a protest in Madrid on Saturday in support of the Palestinian people after six days of conflict with Israel.

The Association of the Spanish-Palestinian Community held the "Jerusalem" rally on the 73rd anniversary of the 1948 Nakba, or catastrophe, when many Palestinians lost their homes in the fighting around Israel's creation.

"We have been silent for many years. It is time for us to speak for all those Palestinians who are dying and defend them because if we don't, no one else will," said Sara Mimar, 18, a student.

Spanish police did not give numbers for those attending.

(Reporting by Graham Keeley; Additional reporting by Elena Rodriguez, Juan Medina; Editing by Mike Harrison)
This story was last updated at 6 p.m. ET Friday.

People who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 will no longer be required to wear face masks at Walmart, Costco and Trader Joes, the companies announced Friday.

Trader Joes became the first major retailer to update its guidance to allow vaccinated customers to go unmasked in its grocery stores Friday afternoon. Walmart and Costco followed and dropped their masks rules as of Friday evening.

The change comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Thursday that people fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can participate in indoor and outdoor activities, large or small, without wearing a mask or physical distancing, with some exceptions including while traveling on planes, buses and trains.

Trader Joes said on its website that it encourages customers to follow health officials guidance, including, as appropriate, CDC guidelines that advise customers who are fully vaccinated are not required to wear masks while shopping.

Store employees will still be required to wear masks, CNN Business reported.

In accordance with new guidance from the CDC, Trader Joes was among the retailers announcing Friday that vaccinated people do not have to wear face masks in its stores.

The grocery chain still has other COVID-19 safety measures in place, such as plexiglass barriers at checkout stands, wellness checks for employees and the encouragement of social distancing.

Walmart, one of the nations largest retailers, also said it will allow vaccinated members to shop without a face mask in light of the updated CDC guidance. Vaccinated employees wont be required to wear a mask either, the company announced in a memo.

We are also reviewing whether masks may still be required for certain job codes for health and sanitation purposes and will share additional guidance soon, the statement read. Some associates may choose to continue to wear masks, and as part of our value of respect for the individual we should all support their right to do so.

Costco said it would also modify mask rules at some of its stores, allowing members and guests who are fully vaccinated to forego a face mask or shield. Masks will still be required in the pharmacy and optical departments, however.

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The wholesale club said it wont ask for proof of vaccination but are asking shoppers to be responsible and respectful [in] cooperation with this revised policy.

Target and Kroger are among the major retailers still requiring masks for all customers, including those vaccinated. Other retailers said they will review the CDCs recent guidance and reevaluate.

Which stores still require vaccinated people to wear masks after new CDC guidance?
Venezuelan authorities on Friday seized the headquarters of a newspaper critical of President Nicolas Maduro's government, to cover $13 million in compensation that a court had ordered it to pay a top official in a defamation case.

"At this very moment, a judge surrounded by national guards entered the building of El Nacional to seize everything," tweeted newspaper president-director Miguel Henrique Otero.

In April, Venezuela's Supreme Court of Justice ordered the daily to pay $13.4 million for causing "serious moral damage" to Diosdado Cabello, the second most powerful person in Venezuela after Maduro.

"The process of paying the compensation has begun," Cabello said on Twitter.

In 2015, Cabello, second in command of the governing Socialist Party, took the newspaper to court for reproducing a report by Spanish newspaper ABC that accused him of links to drug trafficking.

El Nacional had asked the Supreme Court to explain how it came to the astronomical figure of $13 million, given a previous decision reached in 2018 ordered the newspaper to pay one billion bolivars, worth around $600 on the black market at that time.

The emblematic newspaper was founded in 1943 by Venezuelan writer Miguel Otero Silva, but ceased its print version in 2018 due to a lack of funds and paper that is tightly controlled by the state, which limits it to friendly media.

It has spent two decades clashing with the Chavism movement of the late former president Hugo Chavez and his successor Maduro, who accuses the newspaper of conspiring with the opposition to overthrow him.

Having once employed 1,100 people and produced various sections including a magazine, El Nacional is now limited to 100 employees working on an online edition.

More than 100 media outlets have shut down since Maduro came to power, according to the NGO Espacio Publico.

jt/gma/nzg/ybl/acb
CARACAS (Reuters) -Eight Venezuelan soldiers have been captured during combat with "irregular Colombian armed groups" in the border state of Apure, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said on Saturday.

Padrino did not specify when or where the soldiers were captured, but said the armed forces had received proof they were alive on May 9. A Venezuelan non-governmental organization, Fundaredes, reported on the detentions earlier this week, but Venezuelan officials had not previously commented.

"We have established the necessary contacts for their prompt liberation, and the Republic's Foreign Ministry is coordinating with the International Committee of the Red Cross to act as a link for the release of our brothers in arms," Padrino said, reading a statement on state television.

The channel also broadcast a 15-second video of the eight men wearing olive-green T-shirts standing in a tent. One of the men appears to be speaking, but no audio was broadcast.

At least a dozen Venezuelan soldiers have died in Apure since battles against unidentified Colombian armed groups began in late March. Fundaredes said the captured soldiers had been taken by the 10th front of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels, citing a supposed communique by the group.

Critics of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government say he has granted safe harbor to FARC factions that have disavowed a 2016 peace deal with neighboring Colombia's government, and that the Venezuelan military is now being drawn into conflicts between rival illegal groups.

"Not only did Nicolas Maduro's regime gift our sovereignty to terrorist groups, it also puts our soldiers at risk to serve its criminal allies," Tomas Guanipa, opposition leader Juan Guaido's representative to Colombia, wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

(Reporting by Deisy Buitrago; Writing by Luc Cohen; Editing by Diane Craft, Aurora Ellis and Daniel Wallis)
An asylum seeking family is transported on a Border Patrol bus (FILE)

The White House has vowed to investigate reports that migrant children were forced to remain on board buses overnight as they waited to be re-located away from the border.

Biden press secretary Jen Psaki called it "outrageous" and vowed to probe "how we got to this point, how this possibly happened".

According to US media, the children used the toilet and ate aboard the bus.

It comes amid an unprecedented influx in migrant children to US facilities.

In March, a record-breaking almost 19,000 unaccompanied migrant minors entered the US through the southern border.

In April the number dropped to around 17,200. More than 50,000 parents and children travelling as families also crossed into the US that month.

"There's no excuse for this kind of treatment," Ms Psaki said on Friday about the children on buses. "In terms of what the consequences will be, I just can't predict that before an investigation has concluded."

According to NBC News and the Dallas Morning News, a 15-year old boy from Honduras was left on board a bus in Dallas, Texas, from Saturday to Wednesday.

That was before the bus eventually departed for the long journey to be reunited with his mother in Seattle - a distance of over 2,000 miles (3,200km).

The bus company owner told NBC News that some children wait on the vehicles just a few hours and others are kept overnight. He said the coaches are often littered with refuse and have overflowing bathrooms.

"This is completely unacceptable," Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra told NBC. His department is legally required to take custody of the children after their first 72 hours at US migration facilities.

Unaccompanied migrant children at a detention centre in Donna, Texas, in late March

"We're quickly investigating this to get to the bottom of what happened, and we'll work to make sure this never happens again. The safety and well-being of the children is our priority."

Story continues

Border crossings hit a 20-year high after the Biden administration refused to revive the Trump-era policy of expelling unaccompanied migrant children under a pandemic-related emergency order known as Title 42.

The Biden administration has been scrambling to place the unaccompanied migrant children into the homes of relatives in the US.

Last month US Customs and Border Protection (CPB) said the number of unaccompanied migrant children being kept in cramped government-detention centres had dropped by nearly 90%.

But there are still more than 20,000 unaccompanied children in the care of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to the BBC's US partner CBS News.
Trump, TikTok and one of Islam's holiest site

The past week has seen some of the worst Arab-Israeli violence in years, with rocket salvoes, airstrikes, violent protests and street fighting.

Yet tensions in Israel and the Occupied Territories have been on the rise for months. Here, The Telegraph unpacks how events both big and small have combined to bring the region back to conflict.

A 'local planning dispute' turned nasty

In a land where blood has long been spilled over property rights, the tree-lined streets of East Jerusalem's tiny Sheikh Jarrah district are a case in point. The district is at the centre of a decades-long legal dispute involving Palestinian families who face eviction orders from Jewish settlers.

Originally refugees, the families were rehoused in Sheikh Jarrah in the 1950s as part of a UN-backed offer from Jordan, which at that time controlled East Jerusalem.

Jordan then lost the land during the Six Day Arab-Israeli War in 1967 and since then the families have faced claims from Jewish landowners, who say the land was bought by Jewish associations in the 19th century.

Palestinians, whom Israel want to forcibly evict from their homes, and their supporters set a dinner table for the breaking of the Ramadan fast in front of their homes at Sheikh Jarrah

While the current eviction proceedings involve just eight households, many Palestinians see the Sheikh Jarrah dispute as part of an Israeli campaign to banish them from Jerusalem.

The anger over Sheikh Jarrah case is increasingly seen as a microcosm of the pain felt by many over the expansion of Jewish settlements into Palestinian territories.

The district has seen heated demonstrations in recent months, focused partly on a much-anticipated ruling in the case by Israel's Supreme Court. It was due last Monday but has now been postponed for a month amid the ongoing violence.

The Israeli government insists it is just a real estate dispute between private parties, but both Washington, the UK and the UN have expressed concern about the evictions.

A holy time and a holy place

The timing of the delicate Supreme Court judgement could not have been worse. Monday was also Jerusalem Day, when Israel celebrates its capture of East Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. An annual march by Jewish right-wingers to celebrate looked certain to stoke anger.

Story continues

But it didn't need to.

A few days before on Friday, and again on Monday, Israeli authorities clashed with Muslim worshippers at the famous al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem's Old City.

Palestinians and Israeli Arabs had been marking the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan, which began on April 12 and ended last Wednesday.

Traditionally, many then gather after daytime fasting at the promenade around the walls of Jerusalems Old City.

This year, however, there were fierce confrontations after police blocked access to the promenade, ostensibly as a crowd control measure.

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City Monday, May 10, 2021 - AP/Mahmoud Illean

Sheikh Jarrah was on the lips of the many standing up to Israelis during those long nights. The authorities replied with stun grenades and tear gas inside the Al-Aqsa mosque, Islam's third most holy site. Palestinians from the West Bank to Gaza were horrified.

Politics, a dirty business

To understand the toxic atmosphere on the ground, one must appreciate the political mood.

Palestinians should have been looking forward to parliamentary elections next week - the first in the Occupied Territories since 2006, and potentially a chance to give their leadership a long-overdue shake-up.

However, in late April, the Palestinian Authority's president, Mahmoud Abbas, announced that the scheduled May 22 vote would be delayed indefinitely.

Hamas supporters wave green Islamic flags while chant slogans during a rally in solidarity with fellow Palestinians in Jerusalem and against Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas decision to postpone Palestinian elections, in Jebaliya refugee camp, Gaza Strip - Adel Hana /AP

Officially this was because of uncertainties over whether the Israeli government would allow voting in East Jerusalem. But the postponement also allowed Mr Abbas to stop a contest that could have seen him lose votes to rival Fatah splinter parties, and to Hamas, the more radical faction that controls Gaza.

For many younger Palestinians - some of whom have reached their 30s without ever voting - it meant a much-anticipated chance to express their political voice has gone.

Within Israeli politics, meanwhile, the failure of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to win a majority in March's elections has forced him to court hard-right religious figures for support.

Among those his Likud Party has reached out to is Itamar Ben Gvir, whose Jewish Power faction won seats in the parliament for the first time. Mr Ben Gvir is notorious for displaying in his living room a picture of Baruch Goldstein, a mass murderer who killed 29 Palestinians in the early 1990s.

This week, Israeli police blamed Mr Ben Gvir for stirring the ongoing Arab-Jewish riots, complaining that whenever police got disturbances under control, he would turn up with fellow hardliners and reignite the trouble.

Despite Mr Ben Gvirs hardline views  he has called for expulsion of those not loyal to the state - Mr Netanyahu reportedly offered him a ministerial position in return for support in a coalition.

The Trump legacy

Feeding the violence is also a growing sense of hopelessness among Palestinians, who fear that international support for their grievances with Israel is waning.

This began with the election of President Donald Trump, who relocated the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem - an official recognition of the city as Israel's capital.

That was seen as a symbolic snub to Palestinians, who envisage East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.

US President Donald J. Trump (R) shakes hands with Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu while unveiling his Middle East peace plan in the East Room of the White House, in Washington, DC, USA, 28 January 2020 - MICHAEL REYNOLDS/REX

There was further dismay over Mr Trump's 2020 Abraham Accords, in which the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan all normalised relations with Israel.

While the accord was partly because those states shared Israel's enmity with Iran, Palestinians saw it as the betraying of a longstanding Arab solidarity over Israel's occupation.

That their erstwhile Arab allies even signed the deal was an indictment of the Palestinians' own political leadership - seen variously as too corrupt, militant and faction-ridden to be players in their own future.

And this is to say nothing of Mr Trump's much-vaunted 'Middle East Peace Plan' that was supposed to solve the intractable conflict between Israel and Palestine for good.

When it finally came, delivered by the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner, it suggested a halt expansion of any new settlement but at the same time gave Israel a green light to annex part of the West Bank in violation of international law. It was rejected by Palestinians out of hand. The two-state solution was, perhaps, more distant than ever.

An unpleasant TikTok craze

The abandonment of the Palestinian cause and the turmoil in Israeli politics also helped stir communal tensions within Israel, some have argued.

While Arab-Israeli tensions frequently escalate into exchanges of missiles and gunfire, petty street hostilities are sometimes the spark.

This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it.

One recent case that has fuelled the current violence involved footage of a young Arab man who slapped two Orthodox Jewish boys in the face as they sat on a train. Police said it was part of a "TikTok challenge" organised by Palestinian youngsters during Ramadan to stage filmed attacks on their Jewish counterparts.

Yedidia Epstein, a 15-year-old Jewish teenager who says he was beaten and slapped in an attack near Jerusalem's Damascus Gate, told Israeli media: "There is a competition for likes and views. A video of an Arab slapping an ultra-Orthodox man will get you both."

A TikTok spokesperson said: "Our teams have been working swiftly to remove misinformation, attempts to incite violence, and other content that violates our community guidelines, and will continue to do so."

The TikTok attacks have provoked outrage among Jews, and led to clashes in east Jerusalem three weeks ago between Arab youths and the Jewish ultra-nationalist Lehava group, whose supporters staged a march chanting "Death to Arabs". Communal violence has this week spread across Israel, presenting the authorities with a new domestic threat of sectarian rioting.

Why the first rocket was fired

Trouble at the al-Aqsa mosque helped postpone the much-anticipated Sheikh Jarrah court judgement. But the violence at the holy site was already spreading.

Palestinians inside the Al-Aqsa mosque clash with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City Monday, May 10, 2021 - Mahmoud Illean /AP

As protests raged around the mosque a confrontation took place between a Jewish motorist and a group of youths, the motorist filmed ramming the the crowd after they pelted him with rocks.

The video clips and images went around the world - and, crucially, deep into Gaza.

Palestinians scuffle with a wounded Orthodox Jewish man (C) who crashed his car near the Lions' Gate, while police (L) intervene - ABIR SULTAN/Shutterstock

Around 6pm that night, Hamas, the militant Islamist group that controls the Gaza enclave, fired the first of a salvo of rockets into Jerusalem, minutes after the passing of a deadline it had issued for Israeli forces to withdraw from al-Aqsa and Sheikh Jarrah. The touchpaper was now alight, Israel was on the brink of war...
Hey OP can you please fix the cut with detailing the assault? Thanks



<*lj cut text=TW*>

<*/lj-cut*>



Just remove the asterisks

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I hid the details of the SA, isn't it working?

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It's working because I had to click to see the details.

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it works for me!

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Sorry, it works. Some formatting when we see posts in the queue can be a little different.

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Why are men?

I cannot believe Ezra faces no consequences for choking that girl. Disgusting he's repulsive.



Him, Ezra, the one slytherin that murdered (?) someone I think?.....

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I saw someone post in the Noel Clarke post I think.



Pfft 3 years is nothing!

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Does Scotland have good support services for survivors?

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Policing IS a devolved matter in Scotland.

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Im going to say that there have been (for as long as I can remember) support services. I know that someone close to me had counselling after an attack, whether it was any good is another story and I dont want to bother the victim by asking. I know theres also victim support charities too; a woman I worked with did some training with one of the bigger ones and she spoke highly of them.

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So many abusers in these movies.



I'm not up to reading the details but I'm sure 3 years isn't enough.

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I don't drink so I've always been so confused how ppl navigate their drunk friends going home or talking home drink ppl to hook up with.



Do most social circles have a driver friend that keeps an eye on everyone so that predators like this are kept away?





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I honestly think it's a fucking miracle that me and my friends weren't raped in our 20s bc we had no problem going to the house (or car) of a guy we'd just met. We did have a system tho, where we would never leave without telling the others & the guy had to share his full name & address with the friends who stayed behind. As far as I can recall, none of them seemed to mind those little measures.



These days we all live in our own apartments so we don't go to the guy's place anymore, they come to ours. I only feel safe to do that bc I live with two guys tho. I'm nowhere near as chill (and crazy) like I was in my 20s, that's for sure.

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I have been the person who goes home with/to other guys when out drinking with friends. No matter how drunk I am I've always been aware enough to text my friends the guy's name and address (and number if I have it). My friends who are like me do the same.

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no one drove when i went out, you'd just get a taxi (we had a regular driver who would also wait til we got upstairs and waved from the window, bless him) or someone else to pick you up. idk anyone who took home strangers so i can't speak to that.



inside clubs i've had some instances in the past of dudes trying to scoot away with my friends, you always try to keep an eye on someone who's very drunk. one of my cousins once left my brother passed out drunk in a club which is really shitty, imo.



i never accept drinks from anyone, alcoholic or not. if i haven't seen it being open or prepared in front of me, i don't want it.

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Girl groups naturally develop at least one We Gotta Go Girl. I was the We Gotta Go girl of my group back in school. We came together and we left together. I would round people up, I would pull people off the dance floor. Its like herding cats but no one ever got left behind. If you think youre interested in a guy, get his info and make a final decision when youre sober.

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I haven't gone out partying and drinking since I graduated university, and we were always in groups.



One of my friends will go out for dinner with us, then go out to spend a few hours at a bar because she wants to be around people. I worry about her A LOT

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When I was younger and living in a small town, someone in the group would always DD and drive everyone home. It was something planned out beforehand "so and so drove everyone last time so I'll do it this time." The DD definitely did kind of have to "round up" people and keep an eye on things/gauge who was with who, going home when, etc. But I think it was easier in a small town because you know everyone anyway.

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Oh! This guy! I'd just about forgotten he was on trial. I think I thought he was already in prison.

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i saw this a few weeks ago and ugh this asshole. also apparently WB confirmed he's not in fantastic beasts 3 so at least they're learning to slowly wean away the evil

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That's good to know. This is the least they could do, I will remove it from the post then

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They could do one better and can the series because of negative reception. Unless they made millions....

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Which they no doubt did.

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not rly surprised by the weak sentence, thats usually how it goes.



hopes he cries some more like a little bitch



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You'd think JK Rowling would be more aware of the now *multiple* predators in the movies about her books but guess not.



I hope the actress has a strong support system and that this somewhat helps. Obviously it's not enough time but it's something I guess.

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She doesnt care. She only cares about feminism if it somehow involves transphobia!

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Yup, she's The Worst.

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I mean, they weren't trans predators, why would she care

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Misogny jumping out here, I don't know how she's meant to magically know if someone is a predator out of the thousands of people who work on a film she wrote/produced for when they have no previous convictions. Unless it comes out she has supported him or she was told he was doing something on set I fail how to see she is responsible for him being a predator.



There's plenty to criticise her for, but this is not it.

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In Germany he probably would get 1 year on probation and a 1,000 fine because she was drunk and probably didnt remember what happened to her anyway or some BS like that

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I'd be shocked if he got that much of a fine, even. As one of my friends once said: 'The polizei are too busy standing around while rapists and their enablers hold demos in Alexanderplatz to care about rape'



Edited at 2021-05-15 06:36 am (UTC)

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Soso sad but true.

When I read about people getting sentenced for crimes in other countries, the cynic in my goes they should have come to Germany to commit their crime.

Especially when it comes to sexual abuse and crimes against children.

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3 years is nothing. Castrate the motherfucker.

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With a wooden spoon.

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Well, Fantastic Beasts really has a fantastic record of hiring abusers.

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It's downright impossible to feel safe around men. I hope his victim has a good support system around her.

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yep, beside my brother i wont trust my safety with any men when im out drinking. i see it too many times, men cannot be trusted.

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I'll be the first to admit I don't know everything when it comes to law, but WHY is it absolutely necessary for the general public to know this man's identity? At all? I don't know about y'all, but I don't need to know who this man is in order for him to get some damn justice, I just care that he GETS it.



Am I misreading? I hope so because that's the only way this won't reek of bullshit to me.

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What pisses me off further is that he was 14 YEARS OLD at the time it happened.



Fuck that asshole judge. This is why victims don't come forward and when they do, they get shit like this. Of course they don't know how fucking HARD it is to come forward at all, especially when it happened to you as a kid. Chances are people he knows now don't know this about him and it's no one's fucking business anyway. Certainly not the fucking public.

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I have heard at least 3 stories from various people about Kevin Spacey being sexually inappropriate with young men and in one of those cases, the guy was a minor. He told his friends about it but never went to the authorities or tried to come forward.

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I read that his identity wasn't revealed in the documents, so Spacey and his lawyers didn't know who is accusing him. In this case, i kind of get it.

But if it's all about public knowing, it's outrageous that lawsuit was dismissed.

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I feel for the victim. This is so unjust. Why put himself in further harm?

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.....why can't it all be done anonymously through lawyers? They're a victim who's been through something deeply traumatic but the court system insists it be a public matter? It's sick.



ruled that the public has a legitimate interest in the identity of the man "because C.D. has made his allegations against a public figure,"



WTF? Fuck that judge.

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I totally get if the victim had to personally meet the judge or something, but not how is public interest relevant in this criminal matter. Leave that poor man alone.

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Yeah, it feels like the judge is trying to punish him or something. Who cares if there's public interest? WTF does that even mean or have anything to do with anything?

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... is this a thing in the U.K? Ive never heard of such a thing here.

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In the UK rape complainants are by statute granted lifelong anonymity from the moment they make the allegation. They can waive it if they want, but otherwise it's a crime to name or make them identifiable. Some other sex offences are covered by that too.



There are a few exceptions where the court can lift the anonymity (variations on the theme of not naming would prejudice the trial/appeal process) but they're rarely used.



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why should he have to publicly identify himself in order to get justice? that's awful

i feel terrible :(

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this is bullcrap.

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that almost sounds like punishment?? why should the person have to identify themselves to everyone?

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what a disgusting ruling, that judge is a pos

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i just got finished watching i am all the girls and basically i want him dead with those initials carved into him

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that judge sounds like a real turd tbh

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Considering how many folks have conveniently died, or recanted, or evidence was lost or mishandled.... repeatedly, this is one case I gotta bring my munch icon back for cause if there is anyone I could see arranging for a case to go just so...

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Did any of yall watch an open secret? I did but im still confused by the aftermath and that one accuser.



I dont watch star trek disco (dont have the subscription) but i root for it bc of our bb Anthony Rapp <3

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I think it should be considered extremely damning since it chased Bryan singer back into the closet.



Oh excuse me, after being out and gay! Gay! Gay! For decades... Hes bi now.



So ya know he cant abuse anyone cause... pussy!



Even though Kev tried the other tactic of he cant be an abuser cause hes gay!



Its been a long time since I saw it but it did feel like it could have been clearer in some areas and idk if that was a lack of funding or filmmaker mistake. Im hoping honestly that Kirby dick and his partner will do their own indictment. Maybe team up with Alex winter since hes doing docs and has a lot of stories and wounds on being a child actor.



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evil white men really get away with everything huh

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lawyers were trying to get this judge off the bench.



Dozens of legal organizations around the world representing more than 500,000 lawyers along with over 200 individual lawyers today submitted a judicial complaint documenting a series of shocking violations of the judicial code of conduct by United States Judge Lewis A. Kaplan targeting human rights lawyer Steven Donziger after he helped Indigenous peoples win a historic judgment against Chevron in Ecuador to clean up the pollution caused by decades of oil drilling with no environmental controls

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The global LNG market has witnessed a remarkable period of growth and expansion where the proliferation of liquefaction technology and the rise of renewables has had a positive effect on the sector. The Covid-19 pandemic, however, shook the global economy, disrupted economic activities, and hit the LNG industry hard. With vaccination programs advancing in most industrialized countries, economies are carefully reopening and demand for commodities such as natural gas is on the rise again. Ever since fracking technology was applied on a massive scale in the U.S., oil and natural gas production has soared, driving an increase in LNG exports. The produced volumes following the shale boom were so large that the U.S. economy, once a significant importer, started exporting oil and natural gas. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, multiple LNG FIDs were planned for another round of expansion. As demand is rising again, several projects are advancing to secure funding. However, uncertainty remains as the U.S. LNG industry still faces many hurdles.

During the past 12 months, the global LNG market has seen massive price swings. The spread of the novel Coronavirus and the ensuing economic crisis hit demand for LNG and lowered prices significantly. The sector's luck changed again during the 2020-2021 heating season when a combination of factors, especially unusually cold weather, raised prices to extreme heights. The East Asian JKM benchmark briefly hit $32.50/MMBtu in January.

While exporters welcome the news, importers buckled under the financial strain. The record prices in January were especially favorable to U.S. exporters whose natural gas is sold under Henry Hub-indexed prices which remained below $3/MMBtu. Competitors mostly rely on oil-indexed pricing which is currently approaching $70/barrel and has been on the rise for a while. Therefore, U.S. exporters have an advantage over their adversaries.

Although the list of project proposals awaiting FID has shortened during the past 12 months, the situation is changing and becoming favorable for the remaining proposals. According to Rystad, three to four U.S. LNG projects of the following list could receive FID: Plaquemines LNG Phase 1, Port Arthur LNG train 1, Freeport LNG train 4 Driftwood LNG Phase 1, and Rio Grande Phase 1. ICIS, however, is more skeptical regarding its outlook which reports that there has been limited progress in commercial discussions that several would-be exporters are having with customers.

Related: U.S. Oil Rig Count Soars As WTI Recovers

Despite the somewhat bullish expectation of the U.S. LNG sector, several large-scale projects have already been discontinued over the past months citing sustained uncertainty in global markets. In January, for example, NextDecade scrapped its plans for the Galveston Bay LNG project in Texas. Also, Annova LNG canceled plans for the Port Brownsville facility in Texas with a proposed capacity of 6.5 mtpa.

Besides economics and uncertainty concerning global demand, geopolitics is also a headache for the LNG sector. Growth in the coming years will mostly come from Asia, with China being the main driver. According to Wood MacKenzie, Asia will account for 95 percent of the growth due to resilient demand, weak domestic production, and supportive policies. The political tension between Washington and Beijing could impede commercial deals as the Chinese could be wary of becoming dependent.

There are also competitors that threaten the U.S. LNG industry. For example, Novateks second massive LNG project in Siberia, Arctic-2 LNG, has already struck a deal with its partners. The plant is supposed to produce a massive 19.8 mtpa starting in 2023 which the partners Total, CNOOC, and Mitsui have signed a 20-years contract for.

Also, Qatars recent announcement to lift the self-imposed moratorium on the worlds largest gas field, North Dome, could be bad news for U.S. exporters seeking FID. Qatar Petroleums plans include a production expansion of 40 percent by 2026 to 110 mtpa from 77 mtpa. This move by Qatar has added to the risk factor for any parties considering a long-term investment in U.S. LNG.

Therefore, expansion remains uncertain for the short term. The pie is simply not large enough yet to justify another round of explosive growth. However, expect American companies to respond rapidly if global demand growth is rosier than expected, fueled by cheap feed-in gas from fracking.

By Vanand Meliksetian for Oilprice.com

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Indias COVID travails have become the main talking point when it comes to Asian crude demand, once again pushing out the timeline of things finally settling down. China is gradually coming out of its planned maintenance, OPEC+ have already started to bring back part of the 2.1mbpd halted output that they committed to, in addition the United States and Europe are making strides in their vaccination roll-outs, however against all of the above developments it was the debilitation of India that has resonated the most with Middle Eastern oil producers. It need not be always reflected in their OSPs (official selling prices) for June 2021, however the Indian case will further hinder Asias demand. For instance, Saudi Aramcos aggressive pricing policy meant less term nominations which in turn freed up those barrels for spot purchases  if India issues no purchase tenders, who will buy all those cargoes? The question might seem to be too banal to respond yet recent months aggressive pricing policy of the Middle Easts main trendsetter, Saudi Aramco, has compelled some buyers (even those operating in relatively low-impact countries such as South Korea) to nominate less than the total monthly quantity for May 2021. Saudi Aramco dropped the differentials of all its Asia-bound grades yet chose to do it sparingly, by 10-30 cents per barrel from May 2021 OSPs. On paper Aramco had every reason to do so, considering that the cash/futures spread for benchmark Dubai narrowed 15 cents per barrel from March, to 1.04 USD per barrel. At the same time, Aramco issued the June OSPs already knowing that demand was faltering, especially so for medium-to-heavy grades, and Indias descent into full-blown mayhem. Decrying the still-too-high differentials, many Asian analysts to predict another month of Saudi spot deliveries changing hands below the officially stipulated OSP.

Related: U.S. Oil Rig Count Soars As WTI Recovers



Source: Saudi Aramco.

Aramco has been much more adventurous in its Europe-bound OSPs, cutting all grades by 50-80 cents per barrel. Although regional competitor Urals has been weak throughout April, the Saudi OSPs coincided with Urals differentials firming up  thus, June might see an increased intake of Saudi cargoes amidst improving economics. Just as much as Saudi Aramco will be relishing the opportunity to ramp up oil production  by the end of June it would have brought back 0.6mbpd out of its voluntary 1mbpd OPEC+ commitment  yet it should remain cognizant of the challenges laying ahead. Most notably among them, Saudi Arabias GDP contracted 3.3% in Q1 2021, continuing last years decline when it declined 4.1% year-on-year on annualized basis. This means that despite the already hefty dividends that Aramco pays to Riyadh, this year will trigger even interdependence between Saudi Arabias budget controls and oil revenues.

Source: ADNOC.

The forthcoming month will see the first-ever OSP set for Emirati grades that was automatically set by the ICE Futures Abu Dhabi (IFAD). Trading activity was reasonably robust on the IFAD with more than 160 000 contracts trading last month alone  one lot representing 1000 barrels there were 5 110 contracts going into expiry on the last day of April, meaning that a total of 5.11 MMbbls of Murban will see a physical delivery in June. The only lowlight of IFADs first pricing month was that despite the solid monthly average (6 625 lots), trading has all but ran out of steam by the end of April. On April 30 IFAD reported only 71 lots traded, which resulted in a whopping 1 USD per barrel plummeting of the new benchmark, within just one day  IFAD dropped to a 0.08 USD per barrel premium to front-month Dubai. Exactly two weeks before that its premium reached its apex of 1.86 USD per barrel against Dubai, raising fears that intra-month oscillations might be a recurring phenomenon.

Related: Oil Prices Rebound As Global Oil Glut Drains



The June 2021 Murban OSP was set on the basis of the April average at 63.35 USD per barrel, equivalent to a $0.46 per barrel premium to the Platts-assessed cash Dubai. This marks an almost 1 USD per barrel drop month-on-month, though it also reflects Asian trading more accurately than the Saudi OSPs. ADNOC being the first Middle Eastern NOC to issue its selling prices within the month (i.e. as soon as May halts trading, one can gauge the July 2021 OSP) creates a bit of breathing space for Saudi Aramco, too, having been the harbinger of Middle Eastern things to come in the past decades. The Murban futures will also provide greater transparency as opposed to the other physically delivered Middle Eastern benchmark, Oman, the majority of which is scooped up by Chinese buyers and is thus susceptible to price manipulation in one way or another, considering that on a daily basis there is roughly 1mbpd of Murban sailing the seas (1.04mbpd in June as ADNOC seeks to gradually ramp up output).

Source: KPC.

Kuwait has had a difficult April as it had to cope with a fire breaking out at its largest oil field (and the second largest globally), the Great Burgan field. Luckily for the Kuwaiti national oil company KPC the blaze did not impact production (monthly export loadings were 54 MMbbls against 53 MMbbls in March 2021). The June OSP of Kuwaits flagship grade, KEB, quality-wise the twin brother of Arab Medium, was cut 20 cents per barrel from May 2021 to a 1.15 premium against Oman/Dubai; implying that KPC has concurred with Aramcos view on medium sour differentials in Asia. On the other hand, June 2021 will be the third consecutive month when KPC lowers the differential of Kuwaiti Super Light Crude (KSLC) vis-a-vis Arab Extra Light, in a rather evident move to incentivize buyers. KSLC is lighter than most Middle Eastern peers (47 API; 1.6% Sulphur) and has so far never made a voyage West of Suez; its most frequent buyers are Pakistan, India, New Zealand and occasionally China, too.

Source: SOMO.

The Iraqi state oil marketer SOMO has once again introduced a slight hint of nuance into its June 2021 official selling prices, cutting its Basrah Light price by 15 cents per barrel to a 1.25 USD per barrel premium against the Oman/Dubai average, i.e. 5 cents more than its closest Saudi peer, Arab Light. On the back of subdued bitumen demand in East Asia and overall difficulties of placing heavier barrels there, Basrah Heavy saw a steeper cut of 40 cents per barrel, to a -1.30 USD per barrel discount to Oman/Dubai. Somewhat surprisingly, SOMO ended up being more aggressive on its European pricing than Saudi Aramco itself, cutting differentials by 15-40 cents per barrel compared to May. Assessing the Iraqi grades one by one present an illustrative picture of how SOMO sees its European exports in the near term.

Source: SOMO.

Basrah Medium, the former Basrah Light, has continued to enjoy buying interest from European refiners and it is indeed Medium that was decreased more than Basrah Light and Heavy  in both Northwest Europe and the Mediterranean Basrah Medium surpasses Arab Heavy, despite being of better quality. On the other hand, the Basrah Light OSP (nominally a 33-34 API grade) has narrowed in on Arab Medium in NW Europe  only 35 cents per barrel separate the two in June 2021  a margin that would most probably eaten up by the real-life quality difference between the two grades. Market rumors indicate that the recently revamped Basrah Light has been unable to stick to the stipulated quality, all the while the previous quality (de)escalation scale was scrapped. Perhaps SOMO would be better-advised to split its European pricing across the NWE and the Mediterranean, just as Saudi Aramco and NIOC are doing.

Source: NIOC.

Amidst increasing volumes of Iranian crude remain idled in Southeast Asian waters as floating storage, most probably in expectance of a sudden delivery surge, the Iranian national oil company NIOC made only marginal changes from the previous month. Asia-bound loadings of Iran Light and Heavy were cut by 10 and 15 cents per barrel, respectively, to premia of 1.5 and 0.5 USD per barrel against the Oman/Dubai average. Thus, NIOC sticks to its 2021 trend of keeping Iranian Light 20 cents per barrel cheaper than Arab Light. The Iranian NOC has also extended its hand to (prospective) European buyers, cutting Northwest Europe differentials by 50 and 70 cents per barrel for Iranian Light and Heavy (in the Mediterranean the month-on-month changes were lower, 20 and 30 cents per barrel from May). All this is to indicate that Iran will be serious about ramping up European exports should the Vienna nuclear talks bear fruit anytime soon.

By Gerald Jansen for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads from Oilprice.com:
Streetwise - The Generational Wave Goodbye

by Frank Dunnigan

February 2011

As you walk the neighborhood shopping areas in the western half of San Francisco, things are different lately. Up and down California Street in Laurel Village, inner Clement and outer Balboa in the Richmond, plus Irving and Noriega in the Sunset, Taraval in the Parkside, Ocean Avenue in Lakeside Village, plus up and down West Portal and all through Stonestown, certain faces are disappearing. And no, it's not the ethnic transformation that has been underway in San Francisco for decades now, but rather, a more subtle change that cuts across all racial lines.

For some time, we've been hearing the statistic that this country is losing thousands of World War II-era G.I.s every day. Recent visits to San Francisco have reminded me clearly that the non-uniformed wives, girlfriends, sweethearts, and sisters in that Greatest Generation, have reached "a certain age," and are at a point in their own lives when they have begun raising one large, collective, generational hand, and are now waving a fond good-bye to all the rest of us.

A number of funerals that I've attended recently were for just such women, many of whom were born in the decade between the end of World War I and the start of the Great Depression. Any one of these ladies could easily have been the poster child for her entire generation. Most received a traditional education at Lowell, Lincoln, Mission, or Galileo, or perhaps at the hands of one of the various orders of nuns who were staffing San Francisco's many Catholic girls' high schools in the 1930s and 1940s. All these young women learned the strict moral lessons that shaped their lives, along with classic Palmer method penmanship and typing in rhythm to musical marches. Often with elderly parents in tow, many of them came to the western neighborhoods from other parts of San Francisco in the years after World War II.

While most of them eventually settled into happy marriages with boys returning from the South Pacific, North Africa, the Ruhr Valley, or Omaha Beach, a goodly number remained single. Many pursued a civil service career, teaching, or nursing, while others found a corporate life at AT&T, Standard Oil, or PG&E, forging ahead in the organizational structure. Some even returned to night school at USF, Lone Mountain, or San Francisco State in the 1950s to help crack the glass ceilings of the era. As our generation came alongcollectively, some 75 million baby-boomersit was these beloved maiden aunts (sometimes they were actually bachelor uncles) who doted on us, spoiled us shamelessly, and always managed to remind us, at some crucial moment of child-parent turmoil, that we were the absolute best persons on earth.

As we grew up, it was these wonderful ladies (and sometimes men) who took us for ice cream at Shaw's on West Portal or Ocean Avenue, overlooking the inevitable spills in their cars, ooh-ed and ahh-ed over our Halloween costumes from Toy Village, and bought vast quantities of those candy bars, raffle tickets, Christmas seals, and magazine subscriptions that we were all selling for school fund-raisers. They wore the widest smiles at our school plays and recitals, and were always front and center at our First Communions, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, Confirmations, and multiple graduation ceremonies, while generously dispensing ever-increasing quantities of cash to mark our religious and scholastic achievements. All of them spent countless hours helping their harried siblings (our parents) search for and find must-have gifts for us and for our own children over the last half-centuryeverything from green hula-hoops in the 1950s, Madras shirts in the 1960s, Star Wars Force Beams in the 1970s, Cabbage Patch Kids in the 1980s, transformers in the 1990s, all the way to today's various hand-held electronic games and devices.

As our own grandparents and other relatives grew older, the task of caring for them seemed to settle primarily on these unmarried siblings of our parents. Their love and devotion kept the senior generation of relatives going, physically and emotionally, for years, allowing our own parents to get on with the task of child-rearing, while providing our grandparents a longer opportunity to know and to love all of us.

During one particular funeral, a 61-year-old nephew reminded the congregation about the untimely death of his own father at a young age more than 40 years earlier, and how his two maiden aunts then took charge of Thanksgiving that year, drawing their widowed sister and her three children into the close embrace of familya gesture that was sorely needed by everyone at the time, though such a role could scarcely have been imagined by any of them prior to his father's passing. For the next 35 years, Thanksgiving belonged to his aunts, and the meals that they put on were nothing short of spectacular, worthy of a feature in Bon Appetit, entitled "Holiday Dinner with the Aunties." Their home maintained a look that spoke of loving attention, from the perfectly positioned lamp in the front window, to the grandparents' antique mahogany dining room set, to Grandma's cut glass dish that has held nothing but Ocean Spray cranberry sauce throughout its entire life. Face it, without children of their own, spinster aunts always found the time to keep a place looking good.

And so it went that these older, unmarried ladiessometimes in pairs, and then always referred to as "the girls"were the darlings of every family gathering after Grandpa & Grandma were gone. They took the time to remind us of just who our second and third cousins were, along with exactly how we were all related. They were honored guests at weddings and baby showers in the 1970s and 1980s, admired by friends and in-laws alike. After their retirements, they found time to do countless hours of volunteer work. Their love for children was further demonstrated as many of them dug deep into their resources and made significant donations of time and money to charities that aided education and children's welfare.

As they progressed through their retirement years, they reached out to us, their now-adult working nieces and nephews, by welcoming grandnieces and grandnephewsour childreninto the old family home every day after school. All across the western neighborhoods, there they were, picking up little ones from school, overseeing homework, preparing and serving wholesome snacks, and supervising after-school play, making sure that their little charges were well looked after until the parents returned home at the end of the work day. At one funeral, a grand-niece, now 30, said it best, "As children of working parents, we never felt neglected, knowing that Grandma's two wonderful sisters were always nearby."

Finally relinquishing holiday dinner duties to the younger generation near the dawn of this new millennium, these ladies could sit back, as family elders, and rejoice in the happy relationships enjoyed by the younger generations. If they delicately inquired of newlyweds about when the first baby was going to arrive, or suggested a bit more strongly to some single grandnieces and grandnephews that their evenings might be better spent at the USF Law Library rather than at the Philospher's Club near West Portal, no one was upsetthey knew their Aunties were doing what they did bestsharing the love, warmth, understanding, and affection that everyone had come to expect of them.

As one after another of these remarkable ladies take their leave of us, we gather together after their funerals in long-time family homes scattered throughout the area, or linger over lunch at the Gold Mirror or Joe's of Westlake. We offer condolences and share a daytime cocktail or glass of wine as we reminisce about the lives that they led, reaching out to an extended network of relations, embracing them all, and fulfilling their own destinies as the loving and devoted leaders of our extended families.

All of these leave-takings come on the heels of news that some healthy, energetic high school classmates of mine have succumbed to heart attacks prior to age 60, while others have undergone knee or hip replacements. At the same time, two grammar school classmates have lost spouses to cancer, while another had surgery to implant a pacemaker. Three of my old 18th Avenue playmates have lost siblings who used to play hide-and-seek with us in the 1950s. It is now dawning on a lot of boomers that we have taken a giant step forward, and are now unmistakably the grown-ups, the oldest ones, the folks that the younger people are watching and counting on to maintain their sense of continuity and family. I hope that we're as up to the task as all those wonderful maiden aunts and bachelor uncles who were always there for us.

Contribute your own stories about western neighborhoods places!
Godwin Agudey, Presiding Member, Ada-East District Assembly has tasked the Assembly Members to be the epitome of good leadership in their communities. He tasked the members to lead and provide guidance for the electorates by finding solutions to minor problems in society.



Mr Agudey explained that the District Assembly Members have the mandate to formulate and executive plans, programmes, and strategies for the effective mobilization of resources necessary for the overall development of their jurisdictions.



The Presiding Member stated at the first ordinary session of the Ada East District Assembly which was to consider the Assemblys Authority Report for ratification and implementation.



Mr Agudey said the prime objective of the Assembly Member should be the development of the Electoral Area and the district at large and this could be started at the grassroots.



The Presiding Member of Ada-East, therefore, charged the Assembly Members to explore opportunities in the area of agriculture, tourism, and other sectors that could generate incomes for the residents.



That he said, would help reduce unemployment and make lives meaningful for themselves and their families.



Touching on the training of the Unit Committee Members, the Presiding Member called on Assembly Members to empower and support the Unit Committee to deliver quality services to their respective communities.



He said the Unit Committee could perform better if well trained them to help solve minor problems in the society.



Meanwhile, Ms Sarah Dugbakie Pobee, District Chief Executive Officer for Ada East told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that, health has become one of the critical areas which the Assembly was paying attention.



She said efforts are being made to ensure that all the health facilities in the district work efficiently and effectively towards the satisfaction of the health needs of the people.



Ms Pobee noted that the major health problem facing the District is the predominance of malaria cases; to forestall the situation, several preventive measures have been adopted.



The Ada East DCE said the assembly would continue to work with strategic stakeholders to ensure the holistic development of Ada.



Ms Pobee who have been tagged as Ada Development Executive Director due to her developmental drive called on the traditional authority, political parties, security operatives, religious leaders and other interested parties in Ada to join forces with the assembly towards rapid development of the district.





Joi

Source: GNA









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As today marks the auspicious occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr, Bollywood stars including Sara Ali Khan, Kiara Advani, Jacqueline Fernandez, Sanjay Dutt and many others took to social media to extend heartfelt greetings to their fans.

The 'Kedarnath' actor took to Instagram and posted an adorable snap with her brother Ibrahim Ali Khan and sent good wishes to her fans on the occasion of Eid.



She wrote, "Eid Mubarak. Hoping and praying for happiness, positivity and safety for everyone. Inshallah better times ahead for us all."

Wishing for peace and good health, Kiara tweeted, "#EidMubarak. May God bless us all with good health and peace. stay safe everyone."



"Eid Mubarak everyone May your loved ones always be peaceful and blessed!" wrote Jacqueline as she shared a picture of a floral tiara on Twitter.



Taking a walk down the memory lane, veteran actor Neetu Kapoor remembered late husband and superstar Rishi Kapoor while extending wishes on the festival.

She posted a collage from the film 'Amar Akbar Anthony' featuring Rishi and herself. The picture read, "Eid-ul-Adha Mubarak."

Along with the post, she wrote, "Eid Mubarak. Chaand Mubarak. love and hugs. ( EID ul FITAR ).Eid Mubarak."

"Today's plan is to eat sheer khurma and keep going on with tons of positive energy and strength :) Am missing My Eidi and the excitement we would have as children on getting it #nostalgic #CovidWarrior," tweeted Bhumi Pednekar as she unveiled ger plans on Eid celebration this year amid pandemic.



Shilpa Shetty took to Instagram and sent out good wishes on the auspicious occasion of Eid.



Emraan Hashmi wished for good health and happiness to everyone in a Twitter post.



Shahid Kapoor took to Instagram and shared a sun-kissed selfie sporting black attire, and extended greetings on Eid.

Veteran actor Sanjay Dutt sent out a message to spread love and celebrate the festival by showing compassion and gratitude amid tough times. He shared the message on his Instagram Story.



Amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, let us hope we can leave behind these challenging times together for a period of happiness, compassion, and peace. Eid Mubarak!

(ANI)
The Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), is researching the impacts the COVID-19 pandemic has had on governments policies and interventions on energy, business and health sectors of the economy.



The research, done in collaboration with the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ), is to help design strategies and recommend solutions for possible negative impacts of the pandemic and also propose measures to improve on the possible positive effects.



This was made known at a focused group discussion, held in Tamale, and organized by the CDD-Ghana to seek participants views on the impacts of COVID-19 on government programmes and interventions, as part of the research.



It brought together representatives from Civil Society Organizations, non-governmental organizations, traditional leaders, market women, some officials from public and private institutions among others.



Mr Abdulai Balaarah, Programmes Analyst at CDD-Ghana, said one of the key objectives of the study was to highlight the main reform strategies of the government and how these reforms have been affected by the pandemic.



He said the research would examine the fiscal impact of the COVID-19 mitigation measures carried out by the government on the public finance situation of the country and examine how principles of good governance were affected during the pandemic and while executing COVID 19-response measures, also in comparison with other African countries.



He added that the study will shed light on government projects that had to be stopped due to Covid-19 and provide key analysis for potential recommendations on interventions by the government and international development organizations.



Discussing some of the impacts of the pandemic on government flagship programmes such as the One District One Factory (1D1F), some of the participants believed that resources and funds allocated for establishing some factories were diverted to mitigate the spread of the virus, which they said had an adverse effect on job creation for the youth.



They also believed that there was some improvement on the livelihoods of individuals who were in the supply chain of COVID-19 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other essential goods and services, among other impacts.

Source: GNA









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Madam Bejome Jacha, a 48-year-old woman at Dambai Old Town in the Krachi East Municipality of the Oti Region, has succumbed to death after an attack by a wild antelope.



The woman, who went to the farm to pick mangoes, came under attack after the animal head-butted her, causing injuries to her chest area.



The victim, who landed in thorny bushes, shouted for help and was rescued from the animal.



Mr Kwabena Wasaw, a yam farmer in the vicinity, rushed the injured woman to the Kopah clinic at Dambai, where she received first aid before being transferred to the Worawora Government Hospital.



Mr Jacha Jagri, the husband of the victim, who confirmed the incident to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said the wife was transferred to the Hohoe Municipal Hospital, where she was on admission until she died on Friday.





Source: GNA









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Isaac Essuman, a 10- year-old boy of Dambai College of Education Demonstration Basic School three has been found dead on a mango tree in his mother's house in Dambai, the Oti Regional Capital.



The incident, which happened late Thursday night has created a state of panic among residents in the community.



Mr Prince Goka, tenant of the house in an exclusive interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) said, the deceased came to him when he returned from Cape Coast on Thursday.



He said he gave him a loaf of bread and even asked him to wait outside since he used to watch Television series in his room.



Police personnel from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service retrieved the deceaseds body, and deposited it at the Worawora government hospital pending an autopsy.



The Police also activated investigations to unravel the reason and cause of death of a 10-year old boy.

Source: GNA









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Thirty two alleged illegal miners accused of parading themselves as National Security operatives have been remanded by the Koforidua Circuit Court.

The court, presided over by Ms Mercy Quartey, made the decision after she dismissed a bail application by their lawyers.



Police prosecutors had earlier urged the court to remand them to assist with investigations.



The accused persons were said to have engaged in illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, in the Akenteng Forest Reserve in the Eastern Region.



They were arrested at Akenteng, near Osinease, in the Eastern Region by the youth of the area, whose brutal handling of the gang was only tampered by the intervention of the police.



Not guilty



The accused persons include George Asante, Kweku Frimpong, Alfred Kyei, Yaw Opoku, Richard Nartey, Paul Osei Kuffour, Dominic Beblie, Samuel Kofi Edusei, Silas Boakye Gyan, Joseph Oduro Asare, Mukaila Attah, Stephen Opoku, Michael Quansah, Derrick Adu Kwakye, Razark Suleman, Stephen Kofi Felan, Dominic Ghansah, Robert Martey Tetteh, Eric Addei, Yakubu Mohammed, and Benlord Ababio.



The rest are Adam Dakurugu, Kwame Isaac, Joe Acquah, Emmanuel Arhin, Samuel Asiedu Gyamfra, David Akakpo, Ebenezer Boateng, Joseph Kwaku Gyamfi, Fuseini Alhassan, Alhassan Asibi and Gabriel Dormate.



They have pleaded not guilty to conducting reconnaissance for minerals without lawful authority contrary to Section 23(1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and Section 106(a) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703).



Initial case



Eleven of them were initially charged before the Kaneshie District Court in Accra last Monday with the possession of firearms without lawful excuse contrary to Section 192 of Act 29.



The Kaneshie District Court, presided over by Ms Ama Adomako Kwakye, however, declined to hear the case on the basis that the case was not proper in law.



According to the magistrate, the prosecution failed to produce a written consent from the Attorney-General (A-G) as required by law for the case of possession of firearms without lawful excuse to be prosecuted.



The magistrate, therefore, decided not to rule on a bail application by lawyers for the accused persons, or remand them as requested by the prosecution.



It was after the ruling by the District Court that the police took the accused persons to the Koforidua Circuit Court on new charges to seek for remand.



Prosecution facts



It is the case of the prosecution that they allegedly carried themselves as National Security operatives, and were engaged in illegal mining in the Akenteng Forest Reserve, while terrorising villages in the catchment area of the forest reserve.



It was also established that the accused persons, as part of their unlawful activities, threatened, demanded and seized unspecified kilos of gold and huge sums of money from some small scale miners in the name of National Security, the facts said.

Source: Graphiconline.com









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The Cape Coast High Court has overruled an objection by lawyers for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin North, Mr James Gyakye Quayson, seeking to have the presiding judge, Justice Kwasi Boakye, recuse himself from the case seeking to annul the MP's election.

Lawyers for the MP accused Justice Boakye of being biased and having a predetermined judgment.



At last Wednesday's hearing, lead counsel for the MP, Mr Abraham Amaliba, contended that the judge must put the case on hold due to what he described as the likelihood of bias.



According to him, the presiding judge had already determined the case during the hearing of the injunction when he held that Mr Gyakye should have renounced his Canadian citizenship at the time of nominations and not during the actual voting.



Justice Boakye, however, overruled the objection and said there had not been any instances of bias in the course of the case.



Election petition



Mr Quayson polled 17,498 votes as against 14,793 by the New Patriotic Party's (NPP's) Ms Abena Durowaa Mensah, in the December 7, 2020 parliamentary election.



On December 30, 2020, a resident of Assin North, Mr Michael Ankomah-Nimfah, filed a parliamentary election petition at the Cape Coast High Court challenging the eligibility of Mr Quayson to be a Member of Parliament (MP).



He contended that the MP was not eligible on the basis that at the time he (Quayson) filed his nomination to contest as a parliamentary candidate, he was still a citizen of Canada.



Such an act, he argued, was against the express provision of Article 94 (2) (a) of the 1992 Constitution and Section 9(2) of the Representation of the People Act 1992 (PNDCL 284).



Among other reliefs, the applicant wants the Cape Coast High Court to declare the nomination filed by Mr Quayson illegal, void and of no legal effect.



He also seeks a declaration that the decision by the EC to clear Mr Quayson to contest as a parliamentary candidate was illegal, void and of no legal effect.



Another relief the applicant seeks is an order restraining Mr Quayson from holding himself out as the MP-elect for Assin North and another order cancelling the parliamentary election that took place in Assin North on December 7, 2020.



Injunction



On January 6, this year, Justice Boakye issued an interlocutory injunction against Mr Quayson restraining him from holding himself as the MP-elect until the final determination of the election petition.



This effectively barred the MP from being sworn in.



Mr Quayson showed up in Parliament the same day to vote in the election to select the Speaker of Parliament, and for him (Quayson) to be sworn into office as MP.



The Clerk of Parliament initially refused to allow him to take part in the election, but the NDC parliamentary leadership argued that Mr Quayson had not been served with the court order and was, therefore, not aware of any injunction restraining him from holding himself out as MP-elect.



After many arguments, the Clerk of Parliament allowed Mr Quayson to vote and also to be sworn into office, with a caution that he (Quayson) would bear the consequences of that action.



The Cape Coast High Court has overruled an objection by lawyers for the National Democratic Congress Member of Parliament for Assin North, Mr James Gyakye Quayson, seeking to have the presiding judge, Justice Kwasi Boakye, recuse himself from the case which seeks to annul the MP's election.









Source: Graphiconline.com









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The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Professional Forum has called on the government to fix the enormous challenges confronting the country.

It mentioned some of the challenges such as unemployment, insecurity, irregular supply of electricity and economic hardships which were impacting on the lives of Ghanaians.



This was contained in a statement issued and signed by Dr S. Koma Jehu-Appiah of the Forum.



It urged the government not to trivialise the call to fix the country's economy and related challenges but to address those concerns.



Demonstration



The statement said the Forum associated itself with the concerns of some youths in the country in exercising their constitutional rights to demonstrate to bring their demands to the attention of the powers that be.



It alleged that the government was behind the frustration of the youth to demonstrate to draw attention to the ills they had observed in society.



The forum said it supported the Fix the Country demonstration march with the COVID-19 pandemic protocols in place.



Injunction



The police last week secured an injunction against the conveners of the demonstration who wanted to draw attention to some issues affecting them.



The reason, among others, was that some safety protocols against the COVID-19 pandemic could be breached with its attendant health implications.

Source: Graphiconline.com









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In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, emergency personnel search through the wreckage of buildings destroyed by a reported tornado in Wuhan in central China's Hubei Province, early Saturday, May 15, 2021. Two tornadoes killed several people in central and eastern China and left hundreds of others injured, officials and state media reported Saturday. (Xiong Qi/Xinhua via AP)

Back-to-back tornadoes killed 12 people in central and eastern China and left more than 300 others injured, authorities said Saturday.

Eight people died in the inland city of Wuhan on Friday night and four others in the town of Shengze, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) east in Jiangsu province, local governments said.

The first tornado struck Shengze about 7 p.m., damaging homes and factories and knocking out power, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The Suzhou city government, which oversees the town, said in a social media post that four people had died and 149 others had minor injuries. Shengze is near Shanghai on China's east coast.

Another tornado hit Wuhan at about 8:40 p.m. with winds of 86 kilometers (53 miles) per hour, destroying more than two dozen homes and triggering a power outage affecting 26,600 households, Xinhua said. Officials in Wuhan said at a news conference Saturday that eight had died and 230 were injured.

They said that 28 homes collapsed in Wuhan, another 130 were damaged and put economic losses at 37 million yuan ($5.7 million), the Hubei Daily newspaper said. Construction site sheds and two cranes were also damaged, while downed power lines knocked out electricity, Xinhua said.

Workers clear debris at a factory that was damaged by a reported tornado in Shengze township in Suzhou in eastern China's Jiangsu Province, Saturday, May 15, 2021. Two tornadoes killed several people in central and eastern China and left hundreds of others injured, officials and state media reported Saturday. (Chinatopix via AP)

Damage to buildings from a reported tornado is seen in an aerial view in Shengze township in Suzhou in eastern China's Jiangsu Province, Saturday, May 15, 2021. Two tornadoes killed several people in central and eastern China and left hundreds of others injured, officials and state media reported Saturday. (Chinatopix via AP)

Photos showed a swarm of rescuers searching through building debris in Wuhan after midnight Friday and workers clearing metallic debris at a factory in Shengze in the morning.

Wuhan is the city where COVID-19 was first detected in late 2019.

Tornados are rare in China. In July 2019, a tornado killed six people in the northeastern Liaoning province, and another tornado the following month killed eight on the southern resort island of Hainan.

In 2016, a tornado and accompanying hailstorm killed 98 people in the eastern Jiangsu province.

Explore further China rushes to build new hospital for virus within 10 days

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Activists fear time is running out to save what they call Europe's last major "wild river"

Cutting into craggy mountains, meandering through plains and eventually hitting Albania's shimmering Adriatic, the Vjosa river's untouched landscapes are a national treasure, but one that is under imminent threat.

Activists feel that time is running out to save what they call Europe's last major "wild river"one whose course is unaltered by industry, cities or damsrecruiting A-listers like Leonardo DiCaprio to their cause.

The immediate concern is a plan to build a 50-metre (165-foot) high hydroelectric dam.

A Turkish-Albanian firm has the rights to the project, which would be the first development to change the course of the roughly 200 kilometre (125 mile) Albanian stretch of a river that rises in the Pindus mountains across the border in Greece.

The dam would flood areas replete with rare animal and plant life, wiping out farmland, damaging the livelihoods of fishermen and forcing thousands from their homes.

"Vjosa is my greatest love. My life is here, my childhood is here, my youth is here," says local restaurateur Arjan Zeqaj.

His roadside restaurant in the village of Qesarat enjoys spectacular views of undulating grassland tumbling down to an expanse of chaotic channels on a grey, gravelly plain.

If the reservoir comes, all that will be gone. The water will lap against the edge of the road just metres from his terrace.

The immediate concern for the Vjosa river is a plan to build a 50-meter high hydroelectric dam

"I would have to emigrate," says Zeqaj. "I see no other way to survive here."

Legal rows over the dam have been hanging over the residents for two decades. And for years, activists have been pushing the same solution.

'A bit too much'

"The Vjosa Valley must be declared a national park," Besjana Guri of the EcoAlbania NGO told AFP. "This will not only protect its unique ecosystem but also allow stable development and promote tourism and local ecotourism."

EcoAlbania is working with international NGOs to raise awareness, with Ulrich Eichelmann of Austria-based RiverWatch describing it as the "only chance in Europe" to save such a river system.

The activists point out that 1,175 animal and plant species have been recorded along the Vjosa, including 119 protected under Albanian law and 39 that are listed internationally as threatened.

EcoAlbania is working with international NGOS to raise awareness about the river

And they also argue that Albania does not need any more hydroelectric power and should concentrate on other renewable energy sources.

On the face of it, the Albanian government agrees.

Officials say they are opposed to major development along the Vjosa and are developing projects involving solar power and liquid natural gas.

Last year, activists won a major victory when the environment ministry refused to allow Turkish-Albanian venture Ayen-ALB to start work on the dam, a decision the company is challenging in the courts.

Yet the government is resisting the national park designation, opting instead for a less strict "protected area" categorisation.

"A national park is a bit too much," Prime Minister Edi Rama told AFP, claiming that the designation would stop tens of thousands of people from going about their daily lives and stop activities from agriculture to ecotourism.

The Albanian government is resisting the national park designation, opting instead for a less strict "protected area" categorisation

'Vjosa is vital'

Activists and locals are unconvinced.

While designating it a national park would give legal protection against hydroelectric projects, airports and other developments, the protected area designation would not.

And Rama's claim about ecotourism is also disputed.

"Industrialisation of this region with the construction of dams will make foreign tourists lose all interest in exploring Vjosa and wilder areas of Albanian more generally," says tourism expert Albiona Mucoimaj.

However, while she talks of rafting in the rapids and small excursions into unspoilt mountains, the government dreams of package tourists, thousands of them.

Officials are banking on a slew of new airports to fuel mass tourism and economic development along the coast, with one airport planned for wetlands near the Vjosa delta, which activists say is in a protected zone.

The Albanian government dreams of package tourists while some experts say industrialisation will ruin the region

The battle over the Vjosa encapsulates the global debate over humanity's future: development at any price, or environmental protection above all else. Similar arguments have raged everywhere from China to Chile.

And activists are determined for Vjosa to be seen as a global issue.

"This is an unparalleled opportunity to set an example within Europe and the world," says Annette Spangenberg of EuroNatur, an NGO involved in the protection effort.

The river and all its tributaries are still untamed, and preserving the system would set "a new standard for what is possible in nature protection", she added.

At its heart, though, the battle against the dam is about preserving and improving the day-to-day lives of villagers.

"Vjosa is vital for us, for our land, for our food, it is part of our life," says 60-year-old local Idajet Zotaj, worrying that a dam would destroy the livelihoods of thousands.

At its heart, the battle against the dam is about preserving and improving the day-to-day lives of villagers

"I miss my children," says 86-year-old Mezin Zaim Zotaj, whose seven children have all left the region, four having emigrated.

"I am sure if Vjosa becomes a national park they will all come back to build their future here, at home," he adds as he patiently tends his gaggle of unruly sheep, just metres from the rumbling river.

 2021 AFP
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden have issued a joint statement expressing grave concern at the human rights situation of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim minorities in China's Xinjiang province.

The statement by these Nordic and Baltic countries, which was delivered by Martin Bille Hermann, Permanent Representative of Denmark to the UN on Wednesday, said, "We are gravely concerned about the information presented in reports and statements on the human rights situation in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region."

The countries also expressed concerned about the reported existence of a large network of so-called "political re-education" camps, where a very high number of people are held in long-term arbitrary detention.

"We are equally concerned by efforts to severely restrict the right to freedom of religion or belief, expression, peaceful assembly and association and the freedoms of movement for Uyghurs and other persons belonging to minority groups, as well as other human rights violations and abuses in Xinjiang," the statement read.

They also raised their concerned about the evidence-based reports, including of forced labour, forced use of birth control, sexual abuse and forced sterilizations.

"Human rights, as stipulated in international law and as provided for in China's constitution must be fully ensured for all persons belonging to religious and ethnic minorities, also in Xinjiang," the statement said.

It further stated that the Nordic and Baltic countries have called on China to allow journalists and other media workers to report on the human rights situation in Xinjiang without surveillance, censorship or fear of retribution.

China has been rebuked globally for cracking down on Uyghur Muslims by sending them to mass detention camps, interfering in their religious activities and sending members of the community to undergo some form of forcible re-education or indoctrination.

Beijing, on the other hand, has vehemently denied that it is engaged in human rights abuses against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang while reports from journalists, NGOs and former detainees have surfaced, highlighting the Chinese Communist Party's brutal crackdown on the ethnic community.

Early this year, the United States become the first country in the world to declare the Chinese actions in Xinjiang as "genocide". In February, both the Canadian and Dutch parliaments adopted motions recognising the Uyghur crisis as genocide. The latter became the first parliament in Europe to do so.

In April, the United Kingdom also declared China's ongoing crackdown in Xinjiang as "genocide".

(ANI)

Also Read: China interested in cooperation with Russia on Arctic Station Project
If we said no to those patients from being donors, that means we are not going to have enough organs to save lives, said Dr. Ankit Bharat, chief of thoracic surgery and surgical director of the Northwestern Medicine Lung Transplant Program, who performed the procedure. He noted that there have been more than 32 million cases of COVID-19 diagnosed in the U.S.
A graphic video circulating on social media appears to show part of the aftermath of the shooting. The woman filming the vertical video and a man off camera are heard yelling at a man, wearing a hoodie and navy pants that appear to be stained with blood, walking out of a parking garage and another man lying against a wall behind a barrier. The second man, who looks like Taylor and has similar tattoos, appears to be going in and out of consciousness and heavily breathing as a Chicago police officer tries to talk to him and radios for an ambulance.
Athans then picked up Gracia, who the 35-year-old recognized as a shooter for the La Familia Stones street gang, prosecutors said. They said after the man and Athans continued their spat through texting, calling and video chatting, Athans sent a selfie of him and Gracia inside his tow truck with a follow-up text that said, I told you my family got it like that.
The operator of the ransomware group Darkside said on Friday it had lost control of its servers and some of the money it had made through ransom payments, Recorded Future threat intelligence analyst Dmitry Smilyanets reported.

"A few hours ago, we lost access to the public part of our infrastructure, namely: Blog. Payment server. DOS servers," Darksupp, the operator of the Darkside ransomware, said in a post spotted by Smilyanets.

The operator of Darkside also said that cryptocurrency funds were withdrawn from their payment server, which was hosting ransom payments.

Darkside was behind the ransomware attack on the main pipeline carrying gasoline and diesel to the U.S. East Coast, Colonial Pipeline, which shut down late last week, disrupting gasoline and diesel deliveries to many states. This created panic buying and sent the national U.S. average gasoline price above $3 per gallon for the first time since 2014.

Colonial Pipeline has reportedly paid the ransom, to the tune of almost US$5 million in untraceable cryptocurrency, to the hackers that forced the operator to shut down the main U.S. fuel pipeline, Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing two sources with knowledge of the transaction.

The ransomware group said it had lost access to servers just a day after U.S. President Joe Biden said that "We're also going to pursue a measure to disrupt their ability to operate," referring to the hackers of Colonial Pipeline's computer network. President Biden said there was no evidence that the Russian government was behind the attack, but the people involved in the ransomware attack "are living in Russia."

According to Recorded Future's Smilyanets, the announcement from Darkside could mean that the U.S. had taken steps to disrupt the cyber criminals' "ability to operate". But it could also be a smokescreen so that the hackers shut down the computer infrastructure and network and run away with the money, the so-called "exit scam," Smilyanets warns.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
The reports do not show how Nightengale was able to obtain the Glock he used in the shootings, which Chicago police have said appeared to be random acts of violence. Authorities have said illegally obtained guns used in Chicago shootings often change hands among gang members, are bought and sold on the streets or are sometimes stolen from legal gun owners.
On May 11, 2016, Cynthia Kroft was driving to her moms after leaving her 3-to-11 shift at a Chesterton, Indiana, hospital where she worked as an ICU nurse, and was stopped at a light near Gateway Boulevard and State Road 49 in Chesterton, said the Krofts lawyer, Kenneth Allen.
According to police, officers heard several shots and saw an 18-year-old man running with a rifle. When they placed him under arrest, they noticed he had two gunshot wounds to the back and one to the arm. He was taken in critical condition to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center. Officers continued to canvass the area and discovered a 32-year-old man on the ground with a gunshot wound to the head, and he also was taken in critical condition to the same hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Over the past several years, Yale Law School has faced a number of controversies involving two of its best-known professors: Amy Chua and her husband Jed Rubenfeld. The pair are the closest thing Yale Law has to a celebrity power couple, less for their legal and academic achievements than their boundary-pushing bestsellers and op-eds. In 2011, Chua kicked off publicity for her new book, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, with a piece in the Wall Street Journal entitled Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior, setting off a somewhat predictable firestorm that made her, for a time at least, a household name. In the years since, Chua and Rubenfeld have leaned into their role as provocateurs, and in 2014, they co-authored a new book, The Triple Package: How Three Unlikely Traits Explain the Rise and Fall of Cultural Groups in America. This book again received widespread attention and blowback; the New York Times review of the book compared reading it to being slugged over and over again by a bully wearing kid gloves.

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More recently, Chua and Rubenfeld found themselves in the spotlight during the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation hearings. Soon after Kavanaugh was nominated, Chua wrote another op-ed for the Wall Street Journal praising him as a mentor to women. That piece was published before Christine Blasey Fords accusation came out, but despite an uproar on Yales campus around those allegations, Chua never withdrew her support for Kavanaugh. And in September of 2018, the Guardian reported that Chua had allegedly told her law students who depended upon her for coveted judicial clerkships that Brett Kavanaugh likes law clerks with a certain look that she described as model-like, and offered to advise them on achieving it. (Chua denied ever saying such a thing at the time, but in a recent email to Slate, she wrote I did stupidly comment that then-Judge Brett Kavanaughs clerks one year were nice lookinga comment I regret and would never say today.) Chua and Rubenfelds daughter eventually clerked for Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court.

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But while the couple has had many moments of public notoriety, nowhere are they more infamous than on Yales own campus. In December 2019, following allegations that she made inappropriate remarks about both students and faculty and was drinking heavily with her students (Yale professors are allowed to drink socially with students but, as a recent email from the dean put it, faculty should never drink excessively or allow students to do so), Chua came to an agreement with Yale Law: She stopped socializing with her students, agreed not to teach required courses until it had been determined that her behavior had improved, and was removed from Yales clerkship committee. (As a member of that committee, she was known for helping minority and first-generation students secure prestigious clerkships that would otherwise most often go to the students of wealthy and connected families.) The investigation that led to that agreement stemmed from a broader investigation into allegations of sexual harassment made by students and alumni against Rubenfeldallegations we reported on extensively in 2018. That investigation concluded in August of 2020, and Rubenfeld is currently one year into a two-year teaching suspension at Yale Law. (Rubenfeld has always vigorously denied the sexual harassment claims.)

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Now, Chua is at the center of yet another campus meltdownthis time, over allegations that she hosted students for dinners at her home earlier this year.

While seemingly trivial, the allegations, first reported by the Yale Daily News, have caused considerable drama on campus. A document with text messages from students who say they were at Chuas house has been circulating around the law school, spurring debates over the definition of dinner. Chua has sent not one, but two letters to her fellow faculty members loudly denying(ish) the claims, and posted to her personal website 67 pages of letters of support that current and former students had sent to law school administrators in Chuas defense. Yale Law, while not saying anything definitive on the matter, has removed Chuas name from a list of professors teaching small groupwhat Yale calls its mandatory small sections for all first year law studentsin what is seen by many, including Chua, as a punishment for the alleged dinners. And several students we spoke to (students who did not want to go on the record for fear of crossing a faculty member with considerable clout at Yale Law) say that Chua is yet again using her mentorship of minority students as cover for what they see as line crossing that never gets meaningfully checked. Basically, its a mess.

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Here is what we know about the dinner party accusations: In April, the Yale Daily News published a story with several unnamed sources accusing Chua of having students over to her house for dinner. These dinners are alleged to have occurred this past winter, during the height of the pandemic, when Yale had strict policies in place limiting gatherings and requiring mask-wearing for both students and faculty. The main source of evidence for these dinners is a dossierthese are Yale Law students, after allthat includes contemporaneous text messages from students who appear to have been at Chuas house. (We say appear to have been because the texts that are most suggestive of the dinners stem from an inside joke that is also established in materials included in the dossier. Yes, seriously.) Slate has seen an unredacted copy of the document, which was also shared with administrators. A version of this document has been published in redacted form on Above the Law and is all over campus.

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When Slate reached out to Chua to ask about the dinners, she first referred us to the letter she sent to her colleagues directly after the Daily News story was published. In that letter, Chua denies hosting any dinners, and states that if there were any dinners, there was a simple explanation for them: Anything misconstrued as a dinner was simply an instance of her consoling students in times of acute crisis this past semester after they reached out seeking support. As many of you know, there were a number of serious crises for our students in the last few months, including a student sending racist and terrifying violent messages to other students (and then disappearing), accusations of racism at the Law Journal, and most recently the outburst of anti-Asian violence thats been in the news, she wrote. Chua also noted in the letter that her husband was not present (the reported terms of Rubenfelds suspension provide that following his two-year suspension, his interactions with students will still be restricted), and that because they could not meet at the law school due to COVID restrictions, there was nowhere else to meet the students but in her home. Yale Law told us buildings had been available for use by professors and students since September 2020.

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When Slate asked Chua if she had any students over to her house the evening of February 19 (one date the dossier suggests a dinner occurred), she wrote, Yes, I had two students over that evening, from I believe 5:30 to 7. She again noted that these students had reached out to her in distress, and added: I didnt know about the law school Covid-okay-spaces, plus they wanted privacy, so they came to my house. They brought a bottle of wine, but I didnt drink any of it and had two Frescas. No one else was present.

While the students mentioned in the dossier declined to speak to Slate, three Yale Law students spoke to Tom Bartlett at the Chronicle of Higher Education:

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I spoke to three students who went to Chuas house this semester. None of them describes what they went to as a dinner party. Two said they were, indeed, in the midst of personal crises. One said he went to her house because Chua invited him over for a chat about his future and described it as a good conversation about entering the legal profession and hearing her war stories. Each said that they brought one friend and that no one else was present except for Chua and her dogs. They all denied drinking alcohol while at her house. One said, for what its worth, that snacks were served.

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While you would be forgiven for wondering how it can possibly matter if Amy Chua had students over for dinner, the reason this story has taken off has less to do with the dinnersor consolation sessionsand more to do with Chuas recent history at Yale. When the Daily News reported on the gatherings, it also made public the 2019 agreement between Chua and Yale Law School for the first time. The dinners, in other words, were presented as violations of that agreementa formerly misbehaving professor misbehaving again. Giving that narrative even more credence, the Daily News further reported that following the dinner party allegations, Chua lost her small group, which she had been set to return to teach for the 2021-22 academic year, the first time since the 2019 agreement.

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When we asked Yale Law why Chua will no longer teach a small group, a spokeswoman told us:

Decisions about who teaches a course are made for many reasons, ranging from a faculty members request to teach or not teach a course to the faculty members suitability. Decisions about required first-year small group courses are particularly important because professors in these courses are expected to mentor students academically and to help create an environment in which students can thrive. Since the start of the pandemic, meeting the Law Schools health and safety expectations and exercising sound judgment about such matters may also factor into whether a faculty member is suitable to teach a small group.

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For some students, the Yale Daily News story was the first they had heard about Chuas past transgressions. Regardless of whether they thought Chua was right or wrong for hosting students at her house, every student we spoke to wanted to know why Yale Law School hadnt been transparent about Chuas status as a professor on what was essentially probation. In answer to that question, a spokeswoman for Yale Law School told us, the school is governed by University procedures, which strictly prevent the Law School from commenting on, or even acknowledging the existence of, faculty disciplinary cases. A spokeswoman for the University said: Yale is committed to preserving the confidentiality and integrity of its disciplinary processes. This commitment helps encourage our community members to participate and is consistent with state and federal privacy laws. Accordingly, we do not comment on or even confirm the existence of specific disciplinary cases. Of course, information is shared with participants, and in some circumstances others who have a need to know.

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This makes sense, legallypersonnel matters are often required to remain private. But for the students and several alum we spoke to, this latest, opaque dinner-party-small-group-losing situation is part of a bizarre pattern of punishment and reinstatement for Chua and her husband that has caused them to lose faith in Yale Laws ability to rein in the high-profile pair.

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The 2019 investigation into Chuas behavior wrapped up quietly. A few, but not all of the students and alumni who had come forward to allege misbehavior were alerted by Yale Law School Dean Heather Gerkens secretary that they would receive a package by certified mail. That package, sent out in December 2019, included two lettersone from Amy Chua that was characterized in the other letter, from Gerken, as a statement of regret, and Gerkens letter, which outlined the punishment to which Chua had agreedthe agreement that many now believe has been violated:

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Professor Chua will not teach a required course until we are assured that the kind of misconduct alleged will not occur. She voluntarily agreed not to teach Contracts this fall, and she will not teach any required courses next year. Professor Chua has, on her own initiative, stopped drinking with her students and socializing with them outside of class and office hours. She will not serve on the clerkship committee under my deanship. She has also agreed to a substantial financial penalty.

The letter concluded with this paragraph:

I am very grateful to you for bringing this matter to our attention. Professor Chua has voluntarily agreed to all of these conditions. She has mentored a generation of students, especially students of color and first-generation professionals, and I know she wants to resume this important role.

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The Deans reference at the end, to Chuas work supporting minority students, seemed to imply that despite the fact that she had behaved inappropriately, to the point of financial fines, and would be removed from the clerkship committee, her mentorship of minority students would continue in some form. That work is laudable, but as one student put it, Chua [uses] her mentorship and her connections with the clerkshipsand the things shes willing to do for students of colorto justify her conduct. In interviews with students and recent alumni, several wondered: If Chua is consistently framing herself as an advocate for these studentsand the Law School is endorsing her as such an advocatebut she has also been the subject of discipline for inappropriate interactions with students, isnt the law school essentially saying that the students who are likely most in need of mentorship are stuck getting it from a professor who, at the very least, struggles to maintain appropriate relationships with students? As one current Yale Law student put it, its pretty nuts to basically say: We have a bunch of faculty who are not willing to mentor students of color or first generation professionals, and then we have a problematic professor who is.

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Chua has consistently invoked her work mentoring students of color and first-generation students when she is accused of any wrongdoing, including in her response to Dinnergate. And there are certainly many Yale Law School students and alumni who feel they have benefited from their relationship with her. But at the same time Chua posted that 67-page bundle of supportive letters to her website, a recent alum sent a very different letter to Chua, cc-ing Gerken, another dean, and two faculty members. (A lightly redacted version of this letter was also shared with the Wall, a list serve that all students and faculty at the law school can access, on May 3, and was later shared on Twitter.)

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In that letter, the alum described having a close relationship with Chua as a first year student at Yale Law, and then explained how that relationship soured as, over the course of their time at Yale, the alum witnessed Chua allegedly belittling current and former students, speculating on students sexuality, regularly commenting on students appearances, and playing favorites among students. One of the last straws for this alum, according to the letter, was knowing that Chua had said the things several news outlets reported her saying about then-Judge Kavanaugh liking female clerks to dress a certain way, and watching her deny it again and again. I have had dozens of close male and female faculty mentors, none of whom ever once blurred the line, or made me feel small, or made me question my sanity and decency like you did, the alum writes. The letter writer notes that all of this disillusioned them to the point that they decided not to apply for a clerkship at all.

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Chua denied many of the specific allegations in the letter (my memory of every single event mentioned in [the] letter is categorically different from what is described, she wrote to us in an email). Chua told us that this students words are among the most painful Ive ever read. I feel terrible sorrow for [their] experience at the Law School. She added that these complaints were fully reviewed by Yale in 2019, are part of what led to the 2019 agreement, and that, as part of that agreement, Chua had issued an apology letter. She says that in her apology, she wrote that she acknowledged that I can be unguarded or unfiltered at times, and I apologized for anything that might have been hurtful to students even if that was the farthest thing from my intention. But the alum who wrote the letter says they never received a copy of the 2019 agreement, or Chuas statement of regret.

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This latest uproar at Yale is absurd on its face. Did Chua host two students or three? Did they drink a glass of wine or not? Does a cheese plate count as a meal? But the reason it has become such a thing on campus is all about the context: Yale has removed Chua and Rubenfeld from teaching mandatory courses, then permitted it, then removed them again, all with zero transparency. Even before the 2018 investigation, Rubenfeld had lost permission to teach a small group for one year, following previous accusations of harassment. After the school concluded its 2020 investigation into Rubenfelds misbehavior, it only told members of the faculty, not students, that Rubenfeld would be suspended from teaching all of his classes for two years. After this two-year suspension, Rubenfeld will be allowed to teach at Yale Law again, although he will still be barred from teaching small groups or any other required classes. In other words, whatever Yale did find, it was sufficiently alarming that the school determined Rubenfeld could no longer be trusted to teach a required class, even post-suspension, but also that after some interregnum, he could still teach some students, so long as they chose to take his classes. If this dance actually achieves anything at all, it is to create a rotation that assures that every few years, a fresh crop of first-year law students will have to navigate relationships with these same two professors who could make or break their legal careers, without any sense of the potential dramas and risks that come with that.

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An extensive report prepared last year by Yale Law Women, a student organization, made this point about Rubenfeld to Yale President Peter Salovey. There is no reason to believe there will be any change in his behaviorthe only change will be that all the students who are aware of his transgressions will have graduated, thereby impairing institutional memory, the report states. We do not want Jed Rubenfeld to prey on a new generation of students. As one recent alum told us, Ive been in touch with so many YLW leaders on thisthat just shows how many different years worth of students have had to devote time to this.

As for Chua, while that 2019 agreement removed her from the clerkship committee, she has continued to play a role in clerkship placements. Regardless of who is on the official committee, clerkships are handled by whichever professors are most willing to invest their time and energy into leveraging personal relationships with judges to place their students. And while multiple people told us that other members of the Yale Law School faculty certainly mentor minority and first generation students, it does seem that no one is as committed to doing thisor as outspoken about doing thisas Amy Chua. (When we asked Chua about continuing her clerkship work, she said, yes, of course, when students in my classes ask me for a clerkship recommendation, I provide it.)

When we reported on the Yale investigation into Jed Rubenfelds behavior toward his students in 2018, multiple students told us they once heard Chua threaten to call every justice on the Supreme Court to limit the options of a student who had helped organize a response against an op-ed Rubenfeld had written for the New York Times. (The op-ed criticized universities attempts to adjudicate rape, and claimed the label was being applied too broadly.) Whether Chuawho denied all of these claimswould actually go to such vindictive lengths is unclear, but the fear students expressed about crossing her reflects the lopsided power dynamics that exist between high-profile professors with long-standing connections to federal judges, and the students who must rely on those professors to help them get ahead, particularly the students who have no other connections.

This dynamic might explain why even the smallest allegation about Chua causes such a ruckus at Yale Law. As one student put it, that Chua is perceived to maintain so much influence over the Yale clerkship pipeline and yet keeps crossing lines really forces minority students to choose between complicity and career advancement. That is, if they even know about the allegations against her in the first place.
Slates homepage editors spend a lot of time looking for editorial photos to put on our site. Those searches sometimes yield unexpected results: random, perplexing, and mesmerizing photos that dont belong on the homepage, but that are too good not to share. Every week, well share the weirdest photo from the wires.

What search term was used to find this in Getty?

bill melinda gates

What were you hoping to find?

A photo of Americas technocrat aunt and uncle.

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What did you find instead?

A rumpled-looking man giving off eccentric science teacher vibes. Is the banana a teaching aid or a snack? Perhaps its a signature talisman, like the Log Ladys log in Twin Peaks? Is it even a real banana? In any case, its a whimsical counterpoint to the mans stern expression and muted clothing.

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Whats the actual backstory here?

The man in this November 2020 photo is Piers Corbyn, the older brother of former U.K. Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn. Regrettably, while Piers is eccentric, hes no science teacher. During the pandemic, he has emerged as an avid anti-lockdown activist and has promoted numerous conspiracy theories about the coronavirus and the vaccines. This photo was taken while he spoke to the media after an anti-vaccine demonstration outside the Gates Foundations offices in London. At a separate protest in October 2020, Corbyn told a crowd that Bill Gates wants vaccinations to control you and to control womens fertility to reduce world population.

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Earlier this year, Corbyn was arrested on suspicion of malicious communications and public nuisance for his alleged role in distributing leaflets around London that compared the U.K.s vaccine rollout to the Holocaust. The flyers depicted the gates of Auschwitz, with the camps infamous inscription changed from Arbeit macht frei (work sets you free) to vaccines are safe path to freedom. In an interview with the Jewish Chronicle after his arrest, Corbyn dismissed accusations that he was antisemitic by saying I was married for 22 years to a Jewess and Ive also employed Jewish people in my business Weather Action, one of whom was a superb worker.

Whats the deal with the banana?

Its a prop in his argument that COVID is a hoax, using the much-repeated misconception that humans and bananas share 60 percent of the same DNA. Basically, Corbyn claims scientists have not definitively proved the existence of SARS-CoV-2 because the tests theyve used are about as accurate as saying that a human was in a room based on the fact that a banana was found in it. It should go without saying, but his theory is not true. Corbyn has a masters in astrophysics and is not a doctor, geneticist, or virologistbut actual doctors, geneticists, and virologists have isolated the virus SARS-CoV-2 as the cause of COVID-19, and they have mapped the entirety of the viruss genome.

Is he into any other conspiracy theories?

Corbyn, who is the founder of a weather prediction business, also promotes the unscientific claim that humans play no role in climate change and that rising temperatures are due to variation in the suns magnetic field, not carbon emissions.

Why is this the weird photo of the week?

Please dont be like Piers. Get vaccinated.
The violence between Israelis and Palestinians intensified Saturday as an Israeli airstrike destroyed a large high-rise building in Gaza City that housed the offices of the Associated Press and Al-Jazeera. Israeli officials ordered the evacuation of the 12-story building, which also housed other media outlets, offices, and homes, about an hour before the strike that collapsed the structure into a pile of rubble. We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing APs bureau and other news organizations in Gaza, APs CEO Gary Pruitt said in a statement. This is an incredibly disturbing development. There were a dozen AP journalists and freelancers inside the building before the attack but they were able to evacuate in time. The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today, Pruitt added.

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Oh my god. The building where al Jazeeras office is housed has just been taken down by Israeli airstrikes. There was a warning and evacuated. It houses offices and private homes. I cant believe it. pic.twitter.com/Q4luRYk9H9  Stefanie Dekker (@StefanieDekker) May 15, 2021

Al Jazeera broadcast the airstrike live and showed the building collapsing. This channel will not be silenced. Al-Jazeera will not be silenced, the networks anchor said on-air. Al-Jazeera journalist Safwat al-Kahlout said a resident of the building received a call warning of the attack around an hour before the airstrike. He and his colleagues started gathering as much equipment as possible before evacuating the building. Now, one can understand the feeling of the people whose homes have been destroyed by such kind of air attacks, al-Kahlout said. Its really difficult to wake up one day and then you realize that your office is not there with all the career experiences, memories that youve had.

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The Israel Defense Forces claimed the building also had military assets that were part of Hamas and emphasized it had given civilians plenty of time to evacuate. Prior to the strike, the IDF provided advance warning to civilians in the building and allowed sufficient time for them to evacuate the site, the IDF statement said. Hamas deliberately places military targets at the heart of densely populated civilian areas in the Gaza Strip. Al-Jazeera aired a video showing the owner of the building pleading with an Israeli officer to hold off the airstrike for a few minutes to allow journalists to collect their gear. The officer refused.

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WATCH: The owner of al-Jalaa tower pleads with an Israeli officer on live TV to let journalists collect their gear before he bombs it.



Moments later, Israeli air strikes demolish the #Gaza building that housed several international media offices, including #AlJazeera and MEE pic.twitter.com/Sf5PM3UN7P  Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) May 15, 2021

The Committee to Protect Journalists is demanding a more detailed explanation from Israel. This latest attack on a building long known by Israel to house international media raises the specter that the Israel Defense Forces is deliberately targeting media facilities in order to disrupt coverage of the human suffering in Gaza, CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon said. We demand that the Israeli government provide a detailed and documented justification for this military attack on a civilian facility given the possible violation of international humanitarian law.

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We have communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility.  Jen Psaki (@PressSec) May 15, 2021

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The strike on the building housing media offices came mere hours after another Israeli airstrike on a refugee camp killed at least 10 Palestinians from an extended family, mostly children. Some reports claim the dead included eight children and two women. Childrens toys could be seen in the rubble of what amounted to the single deadliest strike as part of the current conflict that marks the most significant escalation in violence since 2014. Amid the airstrikes Israel said Saturday that around 2,300 rockets have been fired from Gaza into Israel since Monday, about 1,000 of which were intercepted. At least 139 people, including 39 children and 22 women, have been killed in Gaza while eight people have been killed in Israel. So far, regional international efforts at diplomacy have failed to yield any results.
A new explosive report gives salacious details about how Rep. Matt Gaetz allegedly used his office and power. The Daily Beast says witnesses claim the Florida lawmaker snorted cocaine with an escort in a 2019 party during a hotel stay that was paid for with campaign cash. The party in question took place in late October 2019, when Gaetz was the featured speaker at the Trump Defender Gala, a fundraiser in Orlando. Gaetz held an afterparty in his hotel room and thats when the escort, named Megan Zalonka, prepared lines of cocaine on the bathroom counter. One witness claims to remember Zalonka pulling the drugs out of her makeup bag, rolling a bill of cash, and joining Gaetz in snorting the cocaine. Although the witnesses dont confirm whether Gaetz and Zalonka had sex that night, she was one of the many pieces of arm candy he had, one witness said.

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Details of this latest party come shortly after it was revealed that Gaetzs long-time wingman, Joel Greenberg, will plead guilty to six federal charges, including sex trafficking with a child. As part of his plea agreement, Greenberg, a former elected tax collector in Florida, agreed to cooperate fully in the investigation and prosecution of other persons. In the plea agreement, Greenberg acknowledges he was involved in sugar daddy relationships with women, including a minor with whom he engaged in commercial sex acts. Greenberg also acknowledged he introduced the minor to other adult men, who engaged in commercial sex acts with the minor. Although the other men arent identified, it seems clear Gaetz was one of them. Among other things, Greenberg will reportedly identify Zalonka as one of more than 15 young women that Gaetz paid for sex, according to the Daily Beast. Zalonka stands apart from the other women though in that she managed to leverage her relationship with Greenberg into a no-show government contract that paid her as much as $17,500.

Gaetz has not been charged and denied any wrongdoing but did not comment on these specific allegations. The public relations firm Gaetz has hired declined to comment. Congressman Gaetz wont be commenting on whether he dated or didnt date specific women, the public relations firm said in a statement. The privacy of women living private lives should be protected. Zalonkas attorney also declined to comment beyond saying that the allegations in the story were not accurate.
Conditions for travelling to Czechia change again

Self-isolation will be required.

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The Czech Republic will relist Slovakia as a red country, i.e. a country with a high risk of infection, starting on Monday, May 17.

Our paywall policy: The Slovak Spectator has decided to make all the articles on the special measures, statistics and basic information about the coronavirus available to everyone. If you appreciate our work and would like to support good journalism, please buy our subscription. We believe this is an issue where accurate and fact-based information is important for people to cope.

This means that people entering Czechia from Slovakia will have to fill in the Public Health Passenger Locator Form prior to their arrival and send it to a respective regional hygiene office in the Czech Republic. They must show confirmation of this at border control if asked.

At the same time, they have to show a negative antigen test result no older than 24 hours or a negative PCR test result no older than 72 hours when crossing the border. Travellers will then have to stay in self-isolation until receiving a negative PCR test result, which they need to pay for. The test should be taken within 5 days after their arrival and the result has to be submitted to a respective regional hygiene office in the Czech Republic.

Incomers from Slovakia are required to wear respirators (types FFP2, KN95, N95, P2, DS) during the first 14 days since their arrival, both inside and outside, the Slovak Foreign Affairs Ministry reported on its website.

People entering the Czech Republic who have been vaccinated on the territory of Slovakia, Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary and Slovenia will have an exception if they have confirmation that at least 22 days have passed since they received the first vaccine jab.

Read more about the coronavirus developments in Slovakia:

15. May 2021 at 17:40 | Compiled by Spectator staff
The revised policy, for example, calls for a department member who is at the rank of lieutenant or above to be at the scene when the warrant is executed and for each member of the team serving the warrant to wear body cameras. A female member of the department also is required to be present during the service of the warrant, the policy states.
The unemployment insurance benefit is one that we pay into. It is meant to be a safety net, there to catch us if the bottom falls out. Congress approved additional funds because a struggling national economy demanded it. With over 1.4 million claims filed in Illinois alone, the bottom had surely given way. Yet the polarizing debate suggests that there is something wrong with, even shame attached to, people accepting and utilizing the benefits their tax dollars created, as though they have no right to them. To be clear, the people in this case are overwhelmingly female, and also service workers who are predominantly Latino, African American or low-income and white.
Over the last four years China has introduced modern infantry equipment that was their version of an American concept pioneered in the 1980s ("Land Warrior"), and resulted in the introduction of new body armor, personal communications/navigation gear, knee and elbow pads, wearable computers, night vision devices, and personal medical equipment for American troops. Several European countries followed, especially the German Infanterist der Zukunft (Infantryman Of The Future) and by 2020 most NATO nations had all or most of this equipment.

Russia had its Ratnik (warrior) ensemble, which was originally scheduled (in the 1980s) to appear in the 1990s. That was delayed by the collapse of the Soviet Union and severe budget problems throughout the 1990s. In the meantime, Russia and China studied the American system, which was completed after 2001 largely because new items were introduced for troops already in combat who asked for specific improvements. That meant the American ensemble was modified by combat experience before and after introduction. The American gear came be seen as the benchmark other nations would follow.

Ratnik was declared complete in 2013, except for the new assault rifles (AK-12) that finally arrived in 2020. Unlike the United States, Russia included a new rifle design (AK-12) as part of its Ratnik gear. There was a lot of opposition to the AK-12 within the Russian high command, but at the troop level, there was an even more vigorous and louder call for something to replace the Cold War era AK-74, which was an unpopular AK-47 type weapon firing an M-16 type round.

In 2020 Russia also revealed that it was working on a new generation of infantry equipment called Sotnik (Centurion) to replace the current Ratnik. Russia plans to have the first Sotnik equipment delivered to special operations troops by 2025 and to everyone else five years after that. That may be overly ambitious because Sotnik consists of a lot of high-tech items that may not be ready for combat troops in time. Some of the new items already exist, like anti-mine boots and special cloth that will reduce the thermal (heat) that identifies troops to thermal sensors. There are similar types of cloth that reduce radar effectiveness. Because of sanctions Russia may have problems importing finished items or components for locally made versions. Sotnik will include more powerful digital communications gear for individual troops and tighter integration with what nearby small UAVs can see. This information will be presented on a special visor or goggle display similar to what many fighter pilots currently use. Israel already has such goggles that enable tank crews to switch on outside view and show what is outside the tank via a system of small vidcams on the tank exterior. Sotnik will also emphasize lighter versions of existing Ratnik gear, especially heavy protective items (vest and helmet) that will also become more effective. All items in the Sotnik ensemble will be lighter so that the entire Sotnik ensemble will be, at 20 kg (44 pounds) 20 percent lighter than Ratnik equivalents.

The final list of Sotnik items wont be completed until 2023, but it was revealed that Sotnik will include new weapons and ammunition as well as using AI (Artificial Intelligence) in electronic components. Some of the items being developed for Ratnik 3 will end up being part of the initial version of Sotnik. The proposed Sotnik items are not science fiction, but the Russian capability to manufacture these items for combat soldiers is questionable. It would not be the first time that Russian press releases got too far ahead of capabilities.

China is more cautious in such matters and pays a lot of attention to how new foreign concepts work in combat. That was why the new Chinese ensemble included a new QBZ-191 assault rifle. This weapon, which is based on the German HK416, has been around since 2017. The QBZ-191 replaced the 1990s era QBZ-95 in many combat units, especially those receiving the new infantry ensemble. The older QBZ-95 is a more compact bullpup (the magazine is behind the trigger) design that continues to be used by vehicle crews and other troops who do not use their assault rifle a lot.

The QBZ-191 is a traditional design and it also uses the unique Chinese 5.8x42mm round, but with a new variant of that round that has better medium and long-range performance. Like the HK416, the QBZ-191 looks like the original AR-15/M-16, including a buffer tube with a fixed telescopic adjustable buttstock. Most importantly the 191 uses short-stroke gas piston operating system that distinguishes HK416 from the M-16. Other nations had already abandoned their bullpup type assault rifles for the more traditional design, like the M16.

Chinese firms have, for years, been producing their own versions of most Western, and Russian assault rifles. These are usually for the civilian markets which means no automatic fire option. Military versions with auto-fire are also made available if enough military customers ask for it. The 191 includes a full-length Picatinny rail on top so the rifle can use a wide array of sights and other accessories so popular with Western assault rifles. There are also flip-up iron sights. The 191 has traditional polymer handguards but variants with MLOK handguards have also been seen. The rifle uses polymer magazines similar to these used by the QBZ-95.

When the QBZ-95 (or Type 95) first appeared, its bullpup design was complemented by the use of Chinas proprietary 5.8x42mm cartridge. The round is a little wider than the 5.56 NATO, but shorter in overall length. The QBZ-95 as described as revolutionary. Since Chinese forces were not seeing any combat, it was not until some QBZ-95s were exported to Burma in 2009 that the new rifle got a lot of combat experience and the flaws became apparent. The Burmese were fighting, and still are, a large number of tribal rebels.

The QBZ-95 replaced the Type 81 (improved AK-47) rifles. The QBZ-95 was about ten percent lighter than the AK-47 clone and was well received by the troops until they had to use it in combat.

China is slow to adopt new combat equipment, but when they do it is done quickly and competently. For example, in 2007 China spent over a billion dollars to buy new combat uniforms for its troops. The modern looking Type 7 camo uniforms appeared similar to the camouflage uniforms American soldiers and marines adopted in 2003. China has already adopted the American-style Kevlar helmet and with the Type 7 uniforms from a distance Western and Chinese troops look alike in terms of uniforms, protective gear and weapons. That convergence continues.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

In February, SaltWorks, a Woodinville maker of sea salt consumer products, got some unsettling legal news: The 19-year-old company was being sued for allegedly infringing on a patent covering technology in its e-commerce system.

Although the patent in the lawsuit appeared so generic it could apply to any kind of e-commerce, SaltWorks reportedly settled with the plaintiff, North Carolina-based Landmark Technology A, rather than wage a costly court battle.

SaltWorks, which declined to comment on the matter, isn't the only company targeted by Landmark.

In recent years, at least 10 Washington state firms, including Seattle-area businesses Jones Soda and The Essential Baking Company, reportedly have been sued by Landmark or a predecessor under what is known as patent trolling. According to the state Attorney General's Office, this "predatory" strategy uses "bad faith" patent claims to force small businesses into quick cash settlements.

But Landmark may be getting some of its own medicine.

On Thursday, Landmark became the first company to be sued under the Washington state's Patent Troll Protection Act, a 2015 law that, according to the Attorney General's Office, was intended to " 'crack down' on 'patent trolls' who harass and threaten small businesses with patent infringement claims."

"Landmark extorts small businesses, demanding payment for webpages that are essential for running a business," Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement Thursday. "It backs them into a cornerpay up now, or get buried in legal fees."

With the lawsuit, Ferguson said he's "putting patent trolls on notice: Bully businesses with unreasonable patent assertions, and you'll see us in court."

John A. Lee, a Menlo Park, Calif., attorney listed in court documents as legal counsel for Landmark Technology A, did not respond to questions about the case. Court documents also list Lee as counsel for a second company, Landmark Technology, based in San Diego, which brought earlier patent infringement cases against Washington firms. According to the Attorney General's Office, Landmark Technology A is a successor to Landmark Technology, and is registered in North Carolina with a single member, Raymond Mercado, a North Carolina resident.

According to Ferguson, Landmark Technology A's "entire business model consists of demanding licensing fees from other companies." Between January 2019 and July 2020, the company sent "identical form demand letters" to nearly 1,200 small businesses across the country. Companies were told they had infringed on a patent owned by LTA that covers a broad swath of e-commerce operations and in many cases were threatened with litigation unless they paid Landmark a $65,000 licensing fee.

According to Thursday's lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, Landmark Technology A "primarily targets customer login pages on company websites, but has also demanded license fees for webpages containing privacy practices, shopping carts, products for sale, and company home pages. In short, any business with a web presence is a potential target for LTA."

But in a 2014 legal action, the attorney general's lawsuit notes, the United States Patent and Trademark Office determined that the patent in question would likely be ruled invalid because it "does not recite a technological feature that is novel and unobvious over the prior art, and is therefore not a technological invention."

However, because the cost of taking LTA to court is so high, most companies likely settle, according to Ferguson.

"While absurd on its face that LTA has patented all company websites, individual businesses lack the resources needed to combat LTA's extortive demands," the lawsuit says. According to the lawsuit, four Washington companies have settled with LTA for between $15,000 and $20,000.

"Fighting these entities is expensive," said Ben Hodges, a Seattle attorney who has represented several firms named in Landmark lawsuits. The legal costs to merely file an initial response to LTA can be roughly similar to the amount LTA often settles for, which can be unsustainable for smaller firms, Hodges said.

"You don't see them going after the Amazons, the Microsofts of the world," Hodges added. "You see them going after small, family-owned businesses."

Five Washington businesses named in LTA's lawsuits either did not respond to questions about the litigation or declined to commentin some cases citing requirements included in the settlements. Those firms were SaltWorks, Spokane-based Stoneway Electric Supply, and Seattle-based firms Tom Bihn Inc., Essential Baking, and Specialty Bottle.

Washington firms named in earlier suits by LTA's predecessor, Landmark Technology, included Jones Soda, Totally Chocolate, Thrift Books, and Gensco.

Joe Mullin, a policy analyst and patent expert with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, which advocates for "civil liberties in the digital world," said LTA relies on a two-part strategy: target firms that are too small to have resources for a legal battle, but settle before the case gets to court.

LTA "avoids having their patents litigated on the merits," Mullin said. "They tend to have cases that settle well before a judge reaches any conclusions about the quality of their patent (claim)."

2021 The Seattle Times.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Provinces rush to complete field hospitals for returnees from Cambodia

Authorities in several provinces have prepared to set up field hospitals to receive up to 10,000 people returning from Cambodia.



An Giang to upgrade quarantine centres





On May 13, Le Van Phuoc, vice chairman of An Giang Provincial People's Committee held a meeting to discuss Covid-19 quarantine and preventive measures. 50 quarantine centres have been set up so far with a capacity to receive over 4,400 people. However, it is estimated that 10,000 Vietnamese will return from Cambodia and An Giang need more quarantine centres and hospitals.



An Giang authorities said they had carried out a field survey to build a field hospital at Chau Thanh District Medical Station with 400 beds. Another field hospital will be set up at An Phu District Educational Centre with 400 beds and another hospital will be set up at An Giang General Hospital with 250 beds.





People were encouraged to remain in their host country and follow legal guidance on pandemic control rather than return to Vietnam. Several services that are considered unnecessary will be closed.



According to Kien Giang authorities, a field hospital project in Ha Tien City is near completion. The hospital will have 300 to 500 beds.
His willingness for levies has drawn him ire in the past. Suffredin was an ardent supporter of Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkles unpopular 2008 soda tax, and in 2017 he voted against its repeal while arguing it was essential for delivery of county services. On Friday, he again defended his position and said the tax was good public policy that was doomed after the soda lobby launched a full-court press.
A key point of the budget debate will be what to do with the federal relief money, with the state now in line for $600 million more than originally expected. Pritzker and legislative leaders in both parties have long said the money should first go toward paying down the states debts, most notably the remaining balance on $3.2 billion in Federal Reserve loans taken out to patch budget holes caused by the pandemic.
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The building is owned and being redeveloped by JH Real Estate Partners, owners of several downtown buildings. The city has received a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for the mural, and Aurora Downtown, the not-for-profit group that administers the citys downtown special service area, is matching it with another $10,000. The Aurora Public Art Department will put in another $6,000 to pay for needed scaffolding.
Six tents are testimony of the US field hospital, at Jean Pierre Complex, Mucurapo, Port Of Spain, yesterday. The facility, which is expected to assist Covid 19 patients, is expected to come on stream by next week. Photo: Jermaine Cruickshank
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.
Weve been a part of this for nearly a decade and we want to continue to help Mooseheart  the biggest thing is awareness of the school and what they do in the community, Palazzolo said. Were going to miss seeing the kids riding around this year and the interaction.
Sam was quiet on the drive to Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital Thursday morning for his 8 a.m. appointment. He plugged in his earbuds and was prepared to watch YouTube while the nurse injected the shot, but he was surprised that before he could fully start the video, it was already over.
Northern Bac Giang Province has obtained the Prime Ministers approval to receive 190 Chinese purchasers to support the trade of its famous lychee.

The provincial authorities have coordinated with the Chinese Embassy in Vietnam to soon bring Chinese lychee traders to the Southeast Asian country following the approval.

They have also been ready to welcome the Chinese traders through Huu Nghi Border Gate in northern Lang Son Province and Lao Cai Border Gate in the namesake northern province.

The traders will undergo quarantine according to regulations.

Speaking at a conference to promote agricultural products hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on Friday, Bac Giang deputy chairman Phan The Tuan said that this year, the province has seen the best output ever, at an estimation of 180,000 metric tons on the total farming area of 28,100 hectares, marking an increase of 15,000 metric tons against last year.

The main crop is expected to turn out about 130,000 metric tons.

The early harvest time will begin from May 20 while the main season will start from June 10 and last until July 20.

The provincial authorities have prepared a plan to support farmers in lychee trading while ensuring safety against COVID-19.

Checkpoints have been set up at the entrances and exits of lychee growing areas.

Lychee farmers are advised to not travel outside those areas before and during the harvest season.

Currently, the province has directed districts and communes to review cases of COVID-19 infections and test all workers living in the lychee growing areas and working at industrial parks.

COVID-19 patients direct contacts will be brought to a concentrated isolation area.

The agricultural sector and district governments are also working on documentation and testing of lychee shipments for COVID-19 prevention for both domestic and foreign markets.

The province has made a plan to organize an online conference to promote lychee consumption on June 8 with 21 localities in the country, four localities in China, two localities in Japan, one in Singapore and one in Australia, deputy chairman Tuan said.

We will also organize a ceremony to mark the early delivery of lychees grown in Tan Yen District to Japan on May 26, he added.

Bac Giang proposed the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development direct its Plant Protection Department to send experts to the province to supervise the fumigation, sterilization and implementation of phytosanitary measures on the Japan-bound lychees.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Tran Thanh Nam gave a nod to the suggestion during Fridays event.

For the domestic consumption, the Bac Giang Department of Industry and Trade has worked with supermarkets and wholesale markets in many provinces and launched the specialty onto e-commerce platforms.

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After Le Phuong Uyen fell several stories and landed on a 16-seat bus parked below, she knew her life would never be the same.

Le Phuong Uyen, 23, feels at home behind the camera. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

At 21 years old, she was paralyzed from the waist down and had to rebuild her life from scratch. Now, two years later, despite not being able to walk, she refuses to let any obstacle get in the way of her one true love: photography.

A new will to live

Although Uyen has undergone several operations meant to stabilize her back, doctors say its likely shell be paralyzed for the rest of her life.

In the days and weeks following her accident, Uyen and her family couldnt believe shed never be able to walk again.

Uyen had been an avid photographer since she was a child. She learned to take pictures on smartphones and tablets and, by the time she was in 12th-grade, had saved up enough money to buy a digital camera.

After she lost the use of her legs, Uyen felt as if that passion was being ripped from her hands.

I once asked my family to let me die, but my brothers inspired me to live. He told that it couldnt get any worse, so I might as well do my best to become a respectable person, Uyen shared.

Now, although daily life is a struggle, Uyen has a new will to live.

My schedule is pretty much the same each day. I wake up and go to the hospital for physical therapy, she told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

I try my best to overcome the monotony because I believe I cannot die. I almost died once before. No one can make me almost die again.

Tran Minh Phuong carries Le Phuong Uyen to the studio, where Uyen takes photos at the weekends. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

Pursuing a passion

Despite the tragic accident, Uyen has managed to hold onto her passion for photography.

You can still sit in the wheelchair, so you can take photos, too, a friend had reminded her.

That same friend later sent Uyen photos of wheelchair-bound photographers, inspiring Uyen to pick up her camera and return to photography.

I get so much support from others. After undergoing physical therapy from Monday to Friday, I return to Saigon to take photos, Uyen said.

Because of my health condition, other members of my team help me move around. They carry me to the car and upstairs. They also help me carry my equipment. The only thing they dont help me with is getting dressed.

Uyen hopes her story will inspire others facing the same circumstances to hold their heads high and pursue their dreams.

I want to be happy do what I like without wasting time, Uyen said.

I feel happy when others are willing to listen to me, respect me, and help me, she said.

According to Pham Dac Mai Chi, director of EYEIYAGI Company  the organization which employs Uyen, the young woman is an inspiration for her colleagues.

Uyen is a woman who is full of positive energy. She has been able to overcome her tragedy. Her strength inspires her coworkers, said Chi.

Apart from Chis support, Uyen also receives considerable help from her team members. Although they do not have to go to work on Saturdays and Sundays, they often visit the company to help Uyen get around.

Le Phuong Uyen works with two coworkers in front of a laptop. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

Le Phuong Uyen takes photos for a customer. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

Mai Anh, a coworker, helps Uyen to put the foot in the right position that will make Uyen more comfortable. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

Pham Dac Mai Chi (right) and Tran Minh Chanh (left) are Le Phuong Uyen (middle) look at the laptop screen while they are working together. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

Le Phuong Uyen navigates her wheelchair throughout the office where she works at the weekends after spending from Monday to Friday in the city of Vung Tau where she receives physical therapy. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre

Le Phuong Uyen smiles while holding an open book in her hands. Photo: Ngoc Phuong / Tuoi Tre
Despite her own struggle with a debilitating bone disorder, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Tam has kept her tuition-free classes running in the northern province of Nam Dinh for almost two decades to help disadvantaged children and live her life to the fullest.

At 31, the frail woman, whose weight of just 15 kilograms remains unchanged over the years, has now exceeded her life expectancy by one year.

Tam was born with brittle bone disease, or Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI), a disorder that results in fragile bones.

People with this condition have bones that fracture easily, often from mild trauma or with no apparent cause.

The average life expectancy for those who suffer OI is a short 30 years.

Against all odds, the tiny yet mighty woman has spent the last 17 years holding tuition-free tutoring classes to many underprivileged children in her neighborhood in Yen Quang Village, snuggled in Y Yen Commune.

She also composes literary works to help take away disadvantaged peoples sorrows and give back love and positive vibes.

The good deeds hold special meaning to Tam herself.

It doesnt matter how long I live. What really counts is how profound and impactful my life is, she shared.

A capable, dedicated and honest teacher

That is how many of her students, mostly in elementary and middle school, come to think of Tam.

Tams journey to school was as bumpy as one may expect for a young girl with OI.

Tam was diagnosed with the condition shortly after birth when one of her legs was found twisted on her tummy.

Her parents fought back their tears seeing their little girl continually in plaster casts following repeated episodes of fractures, sometimes just because of slightly awkward postures while sitting.

The number of my fracture episodes is even higher than my age. I cant remember them all, Tam said jokingly.

As she wound up spending the majority of her childhood at hospital, the girl initially missed out on attending school.

She could not make it to school until eight, leaving her two years older than her classmates.

My paternal father sent me to school so I could learn how to read and write, Tam recalled her first days at school, where she took her first steps towards a brighter future.

It was then that the girl began to form her dream of becoming a teacher.

However, her education was left incomplete when she had to drop out after finishing the ninth grade as her condition made it difficult to continue on to high school.

Still, the illness and unfinished education did not knock Tam down but built up her resilience and added fuel to her dream of becoming a teacher.

Rather than letting the overwhelming difficulties get in the way, the girl pushed steadily towards her goal of helping children in need.

Being unable to pursue a proper education isnt synonymous with having my dreams turn sour, she stressed.

Passing the torch

Known for her good academic performance and willingness to help her weak classmates catch up during the school years, Tam was already proving she is cut out for teaching.

Nguyen Thi Ngoc Tam (sitting in the wheelchair) is conferred with the National Volunteering prize in 2020 for her decades-long philanthropic education activities. Photo: Duong Trieu / Tuoi Tre

Even after she dropped out, some neighbors began to send their children to her so she could help them with their schoolwork.

Tam put in all her efforts and gradually gained trust among local parents.

More students, aged five to thirteen, come to her complimentary tutoring classes and reading space, called Brittle Bone Ngoc Tam.

There are days when there are up to 29 to 30 students in her classes at one time.

Seated on a small stool, the tiny teacher is overshadowed by her elementary and middle schoolers clustering in her special classes, which are known for five nos: chalk, blackboard, teaching podium, tuition or lesson plans.

She has her hands full switching from teaching math to Vietnamese literature and alphabet writing exercises to the students in different grades.

Tam shared the challenging part was individually following the learning pace of each student.

She tailors her lessons to her students different abilities and integration and puts them in the right groups to keep them from getting distracted during each session.

The dedicated teacher also makes sure to combine learning with games and activities so that her young students can have fun learning and stretch out in times they do not have to review intensively for exams.

The students are especially obedient, maybe because the classes and teacher are a bit unconventional, Tam said with a smile.

While many of Tams students have greatly improved their academic performance, there are some special students whose progress and memories are carved into her heart.

Among them is one student with a mental disability, who was admitted to Tams class after his/her mother watched a program featuring her on television.

As the child failed to read even simple words, Tam had to design the alphabet letters in her own way so he/she could recognize and memorize them one by one.

Her efforts bore fruit after one year as the student could finally memorize the alphabet letters.

Tams perseverance and determination have helped her through the difficult times as now she is loved and adored by all of her students thanks to her wholeheartedness in helping them.

Ms. Tam is really a capable, honest teacher. She allows us to have fun in learning, said Pham Khanh Linh, a third grader who has joined Tams classes for the past one year.

The appreciation is reciprocal.

The classes keep me in high spirit. Im happy when the students share with me their good academic results or affairs at their mainstream school, Tam shared.

If its time for me to go

Im still around, alive and kicking at the age of 31, Tam said, referring to her doctors grim expectation that she would not celebrate her 30th birthday.

I always try to live my life to the fullest. A kind-hearted, optimistic woman, thats how I want everyone to remember me after Im gone.

The frail woman relies on life-sustaining medication to keep her condition from deteriorating.

In recent years, her seriously curved spinal cord and chronic bronchitis have prevented her from lying prostrate for sleep, leaving her dozing off mostly in the upright position.

There are days when she is seriously ill but does not cancel her tutoring classes.

Ill continue my tutoring job for as long as Im needed, she stressed.

For her philanthropic education, Tam was among ten young people to be conferred with the National Volunteering prize in 2020.

Tam probably would not be where she is now without the constant support from her 60-year-old mother, Nguyen Thanh Su, who quit her job shortly after childbirth to dedicate all her time to her sickly daughter.

For the past 31 years, Su has never ceased worrying about her daughter, whose life may be cut short at any time.

Im hardened to pain and suffering now, she shared, adding she never dares to hold a birthday party for her daughter for fear that day may come.

What comes will come. She may be taken away from me some day, but Im content that shes happy the way she is, the elderly woman noted.

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More than 100 local coronavirus infections were registered in Vietnam on Friday, ten of them detected at two hospitals in Hanoi, the Ministry of Health said in a report.

The health ministry recorded a total of 104 domestic COVID-19 cases on the day, the second-steepest daily spike in this fourth wave that erupted on April 27.

Ten of the cases were reported at two hospitals in Hanoi, including eight at the Vietnam National Cancer Hospital and two at the Dong Anh District branch of the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

All of the new patients were logged in locked-down areas and isolated hospitals, the health ministry specified.

On Monday, the ministry announced 125 additional domestic cases, a record high since the country was first struck by the novel coronavirus on January 23, 2020.

Vietnam has recorded 3,816 local and imported coronavirus infections so far, including 2,657 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the health ministrys data.

Local cases account for 2,357 while 1,459 of the infections were imported from overseas.

The nation has confirmed 788 domestic cases since April 27, when it logged the first locally-infected patient after having gone about a month without detecting any community transmission.

Hanoi is leading this tally with 197 patients, followed by Bac Ninh Province with 177, Da Nang with 115, and Bac Giang Province with 107.

Ho Chi Minh City has detected merely one case in the ongoing outbreak.

Health workers have conducted 462,707 coronavirus tests in this wave, whereas 83,415 people are being quarantined after entering Vietnam from outbreak-hit regions or coming into close contact with infected patients.

Vietnam, whose population is around 97 million people, has administered 959,182 coronavirus vaccine shots since it rolled out mass vaccination on March 8.

Those immunized were medical staff and other frontline workers.

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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Twelve checkpoints at Ho Chi Minh Citys gateways have been put into operation from 0:00 Saturday to medically inspect vehicles.

Each of these checkpoints has mobile police officers, traffic inspectors, and health workers on duty around the clock.

They join hands to carry out body temperature measurement for people entering the city and collect medical declarations from them.

The medical inspection will be implemented on a random basis during the rush hours and on all vehicles entering the city during other hours, according to Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Binh, deputy head of the Ho Chi Minh City road and railway traffic police division.

This plan is to avoid congestion and ensure smooth traffic, Binh said.

The functional forces will organize the implementation based on the traffic situation.

In addition to the 12 checkpoints at the citys entrances, 57 other auxiliary checkpoints have also been installed across the southern metropolis.

Along with medical checks, the 69 checkpoints have the authority to handle and propose punishments against violations on COVID-19 prevention and control.

The municipal government established 62 similar checkpoints in April 2020 when Vietnam faced a serious epidemic outbreak and dismantled them three weeks later, when the virus had been kept at bay.

Medical workers measure people's body temperature at a checkpoint at a gateway to Ho Chi Minh City, May 15, 2021. Photo: Nhat Thinh / Tuoi Tre

The 12 coronavirus checkpoints that began operating at Ho Chi Minh Citys entrances at 0:00 am on Saturday: 1. Long Phuoc toll station on Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay Expressway 2. The toll station on Ho Chi Minh City - Trung Luong Expressway before the lead to Tan Tao - Cho Dem Expressway 3. The foot of the Doi Bridge on Tran Van Giau Street, bordering southern Long An Province 4. Ba Lang intersection on National Highway 1A, bordering Long An Province 5. National Highway 22, bordering southern Tay Ninh Province 6. The foot of Phu Cuong Bridge on Provincial Road 8, bordering southern Binh Duong Province 7. The foot of Vinh Binh Bridge on National Highway 13, bordering Binh Duong Province 8. The foot of Song Than overpass on National Highway 1A, bordering Binh Duong Province 9. National Highway 1K, bordering Binh Duong Province 10. National Highway 50, bordering Long An Province 11. In front of the University of Security on National Highway 1A 12. Dong Nai Bridge foot

A shipping container is utilized to temporarily accommodate staff at a checkpoint on National Highway 1K, Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City, May 14, 2021. Photo: Quang Dinh / Tuoi Tre

A medical worker measures a man's body temperature at a checkpoint at a gateway to Ho Chi Minh City, May 15, 2021. Photo: Nhat Thinh / Tuoi Tre

Staff put up a tent at a checkpoint at a gateway to Ho Chi Minh City, May 14, 2021. Photo: Nhat Thinh / Tuoi Tre

Staff put up a tent at a checkpoint at a gateway to Ho Chi Minh City, May 14, 2021. Photo: Nhat Thinh / Tuoi Tre

A medical worker measures a driver's body temperature at a checkpoint at a gateway to Ho Chi Minh City, May 15, 2021. Photo: Tu Trung / Tuoi Tre

A medical worker measures a driver's body temperature at a checkpoint at a gateway to Ho Chi Minh City, May 15, 2021. Photo: Tu Trung / Tuoi Tre

Staff prepare equipment at a checkpoint at a gateway to Ho Chi Minh City, May 14, 2021. Photo: Nhat Thinh / Tuoi Tre

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A whopping 165 domestic coronavirus infections were recorded in Vietnam by the Ministry of Health on Saturday, all found in sealed-off areas.

This is the biggest-ever daily increase in local COVID-19 patients since the Southeast Asian nation was first struck by the novel coronavirus on January 23, 2020, according to the health ministrys data.

Bac Giang Province in northern Vietnam recorded 109 of the cases, the ministry said in a report.

Thirteen local infections were detected at the Vietnam National Cancer Hospital on the day.

All of the domestically-transmitted cases were registered in locked-down areas which accommodate direct contacts of infected patients, the ministry noted.

Vietnam is batttling the fourth wave of COVID-19 that broke out on April 27.

The country has registered 953 domestic cases in 26 provinces and cities ever since, after having spent around a month without detecting any community transmission.

Bac Giang is in the front with 216 patients, followed by Hanoi with 213, Bac Ninh Province with 194, Da Nang with 123, and Vinh Phuc Province with 83.

Only one infection has been logged in Ho Chi Minh City in this wave.

Vietnam has recorded 3,985 domestic and imported coronavirus infections as yet, including 2,668 recoveries and 36 deaths, according to the health ministrys data.

Eleven were declared free of the virus on Saturday while the first pathogen-related fatality in eight months was recorded the same day.

Vietnam has administered almost 970,000 vaccine shots, most to medical staff and other frontline workers.

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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While this type of discrimination is already illegal under the Federal Americans with Disabilities Act, theres no way for the states to enforce it, Robertson insisted. This bill, which will be passed without debate in the House, according to State Rep. Stephanie Kifowit, who signed on as a co-sponsor, will not only make organ transplant discrimination explicitly illegal, incorporating provisions directly out of the ADA, it will add an enforcement mechanism by way of an Expedited Review Process through the State Courts here in Illinois.
Provincial and municipal authorities should consider deporting foreign workers without work permits or those failing to comply with entry and exit rules applicable to foreigners in Vietnam, the central labor agency has proposed.

The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs made this proposal in its urgent dispatch sent to all centrally-run cities and provinces on Friday.

The ministry said in the document that the current COVID-19 pandemic has been developing very complicatedly in the world as well as in Vietnam, and tends to be more complex in the coming time.

Meanwhile, many localities throughout the country have been facing a situation in which foreigners enter Vietnam illegally or enter the country to seek employment not in accordance with local laws, Minister Dao Ngoc Dung said in the dispatch.

The minister asked chairpersons of Peoples Committees of provinces and cities to strengthen labor inspections and examinations and strictly handle any individuals or organizations that receive and use illegal workers, as well as violations of labor legislation.

Authorities should consider expelling foreign workers who work in Vietnam without work permits (or certificates of exemption from such permits) or those failing to comply with regulations on entry, exit, transit or residence applied for foreigners in Vietnam.

In addition, relevant agencies are required to review the employment of foreign workers at all businesses and other establishments, the document states.

At the same time, it is necessary to strengthen the management of all entries of foreigners as well as the registration of employment of foreigners at enterprises and other entities, the ministry said.

It is a must to ensure no illegal foreign immigrants are employed in Vietnam, the minister said in the dispatch.

Local authorities should review and strictly control the issuance of work permits for foreign workers in accordance with applicable regulations and procedures.

The ministry also requests relevant agencies to inspect the compliance with regulations on COVID-19 prevention and control at all enterprises and other establishments that employ foreigners.

Any violators of such rules must be strictly dealt with and suspended from operation, the ministry required.

Local authorities should deliver their review results to the ministry before May 25 to serve as a foundation for the ministry to make a report to the Prime Minister.

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A Vietnamese court has sentenced a man to death for setting fire to a rented room in Ho Chi Minh City, killing a woman and her two nephews in June 2020.

The Peoples Court of Ho Chi Minh City on Friday sentenced 54-year-old Phan Van Quang, a native of Tien Giang Province, to death for murder and to two years in prison for property destruction.

Quang was brought to the court in a wheelchair as one of his legs had been amputated due to gangrene while he was in detention.

The other leg was seriously burned during his arson.

As shown in the indictment, Quang got acquainted with the woman, D.T.D., in April 2019 when he wholesaled fruits to her.

D. lived with her daughter and her two nephews, aged 13 and 15, in their rented room in Ho Chi Minh Citys Binh Tan District.

After more than one year of relationship, Quang and D. fell into conflict since the woman often scold him and changed her attitude toward him.

Thinking that D. had a relationship with another man, Quang felt resentment against her and such negative feeling drove him to commit the crime.

In the evening of June 11, 2020, D. cursed and beat Quang with a chair when he returned to the rented room from a market.

The man then left but he returned to the room at 1:00 am the following morning and set the room on fire using three liters of gasoline.

The fire killed D. and her two nephews inside the room, and destroyed a motorbike.

At that time, D.s daughter had gone out to sleep at a neighboring house, so she fortunately escaped the fire.

Quang fled the scene after his crime and hid at many places before being arrested in mid-June in Cho Gao District, Tien Giang Province, which borders Ho Chi Minh City.

At the court, Quang admitted the entire crime and accepted a compensation of VND1.3 billion (US$56,400) to the relatives of the victims.

However, he said that such compensation could be made only when he could contact his family again, since he had lost all contact with his relatives since he was arrested.

The trial panel concluded that Quang deserved the death sentence since he had committed an extremely serious crime, killing three people including two minors.

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A female driver is facing a hefty fine and having her driving license withdrawn for at least five months after being caught on camera backing her car on an expressway in northern Vietnam this week.

The surveillance camera of a passenger bus showed that an Innova car numbered 20A- 477.XX was reversing on the Hanoi - Thai Nguyen Expressway at 8:32 am on May 12.

The driver has been identified as V.T.T., 36, from Thai Nguyen City in the namesake northern province, Major Nguyen Kim Thi, captain of a highway traffic control patrol team, said on Friday.

The surveillance camera of a passenger bus shows an Innova car numbered 20A- 477.XX reversing on the Hanoi - Thai Nguyen Expressway at 8:32 am on May 12.

In her report before the police, T. admitted he had missed the exit ramp to Thai Nguyen City so she backed her car to get off the expressway.

Major Thi said that T. would be subject to a fine between VND16-18 million (US$696-783), about four times of a monthly base wage in Vietnam, and a revocation of her drivers license for five to seven months as per a government decree.

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Netflix has given the green light to a Bridgerton spin-off.

Shonda Rhimes will pen the script for the limited series about Queen Charlotte, played previously by Golda Rosheuvel. The untitled spin-off will also include the stories of young Violet Bridgerton (Ruth Gemmell) and Lady Danbury (Adjoa Andoh).

Showrunner Chris Van Dusen will remain on board for season two of the flagship series but Jess Brownell will join for seasons three and four.

Netflixs Bela Bajaria said in a statement, Many viewers had never known the story of Queen Charlotte before Bridgerton brought her to the world, and Im thrilled this new series will further expand her story and the world of Bridgerton. Shonda and her team are thoughtfully building out the Bridgerton universe so they can keep delivering for the fans with the same quality and style they love. And by planning and prepping all the upcoming seasons now, we also hope to keep up a pace that will keep even the most insatiable viewers totally fulfilled.

As we continue to expand the world of Bridgerton, we now have the opportunity to devote even more of the Shondaland fold to the Bridgerton-verse, Shonda Rhimes said in a statement. Weve worked with Jess Brownell for over a decade and have long wanted to find the right project to place in her hands. When it came time to pass the baton, I knew this unique voice was vital to the future of the show.

Showrunner Chris Van Dusen added, With Bridgerton, I set out to make the period show I always wanted to see. I never couldve anticipated how much the rest of the world also wanted to see it. Im deeply proud of this remarkable cast and incredible crew, and Im so grateful for the enduring support of Shonda, who Ive worked alongside for 17 years. Shondaland is where I learned how to make TV, craft incredibly complex characters and how to tell stories. And while its been an incredible journey, I have my sights set on a few new stories to tell. To that end, Ill continue as showrunner  writing and producing season two of Bridgerton  and look forward to seeing Jess continue the magic in seasons three and four. Id also like to thank Julia Quinn and her passionate fans  for embracing my vision for bringing these beloved books to the screen. See you in Grosvenor Square!

Source: Hollywood Reporter

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Faculty Award for University Scholarship

Dr. Simanti Dasgupta, Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work

Simanti Dasgupta has made significant contributions to anthropology and related disciplines. As a postcolonial scholar whose work is based in India, she examines how current neoliberal changes are impacting marginalized communities. She is currently working on her second book manuscript that examines a sex work movement at the intersection of HIV/AIDS and anti-trafficking regimes.

Faculty Award for University Service

Dr. Ryan W. McEwan, Biology

Ryan McEwans service to UD includes transforming the Environmental Biology program, developing a new Environmental Research Area at Old River Park, the development of Sustainability Curriculum and incorporating the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals into the Stander Symposium.

Faculty Award for University Teaching

Dr. Neomi DeAnda, Religious Studies

Neomi DeAnda has integrated pedagogical methods outside of her discipline, such as Theater of the Oppressed, and has made it possible for Religious Studies undergraduate majors and graduate Theology students to present at conferences. She has driven students to Chicago for a poster session presentation with a small stop at the Catholic Theological Union, so they could meet additional theological faculty and explore the various programs offered. Her transdisciplinary work includes facilitating interactive, student-focused, digital humanities projects.
Every night after Singh and his wife leave their Upper Crust catering business, they go home to St. Charles and spend the entire evening on the phone talking to loved ones on the other side of the world who tell them the kind of horror stories that keep them up at night and make them wonder how this country of 1.5 billion people will win out over a double mutant variant of COVID that has an impact beyond the official count of 340,000 cases a day.
Sky News

Noel Gallagher has said he sympathises with Prince William over Prince Harry's criticism of the Royal Family - as he knows what it's like having a younger brother "shooting his mouth off", according to a new interview. The Oasis and High Flying Birds star called Harry a "f****** woke snowflake" and said he comes across as a "f****** a******" following the duke's recent high-profile interviews telling all about life as a royal with wife Meghan. Gallagher, 54, is of course no stranger to family fall-outs, having been at loggerheads with younger brother Liam ever since he left Oasis and the band split acrimoniously in 2009.
Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham won a bigger majority. Hes promised to re-regulate the citys decimated bus service and has plans for a region-wide living wage and a NHS-style social care service (Getty)

Peel away the rubble of Labours Hartlepool by-election defeat and crushing local election losses. Tune out the leaderships kneejerk, factional-driven meltdown. Beyond the dismay and disunity, a series of Labour success stories are emerging as beacons of hope and possibility.

First, the mayoral victories, 11 of the 13 posts contested. In the Welsh Senedd, Labour first minister Mark Drakeford piled 10,000 votes onto his own majority with the party holding power against expectations. And across the country, Labour councils have bucked the downward national trend: holding seats, even increasing vote shares. Each win has its own story. But one clear pattern is that Labour gained when it pitched left and championed people-driven, community wealth-building policies.

This style of politics has many labels: guerrilla localism, municipal socialism or economic democracy. Matthew Brown, Prestons Labour city council leader who helmed this pioneering grassroots model in the region (and held all 10 council seats last week), calls it extreme common sense. Paul Dennett, Labour city mayor of Salford where the party gained seats last week, describes such a policy path as sensible socialism.

Whatever you call it, the approach has meant that, in the face of severe government-imposed austerity cuts piled upon decades of regional neglect, local politicians can pull on power levers they do still control  like procurement budgets or property assets  to redirect wealth back into local communities, secure jobs and services and build financial resilience. And it works.

In Preston, the council engaged the hospital, university and colleges, and the city council itself, to shift procurement funding to local suppliers, which has redirected 700m back into the local economy since 2013. Contracts cover anything from lunches to legal services and construction projects. Add to that the flourishing worker co-operatives and push for real living wages and Preston was by 2017 the most improved city in a Demos survey, and in 2020 had its highest employment rate in 15 years.

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In Salford, left-led Labour has gone strong on social and council housing as a foil to rip-off rents and unattainable private ownership. Welsh Labour is pushing a radical policy platform anchored in real living wages for care workers and thousands of jobs in low-carbon housebuilding. Across Preston, Liverpool and the Wirral, plans for a joint regional community bank have popular support. And metro-mayor Andy Burnham, having promised to re-regulate Manchesters decimated bus service, is now posting about plans for a region-wide living wage and an NHS-style social care service.

Those engaged in community wealth-building projects will tell you its a long, slow process. But as one Labour organiser in Salford told me: Weve taken the time to explain ourselves with intellectual honesty and vigour. It is hard work, but it pays off  because people can tell when its real.

This style of politics runs in contrast to what several Labour organisers across the country described as the phoney, robotic, patronising flag-waving vibes coming off the current Labour leadership. Where Labour is making local electoral gains, local leaders focus on building an inclusive sense of community anchored in shared values, tackling shared hardships and reviving places in a way that makes people feel proud to live in them.

This style of left politics is currently picking up steam. The Democracy Collaborative think tank, which developed the community wealth-building concept, is fielding calls from Labour councillors and party members nationwide. Prestons Mathew Brown has just co-authored Paint Your Town Red with writer and historian Rhian E Jones, explaining how the Preston model works and providing a toolkit for towns that want to reproduce its successes.

With its genesis in Cleveland, Ohio, the model is gaining international traction: proposals pop up in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the US  where New York City deputy mayor, J Phillip Thompson, speaks of community wealth building as essential to tackling the economic anxieties that fuelled the rise of Donald Trump. The model is finding salience in a pandemic that awakened an appetite for collectivism and community purpose, while the Covid relief efforts of local authorities fostered human relationships where there had previously been a faceless town hall.

All of which makes it perplexing that the Labour leadership is so silent on the subject. There is scant curiosity in the mechanisms of community wealth building or its successes. The message coming from Labours helm is that the party wants to listen and learn, but it displays little interest in hearing this language.

As Prestons Matthew Brown notes in Paint Your Town Red: Imagine if every Labour city were setting up its own banks, supporting worker-owned businesses and credit unions? Imagine it. That would be our way of taking back control. What a shame the Labour leadership lacks the imagination to grasp the significance of this story, or make it a cornerstone of its politics.

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Police in Paris on Saturday fired tear gas and aimed water cannons at protesters defying a ban on marching against Israeli attacks on Gaza. Paris police said they made 44 arrests and that one officer was injured breaking up a gathering of protesters.

Between 2,500 and 3,500 protesters converged on the heavily immigrant Barbes neighbourhood in the north of Paris, according to interior ministry figures, amid a security presence of involving some 4,200 officers.

Police blocked off wide boulevards as well as narrow streets where some of the protesters were forced to retreat. Some threw stones or tried to set up roadblocks with construction barriers, but for the most part police broke up gatherings of demonstrators across the district while preventing any march toward the Place de la Bastille as planned.

Police had banned the march, and a court upheld the decision, fearing a repeat of fierce clashes that erupted during a similar Paris demonstration during the last Israeli-Palestinian conflict in 2014, when protesters took aim at synagogues and other Israeli and Jewish targets.

"We all remember that extremely troubling protest where terrible phrases like 'death to Jews' were yelled," Mayor Anne Hidalgo told AFP on Friday, welcoming the "wise" decision by the police to ban the march.

We don't want scenes of violence. We don't want a conflict imported to French soil, government spokesman Gabriel Attal said

But protesters turned out anyway, waving Palestinian flags and attempting to join up with disparate groups of demonstrators.

"We refuse to silence our solidarity with the Palestinians, and we will not be prevented from demonstrating," the organisers of the Paris march, the Association of Palestinians in Ile-de-France, the wider Paris region, and other groups said in a statement.

They include anti-fascist associations, the citizens' activist group Attac and the far-left New Anti-Capitalist party.

Story continues

A lawyer for the groups, Sefen Guez Guez, denounced the police ban as "disproportionate" and "politically motivated."

The police department warned on Twitter that anyone taking part would face fines of 135 euros ($165).

Repeat of unrest?

The protest had originally been called to mark the so-called Nakba, as Palestinians call the "catastrophe" of Israel's creation in 1948, which turned hundreds of thousands into refugees.

But a Paris court maintained that the "international and domestic context" justified fears of unrest "that could be as serious or even worse than in 2014".

The ban has caused a split among French politicians, with President Emmanuel Macron's centre-right party and the right-wing opposition supporting the move, but some leftists calling it an unacceptable attack on freedom of expression.

Macron's office said he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday, offering his "condolences for the victims of the rocket fire claimed by Hamas and other terrorist groups".

The statement said Macron urged a return to peace and "his concern about the civilian population in Gaza".

France has the largest Muslim population in Europe, with an estimated five to six million people.

It also has the largest Jewish population after Israel and the United States.

Large pro-Palestinian crowds protested in Strasbourg in the east and Marseille on the Mediterranean coast.

Thousands also marched in the Spanish capital Madrid, where protesters chanted This is not war, this is genocide! in Spanish, with some people holding up homemade signs that read USA Terrorist State and Muslim Lives Matter.

In Berlin, police broke up a pro-Palestinian protest of 3,500 people for failure to comply with coronavirus distancing rules. Protesters responded by throwing stones, bottles and fireworks.

In London, protesters marched on the Israeli Embassy after marching through Hyde Park chanting Free Palestine, watched by a large number of police.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP and REUTERS)
Sudan's army said Saturday it had handed prosecutors the results of a probe into the recent killing of two demonstrators who were calling for justice for violence during protests in 2019.

On Tuesday evening, hundreds of protesters had gathered outside the army headquarters in Khartoum to demand justice for the victims of the 2019 violent dispersal of mass sit-in the same area.

The 2019 sit-in initially demanded longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir step down and later the transfer to civilian rule.

At the rally last Tuesday, security forces dispersed protesters, killing two and wounding dozens.

"General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, head of the transitional sovereign council and the armed forces commander-in-chief, handed the results of an armed forces probe into the events... to prosecutor general Tagelsir al-Hebr," the army said in a statement Saturday.

It said the results of the probe included a list of army personnel suspected to be involved in the events, as well as an order "to lift their immunity".

"This will allow for the general prosecution to take legal procedures and reach final results," the army said.

The 2019 sit-in was held to call for an end to Bashir's three-decade rule.

The iron-fisted ruler was ousted in April 2019, but the protesters kept up the encampment for weeks demanding the transfer of power from the military to civilians.

In June 2019 and towards the end of Ramadan, armed men in military fatigues violently dispersed the camp.

The days-long crackdown in 2019 left at least 128 people dead, according to medics linked to the protest movement.

The ruling generals at the time denied ordering the bloody dispersal and called for a probe into the incident.

Sudan has been led since August 2019 by a civilian-majority transitional administration, which has vowed to ensure justice to the victims and their families.

Later that year, an investigation committee led by a prominent lawyer launched an independent probe into the killings but has yet to finish its inquiry.

(AFP)
The large scope of military exercises which NATO conducts today is not only a signal to its opponent, Russia, but also the attempts of the Alliance to keep interest of its member states and justify its existence. Such political and military organization like NATO cannot work without reforms and transformations. So, NATO finds new territories to train its new initiatives and gain a foothold in new places. As Modern Diplomacy writes, thus, on 7 June 2018, Allies agreed a NATO Readiness Initiative. Allies have committed, by 2020, to having 30 battalions; 30 air squadrons; and 30 naval combat vessels ready to use within 30 days.

The initiative aims to enhance the readiness of existing national forces, and their ability to move within Europe and across the Atlantic  in response to a more unpredictable security environment. It is said that this is not about new forces but about increasing the readiness of forces Allies already have  forces that could be made available for collective defence and crisis response operations.

The initiative builds on a series of steps taken to increase the readiness of Allied forces. Over the past few years, the Alliance has tripled the size of the NATO Response Force to around 40,000 troops, with a new 5,000-strong Spearhead Force at its core. NATO has also deployed four multinational battlegroups to the Baltic States and Poland, increased its presence in the Black Sea region, and set up a number of small headquarters to link national and NATO forces.

The Baltic States which are close to Russia were chosen for the purpose to deploy foreign troops as long as possible. Though permanent military presence is not stipulated by international treaties.

NATO tries to turn rotational basis of military presence to permanent one, constantly conducting military exercises. The scope of such Alliances military activity in the region is so huge, that foreign soldiers become regular visitors to bars, restaurants and shops in the Baltic countries. When this facts became common for the locals, it was too late. The more so, under the cover of military exercises, old military equipment was delivered to the Baltic States, where it remains for an unspecified period of time. Military contingents present on the territory permanently, rotating each other. The more so, these countries are used as transit states for foreign heavy armored vehicles, harming the environment.

Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia dont belong to themselves anymore. They are just territories of others geopolitical games and military preparations. The status of a host nation, where foreign troops are based, by the way, turns them to the main target of potential aggressor.

Probably, it is time to think about the population of the Baltic States, and not about foreign geopolitical interests?
The demonstrators in Lake Forest Friday afternoon opposed mask-wearing at all and werent in favor of vaccination. For now, school districts are among Illinois entities still requiring people inside school buildings to have the face coverings. And some districts have allowed school buildings to be mass vaccination sites  initially for adults, then for teens as young as 16 and now for 12- to 15-year-olds after the Pfizer vaccine was approved for the latter age group.
Three rockets were fired from Syria toward northern Israel, the Israeli army said in a statement late Friday, Daily Sabah reports.

Two of the rockets fired from Syria crashed into open fields of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights while another exploded on Syrian soil, said the Israeli forces in a written statement.

It also added that no injury or damage was reported.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry assesses the appeal of Yerevan to the CSTO in connection with the situation on the state border of the two countries as an attempt to politicize the issue, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said in a telephone conversation with his Tajik counterpart Sirojiddin Muhriddin.

"Minister Jeyhun Bayramov brought to the attention of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan, currently chairing the CSTO, that Armenia's appeal to the Collective Security Treaty Organization on this issue (the situation on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border) has no grounds, and this is an attempt by the ruling circles of Armenia to politicize the problem, TASS quotes the message of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Azerbaijani diplomat informed his Tajik counterpart about the tension on the Azerbaijani-Armenian state border, specifying that the Azerbaijani border forces are located in positions belonging to Azerbaijan, and the situation is under control.

Jeyhun Bayramov recalled that dissatisfaction with the measures taken to strengthen border protection within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan had arisen before, but it was solved through negotiations with the participation of the parties who had previously signed the trilateral statement.

The Azerbaijani Foreign Minister stated that due to the tense situation on the border, the leadership of the State Border Service was immediately sent there, and negotiations were held with the Armenian side.

He emphasized that such incidents should be resolved politically through negotiations.
A man who participated in the occupation of Azerbaijani territories during the Second Karabakh War was convicted of stealing a car, the press service of the Armenian police reports.

According to the message, law enforcement officers received a relevant call yesterday. The same day, a 38-year-old former occupant was caught on Shakhnazaryan Street in Ashtarak, Sputnik Armenia reports.

At his home, in the Avan community of the Aragatsotn region, a military UAZ was found. The car was confiscated and evacuated to the police department.
The Israeli authorities are ready to stop providing economic assistance to the Palestinian territories if rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip do not stop, Israeli Defense Minister Beni Gantz said.

According to the Jerusalem Post, he clarified that making such a decision is within the competence of his department.

The minister added that at the moment Israel intends to continue operations in the Gaza Strip.

"Along with the fighting in Gaza, we are seeing escalation in other areas, including Judea and Samaria [the Israeli name for the West Bank]. Israel is not interested in escalation but is ready for any scenario. If terrorism raises its head, we will take measures, Interfax quotes Gantz as saying.

For several days, missile attacks continue on the territory of Israel from the Gaza Strip. The Israel Defense Forces respond by striking the targets of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad banned in Russia. Yesterday, the situation on the West Bank of the Jordan River, controlled by Mahmoud Abbas, began to get complicated. There are casualties on both sides.
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has called an emergency ministerial meeting on Sunday to discuss the Israeli attacks on Palestinian territories, Anadolu Agency reports.

The OIC will hold, at the request of Saudi Arabia  the chair of the Islamic summit a virtual emergency ministerial meeting to discuss developments in Palestine, the second-largest international organization after the UN comprising of 57 member countries, said in a statement.

According to Anadolu Agency, the summit will bring together foreign ministers from member countries to discuss the Israeli attacks on the Palestinian territories, the press release said, adding that talks will particularly focus on developments in Al-Quds Al-Sharif and the acts of violence carried out by Israel in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque."
Foreign airlines did not terminate flights to Israel amid rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip, a senior aviation source informed.

Earlier, Israeli media reported that all airlines had suspended flights to the country.

It is not true, RIA Novosti quotes the source's answering the question whether this information is correct.

He clarified that flights of several foreign carriers should take place tomorrow, including Bluebird, Georgian, Turkish and Bulgarian airlines.
The shootout took place today on the border of Azerbaijan and Iran near the village of Gendere, Yardimli region. The relevant message was published by the State Border Service of the Azerbaijan Republic.

According to the message, about 16:00, three unknown persons violated the state border where the Goytepe border detachment deployed.

Despite the lawful demand of the border guards to stop, the violators started shooting at them, then threw their load and tried to escape.

As a result, senior lieutenant Samir Eyvazov and junior warrant officer Farid Alimov were wounded. They were taken to the hospital, but doctors could not save their lives.
Yesterday, in New York, a joint communique was signed on the establishment of diplomatic relations between Uzbekistan and the Commonwealth of Dominica, Dune news agency reports.

On behalf of their governments, the document was signed by the Permanent Representative of Uzbekistan to the UN, Ambassador Bakhtiyor Ibragimov and the Permanent Representative of Dominica to the UN, Ambassador Loreen Ruth Bannis-Roberts.

The Commonwealth of Dominica is the 137th country with which Tashkent established diplomatic relations. It is an island nation in the Caribbean. The area of the country is 751 sq km, the population is about 70,000 people.
The upcoming meeting of the Russian and US top diplomats, Sergey Lavrov and Antony Blinken, on the sidelines of the Arctic Council ministerial meeting in Reykjavik will be an attempt to take bilateral relations to a more stable and predictable path, US Department of State Spokesperson Ned Price told reporters on Friday, TASS reports.

During a special briefing on the US secretary of states upcoming visit to Denmark, Iceland and Greenland, Price said Washington would "act firmly in defense of U.S. interests in response to actions by Russia that harm us, that target us or our allies."

"At the same time, weve also consistently said that we want a relationship with Moscow that is both stable and predictable, and that is in part because we have some set of common interests, whether thats in the realm of climate, strategic stability, Iran, North Korea. We want to be in a position to pursue those common interests and whats in our national interest, including, where appropriate, by working with Moscow where we can," the spokesperson continued.

"And so thats in part what this meeting is going to be all about. Its an effort to try to get this relationship on a more stable and predictable path, or at the very least to test the proposition as to whether thats possible. I wouldnt want to get ahead of the conversation, but I think you can expect it will reflect the totality of the bilateral relationship - the good, the bad, and the in between," he added.

The ministerial meeting of the Arctic Council will take place in Reykjavik next week. Lavrov and Blinken had a phone conversation earlier this week. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the two diplomats "agreed to hold a separate meeting on the sidelines of the [May 20] session to review key issues of bilateral relations and the international agenda."
Many enterprises would rather use their capital to buy and sell land than make investments to scale up their production.

A director of a mechanical engineering enterprise that acts as a vendor for a multinational in Vietnam said: We are quite confident about our technology. But we have difficulties in expanding investment because of a lack of capital. Even when our revenue is high at VND500 billion a year, our profit is modest, just several billion dong."

Though the enterprises products are highly appreciated by foreign partners, the director is still reluctant to invest hundreds of billion of dong more to scale up the production.

He said some of his friends dont want to expand production, but just want to maintain the current production scale to maintain revenue and generate jobs, while others have sold their businesses to get money to inject into financial investments or real estate.

Explaining this, he said that some investments require a lot of exertion and money but profits are modest despite high risks.

He said that it is more profitable to trade in land than run a manufacturing plant. In some localities, land prices have surged by 100-200 percent just over a short time.

This has prompted businesses to pour money into land deals.

Even if manufacturers succeed in expanding their production, the profits they make will be modest. Meanwhile, they can easily make a profit of billions of dong if they buy land now and sell it after several years.

Foreign enterprises flock to Vietnam

Vietnam is a signatory to many FTAs, which allows enterprises making goods in Vietnam for export to enjoy big preferences.

The 2020 PCI Report (provincial competitiveness index) showed that there have signs of foreign invested enterprises getting smaller in size in recent years.

While the number of FIEs in Vietnam has been increasing rapidly, their capital and labor scale is getting smaller.

The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Investment (VCCI), for the first time in the 11 years of PCI reports, found that the number of FIEs with fewer than five workers accounted for more than 10 percent, while the proportion of FIEs with 5-9 workers increased from 10.6 percent to 11.3 percent.

Regarding stockholder equity, only 9.8 percent of FIEs had capital of less than VND0.5 billion in 2019, while the figure rose to 13.1 percent in 2020.

Only 3.7 percent of FIEs had stockholder equity of VND200-500 billion in 2020, and 4.6 percent had more than VND500 billion. Meanwhile, the figures were 5 percent and 5.1 percent, respectively, in 2019.

The figures are similar to PCI surveys in recent years, which showed that the number of FIEs shifting to use Vietnamese vendors is on the decrease.

In 2015, more than 68.9 percent of FIEs bought products from private enterprises and 19.3 percent bought from business households. The figures decreased in 2020 to 62.5 percent and 14.8 percent, respectively.

As for state-owned enterprises, 12.1 percent of FIEs bought products form them in 2016, and the figure decreased gradually in the following years to 8.2 percent in 2020.

FIEs in Vietnam mostly invest in manufacturing industries (more than 50 percent). In the manufacturing sector, analysts are witnessing a strong shift to industries with high technology content, such as computers, electronics and automobiles.

FIEs have also flocked to Vietnam to work as vendors for large FIEs.

A report from the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) on the electronics manufacturing industry released recently showed the relatively strong growth rate of electronics manufacturing and trade.

In 2020, Vietnam exported $95 billion worth of products of these kinds, including $51 billion worth of smartphones and smartphone components, and $44.58 billion worth of electronics, computers and computer parts.

However, the locally made content of the electronics industry remains very low, just 5-10 percent, while the number of Vietnamese enterprises providing components to multinationals remains modest.

Samsung Vietnam has only 35 Vietnamese vendors, while there are hundreds of components that need to be localized.

Canon Vietnam has 147 vendors in Vietnam, but only 20 Vietnamese vendors. Panasonic has four Vietnamese vendors which produce 10 percent of the input material value.

Land trade preferred to screw manufacturing

According to VCCI, Vietnams private enterprises are mostly operating in the fields of trade, service and construction, while enterprises in the manufacturing sector account for a small proportion and use outdated technology and have poor management skills.

The problem doesnt lie in Vietnams capability, but in the low expected profits.

It took one enterprise four years to meet the requirements to become a second-class vendor to a multinational that has many factories in Vietnam. And the enterprise does not intend to make further investments to improve its position. It would rather trade in land because of the attractive profits.

This trend is attributed to the current policies on the supporting industry, which are seen as unattractive. If trading land, investors can expect huge profits of 30-50 percent per annum, or even 100 percent.

Tran Thuy

Ministry urged to submit National strategy on digital economy and society in August Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has recently tasked the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) to finalize and submit a national strategy on developing digital economy and digital society this August.
Peace cranes are associated with the story of Sadako Sasaki, a Japanese child who, after being diagnosed with leukemia caused by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima during World War II, is said to have folded 1,000 origami cranes in the hope that her wish to recover from the disease would be answered.
The Party Central Committees Inspection Commission has decided to give warnings to Vo Thanh Ha, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of Vietnam Southern Food Corporation, for his wrongdoings in land management in District 1, HCMC.

At the third meeting of the Party Central Committee's Inspection Commission (Photo: VNA)

Ha is former Secretary of the Party Committee and former Chairman of Sai Gon Beer-Alcohol-Beverage JSC (Sabeco).

The decision was made during the third meeting of the commission held in Hanoi from May 11-14.

During the meeting, the commission also consented to impose disciplinary measures against a number of leaders of the Military High Command of the southern province of Bac Lieu and the Military Command of Phuoc Long district, for their lack of responsibility, lax leadership and violations of the Partys regulations, the States law and the defence ministrys regulations.

It also asked the Standing Board of the provincial Party Committee to issue warnings against the Standing Board of the Party Committee of the provincial Military High Command for 2015-2020 tenure, and consider disciplines against concerned Party organisations and members.

Bui Truong Giang, a member of the Standing Board of the Party Committee of the Central Agencies Bloc, and Secretary of the Party Committee and deputy head of the Party Central Committees Commission for Information and Education, will be reprimanded for his violations of regulations set for Party members.

The warnings have also been given to Major General Dang Hoang Da from the Ministry of Public Security for his violations of regulations of the Party, the State and the public security sector regarding financial management and use and personnel work while serving as member of the Standing Board of Soc Trang provinces Party Committee and Director of provincial Police./.VNA
West Lake in Hanoi has been polluted for many years and the problem doesn't seem to be getting any better.

A section of West Lake seen from above. VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Dat

The amount of garbage and dead fish on the lake's surface has increased, affecting the landscape, water quality and daily life of people living near the lake.

Environmental experts have said the value of biodiversity in West Lake has been declining significantly.

According to a survey on the composition of floating plant species in West Lake, the number of species in the lake decreased from 115 species in 1996 to only about 60-70 now.

Green algae saw the biggest decline in numbers, decreasing from more than 70 species to around 10 species. Precious birds or fish are almost absent.

Scientists have blamed the increasingly polluted water environment in West Lake, especially in the dry season.

Pollution seriously affects the living environment of species in rivers and lakes as well as landscapes. As a consequence, the number of dead fish is increasing.

In 2016 and 2018, dozens of tonnes of dead fish floated on West Lake's surface. Many reasons for the mass fish deaths were given such as the hot sun and algae bloom at that time.

However, according to many people living near the lake, they still see dead fish occasionally but in smaller quantities.

Quynh Anh, who lives on Nguyen Dinh Thi Street, Tay Ho District, said in the morning, a lot of people walk and cycle around the lake. But no one walks around sections like Quang An and Nhat Chieu due to the water's stench in this area.

VietnamPlus reported that water in some areas of West Lake has turned dark green recently, and become dirtier and cloudier than usual. A lot of garbage and dead fish float on the lake's surface, causing fishy odours in the air.

Notably, the lake area around Nhat Chieu Street is home to many abandoned service boats whose operation was stopped in 2017. The rusted, abandoned boats are another source of pollution.

Thanh Truong, living in Viet Hung Ward, Long Bien District, regularly visits West Lake. He said: If you go along the Quang An section, you will see people dump household waste including incense bowls in the lake.

"People who drink at cafes and eat at restaurants along the lake also throw newspapers, plastic bags, and food packages into the lake. I hope the authorities will have quick solutions to the problem," he added.

According to Professor Pham Ngoc Dang, vice president of the Vietnam Association for the Protection of Nature and Environment, in the 1960s, West Lake had good water quality. People often went to the lake to collect water for cooking.

Now, the lake is too polluted to use to water plants, he said.

Over the past 25 years, local authorities have taken a number of measures to protect West Lake from pollution, for example, building culverts around the lake to prevent wastewater from flowing directly into the lake.

However, environmental experts have said that to improve the water quality in West Lake, the first thing to do is to clearly identify the cause which may come from human activities or due to natural reasons.

Experts said stiff penalties should be imposed on those throwing garbage into the lake. At the same time, solutions like collecting trash and dredging sediment to improve the water storage and cleaning capacity of West Lake have been proposed.

VNS

Water in Hanois largest lake turns moss green, Environment Ministry takes action The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environments (MONRE) tests show that the water of Hanois West Lake is polluted.
The man confessed to own three companies sponsoring the entry of foreigners in Vietnam as experts.

Danang city police have arrested a man for bringing foreigners into Vietnam illegally in the guise of experts.

Nguyen Tran Anh Tuan, 34, who hails from the south-central province of Binh Thuan, was detained on May 12 and prosecuted yesterday. He is charged with "brokering illegal entry, exit, or stay in Vietnam.

Police searched Tuans house and several business offices involved in the ring.

Officers read the arrest warrant for Nguyen Tran Anh Tuan. Photo: Danang police

Tuan confessed to own three companies sponsoring the entry of foreigners in Vietnam as experts. For the job, he was paid US$2,400.

Previously, the police raided some apartments at The Point Villa on Truong Sa street in Ngu Hanh Son district on April 26 and caught 14 South Korean nationals who were staying there for the purposes different from those indicated in their visas.

In order to enter Vietnam, they only needed to send passport photos and paid US$2,500 each, while the rest of the job would be don by a South Korean man who claimed to be a doing business in Vietnam.

The man then contacted Tuan, whose three companies sponsored the group of South Korean nationals so that they could enter Vietnam as experts.

Tuan also faked the signature of Gan Gwang Eun, director of Main Trade and Service Company, to sponsor three South Korean nationals.

Tightening loopholes to curb illegal immigration

Vietnam has closed its borders to international arrivals to avoid Covid-19 spread since last March, but it still grants entry to diplomats, foreign experts, and Vietnamese repatriates.

Tuan's company office is actually just a milk tea shop. Photo: Quang Hai

The country requires all arrivals from outside the country to undergo different forms of quarantine to stem the disease spread.

In the face of the serious evolution of the Covid-19 pandemic, Tuan's offense makes the disease prevention and control in Vietnam increasingly difficult.

The violation has shown that it is necessary to tighten the loopholes in regulations, strictly control immigration activities, especially to prevent, detect and handle illegal entries, illegal foreign immigrants, even in the name of "experts".

In order to tighten the regulations related to this issue, the Vietnamese government reactivated an interdisciplinary working group of five ministries in late April to screen foreign entries.

The working group includes the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Transport.

These ministries will consider each case foreign experts who will be allowed to enter Vietnam in an effective and safe manner.

In a new move, the Vietnamese government has assigned ministries to double-check the immigration procedures.

Hanoitimes

1,343 Chinese illegally enter Vietnam According to reports from the public security agencies of 39 provinces and cities, a total of 1,343 Chinese people have entered Vietnam illegally.
The charming of Hanoi's Old Quarter area in the eyes of a traveler.

The outsider feeling gradually dissipate after the wandering around Hoan Kiem Lake, sipping Old Quarter coffee, drinking Old Town lemon tea, riding Old City Cyclo, and visiting Old Quarter night market. For passers-by, the bustling atmosphere make them think the Old Town is in an eternal festive season.

The rustic yet charming of Hanoi's Old Quarter area.

Hanoi Old Quarter until today is the unique ancient town in Vietnam. The Old Quarter, also known to have 36  street zone in Hoan Kiem District at the heart of Hanoi covers an area of approximately 100 hectares. It is bordered by Hang Dau Street in the north; Hang Bong, Hang Gai, Cau Go and Hang Thung streets in the south; Tran Nhat Duat and Tran Quang Khai in the east; and Phung Hung Street in the west.

Each ward begins with the word "Hang" or guild such as Hang Dao (Dye trader guild), Hang Bac (Silversmith guild), Hang Thiec (Blacksmith guild), Hang Giay (shoe trader guild), Hang Ma (Paper toy guild) and Hang Giay (Paper trade guild). Hang in Vietnamese mean guild, and the street is named after the items traded on it. Some of today's streets are still sticking to these traditional trades.

Old and new, modern and ancient are intertwined to creating a distinguished feature of Hanoi.

In the Hanoi Old Quarter, not only the traditional houses that corroborate its ancient touches but is cultural, historical, religious traits and especially the cuisine. Though the Old Town retains only a few architectural traits of Vietnamese and Asian peoples, it is its lifestyle that attests to its ancientness.

Hanoi Old Quarter is facing great and complex changes due to adaptations to social development. Some old houses and streets are replaced by new and modern architectural blocks. The Old Town is still charming with its small and beautiful mossy house. This is a very attractive place for tourists to explore and experience. What appeals tourists to this place is all the values of the original beauty of the capital city.

Hang in Vietnamese mean guild, and the street is named after the items traded on it. Photos: Marcus Lacey

Perhaps, this is why the Old Quarter not only attracts Vietnamese and foreign tourists but also inspires artists and writers to create classical artworks. There are also eternal songs and poets about Hanoi like "Hanoi Street" by poet Phan Vu or "My dear Hanoi" song by musician Phu Quang.

Especially, the Old Town artworks by late painter Bui Xuan Phai have created an art school called Phai Street, a reminiscent of an Old Quarter which has not been mingled in a bigger and more energetic Hanoi today.

Hanoitimes

Peaceful Hanoi through the lens of Thomas Billhardt German photographer Thomas Billhardt carves out his own realm of memory when Hanoi capital passed the most difficult war time some decades ago.
Very little about this years prom for seniors from the Chicago Noble schools could be considered typical. But it will certainly be memorable.



Prom for about 3,000 seniors at the network of 17 public charter schools is taking place Friday and Saturday at Soldier Field, with each school getting 45 minutes to join their classmates at the iconic stadium, strut their stuff and take photos against the iconic skyline.



But they cant gather too closely, since social distancing is in effect, meaning no dancing. And no heels were to be allowed on the field.



The premier location and special effects will make a night to remember! the school network said on its website, adding that though there was to be no dress code, we will be rolling out the red carpet and hope our guests will dress for the occasion.



Juan Carlos Rodriguez II, a senior at Mansueto High School, one of the Noble schools, earlier told the Tribune he planned to wear a tuxedo for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.




BOISE  Idaho ranked No. 2 on the list of fastest-growing states in the country over the past decade, but that rapid growth still wasnt enough to gain another seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Instead, population growth in two neighboring states  Oregon and Montana  led to each gaining a congressional district, according to 2020 Census Bureau data released Monday.

The state that edged out Idaho to be No. 1 in growth from 2010 to 2020 also was a neighbor: Utah. Its population grew by 18.4% over that time, with Idahos growing at 17.3%.

Its unclear how many more residents Idaho needed to count in order to qualify for a third U.S. representative. Preliminary data released by the Census listed Idaho eighth out of 10 runner-up states that almost gained a seat. Idaho will continue to have only two seats in the U.S. House. Oregon will go from five to six, and Montana will go from one to two.

With only 435 U.S. House seats to go around, adding a seat to one state inevitably removes a seat from another that lost population.

Census Bureau representatives have yet to answer a Statesman request for the exact number of people Idaho needed to qualify for a third seat. But the margin was extremely close for other states on the list, an example of how razor-thin the counts can be. New York needed to count just 89 more people to keep its current number of seats at 27, according to Census Bureau data. Instead, it will lose one seat.

Idahos population was 1,839,106 on April 1, 2020, according to data released Monday. The West grew 9.2% from 2010-2020, making it the second-fastest-growing region in the country after the South, which grew 10.2%.

What does this mean for 2030? Or state legislative districts?

More detailed demographic data below the state level wont be available until the fall. State redistricting commissions will need this data to redraw and adjust lines for both congressional and local legislative districts, and some Idaho lawmakers have floated a plan for the Idaho State Legislature to reconvene in the fall to handle that redistricting.

The state Constitution was amended in 2020 to fix the number of statewide districts at 35, which means the target population for each district would range from just under 50,000 to 55,000.

Matthew May, senior research associate at Boise State Universitys Idaho Policy Institute, said legislative district lines are likely to be redrawn in the Treasure Valley and other areas of the state that have experienced the most population growth. May said District 14, which covers Star, Eagle and Meridian, will be of particular interest. Growth in Boise has also pushed the dividing lines between the two congressional districts farther west with each successive redistricting, May said.

Idaho wont have another shot at a third congressional seat until after the next census count, in 2030.

Experts had predicted in 2020 that Idaho would fall short of the threshold needed to gain a new voice in Washington, D.C. Kim Brace, president of Election Data Services in Virginia, uses population trends to forecast what that means for states and their number of seats in the House. He told the Statesman in January 2020 that Idaho likely would be about 61,000 people away from qualifying from a third seat.

Despite Idahos rapid growth, May said a lot of factors could affect whether the state hits the right number for a third seat 10 years from now. The data gathered last year, right at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, might not accurately reflect the range of impacts COVID-19 had on communities. The 2020 Census recorded the second-lowest growth rate in U.S. population since the Great Depression, May said.

I can see Idaho moving up that list of 10 states, May said. I think a lot of it will depend on how much the out-migration, or the net-out migration trends, continue in places like California and New York, and how much of that population is coming to Idaho, as opposed to somewhere else.
A man in his 40s has been arrested in connection with two suspected arson attacks in Limerick city.

The suspected attacks took place in the early hours of Friday morning.
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The idea behind prison is to rehabilitate the redeemable criminals and lock away for life the truly evil ones.

When the pandemic began to ravage the nations prisons, Congress passed a provision in the CARES Act allowing sickly and nonviolent inmates who had served most of their time to be released. After careful vetting, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) released about 24,000 federal prisoners and allowed them to serve their time under carefully supervised home confinement. In addition, state prisons and jails released thousands more.

The goal was for the convicts to assimilate back into lawful society. Its important to note: Less than 1% of federal inmates violated terms of their release, and only three were arrested for new crimes. I couldnt find state statistics.

Over the last year most of those granted home confinement have reunited with family, gotten jobs and even gone back to college. They took their second chance seriously and began to rebuild their lives in positive ways.

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But now, as the pandemic appears to be weakening, a kick in the gut for these newly reintegrated citizens. A Department of Justice memo issued during the last week of the Trump administration has come back to haunt them. It mandates that after the pandemic eases, BOP must plan for an eventuality where it might need to return a significant number of prisoners to correctional facilities.

Which ones will have to go back to prison? Whats the criteria? Does this seem fair to all those who were issued an ankle monitor and told they were free to rebuild their lives? President Joe Biden has habitually taken steps to undo Trump-era mandates but, inexplicably, not in this case. Not yet anyway.

When Gwen Levi, 75, was allowed to go home to Baltimore she thought shed never again see the inside of a cell. She had served 16 years of a 20-year sentence for conspiracy to sell heroin. While incarcerated she beat lung cancer but developed degenerative joint disease, hypertension and cataracts. She is currently giving back to the community through volunteer work and taking care of her 94-year-old mother.

I dont think society wants me to continue to go back to the past, she said, You sent me someplace to change, now you tell me that I gotta keep carrying that baggage with me? She swears she is a completely different person now and to have to go back would be devastating.

RJ Edwards, 37, still has five years left on his 17-year sentence for wire fraud. After his compassionate COVID-19 release he returned to Florida, promptly got a job, an apartment for himself and his mother, and enrolled in college to get a degree in computer science.

They let us go, and we reintegrate, and then it feels like nothing matters, he said. All the hard work you put in, it doesnt matter. Were just a number to them. He worries about what will happen to his mother if he is sent back.

In Odessa, Texas, Jesse Rodriguez, 45, appears to be a man who has learned his lesson. He was sentenced to 15 years on a drug charge but won early release and got to go home to his wife and four children. He quickly found a job and is now a certified technician for a heating and air conditioning company. Rodriguez is also attending Odessa College, planning a future that does not include finishing the remaining four years of his sentence.

You let us out for a reason, because we werent a threat to society. You let us join back with our families, Rodriguez said. Its important that I stay in their lives.

This compassionate release programs almost nonexistent recidivism rate is encouraging and begs a basic question: How many more people who have served long prison terms could safely be integrated back into the community?

The DOJ reports state and federal prisons now hold more than 1.4 million inmates. On average, and taking court costs into account, each convict costs taxpayers about $40,000 annually, a total of more than $55 billion each and every year.

The U.S. incarcerates more citizens than any other country in the world. Maybe its time to seriously consider alternatives like early release for good behavior.

www.DianeDimond.com; email to Diane@DianeDimond.com.
Music is a small world in many ways - living in any citys music scene will, in short order, reveal any number of personalities who are working away in multiple capacities, whether theyre getting started and garnering experience, and working away with the gra for their craft in mind. Its (relatively!) easy to come across people with similar influences, outlooks and ambitions, and thats half the fun of it, really - trying new things and collaborating with like-minded people.

Ciara Glasheen-Artem: Similar dynamics fused.

While the in-person perspective has sadly been missing on this for a while, its heartening to hear oboe player Ciara Glasheen-Artem talk about how similar dynamics led to the creation of chamber group Winds of Change, a quintet of woodwind players with experience in ensembles the world over, focusing on classical and contemporary pieces written for their configuration.

It starts out with friendship. And thats a very strong starting place for a lot of groups. I dont think it matters what type of music youre performing

Like many of the best smaller groups and bands that play together, either as classical musicians or bandmates, in a pop band or rock band, I think a lot of the time, it starts out with friendship. And thats a very strong starting place for a lot of groups. I dont think it matters what type of music youre performing. I think thats an undercurrent in a lot of really successful groups.

It would have started out with three of us - Kieran Moynihan (flute), myself and Sinead Frost (bassoon). We played in, and still play in, the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra together. We decided that, you know, it would be nice for us to play some chamber music together, some smaller ensemble music, rather than just orchestral music. Conor Shiels, our clarinet player, he also started playing in the Concert Orchestra, and he came into the mix, then, at that point, as well.

In 2018, we invited JJ Grace, who was a horn player, for our first concert. I played with JJ in the Colorado Symphony, and also at the University of Colorado. And he was delighted to make the trip to Ireland, as a performing and working holiday, so to speak. So he came and we rehearsed, and gave a couple of lessons.

Chamber music - classical pieces written for smaller ensembles - might not be a familiar part of the sound of classical music to many, but its everywhere in the genres popular perception. Think of the string quartets that have broken into the charts, or covered favourite songs of yours over the years, for example.

This weekend, the quintet, sans Grace and with the help of a few friends (more on which later) have a special streaming gig, recorded at the newly-rechristened MTU Cork School of Music, happening as part of Cork Orchestral Societys current online season and available for free streaming from Saturday evening. Theyll be playing the works of composer Francis Poulenc and Ludwig Thuille.

The wind quintet is a well established genre, so to speak. And so I suppose, in some ways, you could say that were limited to playing music that has been written for our genre. And this time, we wanted to shift away from that slightly, have something a little bit more substantial and create a bigger, more interesting sound, with what were doing. So thats why weve brought piano into the equation.

Sinead Frost onthe bassoon.

Specifically, when were deciding on repertoire, I suppose there are particular works that are very popular in each genre, and works that would be quite well known, and the Poulenc Sextet is one of them. Its a very important piece in the canon, so to speak, for wind quintet and piano, and as an ensemble, we hadnt played it before. So it was one that we wanted to tackle as a group, together. And the other piece, the Thuille, is a very Brahmsian-type work that we thought would be a nice fit to provide just a little bit more

contrast in the performance as well.

With the Covid-19 crisis happening from March of last year, a good amount of the ensembles lifespan has been spent within the restraints placed on live music by public health guidelines.

Ciara discusses how its been to negotiate the circumstances, as a group and individually, and how theyve affected performers in the classical family of genres, sometimes overlooked in the overall conversation on live events amid the pandemic.

I can only speak for myself, really, in this case, because I also lecture in the Cork School of Music. So all of my performance work last March, and I would have a fairly busy performing schedule, just evaporated into thin air. But Im very lucky, I have a role as a lecturer in classical music.

Hundreds of musicians, artists and performers lost 100% of their income, and it was absolutely devastating for a huge amount of the people working here, not only because of loss of income, but also what we do - working in the arts is so tied into who you are as a person.

Hannah Miller with her French horn.

And when thats taken away, its quite soul-destroying, to have your world collapsed. You no longer have an outlet, a creative outlet, to share your work and to share your artistry.

The ensemble returned to the School of Music to record the performance, the site of their debut for the Orchestral Societys 2018 concert series.

As any of the artists this parish has spoken with over the past fourteen months can attest to, its a different ball game to play to a camera than it is to feed off an audience, gauge their reaction and have a feeling for being in the moment.

Obviously with Covid-19, JJ (Grace) was never going to be able to travel for this particular performance, so we were absolutely delighted to have Hannah Miller with us. I hadnt worked with her before, but Conor, Sinead and Kieran had. Shes an absolutely top-notch horn player, and were very lucky to have her. Ellen Johnson, and I hope most people are aware of her, is an absolutely incredible piano player and musician, and a recent graduate from the School of Music as well.

For this performance, obviously, we couldnt have an audience - we had to film this so that audiences will be able to watch at home, which is fantastic. But youre trying to communicate with your audiences across distance and time, which is a much more challenging task than working with a live audience. You get feedback from an audience.

And that feedback can be as small as just seeing them smiling or applause or anything - you can read whats going on in an audience very quickly as a performer.

A lot of my colleagues have produced fantastic work online, but I know, were all looking forward to getting back to working with live audiences again

Whereas when you dont have that, youre trying to predict how your audience is reacting to what youre doing. Are they enjoying this? What can I do differently? So its a much more challenging thing. But I know a lot of my colleagues have worked extremely hard, and have produced fantastic work online. But I know, were all looking forward to getting back to working with live audiences again.

Graduate and piano maestro Ellen Johnson.

On that note, the live sector has been making tentative steps to return to functionality, if not normal - and thats a process that will take time too. While venues and agencies have put tours on sale for later in the year, festivals like Dublins Longitude hip-hop weekender have fallen foul of the logistical issues behind honouring announcements for summer this year.

When asked about the next step for the Irish arts in her opinion, Ciara strikes a hopeful tone.

What I will say is that, for people working in the arts, and this is not just people working classical music, this is people working in every area of the arts - because of the world that we work in, and the creative nature of it, theres no better group of people to recover from something like this.

We have the skillset, we have the creative knowledge and imagination to make this work and to make sure that this comes back bigger and better than ever, actually.

ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES: Flautist Kieran Moynihan.

Were often a round peg that people try to force into a square hole, and I think its important for government and any organisations providing funding and support to performing artists, that they listen to the artists to make sure that the artists are getting what they need, to ensure that the the industry recovers. But I think that we can grow and, and develop and learn from this experience as well.

Winds of Changes next concert will be available to watch for free from 6.30pm on Saturday, May 15, on www.corkorchestralsociety.ie, and will stay online to watch on-demand.
Saudi Arabia has called for foreign ministers of the world's largest body of Muslim nations to hold a meeting Sunday. The gathering is to discuss Israeli acts of violence against Palestinians and the Israeli police's use of force against protesters at Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem.

The kingdom will host the virtual summit, gathering ministers of the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation to discuss the Israeli aggression in the Palestinian territory, particularly acts of violence in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the body said Saturday.

Read | Israel escalation puts new Gulf partners in diplomatic bind

The Saudi-headquartered OIC includes countries Iran, Turkey, Indonesia and a range of Muslim majority nations.

The sanctity of Al-Aqsa mosque, one of Islam's holiest sites, is a sensitive and emotive issue for Muslims around the world. The OIC was formed 51 years ago in response to a Jewish extremist arson attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem.

The hilltop on which the mosque stands is also sacred to Jews, who revere it as the Temple Mount because it was the site of the biblical temples. Some Jews and evangelical Christians support building a new Jewish temple on the site, an idea that Muslims find alarming because they fear it would lead to the mosque being partitioned or demolished.
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Nacogdoches, TX (75965)

Today

Mostly cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy this afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 89F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph..

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Some clouds. Low 74F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.
OTTAWA, Ill., May 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ottawa Bancorp, Inc. (the Company) (OTCQX: OTTW), the holding company for Ottawa Savings Bank, FSB (the Bank), today announced that the Bank has submitted an application to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to convert its charter from a federally-chartered savings bank to an Illinois-chartered commercial bank.



Craig Hepner, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ottawa Bancorp, Inc., commented, Ottawa Savings Bank has had considerable success as a federally chartered savings bank. Our Board of Directors has determined, however, that converting to an Illinois-chartered commercial bank best positions the Bank to compete in the markets we serve and to further execute our business strategy. The conversion will position us to increase our commercial loan portfolio, and we believe that the well-qualified lending team that we have assembled over the last several years is well-positioned to help us execute this strategy. From our customers perspective, we will be better able to serve their expanding lending needs which reflect the evolving profile of the communities we serve. While increasing our operational flexibility, the conversion will not affect the terms and conditions of our customers deposit accounts or loans. The added advantage of converting to an Illinois-state chartered bank is that we expect to reduce the expense of annual regulatory overnight, as it is less expensive to operate as an Illinois-chartered institution than it is to be regulated by the OCC. Mr. Hepner continued, We are also excited to announce that consistent with these anticipated changes to our charter, and to better reflect the breadth of the communities we serve, we plan to change the name Ottawa Savings Bank to OSB Community Bank in connection the charter conversion. We are very proud of our Ottawa Savings Bank heritage. While we feel that the next chapter of the Banks history should operate under a moniker that reflects the broadening communities we serve, we want to maintain a linkage to our heritage. We will make every effort to make the next 150 years of the Banks life, operating as OSB Community Bank, even more successful than our first 150 years of operation.

Subject to receiving the necessary regulatory approvals, the charter conversion is expected to be completed in third quarter of 2021. As a result of the charter conversion, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation will become the Banks primary regulators. The Federal Reserve Board will continue to be the primary banking regulator for Ottawa Bancorp, Inc., which will file an application with the Federal Reserve Board to become a bank holding company at the effective time of the charter conversion.

About Ottawa Bancorp, Inc.

Ottawa Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company for Ottawa Savings Bank, FSB which provides various financial services to individual and corporate customers in the United States. The Bank offers various deposit accounts, including checking, money market, regular savings, club savings, certificates of deposit, and various retirement accounts. Its loan portfolio includes one-to-four family residential mortgage, multi-family and non-residential real estate, commercial, and construction loans as well as auto loans and home equity lines of credit. Ottawa Savings Bank, FSB was founded in 1871 and is headquartered in Ottawa, Illinois. For more information about the Company and the Bank, please visit www.ottawasavings.com .

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Statements in this release that are not strictly historical are forward-looking and are based upon current expectations that may differ materially from actual results. These forward-looking statements, identified by words such as will, expected, believe, and prospects, involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by the statements made herein. These risks and uncertainties involve general economic trends and changes in interest rates, increased competition, changes in consumer demand for financial services, the possibility of unforeseen events affecting the industry generally, the uncertainties associated with newly developed or acquired operations, market disruptions and the potential effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the local and national economic environment, on our customers and on our operations as well as any changes to federal, state and local government laws, regulations and orders in connection with the pandemic. Ottawa Bancorp, Inc. undertakes no obligation to release revisions to these forward-looking statements publicly to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unforeseen events, except as required to be reported under applicable rules and regulations.
A former Kelowna RCMP member, Brian Burkett, plead guilty in court Wednesday to breach of trust for his repeated efforts to pursue women he encountered while on the job.
ATLANTA (May 14, 2021)  The Carter Center calls on Israel to halt the bombardment of Gaza, a densely populated area. Residents there have no access to bomb shelters and have no way to escape the indiscriminate shelling.

Armed groups in Gaza, too, must stop firing rockets against population centers in Israel.

These acts can be considered war crimes.

The Carter Center urges the international community to engage at a high diplomatic level and negotiate a ceasefire. Including Egypt and Jordan in the negotiations would add to the credibility of such a multilateral effort. The Biden Administration bears special responsibility for bringing about a ceasefire, given its close relationship and leverage with Israel.

This weeks developments marked the most serious escalation between armed groups in Gaza and Israeli forces since the 2014 hostilities and could spiral into unpredictable levels of violence if measures are not taken immediately to stem the violence.

Already, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 100 civilians, including children, and injured hundreds more. Nearly all of the victims lived in Gaza. In Israel, violence between Jewish and Palestinian citizens has engulfed cities with mixed populations. In the West Bank, frustrated Palestinian youth have taken to the streets to protest the bombardment of Gaza. In response, Israeli forces have killed 10 Palestinians and injured over 150.

The Israeli security forces attack on Al-Aqsa Mosque during the closing days of Ramadan precipitated this escalation and should be investigated. The immediate root causes of this violence must be addressed. Most urgently, the removal of Palestinians from East Jerusalem through provocative evictions must stop. It is clear that without lifting the 15-year siege of Gaza, any cessation of hostilities will be short-lived and the cycle of violence will be repeated.

###

Contact: In Atlanta, Soyia Ellison, soyia.ellison@cartercenter.org

In Ramallah, Qais Asad, qais.assad@cartercenter.org
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

A lawsuit filed Friday alleges that staff at a detention facility in Estancia used unreasonable force by releasing pepper spray to subdue immigrant detainees engaged in a hunger strike demanding better COVID-19 protections in May 2020.

The suit alleges that staff at the Torrance County Detention Facility released pepper spray in a poorly ventilated space and blocked exits, which caused continued harm from the chemical for days after the attack.

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A spokesman with CoreCivic, a Tennessee-based private prison company that operates the facility, said Friday that no detainees or staff were injured in the confrontation, which became necessary after detainees became disruptive by refusing to comply with verbal directives.

The suit was filed in 7th Judicial District Court in Torrance County by attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico and the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center on behalf of nine of the detainees, all citizens of Cuba or Guatemala.

A video recording of the incident provided by the ACLU shows about 20 staff members wearing gas masks, helmets and shields confronting about 20 male detainees in a dormitory-type room.

About four minutes into the standoff, staff members discharged at least five canisters that sprayed a thick cloud of gas toward the detainees, who responded by running toward a back wall, many covering their faces with towels.

Nadia Cabrera-Mazzeo, an ACLU attorney, said Friday that three days before the May 14 incident, detainees began a hunger strike to protest a lack of basic protections from COVID-19, which was spreading through detention facilities in New Mexico.

CoreCivic staff made them all huddle together and then they blocked the exits so that participants of the hunger strike couldnt escape the room, Cabrera-Mazzeo said.

The incident coincided with the first reported case of COVID-19 at the Estancia facility, Cabrera-Mazzeo said. Detention staff members were taking few precautions such as social distancing and use of personal protective equipment, she said.

A CoreCivic official responded Friday that CoreCivic rigorously followed the guidance of local, state and federal health authorities to mitigate COVID-19 infections at its detention facilities.

Detention staff released oleoresin capsicum, or OC pepper spray, after attempts to de-escalate the situation were unsuccessful, CoreCivic spokesman Ryan Gustin said in a written statement.

After the deployment of OC, the detainees became compliant and staff was able to mitigate further risk of injury to both detainees and staff, it said.

The suit asks for unspecified damages. It also seeks an injunction prohibiting the use of chemical agents at the facility. The suit was filed against CoreCivic and several staff members and the Torrance County Board of Commissioners, which, the suit alleges, is responsible for maintenance operations at the facility.
Vineetk wrote:

When a city experiences a sharp decline in population, the city's tax revenues, which pay for such city services as police protection and maintenance of water lines, also decrease. The area to be policed and the number and length of the water lines to be maintained, however, do not decrease. Attempting to make up the tax revenue lost by raising tax rates is not feasible, since higher tax rates would cause even more residents to leave.



The information given most strongly supports which of the following general claims?



A. If, in a city with sharply declining population, police protection and water line maintenance do not deteriorate, some other service previously provided by the city will deteriorate or be eliminated.



B. If a city's tax rates are held stable over a period of time, neither the population nor the levels of city services provided will tend to decline over that period.



C. If a city's population declines sharply, police protection and water line maintenance are the services that deteriorate most immediately and most markedly.



D. A city that suffers revenue losses because of a sharp decline in population can make up some of the lost tax revenue by raising tax rates, provided the city's tax rates are low in relation to those of other cities.



E. A city that is losing residents because tax rates are perceived as too high by those residents can reverse this population trend by bringing its tax rates down to a more moderate level.



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Premises:Sharp decline in population causes tax revenue to reduce.But the areas which this revenue supports is still the same such as police protection and maintenance of water lines.We cannot make up by increasing tax rate since more people will leave.We need a conclusion. Something that follows from what is given. There should be no new information.A. If, in a city with sharply declining population, police protection and water line maintenance do not deteriorate, some other service previously provided by the city will deteriorate or be eliminated.The tax revenues decrease when population decreases. Since the revenues cannot be recovered by raising tax rate (since it will mean more people leaving and consequently lower collection points), it means the revenue will reduce. The need for the revenue does not reduce for at least some services. Hence, some services will certainly suffer. If police protection and water line maintenance do not suffer, something will suffer.This follows what is given to us in the argument. There is nothing called "this option is incorrect due to usage of extreme language". If the premises give you extreme data, the option will use extreme language.If the premises give you: "If A happens, B will happen." and "A has happened", what will you conclude? That B WILL HAPPEN. Can you say that the language is too extreme here? No.B. If a city's tax rates are held stable over a period of time, neither the population nor the levels of city services provided will tend to decline over that period.We do not know what causes the population to decline. Irrelevant.C. If a city's population declines sharply, police protection and water line maintenance are the services that deteriorate most immediately and most markedly.Not known. When the revenue declines, which services take the hit, we don't know. All we can say is that some service will take a hit.D. A city that suffers revenue losses because of a sharp decline in population can make up some of the lost tax revenue by raising tax rates, provided the city's tax rates are low in relation to those of other cities.What happens when the city increases tax rate, we cannot say. The premises give us that we cannot make up for lost revenue by increasing tax rate. Are we able to make up for it partially provided the tax rate still remains low, we cannot say. Note that we have no information on why people choose a certain city to live in. Perhaps its tax rate is lower but the quality of air and water isn't that great. Perhaps its cost of living is high. What happens when the tax rate is increased slightly (but is still less than other cities), overall it may not make financial sense for people to stay. The point is, we don't know how people will react if the taxes are raised even a tiny bit. We do know that raising tax rates cannot make up the loss in revenue and that is all. The argument tells us nothing else. We have to stick to the universe created by our argument.E. A city that is losing residents because tax rates are perceived as too high by those residents can reverse this population trend by bringing its tax rates down to a more moderate level.Irrelevant. We don't know how to reverse population trend and whether it can be reversed in the first place.Answer (A)_________________
Wilkes-Barre, PA (18701)

Today

Showers this morning then thundershowers developing during the afternoon hours. High 84F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms early, then cloudy skies after midnight. Low 69F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%.
Brattleboro, VT (05301)

Today

Mostly sunny skies this morning followed by thunderstorms during the afternoon. High 91F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms likely this evening. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Heesen Yachts

Heesen Yachts recently announced the delivery of Moskito, previously known as Project Pollux. The 55-meter with a Gross Tonnage of 760 GT is the second yacht delivered by Heesen in 2021. The superyacht's exteriors are penned by Omega Architects, who have characterized Moskito as a 'shark-tooth' superstructure with vertical windows and overhangs on the second deck, epitomizing the idea of elegance on the water. The design features the latest iteration of van Oossanen's ultra-efficient Fast Displacement Hull Form. Powered by IMO III-compliant MTU 8V 4000 M63s, it offers frugal fuel consumption of just 150 liters per hour at 11 knots for truly economical passage-making.

Heesen Yachts

Her interiors are by London-based studio Bannenberg & Rowell is both luxurious and laid-back. 'It works equally well whether you're in shorts and a T-shirt or dressed for dinner', said Dickie Bannenberg. The decor combines bold solutions with casual appeal, as seen, for example, in the main saloon's dark eucalyptus and pale sycamore joinery and chevron parquet flooring. Other features to note include softly radiused paneling and an eye-catching bar installation. Moskito's well-appointed amenities are illuminated by floor-to-ceiling windows and open bulwarks, whose sweeping sea-to-sky vistas immerse guests in the beauty of the environment. Moskito has a six-stateroom layout, including a master suite for the owner, and five staterooms for 10 guests. The 13 crew are housed in seven cabins.

Heesen Yachts

After delivery, Moskito will depart for her maiden voyage to Malta. Captain Phil Larkin and his 12 crew will take her non-stop over 2,800 nautical miles via the 81 waypoints of the passage plan  an authentic shakedown cruise, ideal for testing their brand new yacht in all conditions.

Captain Larkin comments: 'I have been in this industry for 24 years, 19 as a captain, and have worked with many different shipyards around the world. This is my first experience with Heesen, and I must say I am impressed by their level of professionalism. I want to express particular gratitude to Heesen's delivery team for their great help in these final stages. We truly enjoyed working with them all, and our professional relationship has been enriched with true friendship'.

Moskito will be available for charter by selected guests via International Yacht Collection, in the Mediterranean in summer and the Caribbean in winter. Here are some more images of the superyacht!

Heesen Yachts

Heesen Yachts

Heesen Yachts
Editor's take: Ransomware attacks in recent years have proven that no company is safe from them, which has encouraged hacker groups like DarkSide to grow their ambitions and go after larger targets. Unfortunately for them, this also prompted a fierce response from government agencies -- something they likely didn't expect or plan for. Still, there are voices in the security community that say this is merely an "exit scam," where ransomware operators retreat for a while to plan for their future attacks.

Earlier this month, a hacker group named DarkSide launched a ransomware attack against the business network of the Colonial Pipeline, forcing the company to shut down the 5,500-mile main pipeline and leading to fuel shortages in 17 states and Washington DC last week.

According to a Bloomberg report, Colonial paid 75 Bitcoin (around $5 million on the day of the transaction) in ransom to the Eastern European hackers, but officially the company has maintained a different narrative of not having any intention of paying the extortion fee in cryptocurrency, as the DarkSide group had demanded. However, the Georgia-based company is said to have made the payment within hours of the attack, possibly using a cyber insurance policy to cover it.

Once the payment was received, the hackers provided Colonial with a decryption tool for the restoration of its IT systems. However, the process was so slow that the company simply resorted to using its own backups to speed up the recovery. The fuel shipments were eventually resumed on Wednesday evening, but the story triggered a massive government response, including an executive order signed by President Joe Biden for the strengthening of US cybersecurity defenses.

Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic claims to have traced the wallet used by DarkSide for receiving ransom payments. The company found the wallet had been active since early March, and has received 57 payments from 21 different wallets, which seem to match known ransoms that have been paid over the last two months.

The transactions total is estimated at $17.5 million, and Elliptic was also able to trace where DarkSide is sending some of its funds. What it found was the group is using several exchanges, as well as a darknet marketplace called Hydra that is popular among Russian cybercriminals.

Earlier this week, DarkSide released an apology on the dark web explaining that it never intended to cause any "problems for society." Now, the group claims it has lost control over its web servers as well as a significant part of its funds. Specifically, the servers were seized by an unknown entity and at least one of its main accounts, which was used to pay its core group and affiliates who carried the attacks, has been drained.

Some speculate this was the result of swift, coordinated action from US authorities with help from the Russian government, as there have been suspicions that DarkSide operates in Russia. However, experts from security firms Emsisoft, FireEye and Intel 471 explain this is simply an "exit scam," an otherwise typical behavior used by ransomware operators as a way to hide their tracks and retreat in the shadows where they can plot their next move, sometimes under a different name.

The second explanation is the most plausible one, as other ransomware have made similar announcements in the wake of increased media spotlight given to their recent operations. For instance, REvil and Avaddon said they would stop advertising their Ransomware-as-a-Service platforms and "go private." Additionally, they plan to stop attacking critical infrastructure such as healthcare and educational institutions, energy grids, fuel pipelines, and anything else that would attract the kind of attention that resulted from the recent DarkSide attack on the Colonial Pipeline.

Colonial was not the only company targeted by DarkSide -- Toshiba said in a statement on Friday the European side of its business had been hit by a ransomware attack on May 4. It didn't pay a ransom, since the stolen data did not include sensitive information thanks to swift action that prevented the attackers from moving horizontally across the company's network systems.

Ireland's health service was also victim to a "significant" and "sophisticated" ransomware attack on its systems, prompting officials to shut down the affected systems as a precaution. Fortunately, the country's Covid-19 vaccination program wasn't directly affected by the attack, but there's been a significant disruption in all other health services as hospitals were forced to work offline.

In Germany, chemical distribution company Brenntag paid $4.4 million worth of Bitcoin in ransom to DarkSide to protect its operations at over 670 sites and 150 gigabytes of sensitive information. The company's network was infiltrated earlier this month with the help of stolen credentials and lax login security that lacked multifactor authentication.

Ransomware-as-a-Service appears to be big business, at least according to figures from Chainalysis, who says that ransomware attacks exploded last year and are showing no signs of slowing down. In the first months of 2021, victims paid in excess of $81 million, a huge chunk of which went to DarkSide.

Another interesting observation is that for the past eight years, ransomware operators have been moving their funds through mainstream exchanges and cryptocurrency tumblers, the latter being used to essentially obscure the source address for transactions. This makes it very attractive for money laundering, frauds, and other criminal activities.

Last month, US authorities arrested Roman Sterlingov, the operator of a cryptocurrency tumbler called Bitcoin Fog that allegedly laundered $335 million worth of Bitcoin since 2011. This week, the DOJ and IRS started investigating Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume, but the latter has yet to be accused of any wrongdoing.

The main issue with ransomware attacks is the difficulty of catching the people responsible for them, as some of them reside in countries that can be described as cybercrime safe havens. A notable example is North Korea, which is said to have used cryptocurrency experts and hackers to steal billions of dollars, aiding its military ambitions and allowing it to evade US sanctions.

Another problem is the high mobility of these malicious actors, something that calls for a global, concerted effort if we want there to be any significant change in the proliferation of ransomware attacks. The UN has made the first steps in that direction with a proposal for countries to sign on a set of rules akin to a "Digital Geneva Convention," but there's been little progress on that front.
Manchester Center, VT (05254)

Today

Partly cloudy early followed by scattered thunderstorms this afternoon. High near 85F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms during the evening will give way to cloudy skies after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 70%.
Extreme weather conditions come as part and parcel of the daily challenge for Mainline in its latest construction project in Scandinavia.

Having just signed a 10m-plus contract to provide power and communication infrastructure to a major 137 turbine wind farm project in Northern Sweden, much of the work will be carried out in near Arctic conditions for extended periods of the year.

The project at Europes largest onshore wind farm in the Markbygden Cluster will involve the installation of over 350km of power and fibre optic cabling.

The Cork headquartered company is also engaged in a second Swedish project at the Hastkullen wind farm in the Nysater wind park, installing cable to 73 wind turbines.

Things outside of our control often impact us, and we must deal with them and still deliver, CEO of Mainline, Jamie ORourke, explains of the extreme climatic conditions.

On the Hastkullen project, the construction programme changed from predominantly summer work to the majority of the project having to be completed during the winter period, which in northern Sweden runs from November to April.

When you are digging and blasting rock across mountainous terrain for almost 100km of trench, it can be a logistical challenge, for sure.

"Then throw in two meters of snow on frozen ground, and you can see some of the complicated obstacles we faced.

He credits a great team on the ground and finding the right local partners as key to the successful outcome:

Developing and maintaining strong relationships is a vital part of Mainlines culture, enabling us to deal with difficult situations in a very challenging environment successfully.

"These strong relationships enabled us to deliver a completed project to another satisfied client, and to now move on to our next project in Sweden.

North Runway project

Mainline is also the lead electrical contractor in the new North Runway project at Dublin Airport, an element of national infrastructure that will significantly increase the capacity of the airport.

Work includes over 340km of primary runway cable, instillation of aviation lighting and signage.

The North Runway is definitely one of the more complex projects we have undertaken, with the challenge relating to the number of moving parts outside of our direct control, Jamie says.

"Essential aspects of the project, such as design and access to the different areas of the site, are not within our direct control.

"On a project of this scale, elements can become fluid for various valid reasons, and this can have knock-on effects, for example, in the procurement of materials.

Now close to successfully completing this project, the key is always in managing risk, he points out:

We do this by having open and honest conversations and working in collaboration with all involved to find the best solution.

Mainlines tactically advanced approach gives it a competitive edge  particularly on large scale projects with multiple moving parts and interfaces.

The question becomes one of risk and, in particular, managing risk, often in what could be considered a chaotic environment.

"In simple terms, systems and processes coupled with key performance indicators all supported by the necessary software, enable us to monitor this risk and identify any potential issues well in advance.

"Its basic but essential  identify an issue early, then taking action as close to the issue as possible, can significantly reduce the impact.

Digital transformation

Mainlines operational ethos of continual improvement includes an ongoing supplementing of its system and process via a company-wide digital transformation programme, supported by Enterprise Ireland.

Strategic acquisitions are another important element of Mainlines success, and an ongoing process when opportunities present.

Acquisitions have proved a significant part of our success to date, and without giving too much away, we have a couple of irons in the fire at present that may come to fruition over the next 12 to 18 months, Jamie says.

For us, the fit culturally and strategically is critical, and as we have done in the past, it is better to pass on some opportunities if the fit doesnt feel right.

One thing of which he has no doubt is the perfect fit of Cork as the location for Mainlines headquarters.

I love Cork and feel very fortunate to live with everything it has to offer on its doorstep.

I have lived in Cork for over 20 years and have seen it grow into a multicultural city of international significance.

After all, Cork is the second-largest English-speaking city in the European Union.

In addition, Cork gives the company an advantage over other locations in attracting and retaining the right talent to enable Mainline grow and thrive into the future.

There is significant expertise among Corks diaspora. They are well aware of everything Cork has to offer, and many of them are looking to return home. For many of them, we can provide that opportunity, and its great to be able to do so.

In the broader context, we also have offices in Dublin and Kerry, as well as internationally. Given the type of projects we deliver, a lot of our interaction is remote  this is now a proven way of working for most of us due to Covid.

In Mainline, it is very much about getting the right people on to the team.

We need to offer flexible solutions to all team members, regardless of where they are based.

"From a business opportunity perspective, one of the key areas of growth we are experiencing domestically is Solar Power, and Cork is located strategically within the area of primary solar focus.

Having grown up in a business household  Jack ORourkes bar in Abbeyfeale  Jamie was witness to commercial life lessons from an early age.

Perhaps my enduring life lessons were learnt from my parents during many years behind the bar counter and on the bookmaking circuit as a youngster with my dad  the late Jack ORourke.

In the bar, we learned to always picture yourself outside the counter looking in. Essentially look through your customers eyes, and engaging genuinely with people.

Attention to detail

"The attention to detail and always on nature of bar work was fundamental in developing a solid work ethic in all the young ORourkes.

Also, on the bookmaking circuit with his father, Jamie learnt a lot about the business of risk and focusing on the numbers.

In our house, no job was considered too big or too difficult, and I remember spending a week in Dingle in my early teens, working in my dads betting office on my own. After that, no challenge was or is too big.

Looking to the future and the planned growth of Mainline, Jamie sees the company as achieving a 100m plus turnover by 2030, firmly established in international markets, and a market leader in Ireland.

Turnover is vanity, profit is sanity, but if you do it right, one follows the other.

"We will still be delivering projects that matter, positively impacting clients and communities worldwide through the design and delivery of energy and utility infrastructure.
Today

Plenty of sunshine. High 98F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph.

Tonight

Partly to mostly cloudy. Low 69F. Winds W at 10 to 20 mph.

Tomorrow

Mostly cloudy. High 101F. WSW winds at 5 to 10 mph, increasing to 10 to 20 mph.
Ireland's corporate enforcer said it would need a major increase in manpower to deal with very well-resourced white-collar suspects, technological advances that the law struggles to keep up with, and increased insolvency cases from the pandemics fallout.

The Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE) is to be set up as a stand-alone agency, which had been compared to an Irish version of the FBI by then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar according to internal records.

A detailed submission to the Department of Enterprise described how the ODCE had in recent years been working on crime and wrongdoing at the more serious end of the spectrum.

These investigations were resource-intensive and getting ever more complex according to the assessment, which was prepared by ODCE Director Ian Drennan.

He warned of technological advances that legislation is unable to keep pace with, and the number of different parties routinely involved in investigations as both witnesses and suspects.

Mr Drennan said there was a growing propensity for targets to take legal cases relating to things like privilege or privacy before the civil courts.

He also said, many of the persons/entities with which the ODCE has to engage are very well resourced  as are their professional advisers.

The submission warned as well of a major increase in work for their Head of Insolvency in the near future.

It said this was likely to become a substantially more demanding brief over the coming years as the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic permeate through the economy.

Mr Drennan also said there was a distinct possibility his office could be given a new role in the rescue regime to help small and medium businesses survive.

Staff requirements

The submission said the new vision of the authority as an Irish version of the FBI would bring a requirement for the recruitment of both administrative staff and specialist staff.

The new ODCE would have to fulfil a host of administrative functions, a number of which had up until now been taken care of by the department.

Mr Drennan said: The ODCE is not currently equipped to assume or discharge these additional, and onerous, responsibilities.

For investigative purposes, they would need new garda staff for search warrants, the taking of witness statements, interviewing suspects, and management of evidence.

Witness statements in a so-called white collar investigation are typically lengthy and complex, said the assessment, often being taken from professionals and involving complex and technical concepts and content. New specialist civilian staff would also be needed, including forensic accountants and digital forensic specialists, according to the document.

These would accompany gardai during interviews especially where the witnesses were accountants, auditors, liquidators and, as such, the statements are likely to contain specialist material.

They would also be needed during the execution of search warrants and examination of documents to give their expert input on the relevance of material.

Mr Drennan highlighted in particular the massive demands already being placed on the ODCEs digital forensics capability.

He wrote: Every investigation now routinely involves the seizures of electronic devices  be that laptops, desktops, servers, smart phones, tablets, hard drives, USB keys etc. In summary, Mr Drennan said the new agency version of the ODCE would need 14 new civilian staff. An unknown number of garda officers  the figures have been redacted under FOI law  would also be required.

A spokesman for the Office said: In the context of the transition to agency status, the ODCE conducted a detailed assessment of the resource implications and shared same, together with underlying rationale, with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

Following Departmental assessment of the document, all the additional civilian resources sought have been sanctioned. Preparations for recruitment are now underway and advertisements are expected shortly. The Department  is liaising with the Department of Justice on the garda aspects.
Imperial Valley News Center

Deputy U.S. Marshal Ian R. Diaz Charged with Cyberstalking and Perjury

Los Angeles, California - A federal grand jury in the Central District of California returned an indictment Wednesday charging a Deputy U.S. Marshal Ian R. Diaz with conspiracy to commit cyberstalking, cyberstalking, and perjury.

According to the indictment, Ian R. Diaz, 43, of Brea, California, who serves as a Deputy U.S. Marshal with the U.S. Marshals Service, along with his former wife, who is alleged to be an unindicted co-conspirator, agreed to and did pose as a person with whom Diaz was formerly in a relationship (Jane Doe) and, in that guise, sent to themselves harassing and threatening electronic communications that contained apparent threats to harm Diazs former wife; solicited and lured men found through Craigslist personal advertisements to engage in so-called rape fantasies in an attempt to stage a purported sexual assault on Diazs former wife; and staged one or more hoax sexual assaults and attempted sexual assaults on Diazs former wife. Diaz and his then-wife then reported this conduct to local law enforcement, falsely claiming that Jane Doe posed a genuine and serious threat to Diaz and his then-wife, and thereby caused local law enforcement to arrest, charge, and ultimately detain Jane Doe in jail for nearly three months for conduct for which they framed her and in fact perpetrated themselves.

According to the indictment, Diaz and his former wife also allegedly took steps to conceal their conduct, including using falsely registered email accounts, using virtual private networks to access the internet anonymously, and communicating with each another using encrypted messaging services.

Diaz is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit cyberstalking, one count of cyberstalking, and one count of perjury for his false testimony in a deposition in connection with a federal civil lawsuit brought by Jane Doe. The defendant was arrested Thursday and made his initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Douglas F. McCormick of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Southern Division. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on each of the counts. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Departments Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Keith A. Bonanno of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Cyber Investigations Office made the announcement.

The Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General is investigating the case.

Senior Litigation Counsel Marco A. Palmieri and Trial Attorney Rebecca G. Ross of the Criminal Divisions Public Integrity Section and Senior Trial Attorney Mona Sedky of the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section are prosecuting the case.




Israeli planes renewed airstrikes in Gaza early on Saturday, and Hamas militants responded by firing rockets into Israel as battle entered the fifth night.

Palestinian medics said at least two people were killed in one of the several airstrikes in northern Gaza. Residents said Israeli naval boats fired shells from the Mediterranean though none may have hit the strip.

Since Monday, at least 128 people have been killed in Gaza, including 31 children and 20 women, and 950 others wounded, Palestinian medical officials said.

Among eight dead on the Israel side were a soldier patrolling the Gaza border and six civilians, including two children, according to Israeli authorities.

The Palestinian religious affairs ministry said Israeli planes destroyed a mosque. A military spokesman said the army was checking the report.

Sirens sounded in two major southern Israeli cities warning of incoming rocket attacks from Gaza. Hamas claimed responsibility for launching rockets.

With no sign of ending of the armed conflicts in sight, casualties spread further afield, with Palestinians reporting 11 killed in the occupied West Bank amid clashes between protesters and Israeli security forces.
New York, May 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Airway Management Devices Market by type, Application, End user, COVID-19 Impact - Global Forecast to 2026" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05474772/?utm_source=GNW

The growing adoption of single-use and disposable airway management devices is offering lucrative growth opportunities to the vendors. Moreover, rising demand for airway management devices across emerging countries, due to rise in surgical procedures is also presenting a substantial growth opportunities for the vendors in the market. However, growing pricing pressure on market players. dearth of skilled professionals, harmful effects of certain airway management devices on neonates, and lack of reimbursement policies across emerging countries are expected to hamper the growth of this market during the forecast period.



Based on type, the infraglottic devices segment holds the largest market share during the forecast period.

Based on the type of airway management devices, the Infraglottic devices segment accounted for the largest share of the global airway management devices market in 2020.Growing demand for positive air pressure ventilation among the patients facing respiratory failure is driving the intubation procedures globally.



The Infraglottic devices such as endotracheal tubes and tracheostomy tubes are significantly used during intubation for providing ventilation support through connecting with external breathing assistance systems such as mechanical ventilators. Additionally, rise in prevalence of cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases and respiratory tract infections are increasing the incidence of acute respiratory failure, which is driving the demand of intubation procedures and Infraglottic devices globally.



Based on application, the anesthesia segment is expected to register the highest CAGR during the forecast period.

Based on application, the anesthesia segment commanded the largest share in 2020 and is expected to show highest growth rate during the forecast period.This can be attributed to the rising number of surgical interventions and increasing need for maintaining a safe breathing passage to lower the risk of anesthesia-related complications during surgery.



As a result thus the use of airway management devices for airway rescue and ventilation across surgical settings is increasing rapidly.



Based on patient age, the adult patients segment is expected to register the highest CAGR during the forecast period.

Based on patient age, the airway management devices market is segmented into adult patients and paediatric/neonatal patients.The surging incidence of pre-term births globally have surged the use of airway rescue systems among infants.



Moreover, vendors are increasingly offering advanced airway management devices of varied size and shape that are indicated for use across paediatric/neonatal patients. This has eased the availability of such devices, thereby contributing to the rapid growth of paedicatric/neonatal segment.



Based on end-user, the adult patients segment holds the largest market share during the forecast period.

The airway management devices market is segmented into hospitals, ambulatory care settings, home care settings and others.The hospital segment dominates the market share in 2020.



Hospitals have well developed and modernized infrastructure to support airway management procedures.Moreover, the airway management devices are extensively used across operating rooms, emergency care departments and intensive care units acorss these settings.



As a result, the hospital segment accounts for a leading share in the airway management devices market. Moreover, the number of hospitals is increasing globally, especially in emerging countries, which is supporting the high revenue growth in the segment.



North America is expected to account for the largest share of the airway management devices market in 2020

In 2020, North America accounted for the largest share of the airway management devices market, followed by Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. The large share of this market segment can be attributed to the presence of significant number of prominent vendors, highly developed healthcare system, rising prevalence of chronic respiratory diseases, the increasing number of healthcare settings, and and favorable reimbursement policies for airway management devices.



Break of primary participants was as mentioned below:

 By Company Type  Tier 135%, Tier 245%, and Tier 320%

 By Designation  C-level35%, Director-level25%, Others40%

 By Region  North America45%, Europe30%, Asia Pacific20%, Latin America- 3%, Middle East and Africa2%



Key players in the Airway Management Devices market

The key players operating in the airway management devices market include Medtronic plc (Ireland), Smiths Medical (UK), Teleflex Inc. (US), Ambu A/S (Denmark), Convatec Group plc (UK), KARL STORZ (Germany), Flexicare (US), Intersurgical Ltd. (UK), SunMed LLC (US), Vyaire Medical (US), VBM Medizintechnik (Germany), Verathon (US), SourceMark (US), Mercury Enterprises (US), TRACOE medical (Germany), Olympus Corp. (Japan), Armstrong Medical (UK), Nihon Kohden Corp (Japan), Shenzen Hugemed Medical Technical Development Co. Ltd. (China), Venner Medical (US), P3 Medical (UK), Pulmodyne Inc. (US), Henan Tuoren Medical Device Co. LTd.(China), BOMImed (Canada), and Medis Medical (China).



Research Coverage:

The report analyzes the airway management devices market and aims at estimating the market size and future growth potential of this market based on various segments such as type, application, patient age, end user, and region.The report also includes a product portfolio matrix of various airway management devices available in the market.



The report also provides a competitive analysis of the key players in this market, along with their company profiles, product offerings, and key market strategies.



Reasons to Buy the Report

The report will enrich established firms as well as new entrants/smaller firms to gauge the pulse of the market, which in turn would help them, garner a more significant share of the market. Firms purchasing the report could use one or any combination of the below-mentioned strategies to strengthen their position in the market.



This report provides insights into the following pointers:

 Market Penetration: Comprehensive information on product portfolios offered by the top players in the global airway management devices market. The report analyzes this market by type, application, patient age, and end user

 Product Enhancement/Innovation: Detailed insights on upcoming trends and product launches in the global airway management devices market

 Market Development: Comprehensive information on the lucrative emerging markets by type, application, patient age, and end user

 Market Diversification: Exhaustive information about new products or product enhancements, growing geographies, recent developments, and investments in the global airway management devices market

 Competitive Assessment: In-depth assessment of market shares, growth strategies, product offerings, competitive leadership mapping, and capabilities of leading players in the global airway management devices market.

Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05474772/?utm_source=GNW



About Reportlinker

ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.



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Angola, IN (46703)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 82F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low near 65F. Winds light and variable.
Cybersecurity experts last night warned that it could be weeks before HSE systems return to normal after yesterday's ransomware attack.

Ronan Murphy, of Cork-based cybersecurity experts Smarttech247, said it could be into next month before remedial work fixes problems caused by what has been described as "the most significant attack the Irish State has ever had".

This will cause unbelievable disruption to the HSE, he said.

That is the nature of these ransomware attacks  it is the fact that they are incredibly disruptive despite how easy they are to launch.

'Simple precautions and software updates'

He said that while there are hundreds of ways ransomware can be spread throughout a network, it usually starts with something as simple as an employee clicking on a link or opening an email attachment.

However, that action alone could be made all the worse if the person clicking on the link or downloading the file was working on a system that did not have all its software updated to the latest versions.

If their system did not have the most up-to-date security patches, there would have been an added vulnerability in their system.

Ransomware exploits known vulnerabilities in a network, Mr Murphy said. It is not overly sophisticated.

Once it gets into a network, it spreads very fast and encrypts data, and a ransom note pops up on the screen, warning the user they have 72 hours to pay up.

'Attack could have been planned for months'

IP-Performances chief information security officer Phil Cracknell, a former cybersecurity adviser to the UK government, said the attack could also have been initiated by someone figuring out the user name and password of somebody with access to the HSE network.

He also suggested that this particular attack could have been launched weeks or months ago, but only initiated early on Friday morning.

There is not enough information out about this attack so far,  he said.

Various buzzwords are being used, like zero-day threat and distributed denial of service [DDOS] attack.

'There could be more to this incident...'

However, you wouldnt normally associate such attacks with a ransomware attack," he said:

But, given the extent to which the authorities are describing it as the most significant attack ever, and alluding to its complexity, there could well be more to this incident than the authorities either know, or are prepared to talk about, at this stage.

He suggests that one of the things an attacker could have done is get into the network undetected some time ago and spread ransomware around the network.

If they did this some time ago and went undetected, it could mean that hourly or daily backups would, over a period of time, be infected, he said.

Phil Cracknell of IP-Performance says the ransomware attack on Ireland's health service could have been initiated weeks or even months ago.

This could lead to a situation where the company under attack tries to turn to its more recent backups to reload their systems, only to discover their backups have ransomware too.

One of the worlds leading cybersecurity experts had warned last December that Irelands health service was at risk of the same deadly cyberattacks hitting other countries.

Cyberattack may have led to death in Germany

One such health service attack in September 2020 was being blamed for contributing to the death of a pensioner needing emergency care for an aneurysm in Dusseldorf, Germany.

She had to be diverted to another city because a ransomware attack at the hospital in Dusseldorf caused disruption to its IT systems.

Hospital IT systems in the UK and the US were also being targeted in so-called ransomware attacks at the time.

When asked if such attacks  including the one in Germany  could happen here, US cybersecurity expert Bruce Schneier, a speaker at the Web Summit 2020, told the Irish Examiner: Unless the laws of physics are different in Ireland, yes.

If you are a country on the planet that uses the internet that everyone else uses, then you worry about this.

There's nothing magical about anybody's borders that makes it more or less likely. These attacks happen pretty much at random, to everybody who is vulnerable."
Kvt.sharepoint.com scored 40 Social Media Impact. Social Media Impact score is a measure of how much a site is popular on social networks. 2/5.0 Stars by Social Team

This CoolSocial report was updated on 11 Mar 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want.

The total number of people who shared the kvt.sharepoint homepage on StumbleUpon. The total number of people who shared the kvt.sharepoint homepage on Delicious. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the kvt.sharepoint homepage on Twitter + the total number of kvt.sharepoint followers (if kvt.sharepoint has a Twitter account). The total number of people who shared the kvt.sharepoint homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the kvt.sharepoint homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if kvt.sharepoint has a Facebook fan page).

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PAGE TITLE Welcome to Microsoft Online Services DESCRIPTION KEYWORDS OTHER KEYWORDS online, javascript, microsoft online services, microsoft online, online services, microsoft, services



The title found in the head section of the homepage. The description meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. The keywords meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. CoolSocial advanced keyword analysis tool is able to detect and analyze every keyword on each page of a site. The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of the site.

Domain and Server

DOCTYPE CHARSET AND LANGUAGE UTF-8 DETECTED LANGUAGE English English SERVER Microsoft-IIS/7.5 OPERATIVE SYSTEM Windows Server 2008 R2 Windows Server 2008 R2

Character set and language of the site. Type of server and offered services. Operative System running on the server. The language of kvt.sharepoint.com as detected by CoolSocial algorithms. Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0)

Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world.

Referring domains for kvt.sharepoint.com by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines.

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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

Editors Note: Bueno Foods, which has long been a mainstay of the Barelas neighborhood, will celebrate 70 years in operation Tuesday.

Joe Baca and two of his brothers started Bueno Foods in 1951 with a plan to make roasted green chile available year-round.

Frozen vegetables were really becoming the rage, says Ana Baca, Joe Bacas daughter and vice president of marketing and communications. People were being able to afford freezers at that time.

ADVERTISEMENTSkip



................................................................

The Baca brothers were the first to flame roast and freeze green chile on a commercial scale, according to the company website.

Seventy years later, Bueno Foods is managed by a second generation of siblings, the children of Joe Baca: Jacqueline, Gene, Catherine and Ana.

In addition to green chile, the Albuquerque-based company now offers approximately 100 retail products and 150 food service items for use in restaurants and homes in the Southwest and beyond. The 110,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, built in 1984 and located in the Barelas neighborhood where the Baca brothers grew up, will break ground on a $10 million expansion project in July.

Weve worked all our lives to be able to celebrate our New Mexican culinary heritage and honor it and share it with as many people as we can, Ana Baca says.

The company, which employs up to 400 people in the peak season, is proud of its contribution to the economy of New Mexico. Bueno Foods purchases chile from Hatch and Deming. The wheat they use comes from the Farmington area in northwest New Mexico.

Whenever we can source New Mexico ingredients, thats first and foremost, Ana Baca says.

To celebrate its 70th anniversary, Bueno Foods is giving away 7,000 packages of tortillas, 7,000 containers of green chile and $7,000 in flash grants. The tortillas and chile will go to the health care workers and staff at UNM Health Sciences Center in Albuquerque. The grants will be used by New Mexico teachers to purchase books for their classrooms.

The company is also giving $70 to every employee who is vaccinated or has a vaccine appointment scheduled by May 18. If 90% of the workforce is vaccinated, theyll hold a socially distanced celebration, Ana Baca says.

We just want to continue to be a driving force of good in our community, she says.

What are some key moments in Bueno Foods history?

Ana Baca: My dad passed away in 1989.  Even though my sister Jacqueline had been president since 1986 and my brother had been vice president since that time, they really had to assume a leadership role. Not only a management role, but a leadership role when they were in their late 20s and early 30s. It was a really difficult time.

What do you think helped Bueno Foods survive that challenge?

I think that it goes back to the core values.  I think every decision has been guided by those values.  They were what my parents lived every, each and every day. What they taught us. What my grandparents taught my parents. Those have provided the foundation for the company.

What role has technology and innovation played in the companys evolution?

Let me give you an example. So we still process our corn. We dont grind our corn in the way that they did tens of thousands of years ago. But weve incorporated lava rock from Mexico into our machinery, into our tortilla machinery, that stone grind the corn. So we still do that.  We want to maintain tradition, but weve incorporated, weve figured out a way to do that technologically  to keep the best of both worlds, tradition and technology. 

The whole thought (that started Bueno Foods) was How do we take our green chile, roasting it and freeze it for people to enjoy year-round? And so that whole green chile process has had just an amazing evolution.  Constant learning and constant innovation, constant improvement and striving for that excellence that we seek  it all goes back to that value of passion. And everything kind of goes back to those values.

So what influenced the company to move to its current location?

Its located in the Barelas neighborhood where my dad grew up, and it was really important for Jackie and my dad at that time to keep the business in that area where its considered a pocket of poverty, an underprivileged area, socio-economic area. So it was really important for them to build in that area. They were the first and now the Hispanic Cultural Center is there. They were the first to  it was called the South Barelas Industrial Park  and they were the first to build there. And since it has, you know, theres other players there now. But because of where my dad had grown up, and because of these challenges, of socio economic challenges, they really wanted to build right there in that neighborhood and be able to help people in that neighborhood.

What are some of the challenges and rewards of working with family?

I think that the reward is that you can always count on them. Theres a shared moral values system and shared history and shared goals that together weve made something from nothing, basically. Just being able to rely on them and having that personal history and background and seeking the same things. Its amazing.

What advice do you have for family businesses?

Id say that my advice would be to have a vision, to believe in that vision passionately, to work extremely hard and to have perseverance, dedication.

Background

Business name: Bueno Foods

Leaders: Jacqueline Jackie Baca, president; Gene Baca, senior vice president; Catherine Baca, vice president of technical services; Ana Baca, vice president marketing and communications

Industry: food manufacturing

Physical HQ address: 2001 4th St. SW, Albuquerque

Year established: 1951

Number of employees in year established: 8

Number of employees today: 283 currently, up to 400 during peak season
The decades long trend of U.S. House seats being assigned to Southern states continued with the latest reapportionment.


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NEWSALERT-FRANCE-MACRON-SLAP French President Emmanuel Macron is slapped in the face while visiting a small town in southeast France. (AP)French President Emmanuel Macron is slapped in the face while visiting a small town in southeast France. (AP)
Congratulations, modelleisenbahn-figuren.com got a very good Social Media Impact Score! Show it by adding this HTML code on your site:

Modelleisenbahn-figuren.com scored 94 Social Media Impact. Social Media Impact score is a measure of how much a site is popular on social networks. 4.5/5.0 Stars by Social Team

This CoolSocial report was updated on 10 Jan 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want.

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This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the modelleisenbahn-figuren homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if modelleisenbahn-figuren has a Facebook fan page). The total number of people who shared the modelleisenbahn-figuren homepage on Delicious. The total number of people who shared the modelleisenbahn-figuren homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. The total number of people who shared the modelleisenbahn-figuren homepage on StumbleUpon. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the modelleisenbahn-figuren homepage on Twitter + the total number of modelleisenbahn-figuren followers (if modelleisenbahn-figuren has a Twitter account).

Basic Information

PAGE TITLE Homepage - modellbau figuren - scale model figures DESCRIPTION Miniaturfiguren, Modellbahnfiguren, Modellbaufiguren, Modelleisenbahn Figuren und Zubehor fur die Modelleisenbahn und fur den Modellbau. Scale Model Figures and Scenery Items for Model Railways, Toy Trains, Model Railroads, Layouts and Dioramas. KEYWORDS Miniaturfiguren, Modellbahnfiguren, Modellbaufiguren, Modelleisenbahn Figuren, Zubehor Modelleisenbahn, Zubehor Modellbau, Zubehor Modellbahn, Modellbahn, Modellbau, Modelleisenbahn, Architektur figuren, Architektur Zubehor, Scale Model Figures, Model Rai OTHER KEYWORDS figuren, miniaturfiguren, unsere, nenngre, false, figuren bieten wir, sehen sie



The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of the site. The description meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. CoolSocial advanced keyword analysis tool is able to detect and analyze every keyword on each page of a site. The title found in the head section of the homepage. The keywords meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage.

Domain and Server

DOCTYPE HTML 4.01 Transitional CHARSET AND LANGUAGE English UTF-8English DETECTED LANGUAGE German German SERVER OPERATIVE SYSTEM

Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0) Type of server and offered services. The language of modelleisenbahn-figuren.com as detected by CoolSocial algorithms. Character set and language of the site. Operative System running on the server.

Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world.

Referring domains for modelleisenbahn-figuren.com by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines.

Facebook link

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Twitter account link

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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.

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TORONTO, May 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ARHT Media Inc. (ARHT or the Company) (TSXV:ART), the global leader in the development, production and distribution of high-quality, low latency hologram and digital content, announced today that it has granted a total of 4,707,500 options to all employees, various directors, officers and consultants under the stock option plan of the Company. The options are exercisable at a price of $0.215 per option and shall expire on May 14, 2026. The options shall vest in three equal tranches, with the first tranche vesting on the date of grant, the second tranche vesting on May 14, 2022 and the third tranche vesting on May 14, 2023, all subject to a four month regulatory hold period.



Following the grant of the stock options, the Company has a total of 12,455,834 stock options outstanding representing approximately 9.7% of the outstanding common shares of the Company. The grant of options remains subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval.

About ARHT Media

ARHT Medias patented HoloPresence technology is a complete end-to-end solution that creates a sense of presence for audiences  as though the holographic presenter was actually live in the room. With no noticeable latency, ARHT Media makes two-way live communication with a 3D holographic presenter anywhere in the world possible. We can also playback pre-recorded content and 3D animations on our HoloPresence displays to deliver rich holographic experiences. Add to this our capability to stream the same content online on our premium Virtual Global Stage.

Connect with ARHT Media

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ARHTmedia

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ARHTmediainc

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/arht-media-inc-

For more information, please visit www.arhtmedia.com or contact the investor relations group at info@arhtmedia.com .

ARHT Media trades under the symbol ART on the Toronto Venture Stock Exchange.

Press Contact

Salman Amin

ARHT Media

samin@arhtmedia.com

Investor Contact

Phil Carlson

KCSA Strategic Communications

212-896-1233

ARHT@kcsa.com

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, disclosure related to the Companys sales funnel; the Companys technology; the potential uses for the Companys technology; the future planned events using the Companys technology; the future success of the Company; the ability of the Company to monetize the ARHT Media technology; the development of the Companys technology; and interest from parties in ARHTs products. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as plans, expects or does not expect, is expected, budget, scheduled, estimates, forecasts, intends, anticipates or does not anticipate, or believes, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, might or will be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to: general business, economic and competitive uncertainties; regulatory risks; risks inherent in technology operations; and other risks of the technology industry. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

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Los Angeles, CA, May 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Recognized as one of the fastest growing real estate brokerage brands in 2020, as demonstrated by recent RISMedia and RealTrends rankings, Corcoran Global Living unveiled plans for the real estate brokerages entry into the heart of the bespoke community of Beverly Hills, CA.

Our success across the West Coast has been unparalleled, commented Michael Mahon, CEO and Founder of Corcoran Global Living. We launched our first location in Lake Tahoe, CA in February 2020, and today our Corcoran Global Living family of associates represents over 1,700 market professionals, transacting over $6.4 billion in closed sales volume within many of the most recognized destination communities of North America. This record pace growth has seen Corcoran Global Living gain national recognition as the 28th largest closed sales volume brokerage in the U.S. on the RealTrends 500, and the 26th largest closed sales volume brokerage in 2020 by RISMedias Power Broker Rankings Report.

Our growth across Southern California is monumental, commented Peter Lorimer, Partner and Regional Vice President of the Greater Los Angeles communities of Corcoran Global Living. The culture, the vibe, and our people represent many of the most renowned communities and clientele in the world. The 90210 zip code of Beverly Hills represents the destination markets where we specialize, and we could not be more excited for the opening of our Beverly Hills location at 9647 Brighton Way, just a couple blocks from the heart of world-renowned Rodeo Drive.

Having launched its first location in the Greater Los Angeles market six months ago with 120 associates, Corcoran Global Living has now grown to over 700 luxury real estate professionals focused on making a difference within the Greater Los Angeles community.

Our people make the difference, exclaimed Peter Lorimer. There is a clear demand for our level of bespoke service, our vision, our collaboration, and our tireless commitment to making a positive difference within the communities in which we live.

Adding further to the excitement, Beverly Hills leadership and community expert, Nick Spirtos, recently announced his acceptance of leading the Beverly Hills sales management team for Corcoran Global Living.

We are attracting the best and the brightest luxury real estate professionals of the Beverly Hills community, stated Nick Spirtos. Between the near 40 associates already hired for the Beverly Hills location and multiple interviews conducted weekly, the office is growing rapidly ahead of its July 2021 grand opening. Theres no place Id rather be has become the quote of each interview, exclaimed Spirtos in describing the culture and momentum of the Corcoran Global Living Beverly Hills location. I continue to explain to real estate associate candidates that our vibe and opportunity is unique to the industry, as well as the Beverly Hills community. While we represent many of the largest producing luxury independent teams and independent professionals in the market, we provide opportunities for personal growth and wealth building that contribute to our family culture of building and supporting one another in creating the most popular real estate brokerage office ever experienced in Beverly Hills.

About Corcoran Global Living

Founded on the principle of putting people first, Corcoran Global Living, an affiliate of The Corcoran Group, serves the California and Nevada markets with 47 strategically located offices in Northern California, Southern California, and Reno/Lake Tahoe. Corcoran Global Living is well positioned to provide exceptional service to its very loyal customer base, with more than 1,700 dedicated, professional agents and gross annual sales of $6.4 billion. Known for making a positive difference in the communities in which associates and staff live, the Corcoran Global Living organization is poised for exponential expansion to service clients in additional markets and communities throughout the United States. From luxury homes and income properties to vacation getaways and first-time homes, Corcoran Global Living has the experience, insight, and expertise to achieve and surpass clients highest expectations. For more information, visit CorcoranGL.com.

Attachment
General Omar Bradley and the remaking of the Veterans Administration





General Omar Bradley in 1945 before he took over as VA Administrator. After leading the VA from August 1945 to November 1947, he served as the Chief of Staff of the Army. (Photograph courtesy of the Library of Congress.)

Within days of Germanys surrender in May 1945, General Omar N. Bradley received word of his next assignment: he had been handpicked by President Harry S. Truman to replace Frank T. Hines as the next head of the Veterans Administration. For Bradley, who had commanded the 12th Army Group, the largest American fighting force ever assembled, in the campaign that liberated France and brought Germany to its knees, the presidents summons came as a shock. As he recalled in his autobiography, I knew absolutely nothing about the Veterans Administration. (1)



Truman, however, was certain he had the right man for the job. During the war, Bradley had acquired a reputation as the soldiers general for his unassuming manner and devotion to the welfare of the troops. He had also earned the admiration of the public and Congress for his sterling record on the battlefield. As the war wound down, critics had assailed the VA for the quality of its medical care and its rigid bureaucracy. The VA needed a thorough overhaul and Truman believed Bradley possessed the judgment to make the necessary changes as well as the stature to restore trust and confidence in the embattled agency.







General Omar Bradley (right) next to General Dwight D. Eisenhower and President Harry S. Truman on their way to a ceremony in Berlin in July 1945. (Frank Gatteri, US Army, Harry S. Truman Library and Museum, accession number 2000-3)

Bradley took the oath of office as Administrator of the VA on August 15, 1945, one day after Japan surrendered, ending World War II. A private law passed by Congress the previous month allowed him to remain on active duty and retain his four-star rank in the Army for the duration of his term. The magnitude of the task ahead of him was immense. At the time of his appointment, the VA was already struggling to keep up with the demand for benefits and services from the 4.5 million Veterans on its rolls. Its predicament only grew worse when the Pentagon, responding to pressure from the public and politicians, sped up the pace of demobilization after the war. (2) Between October 1945 and June 1946, nearly 13 million men and women in uniform returned to civilian life. Mail poured into the VAs offices at a rate as high as 300,000 letters per day, swamping the agency with requests from Veterans seeking to use the education and loan provisions of the 1944 GI Bill or collect on the other benefits they were due.

Bradley moved swiftly after his swearing in to bring order to the chaos. He entrusted the transformation of the VAs medical services to Major General Paul R. Hawley, who served as the Armys chief surgeon in the European Theater of Operations during the war. (3) He also brought in many of his trusted subordinates from the 12th Army Group to fill key administrative posts. To decentralize operations, Bradley launched a sweeping reorganization of the VA. He established 13 branch offices, each of which functioned, in his words, as a small-scale VA. (4) Every branch had its own deputy administrator, who was responsible for making decisions and overseeing the smaller regional and contact offices that fell within his geographic area. Bradley also went on a hiring spree, increasing the number of employees working throughout the VA from 65,000 in 1945 to 200,000 in 1947. He took advantage of the Veterans Preference Act passed in 1944 to ensure that the vast majority of the new hires were former service members themselves.

Bradley stayed at the VA for a little over two years. He stepped down from his post in November 1947 to assume the one desk job in Washington, DC he truly covetedChief of Staff of the Army. He departed knowing that the VA had weathered the worst of the demobilization storm and delivered on the nations promises to the men and women who served bravely during World War II. By the end of his tenure, the VA had processed disability claims from over 3.5 million Veterans and helped millions more purchase homes, attend college, or enroll in job training programs through the GI Bill.

By Jeffrey Seiken, Ph.D., Historian, Veterans Benefits Administration



Note: This story was first posted on the VA Insider internal platform in December 2020.



1. Omar N. Bradley and Clay Blair, A Generals Life: An Autobiography by General of the Army Omar N. Bradley (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1983), p. 440.



2. For more on the militarys efforts to bring home the millions of soldiers serving overseas, see VA Insider, Looking back at the end of a global war." https://vaww.insider.va.gov/the-end-of-a-global-war-and-the-homecoming-of-our-veterans/.



3. For the reforms to the VAs medical system carried out by General Hawley, see VA Insider, Armistice Day 1945: How VA met the moment on Veteran health care 75 years ago. https://vaww.insider.va.gov/armistice-day-1945-how-va-met-the-moment3950-2/.



4. Bradley and Blair, A Generals Life, p. 450.
ProEnergy Homes is a home retrofit scheme being run by the Credit Union Development Association (CUDA) in association with the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and project management firm REIL.

Home owners can avail of grant finance of up to 35% for a range of retrofit measures, including attic insulation, external wall insulation, the installation of solar panels, boiler replacement, and upgrades to windows and doors.

The remaining cost of the works can then be financed either by savings, or through loan finance from your local credit union  if its participating.

The scheme was piloted by CUDA in early 2019 across 20 credit unions, and was quickly oversubscribed.

Theres been such strong demand from participating credit unions this year that CUDA now reports that half of the 2021 SEAI 1.5m in grant aid is already allocated.

That doesnt mean youve missed the boat however. As part the agreement, its anticipated that additional funding will be sought in later in the year.

Kevin Johnson, CEO of CUDA, confirms that based on the current level of interest from credit union members, not to mention the number of credit unions signing up to the scheme, they will need to look for additional funding shortly.

He anticipates that the annual level of grant funding will run at between 6m and 10m.

One-stop-shop

In addition to the grant aid, the big attraction of the scheme is that it provides a one-stop-shop for homeowners seeking comprehensive energy retrofits.

It begins with a no-obligation home survey report which outlines the options most appropriate to the house.

Thereafter, a dedicated project manager is assigned to arrange contractors and carry out quality assurance on the works as theyre completed.

CUDA say the scheme has been tweaked slightly in response to the pandemic. Home surveys and works will resume as soon as it is safe to do so, but in the interim, a team of expert project managers and surveyors are available for telephone consultations with interested applicants.

Loft insulation is one option. The free and no obligations call-backs can be requested from ProEnergy Homes and applicants will have the opportunity to discuss all their available options and receive professional advice on any technical questions they may have.

The most popular measures undertaken in 2020 were external wall insulation and new glazing. Multi-zone boiler controls  which allow separate control of heating zones and hot water  were also popular.

In our experience of running the scheme, the cost to the average household of bringing their home up to the recommended B2 level rating will be approximately 30,000-40,000, said Mr Johnson.

So, just accounting for 35% of 40,000 through grant aid will leave a bill of roughly 26,000 for works.

We recommend homeowners to use some savings to help lower the cost of any additional borrowing to cover the remaining bill, or indeed to cover the full cost of works, depending on how much they have saved.

Restrictions

Josephine Maguire, of SEAI, recognises that access to finance can be a barrier to residential retrofitting.

The SEAI has supported the ProEnergy Homes scheme for a number of years and the one-stop-shop model has proven to be a case study for the delivery of residential retrofitting at the ambitious scale targeted in the National Climate Action Plan," she said.

There are a number of restrictions attached to accessing the grant funding. You have to be a member of a credit union and your house has to have been built before 2006.

To qualify for a 35% grant, a home must generally be upgraded to a B2 building energy rating.

A building energy rating, or BER, is a rating given to your home, or indeed any building, based on its overall efficiency. The scale runs from A through to G, with A1 being the most energy efficient.

These ratings are calculated on energy performance and associated carbon dioxide emissions for the provision of space heating, ventilation, water heating and lighting under standard operating conditions.

A B2 comes after A1, A2, A3 and B1  putting it into the fifth most efficient category.

REIL will perform a home survey for a set fee of 99, but this will be refunded if it turns out that your home isnt eligible. It will also be refunded against the cost of works if your home is eligible and you choose to proceed.

Costs and finance

Your home survey report will detail any terms and conditions attaching to any grants you are eligible for. For certain works, additional surveys may be required at additional cost. REIL will advise of all options available before you incur any cost.

All contractors have to be REILapproved. All are regularly audited by SEAI and REIL to ensure they keep up with latest building regulations and SEAI requirements.

REIL are solely responsible for all works and surveys conducted under this scheme.

You dont have to borrow from the credit union in order to access the scheme, but you can access what theyre terming a low rate loan if you do need finance.

A low rate loan means a rate under 7% on loans over 20,000.

For example, 20,000 borrowed at 6.95% over five years would have monthly repayments of 395.55.

Total cost of credit would be 3,733.14 at an annual percentage rate (APR) of 7.12%.

Higher rates apply to smaller sums.

Pro Energy Homes offers this example: 5,000 borrowed at 10.48% over five years would have monthly repayments of 107.42 and total cost of credit would be 1,445.20 at an APR of 11%.

The full list of potential measures is broken into three categories.

Under insulation, the options include attic, internal wall, external wall and cavity wall insulation.

Under heating upgrades, youve got heating controls, solar thermal panels and heatpumps.

The other category includes door and window upgrades and solar electric panels.

Contact your local credit union to see if theyre participating, or check out the list of credit unions on the website.

To initiate the process, youll need to fill out an application form in the branch, or fill out the online form  though at the time of writing this didnt appear to be working.

The ProEnergy Homes grant is currently the only deep retrofit grant finance available in Ireland.

The SEAI, which is of course providing the grant finance here, had been running its own deep retrofit scheme directly, but this has now been discontinued. The agency does however continue to offer grant finance for individual energy efficiency upgrades: insulation, heating controls, heat pumps and solar panels.

These may suit those who want to invest in their thermal comfort but dont qualify for or dont have the resources to go for the full deep retrofit.

Note however that these energy efficient grants dont include window or door upgrades.
On May 12, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) released a 3D video of the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter's historic third flight. The flight was one of the five successful endeavours with one failed attempt.

Our Ingenuity #MarsHelicopter, but make it 3D! When the helicopter took to the Martian skies on its third flight, @NASAPersevere was there to capture it all. Check out the rendered flight in 3D as it ascends, hovers, then zooms laterally: http://go.nasa.gov/33ADsxd, the agency tweeted.

  Our Ingenuity #MarsHelicopter, but make it 3D! When the helicopter took to the Martian skies on its third flight, @NASAPersevere was there to capture it all. Check out the rendered flight in 3D as it ascends, hovers, then zooms laterally: https://t.co/YVY07InRKu pic.twitter.com/dAR37lBONk  NASA (@NASA) May 12, 2021

The agency wanted to give the viewers a first-hand experience of this flight on the red planet. For those who dont have 3D glasses to experience this wonderful video, NASA has shared a quick DIY 3D glasses to make at home in few minutes.

"When NASAs Ingenuity Mars Helicopter took to the Martian skies on its third flight on April 25, the agencys Perseverance rover was there to capture the historic moment. Now NASA engineers have rendered the flight in 3D, lending dramatic depth to the flight as the helicopter ascends, hovers, then zooms laterally off-screen before returning for a pinpoint landing," the agency told in their press release.

Read | Perseverance, Hope and a fire god: A history of Mars rovers

Justin Maki is the imaging scientist who led the team which put this video together. He has been creating 3D imaging of Mars with NASA since he was a graduate student.

In a press release of NASA, he said, "The Mastcam-Z video capability was inherited from the Mars Science Laboratory MARDI (Mars Descent Imager) camera. To be reusing this capability on a new mission by acquiring 3D video of a helicopter flying above the surface of Mars is just spectacular."

The video of Ingenuity Mars Helicopter was taken by Perseverance Mars rover's zoomable dual-camera Mastcam-Z instrument. According to NASA, the photos and videos provide "key data" for navigation and aid scientists in their research and locate potentially ancient microbial life.

Recently, the agency had announced that the rover's robotic arm had successfully started conducting science operations like examining Mars terrain and environment.
After four years of challenges from Hurricane Irma to COVID-19 and the scourge of systemic racism, the University of Miami Miller School of Medicines class of 2021 celebrated its accomplishments at the May 12 commencement ceremony.

Congratulations on your adaptability and persistence, said President Julio Frenk. Resiliency permeates our culture as much as our orange and green colors and the rich mosaic of backgrounds that add depth to our common bond. I challenge you to practice resilience, overcome the obstacles, and make a positive impact on the lives of others.

Frenk spoke at a socially distanced outdoor ceremony held at Hard Rock Stadium under cloudy skies and to hundreds of family members and friends who celebrated the event virtually. Many members of the class of 2021 also received graduate degrees in other fields or earned a distinction in research.

Yours is the first graduation we are able to hold in person since the start of the pandemic, Frenk said. For those unable to join us at Hard Rock Stadium today, we hope your virtual participation is nonetheless memorable. No matter the distance between us, nothing can diminish the achievements of our graduates, nor the deep pride we all feel for the many ways our students, faculty, and staff have worked together to arrive at this important milestone.

Speaking to the Miller Schools 66th graduating class, Dr. Henri R. Ford, dean and chief academic officer, said, Your skills, dedication, commitment and compassion are needed more than ever. You have a remarkable opportunity to ameliorate human suffering by providing exceptional medical care, and you are well equipped to become transformative leaders who will shape the future of medicine.

Among the schools graduates on Wednesday was Dr. Haitao Xu. For him, the dream of becoming a doctor began 11 years ago as a middle school student in Fort Lauderdale. Then on a high school field trip to the Miller School, I sat in a classroom and heard a resident talk about his career, said Xu. It was a transformative moment for me.

After earning a bachelors degree at the University of Florida, he enrolled at the Miller School in 2017just weeks before Hurricane Irma disrupted the campus. We had to reorganize our schedules, and I took the anatomy and biochem modules at the same time, said Xu, who also completed the Miller Schools master in genomic medicine program. Throughout the four years, we were resilient in the face of every adversity, and collaboration became one of the defining characteristics of our class.

Now, Xu is headed to the University of Texas Southwestern at Dallas for a residency in internal medicine, along with Dr. Shelly Saini, whose residency will be in pediatrics. It was very special to celebrate commencement with our families, and we feel very fortunate to have a couples match with two such excellent residencies, said Xu.

A longtime advocate for global health equity, Dr. Lincoln Chen, president emeritus of the China Medical Board, delivered the commencement address and received an honorary Doctor of Science. In a distinguished career that spanned more than five decades, Chen helped spark the child survival revolution, tackled shortages of trained medical professionals, and crafted health care policies to promote quality health care to impoverished communities around the world.

Describing his personal medical journey from Bangladesh, India, and China to Harvard University and leadership of major non-governmental organizations, Chen told the graduates, Surprises and curveballs will come at you in life. You have to be adaptable and resilient in adjusting to change.

Chen added that one of the happiest times in his career was making boat trips on Bangladeshs Meghna River to a rural health clinic, treating malnourished children who had cholera and other diseases. For me, meaning in my professional work comes from travel and interactions with people in diverse cultures, and I encourage you to take a path based on what gives you the most passion in your professional work. Go out and promote health, save lives, relieve pain, alleviate suffering, and do hard work that is worth doing.

Hilarie Bass, chair of the University of Miami Board of Trustees; Jeffrey Duerk, executive vice president for academic affairs and provost; grand marshal Dr. Hilit J. Mechaber, senior associate dean for student affairs; and other Miller School educators took part in the in-person ceremony. The Miller Schools musical group, Doctors Note, sang the national anthem and the alma mater.

Dr. Madeline A. Cohen was selected by her classmates to give the student address. Much of the past four years has been uncomfortable, she said, citing the global pandemic, as well as hurricanes, mass murders, and police brutality. When we meet our patients at uncomfortable moments in their lives, we need to remember our own experiences and serve as a cool head in a time of stress.

Cohen will begin a residency in obstetrics-gynecology at Boston Medical Center. She said the new doctors must learn to manage uncertainty in a field that often demands precise answers. Together, we have built our skill sets, learned how to take care of others, and excel in the moment.

Dr. Latha Chandran, executive dean and founding chair of the Department of Medical Education, led the students in the Hippocratic Oath, adapted for the Declaration of Geneva. Dr. Ana I. Gonzalez, president of the University of Miami Medical Alumni Association, welcomed the new graduates.

I am confident that with the knowledge and skills you learned at the Miller School of Medicine, you will go on to rewarding and fulfilling medical careers, she said. This is a rite of passage you will long treasure.

Concluding the ceremony, Ford encouraged the graduates to remain resilient in overcoming the challenges that lie ahead. From this day forward, you hold the sacred privilege of caring for your patients. We know you will hold true to that responsibility.
NORTH CHARLESTON  Charleston County Sheriff Kristin Graziano pledged sweeping changes, some already underway, one day after she released videos of deputies using Tasers and other force against a mental health patient who later died.

Jamal Sutherland's death marked an immediate challenge for the sheriff, who took office roughly three hours before the fatal encounter in the jail she runs. Graziano spoke on May 14, following an emotional appeal to the community by the man's parents earlier that day in which they called for peace but also raised serious questions over how deputies treat jail residents, especially those with mental illness.

"I knew coming into this position that changes needed to be made," the sheriff said. "That is what we've been doing for the last four months."

Graziano said she aims to be "completely transparent" while also ensuring due process and justice for everyone involved.

"I've done my best to respect the process to the Sutherland family by adhering to their wishes in a signed agreement," she said. "I will continue to work with the solicitor's office, (State Law Enforcement Division) and the family's counsel, as well as our counsel, to resolve this."

The deputies involved in Sutherland's death  Sgt. Lindsay Fickett and Detention Deputy Brian Houle  remain on desk duty pending the results of an internal investigation, Graziano said, adding she expects the internal probe to conclude soon.

After initially suspending Fickett and Houle, the sheriff said she had 30 days to decide whether to fire them, but by the time a month passed, SLED still hadn't finished its investigation and the sheriff said she didn't have enough answers to make a ruling.

"At my discretion, and based on my policy, I put them back on an administrative capacity," Graziano said. "They essentially have desk jobs. ... They do not have any contact with the residents of our facility."

The sheriff acknowledged concerns over excessive force, calling those questions "completely understandable."

"What you've watched on these videos is not easy to watch," Graziano said. "Unfortunately, in our line of work, we see it all too often."

The sheriff said there were directives in place for the jail at the time that mandated deputies to force all residents to go to bond hearings. She said she's ended that policy.

"Since that day, I have changed that policy and no longer allow forced bond hearings," Graziano said. "Residents can absolutely refuse their right to a bond hearing. ... We have invested funds at the detention center into purchasing tablets and creating a wireless network in house that will allow our officers to bring the bond hearing to them instead of them coming to the bond hearing."

Other changes include an independent assessment on all Sheriff's Office policies and procedures, specifically "those that cause higher liability," such as use of force, traffic, driving and "things that could cause harm to the community," she said.

"This is also true of the detention center, so this is being done as a holistic approach to look at what we have to make things better," Graziano said.

Two days before she assumed office, she met with providers at the jail and implemented a "no missed meds policy," aimed at ensuring jail residents who are on medication do not miss any doses and are provided with about three days of doses when they leave, she said.

The sheriff said she's requesting an after-action review of the Sutherland case and pledged the review would encompass "all the facilities involved, the providers involved and the law enforcement involved."

The Sheriff's Office is developing policies and procedures for mental health, Graziano said, adding her agency needs help from mental health professionals in drafting those policies.

"And we're working on restricting the nonlethal force aspect of persons with mental health crisis," she said. "That is a work in progress. We have to ensure that all the people involved are safe, to include our officers."

Activity surrounding the Sutherland case ramped up this week, starting on May 11 when 9th Circuit Solicitor Scarlett Wilson announced SLED had turned over its investigative file to her. The prosecutor said she expected to decide whether to charge the deputies involved by the end of June. Graziano issued a brief statement that day as well.

The next day, North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey released a nearly nine-minute video containing portions of 911 calls and body camera video of city police dropping Sutherland off at the jail the night of Jan. 4. The city released what Summey called the full video on May 14, about an hour and a half long.

That came a day after Graziano, with pressure mounting, released jail surveillance videos and body camera recordings that showed deputies using pepper spray, Tasers and physical force against Sutherland, a Black man, who refused to come out of his cell for a bond court appearance.

The 31-year-old was jailed after being accused of assaulting staff at Palmeto Lowcountry Behavioral Health on Jan. 4. His parents checked him into the facility after symptoms of his bipolar disorder and schizophrenia surfaced in the waning days of 2020.

In the hours since Graziano released the videos late on May 13, the sheriff faced significant criticism from some activists over holding back the recordings for months  a decision she said was to honor the family's wishes for the videos not to be made public  and on public perceptions that she's failed to live up to her campaign promises of transparency, accountability and reform.

During her campaign for sheriff, Graziano pledged a number of immediate changes, including to conduct racial bias and financial audits of the agency. She pointed to an inmate benefit fund that was the subject of a Post and Courier investigation.

The story detailed that while most of its recent profits went toward inmate services such as drug and alcohol counseling and jail chaplains, hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent to equip and train a special team of detention deputies who handle jail fights and potential inmate uprisings.

Graziano said on May 14 that Houle was a member of the unit but Fickett was not.

On Jan. 5, the day Sutherland died, Graziano ended the agency's partnership with federal authorities that saw immigration detainees housed at the jail, one of her campaign promises.

She also ousted two commanders held over from former Sheriff Al Cannons tenure, including Chief Deputy Willis Beatty, who oversaw operations at the Charleston County jail named for Cannon.

Speaking to The Post and Courier during her campaign, Graziano said she believed sweeping changes were needed to correct myriad issues she saw in the agency, including lack of diversity and a need to build bonds with Black and Brown communities.
WHAT is RSE? It is the most important class our students take. In this class they learn about themselves, their peers, the society we live in and who and what we accept in that society. Teachers guide them in some of the trickier issues that arise as they develop from small five-year-olds wondering about the differences between girls and boys to mature eighteen-year-olds navigating the challenges of sexual relationships.

Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) is a class in which the student is given space, via interactive learning techniques, to talk about topics they are encountering socially. It encourages them to become more empathetic and to be each others support networks as they grow and mature. This is a vital lesson, giving them the social skills and the self-esteem to safely find their way through the difficulties of their teenage years.

What happens when this class is influenced by the Catholic Church? The space is no longer a place of openness and transparency but rather a place of inculturation for the Catholic Church.

The publication of the Flourish Programme of Relationship and Sexuality Education clearly outlines that the key principle behind the creation of this Programme is to further the teachings of the Church.

This Programme is set to be rolled out in September to the 90% of schools under the patronage of the Catholic Church. It is intertwining Catholic doctrine into a subject that deals with the social, moral and emotional well-being of our young people. It ignores the progressive and accepting society we have become, especially in recent years with the Marriage and the Repeal Referendum.

In the publication of Flourish, the Catholic Bishops have taken the proposed curriculum set out by the NCCA and incorporated the teachings of the Catholic Church into every aspect of it. They have created a set of resources that lays out each class, and in each class the topic is brought back to God and/or Jesus and each class concludes with a prayer to God. This Programme has many lessons at its heart that are in complete conflict with modern Irish society. Our children will learn that puberty is a gift from God and once we reach puberty we are perfectly designed by God to procreate with him.

They will learn about a hierarchy of marriage and that the most desirable and acceptable is between a man and a woman.

It acknowledges that the LGBTQI community exists and must not be shamed, but there is no attempt to move away from a heteronormative presentation of family life that has led to a society where 75% of the LGBTQI community reported verbal abuse in 2019 as a result of their sexual orientation. Children will learn that sex belongs within a committed relationship, but also that the only committed relationship is the sacrament of marriage; a sacrament that the Church will not give to same-sex couples. The message here is that homosexuality is immoral and contrary to natural law. These lessons are for children who have not yet begun to consider their sexuality but when they do, and if they find they have homosexual feelings, will they then see themselves as immoral and unnatural? Are these the kinds of lessons we want our children learning?

Will these lessons promote an open and accepting society?

As parents in Ireland we have a very limited choice in where to send our children to school. We do not have the opportunity, in most cases, to choose multi/non-denominational schools since The Catholic Church is the trustee for over 90% of the Primary schools in Ireland. The Government has promised to increase the level of divestment in the country to reflect the changing religious make-up of the country but it would take over 250 years to achieve this at the current rate of divestment.

Parents who have no choice but to send their children to a Catholic school will often withdraw them from religion class but since inculturation is a whole-school, all-lesson policy the Church can, and clearly intends to, incorporate Catholic doctrine into all classes.

This is not an easy issue to tackle.

The power of the Catholic Church in our past has left a deep connection between Church and State and the legacy is an education system paid for by the State and taxpayer but controlled by the Church. The Government needs to address this situation an have outlined steps to do so in their 2020 Programme for Government. We need a Citizens Assembly on Education; increased divestment happening at a greater speed; and the removal of the Catholic Ethos from RSE. But before any of these things happen, Norma Foley, the Minister for Education, needs to stand up and tell Catholic Bishops that the Flourish Programme has no place in our primary schools.

A petition has been launched at https://www.change.org/ Search for:Guarantee factual and objective Relationships and Sexuality Education in Irish schools
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Following the revelation in February that Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham had given her inner circle pay raises as high as 21%, the Journal recently learned Environment Secretary James Kenney received an 8% raise this spring.

Thats 8% more than many state employees got.

Kenneys raise from $156,000 annually to $168,480 makes him the highest-paid member of the governors Cabinet. It also shows the benefits of being in good stead with our governor.

The Governors Office didnt announce Kenneys pay raise, which it should have. Instead it was learned by gleaning New Mexico employee data.

The governors press secretary said Kenneys hourly rate bump from $75 to $81 was intended to reflect his increased duties during the pandemic. Yes, Kenneys agency coordinated the states rapid response program in the workplace. But it was Dr. David Scrase, secretary of the Human Services Department, who led the states attack against COVID-19, and former Department of Health Secretary Kathy Kunkel, who cited 14- or 15-hour work days and sleepless nights as cause for her retirement last year.

Scrase and current Health Secretary Tracie Collins make $12,480 less a year than Kenney and havent received raises during the pandemic.

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Kenneys salary boost also raises questions. For example, the governors press secretary says his raise is temporary and may last up to a year. What are those metrics?

Giving 8% to 21% raises during a job-crippling pandemic to eight members of your inner circle and then an 8% raise to one Cabinet member is incredibly tone deaf. It also appears incredibly unfair.

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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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

New Mexico State Police are looking into the deaths of two men found fatally shot in a crashed vehicle off the side of Interstate 40 near Carlisle last week.

Dusty Francisco, a State Police spokesman, said the case is in the very preliminary stages and the two bodies were sent to the Office of the Medical Investigator to be identified. No arrests have been made.

This case is under investigation by (State Police) Investigations Bureau, he said.

It is unclear why State Police did not alert the public or media to the possible double homicide.

Albuquerque police spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said the department was never notified by State Police about the incident.

Our investigators only found out yesterday during a routine meeting with the (District Attorneys) Office about recent shootings, he said Friday. Francisco disputed that, saying that APD previously offered to assist in the investigation.

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Although not being investigated by Albuquerque police, the incident leaves the total of homicides in the city this year at 48.

Francisco said on May 7 an officer was flagged down around 2 a.m. at Carlisle and I-40, which is in the area of State Police headquarters. The officer was told a vehicle had rolled off the I-40 on ramp and into a culvert below. He said police found two men dead from gunshot wounds inside the vehicle.

Francisco gave no other details and said anyone with information is asked to contact authorities.
India must jettison orthodox economics amidst the pandemic to protect employment and sustain a recovery.

The country is amidst the most critical crisis in memory, with the second wave pushing up daily new COVID-19 transmissions above the 4-lakh mark last week and making India the global epicentre of the pandemic. While nations across the world jettison decade-long economic orthodoxies to reorient policies and face the new challenges, the political leadership in India seems to be caught in a time warp with the central government squirming and obfuscating as it is forced to defend itself in the national and international media. Moreover, the union governments eagerness to score some brownie points over political rivals and chief ministers has only further complicated the already dismal scenario.

Last week, as the pandemic raged through the national capital, the union government hastily notified the new law replacing the elected chief minister with the lieutenant governor as the head of the Delhi government. With vaccination rate decelerating and state chief ministers clamouring for more vaccines, the union government assured the Supreme Court that adequate stocks were available. Exasperated, the Supreme Court was forced to set up a committee to oversee the distribution of oxygen supplies and is now reviewing vaccine policies to accelerate vaccinations. The cabinet and the union government seem to be trapped in a virtual make-believe world built on sweet but empty slogans it spews out to defend itself each day.
LOS ANGELESIn celebration of Pride Month and to destigmatize and support conversations on pleasure, sexual wellness brand and retailer Lovers has launched the Lovers Artist Series: Pride Edition.

Lovers has commissioned 10 LGBTQIA+ visual artists to each create a piece of art that interprets what orgasm feels like, looks like, and/or means to them. One-hundred percent of proceeds from sales of the resulting prints will be donated to two LGBTQIA+ focused non-profits, Lambda Legal and APLA Health.

On June 14, 2021, all 10 works will be revealed in Lovers' virtual gallery for viewing and voting, and the three artworks that inspire the most votes will be available for sale on June 25 as 8 x 10" art prints for $24 each, on LoversStores.com. Until June 14, patrons can save 20% by pre-ordering a set of all three prints sight unseen for $60, here.

"Lovers created the Lovers Artist Series: Pride Edition to amplify the work of inspiring and transformative queer artists, as well as to support non-profit organizations serving the LGBTQIA+ community," said Jen May, Lovers' senior director of marketing. "Lovers is committed to creating safe and inclusive spaces for all people to be their authentic selves. This provocative series will continue conversations around visibility, acceptance, and the complexity of pleasure and identity."

Lambda Legal is a 501(c)(3) national organization committed to achieving full recognition of the civil rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender people, and everyone living with HIV through impact litigation, education and public policy work. APLA Health is a California-based organization committed to achieving health care equity and promoting the well being of the LGBT and other underserved communities, and people living with and affected by HIV.








By Haley Son







Women in North Korea are routinely deprived of the basic freedom of expression, which is what ultimately persuaded North Korean refugee Park Eun-hee to leave her home and come to South Korea when she was 19 years old.







The turning point for Ms. Park was when she was 17 years old, and her friend gave her a USB containing clips of South Korean dramas and American movies. Park recalled, "It was an eye-opening moment. In the movies, the women were very pretty and free to do as they please. They didn't care about the police." She then compared this foreign world to her life and realized that "this is not the life human beings deserve. There is so much more than this outside of North Korea."







In North Korea, the police painstakingly ensure that citizens do not deviate from a set standard appearance, which for women, entails conservative clothes and short hair, monitoring their outfits daily. "The North Korean system is that everybody is the same," observed Park. But beyond the police, Park described the role of common citizens in reporting any breach of the rules: "Everyone is a spy around you in North Korea." If a person goes against the law, they are made to stand for 24 hours straight at a police station, or, in extreme scenarios, sent to a labor camp.







Even while still in North Korea, Park would attempt to express herself through her fashion choices, even in a small way. "There is a regulation to have short hair, but I kept my hair long and hid it. I would adjust my clothes, just a little, to make them different from the 'proper' way," said Park.







To somebody as passionate about self-expression as Park, these rules in North Korea went against her very nature. "I could not wear what I wanted to wear. I had no control over my body. Fashion is a form of self-expression. It's your identity and shows what you want to tell people about yourself," she said.







Now in South Korea, Park has geared her message toward women in North Korea, while embracing her own identity. "I am so proud to be a North Korean. I appreciate democracy and how individual voices are what make society beautiful. I am very grateful, even for the smallest things." In South Korea's "materialistic" culture, the value of 100,000 KRW is miniscule compared to its worth in North Korea. While $100 is nothing for South Koreans, it could save a life in North Korea. "So I am perhaps more grateful than the average person born in a free country."







Adjusting to South Korea has not been without its challenges. Compared to the image of South Korea she had built up in her head, South Korean society posed more obstacles than expected. "This society didn't accept [me] as an equal person. That was the hardest part for me: I realized that I had to take responsibility to figure out how to use my new freedom and overcome these challenges." Park firmly believes in the potential of North Korean refugees and the role they can play in South Korea; "They have lots of potential to develop themselves as leaders in this country and in the world."









Casey Lartigue Jr., editor of

and co-founder of Freedom Speakers International, edited this article.



Park Eun-hee, a North Korean refugee who will be a featured speaker at today's Asia Regional Freedom Conference , was recently interviewed for the upcoming issue of FSI Voice. Haley Son, who grew up in New York and currently attends Seoul Foreign School, conducted the interview and wrote the following article for "Voices from the North."  Ed.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

A 19-year-old Israeli Jewish student at the University of New Mexico says he was attacked during an off-campus party by six males who beat him, shouted antisemitic slurs, and stole his Nike shoes and Apple watch.

The incident occurred May 7 at an apartment building in the 3000 block of Transport SE, according to an Albuquerque police report.

The student told police that a friend at the party subsequently informed him that the attackers were Palestinians who took issue with his religious beliefs, the police report said.

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The report also said the attack may have been motivated by hate.

The student was taken to a local hospital, where he was admitted overnight for various injuries and possible internal head bleeding.

The incident was also reported to the regional office of the Anti-Defamation League based in Denver. The ADL said the student was wearing a T-shirt with a stylized Nike logo and slogan, saying Just Jew it. The ADL said the student informed UNM police of the incident, and they referred him to on-campus resources and support services.

We are outraged and appalled by the violent attack against a University of New Mexico student and the alleged antisemitism that prompted the attack, said Scott Levin, ADL Mountain States Region director.

It is abhorrent that anyone would be attacked simply because of who they are. We strongly encourage law enforcement to fully investigate this assault, including the allegations of antisemitism, Levin said. We encourage prosecutors to pursue hate crime charges if the evidence in the case shows that the student was attacked by the group because of his Jewish identity.

The ADLs recently released 2020 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents showed that such incidents remained at historically high levels across the U.S., with 2,024 reports of assault, harassment and vandalism reported to the League.

The audit also showed that the number of antisemitic incidents in New Mexico remained little changed over 2019, with four cases of harassment and four cases of vandalism reported in 2020.
Thousands of people have gathered across the country to show their solidarity with the people of Palestine in the midst of an ongoing conflict with Israel.

Large crowds assembled around the Spire on OConnell Street on Saturday afternoon calling for an end to violence against the Palestinian people.

Businessman, Izz Alkarajeh, attended today's protest in Cork City. He said the support for the Palestinian people on display was heartening.

The protesters marched through the city to the Israeli embassy in Ballsbridge chanting Free Palestine and carrying banners calling for the end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine and for a stop to the genocide.

The Palestinian flag was waved in the air alongside the Irish tri-colour and Algerian and Pakistani national flags.

Similar demonstrations took place in Belfast, Cork and Galway.

In Dublin, People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett, who attended the rally, called for an end to the apartheid state.

Why does the world continue to treat Israeli as a normal state, he asked the crowd.

It is precisely because we oppose racism that we must oppose the Israeli state. We must demand the dismantling of the Israeli state.

In its very essence this State is about racism. Its about giving preferential treatment to one group at the expense of the other.

In no other place in the world would this be tolerated. When we say one state, one Palestine it is about ending the horror of racism and apartheid, saying a Jew, an Arab and a Christian and people of no religion all have equal rights in the land of Palestine.

Elsewhere in Cork, a Palestinian man who has built an award-winning business in the city joined the pro-Palestinian rally.

Izz Alkarajeh, who along with his wife, Eman, runs the renowned Izz Cafe in the city centre, marched alongside several hundred people through the city centre to a rally at the Grand Parade which heard calls for the Israeli ambassador to Ireland to be expelled.

Mr Alkarajeh said it was pleasing and encouraging to see so many people take to the streets in support of the Palestinians.

We felt that the world was not paying attention to our cause, he said.

But when we see this many people, its really something very positive and I feel more hopeful now that our rights will be supported by free people.

There are positive signs from the Irish government too but I am really looking forward to seeing more pressure from the Irish government on the Israeli regime.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said it was not acceptable that children were being killed by Israeli fire.

He tweeted on Saturday: 32 children killed since Monday in #Gaza by Israeli fire  thats approx 1/4 of all fatalities  Its not acceptable! Israel has int. legal obligation to protect children in conflict & r not doing so! #Ireland will speak forcefully again at UNSC tomorrow.

In response to a Unicef social media post detailing the deaths of a further eight Palestinian children in the Gaza strip, Mr Coveney tweeted: This cannot be acceptable to the International Community.

The protests came as the Associated Press reported that an Israeli air strike destroyed a high-rise building that housed the AP, Al-Jazeera and other media in the Gaza Strip.

The news agency said there was no immediate explanation as to why the building was targeted.

Thousands of Palestinians have been forced to flee from their homes after a week of sustained conflict.

Since Monday night, Palestinian militant group Hamas has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, whose military responded by barraging the Gaza Strip with tank fire and air strikes.

At least 126 people have been killed in Gaza, including 31 children and 20 women.

In Israel, seven people have been killed, including a six-year-old boy and a soldier.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies and some family members of the victims of a 2018 triple homicide near Dixon are upset with District Judge Jason Linyard for rejecting a plea agreement with one of the accused killers.

Roger Gage, 36, was prepared to plead guilty to the murders in exchange for a life sentence plus nine years. However, under the agreement Gage could be eligible for parole when he was in his late 60s.

His brother, John Powell, last year was convicted for his part in the killings of Abraham Martinez, 36, April Browne, 42, and Kierin Guillemin, 27.

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Gage and Powell were each originally charged with three counts of first-degree murder, aggravated burglary, conspiracy and tampering with evidence for the killings at a home in the small community of Canoncito.

The victims families were very clear with us that they do not want to go through another trial. The last one was traumatic for them, and they whole-heartedly agreed that this plea was justice in their eyes, Carmack-Altwies said in a statement released Thursday.

In a phone interview, Carmack-Altwies said the only reason Lidyard gave for his decisions is that he wanted more discretion. In New Mexico, a judge isnt bound by a plea agreement and can choose to accept or reject it.

Lidyard didnt respond to requests for comment Friday.

The judge didnt communicate with us at all about what his actual concerns were, Carmack-Altwies said. And also, the guys getting a life sentence. I mean, we dont have anything higher than that in New Mexico.

Some, but not all, of the victims family members were disappointed in the judges decision.

Were as surprised as anybody, said Jessica Duckworth McKeon, April Brownes sister.

She said her family supported the plea agreement and didnt wish to go through the pain of another trial like they did with Powell.

Theres nothing our family wishes more than to have the two men who killed our sister be kept away from society forever, she said, reading a statement from her family. The trial last year was long and painful and sad  We would like to look and move ahead. It will just take a bit longer now.

Francois Guillemin, Kierin Guillemins father, said he had hoped there was going to be a conclusion in the case, but understands the judicial process has taken its way. He said hes sure Lidyard had a good reason for making the decision he did, but its been a painful experience.

However, Robert Martinez, Abraham Martinezs father, said he would like to see the case tried. He said he doesnt believe in plea agreements and he hopes the jury convicts Gage.

Carmack-Altwies said Lidyards decision was frustrating because the judge had the plea agreement two weeks prior to Thursdays hearing. If he had an issue with the agreement, he could have brought it up earlier, she said.

She added Powell was convicted of three life sentences in his case, but realistically, there isnt a difference between one life sentence and three because the defendant only has one life to live.
Unlike prior years when Hooter Shooter would be the race favourite in the Preferred-Handicap Pace at Hippodrome 3R, he was let go at odds of 10-1 Friday afternoon and his supporters were rewarded well.

With the 3-5 favourite, Mickeymaksomespeed (Richard Simard), parked three-wide around the opening turn to the first quarter in :26.3 before clearing to the lead, the race then changed dramatically.

Take The Deal (Guy Gagnon) parked out Mickeymaksomespeed and then settled into the two-hole. By the half mile marker in :56.2, Stephane Gendron had Hooter Shooter on the move first-over, biding their time, sitting right on Mickeymaksomespeeds neck down the backstretch to the three-quarters in 1:26.

Hooter Shooter was able to wear Mickeymaksomespeed down, collar him at the top of the stretch and then went on to win by one and three-quarter lengths in 1:56. Mickeymaksomespeed was able to hold on for second place with Take The Deal third.

It was the first win of the year for Hooter Shooter. The eight-year-old gelded son of Badlands Hanover is owned and trained by Marc-Andre Simoneau of Trois-Rivieres, paying $23.80 to win.

The Preferred-Handicap Trot saw Severus Hanover (Stephane Brosseau) and Seeyou Men (Guy Gagnon) trade the lead twice by the first quarter in :28.4 with Severus Hanover back in command before the half mile pole in :59.2.

Race favourite Kinnder High Class (Samuel Fillion) came first-over and was content to trot alongside Severus Hanover to the three-quarters in 1:29.1.

As they started down the stretch, Kinnder High Class could not collar Severus Hanover, but Severus Hanover started to bear out and Gagnon came up the rail with Seeyou Men but it was too little too late as Severus Hanover held on to win by a head with Seeyou Men second and Kinnder High Class third by a half-length.

It was the second straight win in three starts this year for Severus Hanover. Owned and trained by Yannick Martel of LAssomption, the 10-year-old gelded son of Explosive Matter paid $7.50 to win.

With four lead changes by the half mile marker, the seventh race Preferred-Handicap Pace for the mares saw lots of early racing action.

Shemakesmefelunreal (Richard Simard) and Jessicas Legacy (Pascal Berube) battled it out early, trading the lead three times by the opening quarter mile in :28.3. Then Jans Legacy with Stephane Brosseau in the sulky came first-over at the half in :58.3 but could not clear to the lead until the middle of third turn.

Going down the backstretch, Jans Legacy held the field at bay by three lengths to three-quarters in 1:27 and then cruised home an easy winner by one-half length in 1:57.2. Topsill Beach (David Pilon) closed well to be second with Arrhythmogenic (Daniel St Pierre) third.

It was the first victory on the year for Jans Legacy. The seven-year-old mare by Camluck, trained by Marc-Andre Simoneau is owned by the trainer with the Desjardins Noreau Stable of Quebec City and paid $9.60 to win. It made for a Preferred Double for trainer Marc-Andre Simoneau.

Stephane Brosseau has the hot hands Friday, scoring a driving triple. Marie-Claude Auger had a driving double. The first six races saw the race favourite win each time. Live harness racing resumes at 3R on Sunday afternoon, first race post time at 12:30 p.m.

To view results for Friday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Friday Results  Hippodrome 3R.

(Quebec Jockey Club)
HAVING started his career in Corks libraries before working in recent years as the RAPID co-ordinator on Corks northside in the communities of Mayfield, Blackpool, the Glen and Fairhill/Farranree, David OBrien is returning to the library service.

He has been appointed as the new city librarian, replacing Liam Ronayne who retired at the end of 2020. David, 60, a west Cork man from Lisavaird, was a key member of Cork Citys Covid Community Response Forum over the last year.

Overseeing libraries in ten locations in Cork, he is excited about the plans for a new library building on Grand Parade that will be four times the size of the current building, coming in at about 7,000 sq metres. It will be developed over the next five years.

Located in what will be called Grand Parade Quarter or the Viking Quarter (because of excavations in the area that revealed Viking remains), the library will be the focal point of a community hub that will include an arts centre and other amenities.

The whole quarter will be renewed, says David. Its not just about one building. There will be an upgrade of Bishop Lucey Park and a whole lot of other developments within the footprint that is Grand Parade.

David praises his predecessor, Mr Ronayne, who saw the possibilities of the library space, making it a welcoming place for writers launching their books and giving readings to the public. As David says, the thinking behind the library development plans is that the complex will be a place where you can browse, borrow, chat.

But with Triskel Christchurch nearby on Tobin Street, off the Grand Parade, will the development be competing with that arts centre? David doesnt see it that way.

Triskel has always been a very good partner with City Council, he says.

The Cork City Library and Triskel are where the Cork World Book Festival takes place. We ran it virtually this year. There were about 23 events, some international, and about 1,600 people logged on.

David adds that the Triskel will be very much at the centre of the Grand Parade development.

Asked why he was drawn to library work, David says that on the day he was offered a job in the library service, he was also offered a clerical officer job by Cork County Council.

In terms of a start date, the librarian post came up first, so thats where I started.

David was 21 at the time. He had spent a year at UCC, having a great time but not doing much work. He was supposed to be studying science. Looking back, he says he would probably have been more suited to arts. He went on to work in a bar and on the family farm, while trying to decide what to do. He can now say that library work is very satisfying.

I dont think Ive ever gone a whole day in a library without enjoying it. When it comes right down to it, its helping people.

For his first six years in the library service, David worked in the county library.

Before we had computers and mobile phones and all the rest of it, we got a lot of mail. People would write letters looking for genealogy records to research their family history.

Davids job was to find stuff for people and show them how to resource what they were doing. For me, the buzz was showing people how to actually access material. That is at the core of an awful lot of what you do as a library worker. It could even be showing people how to use audio books or find a particular book.

The digital age has changed the library service in a lot of ways.

People have an idea of a library with a female librarian in her mid-fifties with glasses and grey hair, behind a counter stamping books. But now, libraries, as well as for reading, have so many events.

"There are cultural activities, art exhibitions and the whole online presence which has been the salvation of many people during lockdown. People could source books, magazines, videos of documentaries  all sorts of things.

While non-digital natives may have problems using the library service in all its technological glory, David says the challenge for us going forward is going to be facilitating learning that gets people using digital technology. But theres no substitute for actual social contact which is what were about.

The emergence of the Kindle ought, in theory, to have sounded the death knell for printed books, but David says that hasnt happened. He points out that ancient naysayers predicted libraries such as the Great Library of Alexandria in Egypt thousands of years ago would never last.

The Kindle did enjoy a boom initially but then it went flat.

Some Kindle users also use printed books. The Kindle is just another method of accessing words if you like reading.

Thanks to technology, a library service called Bolinda links into a thing called Press Reader where books, magazines and journals can all be accessed in a way that was probably never anticipated before. Press Reader gives access to a lot of regional newspapers.

"If you want to go very far back, there is micro film. We have a newspaper archive at the top of the building (on Grand Parade) with papers going back to the 1820s.

Familiar faces come into the library every day to read the newspapers, in hard copy.

David is married to Mary, a nurse, and is the father of 24-year-old Eugene, an apprentice electrician, and 22-year-old Gabie, who is studying languages at UCC.

Looking back on his career, David says he always wanted to spend some time working outside the library service. Now that hes back there, it has made me understand what a good team of people are here. Theyre very solid and theres a caring ethos to the whole place. The library has the reputation of being a very good service and a place where people can go.

We can see that in the number of calls from people who wanted to know when the doors were going to be open again.

Recruitment underway

A job in the library service is a possibility, with Cork City Council having launched a recruitment campaign for library assistants. Library assistant is an entry level role that has an excellent career path and opportunities for further training, according to the library service. The expression of interest stage has a closing date of May 21.

Look out for short videos on social media shot in libraries across Cork city featuring library staff. We hope to show how varied the role of a librarian is with these videos, demonstrating its not just the stereotype of stamping books and telling people to shhhh.
THE nominations for the southern Irish parliament take place today and it looks like Sinn Fein candidates will be returned unopposed, the Echo reported on May 14, 1921.

The party did not nominate any candidates and the Unionists are in such a minority that an attempt to gain a seat would be useless. The only exception being the candidates for Dublin University (Trinity College), who were also returned unopposed.

The more prominent among the Sinn Fein candidates are Mr de Valera and Michael Collins. Others are Countess Markievicz MP and Arthur Griffith, who are in prison, and Kathleen OCallaghan, wife of the recently murdered Mayor of Limerick.

The majority of the candidates have had periods of imprisonment or otherwise come under the notice of the Government. As a result of todays returns, the southern parliament may be said to be already fully constituted. (No actual polling took place as all 128 candidates were returned unopposed).

Paris trip

Deputy Lord Mayor of Cork, Barry Egan, has arrived in Paris. In an interview, he denied Great Britain and Ireland had entered on the path of conciliation and declared Ireland would fight on for complete independence.

Asked about the object of his visit by the Matin correspondent, Mr Egan said: I merely wish to postpone my death a few days. A Lord Mayor is condemned to death and lately I have had a strong impression that Government agents would not delay suppressing me.

Explosion in Blackpool

A loud explosion was heard in Blackpool shortly after 4pm today, followed by several shots. It appears that Crown forces were attacked in the vicinity of OConnell Street and three police were brought to the North Infirmary. One has since died.

Tram held-up

The Sundays Well to Summer Hill tram was held up in Patrick Street this afternoon by Crown forces. Occupants were ordered to alight and the car was searched before being allowed to proceed.

Collisions and accidents

Mrs Ellen Brosnan, of 13, Fullers Lane, was knocked down and seriously injured by a police lorry when crossing Washington Street near the Courthouse at midday today. Two or three lorries were passing at the time. She was taken to the Mercy Hospital in one of them and remains in a precarious state.

A half-hour later, a military lorry collided with a pony and trap, throwing the driver, William Walsh, of Grattan Street, out on to the road. He was removed to the Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital, then to the Mercy, but has since been discharged.

A man named Forde was detained in the North Infirmary yesterday for injuries to his ribs sustained in a fall from a scaffold while working in Leitrim Street.

Ammunition Dump

A military communique reports the discovery yesterday of an arms dump near Kilfinane, Co. Limerick. It consisted of a German machine gun, three shotguns, a rifle, six bayonets, ammunition, helmets, explosives and mine explosives.

No Rest in Youghal

Military operations resumed in Youghal last night after a tragic week and continued into the early hours. Numerous raids were carried out, with licenced premises coming in for particular attention.

The doors of some were burst open and other damage done. One arrest was made, that of William Doolan, nephew of Mr Finn, vintner, McDonalds Quay.

Many of the women, especially the mothers of families, are suffering in health from the ongoing strain. At 3pm, all shops closed and the mournful tolling of the bell was heard for the funeral of poor young James Quaine.

The main thoroughfare was scarred and battered after last Saturday nights wrecking and thronged with contingents from throughout east Cork and west Waterford.

A striking feature was the members of the local Cumann na mBan each carrying a beautiful wreath. The coffin was shrouded in a rich Republican flag and the grave was the first dug in the new republican plot.

News from the North

The 78 candidates nominated for the 52 seats in the northern Irish parliament are 40 Unionist (including 2 ladies), 20 Sinn Fein, 13 Nationalist and 5 independents.

Sir James Craig said he does not for a moment believe a pledge from the Nationalists and Sinn Feiners that they would never go into the Ulster parliament. He said he is an optimist and believes Mr de Valera and his followers will attempt to work the Government of Ireland Act in the south.
VICTORIA, BC, May 14, 2021 /CNW/ - Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. The COVID-19 crisis has made it clear that affordable housing is key to Canada's recovery for communities across the country, including those in British Columbia.

Today, Adam Vaughan, Parliamentary Secretary to the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and Minister responsible for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), and Ken Hardie, Member of Parliament for FleetwoodPort Kells, announced details of an approximately $4.95 million investment through the Projects Stream of the Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI) for the immediate construction of 14 units of affordable homes for First Nations in British Columbia.

14 new homes will be built in the following two Indigenous communities: Kitsumkalum and Sik-E-Dakh (Glen Vowell Indian Band).

Delivered by CMHC, under the National Housing Strategy (NHS), RHI provides capital contributions to develop new, permanent affordable housing by covering costs associated with modular multi-unit rental construction; conversion of non-residential to affordable multi-residential homes; and, rehabilitation of buildings in disrepair and/or abandoned to affordable multi-residential homes. Investments made under the RHI are expected to support thousands of construction-related jobs for Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

Quotes:

"Our Government is taking steps, right now, to ensure that every Canadian has a safe and affordable place to call home. Investments with our First Nations communities in British Columbia under the Rapid Housing Initiative will go a long way to effectively support those who need it most by quickly providing 14 new affordable housing units to vulnerable individuals and families. This is one of the ways our Government's National Housing Strategy addresses the unique barriers faced by communities such as First Nations across Canada. Together, we will continue to provide affordable housing for those who need it most from coast to coast to coast."  The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and Minister responsible for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation

"Improving Indigenous housing outcomes must be a priority for the Government of Canada. This is why creating new stock of affordable and safe housing for Indigenous peoples is a priority under our government's Rapid Housing Initiative. By partnering with communities such as First Nations in British Columbia, we aim to improve overall housing conditions and to alleviate core housing needs. Collectively, we can build a generation of new, permanent housing that we can all be proud of."  Adam Vaughan, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development.

"The National Housing Strategy is working to ensure more affordable housing for Indigenous peoples. This funding is part of our commitment to addressing severe housing needs across the country. It will provide immediate support to create safe and stable housing for First Nations across British Columbia while assisting those most vulnerable."  Ken Hardie, Member of Parliament for FleetwoodPort Kells

"Here in Sik-E-Dakh, the current global pandemic has highlighted the needs of members who want to return home, primarily for mental health and food security, but can't due to the current lack of livable space. Those who have been able to move so far have exacerbated pre-existing overcrowding, and created a higher risk due to the inability to safely distance and or isolate as instructed by provincial and federal health officers. The Rapid Housing Initiative has been a godsend by allowing the Sik-E-Dakh Nation the opportunity to provide some of our more vulnerable members a space to call home on their traditional territories. Ha'miyaa."  Velma Sutherland, Band Administrator, Sik-E-Dakh (Glen Vowell Band)

Quick facts:

Under the RHI Projects Stream, $500 million was available through an application-based process, which closed on December 31, 2020 . Funding was available to Provinces, Territories, and Municipalities, Indigenous governing bodies and organizations, and non-profit organizations.

The RHI Major Cities Stream provides $500 million in immediate support to pre-determined municipalities that were identified based on highest levels of renters in severe housing need and people experiencing homelessness.

In Budget 2021, the Government of Canada invested an additional $1.5 billion in new funding for the Rapid Housing Initiative in 2021-2022, to address the urgent housing needs of vulnerable Canadians by providing them with permanent affordable housing.

At least 25 percent of this new funding will go towards women-focused housing projects. All units will be constructed within 12 months of when funding is provided to applicants.

This investment will more than triple the initial target set under the Rapid Housing Initiative as the program will now help create over 9,200 affordable housing units across the country.

The RHI has received significant interest from Indigenous groups, which resulted in nearly 40% of all units created under the program to be targeted to Indigenous peoples.

The RHI takes a human rights-based approach to housing, serving people experiencing or at risk of homelessness and others who are among the most vulnerable, including: women and children fleeing domestic violence, seniors, young adults, Indigenous peoples, people with disabilities, people dealing with mental health and addiction issues, veterans, LGBTQ2+, racialized groups, Black Canadians, and recent immigrants or refugees.

Canada's National Housing Strategy (NHS) is a 10-year, $70+ billion plan that will give more Canadians a place to call homethis includes more than $13 billion committed through the 2020 Fall Economic Statement.

Associated links:

As Canada's authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers unbiased housing research and advice to all levels of Canadian government, consumers and the housing industry. CMHC's aim is that by 2030, everyone in Canada has a home they can afford, and that meets their needs. For more information, follow us on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Facebook.

SOURCE Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation

For further information: Media contacts: Mikaela Harrison, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, [email protected]; Leonard Catling, Media Relations, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, [email protected]

Related Links

www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca


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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  Israel slammed the Gaza Strip with airstrikes, in a dramatic escalation that included bombing the home of a senior Hamas leader, killing a family of 10 in a refugee camp  most of them children  and pulverizing a high-rise that housed The Associated Press and other media.

The Hamas militant group continued a stream of rocket volleys into Israel, including a late-night barrage on Tel Aviv. One man was killed Saturday when a rocket hit his home in a suburb of the seaside metropolis.

With a U.S. envoy on the ground, calls increased for a cease-fire after five days of mayhem that have left at least 145 Palestinians dead in Gaza  including 41 children and 23 women  and eight dead on the Israeli side, all but one of them civilians, including a 5-year-old. President Joe Biden, who has called for a de-escalation but has backed Israels campaign, spoke separately by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

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Still, Israel stepped up its assault, vowing to shatter the capabilities of Gazas Hamas rulers. The week of deadly violence, set off by a Hamas rocket Monday, came after weeks of mounting tensions and heavy-handed Israeli measures in contested Jerusalem.

Early Sunday, Israeli warplanes struck several buildings and roads in a vital part of Gaza City. Photos circulated by residents and journalists showed the airstrikes created a crater that blocked one of the main roads leading to Shifa, the largest hospital in the strip.

The Health Ministry said the latest airstrikes left at least two dead and 25 wounded, including children and women. There has been no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

On Saturday, Israel bombed the home of Khalil al-Hayeh, a senior figure in Hamas political branch, saying the building served as part of the groups terrorist infrastructure. There was no immediate report on al-Hayehs fate or on any casualties.

The bombing of al-Hayehs home showed Israel was expanding its campaign beyond just the groups military commanders. Israel says it has killed dozens in Hamas military branch, though Hamas and the smaller group Islamic Jihad have only acknowledged 20 dead members.

Since the conflict began, Israel has leveled a number of Gaza Citys tallest office and residential buildings, alleging they house elements of the Hamas military infrastructure. On Saturday, it turned to the 12-story al-Jalaa Building, where the offices of the AP, the TV network Al-Jazeera and other media outlets are located, along with several floors of apartments.

The campaign will continue as long as it is required, Netanyahu said in a televised speech on Saturday evening. He alleged that Hamas military intelligence was operating inside the building. Israel routinely cites a Hamas presence as a reason for targeting certain locations in airstrikes, including residential buildings. The military also has accused the militant group of using journalists as human shields, but provided no evidence to back up the claims.

The AP has operated from the building for 15 years, including through three previous wars between Israel and Hamas, without being targeted directly. During those conflicts as well as the current one, the news agencys cameras from its top floor office and roof terrace offered 24-hour live shots as militants rockets arched toward Israel and Israeli airstrikes hammered the city and its surroundings.

We have had no indication Hamas was in the building or active in the building, AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said in a statement. This is something we actively check to the best of our ability. We would never knowingly put our journalists at risk.

In the afternoon, the military called the buildings owner and warned a strike would come within an hour. AP staffers and other occupants evacuated safely .

Soon after, three missiles hit the building and destroyed it, bringing it crashing down in a giant cloud of dust.

The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today, Pruitt said. We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing APs bureau and other news organizations in Gaza.

This is an incredibly disturbing development. We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life, he said, adding that the AP was seeking information from the Israeli government and was engaged with the U.S. State Department to learn more.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken later spoke by phone with Pruitt, offering his unwavering support for independent journalists and media organizations around the world and noted the indispensability of their reporting in conflict zones, according to a statement.

Mostefa Souag, acting director-general of Al-Jazeera Media Network, called the strike a war crime aiming to silence the media and to hide the untold carnage and suffering of the people of Gaza.

Later in the day, White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted that the U.S. had communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility.

In the early hours Saturday, another airstrike hit an apartment building in Gaza Citys densely populated Shati refugee camp, killing two women and eight children.

Mohammed Hadidi told reporters that his wife and her brothers wife had gathered at the house with their children to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday ending the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. The only survivor was Hadidis 5-month-old son, Omar.

The blast left the childrens bedroom covered in rubble and smashed the salon. Amid the wreckage were childrens toys, a Monopoly board game and, sitting on the kitchen counter, unfinished plates of food from the holiday gathering.

There was no warning  You filmed people eating and then you bombed them? a neighbor, Jamal Al-Naji, said, referring to Israels surveillance over the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In his call with Netanyahu, Biden expressed his strong support for Israels campaign but raised concern about civilian casualties and protection of journalists, the White House said.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tweeted Saturday that he had spoken again with Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz and reaffirmed Israels right to defend itself and condemned Hamas deliberate targeting of Israeli citizens. Austin added: I also expressed my hope that calm can be restored soon.

The bombings took place a day after U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived in Israel as part of Washingtons efforts to de-escalate the conflict. Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian intelligence official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.

Mediators from Egypt, which works closely with Israel on security issues and shares a border with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, appeared to be growing alarmed. The intelligence official said Egypt hopes the U.S. intervention could halt the Israeli assault. The U.N. Security Council was set to meet Sunday.

The tensions began in east Jerusalem earlier this month, when Palestinians protested attempts by settlers to forcibly evict a number of Palestinian families from their homes and Israeli police measures at Al-Aqsa Mosque, a frequent flashpoint located on a mount in the Old City revered by Muslims and Jews.

Hamas fired rockets toward Jerusalem late Monday, triggering the Israeli assault on Gaza. Since then, Hamas has fired more than 2,000 rockets, though most have either fallen short or been intercepted by anti-missile defenses. Israels warplanes and artillery have struck hundreds of targets around blockaded Gaza, where some 2 million Palestinians live.

The turmoil has also spilled over elsewhere, fueling protests in the occupied West Bank and stoking violence within Israel between its Jewish and Arab citizens, with clashes and vigilante attacks on people and property.

Palestinians on Saturday marked the Day of al-Nakba, or the Catastrophe, commemorating the estimated 700,000 people who were expelled from or fled their homes in what was now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. Thousands of Arab Israelis marched in a Nakba rally in the northern Israeli city of Sukhnin, and scattered protests took place in the West Bank.

Palestinian health officials reported the deaths of two Palestinians by Israeli fire in the West Bank on Saturday. One of the shootings occurred when the army said it thwarted an alleged car ramming.

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Keath reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue in Beirut and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.
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Tom Hallberg covers a little bit of everything, from skiing to long-form feature stories. A Teton Valley, Idaho, transplant by way of Portland and Bend, Oregon, he spends his time outside work writing fiction, splitboarding and climbing.
Vietnam records 131 more Covid-19 patients, Saturday tally reaches 169

131 more Covid-19 infection cases were reported in Vietnam on Saturday evening, raising the daily counts to 169 and the total number of patients in the country to 3,985, the Ministry of Health has reported.















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This was the largest daily counts recorded so far in the country.



According to the ministry's report, 129 out of the 131 newly-confirmed patients are locally-transmitted cases who were detected in quarantine sites or areas under lockdown, including 85 in Bac Giang Province, 16 in Bac Ninh Province, 13 in Hanoi, eight in Danang City, four in Vinh Phuc Province, two in Lang Son Province, and one in Nam Dinh Province.



As of Saturday evening, 952 locally-transmitted cases have been reported since the new outbreak occurred in the country on April 27. The outbreak has so far spread to 26 cities and provinces nation-wide.



With these new infection cases, the number of Covid-19 patients in Vietnam has increased to 3,985, including 2,522 locally-transmitted cases.



Two imported patients are two Vietnamese women aged 29 and 35 who recently returned from Malaysia and Japan to Vinh Long and Quang Ninh provinces. They were sent to local quarantine areas upon arrival and are now being treated at local hospitals.





As of 6 pm on May 15, a total of 2,668 Covid-19 patients had recovered and been discharged from hospital.



On Saturday, the Ministry of Health also confirmed the first Covid-19 related death since September last year. The deceased patient is an 89-year-old woman with a history of diabetes and hypertension.

So far there have been 36 deaths, most of them being the elderly with serious underlying diseases.



At present, over 83, 000 people who had close contact with Covid-19 patients or returned from virus-hit areas are being monitored at hospitals, quarantine facilities, and at home.



Also on May 14, 10,515 more people were given Cvid-19 vaccine in Vietnam, raising the total number of vaccinated people to 969,697 including 21,042 people having received two doses.
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Auburn, IN (46706)

Today

Partly cloudy skies during the morning giving way to a few showers late. Thunder possible. High 83F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%..

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Partly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low around 65F. Winds light and variable.
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